I became the Lord of the Eternal World in Tokyo.

【fire】.

Even when it yielded, it did not choose to merge with the Four-Tailed Fox's card.

Instead, it floats alone in the Qi Sea, existing as a slightly weaker third party.

The Qi Sea, which was originally dominated by black and red and pink and white, suddenly stirred.

A moment later, a purer and deeper black surged up from the depths of the Qi Sea.

In an instant, Uesugi Tetsu felt a faint burning sensation all over his body.

[Because your Void Qi Sea is affected by the "Feather of the Guhuoniao" definition, your Physique +1].

[Because your empty Qi Sea is affected by the "Feather of the Guhuoniao" boundary, your Spiritual Arts +1].

[Because your Void Qi Sea is affected by the "Feather of the Guhuoniao" effect, your fire resistance has increased!]

Before he could even savor the changes brought about by the Ubume's Feathers, he discovered that the two cards were trying to work together to swallow the dark part again, but the progress was somewhat slow.

This is not okay.

A tangible, powerful hand of qi immediately descended, drawing two avatar cards and slapping each of them once. Only then did it use qi to separate the Guhuoniao Feather from the boundary between the two sides.

In this way, the three can continue to expand and develop steadily.

"The expansion speed of the Qi Sea has returned to normal... and it seems to be even faster than before?"

After observing for more than ten minutes and confirming that nothing had happened, Uesugi Tetsuya pulled his attention away from the thriving Qi Sea.

Compared to the ordinary Qi Sea, the Void Qi Sea—especially since it has chosen the path of defining the Five Elements—is naturally focused on long-term development.

It requires a full five avatar cards and five high-quality defining items to be complete.

And now, with less than one-fifth of the vacancies filled, it has already developed to this extent.

Its potential is truly limitless.

Uesugi Tetsu raised his fingertip, observing the qi emanating from it, which carried an extra "scorching" sensation and was theoretically much more damaging.

Not only that.

A deeper black lightning flashed before Uesugi Tetsuya's eyes than before.

Under the influence of the Ubume's Feather, his Five Thunder Technique was no longer as magnificent as before, but its lethality had increased to a new level, and it also carried an additional sense of curse.

In layman's terms, it meant changing the Five Thunder Technique's skin from white to black—Uesugi Tetsuya had no complaints.

He naturally loves whoever is stronger.

Uesugi Tetsu sat on the toilet seat, savoring the expanding Qi Sea within his body that was increasing with each passing second.

He exhaled with relief.

This feeling of constantly becoming stronger is just so incredibly satisfying...

But just a few minutes later, another wave of exclamations came from outside the window.

"What are these onlookers trying to do? Do they have to shout at every passerby?"

He opened the window impatiently and leaned out, trying to calm the crowd of onlookers on the street who were yelling and disturbing the peace—Tamamo was still sleeping.

If a child doesn't sleep well, they may not grow tall.

However, Uesugi Tetsu didn't say it aloud.

Because of his understanding of swordsmanship, his clear mind, and the sudden twitch in the corner of his eye where the Eye of Interpretation was attached.

Warning!

On the street, surrounded by several men in black exuding a powerful aura, a beautiful woman dressed in a loose black kimono and wooden clogs stepped out of the back seat of a car, rubbing her eyes sleepily as if she hadn't fully woken up.

—That's how it is in other people's eyes.

But in Uesugi Tetsu's eyes, she wasn't a beauty at all...

No, it's not human at all!

Staring at the humanoid creature that radiated a blazing white light representing destruction across the entire world, yet possessed no spiritual power whatsoever.

What's the difference between this thing and a tactical nuclear weapon...?

Uesugi Tetsu's eyes narrowed involuntarily from the sting.

"Only the Four Extremes Breathing Method can achieve this level of skill."

Under the silent gaze, the kimono-clad beauty seemed to notice the look, so she turned around and bowed her head slightly apologetically.

This action actually earned Uesugi Tetsu a lot of goodwill.

He commented, "This face is quite good-looking, comparable to mine."

Looking at his phone, Uesugi Tetsuya searched for a while in the forum before finally finding out who the other person was.

——【Kyuukakuin Kin】.

The Kyuukein family, along with the Tokugawa and Minamoto families, is one of the three great families that master the Four Extremes Breathing Technique.

Nine Tribulations Institute Jin is the third son of this generation who is not very famous, but still receives a lot of attention... and so on.

Uesugi Tetsuya was taken aback.

Three sons?

Was that a man?

After observing the other person in his memory for a while, Uesugi Tetsu couldn't see how he looked like a man.

