I became the Lord of the Eternal World in Tokyo.

After a powerful surge of electricity, the entire silvery-white sphere was completely transformed.

After two wrench-like clicks, a young boy's voice emerged from the small ball: "It should be adjusted now. Aunt Nanjo, why don't you try it again?"

Nanjo... Auntie?

I think Wu Jun is quite a ruthless person.

Uesugi Tetsu kept his eyes down, pretending not to hear anything.

There was a few seconds of silence inside the small ball, and then, without even pausing for breath, Nanjo Manami continued speaking as if nothing had happened.

"Moreover, these black phone booths specifically target ordinary people to kill, so as not to attract the attention of various local forces."

Wu Jun's technique seems to be quite good; this time, there was absolutely no electrical noise in the small ball.

Nanjo Manami: "Although I recently intercepted the footage of the illegal phone booths being used, I also cleared out the phone booths in Arakawa Ward overnight."

Someone from the main body has already come knocking on our door, and it should be resolved within a week at most.

However, Uesugi-kun, you still need to be careful.

This abrupt turn of events startled Uesugi Tetsuya, who asked in bewilderment, "What's the reason?"

"Because these ghost stories seem to have started to evolve... Also, you've had contact with the Demon Guide Association before, haven't you?"

The Demon Guide Association.

If we're talking about his contact with this world-changing organization, it was only that one time with Nue.

How could a mere one or two thousand points of Soul Ash possibly make such a large organization take notice of a nobody like me, Karami?

Uesugi Tetsu responded.

Then he heard Nanjo Ai said, "Judging from the radio wave clips I intercepted, this black phone booth is actually the work of the Yokai Association."

She sneered.

"Following the aftershocks of the wave, those rats hiding in the shadows have once again reached out to the world with unwavering determination."

But that's fine too; it lets me chop off a couple of claws to set an example. And if there are any fearless daredevils, I might as well uproot them completely.

Even the Demon Guide Association, which Lian Shenghai considered insignificant, has made a move. So, what about the factory owners, the warring states daimyo, and the Eight Sufferings Daoists?

Uesugi Tetsu felt as if the world was a giant cake, and the greedy diners wielding bloody knives and forks were floating on the surface of the waves, slowly approaching...

Nanjo Manami was as authentic as ever.

"If you, with your troublemaking nature, encounter any monsters or strange tales that you can't handle, remember to tell me immediately or report it to the Special Affairs Department."

Uesugi Tetsu said helplessly to the silver ball, "I caused trouble? Nanjo-nee, you should probably keep an eye on Kitano-san first, so she doesn't get caught up in this mess again..."

"You've managed to encounter sick and suffering families, and you still have the nerve to say you don't cause trouble?" Nanjo Aimi said mercilessly. "If you ask me, an ordinary person would never even see the Eight Sufferings once in their entire life!"

So before you say that, take a look in the mirror and see what you're doing all day!

—I traveled back 500 years and am now helping the Tokaido daimyo Imagawa Yoshimoto fight his illness.

Of course, one could never say such a thing.

So Uesugi Tetsu simply kept quiet.

"Okay, go play."

Nanjo Aimi knew he was unlikely to say anything, so she yawned and said, "If you need any resources later, just ask me. If I have them, I'll give them to you, okay?"

“Okay,” Uesugi Tetsu replied.

Nanjo Aimi ended the communication decisively—letting the silvery-white ball float back and revert to its original function as a surveillance camera.

Its functions were fully restored within seconds.

Just as Uesugi Tetsu was about to leave, he noticed that his cuff was being pulled by Akatsuki Ran, who had pulled her mask down to her chin.

She chuckled sleepily and blew him a kiss.

"If you ever feel unhappy or upset in the future, Uesugi-kun, feel free to come to me anytime and vent your anger. You can treat me however you want~"

After saying that, she let go of his hand, trying to play hard to get.

Fortunately, she let go after saying that outrageous thing, otherwise Uesugi Tetsuya, who was in a hurry, would have thrown a deliberate punch.

Uesugi Tetsu quickly forgot these outrageous words and ran towards the outline of the distant mountains.

He wanted to find a secluded spot with a slightly higher concentration of spiritual energy to take the Spirit Gathering Pill.

Six minutes later.

He landed lightly in a dense forest with a decent concentration of spiritual energy, and Uesugi Tetsuya took out a Spirit Gathering Pill from his storage backpack.

Without saying a word, he threw it into his mouth.

A prompt will appear immediately.

[You have taken the Compressed Spirit Gathering Pill - Extreme!]

What followed was a sudden surge of immense spiritual power within his body!

For a moment, Uesugi Tetsu even felt that he was about to bleed from all seven orifices from being overwhelmed by this surging spiritual power.

But in the blink of an eye, his spirit control technique seemed to have been automatically switched on.

In just a few seconds, it absorbed the enormous mass of spiritual energy that would normally take several days to accumulate, leaving nothing behind.

