Shinji Ikari, the pilot of Unit-01 during the Spirit Awakening Era

"Actually, it's not very meaningful, because it's more about the spiritual world. Last time with Asuka, we didn't collect any data." Ritsuko Akagi glanced at Asuka, who had turned her head away. She was quite curious about what Asuka and Shinji Ikari had experienced in that unknown spiritual world.

"You unlucky bastard, I hope you're still here when I go in." Shinji Ikari patted Yuu Aso's face amidst the stunned expressions of the medical staff, then lifted him up and made him sit cross-legged. Yuu Aso, who had been unconscious for some time, had stiff muscles. With the help of several medical staff, Shinji Ikari and Yuu Aso sat back to back, and then the medical staff immediately left.

"They're here!" Ritsuko Akagi looked at the data on the tablet in her hand. Suddenly, the indicators on the tablet started jumping up and down erratically. A strange, damp feeling appeared on everyone's body. Then, a woman dressed in a black kimono slowly emerged from the scene. Ritsuko Akagi reached out and pressed a button. A roller blind on all the windows facing outwards in the sterile ward slowly descended.

This is a small piece of equipment hastily made by the engineering department. After all, staring directly at a fierce god is not a good habit. However, the engineering department thoughtfully sprayed the Kurosawa family crest on these roller blinds, which is quite considerate.

Just as the curtain was lowered, Ritsuko Akagi inexplicably felt Kurosawa Aise look up at her with a half-smile, which sent a chill down her spine. She subconsciously touched her stomach and found herself covered in a cold sweat.

"Is this what it feels like to be casually glanced at by a demon?" Trying to calm her breathing, Ritsuko Akagi felt her heart racing...

"Aise, why are you smiling so happily?!" Although Shinji Ikari didn't turn around, because of their special bond, he could sense some of Aise's thoughts when she was by his side. "Is Yozumi's seal complete?"

"Although it should be said that it failed, and the seal was completely broken, as the Great Pillar, I should have collapsed, but the overflow of the Night Spring has indeed been contained. As long as it is extracted properly, the overflow will not reappear. The Night Spring has become a controllable existence, and both I and Hakukiku are considered liberated. However, Hakukiku has been getting too close to Himuro Mimori lately, which is a bit of a worry for me." Kurosawa Aise embraced Shinji Ikari, a smile on his face. The person outside the door, don't even think about your daughter entering the Himuro family. You're surnamed Kurosawa, aren't you? A baby girl with the potential to be a Great Pillar-level priestess, how could she let her go now that she knows about it? Not to mention that Shinji's bloodline is involved. "However, Shinji, you need to focus your attention now."

Shinji Ikari silently nodded, then closed his eyes. Kurosawa Aise silently covered Shinji's body with his sleeve, extending his other pure white hand and slowly reaching towards Yuu Aso's back. He lightly touched the faint lines on Yuu Aso's neck, and looking at the tattoo that seemed to want to spread towards his palm, he snorted coldly. A misty vapor suddenly filled the room, and a faint blue light, enveloped in the vapor, was imprinted on Shinji's body. Shinji lowered his head slightly.

Kurosawa Aise turned his head slightly, smiled at the camera behind him, and then instantly turned into a wisp of water vapor and disappeared.

"She...disappeared?" A large crowd of onlookers outside stared in disbelief at the scene, as if she had vanished after two elegant, dance-like movements.

"No one is allowed to approach. Engineering department, pressurize and seal off! She won't harm Shinji Ikari." Ritsuko Akagi, unaware that her unborn daughter was being targeted by Ayase Kurosawa, was still issuing orders with complete ease. "This time, it's not just one person's power."

In the last video footage left by the probe before it shattered, it was clearly visible that Shinji Ikari initially placed a photo of Ayase Kurosawa and the Sacred Mirror at opposite ends of the room. In addition to Ayase Kurosawa's direct projection and descent, the barrier rope on the Sacred Mirror also began to extend, sealing off the entire room.

At this moment, NERV headquarters is not only unleashing the power of a single ferocious god; terrifying ice crystals are spreading outwards from the room, and a dark and terrifying aura is slowly permeating the room.

