The Mantis Stalks the Cicada? Who's the Cicada? / Out in the Wilderness, Strength Is Everything

It's difficult to provide perfect protection if the opponent is too close.

Therefore, Suika felt that she was still missing a skill that would allow her to protect several children at close range.

Although I can't think of any skills in Gensokyo that could meet this requirement, it's never a bad idea to try my luck.

After all, I was very lucky today.

After being thrown in, Suika once again felt her vision blurring.

"Damn, the previous skill ⑨ didn't have this effect... and it didn't have Three-Step Ruin either!"

Just as she was internally complaining about what was going on with this Offering Box and why a cutscene had suddenly been added, she saw herself... countless versions of herself.

Countless Ibuki Suika were happily playing and running around the shrine.

Not far away, the main body lay on the ground in a starfish shape, fast asleep, and with each breath she took, dozens or even hundreds of Little Suika flew out of her mouth.

"An anomaly! This is definitely an anomaly!"

At that moment, a red and white shrine maiden was walking angrily over from not far away. On the way, she picked up a Little Suika that was climbing on her and threw it aside, then said in a fit of rage.

The image shattered again in the next second, Suika's consciousness returned to her hotel room.

"Holy crap!" Even Suika was somewhat surprised by the new skill.

"Little Night Parade of a Hundred Demons"—this is Ibuki Suika's title.

One of the sources of this title is the result of Ibuki Suika expanding herself using the abilities of Density and Sparsity.

--A Bean-Sized Needle Hell

It's not like Sun Wukong, who could pluck a hair and conjure up thousands of monkeys and their offspring; it's just that the breath he exhales can transform into countless versions of himself.

Although it is rather small in size and its strength is far inferior to that of a demon, this only applies to demons.

Even though it looks as small as a doll Little Suika could easily kill a Tumor Beast with a single punch.

The key is that these clones are fast and numerous; given a little time, she can create an army of Watermelon.

Although it's not the kind of protective skill I had in mind, this ability can still accomplish what Suika planned—ensuring that her non-combat-capable companions wouldn't be hampered by the Suika getting close when danger arises.

If someone who's unlucky in gacha pulls feels disillusioned after their gacha pulls, believing that nothing in the world can disturb their inner peace, then someone who's lucky in gacha Suika is completely satisfied.

Chapter 133 The Mantis Stalks the Cicada? Who is the Cicada?

After removing the stone plaque with Great Fortune Sigil on her forehead, Suika finally gained a clear understanding of luck.

Even though giving this thing away had brought her a string of misfortunes, she was able to overcome them all by relying on her strength to fly with the brick.

Now that she has experienced what it's like to be Queen Ou, she understands that luck is indeed quite important.

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but think of the other extreme of Touhou Project's luck— Zhuan Zhuan.

If Great Fortune Sigil on yourself before a battle and then cast bad luck on your opponent, wow, I don't even want to imagine what the battle would be like.

Shaking her head to put the matter out of her mind, Suika lay contentedly on the bed and closed her eyes peacefully.

The next morning, when they arrived outside Verdant Spark, Xia Li was packing their belongings like a mother hen.

He kept telling the three of the things they needed to be careful about once they reached the wilderness.

Upon seeing Suika arrive, she nodded slightly.

"The next three are yours. This is Rhodes Island's documentation. Give this to them when they arrive, and they will take care of the arrangements."

Suika took the document, put it directly into her pocket, and said to the three little ones...

"Before we leave, I want to say two things. First, I hope everyone will obey my orders on the way. Even if you find what I say strange or beyond your own understanding, you can come back to me to refute it afterward. But once I give an order, I hope you will obey it unconditionally."

Secondly, double-check your luggage, then take care of your personal hygiene. Go to the toilet if you need to, so you don't feel unwell or forget something after only a short while. Otherwise, there won't be a turning back option.

Yesterday, Suika was all smiles and gentleness with Xia Li, but today she looked serious, which made the three little ones feel a bit uncomfortable.

But Xia Li knew this was necessary. As the leader of the team, she had to establish enough authority before setting off. After all, the wilderness was a complex place, and if she couldn't win people's hearts, and if problems were discovered and her orders were not carried out, it could very likely lead to casualties.

So even though he was standing to the side, Xia Li didn't say anything, but quietly watched as Suika quickly took control of the team.

Under her command, the three little ones double-checked the items, made sure nothing was forgotten, and that their personal hygiene was complete. With a wave of her hand, she shouted, "Let's go!"

The four of them walked out of the Infected neighborhood in a "grand procession" and headed out of the city.

The children were all alone with no adults, and their actions, which made them appear to be heading out of town, naturally attracted the attention of passersby.

When they arrived at the checkpoint, a group of people were standing not far away, convinced that the guards probably wouldn't let the children out.

After all, even the most heartless garrison wouldn't let a few kids go out of the city to their deaths.

Moreover, if word gets out that several Infected children are going out like this, and people say that Karaton doesn't accept Infected children and sends them to their deaths alone in the wild, it could put Karaton in a reputation crisis.

If it were someone else, it might indeed be as they thought, that Suika and the others would be refused entry to the city.

But after returning home last night, Marlon remembered that Suika had said she was leaving the city today, so he came here early this morning to relieve her and also to see her off.

After seeing the children behind Suika, he looked at them with suspicion.

"These three children are quite ill. My assignment this time is to take them to a company that specializes in treating Infected. Otherwise, if their Oripathy isn't effectively controlled, I'm afraid..."

Suika's words were true. Even Mograine, the lowest of the three, had a cell-to -Originium fusion rate of around 13%. The Originium Crystals on the surface of all three were visible to the naked eye.

