Trouble Stirs Again / Isn't This All Because of You?

Although I don't know what happened, the guy who could transmit a modified cultivation technique into his mind must be someone who has nothing better to do.

"So what do you want?"

Shimakawa's eyes widened slightly; he finally realized the voice had come from his own mouth. Last night's events weren't a hallucination, but real. There was another being within him!

What do you want to do?

He countered with a question,

What do you want to do to my body?

There was no doubt that he had encountered a strange entity, but having served as the head of the Special Affairs Department for so many years, he was not in a panic.

You want me to kill someone?

Based on the techniques in his mind, this is how he deduced it.

However, this strange being didn't say much, only controlling his body to utter two words.

"Spiritual energy."

Then, Shimakawa Kameyo felt strange things being forcibly inserted into his head, which, after being processed by his brain, transformed into words that he could understand.

"This is..."

He looked at the text, which was quite simple: it described a spiritual energy technique that required spiritual energy and blood as casting materials.

"Blood Sha Needle?"

Shimakawa Kameyo knew nothing of such techniques, but based on the written descriptions, he had a vague idea of what they were. The more he read the descriptions, the heavier his breathing became. This was because it was different from the Spiritual Power techniques he could use; this so-called "Blood Sha Needle" was for killing.

A small, sharp object formed from spiritual energy and blood can kill a person the moment it pierces their body. This technique is more subtle and harder to detect than firearms; from the surface, the victim appears to have died suddenly.

Clearly, this is a technique that can create so-called perfect murders in modern society. Because with current technology, there is no way to trace the caster, not even exorcists, whose Spiritual Power is far inferior to spiritual energy and cannot accomplish such a thing.

"..."

Shimakawa Kameyo suddenly fell silent. The appearance of the Blood Sha Needle had given rise to an idea in his mind.

Although it's just an idea.

Chapter 203 Another Turmoil

In fact, killing someone is far simpler and easier than Shimakawa Kameyo Xiang Emu & Yi+_Wu Qijiu Shan 2 imagines.

Already depressed due to his dismissal, he was more prone to overreacting to such matters. Thus, when he was harassed by thugs in the red-light district, his anger flared up, and the Blood Sha Needle finally appeared.

He stared at the corpse at his feet, the thug who had deliberately picked a fight, his mind a jumble of emotions. But soon, the voice urged him on.

He slowly placed his right hand on the thug's chest, circulating his internal energy to plunder the remaining Life Energy within the man's body. This energy would soon dissipate upon his death, but at least for now, it could still be drawn upon by external forces.

As Shimakawa slowly absorbed the Life Energy, a glint appeared in his eyes as he gazed at the unchanged corpse of the thug.

The light gazed into the dark alley, out into the world beyond. In that instant, he felt himself begin to separate from the human world, his sense of identity as a human began to dissipate, along with the Life Energy within the hoodlum.

This was a fleeting thought; my Life Energy had been completely drained.

As he stood up, the Life Energy transformed into spiritual energy, gradually growing stronger. This spiritual energy was far greater than the Life Spiritual Qi cultivated on his own. Moreover, the former required a long period of cultivation, while the latter only required killing.

"More... flesh and blood essence."

The monster inside him spoke thus, using (II) Lin Eryi O Ba'er's tone.

Shimakawa pursed his lips but didn't say anything.

He straightened his clothes, which had been disheveled by the young thug, rubbed the wound on his face, and silently walked out of the alley, from darkness into light.

At this moment, one thing he was fortunate about was that there were so many scumbags in the world, so he didn't need to bear any moral pressure.

Just you wait, Yamada Mukawa.

He murmured a name in his heart, and thus strengthened his resolve.

"Clang—."

Yotsuya Miko silently picked up the pencil case that had fallen to the ground, along with the scattered pens and erasers inside, her gaze somewhat unnatural.

Her face showed no unusual expression, but her mind was focused on a small group of people talking nearby.

They brought something up today.

"Did you know? It seems like strange things have been happening in the city lately."

"Really? What's wrong?"

"It is said that many people have died mysteriously, and those who died were mostly gangsters and drug dealers."

"Really? Are you kidding me?"

"It's all just hearsay. My boyfriend's classmate's father is a policeman, and I think he heard it from him."

"Could that be true? If all those who died were evil people, could it be the work of the gods?"

"Ah... that Guardian of Silver Pellets?!"

"Who knows?"

No, I'm not so idle as to do something so pointless.

Yotsuya Miko silently answered in her heart as she packed her pencil case, feeling somewhat surprised by the inexplicable deaths of these villains.

It was clear to her that there were no gods in this city, and that exorcists could not kill people without leaving a trace, because their Spiritual Power was limited and they could not do that.

