Chapter 89

Qi Xing truly did not know. He was quite puzzled at the time, because he felt that date was at most a 70-point level.

"Because."

She stared straight at him and said gently, her voice clear and firm, "The happiness I feel when I am with you is always twice what you feel."

The lethality of these words was a bit too strong.

For a moment, Qi Xing really did not know what to say. The sentence was as quiet as the moon in water, as light as a feather, yet it pressed heavily on Qi Xing's heart.

Changing the world is much heavier than dealing with two or three, or four or five women.

But the feelings of a woman who loves you are actually not easy to carry either.

Rather, look at those magnetic field powerhouses next door who are tormented to death by women. Perhaps what powerhouses fear most are emotional problems.

"Alright. I understand."

In the end, Qi Xing nodded, "In any case, nothing is set in stone regarding Rin, so it is too early to talk about it now."

"You just mentioned receiving news from the Papal Privy Council; is there any new intelligence regarding the [True Buddha Association]?"

Anyone could tell that Qi Xing was trying to change the subject very awkwardly.

It was also possible that he was feeling agitated and wanted to find some evil to beat up to vent his psychological pressure.

Elaine did not expose him, but simply and calmly took up the conversation: "I cross-referenced all the recorded Satan-like cults of the Holy See and found seventy-nine pieces of potentially relevant intelligence."

"From the Mediterranean coast, to Iran-Iraq, to the Caucasus region, to India, following the eastward spread of Buddhism into Japan… along this route, one can vaguely see some distribution."

"What distribution?" These words finally piqued a bit of Qi Xing's interest, "This [True Buddhism]?"

However, Elaine shook her head: "Not [True Buddhism], but secret cults that worship the [Peacock] and the [White God] in different forms, which have at least 1400 years of history."

White God?

Elaine had already introduced the concept of the [Black God] before. The fusion of Christianity and primitive religions began at least from the 5th century, to the point that people in Western Asia and the Caucasus region regarded God as the [Black God].

So if God is the [Black God], what exactly is the corresponding [White God]?

"In the Caucasus region, or rather the north of the Caucasus Mountains—Georgia and the Republic of North Ossetia, there is a [Uastyrdzhi Religion]."

"The Black God of the Uastyrdzhi Religion, like the Black God in the Greater Aryan Nazi ideology of Armenia, is our Lord. It is just that the Greater Aryan Nazi ideology believes the Black God is a god representing destruction, chaos, and punishment, while the Uastyrdzhi Religion believes that the [Black God] is the supreme god representing kindness."

"In contrast, the White God is a false god representing deceit and trickery."

"The Uastyrdzhi Religion even regards the Steel Hero Batraz from Caucasian mythology as the godson (adopted son) of Christ. Because the meaning of the flaming divine sword [Dazkhue] in his hand is [Black God]."

"I will briefly summarize the specific details and explain them to you."

You call this a brief summary?

But the term [White God] still made Qi Xing feel a slight shudder. Because he suddenly could not help but think of that disgusting [Unborn White King] submerged in the sea of collective unconsciousness of all humanity.

No way?

"Simply put… the worship and myths regarding the White God, as well as the myths regarding the [Peacock God], originally came from the dualistic religion of Persia, which is Zoroastrianism."

"In Zoroastrianism, the good god Ahura Mazda is the god representing light, the only true creator, and the source of all good; while the evil god Angra Mainyu is [All the Evils of This World], representing darkness and death, as well as all crime and deception in the world."

"However, in ancient Persian (i.e., Iran) beliefs, the evil god Angra Mainyu created the peacock to prove that He, like the good god, could also create beautiful things. Thus, in ancient Iran, the peacock became the symbol of the evil god Angra Mainyu."

"On the other hand, in India, which is adjacent to ancient Iran, the peacock is the sacred bird representing the main deity Vishnu."

"The worship of the peacock influenced the Scythians, who also belonged to the Indo-European language family. They were a nomadic people who regarded the sword as a god and were the earliest to raise and ride horses. With the activities of the Scythian nomads, passing through the vast steppes of Eurasia, a portion of their beliefs and myths entered Japan via the Korean Peninsula…"

"The result is that Japanese mythology actually contains some elements common to the Indo-European peoples. For example, the [Three Sacred Treasures] and the [Three Noble Children] that correspond to the three occupational symbols of priesthood, military, and production."

Qi Xing still remembered that the elder of the Kito Family had said before that [True Buddhism] considers Mahamayuri to be the root of all gods and Buddhas, interpreting the Shinto Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, and Susanoo—the Three Noble Children—as the three manifestations of the Buddha Mother. The [Three Heads and Six Arms] of Mahamayuri, they said, were the incarnations of the Three Noble Children.

The peacock, which is regarded as a sacred bird, a good god, and the mother of gods and Buddhas in one place, is regarded as a symbol of an evil god or a fallen angel in another. This would normally be nothing. But once he associated it with Sasa, Qi Xing felt it was very dire.

What exactly is the background of these guys who worship the Peacock God, believe in the [White God], and think He is the creator god, and what exactly do they want to do?

088: Will it win?

March 7th.