It's worth noting that Ifrit's infection rate was only 19%, and she was only able to survive because of her special physical condition.

For a normal person, 13% is already considered a fairly dangerous range.

So after Suika gave this perfectly valid reason, he didn't press further. Instead, he waved his hand, signaling for the passage to be opened.

"The wilderness is fraught with danger, and due to work commitments, I cannot accompany you on your journey. I wish Ms. Suika a safe trip."

"Thank you," Suika, clasping her hands in a respectful bow. Then, amidst the astonished gazes of the onlookers, she led the three of them out of Karaton.

Once outside the city, this strange little team attracted even more attention.

Various gazes came from all around—curiosity, worry, greed, and desire.

Whitemane, who was most sensitive to gazes, trembled under the constant stares.

"Just come with me, don't worry about any danger, I'll handle it."

After glancing around at the people around her, Suika snorted coldly and then led the group out.

"Sister Suika, it seems like someone has been following us!" Whitemane whispered as they stopped by a stream around 4 p. m. to set up camp.

Suika glanced at Whitemane in surprise. She had noticed the people behind her, but she hadn't expected Whitemane to notice them as well.

Those who followed me here were mostly up to no good.

After all, she didn't take the main road, and even deliberately took several detours, going in a big circle. Even if they were going the same way, they shouldn't be going the same way now.

But it was strange that there were about ten people following behind them.

If they thought it was too dangerous for four children to walk in the wilderness, they could have simply come forward and expressed their opinion. Instead, they lingered at a distance, like a predator before a hunt, tailing its prey and waiting for the moment it would relax.

Whitemane has a natural ability to sense both the goodwill and malice of others.

"We survived the early stages of our escape from the outside world to the city thanks to her ability."

Seeing Suika's surprise, Mograine said proudly.

Suika looked at this proud little lion and really wanted to flick his forehead. What was he so proud of about Whitemane's abilities?

"This should be related to your Originium Arts..."

"It's a sensory-based ability, meaning you've been using this ability all along. No wonder your condition is the most severe."

Suika stroked her chin, roughly guessing Whitemane's abilities, but she wasn't good at them.

However, Rhodes Island has many magic masters, such as Li Gousheng or PITH.

Their experience and skill in magic are quite high. Once Whitemane arrives at Rhodes Island and undergoes systematic training, she will be able to control her magic. Perhaps then she really has a chance to become Rhodes Island's "Grand Prosecutor".

Upon hearing Suika's words, Mograine immediately lost his arrogance. He didn't understand the principles of Oripathy, but he became extremely frustrated after learning that Whitemane's condition was worsening because of her ability.

Chapter 134 In the Desolate Wilderness, Strength Supremacy

He never imagined that Whitemane's abilities would be the cause of her worsening condition.

Looking back, Whitemane's several changes in condition did indeed occur after he used this ability to detect danger.

He looked at Suika, trying to find a solution from her.

Suika shrugged.

"I don't have a deep understanding of Originium Arts, but the place we're going to this time— Rhodes Island —has many good, even top-notch, Originium Arts and spell masters."

They should be able to resolve Whitemane's situation.

Seeing Mograine's nervous expression, Suika comforted him and patted his shoulder.

"If you know someone is unwell, go and do all their work for them!"

After saying that, she clenched her fists and walked back the way she came.

What are you doing?

"Take care of the tails first, or are we taking these guys to Rhodes Island?"

Suika chuckled and then walked towards the group.

"It must have been quite a journey for these brothers to follow us all the way from Karaton to here."

How about we come over for a meal, and afterwards we all go home and find our own mothers?

Seeing that each time Suika pointed out the location of one of the people, they knew they had been exposed.

Those people emerged from the bushes one by one.

"As you can see, all of these children are Infected; even if you took them, you wouldn't get a good price for them."

Moreover, the little ones had no money; their equipment was given to them by kind people in the city.

Don't you think it's a waste to spend so much time robbing a bunch of poor people?

We're not far from Karaton yet, how about we do each other a favor and go our separate ways after dinner?"

Suika calmly opened her arms and said.

Two people in the crowd hesitated after hearing her words, but the others were completely unaffected by Suika's words.

"Who the hell are you trying to fool? You're saying there's nothing good in these big backpacks?"

Would you risk leaving the city if you didn't have anything good?

If you know what's good for you, leave your backpack behind. I can overlook the worthless lives of a few Infected kids...

But you...

How about we have some fun together?

As they spoke, one of them revealed a lewd smile.

"Sigh, it's only my first day out here, I didn't want to see any blood."

Leite, Mograine, and Whitemane, turn your heads away and stop looking to the side!

Suika glanced at the person who spoke, shook her head, and then turned to look at the three little ones who were secretly peeking in their direction.

Upon hearing Suika's words, the three little ones immediately shrank back.

Suika narrowed her eyes as she watched the approaching thief, and the next moment she vanished from the spot.

After a loud bang, those people saw that the man who had spoken rudely at the beginning had been hit by a dump truck, and had fallen to the ground like a rag doll, instantly lifeless.

"What's going on...?"

Before the others could react, one of them suddenly swerved to the side and bumped into another person, and the two of them crashed into a tree not far away.

After landing, it twitched a few times and then followed in the footsteps of the person in front of it.

Seeing this, the remaining people realized they had run into a tough opponent.

These people were originally wanderers in the wilderness, bullying the weak and fearing the strong, and were very good at bullying the weak.

But when faced with a powerful enemy, they truly scatter and flee in panic.

Seeing the people scatter like birds and beasts, Suika snorted coldly.

In the past, these people might have actually gotten away, but now, she has a huge area-of-effect (AOE) skill.

Moreover, its range is much larger than that of Ice Burst.