I became the Lord of the Eternal World in Tokyo.

It surged forth.

Boom!

a bolt from the blue!

A bolt of lightning, as straight as a line, flashed past the side of Ashi's gaunt face in an instant and landed directly behind Sakata.

Stab it!

After the thunder, like a mirage of bubbles, a shrill, hoarse roar rang out, then quickly dissipated into the world along with the thunder.

Along with the strands of hair at Ah Shi's temples, they turned into specks of charcoal, which drifted away without a trace in the breeze.

Uesugi Tetsu looked indifferently at the kill notification that popped up in front of him, his eyes narrowing into slits.

This is... really not good news.

Standing in front of him, Ah Shi, who had just brushed past the lightning that was so close to him, felt his legs go weak and collapsed uncontrollably to the ground, feeling as if his soul had left his body.

Sakata first turned around to observe what was behind him, then exclaimed in sudden realization,

"What superb lightning technique! With just one strike, you killed a demon I hadn't even noticed. You truly deserve the title of the renowned Onmyoji Che, who is famous throughout the Tokaido!"

The samurai bowed and clasped his hands, his tone earnest and sincere.

"It is my great honor to meet you today, Sakata!"

The Great Onmyoji... Che?

Upon hearing this, not only did the bandits, including the brothers Ashi and Amu, look at him with awe, but even the small merchant's family was stunned and frightened by the name.

Because in recent days, this name has swept through the city and its streets like a Category 5 hurricane, and even small villages have not been spared.

Wherever there is interaction with the outside world, you will inevitably hear the name "Great Onmyoji Che" from merchants or ronin, and then see their envious eyes.

Sakata took a deep breath, stood up, and said, "Lord Che, let's talk here..."

"I don't have time to listen to all your nonsense."

Uesugi Tetsuya's eyes were icy cold as he interrupted him without hesitation.

His body crackled with blinding lightning as he spoke, each word deliberate and deliberate.

"Now, immediately, tell me everything you know about the Three Rivers Kingdom, don't leave out a single word!"

Sakata paused, unable to respond for a moment.

He took the initiative to make amends, but was humiliated in front of so many of his underlings... How can he continue to be the boss?

But Sakata was clear-headed.

—This great Onmyoji Che is also a big shot that he can't afford to offend.

At this point, the floating platform descended.

Dressed simply, Yoshimoto Imagawa stepped lightly on the ground. After looking around, she asked coldly, "What happened?"

Uesugi Tetsu rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed deeply.

"Lord Yiyuan, things seem to be getting worse... It's no longer a minor local clan uprising."

Imagawa Yoshimoto was slightly taken aback upon hearing this.

She asked again, her expression turning serious: "What happened?"

No one answered.

Everyone present held their breath and lowered their heads and eyes after hearing Uesugi Tetsu's address to the girl who had just landed.

Because the girl standing in front of them is very likely the sole ruler of Suruga, Tōtōmi, and Mikawa!

The Imagawa family's most brilliant and greatest head to date!

Especially Sakata.

He had once accompanied the head of the Toda family to Sunpu Castle to attend a celebration, and had seen the appearance of that noble man from afar.

Even if I couldn't see clearly back then, my memory is already somewhat hazy.

But such a unique temperament is absolutely impossible for others to imitate.

Without a doubt, it is the one right in front of us.

In this way, the dilemma we were just facing is easily resolved!

Ignoring the stares of the crowd, Sakata knelt down on the rough dirt road with a thud, bowing his head and saying...

"This humble man, Sakata, greets Lord Imagawa."

The bandits around them were still looking at each other, not having reacted, standing there dumbfounded, not knowing what to do.

"In these extraordinary times, there is no need for formalities."

Imagawa Yoshimoto quickly raised his hand, glanced at Uesugi Tetsuya, whose expression was more solemn than ever before, and said, "Just do whatever Mr. Tetsuya tells you to do."

Uesugi Tetsuya added coldly, "My journey with Yoshimoto-kun is to resolve the Mikawa issue—an army of over ten thousand men has already set off!"

"so."

His fingertips crackled with a fusion of magical energy and lightning: "Tell us everything you know about the Kingdom of Sanhe."

If someone knows about it but conceals it…

Boom!

Uesugi Tetsu raised his hand, instantly turning the thick trees not far away into charcoal: "This is your fate."

An army of tens of thousands.

"I know."

Sakata tensed up, realizing how much the head of the Imagawa family valued this matter.

He then quickly recalled everything about the incident, piecing together the sequence of events and organizing his thoughts.

About twenty seconds later, Sakata, with his exceptional mental fortitude, began to recount the events that had begun about twenty days prior, speaking with remarkable clarity.

The two listened intently.

According to Sakata, the "headmaster of the Toda family," it was indeed the local powerful clans who initially wanted to stir up trouble and instigate unrest.

But he valued his life and didn't want to climb the social ladder anymore. He didn't want to get involved in this mess, so he went to a small city to avoid trouble.