“The two of you… this child, Shinji.” Fuyutsuki Kozo’s face was full of bitter smiles. One fierce god was enough to suppress all the monsters in Japan, preventing them from retaliating against the Totsuki Group for the massive casualties of the Mountain God Festival. But now, with two fierce gods present, he didn’t know why, but a smile appeared on his lips. “Is Unit-01 responding?”

"Huh?" Hinata Makoto was taken aback by Fuyutsuki Kozo's question, then quickly switched to the monitoring equipment signal for Unit-01. "It seems... there's no problem."

“Is that so…” Fuyutsuki Kozo nodded, seemingly somewhat surprised. Of course, he had no idea that Shinji Ikari had taken Himuro Kirie to meet his mother.

"The package on the side has disappeared. It seems that Shinji Ikari brought the items in very smoothly. As expected of the God of Calamity, he can do something that is enough to subvert people's worldview with just a projection." Asuka observed very carefully. The package that Shinji Ikari brought in contained Nakiri Alice cookies, an exorcism camera, and some other things. These things were not prepared by Shinji Ikari for himself, but more for Kurosawa Rei who went in voluntarily and Aso Yuu who had been inside for an unknown amount of time.

After all, the world in dreams is quite different from the outside world. To put it simply, most people have probably experienced having a dream and then waking up to find that only a few minutes have passed. Therefore, Shinji Ikari wasn't sure how much time Yuu Aso had spent in this dream world, and those cookies that could slightly replenish spiritual energy were given to him.

"Shinji, you can open your eyes now, there's not much time left!" Kurosawa Aise's voice rang in Shinji Ikari's ears as he was immersed in the darkness.

Shinji Ikari opened his eyes, and in the next instant, he immediately began to circulate his ki and spiritual power to ensure his combat strength. Fortunately, surprisingly, Shinji Ikari felt that his power was very complete.

"..." Shinji Ikari got up, grabbed his bag, and tossed it aside. He looked around and then suddenly fell silent, feeling a slight toothache.

"Doesn't it look a bit like it?" Kurosawa Aise's voice was somewhat amused. Yes, this gloomy old house, the old-fashioned Japanese wooden building, no matter how you look at it, the Kuze family mansion in this dream seems to be called something like Kuze no Miya, and the Himuro family's Himuro mansion... If we don't say it's exactly the same, there are just too many similar elements!

“It’s not just a little bit like…” Shinji Ikari took a few steps, looked at a hearth on the ground, sneered, took out a burning piece of wood from below, and threw it directly onto a wooden sliding door not far away. The paper window on the wooden door was immediately ignited.

"Wow, isn't doing this a bit offensive? It's a good thing you didn't have the guts to do this back when you were at the Himuro Mansion." Kurosawa Aise was clearly gloating, almost as if she was about to grab a metronome and cheer for Shinji Ikari. Women, once offended, their hearts are only as big as a pinhead.

And Kuze Reika actually dared to snatch someone from Kurosawa Ayase's hands! In a sense, she's even related to Kurosawa Rei, so this grudge is no small matter! If you consider that this was the first time Shinji asked her for help after they confirmed their relationship (Kurosawa Ayase thought so, Himuro Kirie rolled her eyes, "I didn't agree, and Shinji's mother didn't agree either. As for a certain father, Shinji's fists are even stronger than before, he still owes a punch"), and she messed it up so embarrassingly, it makes Kurosawa Ayase grit her teeth every time she thinks about it.

Even if Shinji Ikari set fire to the entire Kuze Palace, wouldn't Ayase Kurosawa be there to fan him with her fan? Anyway, well done!

A pair of twisted spirit mother and daughter suddenly rushed out, clearly startled by the sudden flames. After encountering Shinji Ikari, they were obviously stunned for a moment. However, their unclear minds obviously did not give them the ability to think in accordance with their power. They screamed and pounced on Shinji Ikari.

"It really is... just a mere malevolent spirit." Shinji Ikari didn't hold back, lunging forward and spreading his spiritual energy through his legs. A series of kicks swept through the narrow corridor like a storm, instantly defeating the two spirits. But Shinji frowned. "Hmm?"

“Like my priestesses, they are souls trapped in this dream. I don’t know how long it will take before they revive.” Kurosawa Aise sighed. However, after Himuro Kirie basically sealed off Yomi, her priestesses had regained their senses. “Shinji, you don’t have much time left. Although my power is hindering it, here, its power will eventually allow this tattoo to spread.”

