On the bed, Uesugi Tetsu, drenched in sweat and almost vomiting, took a long while to recover before looking at the prompts that had burst forth.
Twist and Turn had exploded for 132 Soul Ash, matching its strength.
With that, his Soul Ash reserves had reached a full 472 points.
Even if the one-star pool required 50 Soul Ash for a single draw, he would still be able to do a ten-pull and drain the newly appeared small pool.
When he saw the side quest completion prompt appear, Uesugi Tetsu froze for a moment. So Twist and Turn really was the "white scarecrow."
Then he discovered that the quest reward pool could actually be accumulated.
[You have chosen to accumulate the quest rewards.]
Laughing Brahma was only a little over thirty hours away from leveling up, while the exploration rate of Arakawa Ghost Village had reached 62% thanks to his running all over the place.
When the time came, he would complete Side Quest One together with the two main quests.
Uesugi Tetsu believed that the accumulated reward pool would definitely not disappoint.
Finally, Twist and Turn had also dropped a special item.
Uesugi Tetsu casually opened the item description page. Before long, his eyes widened.
[Spirit Awakening Mist] [Quality: None] [Effect: After use, reduces the Rebirth cooldown by 4 hours. Automatically replenishes to full once per natural day.] [Special Effect: Consume directly. After consumption, moderately restores stamina and energy, slightly restores Spiritual Power, and provides a minor continuous wound-healing effect. Each use consumes 2 hours of Rebirth cooldown.]
The effects of this item were utterly absurd.
Although reducing the resurrection cooldown by four hours was indeed quite important in the medium and long term, improving the efficiency of map exploration and quest completion, it was still just a familiar "game item."
But the special effect was what was truly outrageous—it could be taken orally in reality and then provide comprehensive recovery and healing without any regard for common sense.
It was practically identical to a health potion from a game.
Just imagine: with both sides seriously wounded and on the verge of death, Uesugi Tetsu could simply pull out Spirit Awakening Mist from his storage backpack, drink it, and become full of vitality within minutes.
How much psychological trauma would that inflict on his enemy?
Thinking of this, Uesugi Tetsu took Spirit Awakening Mist out of his backpack and found that it was a small cup about the size of a wine goblet.
The cup seemed to have been fired from ceramic. Its overall craftsmanship was exquisite, and a faint glaze shimmered across its surface.
Uesugi Tetsu looked into the cup and saw two crystal-clear blue droplets inside.
I'll test its recovery effect first.
The wound Flying Head Monster had slashed across his back that afternoon still had not scabbed over. Even a slightly larger movement caused a faint ache.
When Nanjō Emi had used Great Memory Restoration Technique on the two cultists, she had merely had Hiyori Bō disinfect his wound and then tossed him a roll of bandages to wrap it himself.
It could only be said that the treatment had been enough to keep him from dying.
And at this crucial juncture, Uesugi Tetsu did not want to go to a hospital, a place crawling with supernatural phenomena, and invite further complications. An injury to the flesh like this would heal automatically after he transformed into Laughing Brahma for an hour or two.
Naturally, it had been dragged out until now.
As things stood, this was perfect. It even saved Uesugi Tetsu from having to cut two wounds into his arm!
Uesugi Tetsu opened his mouth and dropped one of the droplets inside.
The next moment, his spirits suddenly soared, and his five senses became much clearer.
The aftereffects of being killed by Twist and Turn vanished moments later, while a warm, prickling sensation spread from the wound on his back.
Uesugi Tetsu tore off the bandages and stood up. Looking in the mirror, he saw that the wound on his back had already begun to scab over.
He also felt as if he had energy to spare. If Ghost Dad had not been outside, Uesugi Tetsu would have already gone out for a run of more than ten kilometers.
"Good, good, good."
The effects of Spirit Awakening Mist had given him endless surprises.
He allocated the remaining two hours to his Rebirth cooldown, then, as usual, Uesugi Tetsu took out his phone. Judging from his past experiences returning to reality with the Walker Token, someone would definitely have sent him a message.
Sure enough.
Let's see what the new messages are.
[Work to Death]: Our company's annual leave will be approved in a few days. Are you free to meet in person?
[Work to Death]: I've always heard that Fushimi Inari Shrine is very popular, but I never had time to visit. I know a friend there. Apparently, there's a chance they can take us to see the legendary "Kami."
