Riding swiftly for days and nights, Wu Ming had no idea how long had passed, but he was almost certain he had already left Behi Province, perhaps even the territory of Izumo Province.
A drizzle was falling from the sky.
This was a misty mountain range shrouded in clouds. Wu Ming abandoned his horse and, holding an oil-paper umbrella, strolled along the mountain path.
“Just now I activated my Celestial Eye, and I saw a fleeting glimpse of purple here. I should be close…”
The mountain path was quite rugged, and the rain gradually intensified, large drops falling heavily. The sky turned dark, and flashes of lightning occasionally illuminated the horizon.
Although none of this could daunt Wu Ming, when he spotted a single point of lamplight beneath the pitch-black sky, a faint smile flickered across his face.
As he approached, he realized that the light was coming from a temple.
The temple was in a very dilapidated condition, with its gate slightly ajar. Wu Ming pushed it gently, and it opened, allowing him to enter and proceed into the main hall.
“Ahh!”
A crisp and youthful voice came from inside, filled with alarm.
“Sorry to intrude!”
Though Wu Ming’s words were polite, his actions were anything but. He barged straight in and immediately saw a boy no older than ten, holding a wakizashi with both hands and staring at him with a frightened expression.
“Heh! Kid… if you keep pointing that at me, I’ll really kill you!”
Wu Ming strode in and saw that the hall was also in disrepair, with a statue of an unnamed Bodhisattva on the altar, its paint and colors mostly faded.
Yet, there was still a little oil in the lamp in front of the statue, and it was lit.
In the desolate mountains, a ruined temple, a flickering light like a bean, and a strange child—all of it seemed very eerie.
Wu Ming activated his Celestial Eye, a flash of coldness appearing in the depths of his pupils. Observing the boy, he immediately understood: “Hmm… his fate line actually carries a hint of purple… This is a destiny of innate nobility and great fortune?”
Knowing that this child’s background might be quite extraordinary, yet there was something else to pay attention to now.
“There’s a scent of blood!”
Without further ado, he ignored the boy’s protests and went straight to the back hall.
Crash!
A bolt of lightning suddenly illuminated the sky, revealing the corpse of a headless samurai before Wu Ming.
“Hmm? Harakiri?”
There was a puddle of dark red blood on the ground. The samurai was bare-chested, holding a wakizashi, having performed a “cross-cut” on his own abdomen. His body was leaning forward, perfectly upright without toppling over, a flawless harakiri technique for a samurai.
“But if it really was a suicide, the kaishakunin must have been really incompetent…”
Wu Ming muttered sarcastically as he observed the dog-bite-like wound on the samurai’s neck.
Clang!
Behind Wu Ming, the boy’s small knife fell to the ground, and a look of sorrow appeared on his face.
“Was he your relative? Or a friend? Or a retainer?”
Thinking about his future plans, Wu Ming tried to appear amiable, patting the boy’s head: “What’s your name?”
“Cow… Cow Wakamaru!”
The boy’s eyes finally showed some life, with tears forming: “Here… there’s… a demon!”
“A demon!”
Wu Ming smiled, and then heard a loud noise from the front Buddhist hall.
Instantly, he placed his hand on his katana and went to the front.
The dim lamp emitted a pale yellow glow, and everything seemed unchanged from before, except that a Buddhist sutra had appeared on the offering table.
The original sutra was not particularly special, but a sudden gust of wind blew, flipping the pages until it landed on a page with dark brown characters:
“…Vow to write the five major Mahayana sutras with tongue blood, dedicating the merit to the suffering realms, becoming a great demon in Japan, killing the people for the emperor, killing the emperor for the people, vowing that this country will forever be in chaos… How full of indignation these words are!”
After reading it, Wu Ming chuckled slightly, showing a trace of disdain.
Boom!
At that moment, the last flame in the oil lamp also extinguished!
By the last bit of light from outside, one could see that the originally enshrined Bodhisattva had changed!
The once lifeless statue revealed an eerie grin, its red nose slowly protruding, rising higher and higher, and emitting a bizarre laugh.
In an instant, this Bodhisattva transformed from a divine image into the figure of a giant demon wearing armor, a straw raincoat, a sword at its waist, a fan in hand, and with wings!
“It’s a Tengu!”
Cried Cow Wakamaru, falling to the ground: “It’s the one that ate Sawa’s head!”
“Hmm… quite a powerful demon, rivaling the strength of Shuten-doji!”
Watching the giant Tengu warrior step down from the altar, Wu Ming suddenly smiled, spreading his hands as blue lightning marks appeared on his palms: “I don’t care whether you kept this Cow Wakamaru for ulterior motives, out of mercy, or were even manipulated by other entities or driven by fate. There’s only one thing I want to say!”
At this moment, flames emerged from the Tengu’s fan, and it raised its katana high.
A shocking demonic power spread like a storm, engulfing the surroundings.
“…That is… choosing to oppose me on such a day with this weather… you’ve made a grave miscalculation!”
After finishing his last sentence, lightning danced outside in an instant, accompanied by continuous thunder.