“I understand, so these guys can’t all be eliminated, right?” Shinji Ikari sighed. Another troublesome fellow. Because it’s a dream, an incomplete reality, everything here is governed by Reika Kuze’s will. The souls bound here can’t simply disappear.

After letting out a sigh, Shinji Ikari felt the heat from the rising flames. "The torches are lit, so you should know where I am by now." Shinji shook his head as he watched the flames licking at the roof beams, then slung his bag over his shoulder and continued walking out. His priority now was finding Yuu Aso, not...

"Yuu! Look over there!" In another building, Kurosawa Rei, her hands covered in tattoos, excitedly watched the flames rising in the distance, calling out to Aso Yuu, who was carefully observing the surroundings. Without a camera, they could only constantly dodge the attacking vengeful spirits, and...

"Is it...Shinji or Mei?" Hearing Kurosawa Rei's call, Asou Yuu, whose tattoo was already visible on his neck, turned around and glanced back. The firelight was indeed shining with an exciting luster. "Only the two of them would expose their positions so violently."

"So, we're going to find them?" Kurosawa Rei's eyes were very tired. Although she was the one who took the initiative to call Kuze Reika, there was no doubt that the heavy burden of the tattoo was not something she could bear. In addition, she was exhausted from the days the two of them had spent hiding in buildings.

"I don't know, but it should be either of them or one of them. Similar methods of gathering are one of our established strategies." Asou Yuu, who had already entered the dream, was not yet aware of the changes in Tokyo, nor of Isayama Mei, who had been overthrown by Yakushiji Ryoko with money. For the time being, she was still helping Yakushiji Ryoko gather some intelligence as a spy. However, during their relatively weak stage of mutual support, the three of them had set up many beacons and signals. Directly igniting them was the simplest of them, and it was particularly suitable now.

"But will this alert them..." Kurosawa Rei was a little worried. This dream world was not simple, because in addition to seeing some people trapped here because of longing, there were also some people who had followed someone into the dream world on their own initiative.

These guys are no saints. They witnessed them capture someone who was probably just like them, trapped in a dream, and then throw them at the vengeful spirits to distract them and clear a path for themselves. Not to mention, Asou Yuu immediately recognized several of them as executives of the Eternal Life Society…

"Don't worry, it's definitely the enemy, so we're bound to run into them." Asou Yuu took a deep breath. "Let's go check it out first, and if possible, rendezvous with them."

"Ah..." A person with eyes covered by a black cloth stood on the outer corridor of the third floor of a building in the Kusei Palace, gently tapping the somewhat decaying handrail. He watched the burning building with amusement. "Looks like some very interesting guests have arrived. This won't do. This will be the place where I entrust the last piece of my puzzle, the sacred dreamland. I will never give it up!" As he said this, he turned and walked into the darkness. A group of people dressed in priestly robes bowed slightly to him, and then he walked deeper into the Kusei Palace.

Chapter 356 Have you ever heard of entrapment?

"Hey, are you really just going to watch this fire burn like this? It'll spread all the way to Kuze Palace soon." After dodging a large number of wandering ghosts, Asou Yuu and Kurosawa Rei finally met up with Shinji Ikari (and perhaps Kurosawa Aise, who was like a ghost behind him?) who was standing there. Then Asou Yuu started to complain about Shinji Ikari's actions.

Shinji Ikari didn't speak, but hugged Yuu Aso. "Yuu, it's been a while. Do you know how many fun things you've missed?" Shinji said with a grin. The incident involving Yuu Aso ignited Shinji's anger and could be considered the fuse that ultimately led to Shinji's involvement in the series of events in New Tokyo. It was the Immortal Society's attack on Yuu Aso that nearly killed him.

"Haha, yes, I'm looking forward to hearing your and Mei Isayama's legendary adventures after I wake up." Asou Yuu laughed. For a buddy like you, who would almost disregard everything to rush into the realm of evil gods to save you, back-to-back best friend! No need for further words, the two gave each other a high five.

"I brought you a little something, but it's just a standard-model camera and some film from the Dark Warehouse. Don't think it's too little," Shinji Ikari said with a smile. He then put down the package he was carrying on his back and placed it on the ground. Yuu Aso stepped forward and was stunned the moment she opened the package. Shinji Ikari had brought more than just a camera; it was in a separate package.

