Leave? / Spies and [Corrupted Text]

"Today's competition was of immense significance. From the remaining contestants, we will officially select the sixteen finalists!"

The host's voice reached Yotsuya Miko's ears through the broadcast. She looked at her number, having already become indifferent to the situation.

No one knows what happened, but in short, she somehow made it into the third round and was just one step away from the finals.

She wasn't particularly enthusiastic about the competition, but others were completely different.

Thanks to the television promotion, her mother and younger brother already knew about her smooth sailing in the competition, and even Tono Zen sent her his greetings. This made her feel completely numb.

Who knows, if she wins first place, she might become a big celebrity nationwide.

However... I really don't want this to happen.

He was inwardly wailing, but outwardly he remained calm as always, obediently writing his calligraphy.

It's her seventh day in Kawamori, and the last day of the third selection. Because of the competition, she hasn't made any progress in the search for the Shepherd, as Divine Gate's extensive search has gradually destroyed most of the clues.

Through Yuria, she learned that Divine Gate had already sent the bodies of the nine shepherds to Jianping. As for their espionage work, there had been little progress; the investigation of most people was now complete, but a considerable number had not yet been checked.

As the competition drew to a close, Kawamori Divine Gate and the external support staff were filled with anxiety. With the competition over, the search would inevitably have to end.

This made it more difficult for Yotsuya Miko to search outside of the competition. Her Spiritual Sense was often disturbed by the Spiritual Power energy of these Divine Gate people. These guys were everywhere and would occasionally disguise themselves as ordinary people.

So she abandoned that search and instead focused on the Gate of the Underworld "that Yuria had provided, examining those "gates" for a while. In other words, she slacked off.

Even if the shepherd wanted to perform a Blood Sacrifice, he would be completely disturbed by Divine Gate's actions and wouldn't be able to do anything in the short term, right?

Miko was thinking like this, she felt somewhat troubled.

She had initially thought these people from the Divine Gate would be helpful in finding the Shepherd, but it now seemed they were interfering with her actions rather than helping her.

There are spies within Kawamori Divine Gate, a fact known only to a few. Such a large-scale operation had already been communicated to the Shepherds by these spies, allowing them to remain hidden even deeper. The strange suicides Divine Gate is currently experiencing are a clear example of this.

On the surface, however, this situation only benefits Divine Gate. The large-scale search uncovered the shepherd's whereabouts, which is a good thing. Even if they hadn't found the shepherd, it would have made it easier for them to identify spies, which is also a good thing. But this is only one perspective.

From the perspective of the unsuspecting members of the Kawamori Divine Gate Special Affairs Department, their best course of action would be to find out the Shepherd's whereabouts, since the credit for catching the spy would go to the Investigation Department, which in turn would receive the opposite. From the perspective of these external collaborators, they wouldn't lose out either way, since they were cooperating in the operation, whether it was catching an inside man or finding the Shepherd.

There are also those who are fully aware of the situation, like Shimizu Tenpu, who is an outside agent secretly searching for "tainted" evidence. When faced with such a situation, their perspective on things changes. Then there are those outside agents who investigated the shepherd and a certain force and delivered the body to Jianping, who have a completely different perspective. Or they might just be outside agents who simply intend to slack off.

A search involving such a motley crew of people, each with their own agenda, is bound to be inefficient; it's practically like delivering packages under Big Ben.

Yotsuya Miko thought they probably hadn't paid much attention to someone like Kaishoku Shugaku, and were completely unaware that the Shepherd was planning to perform a Blood Sacrifice. However, the swaggering actions of these Divine Gate people likely interrupted the Shepherd's Blood Sacrifice.

As Yotsuya Miko walked out of the stadium with her shoulder bag, she thought to herself, then shook her head.

This doesn't explain why Kawamori Divine Gate would act this way, if there really has been an internal corruption. However, it's also possible that the corruption isn't deep enough, like S. H. I. E. L. D., which, although just one step away from complete corruption, still Divine Gate at the top. This highest leader of Kawamori Divine Gate is preparing to use the large-scale investigation triggered by the competition to conduct a thorough internal purge and complete self-reform.

Thinking about it that way... then it has absolutely nothing to do with her.

She came to deal with the potential Blood Sacrifice, not to help Divine Gate complete his internal purge.

Moreover, she won't be able to stay in Kawase for more than a few days.

"Forget it, let's just treat this as a few days of fun in Kawase, and participate in a competition."

Through the Blood Soul Nightmare Entry, she learned about Chuan Shou's affairs from Amamiya Xingqiu's memories, and with the information provided by Yuria, she almost pieced together the story.

Amamiya Xingqiu's wife, originally named Shimizu Muxia, was a member of the exorcists. She had brought Amamiya Xingqiu into this world as well. Due to the nature of his work as an exorcist, Xingqiu did not tell the Tengu Family about this. Therefore, in the eyes of the Tengu Family, Shimizu Muxia had somehow bewitched Amamiya Xingqiu and led him astray.

That makes sense, since exorcists and thugs operate around the same time, often appearing in alleys and other places, sometimes even performing exorcisms late at night.

