Becoming a Devilish Cultivator's Miko

Yamanaka Saigawa smiled. He looked at the sighing old man before him with an unchanged expression, no longer surprised by his agreement. After all, the situation of the Tengu family was obvious, and he couldn't think of any reason for Amamiya Tengo to refuse him.

After some pleasantries, Yamanaka Saigawa left the Tengu's mansion. Once inside the car, his amiable expression vanished, replaced by deep thought.

"Minister, holding an event like this is a complete waste of the Divine Gate's resources," the driver suddenly said, asking with confusion.

"Even if the Divine Gate is disguised as the Calligraphy Association, there's no need to go this far, is there?"

"That's precisely why I went to the Tengu family," Yamanaka Saigawa explained calmly to his confidant driving the car.

"The Kawamori Tengu are the most prestigious calligraphy family in Kawamori. Even though the current Tengu family is in decline, with only Amamiya Tengo barely qualifying as a calligraphy master, their centuries of accumulation are still no match for the Calligraphy Association, which was only established sixty years ago. Especially when it's the Divine Gate hiding behind the shell of the Calligraphy Association. Having this family responsible for the calligraphy competition is the best choice. As for why this competition is being held..."

Yamanaka Saigawa paused, his expression suddenly turning grim.

"It's because you useless people couldn't find the Shepherd hiding in the Kawamori region. The Divine Gate in other regions has already issued warnings to Kawamori because the Shepherd's influence has spread to these areas, causing significant trouble for their work. The Kawamori calligraphy event is nominally a large competition, but in reality, it's for the government to conduct a thorough investigation of Kawamori under the guise of maintaining the event. The personnel I requested from other regions will also be here to handle this investigation."

He paused again and looked at the driver.

"Do you understand?"

"I am deeply sorry! It was our incompetence!"

The driver quickly apologized. Yamanaka Saigawa's expression improved slightly. He closed his eyes to rest, no longer paying attention to the mess caused by the Kawamori Divine Gate. However, he didn't know that the driver, looking at him through the rearview mirror, was no longer fearful of the scolding. Instead, his eyes were calm, and a slight smile even played on his lips.

"A purge...?"

He murmured softly, finally focusing his attention on driving.

Soon, in a hidden warehouse, a group of people also revealed smiles.

"The Divine Gate in Kawamori... so defenseless, it's truly boring," a burly man said, looking at the latest intelligence in his hand with disdain for the Divine Gate.

"Now that the Sleuth Hound has infiltrated their high ranks, Kawamori is completely unguarded for us. It's a shame the leader hasn't allowed us to act in Kawamori yet."

"The leader is being cautious," his companion, a middle-aged man smoking a cigarette, said as he exhaled a puff of smoke.

"Although the actions of the Kawamori Divine Gate are hindered everywhere due to the Sleuth Hound, it doesn't mean they haven't noticed the spy within. Even the intelligence disclosed might not be real. It's better to wait and see, to avoid being outmaneuvered. Besides, aren't our compatriots already in other cities... the Shepherd's influence will cause trouble for those Divine Gates as well."

"Yes, perhaps we can find suitable sacrifices to open those gates?"

On the other side, a thin, pale young man said with some regret, "What a shame it won't be me. Suitable Blood Sacrifices, I imagine their taste is excellent. I haven't had a fresh Blood Sacrifice since coming to Kawamori."

"...Indeed, but the leader should contact me soon for the next operation."

Taking another drag from his cigarette and slowly exhaling white smoke, the middle-aged man's expression showed a hint of anticipation.

"I have a feeling that the leader's next orders will be the Shepherd's greatest undertaking yet."

No one disagreed with this statement, as they had indeed witnessed the leader's capabilities. Whether it was planting "Sleuth Hounds" within the Kawamori Divine Gate or other actions, this mysterious leader had accomplished so much in the Kawamori region, leading the Shepherd. He had truly fulfilled his promise of ushering in the arrival of the gods from the gates for the Shepherd.

"Next time, the Divine Gate will no longer be able to stop us from opening the gates that should never have been sealed. But before the next operation, let's take a look at the good news from the Shepherds in various regions."

Hearing his words, the elder who had remained silent finally spoke.

