I became the Lord of the Eternal World in Tokyo.

He still remembers the urgency and unease he felt when he first heard the sound of the waves.

But now, Uesugi Tetsu's mindset is completely different.

Just like the Special Affairs Bureau facing the aftermath of the wave—there were no dramatic changes, no unexpected events, only what arrived as scheduled and passed smoothly.

Gazing at the gradually clearing sky, Uesugi Tetsu laughed and took out a disc-shaped assembly token from his storage backpack.

The edges of the bronze disc gleamed in the sunlight.

……

When he opened his eyes again, Uesugi Tetsu heard a wave that was a thousand times, ten thousand times more powerful than the one in the real world, as if it were about to engulf the world.

"It's been a long time, Uesugi Kogyo."

In a daze, Uesugi Tetsu heard a voice that was slightly pleased and surprised.

"What you received was actually this 'walking certificate'?"

Chapter 234 A Spiritual Spring Capable of Advancing to Incarnation Quality! A Secret Realm from a Thousand Years Ago, a Great Onmyoji of the Heian Period

The daze that had traversed the vast tides and depths gradually faded away.

Uesugi Tetsu's gaze gradually focused, and he saw everything clearly before him.

One by one, the originally broken pillars were restored to their original state, and the steps, once covered in dust and bloodstains, were transformed into something bright and clean, so much so that Uesugi Tetsuya's face could be reflected in them.

He subconsciously looked up and saw the surging, deep sea above the semi-transparent, round, light-filled dome.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh—

The surging waves made Uesugi Tetsuya's blood and thoughts beat in unison. He stared blankly at the vast and boundless sea, feeling as if he were about to float away.

Then, Uesugi Tetsu's gaze was abruptly drawn down by a small, pale hand.

“I almost forgot that Uesugi Gyoro, you haven’t become a demon yet, so you’re less resistant to these great things… I should apologize.”

Someone waved their hand, and the entire translucent dome was sealed back up with bronze.

The sound of the waves also faded away again.

A subtle sense of disorientation was banished from Uesugi Tetsuya's mind.

He took two deep breaths and then looked up.

Before him, a white-haired girl wearing a snow-white hooded robe was gazing at him, a hint of apology in her eyes.

The crimson runes on her snow-white skin had faded considerably, and the terrifying, suffocating power she had felt last time had been completely absorbed into her body.

Judging from her appearance alone, the Goddess of Calamity is almost no different from an ordinary little girl.

It seems that the previous slumber at the altar was very effective.

After a few seconds of regaining his composure, Uesugi Tetsu nodded at her, noticing the three identical question marks above her head.

"It's been a long time, Lord Calamity God."

“Uesugi, you’ve grown a lot,” said Masatsukami, a hint of joy undisguised in his clear eyes. “In every aspect.”

Uesugi Tetsu shook his head slightly: "Time moves on, and people should always move forward... I'm just barely swimming a little faster than others in keeping with the tide of the times."

The God of Calamity slightly raised the corners of his lips and smiled.

"I wonder how much time has passed in the mortal world since your last visit?"

Uesugi Tetsu replied, "About twenty days."

"Then please don't underestimate yourself."

The God of Calamity stretched out his finger and snatched the jade-white Token of Walking from Uesugi Tetsu's hand: "Even though I have seen thousands of Walkings, you belong to the category of those who have become stronger the fastest."

She stroked the Traveler's Certificate for a while, then murmured again, "I never expected that you, Uesugi Gyogo, would actually obtain this Traveler's Certificate."

"This one?" Uesugi Tetsu expressed appropriate doubt.

After thinking for a moment, Mokujin stepped down the stairs, while beckoning to Uesugi Tetsu.

She explained as she walked.

"The proof of walking is the wealth left by our predecessors to future generations."

"Generally speaking, there are three types of proof of walking: gifts left by previous walkers; gifts from great lords of the world; and secret realms that were not useful at the time but will be useful in the distant future."

The God of Calamity carefully opened the Token of Travel, glanced inside, and confirmed.

"And this certificate of walking was left behind by a powerful walker a thousand years ago, and it contains a very good gift."

She lowered her eyes, her tone nostalgic.

"I still have a pretty deep impression of him."

—The "very nice gift" mentioned by the god of calamity?

Uesugi Tetsu, who was standing beside her, couldn't help but light up.

How powerful would that be?

“But on the other hand,” the Goddess of Calamity led him to the center of the assembly hall. She released her grip, allowing the Token of Walking to float in mid-air on its own.

The faint light that was originally wrapped around the proof of walking suddenly shone brightly!

"One must undergo arduous trials and gain his approval before accepting this generous gift."

The God of Calamity naturally noticed Uesugi Tetsu's burning gaze, so he sighed slightly.

"At least one must possess the strength of a ghost or god to barely qualify."

Barely qualified? Ghosts and gods?

Uesugi Tetsu found it hard to imagine how these two words could be put together.

Those who are spirits and deities can move mountains and fill seas.

