Chapter 486: Falling Cherry Blossoms Like Blood (Part 10)

Meanwhile, Lake Kawaguchi, Fuji City.

A massive invisible barrier enveloped the entire city.

The streets, which were usually bustling, were now filled with anger and panic.

In the central city square, tens of thousands of civilians holding crude banners were shouting.

"Lift the lockdown! We want to survive!"

"Kujo Family, get out! What right do you have to stop us from leaving the city!"

"If you don't lift the lockdown, our whole family is going to starve to death!"

Amidst the crowd, a sallow-faced and emaciated man was holding his crying daughter, his eyes filled with despair. He had been out of work for three days, and his family savings had been spent yesterday. If this continued, he did not know how much longer he could hold on, knowing only that he and his family were close to death.

But their protests received no response. On the city walls, armored samurai of the Kujo Family looked down expressionlessly at everything.

Chaos was breeding in the corners of the city.

In a secluded alley, a man named Tanaka kicked open the door of a wealthy merchant's house, rushed inside, and frantically stuffed all valuables into a burlap sack. Gold and silver jewelry, bundles of cash, and some precious ornaments.

"I'm rich! I'm rich!"

Looking at the bulging burlap sack, Tanaka's eyes were filled with greed. He seemed to have already envisioned a wonderful life of leaving this place, buying a house in Takamagahara, and marrying a pretty female Professional as his wife.

He hoisted the heavy burlap sack onto his back, a silly grin plastered on his face, and disappeared deep into the alley.

On the other side, panic and despair spread along the outskirts of the city.

"Hurry! Hurry up!"

"Run to the west! I heard that the Formation barrier is weakest there!"

More than a dozen figures sprinted frantically across the empty streets.

They were among the few people in the city who had learned the truth through various channels.

The Kujo Family was going to sacrifice the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in the entire city to resurrect a long-dead monster.

This news made them want nothing more than to flee for their lives.

The group quickly rushed to the base of the western city wall, which looked completely deserted.

"Let's charge through!"

The leading youth roared, accelerating first, with the joy of surviving a disaster on his face.

However, the next second.

Bam!

With a loud crash.

The youth crashed into seemingly empty air, flying backward and slamming heavily onto the ground, vomiting blood. At the spot where he had just collided, a translucent light barrier flashed and disappeared.

The people following closely behind were all frightened into stopping in their tracks.

"It's… It's the Formation barrier!"

"We can't get out… We can't get out!"

A young mother's legs turned to jelly, and she collapsed to the ground, clutching the child in her arms and weeping bitterly.

"No! I don't believe it!"

A youth roared unwillingly, rushing forward to frantically pound the invisible barrier with his fists.

"Bam! Bam! Bam!"

Dull thuds continued to ring out; the barrier remained completely unmoved, but the youth's fists quickly became bloody and mangled.

Yet he seemed to feel no pain, continuing to pound it frantically while letting out beast-like roars from his mouth.

"Open the door! Open the damn door for me!"

His roars echoed through the dead silence of the streets, yet they sounded pale and powerless.

More and more people who learned the truth surged from all corners of the city toward the edges. They slammed into it with their bodies, slashed at it with blades, and tried every possible method in an attempt to break the barrier, but all their efforts were in vain.

That light barrier isolated life from death. Cries, curses, and desperate wails rose one after another.

…

Atop the towering city wall.

A Kujo Family retainer dressed in black samurai attire was watching with great interest the scenes playing out inside the city. His name was Sato Kenji, and he was the garrison officer in charge here.

In his hand, he held a magical device similar to a telescope, which allowed him to clearly see the sights happening everywhere inside the city.

He first aimed the lens at the protesting civilians in the central square and smiled disdainfully.

"Ants are just ants. When death is imminent, struggling is entirely futile."

Right at this moment, steady footsteps came from behind him.

Sato Kenji immediately put away the frivolous look on his face, turned around, and respectfully lowered his head.

The newcomer wore immaculate, holy priest robes, had a thin, refined face, and eyes that seemed to contain endless benevolence.

He was none other than Kujo Koji's biological uncle, Chong Wenguma.

Chong Wenguma ignored him, walking straight to the edge of the city wall. He pressed his palms together and performed a devout Buddhist greeting toward the chaotic and desperate city below.