"We've been discovering suitable sacrifices one after another. Our people will find ways to contact them until their flesh and blood are used to break the seals on the gates. It seems the Divine Gates haven't paid much attention to these people, as if they don't take the Shepherd seriously."

"Are they all rogue Psychics?"

"All of them."

"Good. Since the Divine Gate hasn't realized it, the Shepherd will take them without hesitation."

Chapter 86: New Incantation

How did the righteous path and the Devilish Dao of cultivators come to be?

If viewed solely from the perspective of interests, it's likely the opposition of different interests. The righteous path represents those with established interests, while the Devilish Dao represents those seeking to gain interests. If viewed from the methods of action, the righteous path's methods are open and aboveboard, not causing disgust, while the Devilish Dao's methods are insidious and cunning, causing severe physiological discomfort.

Therefore, people usually have the impression of the righteous path as: organized, prosperous, acting openly, having their own principles and bottom lines, and even directly associating kindness with the righteous path. The impression of the Devilish Dao is also not good: disorganized or completely solitary individuals, acting furtively, insidious and cunning, with no bottom line whatsoever, and even said to have ugly and disgusting appearances.

For example, Yotsuya Miko's master, Zhang Qiudao, apart from his appearance and actions, fits the stereotype of the Devilish Dao. He is an extremely insidious and cunning person, often using his methods to trick and kill others, plundering their wealth without any bottom line. For his own pursuit of the Dao, he would sacrifice the beings of a realm, making him an out-and-out great devil.

Therefore, after much thought, Yotsuya Miko could only look at the cultivation techniques in her mind and let out a sigh.

The Soul Nourishing Artifact Path Understanding has many incantations suitable for the Spiritual Sense object manipulation realm, but she can only learn a few. If the previous incantations and Talismans were more or less directed towards killing Ghosts, then the incantations for the Spiritual Sense object manipulation realm are basically aimed at cultivators of the same or lower realms.

Why?

Because cultivators' soul bodies are better, and cultivators' wealth is more appealing.

Any cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage has spent years cultivating in the Qi Gathering stage, accumulating quite a bit. Killing one is far more rewarding than killing thousands of Ghosts. Moreover, a cultivator's soul body is superior to that of a Ghost at the same level, with at least fewer impurities.

Furthermore, powerful Devilish Cultivators are always being pursued by righteous cultivators. As soon as a Devilish Cultivator reveals any of their methods, those righteous cultivators, whether for sect contributions or a sense of justice, will chase after their aura like bloodhounds. When one dies, the next one follows.

In the Xuanhui Realm, the plight of Devilish Cultivators is this awkward, always being hunted. Over time, Devilish Cultivators have developed many methods to deal with these cultivators, such as the Spirit Dispersion Great Understanding, Heart Nightmare External Entry, and Bone Extraction Body Shattering Curse Ominous Incantation from the Soul Nourishing Artifact Path Understanding, all of which are used against cultivators. Oh, ordinary people can also use them, and the effect is just as good. It's just that... the damage to Ghosts, Demons, and the like is slightly reduced.

"But even if we discard these incantations targeting cultivators, many of them are unbearable just to look at..."

Miko lamented, then looked at an incantation in her mind: Ink Jade Cold Soul Control.

This is a constant incantation. After casting it, the user gains a creation called Ink Jade Cold Soul, which can use the power of ice to freeze souls. It possesses strong control and lethality against Ghosts. However, this incantation requires materials: Thousand Year Ink Jade, Cold Nether Ghost Soul, and Nine Nether Water.

She doesn't have any of these.

In fact, Foundation Establishment level incantations, besides the cultivator's own Spiritual Qi, also require a large amount of materials to aid in their use. After all, Spiritual Qi isn't omnipotent. Cultivators can obtain various types of Spiritual Qi through their cultivation methods, using these traits to bypass or reduce material requirements, but it depends on the situation. For example, using Spiritual Qi with a scorching trait to cast an ice-based incantation, even if possible, would at least significantly reduce its power.