The elite Exorcist team from the central Onmyoryo has arrived in Aomori.

Under the pretext of investigating cults, they began to suppress local sorcerer clans that did not submit.

Those clans that had already submitted to the [Guardian of the North] Jingo Rin and submitted to central authority naturally bowed their heads obediently and let them pass.

Some sorcerer clans that were originally watching from the sidelines and had not yet submitted actually still had one chance to choose.

But Northeast Japan has been a land with many powerful local families since ancient times that were unwilling to submit to the central control of the imperial court, and there happened to be enough non-compliant people there.

The first to be sealed was the Kugarayoshi family located in northern Iwate.

Dozens of Exorcists wearing uniforms and equipped with official service numbers, under the reflection of the fiery red sunset, broke the protective barrier of the Kugarayoshi clan.

The divine descent artifacts used for generations were sealed and frozen, becoming ineffective. Holding the talisman orders of the Onmyoryo, the Exorcists stepped into the residence and forcibly registered the curse seals sealed in the bloodlines of the clan sorcerers, one by one!

How terrifying!

Just like the [Descent of the Heavenly Grandchild] and the [Eastern Expedition of Emperor Jimmu] in mythology—these [Orthodox Envoys] from the central imperial court, bringing gods and laws, were about to suppress the non-compliant people, as if it were a reenactment of ancient mythology.

If these local clans submitted to the central government and gave up their power, they could still survive.

If they resisted, then as long as they looked at history, they would know what kind of name they would leave in the records.

Tsuchigumo, Ryomen Sukuna, Akuro-o… these are all derogatory terms used for the people of ancient times who did not submit to the imperial rule, those local tyrants who were unwilling to submit to the royal power of the Yamato court.

They were all recorded in history as monsters and demons.

Perhaps there is not that much difference between humans and monsters.

"Too fast."

On the day the Kugarayoshi family was sealed, the heads of the six remaining sorcerer clans in the Northeast region that still did not submit to imperial rule immediately gathered through magic to hold an emergency meeting.

The venue for the gathering was chosen in a cave behind an abandoned old shrine at the northernmost tip of the Tsugaru Peninsula.

This shrine is named [Moon Hidden Palace], and it had long been abandoned after World War II due to the decline of faith. Now only broken torii gates and the collapsed frames of the worship hall remain.

The only place that still retained spiritual energy was the [Divine Cave] behind the mountain—the depths of the cave were cold and damp, the surrounding rock walls were long covered with moss, and only the six-pointed bellflower seal drawn on the ground by ancient magic was still clear.

At this moment, six bright lamps were burning in the cave, with dim yellow light. The six heads of the sorcerer clans who did not submit to imperial rule gathered here in the form of semi-corporeal, semi-spiritual projections. The atmosphere was heavy, with anger and panic intertwined.

"Without any prior warning, they just came to search with talisman orders, completely giving us no face!"

The one who spoke was Jūyaku Sōgen, a thin old man who was skilled in Esoteric Buddhism spells and proficient in the principles of medicine and poison; his family had been the guardians of the spiritual mountains in Tsugaru for generations, collecting hundreds of medicines.

He twisted the prayer beads in his hand, his voice hoarse, but suppressed anger burned in his eyes.

"Why give face to chickens that are already on a list prepared to be caught one by one?"

The reply came from Yukishiro Awayuki, a female sorcerer with white hair and a youthful face who was extremely calm. She was the oldest, but her appearance was very enchanting, looking at most thirty years old, sitting under a cloak embroidered with gold thread, holding a pipe and taking a puff unhurriedly,

"They were just waiting for a pretext, and this time they used the Kito Family incident as a trigger, under the banner of [Investigating Cults]."

"Bastards! We have spent hundreds of years bitterly suppressing the spiritual mountains and spiritual caves on our ancestral land, how many people have we sacrificed?"

The speaker was Kamigaki Chitose, a sharp-spirited man of about thirty, dressed neatly with eagle-like eyes, his voice filled with gnashing resentment.

His family's most specialized secret technique is the art of divine descent, and they have a unique technique that can tamper with contracts with non-human entities. For hundreds of years, they have relied on this to make others in the family become sacrifices when concluding contracts that have a price. That's right, [others] in the family.

For hundreds of years, how many children they have killed that were born to clansmen and servants, or children born casually to low-status concubines! To consume children [manufactured] in this way, generation after generation… what a great sacrifice this clan has made! Damn it! We have sacrificed our own family members! How can your central government come here now and confiscate our assets!

"Then what should we do now? Resist? Like the Kugarayoshi family?"

This sentence came from Sotodate Genmon, who was short and stout, born into a family line known for Feng Shui, originally quite wavering, and at this moment he was covered in cold sweat, his voice trembling,

"This is state violence, it is the comprehensive crushing force of the central government, it is simply not something we can resist."

"If you want to surrender, go yourself."

Jūyaku Sōgen swept a cold glance at him, "Don't drag us into the water."

"You say it lightly! Can your little patch of land still hide anything? Once the Jūyaku Clan's medicine storage falls into the hands of the Onmyoryo, do you think your experiments and research on insects [redacted] won't be investigated?!"