"Although the powerful clans in several places have joined forces again to do something, the bald monks of the Buddhist sect have also joined in, once again trying to profit from the chaos and gain benefits from all sides."

Sakata recounted,

"A lot of people did die more than half a month ago—but I've gotten used to it, after all, we've been through the same thing for the past two years."

Imagawa Yoshimoto nodded, which was considered as agreement with his words.

For a unified local upheaval to occur, the internal opposition must first be eliminated.

It's impossible to avoid bleeding.

"Then...then..."

But at this point, even though he was nearly thirty years old, had experienced countless wars, and had faced death many times, Sakata paused for a long time, his face stiffening.

He closed his eyes, spoke with difficulty, his voice becoming hoarse and dry.

"But things started to change a week ago."

Chapter 178 Eight Sufferings and Illness, A Divine Oracle of Great Misfortune! The first time I changed my oracle, the people there needed me!

On the rugged country roads of Tōtōmi Province, Sakata spoke hoarsely.

"Maybe it was a day a week ago, or maybe it was a moment... In any case, something changed a little while later."

Under Uesugi Tetsu's gaze, the burly samurai seemed to recall something unpleasant, and his face turned pale.

"Before this turning point, as long as ordinary people stayed at home and were not conscripted into foot soldiers, they would basically be safe. At most, they would just have to live a little more frugally in the days to come."

But after that—

Unheard-of diseases appeared and began to spread at an abnormally and utterly unreasonable rate; crops that were about to be harvested withered and died inexplicably... leading to a famine that occurred without anyone noticing.

Sakata continued speaking in a dry, labored manner.

"Besides that, there are also all sorts of strange demons that suddenly appeared out of nowhere, like the demon that you, the Great Onmyoji, killed with your lightning magic just now."

"Unable to communicate, killing the living, bringing disease..."

Imagawa Yoshimoto listened silently, but his expression grew increasingly grim.

Her fingernails had dug into her palms, causing bright red blood to drip from her knuckles and seep into the soil.

Uesugi Tetsuya remained indifferent as he looked at the kill notification that had popped up earlier.

[You have killed the Sickly Servants - Miasma Demon (Half-Star) and gained 3 Soul Ashes.]

One of the eight sufferings.

The suffering of illness in the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death.

This was the second time he had seen Ba Ku.

When I first met the Eight Sufferings, in just a short time, the Love and Separation of only three stars had stirred up a "Red Tide" that almost destroyed the entire Arakawa Ward in a big city like Tokyo, right under the nose of the Special Affairs Bureau.

Although the separation of lovers could only be achieved under the cover of the first wave.

However, compared to the present-day Arakawa Ward, the Mikawa Kingdom of the Warring States period is completely inferior in terms of both the number of cultivators and their reaction speed.

Moreover, the area of ​​Mikawa Province is much, much larger than that of a single Arakawa Ward.

Even if the population and density are not that high, with such fertile ground for unbridled development, the current situation in the Three Rivers Kingdom is certainly much worse than it was during the Red Tide.

Fortunately, there is also some good news that has been confirmed.

That is, the historical Mikawa Province and the historical Imagawa family were not destroyed as a result, and Imagawa Yoshimoto still chose to go to Kyoto in 1560.

Now, there are only three years left until 1560.

This indicates that the Imagawa family's losses were not too severe.

In other words, the suffering from illness at present should not be too severe.

It might not even be as good as Samsung's Love and Separation.

Otherwise, not only Mikawa Province, but also the Shun'en region under the Imagawa family's rule, and even the entire Tokaido, would be plunged into the shadow of disease, death, and famine.

This is probably the only good news so far.

"Then the countdown to the 62-day mission begins..."

Uesugi Tetsu thought, "I didn't quite understand before, but now I think it must be related to the suffering caused by illness."

After sixty-two days, the suffering from the illness should, like the separation from loved ones during the first wave of the illness, smoothly progress to the next stage.

Therefore, something must be done beforehand to interrupt the "process" of the illness.

Uesugi Tetsu glanced at the remaining mission countdown and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Forty-two days.

There are still forty-two days until the illness can fulfill its purpose.

The time was barely enough.

Fortunately, Imagawa Yoshimoto had enough influence within the Imagawa family, and I also made her pay attention to the matter of Mikawa Province.

Otherwise, if there were only half a month or even ten days left, then we would truly be at a loss.

But new problems followed.

Even if he and Imagawa Yoshimoto entered Mikawa, how could they find the illness?

Previously, when faced with separation from loved ones, it was only by having Mafuyu-nee alone with the psychic board that they were able to successfully lure the other party out before the first wave arrived, thus avoiding greater losses.

However, this method cannot be used for those suffering from illness.

Because it was only now that Uesugi Tetsu had learned of the other's existence for the first time.

—Also, is it a good thing or a bad thing that an army of six or seven thousand people has entered the Kingdom of Sanhe?

Regardless of the samurai who practiced breathing techniques, Uesugi Tetsu felt that the foot soldiers would probably only be a hindrance in the face of the situation in Mikawa Province and the suffering of their families.