I became the Lord of the Eternal World in Tokyo.

Uesugi Tetsuya pondered for a moment, then spoke to the man before him: "Lord Kujo, I recently have a need for wood-attribute defining objects. If you have any information..."

Uesugi Tetsuya didn't finish his sentence.

Shingo Kujo stared at him for a moment, then nodded obediently.

"The Five Elements Qi Sea, and the demarcation point for the metal and fire attributes... Uesugi-kun, you really have a big appetite."

“I’ll keep an eye out for you.” Shingo Kujo paused for a moment before continuing, “But don’t get your hopes up too high, after all, the quality of the items you need, Uesugi-kun, is very high, isn’t it?”

Uesugi Tetsu bowed slightly: "In that case, I am already extremely grateful."

Shingo Kujo glanced back and saw the medicine boy still running around in a hurry, so he continued speaking slowly with Tetsuya Uesugi.

“Uesugi-kun, your current strength is quite impressive, which proves what Nanjo-sama said to me before…”

But if that's all there is to it, even finishing in the top three in the seeding battles will still be far from enough to win the championship.

Uesugi Tetsu replied, "I have met Minamoto Shizumi and Kyuuketsuin Kin, and I know the truth."

"If you've seen it, that's even better."

Shingo Kujo's gaze softened.

But the next moment, he raised a finger and his expression became serious: "Uesugi-kun, while it's good to want to lay a solid foundation and become the strongest among your peers, it's also good to do so."

However, in the years following that wave, the world changed rapidly, almost overnight. Perhaps even the Nanjo clan wouldn't be able to protect you in the future.

Let me give you a piece of advice.

He spoke in a solemn voice.

"If you don't become a god or spirit, you'll just be a drifting duckweed."

Uesugi Tetsuya felt a chill run down his spine.

"Only by becoming a ghost or god can one have the means to stand firm in this era of great strife, which has never been seen in a thousand years, and will no longer drift with the tides."

Shingo Kujo's voice softened.

"I believe in Nanjo Taishu's vision, and I believe in mine. In the future—Uesugi-kun, you will definitely become a demon god."

Now, he no longer doubts what Nanjo Manami said that day in the slightest.

"But when you become a ghost or god, and how much you want after becoming a ghost or god, is a choice you have to make yourself."

Finally, Shingo Kujo offered a word of advice.

"Don't lose sight of the bigger picture for the sake of small gains."

After a few seconds of silence, Uesugi Tetsuya, who had listened quietly to the whole thing, lowered his head again: "Tetsuya, thank you for your advice, Lord Kujo."

Shingo Kujo stroked his chin, thought for a moment, and looked around.

Finally, their focus shifted to the fact that most of the demons had been eliminated, but they still needed to clean up the Mumu Lian maze again.

"Uesugi-kun, let me show you what I'm made of."

The man draped in a black and white haori smiled, and with a simple Yin-Yang spell unfolding at his fingertips, a small crimson fireball shot out.

"The power of ghosts and gods."

Under Uesugi Tetsu's direct witness, the fireball at Kujo Shingo's fingertip expanded and enlarged in an instant, repeating this process repeatedly under the newly superimposed spell.

In the blink of an eye, the small fireball, which was not much different from the flame of a lighter, had grown to a terrifying diameter of tens of meters.

Even more terrifying was that even though Uesugi Tetsu stood close to this magnificent fireball, he didn't feel even the slightest bit of heat or extra spiritual energy fluctuations.

Amidst the labored gurgling sounds in Tamamo's throat, Shingo Kujo spread his five fingers, allowing another Yin-Yang technique, easily understood by Toru Uesugi, to land before the fireball.

—That's a technique that can turn a "fireball" into a "fire laser".

Snapped.

Shingo Kujo retracted his five fingers.

Then, a crimson torrent, seemingly capable of destroying the heavens and the earth, shot out from Uesugi Tetsu's eyes.

In less than half a blink of an eye, the entire hill containing the [Mumu Lian Maze] was wiped out.

That's right, it wasn't smashed or melted.

Instead, it is to erase.

Wiping away every single pebble and speck of dust, leaving nothing behind.

The silent destruction transformed the strange labyrinth that had given Tamamo and the others so much trouble just days before into scorching air rising in the distance.

The next moment, a light drizzle fell from the sky, extinguishing the last bit of heat that had been casually generated.

Uesugi Tetsu stared at the empty space ahead, lost in thought for a long time.

They didn't even realize when Shingo Kujo and Yakushi-dōji had left.

In the long, silent passage, Uesugi Tetsu, who witnessed for the first time the true meaning of the words "ghosts and gods" in reality, understood a more profound truth.

—The power to move mountains and fill seas comes from spirits and gods.

The so-called ghosts and gods are powerful beings capable of easily doing such things.

With a long exhale, Uesugi Tetsu examined the two demon cards he now held.

Bai Banruo has only reached the second and a half stars, and the four-tailed fox will need some more time to arrive.

In the future, you can obtain even higher quality and higher star-level incarnations of the Hundred-Eyed Demon.

Various incarnations are superimposed, and combined with the swordsmanship, breathing techniques, Yin-Yang arts, and secret techniques such as the "Lin" word mantra he has cultivated...

He will become stronger than Shingo Kujo imagined.

If I could do that someday in the future, wouldn't that mean I'd be on par with ghosts and gods even though I'm below them?

Uesugi Tetsu laughed heartily.

That would definitely be very interesting.

After a while, Kenjiro Otomo and the others, who had been wounded during the retreat, finally came before Tetsuya Uesugi, bowed deeply to him, and expressed their apologies.

Because it held him back.

