Chapter 64

Elaine sighed. This was actually why she hadn't really wanted to talk about these things before.

"Because there are just too many things like this. If we took them all seriously, it would never end—for example, this [Tomb of Christ] in Aomori, there's no way it could be real, right?"

Impossible?

From Elaine's perspective, she might find it hard to accept the absurd legend that [the Holy Son did not die, but fled from Siberia to Japan to live in seclusion and have children]; it was even wilder than *The Da Vinci Code*.

But Qi Xing had long since become very skeptical about what was actually impossible in this world.

"That's not right, lass."

The Old Wolf Lord, who had been silently keeping watch on the side, spoke up calmly at this moment,

"At least in the history recorded by our Fianna, the High King did indeed return after his ascension. Likewise, regarding the unofficial history of Christ, shouldn't the 'King of Warriors' of the Celtic Church count for something?"

"While it's certainly not feasible to take everything as truth, dismissing it outright as fake is, to some extent, judging God."

Once the Old Wolf said this, Elaine immediately realized that saying such things in front of the Irish Wolf Lord was indeed a bit excessive, and she quickly apologized.

Qi Xing also glanced at the useless evil god who couldn't be relied upon right now and shook his head: "Tomorrow morning, we'll go to Shingo Village to take a look, and everything will naturally be clear by then."

"Okay."

Although Elaine nodded, she added, "After we arrive at Shingo Village, you should be able to understand what I mean."

Suddenly running off to visit the local power broker, and suddenly demanding to see the local top expert—even if [Master Leipu] was a powerful dragon passing through, such things were not usually easy to arrange.

But somehow, Elaine managed to arrange it. One can only say that if it weren't for Elaine, the super assistant, things would certainly be very troublesome for Rep-Man.

The next morning, Qi Xing and the others got up early. Qi Xing first used the Silver Coin of [Illusion] to refresh his illusion veil, and Elaine drove a rented white van, carrying everyone out of the city and along the road leading to Shingo Village.

Along the way, the scenery outside the car window gradually changed from the bustle of the city to the tranquility of the countryside. On both sides of the asphalt road were rolling hills, sparsely dotted with a few farmlands and orchards. Although it was already March, the lingering traces of winter remained in the air, and occasionally, unmelted snow could still be seen in the fields, forming a stark contrast with the brown earth.

After about an hour's drive, with continuous uphill slopes along the way, they finally entered the village.

Remote as it was, Shingo Village was actually quite lively. The houses were mostly traditional Japanese wooden structures, kept exquisite and tidy, showing that the villagers' economic conditions were quite good. There was still some residual snow on the eaves. Naturally, there weren't many pedestrians on the street, occasionally seeing old people sitting in front of their homes basking in the sun.

After a gentle turn, a sign appeared by the roadside, indicating the direction of the national tourist attraction, [Toira Mound]. Elaine followed the signs and drove the car over. Although this was not one of Japan's most famous top-tier tourist spots, one could still see a few parked buses and scattered tourists.

After all, a quarter of the 21st century had already passed, and with online promotion, not only Japanese people but also many curious foreign tourists had been attracted. Qi Xing could even hear tourists in the distance speaking in Russian.

The [Tomb of Christ] was located here, in a quiet forest park.

It was surrounded by a dense cedar forest, the burial mound enclosed by a white wooden fence, with a simple wooden cross standing in the center. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the forest, spilling onto the graveyard, making it appear mysterious yet serene.

Near the burial mound stood an information board, introducing the legend of the [Tomb of Christ] in both Japanese and English. Qi Xing leaned in and took a glance; as expected, it wasn't much different from Elaine's previous introduction.

Why did it feel… far too normal compared to what he had imagined?

He didn't voice this question directly, but he couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly. He wasn't expecting to find any supernatural clues immediately from a tourist spot like this, but this was just too ordinary.

"Is this it? I thought there would be more formal facilities… No shrine? No torii gate? No worship hall?"

So Qi Xing asked.

"This is all there is," Elaine replied calmly, explaining. "There is no shrine, no torii gate; the tomb itself is regarded as the object of worship. There is a memorial hall built in the 70s outside, but there's nothing worth seeing there."

