Shirou's Rise to Stardom / The Trembling Statue of Kishimojin

"Eh..." Shirou was conflicted, but social stability was indeed very important.

"Bring the cameraman over here quickly!" The inspector ordered his young men to talk to the Fat Director carrying the camera.

As soon as the young detective explained the situation, the Fat Director readily agreed, and they hit it off immediately. He was naturally more than happy to work with someone as handsome and capable as Shirou. As for that bastard with the afro who only knew how to court death and make others take the blame, he didn't care.

The Fat Director, true to his professional nature, took charge of the event with practiced ease, addressing the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your understanding in order to maintain street safety. As compensation, we will be hosting a small meet-and-greet with the main character here."

"Wow! It really is a movie shoot!" a girl exclaimed excitedly.

The onlookers eagerly joined in.

Chapter 871 Shirou's Road to Stardom

Under the direction of the Fat Director, the police officers busied themselves, borrowing a large empty room from Boss Niu's shop, setting up tables and chairs inside, and surprisingly managing to make the meet-and-greet quite look like a proper event. Meanwhile, Shirou was taken backstage to have his makeup done.

Most of those who sat down in the room were women, while a few men were there with their wives or girlfriends. Although they knew nothing about the show, they had become fans of Shirou after watching his exciting and handsome performance.

The Fat Director's eyes lit up as he looked at Shirou as if he were seeing a rising star in the industry. These fans were of all ages, from their early teens to their fifties, encompassing young girls, young women, and even middle-aged women, showing the potential to become evergreen figures in the industry. (Monthly membership group: 694936135)

The owner Boss Niu, and his proprietress, even smiled and helped serve tea, as it was a rare opportunity for them to attract customers.

"Uncle Niu! Proprietress, please don't cause any more trouble!" Shirou said to the two of them from backstage.

"No, no, in my opinion, why don't you just make a movie, Shirou-kun? I'll talk to everyone on the street and see if we can crowdfund it. It would also help promote our street," the proprietress said with a smile, covering her mouth.

"Hmm, I think that might be feasible." Even the usually composed and steady Boss Niu nodded in agreement.

"It's not good at all!" Shirou retorted.

"Alright! Now that things have come to this, we have no choice but to do it! Shirou-kun, you just go up there, say hello to everyone, and give a proper smile! Leave the rest to me!" The Fat Director gave himself a thumbs-up and said with a smile.

'No, no, aren't you the one who messed things up with that Explosion Head Uncle and ruined the show? Why am I even more uneasy now?' Shirou thought to himself, covering his face.

"What kind of show is this? A supernatural action movie? When will it be released?!" someone asked excitedly.

"Sorry, these are still in production, and we have a confidentiality obligation. However Shirou-kun is a promising newcomer that our company is actively promoting, so please look forward to it. You'll definitely find out when the time comes," the Fat Director said.

Shirou sat awkwardly on the stage, but still maintained a perfect, friendly smile. He was putting his experience as the top male host in another parallel world to good use, but how did he end up being the protagonist of some kind of project?

"Please give me your autograph!"

"Please shake my hand!"

"Can I have a hug? Oh my gosh! I said it out loud!"

The fan meeting became lively once again. For some reason, whenever Shirou looked troubled, it only made the people in the audience more excited.

"Miss Shinigami... is there really no way to deal with this situation?" Mashiro frowned, looking at Shirou was being surrounded by more and more girls, and said with great displeasure.

"... Ugh... Ugh... Disgusting..." Horse-headed Miss was still reeling from the shock, squatting in the corner drawing circles.

Meanwhile, the ghostly couple, though shackled, completely ignored Death and flirted with each other.

"Miss Shinigami! You're so cute! You're the cutest Death God I've ever seen! So be more confident! Cheer up!!!" Mashiro grabbed the Horse-Head Death God collar, looking directly at the other's luscious breasts and said earnestly.

"Yes... that's right! That makes sense! When I was in the Grim Reaper Academy, Ma Yuan was top-notch! She was quite popular! Hmm! In kindergarten, the teacher even praised her for being cute!" The Horse-Headed Miss Shinigami encouraged herself, suddenly becoming more confident.

"So, what are you going to do with that group of people now?" Mashiro asked, pointing to the crowd sitting below the stage.

"Oh right! How could I forget! I still have the Death App!" The horse-headed Miss Shinigami, dressed in a black suit, pulled out sunglasses from somewhere and put them on her chest, though they didn't completely cover her eyes. Then she took out her phone and shouted to the crowd.

"Yes, yes, please look over here!" Although the Horse-Headed Miss Shinigami's appearance did not conform to human aesthetics, her voice was still very distinctive. When she called out in a cute loli voice, everyone around turned around curiously.

