The snow had become thicker by evening, covering the white cherry blossoms and weighting down their branches. Peeking through the gaps in the snowy branches, several dark figures could be faintly seen flashing by, lending a lively air to the lonely woods outside the city.
“Chase! This old Taoist can sense that corpse is not far from us.”
A human figure was stationed on a utility pole. It was the old Taoist from the Suzuki family. His gaze swept over the road below, and a sharp glint appeared in his slightly clouded old eyes.
As he gave his order, over a dozen War King Level and even several Demigod Level experts followed him, showing that Kamishiro Yuichi had deployed most of his forces to surround this area with a determined attitude to secure the corpse.
“Suzuki family, are you sure that corpse is here?”
With a cry like a black crow’s, a white figure flashed into view. Gen Jixiang appeared not far away, lightly tapping her toes on the wires with an elegant demeanor.
“This old Taoist can also sense that there are no strong individuals around the corpse. That Black Flame expert is confronting Kamishiro Yuichi, that old fogey… Look at this old Taoist’s talismans.”
The old Taoist of the Suzuki family glanced at Gen Jixiang and nodded with a slight smile. He held a talisman in his hand, casually lit it, and tossed it away. This talisman was meant to be used for tracking.
“Hiss!”
A cold, moonlit blade slashed from a distance, directly cutting the talisman. The two pieces of yellow paper fell like withered leaves in the wind.
“Who? Who dares to destroy this old Taoist’s tracking talisman?!”
Almost everyone’s gaze followed the direction of the cold blade. The old Taoist, both surprised and enraged, shouted directly.
Just as everyone was wondering who dared to attack this War God Level expert, a calm, neutral voice came from the woods.
“Destroy the tracking talisman, and you may live.”
A figure in a black long robe slowly emerged from the forest. The figure was petite, and its face was hidden by a black mask. It held a three-foot-long sword, the tip of which dragged on the ground, making a “grinding” sound. With just one glance, the old Taoist understood that the other party had the strength to fight him.
“May I ask who you are, fellow Daoist? I am the great steward of the Suzuki family. I hope you will not interfere in this matter…”
The old Taoist looked at the figure before him and felt a sense of unease. He actually understood that the other party was likely the one who had stolen the corpse. The aura of the sword suggested it was slightly stronger than his own.
The others watched the front warily, unconsciously taking out their alchemical arrays controlled by compasses, ready to act at a moment’s notice.
“Three counts. If I feel any connection to you on the corpse, don’t blame my sword for being merciless.”
“Three!”
Slightly tilting his head up, Su Jiu watched quietly from above. A thin layer of armor appeared on his body, and his aura became long and deep.
Silver-white cold light surged on the sword’s body, and inexplicable white petals swirled around it, blowing away the dead leaves with the air currents.
“Fellow Daoist, are you truly going to oppose my Suzuki family?”
The old Taoist’s eyes narrowed slightly. He pressed his thumb against the long sword, causing an orange halo to appear on its body. He also assumed a fighting stance, expecting reinforcements to arrive soon. Even if he were slightly weaker, there should still be a chance.
“Two!”
Su Jiu’s voice echoed again in the jungle below, like a death knell countdown.
Looking down, Gen Jixiang lowered her head to look at her sleeve, having heard the news from the silver-white little snake. She was shocked, and her eyes suddenly narrowed: “It really is her.”
After a moment of thought, she spoke out, revealing their identity in a low voice: “Miss Lu, aren’t you afraid of retaliation from my three great families?”
Su Jiu turned to look at Gen Jixiang, a murderous intent flickering in his eyes, but he held back in the end, simply saying, “This is a promise.”
The other party had recognized her by some means? However, this was just an alias. Even if they checked her appearance, they would only get superficial information.
“A promise? What kind of promise would make you offend my three great families?”
The head bodyguard behind Gen Jixiang seemed to understand who she was and shouted sternly, obviously annoyed by this young lady.
“A promise is a promise. There is no distinction between noble and lowly.”
“One.”
With a dismissive reply, a golden divine light flashed in Su Jiu’s eyes. A sword cry came from his palm, and then his figure turned into white light. In a flash of white, he instantly moved towards the old Taoist.