He looked down with sorrow for the world upon the struggling beings in the city, his eyes filled with pity.

"How many people are probably left in the city?"

Chong Wenguma spoke slowly, his voice gentle, as if feeling sorrow for these lost lambs.

Not daring to slack off, Sato Kenji quickly answered respectfully.

"Reporting to Lord Wenguma, Fuji City originally had a permanent population of 270,000."

"Over 70,000 of them are Professionals. We have already arranged for all Professionals in the city to evacuate."

"Right now, there are still about 200,000 ordinary civilians left in the city."

"200,000 people…"

Chong Wenguma let out a long sigh, the look of sorrow on his face intensifying.

Looking at this lord's profile, Sato Kenji couldn't help but feel a trace of respect.

As expected of a priest who had guarded the Ise Grand Shrine for years, he truly possessed a compassionate heart.

It seemed that Lord Wenguma was touched by this human tragedy and couldn't bear it.

He was just about to open his mouth to say some comforting words, such as "This is necessary for the rise of the Kujo Family" and so on.

But before the words could leave his mouth, he heard Chong Wenguma beside him ask gently in the same compassionate tone.

"200,000 people, is it enough?"

Sato Kenji's prepared speech instantly stuck in his throat.

He was completely stunned, his mind blank.

What?

Is it enough?

Sato Kenji snapped his head up and looked at Chong Wenguma.

The benevolent and compassionate expression on the other person's face did not change in the slightest, but deep within those gentle eyes lay a bottomless chill.

Sato Kenji only felt a chill shoot straight from the soles of his feet to his crown, making all the hairs on his body stand on end.

He understood instantly.

He was wrong, ridiculously wrong.

How could someone coming from the Kujo Family be associated with such a ridiculous word as "benevolence"?

"R-Reporting to my lord…"

Sato Kenji's voice trembled slightly as he quickly lowered his head.

"Everything is being done according to Lord Koji's instructions."

"Probably… it should be enough."

"Probably?"

Chong Wenguma's tone remained gentle, but Sato Kenji caught a hint of displeasure from it.

"I don't want to hear 'probably'; give me a definite answer."

That invisible pressure instantly soaked Sato Kenji's back in cold sweat.

Not daring to hesitate any longer, he replied decisively.

"It's definitely enough!"

"Please rest assured, Lord Wenguma, it's definitely enough!"

To increase persuasiveness, he even gave an example.

"After all, when Lord Qin Ze was resurrected previously, it only took 130,000 people!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Sato Kenji wished he could slap himself across the face.

He felt the surrounding temperature plummet abruptly.

Chong Wenguma slowly turned his head, those "benevolent" eyes staring quietly at him, devoid of any remaining gentleness.

Only a bone-chilling cold remained.

"You mean—"

"That Lord Kujo Eisei's strength is inferior to an outsider like Qin Ze?"

"Boom!"

Sato Kenji felt as if something had exploded inside his head.

His legs turned to jelly, and he almost knelt directly on the ground.

Cold sweat cascaded down his forehead like a waterfall.

He finally realized what a stupid mistake he had made.

Comparing the soon-to-be-resurrected ancestor of the Kujo Family to that resurrected outsider was in itself a supreme form of disrespect!

Furthermore, he had inadvertently blurted out the number "130,000," as if implying that Lord Eisei was not worthy of having 200,000 sacrifices.

"No! It's not like that! Lord Wenguma!"

Frightened to the point of Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, Sato Kenji frantically waved his hands.

"I… I definitely didn't mean that!"

"I was just… just trying to say that the number of people is definitely sufficient! Please rest assured!"

Chong Wenguma looked at him coldly, as if looking at a dead man.

"I don't care what you meant."

"If the number of people is insufficient and causes any mistakes in Lord Eisei's resurrection ritual,"

"I'll throw you down from here to make up the count."

Sato Kenji's body trembled violently, his teeth chattering so hard that he couldn't utter a single word.

He could feel that the other person was not joking.

Chong Wenguma no longer paid attention to this piece of trash who was almost scared out of his wits.

He raised his hand and glanced at the antique watch on his wrist.

"It's almost time."

"Prepare to begin."