"...You're planning to let Reiya do it?" Aso Yuu immediately understood the meaning behind this. Without a doubt, Kurosawa Rei was a photographer and also had spiritual power, so theoretically she could use the camera.

“Shinji, you’ve done something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.” Rei Kurosawa reached into her bag and pulled out a camera. She opened it and examined it. It wasn’t a particularly new model of film camera. Rei even owned one herself, using it as a toy for her travels. Her studio even had a dedicated darkroom for developing photos (which was also recently Sonoko Suzuki’s photo-developing place, and Conan would occasionally come by). “Thank you.”

“Ren, this is nothing…” Asou Yuu frowned. Exorcism is a good job? After they obtained a large sum of money from the evil spirit group, apart from Isayama Mei who was busy because of her own plans and lack of sufficient funds, they had almost started to retire. Asou Yuu bought land, and he and Kurosawa Rei were discussing the house design they needed with the designer, preparing to customize their wedding house.

As for Shinji Ikari, Mei Isayama knew something about what he was doing. Clearly, Shinji had too much dissatisfaction with this world, and he was planning to break the shackles of this world and let humanity truly face "destiny"! Instead of being trapped in a cycle arranged by a very small number of people!

Of course, after resolving this matter, Shinji Ikari might need to go to the mountains to have a good talk with Ayato Kamina, who is hiding in an abandoned mountain villa. After all, he is one of the core figures in the final restart of a world. Although the restart of Winged God Sone doesn't seem to be a reincarnation, but merely represents the best world that Ayato Kamina imagines, Shinji Ikari doesn't think that kind of world is really the best!

Shinji Ikari's ambition needs to be a little bigger! Humanity has paid such a high price and suffered such great losses, why can't we retain what we've gained after paying the price? Are we going to have to wash it all away in the next cycle? No, no, no, that won't do!

Of course, Shinji Ikari hasn't told anyone about it yet, because the secret is just too big for many people to believe. But so far, the only one who knows Shinji's thoughts is... the swordsman who traveled from another world, the Demon Eye Madman!

When he heard Shinji Ikari's description, Kyo covered his forehead and burst into wild laughter. He hadn't expected the world he had arrived in to be so rich, which somewhat eased his previous dissatisfaction. He expressed that he was very interested in this matter! This is why Kyo suddenly appeared in Neo-Tokyo after the series of events that broke out.

"Yes, I have no intention of becoming an exorcist, that's for sure. But now, as a photographer, I can fight alongside you because of the special props you made!" Kurosawa Rei's hands were still trembling a little as she held the camera, but a reassuring smile appeared on her face.

Terror stems from the unknown and fright. When Shinji Ikari first started exorcising spirits, he also found ghosts and such a thing a bit creepy. However, after discovering that most spirits were weaklings who could only exist for a few hours, Shinji Ikari stopped caring about these things at all. And after encountering them, Shinji Ikari even had the audacity to roam freely within the domain of evil gods, even when he was still a weakling.

"Oh, right, here you go." Shinji Ikari took two of the three rope loops made of barrier ropes off his wrist. "These are life-saving measures my sister gave you. Rei-nee, remember to take good pictures of my sister... and Aise next time." When Shinji Ikari mentioned Himuro Kirie, he felt a pair of cool little hands gently pinch his heart, and he instantly understood that there was another woman who loved beauty who also wanted good-looking photos.

"These are food? We're just a projection of consciousness now, we don't seem to be of much use..." Looking at the packaged cookies, Asou Yuu was a little surprised. What was the point of these things?

"Try eating it. At least describe how you feel to Ritsuko after you get out. Ritsuko won't ask you for medical expenses." Shinji Ikari shrugged. He had already eaten a lot while tasting the recipe, and he had even eaten two of these cookies. However, it seemed that Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri had added some things to this batch of cookies according to their own ideas.

“Okay.” Asou Yuu put the cookie in her mouth and chewed, but her face quickly showed a surprised expression. “It tastes pretty good, hmm? The heat is flowing through my body… This place… is really interesting.” Asou Yuu’s eyes showed an inquisitive look, but she handed another cookie to Kurosawa Rei next to her. “Have some. It will have unexpected benefits for us who have been here for too long.”