The object of worship refers to, within the Shinto worldview, [an object where a deity resides], which is the object of people's veneration. Sometimes it's a boulder, sometimes a sacred tree, sometimes a sacred mountain; the Three Sacred Treasures—the mirror, the sword, and the jewel—are of course also the objects of worship in Imperial Shinto.

"After all, this was originally just someone's ancestral grave. When it was first built in the mountains, surely no one had ever thought about developing it into a tourist project."

Elaine added.

That was true.

Qi Xing tried to sense the burial mound, but he didn't feel any, not even the slightest bit of, supernatural power. Could he have really looked in the wrong direction?

"What about the head of this village, the main branch of the Shingo Family?" Qi Xing had to turn to the last direction. "By the way, what does the Jingo Family actually do now?"

"They do everything."

Elaine answered.

"Everything?"

Qi Xing frowned.

"The head of the Jingo Family, Jingo Shinji, is currently a member of the Aomori Prefecture assembly and is usually not at home."

"The current family head of the Jingo Family is the head's son-in-law, who married into the family, and is also the father of the shrine maiden Jingo Rin. His name is Jingo Shinji, and he is the operator of the local tourist restaurant and hot spring inn, as well as an Itamae—in simple terms, the head chef."

It was quite terrifying how Elaine could report the key information of someone's family without even blinking.

"The shrine maiden Jingo Rin, whom we want to investigate this time, is 17 years old and still goes to high school in Aomori City every day. But I made an appointment in the name of the [Association] to meet with their family today, and the Family Head has already agreed."

What does it mean to be a local power broker in the national tourism industry? First, the family head is a prefectural assembly member, and their own businesses are local restaurants and inns—this is what you call the integration of politics and business!

Fortunately, for the personal visit of the new president of the [Association], the Jingo Family seemed willing to pay their utmost respects, directly inviting President Elaine to meet at the ancestral residence of the Shingo Family.

It was an antique, purely Japanese wooden building, which must have had quite a history; it was imposing and elegant.

As soon as Qi Xing and the others arrived, servants were already waiting to receive them and lead them into a reception room laid with tatami mats and cushions. In the center of the room was a low, rectangular wooden table; on the walls hung ink paintings and calligraphy scrolls, and next to them was a simple flower arrangement, giving the whole room an elegant style, full of traditional etiquette and a sense of nobility for entertaining guests.

However, the person sitting in the reception room waiting for them left both Elaine and Qi Xing speechless for a moment.

"Oh my! Since Rin-chan started high school, this is the first time I've encountered someone requesting a meeting who isn't here to demand medical expenses! It's really not easy to get used to something like this."

The person waiting for them in the reception room was actually a middle-aged man with blonde hair, and his hair was so messy. At first glance, it looked like he had a durian on his head; the hairstyle was quite wild and unrestrained.

While he was speaking with a laugh, his face wore a relaxed and slightly cunning smile, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned, and he had an unlit cigarette dangling from his mouth.

Although the surroundings were a very elegant Japanese-style reception room, he was wearing a blue Hawaiian shirt, not even buttoned up, and an inverted cross necklace hung around his neck. His whole body was full of a slow-paced, leisurely atmosphere—instantly shattering the [Japanese aesthetic filter] in the mind of Elaine, the Frenchwoman.

Qi Xing, on the other hand, didn't care about those tedious formalities. Hearing what this person said and carefully examining his facial features, Qi Xing immediately knew in his heart—sure enough, like father, like daughter.

"Hello, Mr. Shingo."

Elaine suppressed the urge to retort and focused on the business at hand, saying, "The reason for our visit today has been explained in advance. Could you please introduce us to your daughter? We have some questions that require her assistance in the investigation."

Her wording was precise, and her speech was very formal.

However, the Mr. Shingo opposite them simply closed his eyes and stroked his beard with one hand, making one suspect that he was about to fall asleep.

Just when Elaine suspected that he had really fallen asleep, the man suddenly opened his eyes and answered with a smile: "Sure."

"Ayame, bring the young lady over."

He turned his head and instructed the servant waiting outside the paper door of the reception room.

Before long, the young lady was brought in by the maid.