Besides tablets.

But you can't determine gender just by whether someone has a flat chest!

This Nine Tribulations Academy member, Jin, is not affiliated with the Special Affairs Department and will most likely not participate in the Seed Battle.

Now that I'm here... it's probably purely to challenge this secret realm and see my ranking.

Is that right?

Uesugi Tetsu recalled Kyuuketsuin Kin's expression and felt that this person didn't seem very willing or expectant.

However, reality soon proved that Uesugi Tetsuya's idea was wrong.

Because the top 100 list changed again in less than half an hour.

[The 40th floor of the Second Nine Tribulation Courtyard]

This proves that yet another Uesugi Tetsuya projection has been blasted to smithereens.

At this point, some busybodies who were "live-streaming" the event commented in the forum that Yuan Jingshui had been kicked back to the real world.

This means that she failed to complete the forty-first floor challenge.

The crowd was in an uproar, and the number of posts on the forum increased several times over afterward.

Not long after, someone else said that the progress of Nine Tribulations Courtyard Jin's strategy had also stopped at the fortieth floor.

Most people were shocked that these two could only conquer one more level than the "strategist" Saito Ryuichi and the anonymous person No. 666.

But some people don't think so.

……

"This is not good. This is very bad."

In the slightly dimly lit room, comic books, crumpled pieces of paper, an old drawing tablet, and empty plastic soda bottles were scattered haphazardly throughout the space.

Someone sat on an ergonomic chair with their knees drawn up, eyes downcast, staring at the "Anonymous Person No. 666" on the top 100 list stone tablet, which had been trampled to the bottom by these guys.

She raised the digital pen in her hand and placed it on the board.

In the cluttered interior, only one spot remained spotless.

It was a clean open space specially isolated by an acrylic cover, inside which was a delicate model of a train station.

There was a small label on the top of the model.

It says above,

——【Kisaragi Station】.

Chapter 220 Kisaragi Station Belongs Only to One Person! The Black Telephone Booth Disaster! The Demon God Thrown Off the Train

cartoonist.

It's a profession that weaves dreams for others, bringing all the bizarre fantasies to life in black and white squares and single-volume books.

Some people have loved comics since childhood, enjoy being a chuunibyou (a person with delusions of grandeur), and love fantasy, so they strive to become comic artists when they grow up.

Although he didn't achieve much, he did win a newcomer award and gained some fame. He survived in the industry by risking his life under the torment of deadlines.

—Even though they keep saying they're thinking of the readers.

Ultimately, however, comics and creation are very personal matters.

Even if a thousand or ten thousand people say they want to see ending A, if the author himself wants to see ending B, then the direction of the comic will change.

Then the logic will break down.

"Deus ex machina".

This is what readers call this illogical behavior.

Such a comic will be criticized as garbage by a thousand or ten thousand people, and will never be able to recover.

Right now, there's a third-rate cartoonist doing just that.

"This is a trial."

"Many geniuses from all over the world have gathered here, and they will be ranked on a black stone tablet according to the number of levels they have conquered in the Trial Realm."

"Among them is a 'hero' who once saved an ordinary high school girl."

"Since he is a hero, he should have a weapon commensurate with him."

"So, what kind of weapon should a hero wield?"

"A: An indestructible sword of a warrior, capable of cutting through anything."

B: An ancient magic wand capable of instantly casting spells and amplifying their power.

"And I choose C—a gigantic cleaver that can only be easily picked up and swung by a hero, forty meters long, and capable of destroying everything in its path."

"So when the hero enters the trial again, he will have such a cleaver in his hand."

The logic of the story collapses here.

But the cartoonist finished drawing with satisfaction.

This is the ending she wanted.

A true hero should effortlessly trample all those stepping stones underfoot, even without any subjective intention.

Then, they receive the worship and admiration of countless people.

……

You have obtained an unknown and powerful buff!

This buff will take effect the next time you enter the "Projection Realm"!

What the hell?

Uesugi Tetsuya, who was sitting on the toilet, was taken aback.

How could I trigger this strange notification when I'm just sitting here doing nothing?

Damn, could it be because there's something wrong with where I'm sitting?

In a video that I saw before, Uesugi Tetsuya mentioned that a very strong guy sat on a golden toilet and gained great strength, but he could never stand up again after sitting on it.

Thinking of this, he quickly stood up from the toilet, which was still closed, and lifted the porcelain white toilet seat.

Uesugi Tetsu looked down.

Thankfully, there was nothing inside.

After breathing a sigh of relief, Uesugi Tetsuya began to wonder again—how could he inexplicably receive a buff?