"Okay." Kurosawa Rei didn't waste any words and simply took a piece and started chewing. After a few bites, she looked at Asou Yuu with great surprise. Obviously, compared to Asou Yuu who was passively trapped in the dream world, she was more exhausted by actively calling on Kuze Reika's power. She could only shamelessly take several small packages of cookies and eat them on the side.

"How's your exploration going?" While Kurosawa Rei was eating cookies, Shinji Ikari quickly asked about Asou Yuu's situation. Based on Shinji's understanding of Asou Yuu, even if she had to take care of Kurosawa Rei, Asou Yuu would try her best to observe and analyze this place. After all, it was not a good idea to enter the world of a fierce god completely in the dark.

“There are indeed some observations. I think… this dream world is slowly collapsing. Kuze Reika probably won’t last much longer. And there’s another group of people who think this is a great opportunity and want to take over this place.” Aso Yuu’s smile was a little creepy. She habitually touched her pocket and then glared at Ikari Shinji. “Why didn’t you bring a pack of cigarettes with you?”

"You can complain to Kurosawa Aise yourself about the packages she approved." Shinji Ikari was completely unfazed by his threat and retorted without hesitation, "Go ahead and do it if you dare! I won't stop you." "If I'm not mistaken, those who want to take over this place should be the last remaining members of the Eternal Society."

"You actually guessed it?" Asou Yuu chuckled. Talk to Kurosawa Aise? No guts, goodbye! But if it weren't for taking care of Kurosawa Rei, Asou Yuu wouldn't have just killed two or three people. From the moment the other side started attacking him in an attempt to trigger the connection between Kurosawa Rei and Kuze Reika, the two sides had already been in a life-or-death situation.

"It's these self-righteous lunatics who think they've gained something and want to take over this world. Look at the Onmyo-ryo guys, they don't even think about this. Even a weakened evil god is not something they can handle." Shinji Ikari shook his head. Back in Minakami Village, the three of them invested a lot of equipment, and even with the protagonist's overwhelming strength, they almost lost when they faced the sisters who were strengthened by the Yomi buff. Moreover, an evil god that can independently construct a dream world is incredibly powerful. Only these half-baked guys would cause trouble.

“But Kuze Reika… she’s not a bad person…” Kurosawa Rei whispered. When she met Kuze Reika, she felt the bitterness in her heart, the sorrow and pain that came from the bottom of her heart, which gripped her heart. She deeply felt that Kuze Reika was definitely not the evil spirit she imagined.

Unlike the original work, Kurosawa Rei was also completely terrified after coming into contact with Kuze Reika's power. However, after Asou Yuu was almost killed by the Immortal Sea, Kurosawa Rei took the initiative to pray for Kuze Reika's power to protect Asou Yuu, who was being eroded by the poison, thus buying precious time for NERV's medical and technical departments to treat Asou Yuu.

“He’s definitely not a bad person, so we’re here to repay a debt of gratitude, hiss…” Shinji Ikari said, and then his heart was clenched by the disgruntled Ayase Kurosawa. Clearly, the fierce god felt that the grudge on their side hadn’t been settled yet!

"So the first step now is to find the Eternal Life Society and kill them by any means necessary. Then we need to have a good talk with Kuze Reika and resolve the issue of the tattoos on your bodies. If they're easy to talk to, that's fine. But if they're not, this matter is going to be a bit troublesome." Shinji Ikari shook his head with a wry smile. Jumping around in front of a fierce god in the other party's domain was a death trap, and he didn't want to do it at all, even though he had done it before without thinking of his own death.

"Then let's get started and not waste any more time." Shinji Ikari's judgment was not opposed by Yuu Aso at all. Yuu Aso glanced at Rei Kurosawa, but she didn't say anything and just nodded silently. Although they didn't know what was going on with Rei Kuze, they should indeed thank her. However, their lives were not over yet, and it wasn't time for them to stay here with Rei Kuze.

"Don't be so pessimistic. The fact that she can respond to your calls means she's at least semi-conscious." As someone who once single-handedly leaped past ferocious beings, Shinji Ikari has extensive experience in this area. Her most aggressive phase is when she's completely irrational; back then, Kirie would slaughter anyone she caught. However, as her intelligence began to awaken, she lost that aggressiveness. And once she was fully awake, she became someone you could communicate with.

