A Monster's a Monster. If I Don't Kill You, This Daoist's Resolve Won't Hold / Bai Ming: Huh? I Have a Plan

Abe no Seimei studied Bai Ming. The other man showed no hostility, so he was not an enemy. His attire and accent were strange as well, and Bai Ming's muscular, solid build clearly marked him as a foreigner.

He did not even seem to qualify as an onmyoji.

Yet his blood and vitality were abundant, so much so that even ordinary Spirit Bodies dared not approach him. He was surely an exceptional warrior.

That meant he had no grievance with Abe no Seimei whatsoever.

For a moment, Abe no Seimei could not understand why this man had come to smash up his place.

"It would seem that I do not know you, sir."

"Now you do. I came to fight you." Bai Ming pointed at Abe no Seimei. "I'm going to make a name for myself by stepping on you!"

So this was the place he had come to smash up—

"Forgive me, but I must refuse your request. Onmyoji arts should not be used for personal displays of violence." Abe no Seimei paused, then continued, "I am not particularly skilled in martial arts either, so please do not make things difficult for me."

Bai Ming thought to himself, Abe no Seimei was one of the leading figures of the Heian era. He had driven back many man-eating monsters and vicious ghosts. Pressing him too hard would not be good. The primary purpose of this simulation was, first, to have fun, and second, to forge connections.

"Fight me once. Win or lose, I'll leave it at that."

Abe no Seimei remained silent for a long while before saying, "We stop at the proper point. I am Abe no Seimei, onmyoji of the Bureau of Onmyō under the Ministry of Central Affairs, son of the White Fox."

Listening to Abe no Seimei's string of titles, Bai Ming thought, Right, Japanese people always liked to pile on all sorts of meaningless titles. This Magus had such a long title. If I only gave my name, I'd lose half a head in momentum.

Having made up his mind, Bai Ming patted the head of the puppy in his arms and declared loudly, "This is the fiercest hound under my command, 'Setanta.' I am the immortal of the Chinese Mountain Court, the mighty and invincible future Poppy Yu Ji of divine authority, General Bai Ming!"

Though Abe no Seimei did not understand what that absurdly long title meant, he understood "invincible" and "Yu Ji," and believed that the longer the title, the stronger it was.

Before the abolition of the missions to the Great Tang Dynasty, those people had brought back stories of the Overlord Xiang Yu and Yu Meiren, also known as Consort Yu.

In an instant, Abe no Seimei understood why the tale of Xiang Yu and Consort Yu was so stirring and tragic. It was pure brotherly loyalty.

But precisely because of that, Abe no Seimei's expression turned grave.

The man before him was terrifyingly strong.

The smile at the corner of Bai Ming's lips finally broke loose. He had wanted to say this for a long time. "You're dead, dead!"

Abe no Seimei directed his Shikigami to attack Bai Ming, while Bai Ming grinned.

"You dare attack me with Spirit Bodies? Such petty tricks, and you dare flaunt them before me? If you won't use your real skills, then I'll have to use mine!"

Bai Ming neither dodged nor evaded. Golden light manifested around his body on its own.

Its dazzling brilliance illuminated the Abe family estate and the pitch-black night sky.

That blinding golden light was already a great threat to these low-grade Spirit Bodies under command. The moment they charged Bai Ming, wisps of green smoke rose from their bodies beneath its radiance.

Seeing this, Abe no Seimei hastily formed the Tachibana Bellflower Seal. A pentagram bearing gold, wood, water, fire, and earth shot forth in an instant.

Bai Ming formed a hand seal with one hand. Magical energy surged around him as he shouted:

"Subtle vacuum, Zhao Gong of the Divine Firmament, command thunder and wield lightning, send forth fire and summon wind. What god would not submit? What ghost would dare charge forth? When the divine tiger roars, ten thousand ghosts vanish without trace. At my urgent summons, swiftly emerge from the Crimson Palace."

In an instant, fierce winds arose, accompanied by ceaseless tiger roars. The weaker incoming Shikigami immediately fled in all directions amid the raging winds and roaring tigers, willingly enduring the backlash of severing their contracts and cutting their connection with Abe no Seimei. But it was all futile. Thunder and fire descended from the heavens, and souls and ghosts of every strength wailed endlessly beneath them before finally scattering into nothingness.

The Five Elements barrier formed by the Tachibana Bellflower Seal shattered as well.

Abe no Seimei's face turned the color of gold paper. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his breath thrown into disorder.

His expression kept changing, as though he were trying to figure out where this man had come from and why he had never heard this man's name before.

Meanwhile, Bai Ming wore a broad grin. "These mountain and wilderness spirits dare call themselves gods and immortals? Don't call them Shikigami anymore. Call them Shikigaki instead. Calling them gods only disgraces the gods."

With that, he turned and left Abe no Seimei's residence, shouting, "Abe no Seimei has lost! I'm number one now!"