Devilish Cultivators have gone further than righteous cultivators on the path of casting incantations without materials, mainly because they are so poor. But they've only gone a little further. Incantations like Ten Afflictions are quite good examples of excellent material-less casting; others generally involve sacrificing the Devilish Cultivator's flesh or other things as a price. Zhang Qiudao didn't intend to develop new incantation systems like developing new talismans, because it is indeed very difficult to achieve.

The Soul Nourishing Artifact Path Understanding records tens of thousands of incantations in the Spiritual Sense Artifact Control realm. Most of them are standard flesh-material incantations, very much in the style of Devilish Cultivators. For example, Sha God Curse Light, used to curse people, takes the enemy's body organs as casting materials. Hair can only be used for minor curses, teeth are a bit more advanced, and severed limbs are even more advanced. For instance, the very common Blood Escape Great Method uses one's own blood as the casting material. The remaining ones are either incantations that require no materials or high-level incantations.

For example, the Eye-Penetrating Incantation used by Miko, and Sharp Eye Light Body Exhaustive Strength Tough Body used against Mountain Gods, temporarily strengthen the body through Spiritual Qi or other means. The effect depends on the amount and quality of Spiritual Qi and is not affected by materials. High-level incantations, like Ink Jade Cold Soul Control, require precious materials to cast.

Although he didn't research the incantations themselves, Zhang Qiudao still summarized the essence of incantations: they are the combined use of Spiritual Qi and traits. For example, a cultivator whose Spiritual Qi carries the lightning trait can imbue the incantation with electricity, causing greater damage to Ghosts. The use of many incantations essentially relies on the traits of the materials being catalyzed by Spiritual Qi. Once these material traits are received, subsequent uses may not require materials because the "traits" have been imprinted within the body. Of course, since Spiritual Qi itself possesses traits and incantation materials also have traits, there can be trait conflicts and fusions, such as scorching and cold, or soft water and lightning.

The traits of Profound Nether Qi are Myriad Thoughts, Enlightenment, and Spirit Nurturing. These three traits do not conflict with most other traits, but the trouble Miko is currently facing is that she has no materials. After excluding a large number of incantations that require flesh and blood or are specifically for cultivators, the remaining incantations either have very troublesome materials or require no materials, although not having materials doesn't affect their use.

After much thought, she finally selected a few incantations that didn't seem like Devilish Cultivator style, and some that, despite having significant costs, were very effective.

These new incantations are called: Breath Concealment Body Hiding Technique, Spirit Jade Myriad Transformations Art, Heavenly Devil False Body True Understanding, Demon Slaying Sha God Control, Heavenly Devil Corpse Unraveling Great Method, Soul Splitting Flesh Crushing Nail, Falcon Spirit Wind Control Incantation, and Blood Soul Nightmare Entry.

There were still other optional incantations, but Yotsuya Miko decided not to pick any more. Her impression of the Devilish Cultivators in the Xuanhui Realm worsened after learning about the materials they used for casting.

"No wonder Devilish Cultivators are so disliked in the Xuanhui Realm..."

Although, she is also a Devilish Cultivator now.

Chapter 87: Fragments of the Past

Futamido Yuria's daily life begins with breakfast and lunch bento every morning.

Due to her parents' constant overtime and business trips, she prepares all three meals herself. After a hurried breakfast, she looks at the sky, which hasn't fully brightened yet, and gets busy preparing her lunch bento. She could do this the night before, but it wouldn't be as fresh.

"Alright... Lunch is ready for noon."

She carefully packs the steaming food into a small bento box, secures the lid, and wipes the fine beads of sweat from her forehead with a paper towel, letting out a long sigh.

Although she has to wake up early every morning, she's used to it. Looking at the bento box in front of her, she carefully packs it and puts it in her school bag. She glances at the clock in the living room – it's time to leave. She then slings her backpack over her shoulder and walks towards the door.

I'm leaving.

She murmurs in her heart, not expecting a response, as she is indeed the only one left in this house. No matter how luxurious the residence, if it's empty, it's bound to feel a certain kind of loneliness.

Moreover, her loneliness isn't just that.

She exits the elevator of the tall building and is swept along with the crowd, moving in all directions until she reaches the school.

The sign for Nanatsumisaki Academy High School still shines brightly, and youthful, energetic high school girls walk in groups, chatting about common topics. However, some are always left out.