At that time, Kirie was still very gentle and politely thanked Shinji Ikari for bringing her back to her senses, and told Shinji to leave the Himuro mansion as soon as possible, as it was not a place for a living person.

Looking at how easily she's gotten so irritable now, hitting herself until she's covered in bumps, or hanging Himuro Mimori up for a whole day... Shinji Ikari couldn't help but sigh, "Kirie has really changed a lot."

“They are obviously looking for a way to get into the depths of Kuze Palace, and because of someone who took me to the Himuro Mansion and my experience in Minakami Village, I at least know how to handle this kind of thing.” Aso Yuu turned his hand over, revealing the secret to his confidence. “Unless they act as recklessly as someone else, they should need these.”

"You actually got a lot of keys ahead of time? You're something else." Shinji Ikari laughed as he looked at the tattoo on Yuu Aso's hand. "But the bad news is that the connection between Rei and Reika Kuze might be deeper than we thought." Shinji pointed to the tattoo spreading on Rei Kurosawa's neck. "It's just a bit cliché."

"So our time is very tight." Aso Yuu said quickly, slapping away the approaching spirits. "Old-fashioned means timeless, doesn't it?"

"Um, what are you planning to do?" Kurosawa Rei naturally didn't have the same tacit understanding as Shinji Ikari and Yuu Aso, and didn't know what those two were up to.

"Sister Lian, have you ever heard of entrapment?"

Chapter 357 The Despair of the Eternal Life Believers

"Hurry, over here! Over here!" Several members of the Eternal Life Society ran frantically through the Palace of Kuse, as if they were being chased by evil spirits. In a sense, that was indeed the case, and there were many evil spirits chasing them frantically.

These pale demons, who had been wandering aimlessly, suddenly went berserk and began to attack them frantically after they entered the Palace of Kuse. Even with the cult leader's divine power, which purified a large number of evil spirits, only the vanguard was transformed in the face of the overwhelming horde of evil spirits. The remaining massive evil spirits continued to pounce on them relentlessly.

And so, the once mighty procession was scattered by an even larger evil spirit. Everyone lost their minds in this scene that could be described as a cataclysmic disaster of the dead, and they fled in all directions. In the end, these so-called priests and attendants of the Eternal Life Society were not Onmyoji priests who had fought on the front lines of exorcism. They were not seasoned veterans at all, and could not even be described as having rich training experience.

Despite their irrational and fanatical faith in the leader of the Eternal Life Society, this faith was not enough to make them demonstrate the level of fearlessness the leader expected when facing life and death.

"Close the door! Quickly! I have the sealing talisman of the Yin-Yang Bureau here! Hurry!" A priest in the lead shouted quickly, and the servants who followed him in immediately followed his orders and slammed the not-so-thick wooden door shut behind them.

"No! Wait! We're still outside!" Two servants who were a little behind looked on in despair as the wooden door slammed shut. Then they heard the sound of rummaging through drawers and cabinets behind the door, clearly indicating that these people had used something from inside the room to barricade the door!

Their chances of finding refuge inside were completely gone; in other words… they had been abandoned! The two servants slowly stopped in their tracks, staring at the closed folding door with expressions of despair.

"Ah..." His companion's scream woke up another person. When he turned around, he saw more than a dozen pale hands tightly gripping his companion, dragging a struggling spirit out of the room. These evil spirits were also devouring the fresh spirit.

"Ah...ah!" Just as he was about to take his stiff steps to continue his escape, a pair of pale hands suddenly grabbed his face. A pulling sensation he had never experienced before suddenly came. The servant immediately understood what had happened. His scream undoubtedly pierced through the not-so-thick wooden door, making the faces of the Eternal Life Society believers behind the door turn pale.

"Quick, don't just stand there, stick all these talismans on." The priest of the Eternal Life Society took out a handful of yellow talismans from his inner pocket. After learning about the mission he was about to participate in, he had spared no effort to drain the area under his jurisdiction and empty his savings to go to the Yin-Yang Bureau and buy their top-grade spirit-suppressing talismans without any hesitation. He had tested the effect; an evil spirit that could easily tear an ordinary person apart would have no chance of resistance under these talismans and would be easily suppressed.