She immediately pressed the button, and with a click, the characteristic Japanese sound of a non-mute phone camera rang out.

After the flash went off, the people on the roadside were stunned for a moment before they came to their senses and completely forgot what had happened.

"Uh! How did I get here?"

"Oh dear? Why am I standing here in a daze?"

"It's so late! I need to go back and cook!"

The crowd remembered they had things to do, so they all left their seats, stood up, and headed to their respective destinations. The excitement they had felt upon seeing Shirou was gone, and the Miss Shinigami with the horse's head seemed to have vanished from their sight.

"Huh?! Wait a minute!" The Fat Director realized that all his efforts had been in vain.

"Wait!!! Everyone, look this way! It's me! I'm here!" At this moment, the Explosion Head Uncle jumped up and shouted loudly.

"You..." The Fat Director looked up, touched, at the afro-haired man who had come to the rescue.

"Brother! Let's join hands again and turn things around together!" The Explosion Head Uncle gave him a thumbs up. Sure enough, you can't live without me! Let me salvage everything!

The Explosion Head Uncle was planning to use this press conference to promote his show and prepare for a comeback, aiming to return to being a popular figure on television.

However, the reaction from the audience was somewhat cold.

Who is that?

"Ah, is that the scammer who caused such a big stir before?"

"Ugh, why did I even come to this guy's press conference?"

"So they really have been brainwashed?"

"Haha, if he really had that kind of ability, he wouldn't be called a fraud," someone laughed.

So the people inside left, chatting and laughing.

A desolate gust of wind blew by, leaving only the two people standing there on the stage.

The Fat Director and the Explosion Head Uncle looked into each other's eyes, understanding the coldness of the world and realizing that their standing in the public eye had plummeted.

"Thank you, Mashiro, you really have a way with things." Shirou had already walked backstage and said to the girl who was the unsung hero behind the scenes.

"Hmph! That's only natural. We won't let Shirou go to those cheap guys no matter what." Mashiro muttered to herself, hands on her hips, watching the departing crowd.

"Huh? What's going on?" Shirou asked the girl, looking at her with some confusion.

"It's nothing," Mashiro said, her face slightly flushed, turning her head away.

However, what many people didn't know was that some of the videos were still posted on Instagram.

"Hey~! Found it~!" At the foot of a desolate mountain, a woman with long purple hair, dressed in a dark sailor uniform, exclaimed as she watched the video on her phone. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that the woman was holding a blood-dripping long sword in her other hand, and standing on the head of a monster she had just severed.

Chapter 872 The Trembling Demon Mother Statue

"Ahem, Shirou, anyway, thank you for your assistance." The inspector straightened his uniform and saluted Shirou.

"No, I was just acting in self-defense," Shirou said, waving his hand.

"Haha, that's quite an exaggerated defensive measure!" the middle-aged detective said with a laugh.

"Damn it, not only is he handsome, but he also has such exaggerated abilities, and he even held meet-and-greets like a celebrity with so many fans, and now he's saying such cool things! Are you the enemy of all men?!" The young detective standing to the side pointed at Shirou and cursed him with a face full of envy, jealousy and hatred.

"No, it was self-defense before, but to be honest, what happened afterward was a bit of a stretch," Shirou added.

At that moment, the inspector slammed a heavy hammer down on his subordinate's head, yelling, "You idiot! You rookie who got possessed by a ghost so easily! You're completely useless!"

"Inspector! I didn't know I had such a psychic constitution," the young detective said, feeling wronged.

"No... you're just easy to bully." At this moment, the horse-headed Miss Shinigami had walked back, remarked.

"Alright, you've worked hard. We still have work to do, so let's say goodbye." The inspector said, leading his two subordinates.

"Oh, right! Officer, we still need to deal with that Buddha statue. It's blocking the middle of the road, which is quite a hassle. We can just put it on the side of the road. I'll contact the people at the Buddhist altar later to have it taken back," the Horse-Head Death God who was playing a game with Mashiro suddenly said, looking up.

"Okay, move it to the roadside, right? Leave it to us!" the inspector said, giving a thumbs-up.

"I'll help too," Shirou said.

"No, no, the three of us are enough for this," the inspector said, waving his hand.

"That's what I mean." The detective nodded.

Despite their confident assertions, they encountered some difficulties when they arrived in front of the stone statue.

The stone statue depicts a female bodhisattva sitting cross-legged, holding a baby. Although it doesn't look very big, it's almost the same size as a person, and it would be quite heavy to pick up.

Moreover, this statue had previously merged with a vengeful spirit and transformed into a giant monster. I have a feeling that I might be possessed at any moment. However, it is also a statue of a Bodhisattva, so it seems that disrespecting it would incur divine retribution.