In environments with high concentrations of spiritual energy, the destructive power might be even greater.

So just how strong were the walking abilities during the Heian period, a thousand years ago...? Is the world supposed to be set up so that the older the era, the stronger the walking ability becomes?

A subtle silence fell over the assembly hall for a moment.

The God of Calamity fiddled with the Token of Walking a few times with his fingertips, then suddenly exclaimed, "There's a second gift?"

She began as if reading from a script: "Besides that, there is a secret realm that can be entered from a thousand years ago... This secret realm was considered safe at the time."

And since it has remained closed until now, it is generally considered safe.

Seeing that Uesugi Tetsuya's gaze had once again shown interest, Masatsukami gave him another reminder.

"But after a thousand years, even I cannot know what it has become."

After saying that, she glanced at Uesugi Tetsuya again and breathed a sigh of relief.

"However, Uesugi Yuki, you are connected to the Life-Saving Doll, and with the protection of the gathering, you should not be afraid of dying in the secret realm."

Hearing this series of words, Uesugi Tetsu fell into a brief moment of contemplation.

The God of Calamity has made it very clear that there is a secret realm left behind by a traveler a thousand years ago, waiting for him to enter.

A long millennium has passed, and perhaps unknown dangers and horrors lurk within...

No, why am I thinking about these things?

Uesugi Tetsu shook his head with a smile in his heart.

Walking through gatherings is considered part of the ordinary world, so what if someone cuts you down in a secret realm?

It's just that I opened my eyes again and came back to life.

Moreover, the duel with the Hojo family, which was agreed upon with Shihan Dai, will begin in a few days.

Even though his two teammates were quite capable, Uesugi Tetsuya didn't consider them "strong" if he were to be honest.

Now that he had accepted the payment from the teacher training school in advance, he naturally had to win this bet completely for the Yagyu Dojo.

His opponent is the Hojo clan from the Warring States period hundreds of years ago, and not a single piece of information about them has been revealed... He can't afford to be too prepared.

There might be an opportunity to improve myself right now, so why not go in and take a look?

"Lord of the Calamity God, could you please open the entrance to the secret realm?" Uesugi Tetsu asked earnestly. "I'd like to go in and take a look."

Without any admonition or warning, the God of Calamity clapped his hands, causing a pale white vortex to appear behind the Proof of Walking.

"Let's go in and take a look; we might find something great."

She spoke softly, then had Uesugi Tetsuya take out the travel token and hang it in the most conspicuous place on his waist.

Although the latter had some doubts, he didn't ask any more questions and simply did as instructed.

"Don't worry, I will guard the exit for you here."

These words, spoken by the god of calamity, brought Uesugi Tetsu a great sense of security.

"Thank you."

He exhaled, and before stepping into the vortex, he heard an ancient, long-standing farewell sound behind him.

"May you maintain a clear mind as you journey through history and time..."

……

There was no prolonged darkness.

A brief glimmer of light swept across Uesugi Tetsuya's field of vision.

When he blinked again, Uesugi Tetsu found himself no longer walking in the gathering.

What comes into view is a dense and lush forest and a winding stream.

Through the trees and tall bushes, Uesugi Tetsu could still vaguely see that there was a path for people to walk on.

He glanced around as usual, only to find nothing there.

"No notification popped up..."

Isn't this a secret realm?

There was a prompt when I entered the projection realm last time.

Looking around, Uesugi Tetsu could not hear the sound of the waves at all, which meant that this place was definitely not reality or the ordinary world in a broader sense.

But at least the spiritual energy is abundant, even more so than in the mortal world.

Alright, let's go out of the woods and take a detour to see what's going on around here.

Uesugi Tetsu didn't waste any more time thinking about it.

But before he had gone far, he unexpectedly encountered a strange... spirit/monster while parting the bushes?

A brand-new, shiny, and incredibly eye-catching vermilion oil-paper umbrella suddenly peeked out from the lush green bushes, followed by a large, puzzled single eye and a mud-stained, yellowish-brown raincoat.

——【Tang Umbrella Monk (One Star)】.

It was startled by Uesugi Tetsuya, who appeared a few meters away, and jumped back two steps.

The young monk with the katana stammered, but surprisingly, Uesugi Tetsuya could roughly understand what he was saying.

"Outsider...outsider?"

Local monsters?

Uesugi Tetsu also scrutinized it—the Tang Umbrella Monk was a relatively rare spirit, and it generally harbored goodwill towards people.

In that case, it wouldn't be a bad idea to exchange a few words with it.

"Hello, can you tell me..."

Before Uesugi Tetsu could finish speaking, the one eye on the pale face of the Tangsan Monk suddenly shrank, and he immediately knelt down on the ground.

The young monk with the Tang umbrella pressed the umbrella handle and his face deeply into the soil, and said tremblingly,

"Alright, alright...Master, hello!"

Uesugi Tetsu:?

He blinked several times before realizing that the young monk Tang San was most likely kneeling because of the walking token at his waist.

Is this why the God of Calamity has placed the walking arrow on his head...?