Those non-human, ghostly Ghosts, lacking in consciousness and intelligence, are incapable of such actions.

After ruling out the above possibilities, only one possibility remains: spiritual energy.

The Life Spiritual Qi Extraction Method has already spread within the Divine Gate. Although the predecessor of this technique was a vile technique that steals the Life Energy of others, it is impossible for the Divine Gate to deduce its original form in such a short time. She even suspects that these people probably don't even understand the cultivation system. Without theoretical support, it would take at least several years or even more than ten years to gradually form a preliminary understanding of spiritual energy and spiritual energy techniques.

However, since Tong Sheng Yuanhe was involved in the Kawamori Divine Gate incident, possessed techniques from the Xuanhui Realm, it's not impossible that there are other individuals with similar techniques besides the Life Spiritual Qi Extraction Method. It's just... those who possess such techniques are far too arrogant.

Only kill the wicked?

If this person possesses a righteous cultivation technique that can be practiced in this world, then there's no problem. However, if it's Demonic Path technique from her sect, then Yotsuya Miko doesn't approve of his steadfastness. The reason Demonic Path techniques are Demonic Path is that, besides their rapid progress, their biggest characteristic is their side effects. And a technique like this, where killing can accelerate cultivation, will inevitably lead to indiscriminate killing once the thought of killing takes hold, regardless of whether the victim is evil or not. Its extremely addictive nature will cause him to completely lose his judgment.

But... he only started killing people in this city?

She tapped the table lightly with her hand, and the image of Kamikakushi Mountain came to mind. If this person discovered such a cultivation technique from a mystical place like Kamikakushi Mountain and began to cultivate it, that would make sense. Moreover, with the precedent of Tong Sheng Yuanhe and the Life Spiritual Qi Extraction Method she modified, it was not impossible to cultivate spiritual energy in this world.

After Kamikakushi Mountain, Miko thought of that shrine again. The shrine that had undergone such an anomaly was one possibility. If someone reached that shrine, perhaps they could also obtain the cultivation technique. But would anyone actually go to that shrine?

After sorting out her thoughts, Yotsuya Miko tried to explore other possibilities besides the cultivation method. However, it was fruitless, because the only way she could think of to do this was by using spiritual energy as a means of support. So, she would just investigate in that direction.

Do we only kill the wicked?

Yotsuya Miko sighed. Before the matter of Divine Gate was resolved, she was indeed not happy about this kind of thing. However, anything that got involved in the city could complicate matters. As for the shrine, Kamikakushi Mountain, and Divine Gate, she hadn't figured out a reason to lash out at Divine Gate since the last time.

Only afterwards did she begin to berate herself for her hesitation. She could have used that incident to vent her anger, but she didn't. She missed a chance.

Looking at the lecture notes on the table, I suddenly realized that I wasn't really suited for the role of a villain.

She never accomplished anything that required her to be ruthless.

Perhaps we should put Divine Gate aside for now and go check on this recent event and the strange occurrences at the shrine?

Or... should we rely on Yuria?

She silently considered that Yuria, the deputy head of the Special Affairs Department at Divine Gate, had advised her to win over a group of people and gradually build her own power within Divine Gate. Before completely overturning the table, this approach would be beneficial for everyone.

Yuria can take on the role of handling such matters.

Chapter 204 It's all because of you

As things dragged on, Yotsuya Miko felt herself becoming increasingly conflicted.

So after school that day, she went to find Yuria and told her what she was thinking.

"So... you mean you don't intend to destroy Divine Gate directly?"

Yuria was at a loss for words regarding Yotsuya Miko's sudden Yotsuya Miko of attitude. She could only say that Okita Qishen had handled things exceptionally well.

Many people would not hesitate to take action against an organization or individual they have a bad impression of. But an organization that makes its stance clear and backs down is someone you can't hit even if it's smiling.

Yuria probably understood Yotsuya Miko's attitude.

During the Kawamori Second Gate riot, Miko's attitude towards Divine Gate was poor because Divine Gate in her own home was a complete mess, and it was only through Miko's own efforts that the Gate of the Underworld was completely avoided. In Kawamori, Divine Gate's performance was even more incompetent, and the fact that she was being used caused Yotsuya Miko's influence over Divine Gate to plummet.

After all, what kind of pathetic organization could have a branch leader who is actually the head of a criminal gang?

However, when it came time to actually cooperate with Divine Gate, Okita Qishen arrived. His competence and professionalism made Yotsuya Miko reconsider whether Divine Gate was a viable organization. In particular, the overt and covert subservient attitude that he and the Wagen Family behind him showed towards Miko made Yotsuya Miko even more hesitant to take action.