In this life-or-death struggle, everyone displayed extraordinary efficiency. Although there was only one priest, they were all professionals with relevant experience, and everyone roughly understood what to do. After receiving the talismans from the priest, they quickly affixed them to all the walls, even the beams and floors.

After finishing all this, they finally relaxed, let out a long breath, and collapsed to the ground. The bolder ones could still peek through the windows covered with talismans to see what was happening outside, but without a doubt, all they saw was a chilling sight: countless ghosts were wandering in the Palace of Kuse. Without finding a way to be reborn, they would continue to wander in this place forever.

The group of people who were temporarily safe were covered in sweat and didn't know what to do next. The old building was like a prison, the environment was gloomy, and there were countless ghosts wandering around. Every now and then, they could hear a few screams that sounded familiar to them, some from men and some from women, some from near and some from far.

"We're... temporarily saved!" The priest breathed a sigh of relief. After being scattered, they had been running around the Kusei Palace like headless flies. Only after setting up a temporary shelter with talismans could they catch their breath. "Although we don't know how long we can hold out, we need to recover our strength. As soon as these ghosts' rampage ends, we'll prepare to leave..."

"Yes!" The group of believers of the Eternal Life Society seemed to have found their backbone. The remaining power of this Eternal Life Society priest made them subconsciously choose to obey. They took a few deep breaths, as if they had mustered up their courage, and sat down cross-legged to rest.

"Crack..." A scratching sound suddenly came.

"Hmm? Don't be foolish, get some rest. If we attract these evil spirits, we'll be in trouble." The priest scolded, and the servants nodded subconsciously.

"Crack... Crack... Crack..." But a dense, scratching sound came from all directions, instantly frightening the Eternal Life Society believers hiding here. At this point, it goes without saying that it was not the people inside the room scratching, but the ghosts outside, frantically attacking the area they had sealed off.

"Look... the talisman is... turning black?" A waiter's face suddenly turned ashen. He saw a large black spot on a talisman on the door! Actually, he had noticed this at first, but at that time, he just thought that the ink spot on the talisman was a little too big.

"Shut up! Don't panic! These talismans are of the highest level. These wandering souls outside the door are not qualified to break through!" the priest shouted, trying to remain calm. Little did he know that two other people nearby were stunned by his amazing actions.

"Are these guys really idiots?" Shinji Ikari and Yuu Aso looked at each other in disbelief. Where did these idiots come from? Don't they even have any basic common sense? Originally, Shinji and his team planned to use the key in Yuu Aso's hand as bait to create a trap, but the other party's vigilance surprised them, so their plan became much more rudimentary.

Why did the ghosts suddenly riot and attack the Eternal Life Society members? It was all Shinji Ikari and Yuu Aso's doing. They were just acting as tanks to draw aggro, weren't they? This tactic was all too familiar. Shinji Ikari's Purple Flame Bullet blasted down, alarming a large number of ghosts. The remaining three of them relied on Shinji Ikari's powerful mobility to lure these evil spirits towards the unfortunate members of the Eternal Life Society.

However, neither of them expected that the actions of the Eternal Life Society would be so unbearable for them.

Please, this is a dream world constructed by the power of a malevolent god. You actually used the strongest level of exorcising and spirit-suppressing talismans of the Yin-Yang Bureau. This is as ridiculous and ignorant as a black child pointing a highly realistic toy gun at an American policeman. How can you understand the true meaning of power if you don't empty a few magazines?

Therefore, these powerful talismans clashed with the power of the dream world. Their actions turned them into lights in the darkness, directly provoking almost all the evil spirits in the entire Kusei Palace. This caused them to frantically pounce on these survivors who thought they had outsmarted them, ultimately creating an absolute death trap for themselves!

"Without a doubt, they're doomed. The only problem is the leader of the Eternal Life Society. He's a smart man. No matter how frenzied these evil spirits are, they wouldn't dare enter the depths of the Kusei Palace where a true demon slumbers." Asou Yuu felt a surge of satisfaction at this sight. After all, he had been inexplicably targeted and relentlessly attacked, nearly dying. If it weren't for his girlfriend protecting him at all costs, he would have been dead. "It's a pity Ming wasn't here. Otherwise, when they collided with the tide of evil spirits, he could have struck them down with lightning and killed them all."