It is said that when people distinguish appearances, they mainly look at the hair and clothes first. If one were to judge by these two points, the young lady brought in at this moment looked nothing like the delinquent girl Qi Xing met last night.

With long, jet-black, lustrous hair, a pure white chihaya, and a striking crimson hakama, she looked like a young girl of about seventeen or eighteen. Her headband was decorated with red spider lilies, and her face was as dignified and beautiful as a doll's, yet she simultaneously possessed a samurai-like heroism, coexisting with a model-level figure.

"Nice to meet you, everyone from the [International Exorcism Association]."

Her hair color was different, and her attire was worlds apart from the delinquent girl Qi Xing had seen yesterday. Her tone was calm yet cold, and she exuded an air of keeping others at a distance—she was truly a high-mountain flower on a snowy peak!

But Qi Xing was still certain at a glance that she was indeed the delinquent girl from last night.

Her hair could change, her clothes could change, and her temperament could be disguised, but her face and figure had not changed. Qi Xing had fought her, so he could distinguish her muscles at this distance at a glance. It was definitely the same person; there was no way he could be mistaken.

"I am the Northern Guardian appointed by the Palace, daughter of the current head of the Jingo Family, Jingo Shinji, Mutsu-hime Jingo Rin," she said.

But her iceberg-like demeanor was likely just an act. How should Qi Xing bring this up?

Perhaps Qi Xing didn't need to initiate the conversation at all.

"Rin," her father's expression suddenly turned serious. He turned to his daughter and said in an earnest tone, "We can't fit this many people in this room."

"Dad?!" With just one sentence, her father shattered her carefully constructed iceberg-maiden persona.

Having shattered his daughter's persona into pieces with a single sentence, the father nodded in satisfaction: "That's right! Don't be so nervous!"

Watching this, Qi Xing finally couldn't help but grin. He actually quite liked this eccentric father, and of course, the daughter was quite interesting as well.

Elaine seized this moment and gave the Old Wolf a wink. The Wolf Lord, who looked savage but was actually very cunning, understood immediately and spoke up: "I've long heard that Miss Jingo is peerless in her martial arts. Could you show us a few moves and let us foreign guests broaden our horizons?"

Asking someone to show off their moves so suddenly was indeed somewhat rude, which naturally made the shrine maiden frown.

But before she could say anything, her father beside her put on a thoughtful expression, then suddenly realized: "Oh, you want to fight? Ayame, go get some snacks and drinks!"

At this, not to mention his daughter, even the maid couldn't hold back: "Master?! Is it really okay with the Madam?!"

"It's fine, it's fine, I'll just go explain it to her."

Watching the comedic atmosphere of this family, Qi Xing finally couldn't help it anymore and burst into laughter.

He placed his hand on his face, activated the Silver Coin of [Illusion], changed his appearance back to what it was last night, and nodded at the wide-eyed shrine maiden: "Boss, let's go outside and have another fight."

066: Monster Movie

Let's go outside and fight—that said, given the combat power of Qi Xing and Miss Jingo Rin, if they really fought in the courtyard outside, let alone the mansion, they might tear down the entire village.

Fortunately, the Wolf Lord could come in handy at times like this.

He drew four Celtic Ogham runes at the four corners of the courtyard. The area formed by these four runes immediately turned into [Another World]. The moment the barrier was activated, the surrounding air seemed to freeze, the temperature dropped slightly, and an aura mixed with the scent of sea tides and ancient battlefields permeated the air.

"May the souls of the Gael awaken, may the wrath of the warriors burn."

As the Old Wolf chanted the poem in Gaelic, complex trefoil patterns began to emerge on the ground, like thorns of intertwined green and gold, weaving into a perfect circle. The runes flowed, emitting a faint greenish light, as if the morning mist of Ireland had condensed into form.

"This is a dueling barrier called the [Ring of Aengus]. It is said to originate from ancient Celtic warriors, established so as not to harm the innocent during battles of honor."

The omnipotent walking library, Miss Elaine, explained to Qi Xing from the side,

"Inside the barrier, all sounds are dampened, but not to the point where they are completely inaudible from the outside; the impact of the battle will not spread to the outside world but will be absorbed by this space itself. To some extent, this is an application of the concept of the [Inner Realm], trapping the entire battlefield in a personalized dream-like dimension."