Uesugi Tetsu shook his head: "No one could have imagined that so many Mumu would turn into one. This was something we didn't expect beforehand, and there were no precedents to refer to."

No one is at fault.

After he finished speaking, Tamamo clicked her tongue in amazement and said, "We were supposed to do some finishing touches, but now we don't need to..."

The girl glanced at Uesugi Tetsuya, who was spotless, and a hint of envy and astonishment flashed across her eyes.

"Brother Uesugi," she asked, "are you going back to Arakawa Ward after you collect the reward for that scale armor?"

“No, I have an agreement with Shihan Dai,” Uesugi Tetsu replied. “I’ll probably be leaving in about a week.”

Tamamo breathed a heavy sigh of relief: "That's great..."

Meeting Uesugi Tetsu's strange gaze, she stuck out her tongue.

"Who knows how dangerous the aftermath of this wave will be, but as long as you're here, Uesugi-nii, you're like a pillar of strength, giving people peace of mind."

Having witnessed Uesugi Tetsu successively defeat the Tunnel Demons, the Black Telephone Booth, and the Muk-mu-ren Maze, Tamamo's statement is indeed accurate.

Tamamo tapped her phone for a while: "With the endorsement of both Nanjo and Kujo, we can just take a car there now and get the Scale Robe at the Shizuoka City Special Affairs Office headquarters."

Uesugi Tetsu nodded, then looked at Yagyu Chi: "Then let's not delay, shall we set off now?"

“I have no objection.” After a few seconds of silence, Yagyu Chi continued earnestly, “I have benefited greatly from the few days I spent with Uesugi-kun.”

"That's because you, Yagyu-kun, are so capable."

Uesugi Tetsu pointed with his thumb at Tamamo, who was humming an old-fashioned tune while waiting for the car: "This guy is with us too, but we haven't seen him benefit from it at all."

"Wow! Uesugi-nii, you actually said that about us! How can we compare to Yagyu?!"

Tamamo was displeased and ran over to tickle Uesugi Tetsuya with her two little fists: "We're ordinary people!"

……

Less than two hours later, the Special Affairs Department's large shuttle bus arrived and picked up all the agents at the camp.

Because of the small fireball released by Shingo Kujo, all the Special Affairs Department agents in this camp became "unemployed".

The shuttle bus first passed by the Numazu City Special Affairs Office, dropped off the remaining agents, and then carried Uesugi Tetsu and the other two towards Shizuoka City at a leisurely pace.

Uesugi Tetsu sat by the window, closing his eyes to rest, and then went to the projection secret realm to die once more at the sword saint, Kamiizumi Nobutsuna.

After Yaegaki was acquired, the Sword Saint used an extra sword strike to cut off his head, instead of simply changing the move.

This indicates commendable progress.

Thanks to the shuttle bus's excellent shock absorption, Uesugi Tetsuya, who was feigning sleep, arrived in Shizuoka City with almost no vibration.

Suddenly, the entire shuttle bus shook violently.

Uesugi Tetsu opened his eyes.

Tamamo, who had been fast asleep nearby, was suddenly startled. She sprang up from the soft seat with a somersault, quickly pulled out her phone from her pocket, and exclaimed in surprise,

"Brother Uesugi, the aftershocks of the wave are coming!"

She immediately pressed her face against the one-way window of the shuttle bus, looking up at the sky, which had become as dark as ink.

But then, a massive barrier adorned with starlight rose from the ground, completely enveloping the entire city of Shizuoka.

Yuzao quickly patted her chest and breathed a sigh of relief: "Hehe, I knew the Special Affairs Department was prepared. The warning on my phone was only yellow, so everyone should stay home."

Shizuoka Prefecture was the first target that the Tokoyo factory owners tested.

Uesugi Tetsu recalled this information and spoke calmly.

"I don't think so."

Almost as if to confirm Uesugi Tetsu's words, before Tamamo could refute, a dark vortex appeared on a street not far away with not many people.

Appeared out of thin air.

That's completely illogical.

The incident happened so suddenly that most ordinary people didn't quite understand what had happened... It goes without saying what kind of tragedy would follow.

Uesugi Tetsu also saw it.

“Stop the car,” he said.

The driver, a former special operations officer, naturally recognized the vortex as representing at least a dozen demons, hence his slightly nervous voice.

"Parking in a place like this might not be a good idea..."

"It's alright to stop for a little while, isn't it?" Uesugi Tetsu opened the car door and placed his hand on the trembling hilt of the knife.

Give me thirty seconds.

Under the driver's hesitant gaze, Uesugi Tetsu walked alone to a spot not far from the whirlpool.

I didn't go to the other side of the road because the traffic light hadn't turned yet.

The vortex flickered and spewed out a large number of brass bio-mechanical units that Uesugi Tetsuya was extremely familiar with, then suddenly closed, completing its mission.

"One star, a total of thirty-two combat units."

Before the general public could understand the situation and start screaming again, Uesugi Tetsuya abruptly stopped the process.

He lazily raised his eyes.

Kaga Kiyomitsu was drawn.

A pale sword light shot into the sky, simultaneously cleaving the thirty-two bio-mechanical units in two from head to toe.

With a single strike, evil is vanquished and punished.

A gentle breeze blew, carrying the pale powder that covered the ground into the sewers.

"Now, we don't need to cross the traffic lights."

Uesugi Tetsu quickly returned to the car, glanced at the time next to the driver's seat, and grinned at the driver.

"Twenty-two seconds...not even thirty seconds yet, please continue driving."

"Yes, yes, Your Excellency."

The driver breathed a sigh of relief and nodded emphatically.