The two were of similar age and quickly fell in love, having a child together. However, shortly after the child's birth, a disaster targeting Divine Gate occurred in Kawamori. This disaster originated from an organization that opposed Divine Gate, and Shimizu Muxia died at the hands of a member of this organization, a man named Tongsheng Yuanhe.

After the disaster, Xingqiu, who had long since severed ties with the Tengu Family, took his daughter to another city. Accompanying him was Shimizu Muxia's brother, Shimizu Tenpu.

"I was originally planning to avenge Sanae's mother, but it seems there's no hope now."

Miko sighed and started walking home.

The only thing she had done these past few days was use her own magic to add several seals to the Gate of the Underworld. The knowledge she gained from Kaishoku Shugaku's Blood Sacrifice ritual gave her a reference point. In this respect, she also had to thank her long-deceased, cheap master. No matter what her requests were, the knowledge of this Myriad Transformation Devil Venerable could help her fulfill them.

"Hopefully, these seals will help Kawamori resist the Blood Sacrifice."

This is what she can do before she leaves.

Finally, she took out her phone to call Yuria and tell her she was leaving, but Yuria called just then.

"Hello?"

Chapter 141 Spy and Private Abandonment? (Part Two) <The Passing of the Spy>

"We've caught a spy."

"Okay, I understand."

Yotsuya Miko nodded; this was somewhat within her expectations. Regardless of whether they caught the mole or not, things had come to a close.

"How about this spy?"

"Fortunately, he doesn't have that strange energy compelling him to commit suicide, so the interrogation is still ongoing, and we should be able to get results soon."

That's good news.

She walked along the road, not particularly moved by the fact that the Divine Gate had finally achieved its goal. As she had mentioned before, the only thing she cared about was the Blood Sacrifice.

"If that's the case, isn't that great? Your mission is complete."

The spy's actions would trigger a series of chain reactions, causing drastic changes within the Divine Gate. However, this wouldn't concern her or Yuria much. She didn't intend to interfere in Divine Gate's affairs before the Blood Sacrifice occurred, and Yuria didn't show much interest in the situation either. The two of them were on the fringes of the matter, completely unnoticed.

"It doesn't seem so."

Yuria's voice came from the other end, with a somewhat strange expression.

"That guy started leaking a ton of information when he was captured, it was quite..."

The audio suddenly cut off.

Yotsuya Miko frowned, sensing something was wrong as she looked at the disconnected call on her phone.

Yuria called again after she got home.

"I'm sorry, something happened. The spy is dead."

"Dead?"

"Yes, when I contacted you, that guy hadn't even finished speaking when he suddenly attempted suicide. We didn't have time to help him."

"So, regarding the intelligence..."

"Fortunately, he revealed most of the Shepherd's information from the beginning. This information can help us find the Shepherd's base. Now, Kawamori Divine Gate and we, the external collaborators, are already discussing how to deal with that Shepherd's base. According to the spy's intelligence, the Shepherd's members are planning to gather tomorrow morning, which will be perfect for wiping them out in one fell swoop."

"We'll meet tomorrow..."

Yotsuya Miko suddenly looked out the window at a certain spot, realizing that something was wrong.

"Didn't you suspect that this was fake news?"

"Yes, but the current search results do indicate that those guys seem to be preparing to gather. We've already located several Shepherd members based on this spy's intelligence. We're hesitant to act for fear of alerting them. As you Miko, the search ended after the competition, so... there's no way to discuss this further. Shimizu Tenpu will be leaving soon, and I'm being kept at Divine Gate because I'm a newcomer."

"... I see."

Miko had been silent for a long time, he asked his last question.

Who is this spy?

Who is this spy?

The same question flashed through Higashino Teru's mind; he drove, but his heart was far from at peace.

As the highest-ranking member of the Divine Gate, and also Yamanaka Saigawa's driver, he was also a member of Divine Gate. He wielded more power than ordinary members and was Yamanaka Saigawa's confidant, able to obtain any information about Divine Gate.

Thus, the spy's intelligence also reached his ears.

Although it's unclear whether the spy's identity is real or not, his intelligence was absolutely accurate.

The Shepherds did indeed plan to gather tomorrow to await their leader's orders, and even he had only recently received the notification. However, this spy, whom even he didn't know, also knew about this matter and had leaked this information to Divine Gate, which made him uneasy.

Putting his safety aside, his first priority is to get this information to the Shepherds as soon as possible, otherwise it's very likely that the Shepherds under Kawamori will be wiped out.

Once the Shepherds organization is wiped out, he will have a hard time escaping capture.

The only thing that made him feel fortunate was that the spy seemed unaware of his situation.

Thankfully, he hasn't...

Higashino Teru silently glanced at the middle-aged man behind him. This Mr. Yamanaka Saigawa had his eyes tightly closed and didn't react much to the arrest of the spy. He simply responded and focused his attention on tomorrow's competition.

No wonder, after all, the promotion wasn't as good as the matter of Divine Gate. The Kawamori government attached great importance to the Ichiro Ilsa match, which greatly encouraged him, and he never took his eyes off the event. He was going to accompany Amamiya Tengo to watch the match and give a speech tomorrow.