“Dream of Blossoms.”
With the third-tier Elegy and the charged Dream of Blossoms, even a mid-level War God could be severely injured, let alone an old beginner-level War God.
“How dare you?!”
The old Taoist’s heart trembled, and he roared again. He thrust his long sword towards the direction from which Su Jiu flashed, his arm engulfed in a golden light.
“Chirp chirp!”
The golden arc shot out from the sword tip, biting at Su Jiu like a golden python. The entire sky was filled with the python’s form, terrifying. He clearly did not hold back his strength from the start.
But the python passed straight through Su Jiu’s body and slammed into the ground, sending surrounding trees flying and wood chips scattering!
“Where did she go?”
However, the old Taoist showed no joy. Cold sweat dripped from his somewhat shriveled forehead. He felt a chill emanating from his back.
“I gave you a chance, but you were too greedy.”
A cold, indifferent voice sounded from behind him. His pupils trembled. He wanted to turn around to counter, but he felt a chill generating from within him. Looking down, he realized it was a physical sensation.
The tip of a sword, emanating frosty energy, pierced his heart. The frost spread throughout his body, slowing his movements.
Gen Jixiang, not far away, was greatly alarmed. She looked at the figure behind the old Taoist in panic, regretting having engaged in conversation earlier. What kind of killer was this, to actually act so decisively? And you can kill a War God, yet you are still collecting my War General Level medicinal herbs? Isn’t something wrong here!
“Miss Lu, this humble lady was just watching the show and didn’t actually intend to participate.”
Seeing this scene, she quickly distanced herself, wanting to leave, but fearing she would be beheaded if she didn’t take a few steps.
“Then please, Miss Fujiwara… Jixiang, do not reveal my affairs, otherwise, hehe.”
Su Jiu glanced at her and chuckled, no longer concealing her voice, which was as pleasant as wind chimes. However, to Gen Jixiang, it sounded extremely chilling, like the whisper of a demon. She dared not think further and quickly nodded: “Miss Lu, please rest assured, this humble lady will definitely keep her mouth shut.”
Listening to their conversation, the old Taoist’s eyes gradually lost their focus. Seemingly understanding that he was beyond saving, he suddenly sneered at Su Jiu, saying,
“Still talking about promises? Kamishiro… the things bought by the family… you snatched them away… aren’t you being too high-minded about it?”
“And you, who snatch the corpses of ancestors to refine medicine, are you fit to preach?”
Explaining, Su Jiu pulled out her long sword and swept it forward forcefully. After kicking it to the ground, she scanned it, confirming it had no aura left. She then descended to the small path and walked towards the distant outskirts of the city, her faint voice echoing in the open space:
“Perhaps a few hundred years ago, your ancestors survived precariously under the protection of the corpse’s owner. Even if you didn’t erect a tombstone or build a temple, you’re still thinking of doing such indecent things. It’s truly laughable.”
No one dared to pursue as Su Jiu’s receding figure disappeared. As everyone looked at each other, Gen Jixiang fell into thought. Her bodyguard behind her, seeing that Su Jiu had truly left, licked his dry lips and slowly asked, “Young Lady, should we have the family pursue her?”
“Let’s return to Tokyo. The Suzuki family lost a War God, they’re going to go mad.”
Gen Jixiang shook her head and also went down. She casually checked the old Taoist’s corpse, then had it carried away, and slowly walked towards Kamishiro Yuichi’s location.
…
Three to four days later, the snow had lessened considerably. Many people were clearing snow on the streets of Osaka. In the countryside, children liked to throw snowballs mixed with salt at each other, seemingly bringing back a sense of human warmth.
“Bang!”
Suddenly, a snowball hit a figure on the country road. Snow dust scattered, and the children seemed to realize they had made a mistake, quickly hiding in their respective homes, leaving only a girl with a snotty nose, blankly watching the approaching figure.
“Excuse me, is the so-called Cherry Blossom Forest here?” The young lady approached the child, bent her waist slightly, placed her hands on her knees, and asked with a gentle smile.
