I became the Lord of the Eternal World in Tokyo.

Uesugi Tetsuya temporarily set this potential problem aside, and heard the listless, bored voice behind him.

"Hey, it's about time we stopped."

In the quiet of the night, the two stopped in the mountains, a full twenty minutes' walk from the main temple of the Jodo Shinshu sect.

This location was chosen by Imagawa Yoshimoto, who had been hovering over Nishio Castle for a long time.

According to her estimate, even the nearest half-dead bird would take about five minutes to get here.

Five minutes is more than enough time to end a life-or-death battle.

—The patient looked with great interest at the young novice monk a few meters away, whose body was emanating a faint aura.

Samurai, or swordsman?

The sick man grimaced, and unusually, instead of turning the other man into a puddle of pus, he asked cheerfully, "Aren't you going to draw the sword from your waist and kill me?"

In any case, the person in front of him had already brought him some amusement during this boring wait.

At first, Bingku, who was focused on calculating the time of the world's revival, naturally didn't notice what kind of person was leading him.

But within minutes, the suffering of God returned and he discovered that the young novice monk before him was not one of his own.

Instead, it was a human who hadn't completely concealed his inner energy, revealing a slight flaw, and was roughly comparable to the previous Old Man of Karmic Illness.

A human being was able to transform into the appearance of another person and bypass numerous surveillances to arrive in front of him.

The patient commented, "That's quite interesting."

He stared at Uesugi Tetsuya with a hint of anticipation, hoping that this human could add some unexpected fun to this boring night.

Uesugi Tetsuya, as he wished for his illness.

There was no probing, no small talk, and no intention of conversation whatsoever.

When faced with the eight sufferings, there is no third outcome other than exorcising the other party or death.

In a single instant, after meticulous preparation and countless rehearsals on the short journey—

With a cold, white prajna mask covering its face, the four-tailed fox with its long, swaying red tail drew a pale blade from its waist.

In an instant, intensely hot qi filled his limbs and bones, and the sound of his breath seemed to drain all the air and spiritual energy of the world.

Deep purple lightning splattered indistinguishably with pale white, surging silently across the slender blade.

The previous grandeur has faded, replaced by tranquility and beauty.

Guided by the Spirit Control Technique: Qi, everything Uesugi Tetsu had learned converged on Kaga Kiyomitsu's blade, which was only seventy-two centimeters long.

cut.

A brilliant yet clean flash of light appeared in the darkness, piercing through the sick body that still held a smile.

In a split second, the flash of the blade vanished.

Not a single bit of internal energy or spiritual power was wasted.

pat.

There was a sound of something falling to the ground.

"Ok?"

Bingku blinked, and just as he was about to touch his chin in confusion, he discovered that the place where his right arm should have been was now empty.

He turned his gaze and looked first at the four-tailed fox that was enveloped in demonic energy.

Fox, huh.

Without any clues, it's impossible for anyone to connect this four-tailed fox, which can be considered a great demon, with the renowned Onmyoji Che, who is famous throughout the Tokaido.

Then his gaze fell on the ground, where he saw an arm that was being eroded by multiple forces and was about to turn into nothingness.

With just one glance, the illness discerned the source of the forces that were about to devour a part of him.

Human breathing techniques, pure lightning, the blazing fire that can simultaneously harm the heart and body, and...

Love and separation?

For the first time, a look of astonishment appeared in his ailing eyes.

How could it be the power of separation from loved ones?

Does Love and Separation know my plans?

What does He want to do?

The sick man, oblivious to his fallen arm, turned to look at the four-tailed fox emanating an aura of ghosts and spirits: "What is your relationship with Love and Separation?"

At the same time, the illness silently exhaled a colorful miasma mixed with five colors: blue, red, black, white, and yellow.

And it drove them to rush to the wound, counteracting the four forces that were continuously corroding his body.

In the blink of an eye, the protective energy and thunder were reduced to nothing.

The fiery one fared slightly better, but it too quickly succumbed to the miasma.

Only the pain of separation relentlessly corroded the severed part of his ailing arm, inhibiting its regeneration.

After confirming once again that it was the power of separation from loved ones, Bing smiled bitterly and said, "There might be some misunderstanding between us."

"Because I also know love and separation, and I am still the best of friends with Him."

- Strange.

Of the eight sufferings that manifest in the ordinary world, the suffering of illness most desires to destroy it all, especially the suffering of separation from loved ones.

As he spoke, Bingku took the opportunity to recall all his family members from Nishio Castle.

"Stop talking so much nonsense."

Uesugi Tetsu did not rashly draw his sword, but carefully observed the colorful miasma continuously gushing from the patient's mouth.

They collide with the realm of sorrow and separation, yet they continue to advance.

Before long, the sorrow of parting that has spread prematurely will be completely eroded away.

The suffering from illness is being laid out.

Uesugi Tetsu made a decision immediately.

We can't delay any longer.

We must use all our strength to finish this quickly and decisively, before the illness and suffering can fully prepare the battlefield.