Uesugi Tetsu's hand holding the phone trembled. How has mythology nearly become reality in less than half a day?!
In a couple of days, would someone tell him that the moon hanging in the sky was actually the true form of Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto?
But then he thought it over. If there truly was such a "Kami" within Fushimi Inari Shrine, that deity would never allow foreign monsters and spirits to approach the shrine.
—In other words, it was a safe house for when the First Wave arrived.
The office-worker netizen was the heir to a major clan who could casually produce an incomplete Great Onmyō Art. The chances that she was merely bluffing to save face should be quite low.
Therefore, going to Fushimi Inari Shrine... was undoubtedly the safest course of action!
"—But as for fleeing alone like this and acting like a coward with my tail between my legs, I refuse!"
Uesugi Tetsu swiftly typed out his reply.
[Moon Sand-chan]: We have midterms coming up soon, so I might not have time to go out... Also, it would be best not to come into contact with people who seem to be behaving strangely during this period.
[Work to Death]: Ah, all right then. Go to sleep. I'm heading back to work overtime.
—She really was unwilling to run away. Was this the pride of a so-called genius?
—After tapping away at her phone, Nanjō Emi, sitting atop a pile of corpses, took a bite of her half-hot, half-cold chicken sandwich and asked while chewing:
"Shizuma, are there any stragglers outside?"
Shizuma Mafuyu, her face pale as she fought down the urge to vomit, turned her head shakily and replied, "Miss Hiyori Bō has finished her work, but there are still two or three left on Wet Oni's side."
She could hardly imagine what kind of mindset Nanjō Emi possessed to be able to sit in a semi-enclosed room atop a pile of fire-scorched, charred corpses and eat as though nothing were wrong.
"Then the work's about to be over. Yay..."
With her dark eye bags drooping, Nanjō Emi swallowed her dinner in two or three bites and weakly flashed her little sidekick a V-sign.
Yet the moment she stepped outside and came before her remaining colleagues, Nanjō Emi transformed from a gloomy office worker into that powerful, calm, and dependable Onmyo Junior Official.
Nanjō Emi shook hands with the fire department commander expressionlessly. "The subsequent cleanup work will be up to you. Sorry for the trouble."
Commander: "Tomorrow, this will be classified as a chemical explosion."
She nodded, then turned back and smiled at Shizuma Mafuyu. "Let's go."
Shizuma Mafuyu could not bring herself to smile.
Whenever she closed her eyes, the horrific state of those people before their deaths and their pleas for mercy would involuntarily rise before her.
I have to get used to this new job quickly. Shizuma Mafuyu silently encouraged herself. As long as I make it through the three-month probation and become a full employee, everything in Xia's future will go smoothly.
Even for Xia's sake, she had to persevere!
"Cheer up, Shizuma Mafuyu! Just like all those exams in the past, you can do it!"
She encouraged herself.
Then Shizuma Mafuyu spent the entire night unable to sleep.
The next day.
Uesugi Tetsu arrived at school and, as usual, skipped class to train with Ririko at the kendo hall. After more than three hours, Ririko's entire body was drenched in sweat, brimming with youthful vitality in every direction.
But Uesugi Tetsu remained completely indifferent. He only cared about when his two skills could level up again.
[Your skill, Incomplete Ki-ai Technique, has gained 31 proficiency!] [Incomplete Ki-ai Technique (Proficient 201/300)] [Your skill, Tennen Rishin-ryū, has gained 15 proficiency!] [Tennen Rishin-ryū (Novice 280/500)]
Although both skills were not far from advancing, there was still a real proficiency gap of several days.
"I'm going to take a shower." Ririko's voice drifted over.
—At a time like this, he had to gamble and see whether he could make it out of Edo Castle alive with something good.
Before Laughing Brahma leveled up, he had no confidence against Yao-Shaku-Sama and White Brahma anyway. So even if this life yielded nothing, it would not count as a loss.
Once he had decided, Uesugi Tetsu simply closed his eyes.
Laughing Brahma pushed open the door and entered Edo Castle with practiced ease.
But before he had taken two steps, Uesugi Tetsu, with the Walker Token hanging from him, felt something snag his ankle.
Before you continue