“Uh… sorry, we didn’t mean to.” The child was stunned, then numbly bowed in apology. She then pointed down a small path, “Follow this path, and there’s a wild cherry blossom forest. It’s said to be blessed by the gods for marriage. Adults from the city often drive here to tie red ropes.”
“Thank you.” Smiling in response, Su Jiu stood up, tossed some snacks from her pocket, and walked in the direction of the path. The child took the snacks as if in a dream. The children who had hidden looked on with infinite envy.
A moment later, Su Jiu arrived at the wild cherry blossom forest. Before her eyes were gnarled and intertwined cherry trees, with red and white cherry blossoms in full bloom, creating a sea of flowers. Petals drifted down, mixed with fine snow, dancing and blurring in the air. The red ropes tied to the trees swayed with the wind, romantic and beautiful.
Su Jiu chose a secluded spot under a cherry tree and had the Jingwei emerge to dig a nearly ten-meter-deep pit. She then placed the corpse inside a jade coffin refined in the past few days, along with the token that concealed its aura, and buried them together.
Looking at the coffin that had been laid in, Su Jiu had the Shadow Jingwei begin to fill the soil. She sat on a tree, bathing in the sea of cherry blossoms. After a moment, she took out what Ibaraki had given her and opened it. She was stunned… There were only three items: a few cold cherry blossom pastries, about half a bottle of sake, and a slip of paper—
[What I promised you, I have fulfilled.]
“Alas, what is love in the world? Perhaps it directly teaches one to give up their life for love.”
After a moment of silence, Su Jiu sighed. She then called to stop the Shadow Jingwei who were burying the coffin, took out a bag of magic crystals from her ring, searched meticulously, and picked out two magic crystals, one black and one white. She then put them into the storage bag given by Ibaraki.
“Bury this.” She threw it into the burial pit, her clear voice echoing in the empty cherry blossom forest. Su Jiu lowered her eyes, her gaze falling on the gourd, her emotions complex. She knew that this meant her gourd would forever be devoid of high-level combat power. General Feng would not be able to advance, and as her own level increased, the gourd might only serve for refining purposes.
“I am truly a saint, doing free labor for others.” Reaching out to catch the fine snow mixed with cherry blossoms, Su Jiu mocked herself. She decided not to think too much, but rather to silently appreciate the beauty of the cherry blossom forest. She didn’t understand why she was doing this… Perhaps it was that ridiculous chivalrous spirit.
When the burial pit below was filled, Su Jiu did not erect a tombstone. Instead, she offered the remaining few cherry blossom pastries on a plate, similar to how people offered sacrifices to the local deities. There was no need to worry about being found.
“In your next life, be humans. With the novel’s protagonist here, you no longer need to defend the country and ensure peace with your own bodies.”
Finally, she poured two cups of wine, inserted three incense sticks bought on the road, and then got up to leave. A gentle breeze blew, and flowers fell at her feet and on her shoulders.
One cup for her, for resisting demons and outsiders, and protecting the city behind her.
One cup for him, a promise of a hundred years, to win back his friend’s body and bury it.
However, the moment Su Jiu left the cherry blossom forest, a gust of clear wind blew from the direction of the tomb. The six comma patterns on the wine gourd at her waist turned into cherry blossom petals.
[ (Cherry Blossom) Lost Soul ]
[ Requirements Met: Discarded two [Ghost] Magic Crystals ]
[ Status: Completed ]
[ Reward: Shōtoku Gourd Unlocked, can use higher-level Magic Crystals to upgrade demons. ]
A message once again came to her mind, seemingly the true mission reward, leaving Su Jiu stunned in place. Instantly, she cursed inwardly, saying this mission was truly black-hearted. If she had chosen to consume the magic crystals, she could only upgrade one. Such things that torment humanity should not come again, as she herself could not be considered a good person.
“Someone?”
The next moment, Su Jiu seemed to sense something and turned to look behind her. In a daze, she saw two souls, a man and a woman, dressed in black and white kimonos looking this way. She rubbed her eyes but found nothing… Only cherry blossom petals were gently being rolled up by the wind.