"I'm really sorry I can't use remote spells," Shinji Ikari said, rolling his eyes. Aso Yuu was just saying it to vent her anger. If she really did it, then without a doubt, trouble would come looking for those of them who recklessly used spiritual and demonic power.

"Are you two done talking? Can you get down here? This roof is really... scary!" Kurosawa Rei, clinging to a pillar, stared longingly at the two perched on the roof's edge. When they started luring the monster, Ikari Shinji had placed them on the opposite rooftop first, and Kurosawa Rei had something to say about that! The roof of a dilapidated building, with parts of its structure burning! You're telling me it's safe?!

Aso Yuu is used to frequenting these kinds of places. Not to mention the roof of this building with its main structure intact, he has been to even more bizarre and terrifying places. Just now, he was using his camera with a digital magnifier as a telescope to observe the group of evil spirits in the distance.

But Kurosawa Rei, encountering such an environment for the first time, was no match for it. She was just an ordinary female photographer, somewhat famous, but had never experienced such a magnificent world before! And if the bizarre, malevolent spirits had nearly terrified her, now, on this steeply sloping rooftop, she felt that the slightest movement would send her plummeting—below them was a mere four-story building! This environment had completely drained her courage! She clung to the wooden pillar beside her, trembling uncontrollably!

"Let's go down. These guys are starting to experience the terror." Shinji Ikari smiled, a smirk playing on his lips. Under the onslaught of a massive number of evil spirits, even the top-tier talismans of the Onmyōryō (Bureau of Yin and Yang) couldn't be completely invincible. Moreover, this dream world was an environment where the power contained within these talismans would clash with each other. Needless to say, the other side would ultimately be the winner!

After each talisman has exhausted its power, it will slowly turn into shredded paper, which will then fall from the wall. The falling of these talismans is like a constantly tolling death knell, or the ticking of a stopwatch. The slowly moving second hand announces the approaching end.

Finally, the first pale arm broke through the wall and reached in! At this moment, the other talismans still pasted on the wall fully demonstrated the reason for their high price.

Without a sound, the sudden, large-scale ink stain resulted in the complete annihilation and defeat of the claw's owner! But was that enough to ensure safety? No, just as Shinji Ikari and the others had predicted, the opponent showed no sign of stopping. The successful breakthrough provoked these evil spirits, and the scratching sounds from all directions grew even louder, as if countless rats were gnawing at the wooden building from within the walls!

"Quick! Take some of the talismans from the ground and the roof! Stick them on the walls! Quick!" The priest observed for a moment and saw that the talismans in those two directions hadn't changed at all. He immediately made a decision. Even if he knew it was just delaying the inevitable, every little bit more he could live was precious.

The panicked servants immediately carried out his orders; in the midst of extreme panic, his orders were executed almost too well…

"Ah...ah!" The moment a servant took one of the last three talismans off the ground, a pale, malevolent spirit suddenly rushed out from beneath the ground and crashed into the servant. The servant screamed and fell to the ground, his body writhing and twisting before foaming at the mouth and his eyes turning eerily black.

"Hey! This idiot! Even in death he's causing me trouble!" The priest, seeing the servants nearby whose legs were too weak to move, gritted his teeth and stood up. He grabbed the rune from one of the servants' hands and tried to stick it to the ground to stop the evil spirits from pouring in.

"Heh...heh heh heh..." The moment the talisman left his hand, the attendant let out a sharp laugh. His fingernails, or rather, his finger bones, pierced through his skin, and his terrifying bone claws reached out to grab the priest.

It must be said that this priest had probably participated in some of the Eternal Life Society's rituals. He reacted extremely quickly, sticking the talisman to the forehead of the servant who was possessed by the evil spirit. Then, in the next instant, he bit his finger and drew it on the talisman, using his spiritual power to directly activate the power contained within it. A cloud of black smoke was directly shaken out of the servant and dissipated. One could barely see an evil spirit howling in resentment within the cloud of black smoke.

"Hoo..." The priest sighed, his hands trembling as he pulled a talisman from his sleeve, intending to use it to save his life. Just as he was about to stick it to the ground, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest. A bone claw pierced out from the front, grabbing and pinching... his own heart? He turned around and saw another attendant staring at him with a ferocious expression. Unfortunately, this time, he had no power to do anything.