He said, "I just couldn't stand this kind of scene as a four-tailed fox, so I wanted to kill you."

laugh!

Under the strange gaze of the patient suffering, Kaga Kiyomitsu, surging with dazzling lightning, deeply penetrated Uesugi Tetsu's body and emerged.

The effect of the Hannya Mask has been changed from "Demon God" to "Berserker"!

The Five Thunder Technique was unleashed without reservation in the next instant!

The pale, dazzling lightning spread along the wounds around the blade into every inch of Uesugi Tetsuya's flesh.

Thunder roared within his blood vessels, and electric light flowed into every muscle and nerve, stimulating his body, which was far stronger than usual, almost to the point of destruction!

At this moment, even Uesugi Tetsu's pupils were filled with lightning, leaving no space at all.

He could sense what followed the thunder that symbolized destruction...

It's a new life!

The illness caused miasma of all colors to seep out from every pore of the body, which had already consumed eight or nine tenths of the sorrow of separation.

He subtly created distance, watching with equal caution Uesugi Tetsuya, who had already inflicted a self-inflicted wound.

What's happening here?

Do demons in the modern world still have this custom before the battle begins?

But soon he felt the pain of his illness. The aura emanating from the four-tailed fox not far away was many times stronger than before he had mutilated himself.

The thunder subsided once more, and Uesugi Tetsu, whose consciousness had been almost completely shattered into a pile of charred remains, pulled Kaga Kiyomitsu out of his chest.

He exhaled dry air, his hand gripping the knife handle trembling slightly.

The sudden surge in his physical attributes made Uesugi Tetsuya's consciousness somewhat unsettled.

Nowadays, in Uesugi Tetsu's perception, time has almost become a second hand that he can reach out and grab.

The direction of every wisp of air flow, the nodes where the life of plants flows, and the silent breath of the earth beneath our feet...

Everything was in his palm; with just a flick of his wrist, he could cleave them in two at the mercy of Kaga Kiyomitsu.

Uesugi Tetsuya knew.

This state won't last long; it might disintegrate into a pile of fragments in a few minutes.

The fact that he could be resurrected next to the Key of History after death gave him the confidence to forcibly rebuild his body even though he had not yet fully mastered the technique of using lightning to stimulate his physical body.

—Now, this four-tailed fox is able to contend with his own avatar.

The patient frowned: "Plans really can't keep up with changes."

He waved his hand, using his now smaller version of his own arm to block the view.

At this point, the pain of illness had already made him want to give up.

Just half a minute ago, he never imagined that his playful banter with a "human warrior" would turn out like this.

In this world where nothing is given and nothing is asked, in such a harsh and spiritually deprived environment, a demon could still be born who could rival his avatar when it went all out.

The suffering patient did not realize that the four-tailed fox before him had come from the mortal world.

Because it's really difficult.

Even though he was one of the Eight Sufferings, it took him countless efforts to finally send over an incarnation.

Most of this avatar's abilities are focused on cultivating followers and spreading and controlling epidemics.

If other abilities are to be used, then the avatar's life force must be greatly consumed.

Thus, the incarnation that was originally expected to exist in the world for more than a hundred years could only exist for ten or twenty years.

"That would be a loss for them..."

The pros and cons of illness are always clearly weighed.

But just as he was about to turn and leave, the small clone that he had abandoned to hold off the four-tailed fox for a moment was actually annihilated.

An arrogant hum echoed through the mountains and forests, and countless crackling sounds of thunder spread through the air.

It seems like it's going to be difficult to escape now.

"That's all."

The young monk sighed helplessly in his suffering, his fair skin gushing like liquid, and his human form gradually began to disintegrate.

In Uesugi Tetsu's eyes, the transformation of his illness was as sudden and unexpected as switching forms with a single click.

The original young novice monk has disappeared.

Instead, there are fleshy bodies pieced together from countless festering limbs, which are incredibly ugly, yet strangely beautiful.

Seven faces of different ages emerged from the body, rose, and rotated.

Fourteen dark eyes stared indifferently at Uesugi Tetsuya, and seven mouths spoke in unison: "Fox, you could have survived if you had retreated."

The disease stretched out its seemingly slender, decaying limbs and took out a tin staff made of bones, rotten wood, and bronze from nothingness.

The surface of this tin staff is covered with greenish-blue patina, and seven small bone bells hang from the three human bone rings at the top.

On the bone bell, seven distinct ancient characters were engraved with dark red bloodstains.

"resonance."

The illness lightly tapped the staff, causing Uesugi Tetsuya, who was in a three-stage stance, to suddenly freeze in place.

The wails of millions suddenly rose from the lake of Uesugi Tetsuya's heart, bringing with them the suffering of millions.

Pain, fear, palpitations...

Countless feelings and despair on the verge of death filled Uesugi Tetsuya's five senses, and he wanted to succumb to them and become one of them.

If not for the dual protection of the Clear Mirror in His Heart and the Art of Broken Heart, Uesugi Tetsu would have lost all consciousness in that instant.