“Decree! Summon Thunder and Lightning!”
Boom!
A massive bolt of lightning struck down, tearing off the roof of the entire temple.
Countless electric snakes danced across the sky, vaguely forming the shape of a green dragon. Following Wu Ming’s guidance, with an awe-inspiring demeanor and majesty, it roared down!
“Five Thunder Secret Technique – Green Dragon Strikes from Above!”
A Daoist technique of the third order, the body of a True Man, plus the power of thunder, aided by the might of the heavens at this moment, the lightning technique truly shook heaven and earth, making ghosts and spirits weep!
White light!
Before the great Tengu could react, it was swallowed by the blinding white electric light.
Then, the surging lightning spread out, affecting everything around…
…
In a dream, blood and fire covered the ground.
Black flames consumed the luxurious palaces of everyday life and the lofty castle keep.
“Cow Wakamaru… you must remember, you are the young master of the Susano family, bearing the blood of Susano-no-Mikoto!”
“Survive! You must survive, and avenge us against the Genpei family!”
These were the words of a dignified adult.
The scene shifted, showing a desperate flight across the land, with attendants dying one by one. In the end, he arrived at a temple.
“Please, Cow Wakamaru-sama… you must survive!”
That was the last warrior who protected him, smiling as blood scattered like cherry blossoms. Then a giant Tengu monster pounced, biting off his head in one go.
“No…!”
Cow Wakamaru cried out, leaping up from the grass.
“What… was this a dream?”
He found himself lying on a grassy meadow. The grass around him was still dewy, the rain had stopped and the sky cleared, and a beautiful rainbow floated above the mountains.
“Ahh… the rainbow is a bridge to the underworld. Maybe Sawa has reached Nirvana on the rainbow…”
Cow Wakamaru sat there, dazed, and tears began to flow.
“Are you alright?”
A voice came, making him jump. He then saw the warrior from last night.
Instinctively, he touched his neck, finding the stone magatama pendant still there, and let out a long sigh of relief, feeling somewhat awkward.
At this moment, he deeply realized that with his follower dead, he was truly alone now.
“This… is the temple?”
“The demon is dead, so the illusionary barrier has disappeared…”
Wu Ming said carelessly: “That warrior must have volunteered to be a sacrifice to protect you. Truly brave… Cow Wakamaru, where is your home? I’ll take you back…”
“I can’t go back!!!”
Cow Wakamaru startled, then realizing his overreaction, he blushed and said: “I have no home anymore…”
“Is that so… having such a loyal guard is truly touching!”
Wu Ming clapped his hands: “How about this… I am also a samurai lord. From now on, you can follow me, what do you think?”
At this moment, Cow Wakamaru was lost, not knowing where else to go.
By the time he came to his senses, he was already riding on a fine horse.
“I am the lord of the Moon-view Mountains. In the future, following me, you will surely become an excellent samurai…”
Wu Ming spoke loudly at the front, while secretly chuckling in his heart.
As a True Man, dealing with a child, no matter what methods he used, they were all at his fingertips.
This little brat still wanted to hide everything, not realizing that with a simple dream-summoning technique, Wu Ming had already made him reveal everything.
“The young master of the Susano family, bearing the blood of one of the Three Noble Deities, Susano-no-Mikoto… and also… one of the Three Sacred Treasures of Japan, the Susano family’s heirloom treasure, the Yasakani no Magatama…”
Glancing at the magatama around Cow Wakamaru’s neck, Wu Ming felt a slight regret.
This item not only recognized the bloodline of Susano-no-Mikoto through a drop of blood, but also carried great fortune and karma. Wu Ming could not possibly touch it.
Once he took it, he would inevitably draw the attention of the Three Noble Deities. Even if he managed to obtain it through schemes, the treasure would eventually conceal itself, making it utterly useless.
“Perhaps… I can try at the very end to see if the Lord Space will take it?”
Wu Ming stroked his chin, already having a series of follow-up strategies for Cow Wakamaru.
Naturally, enhancing control was a must, whether through kindness and favor, planting hidden seals on his body, or even influencing his mind, all measures would be employed simultaneously.
Moreover, using him as a medium to steal the entire fortune of Japan was not entirely impossible!
After all, this was the bloodline of the Susano family, theoretically possessing the legitimacy and righteousness to rule all of Japan!
This world of Japan was somewhat different from his previous life. The Three Noble Deities—Amaterasu, Susano-no-Mikoto, and Tsukuyomi—had all left their bloodlines on Earth.
Although the daimyos and court nobles also had some connections, the purest and most direct lineages belonged to the three imperial families known as Genpei, Susano, and Fujiwara!
Genpei were the direct descendants of Amaterasu Omikami, Susano naturally inherited Susano-no-Mikoto, while Fujiwara were the bloodline of Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto!
The legitimacy of Japan lay in the rotation among these three families.
Sometimes they ruled together, sometimes they were loving and hating each other, rising and falling alternately, but because of divine protection, they always managed to preserve a trace of their bloodline.
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