Small cliques create an unspoken hierarchy. Some people can get along anywhere, while others only have a few friends they can talk to. Yuria is probably at the very bottom; she is ostracized by her classmates.

Because she isolates them, unwilling to engage with their topics. Naturally, this has led to them isolating her.

Yuria doesn't regret her actions because she knows one thing: no matter how much she tries to fit in, some people will mistake that effort for trying too hard, and then turn it into a complete joke and mockery.

She doesn't want to experience that again.

Distractedly walking, she suddenly sees a familiar person in front of her. Just as she's about to greet them, someone she doesn't know at all appears beside them. So, her intention is cut short, and she quietly walks back to her classroom.

Yuria?

Yotsuya Miko's Spiritual Sense notices Yuria silently leaving behind her, but she doesn't have time to dwell on why she suddenly left. She just looks at Yamazaki, who is blocking her path, and her expression becomes helpless.

"That really wasn't a confession."

"Really?"

Morino, who is almost inseparable from Yamazaki, walks up beside her, placing a hand on her shoulder with a teasing expression.

"Did it really just end unpleasantly?"

"...Really."

Ever since what she and Yurikawa Hana did at school last time, not only did they receive disciplinary action from the school, but her mother misunderstood something, and all her classmates started gossiping. Even though she clarified again and again, some people still used the incident to tease her and Hana. Yamazaki and Morino, standing before her, are examples.

Hana, being shy, has been excluded from the teasing. These guys, seemingly wanting to stir up trouble, act as if they won't stop until they see a blush on her face.

However, Miko feels completely guilt-free about such remarks.

"Even if you ask me a thousand or ten thousand times, it will always be like this."

She shrugs, her heart steady, her face unblinking. She even wants to retaliate against these two.

"What about you two? You're together every day, did something happen?"

"You jerk!"

Seemingly angered by her words that slandered them, both of them blush, finally giving up their teasing.

Miko sighs. At this point, she can only head towards the classroom. These two troublemakers have already wasted a lot of her time.

Fine, I'll explain to Yuria at noon.

Meanwhile, Yuria is quietly sitting at her desk, waiting for class to begin.

She seems to have nothing to do.

She opens the textbook for class and places it on her desk. However, before she can properly place it, someone presses down on half of it.

"Hey, did you guys hear? Apparently, there's a transfer student coming in the next few days."

"A transfer student, huh... Hey, you! You're crushing someone's book!"

"Well... I'll apologize then."

The girl, unconcerned, got up from Yuria's desk and casually uttered an "I'm sorry" before sitting down at another empty desk, continuing her previous conversation.

"I really wonder what kind of person the new transfer student will be."

"Some country bumpkin?"

"You're quite the talker, but a country bumpkin wouldn't be so bad, would she?"

"That's true, hahaha..."

The noisy chatter reached Yuria's ears without interruption. She calmly smoothed out the creased book and silently looked at the notes on it.

Anger, arguments, or fights wouldn't bring about even the slightest change. Yuria knew this very well, so she chose the most effective way to deal with it: ignoring it.

For those born to be bullies who rely on humiliating others, ignoring them was the most effective and humiliating method. If they continued with even more brutal actions, then they should be prepared for retaliation from the Futamido family.

Futamido Yuria was not just a simple name.

Being shunned and alienated was still at a stage where one could reason.

"How annoying."

Someone said casually, and Yuria pretended not to hear.

Habit. If one had been shunned and ignored since elementary school, then such hostility would be as commonplace as drinking water or eating food. Compared to hostility, false kindness wrapped in needle points was what made one feel more uncomfortable and nauseated.

Thinking this, Yuria couldn't help but be grateful for the difference between this girls' school and a private aristocratic academy. Even the most socially adept person at this school wouldn't treat people as less than human like the offspring of politicians and businessmen, because those guys... would only treat people as commodities, entertainment, or something else entirely.

She actually trusted very few people. Those who were in the same situation as her, those who could also see, were the ones standing on the same ground as her. Because at least on this side, she wouldn't be ostracized as an anomaly.

I must become a powerful Psychic.

Futamido Yuria thought so.