Just as Elaine said, in the void all around, the lingering shadows of ancient Gaelic warriors vaguely appeared. They fought in ancient ballads, chanting ancient war songs, deep and shocking.

This was indeed a type of [Inner Realm], a simple, single-layered domain, a small world created temporarily.

Since ancient times, there have been many stories in Irish and Celtic legends of fairies taking people to fairyland. Oisín, son of Fionn, once spent 300 years in fairyland. It is only natural that the Fenian warriors are adept at this kind of magic.

"Even if two demigods were to fight inside, the barrier could hold for at least ten minutes," the Old Wolf said with great confidence.

That sloppy, eccentric father, Jingo Shinji, had the maid bring over cola and potato chips, sitting by the edge of the courtyard with great interest, ready to watch the show.

Jingo Rin, wearing a red and white shrine maiden outfit, and Qi Xing both walked into the fighting circle. Qi Xing was very calm, grinning. Rin, on the other hand, looked a bit nervous and guarded.

"So you are not possessed?" After walking into the barrier, she immediately asked,

"But you have the aura of an evil spirit on you, and you are an expert brought by the [Exorcism Association]… Could it be…" Speaking to this point, the shrine maiden suddenly realized, "Could it be that the [Association] has some wicked operation where they bind a great demon to a human in order to fight evil… like a Jinchuriki of a Tailed Beast…"

Miss Rin, you watch too many manga. The [Association] isn't from 40K.

Although Qi Xing really wanted to retort, he thought about it again and realized he did indeed seem to be a [Devilman] who was entangled with a great evil god and used the power of the devil to fight against other evil [Silver Coin Messengers].

Thinking of this, Qi Xing suddenly had a mischievous idea and simply went along with Rin's words: "You could say that. It was the former chairman's idea, and it ended up getting him removed from his post."

Sure enough, upon hearing this from Qi Xing, Rin immediately frowned slightly. Although her expression did not change, a hint of sympathy inevitably appeared in her eyes.

This reaction made Qi Xing burst into silent laughter.

"Don't think too much about it, young lady. Come at me."

His calm gaze was like he was admiring the scenery, yet his footwork and positioning were already in the optimal spot. His unhurried attitude in meeting the attack was so arrogant—but this time, Rin understood very well that this person truly had the confidence to do so.

So this time, she was no longer in a stance for a fistfight, but raised her right hand with two fingers pressed together, like a sword.

In an instant, a scorching flame rose from her fingertips, like an invisible blade, trembling slightly, even producing a faint ringing sound, as if the air itself was trembling from her sword intent.

Without another word, she took the first step. Her pace was as fast as a fiery meteor, instantly closing the distance to Qi Xing. Her two fingers turned into a blade, trailing a line of fire, and she thrust the sword directly at Qi Xing's throat!

However, at that very same instant, Qi Xing's figure was like a reed in the wind, rolling with the dust, drifting slightly, and he avoided the burning blade by a hair's breadth.

At the same time, his left hand reached out like flowing water, gently resting on the shrine maiden's wrist, and with a slight twist—Rin's arm was directly deflected by him, the trajectory of the fire blade carving an arc in the air, stabbing straight into the ground to the side!

In an instant, the flames exploded, the scorching air currents impacted all directions, and it had already split a charred crack in the barrier!

Rin did not hesitate for a moment because of this; her fingers flipped nimbly, suddenly turning into a continuous gust of wind. Her fire sword techniques were grand and magnificent, every slash and thrust carrying the force of a landslide or a torrential storm, slamming towards Qi Xing one sword after another. In an instant, the air was filled with the trajectories of crisscrossing fire blades, a veritable rain of flames falling down.

But Qi Xing remained unhurried, his hands moving like parting clouds to reveal the sun, his fingers and palms lightly neutralizing every offensive. His palms were like feathers drifting through a storm, lightly and vaguely striking out, his ten fingers like playing a zither or plucking a harp, flicking and parrying, each time causing the shrine maiden's fire sword stance to deflect slightly. In the end, all these attacks were under his control, all of them missing their mark!