With that thought in mind, Higashino Teru finally calmed down.

He knew this man's personality all too well, and he had witnessed how Kawamori Divine Gate had been developed into what he was now under the control of this self-serving, incompetent man. It was precisely because of his contributions that the Shepherd had been able to gradually grow stronger. In fact, this guy was the true "high-ranking" member of the Shepherd.

Thinking this, Higashino Teru's lips curled up slightly.

To uncover his spy identity, one must bypass the Yamanaka Saigawa, but this selfish man will not tolerate his confidants being investigated. Until evidence is presented, he is perfectly safe, even safer than if he were with the Shepherd.

As long as this guy is still Divine Gate, the Shepherds will never fall. Even after that mysterious leader dies, Higashino Teru can continue to build another Shepherds, to fulfill that vision for the Shepherds' compatriots. At that time, Higashino Teru will be...

"Hui, what are you thinking about?"

"Nothing much, just happy that the shepherd is about to be brought to justice."

Higashino Teru's smile faded as he spoke.

"Oh... that's true, these insects are finally almost all dead."

Yamanaka Saigawa nodded, not blaming him for not paying attention while driving.

He watched the buildings drift by and smiled happily.

"I never thought I'd be able to do something like this in my lifetime. I thought I'd mess it up."

Higashino Teru subconsciously began to flatter him.

"Not at all, Chief Yamanaka, you've put in so much effort for the competition, and it's precisely because of that that this competition has become such a fortunate event. Without your hard work, the competition probably wouldn't have reached this point."

"You certainly know how to talk, but... well, you could say that too."

Yamanaka Saigawa did not deny it. He looked at the closed stadium and showed a gratified expression, an expression of admiration for his own masterpiece.

Higashino Teru continued driving without saying anything more.

He drove toward the road ahead, gradually disappearing into the darkness.

Lost in thought about the shepherd's affairs, he paid no attention to the location Yamanaka Saigawa had told him, for it was irrelevant.

Disaster befalls all, the Heavenly Demon displays its might: Apologies for the delayed update.

I woke up at noon, ate at 1 PM, left home at 1:30 PM, arrived at the hospital at 2 PM, had my nucleic acid test done at 2:45 PM, bought my bus ticket at 3:30 PM, and didn't get home until 4:15 PM. Now, sitting in front of the computer, I feel dizzy and disoriented.

It's really tough not having any drafts saved.

But let's explain some issues now:

1. Regarding the pacing: It follows the outline's schedule, with two chapters a day, and there isn't much deliberate padding. All possible foreshadowing elements have been planted.

II. Regarding the protagonist's transformation: Yotsuya Miko will gradually develop a proper demonic cultivation mindset. Please don't worry about her exposing herself threatening her family and friends; before that, Blood Soul Nightmare Entry can solve most problems. Why are there no techniques for dealing with people? Because they're not needed at the moment. What about later? We'll see how the synopsis unfolds.

Thirdly, regarding the plot: The pacing is very slow, which is indeed the case when compared to other works. Other works have reached the Golden Core and Nascent Soul stages by chapter 100, while this one is still stuck at the Foundation Establishment stage (Spiritual Sense manipulation). At this rate, the Enlightenment Realm will take forever to finish. This is a problem with the author's choice of subject matter. When initially choosing the anime <The Girl Who Can See>, the world-building wasn't considered much, but the author is currently trying to fill in the gaps.

IV. Regarding the sequel to this book: It's obvious that this book is a complete flop; its performance has been quite poor. Currently, the author is just writing as much as he can, so let's see when it collapses.

5. Okay, I'm going to go type now. I feel much better after typing all this.

Chapter 142 One Step Away from the Truth

Ten'gu Sanae was very happy because she had made it to the finals.

What made her even happier was that Yotsuya Miko also made it to the finals.

Her grandfather, Amamiya Tengo, will also be present for the final match and participate in the final award ceremony. She is full of anticipation for this competition.

However, perhaps because she arrived too early, she has not yet seen Yotsuya Miko.

"Miko... why hasn't she arrived yet?"

Amamiya Shinro was also concerned about Yotsuya Miko. This man, who had quietly brought Yotsuya Miko into the finals, was also looking forward to Miko what new calligraphy works Miko would bring him today.

In the previous rounds of the competition, he witnessed the works of several calligraphy masters reappear in her hands, like opening a blind box. It was precisely because of her continuous imitation of various styles that Yotsuya Miko gradually gained popularity among the audience. Rather than saying that Amamiya Shinro sent Yotsuya Miko to the finals, it would be more accurate to say that Yotsuya Miko's calligraphy skills were finally recognized by the audience.

Many people are looking forward to seeing what kind of calligraphy this contestant will create in today's competition.

However, this expectation will likely soon turn into disappointment.

Yamanaka Saigawa and Amamiya Tengo went to the back office to rest. They didn't need to participate in the entire match; they only needed to show up at the end. Their thoughts on this match differed.