It can only be said that Okita Qishen's hard work over this period of time has paid off.

Even Yuria herself had to admire Okita Qishen and the Wagen Family behind him for their skill in suppressing the hostile attitude of other factions within the Divine Gate towards Miko. At the very least, they proved one thing— the Divine Gate could be trusted by Yotsuya Miko.

"In that case, I'll speak frankly with Okita, okay?"

Yuria didn't have much of a say in this matter. She was already inclined to win over one of the factions within the Divine Gate, even though she would be facing a complete mess. She believed that Yotsuya Miko had the power to bring down Divine Gate, and even the country's administrative system. But the problem was that destroying things was easy, but dealing with those destroyed things afterwards was not so easy.

Destroying the Divine Gate is an easy task, but the stability it brings requires someone to take responsibility, otherwise those Gate of the Underworld Divine Gate become a hidden danger. Destroying the country's administrative system is easy, but the resulting turmoil would be disastrous. It's not as simple as killing one group and replacing them with another; there's no such thing as a free lunch.

That's why Yuria was surprised when she heard that Yotsuya Miko planned to destroy the Divine Gate system. She found Yuria adorably naive, probably because she had read too many chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) stories and thought things were too painful.

What? She herself suffers from chuunibyou (middle school syndrome)? Ah, never mind then, at least she's a competent official now.

"For Miko, Divine Gate, it probably means nothing. So don't worry too much. You just need to use your prestige to stabilize those behind Divine Gate, and then the whole country will be an asset to you. Isn't the Life Spiritual Qi Extraction Method a good example? But speaking of which, I did hear from Minister Okita about that case of asymptomatic death. They investigated those bodies, but found nothing."

As she spoke, she turned her gaze to Yotsuya Miko in front of her.

"These bodies are being kept in the basement of Divine Gate. If you need anything, I can just talk to Captain Okita. I'll also inquire about the shrine. Even with your current strength, dealing with something so incomplete and unresolved must be difficult. Why don't you try having Divine Gate handle it for you for now?"

"Uh... what about me?"

Yotsuya Miko pointed to herself; she really didn't have a good solution for this kind of thing. Like when she went to Kawamori last time, her method of searching everywhere with her Spiritual Sense was far inferior to Divine Gate's targeted investigation with modern equipment. Without clues, her efficiency in handling such matters was indeed low. Although she could force an investigation, that would mean she could forget about attending classes.

"As for you, just focus on your studies and enjoy eating, drinking, and having fun with Hua."

Yuria chuckled softly.

"Special investigator Miko, didn't you already apply for a second-tier position?"

"... This thing is just like waste paper, okay?"

Yotsuya Miko was somewhat speechless. Although she officially held this identity, it was merely a facade to deceive her relatives and Hua.

"As for you, the actual deputy director of the Special Affairs Department, I wonder if Granny Saegusa would be moved to tears if she knew that her apprentice had accomplished this much."

"My mother-in-law can probably guess that it was influenced by you. Speaking of which, you should go and see how Granny Saegusa is doing when you have time."

"Can't we do it today?"

"As for today..."

Yuria thought for a moment, then opened her phone and checked her recent tasks. Although the Special Affairs Department was usually quite relaxed due to school and work, there wasn't much to do.

"Then let's do it today. Speaking of which, it's been a long time since I've personally visited my mother-in-law. I wonder how she's been doing lately."

"She seems to be in good spirits. By the way, did Mr. Rom visit her afterwards?"

"Rom... I heard from Granny Saegusa that he went to another city. I guess he's doing something somewhere else. Everyone has their own life, their own things to do, and their own thoughts."

Yes, even you would be the same, right?

Yotsuya Miko sighed inwardly, looking at Futamido Yuria, who had unknowingly become the vice-minister of the Divine Gate Special Affairs Department and no longer showed her withdrawn demeanor, and felt a sense of unfamiliarity.

Ever since I met her, she has been changing herself.

From a lonely girl with no Spiritual Power to a powerful exorcist who can now converse with a high-ranking figure in an organization, her transformation is remarkable. Even though she herself has given a lot in the process, if Yuria doesn't change her mindset, those gifts won't have much effect.

"Yuria, you've changed a lot too."

"Is that so?"

The blonde girl turned around, glanced at her, and smiled.

"Isn't this all because of you, Miko?"

Chapter 205 Still haven't made up your mind?

Takeda Mie continued to run his fortune-telling shop and had no intention of returning to the countryside.

Her children in the countryside are doing well, and her life alone in the city isn't too bad either. At least for now, she has a new apprentice.

"Granny Saegusa, it's been a long time."

"Long time no Miko, and... Yuria."