"Inspector, how should we move this?" the young detective asked.

"Find a good grip," the inspector said hesitantly.

"Neck? Is the neck okay? One person in front can lift the neck, and two people behind can lift the buttocks," the young detective suggested.

"No, no, that's like putting a noose on a bodhisattva! Do you want to wrestle with a stone statue?!" The inspector shook his head repeatedly, complaining.

"I'm sorry! How about the hand?" the young detective said apologetically.

"Ahhh!!! A Buddha statue! A Buddha statue!" The middle-aged detective suddenly noticed something and cried out in alarm.

"What's wrong?!" The inspector and the young man were startled and asked.

"A hand! One hand is missing!!!" The middle-aged detective pointed at the stone statue of the Kishimojin. One hand was holding a child, but the other hand had vanished from the wrist.

"Whoa!!!" the three detectives screamed in fright.

"Um... that hand was broken off from the beginning," Shirou, who couldn't stand it anymore, explained.

"Mm." Mashiro nodded.

An awkward silence fell over the room for several minutes.

"... I see."

"Ahem... Alright! Hurry up and move it! One! Two! Three!" the inspector shouted to his two subordinates.

"Yes!!" the two replied through gritted teeth.

The three of them bent down and worked together to lift the stone statue from the bottom lotus pedestal.

Click!

A mournful cry emanated from the bones among the three policemen.

"Ouch! My back!" The inspector clutched his back and collapsed to the ground.

"Ouch! My back! Is this karma?" The middle-aged detective was also ashen-faced and unable to move.

"Whoa! I'm not even married yet! My back is going to be ruined!" The young detective rolled on the ground in pain.

"I'll do it," Shirou said helplessly.

"No, no! Be careful, young man! This is very heavy!" the inspector said, stopping Shirou.

"Well, this is what we need to do at this time." Shirou Projection the Vajra weapon of Indra and tapped the top of the stone statue's head. Suddenly, the entire stone statue trembled violently.

"Oh! Oh!" the three detectives exclaimed in surprise.

"Hmm?" Shirou frowned in confusion.

"Excuse me Shirou, Shirou, is there a reason why you're doing this?" the detective asked.

"Yes, I used a ritual implement to consult with the Bodhisattva, to identify myself and tell her that my moving of the stone statue meant no harm. Then I temporarily covered up the connection between the stone statue and the Japanese Buddhist temple, so that it wouldn't be affected by the faith," Shirou explained.

"Oh, I see," the young detective said, suddenly realizing.

Even so, the statue's trembling reaction just now was a bit too intense. It seemed more like it was being threatened than responded to. But Shirou didn't seem to be threatening at all. Where did this malice come from? Shirou was puzzled and had a bad feeling, but he didn't say it aloud.

Shirou then pressed down on one side of the statue, tilting its center of gravity to one side, and then moved the part that was touching the ground from side to side, slowly moving the statue towards the roadside. After turning it back and forth dozens of times, he finally managed to transport the statue back outside.

"Hmm, that's good." Shirou tapped the top of the stone statue with the vajra again, reconnecting it to the Buddhist temple. In his eyes, the seated Buddha statue emanated golden Buddha light, protecting the land within a kilometer radius.

"Hahaha..." The three detectives chuckled dryly, completely unprepared for such a method.

"Those old men are so lame," said the horse-headed Miss Shinigami on the side, showing no mercy.

"Well, in times like these, it's definitely better to have someone else do it," Shirou said.

However, Shirou could understand this. After all, it was a religion with a history of over a thousand years and more than a billion followers, whose influence had reached the very core of humanity.

Even if the three detectives themselves don't believe in Buddhism, some of their relatives might. When they pass away, they might hire a religious group to perform rituals, and when they pay respects to their ancestors, they would inevitably offer incense. So, it's impossible for them not to feel any unease when moving a Bodhisattva stone statue.

Chapter 873 Mashiro Was Kidnapped

"Then we'll head back." The three detectives were truly embarrassed and didn't want to stay any longer, so they said.

"Don't go yet! The food at my inn is ready. Please stay for a simple meal." At this moment, the proprietress of Ushi-gyū Inn came out, wanting to invite the police officers to have dinner at the inn to express her gratitude.

At this moment, Shirou and Mashiro realized that they had unknowingly spent so much time on this, and an entire afternoon had passed, with night already falling.

"No, we won't eat here. We still need to report back to the station," the inspector said, leading the refusal.

Miss Shinigami scratched her head and said with a smile, "Oh dear, I'm so sorry, but I'll stay then. Could I have some of my favorite carrots?"

After he finished speaking, Kazuma and the other three looked at each other in bewilderment.