It's like telling Uesugi Tetsuya, "You don't need to move, let us do it ourselves."

Next, the upgrade notification for the Spirit Control Technique naturally popped up.

[Your skill, Spirit Controlling Skill proficiency +300! ]

Your skill, Spirit Control, has been upgraded to Expert level!

Two similar prompts, which Uesugi Tetsu had seen countless times before, appeared one after another.

He should have just glanced at it and continued looking down.

But this time, it seems...

slidely different.

But where is the difference?

Uesugi Tetsu blinked blankly, then suddenly felt the world within his five senses become infinitely vast.

It extends from the original "circle" towards the distant horizon, extending... seemingly without end, continuing to expand and grow.

He clenched his fist, staring at the spiritual energy that was seeping out like water from between his fingers and gradually surging.

Is it because—his spirit control technique has reached the expert level?

Is that right?

As Uesugi Tetsu calmly experienced the world and his five senses, which were completely different from before, he slowly moved his gaze.

[Spirit Control Technique (Expert 195/4000)]

[Effect: Control the energy of heaven and earth, and connect with the spirits of all things.]

The skill level required to progress from proficient to expert is only four times higher, which is quite cost-effective.

The breathing technique next door has increased by almost double just from the proficient to the master level. It's hard to imagine how much proficiency is needed to advance even a small level after reaching the master level.

The effects section remains unchanged, highlighting the simple and direct effectiveness of the Spirit Control Technique.

Then there's the direct improvement brought by expert-level spirit control techniques.

[Your Spirit Control skill has been upgraded to Expert level, your Spirit Magic +10!]

[Because your Spirit Control Technique has been upgraded to Expert level, your affinity for spiritual energy has greatly increased!]

[Because your Spirit Control Technique has been upgraded to Expert level, your perception of "Qi" will be much more acute!]

The first two items are easy to understand.

Nowadays, Uesugi Tetsuya can create a small-scale spiritual energy tide around him with just a casual breath.

—Because spiritual energy always flows from areas of high concentration to areas of low concentration, and the greater the concentration difference, the faster the flow.

But what does it mean to be more sensitive to "qi"?

gas?

Internal energy?罡气? Or spiritual energy?

Uesugi Tetsu didn't immediately understand where the improvement lay, so he first opened the simple and intuitive data panel.

【Uesugi Tetsu】

【Physique: 51】

[Will: 31]

【Charm: 12】

[Spiritual Arts: 33 → 43]

Even in its blank state, it possesses over 50 points in physical constitution and nearly 50 points in spiritual magic attribute.

If Uesugi Tetsu wore a mask and a jade pendant, and slightly activated his breathing technique, he could easily break through the 100-point barrier in his physique.

If one transforms into a four-tailed fox, their spiritual attribute will soar to 89 points, which is comparable to most Onmyoji who have just reached three stars.

Uesugi Tetsu casually closed the attribute panel, then tried to use the Spirit Control Technique to suppress the spiritual energy fluctuations on his body.

After all, if you went out with this spiritual energy fluctuation that was almost turning into liquid, you would be no different from a giant humanoid LED light.

"Ok?"

Uesugi Tetsu looked down in surprise at his body, which was now completely empty.

The surging spiritual power... was actually suppressed by the Spirit Control Technique in an instant?

The effect was surprisingly good.

A significant increase in spiritual power, a greater degree of control over spiritual power, and the ever-evolving and evolving five senses...

These all seem to be changes brought about by the upgrade of the Spirit Control Technique?

The enhancement brought about by expert-level spirit control techniques may be far greater than the "heartstring amplifier" effect I had previously anticipated.

Just as Uesugi Tetsu was thinking this, several more notifications suddenly appeared and occupied the center of his field of vision.

[Your skill, Spirit Control, has been upgraded to "Expert Level"!]

Please choose between "Qi" and "Spirit" for your skill, Spirit Control, to determine your future focus.

Please note that this decision is extremely important! Please choose carefully!

choice?

Qi and spirit?

Uesugi Tetsu stared at the three lines of prompts, his brows furrowing slightly as he pondered.

He couldn't help but recall what Ririko had told him in the past: that once swordsmanship reached the "expert level," he would inevitably encounter something like this—

The choice between "skill" and "reason".

"On one hand, there is sword skill; on the other hand, there is sword theory. As someone who has just stepped into the realm of the extraordinary, how should you choose to focus on your future?"

This is the very problem that is now facing Uesugi Tetsuya.

【gas】

[It is the breath of life, the pulse of nature, the bond that flows between heaven and earth.]

【spirit】

"All things have a spirit, and I should be the head of all spirits."

Following "qi" and "ling," there are only two brief sentences of introduction.

How to choose?

Uesugi Tetsu recalled the earlier hint and then tentatively flicked a wisp of qi from his fingertips.

Two seconds later, he determined that the "qi" was at least related to the qi of the body.

Thinking back to the easily suppressed spiritual energy, it must also have a deep connection with spiritual energy.