Then Bai Ming turned and departed with the puppy named "Setanta" in his arms.

You ignored Abe no Seimei's reddened face and went on to torment the Harima-school onmyoji wandering among the common folk.

Among the Harima-school onmyoji was an outstanding figure who could be called the leader of these folk schools. His name was Ashiya Doman.

You knew these Japanese were filled with servility deep in their bones. They were willing to be enslaved by the strong, yet longed to enslave others. Simply defeating Abe no Seimei was not enough; you had to make Ashiya Doman submit as well.

While you searched for Ashiya Doman, news that you had instantly defeated Abe no Seimei spread. Abe no Seimei himself admitted it, declaring you the true number one and calling you the Thunder Immortal, Future Poppy Yu Chuzi.

Master Doman, Monk Doman, or Ashiya Doman—a man whose pupils resembled polished obsidian and whose face always bore a cruel smile so perfect it was almost flawless.

Rumor had it that Ashiya Doman possessed such ferocious strength that he could tear enemies apart with his bare hands, earning him the title of humanoid monster.

Therefore, the moment Bai Ming saw him, he charged directly at him. He wanted to see just what this humanoid monster that could rip people in half with its bare hands was made of.

Bai Ming set Setanta down and walked toward Ashiya Doman step by step.

Naturally, Ashiya Doman knew who Bai Ming was.

With a dull thud, Bai Ming's punch sent Ashiya Doman stumbling back several steps. Bai Ming gave him no chance to react, closing in and throwing punch after punch.

Ashiya Doman struggled to block Bai Ming's relentless blows, retreating step after step. His hands had gone so numb that he could no longer feel them.

His calves had already sunk into the earth.

"Weak! Weak! Weak! Is this all the strength a grand master onmyoji and humanoid monster has?! Ashiya Doman, you really are inferior to Abe no Seimei!"

Bai Ming's voice was loud enough that the words "Ashiya Doman, you are inferior to Abe no Seimei" immediately spread far and wide.

"Tch!" Ashiya Doman clicked his tongue in irritation and threw an angry punch. "Don't look down on me!"

As if fueled by rage, Ashiya Doman's strength increased by several degrees, and he began counterattacking fiercely.

During the clash, Ashiya Doman cast onmyoji arts upon himself to strengthen his body and began resisting Bai Ming's assault.

Their fists collided without end, a string of muffled impacts echoing through the air.

Who would have thought Bai Ming was like a madman? Seeing Ashiya Doman resist only made him more excited. "Hehehehe! Looks like I hit a sore spot! Useless! Useless! Useless! It's too late to resist now!"

Monsters Are Monsters; If I Don't Kill You, This Daoist's Heart Will Be Unsteady

Under Bai Ming's mad barrage of punches, Ashiya Doman's arms had completely lost feeling. He could only keep throwing punches and resisting because he did not want to be beaten to death by this lunatic's random blows.

Suddenly, Bai Ming's sweeping kick lashed into Ashiya Doman's body, sending him flying. Bai Ming then picked up the puppy beside him and walked toward Ashiya Doman step by step. Looking at the anger and fear on the other man's face, Bai Ming said, "From now on, I am the number one onmyoji of your Heian era. That 'Thunder Immortal, Future Poppy Yu Chuzi' nonsense Abe no Seimei used was too awful. You will spread my title instead."

"When I appear in female form, you must respectfully call me 'Future Poppy beneath the Red Moon, Supreme Consort Yu of Ferocious Divine Authority.' When I am in male form, call me 'Bai Ming, Mighty and Invincible General Who Conquered Japan for the Great Tang Dynasty.' Do you understand?"

Ashiya Doman thought, If I refuse now, I'll probably lose my life.

So he respectfully agreed and began spreading Bai Ming's fame.

Ashiya Doman's favorability toward you greatly decreased.

But you did not care in the slightest and instead prepared to do the next thing.

In the Heian era, there were monsters, ghosts, demons, mountain spirits, and all manner of such beings. Back in China, you had seen some mountain and wilderness spirits that were not immortals but pretended to be. You had also forged connections with various immortal sages and divine generals through the Mysterious Essence Incantation, one of the Eight Great Divine Spells. In Britain and France, you had seen many western Dragon Kind. But you had never seen Japanese monsters, so you intended to go looking for trouble with them.

In your memory, these Japanese monsters were more or less female. You believed that your current trait was the best possible bait for fishing.

So, holding the puppy in your arms, you began wandering all around Heian-kyo at night, where ghosts ran rampant.

Greedy Wolf talent activated.

After your unceasing efforts, you successfully attracted the monster you had long dreamed of finding by a bridge.

Her name was Ibaraki-dōji.

She was a petite girl with a pair of red-and-black oni horns—at least, that was what she looked like physically.

Her feet were red, and faint blood-red patterns marked her limbs and exposed shoulders.