Sotodate Genmon retorted, his voice nearly hoarse.

At this point, some people might find it strange why so many sorcerer clans chose to surrender obediently after Jingo Rin suppressed the Northeast, yet these hardliners refused to surrender no matter what. Even now that the central Official Exorcists of the Onmyoryo are holding search warrants to investigate cults, they still refuse to surrender. The answer is actually very simple. Because the things they are doing are particularly outrageous.

This absurd world can derive power from desire. Therefore, most of Japan's Exorcist families actually have more or less some dirty methods that would make Qi Xing want to kill—but on the other hand, even for erotic [redacted] activities, there are degrees of severity.

Simple dual cultivation, group [redacted], harvesting [redacted] and nourishing [redacted], etc., generally as long as it is not malicious operations like kidnapping and forced [redacted], the government will not care at all, and even some orthodox sects will use it a little bit.

This is also why Qi Xing often looks at many people with displeasure, but it is impossible to kill them all—they engage in dual cultivation or even group [redacted], but everyone is consenting, there is no coercion… then why are you [Master Leipu] coming to manage us? If Qi Xing really killed them, who would maintain local magical security? Who would be responsible for managing those worse evil paths?

So Qi Xing particularly likes Rin, precisely because she really managed to control a piece of land about the size of one or two provinces.

Therefore, those local sorcerer clans that did not go too far with [redacted] magic, after surrendering to the central government, the Onmyoryo and the Ministry of Divination basically let it go and would not go digging up old accounts for every family.

But if you, for the sake of involution and more power, escalate from R18 to R18G, or even some more exaggerated things… then you cannot expect the imperial court to continue to pretend not to see it.

The Jūyaku Clan has been refining medicine in the mountains since ancient times and has also used insects and monsters from the mountains for crossbreeding. If they only used insects and monsters for crossbreeding, that would be one thing. But one can imagine they didn't just use insects and monsters… This level of things is not uncommon among Exorcist families.

The six families present—the Jūyaku Clan, the Tokoyomi Clan, the Kamigaki Clan, the Sotodate Clan, the Yukishiro Clan, and the Arawashi Clan—almost all have similar handles that cannot be shown to the imperial court. And because they are too familiar with each other, they basically know each other's roots, so it is very difficult to backstab and run away.

"What are you arguing about!"

Arawashi Kiyomaru, who had not spoken, finally spoke angrily at this time. He is the head of the Arawashi Clan, a mountain warrior family from Fukushima, skilled in refining divine energy, fighting directly with a divine sword, and very brave.

As soon as he spoke, the atmosphere in the cave suddenly stagnated.

Bravery is bravery, but their family's dark history is that they would let the contracted beast demons [redacted] their own young descendants during battle, forcibly using demon energy to stimulate [redacted] their bodies and minds to enter a state of selflessness, so that they could harbor divine energy from a young age to enhance their combat power after growing up.

At first glance, it seems the harm is relatively low, and they also feel it is all for the children's future. However, in the children's hearts, there is probably no such thing as [voluntarily being redacted]. This is the terror of [redacted] involution. Ordinary [redacted] is no longer strong enough, so more and more people are doing things that are unbearable. Who is the one who ends up unlucky?

"No matter which one of our families surrenders, it is impossible to survive alone! The best case is that our magic and inheritance are burned away, and we are demoted to ordinary people! Can you endure that?"

As soon as Arawashi finished speaking, everyone fell silent.

Indeed, people who already possess supernatural powers can absolutely not give up easily. Power, strength… these are things even harder to give up than power and money.

"Then what do you plan to do?"

The speaker was Tokoyomi Tokihiko, the current head of the [Tokoyomi Clan], who was wearing a pitch-black hunting robe, his appearance as cold and stern as a statue.

As the name suggests, what their family plays with is the Tokoyomi magic of finding a groom from outside and performing a [Ghost Marriage] with their own deceased shrine maiden to obtain powerful human pillar strength. This type of magic has been banned by the Onmyoryo since the 20th century, with past offenses forgiven, but no further violations allowed. However, how could people who have tasted powerful strength really give it up completely?

"Unite and raise an army? Give the central government another [Northeast Rebellion] title? [Colluding with foreign cults to attempt to subvert the imperial court] is already troublesome enough, do you think it's not bad enough yet?"

"If we don't gather now, our six families will only be defeated one by one."

Kamigaki Chitose said in a deep voice, "You must be clear, today it is Kugarayoshi, tomorrow it will be you and me!"

With these words, the entire cave fell into a low-pressure silence again.

—Surrender, or resist. There is no third way.

Everyone knows that as long as they rebel, they will no longer be treated as humans by the imperial court, but will be directly treated as monsters to be crusaded against!

The firelight flickered, casting six heavy faces on the rock wall.

…

"No need to worry. As things stand, I have of course prepared countermeasures for everyone."

Until, a familiar and elegant female voice suddenly sounded, echoing in the cave.

All six clan heads present knew this voice.

Precisely because they all knew this voice, they couldn't help but be shocked at this moment.

Because this was the voice of someone who should have been dead.