She wore a bright yellow kimono covered in patterns Bai Ming could not appreciate at all. She had been lingering by the bridge alone, and when she saw Bai Ming approaching step by step with the puppy in his arms, she cast a minor illusion before walking toward him with feigned shyness. Wearing a pitiful yet alluring expression, she spoke softly. "Kind sir, could you help me? I just moved into Heian-kyo and live at the Gojo Residence, but there are simply too many roads here. I do not know the way well and cannot find my way home."

This was Ibaraki-dōji's usual trick. Bai Ming smiled and answered, "Of course."

So Bai Ming led Ibaraki-dōji toward the Gojo Residence. When they were nearly there, Ibaraki-dōji spoke again. "My residence is actually outside the capital."

"Is that so?"

Bai Ming set the puppy in his arms aside and suddenly burst into laughter. His grin was so savage that even Ibaraki-dōji, a monster herself, was stunned for a moment. She could not help thinking, Don't tell me I've been robbed by another robber?

"Miss, please allow me to offer you my highest respect—"

Bai Ming bowed slightly, putting on the appearance of a perfect gentleman. Ibaraki-dōji felt deeply awkward. If Bai Ming did not ask where her home actually was, she could not shout, "My home is on Mount Ooe!" and then cruelly humiliate or even kill him. What was this guy doing?

"Miss, do you believe in gravity? Do you believe in fate?"

"What are you even talking about?! My home is actually on Mount Ooe. Are you going to take me there?"

Though this man was saying strange things, as long as he agreed, she would kill this human immediately.

Ibaraki-dōji thought sinisterly as she waited for Bai Ming to continue.

Instead, Bai Ming directly summoned a brick and smashed it into Ibaraki-dōji's face. Her mind went blank, but the pain that followed filled her with fury. Just as Ibaraki-dōji was about to strike, Bai Ming smashed another punch into her face, sending her flying on the spot.

Bai Ming immediately followed after her and unleashed a chain of Overlord's Rapid-Fire Punches upon Ibaraki-dōji.

Ibaraki-dōji flew even farther away.

Bai Ming's voice trembled with excitement. "A monster! This Gojo Residence shall be where you die! I finally found a living monster! If you want to kill me, you must be prepared to be killed by me!"

"Human—unforgivable! Unforgivable! Stop spouting nonsense!"

"Oh? Instead of running away, you're coming closer to me?"

Bai Ming walked toward Ibaraki-dōji step by step.

Ibaraki-dōji charged straight at Bai Ming, summoning nearby vengeful spirits as well, intending to kill him cruelly. But golden light rose from Bai Ming's body, and those spirits entered reincarnation before they could even approach. Ibaraki-dōji was horrified. She realized that instead of catching a fish, she had been caught by one. She immediately wanted to retreat, but Bai Ming gave her no chance.

Grabbing one of her long oni horns, Bai Ming drove a knee into her. With only a slight lift of his leg, his knee struck the face of Ibaraki-dōji, whose true height was merely one meter forty-seven. Then, while her mind was still blank, Bai Ming snapped off her long oni horn with a sharp crack!

Ibaraki-dōji immediately let out a pained scream.

She realized she might not be able to leave safely, so she began desperately pleading for mercy.

Humans, right? As long as she begged, acted weak, and made a few baseless promises, they would let her go—she had escaped from the warriors she encountered before in exactly this manner. Humans truly were so easy to deceive!

So Ibaraki-dōji immediately pleaded:

"I was wrong! I'm sorry! I was wrong! I should not have come to Kyoto to harm humans. Let me go, and I promise I will never come back, I—"

Ibaraki-dōji's voice abruptly stopped. Bai Ming did not stop moving. Magical energy gathered around his palm and sharpened into something like a blade. Blood sprayed, and Ibaraki-dōji was sliced in two before the Gojo Residence. Bai Ming murmured, "It seems Japanese oni can imitate humans too, but they probably never truly admit their mistakes—oni are oni. Even if you admit fault, you are still an oni. If I let you go today, this Daoist's heart will be unsteady."

With that said, Bai Ming immediately performed rites for Ibaraki-dōji, ferrying her soul from Japan to the Chinese underworld before setting Ibaraki-dōji's corpse ablaze.

Bai Ming gave the corpse a slight bow. "Infinite blessings of the Heavenly Worthy. Once, a strong man surnamed Gojo became Gojo-point-five. Now you, monster, have become half as well. Be a good person in your next life. Do not become a monster again. I'm going to find the next monster who can fight. This Daoist is kind-hearted, so I'll go to Mount Ooe and send them to keep you company."

You slew Ibaraki-dōji with a style that combined magic and martial arts, but defeating her was not even as satisfying as trading blows with Ashiya Doman. You only hoped that the Mount Ooe mentioned by Ibaraki-dōji would bring you an incomparable surprise.

Likewise, your combat style that combined magic and martial arts was witnessed by a warrior passing through at night named Watanabe no Tsuna. In admiration, he began spreading your name among warriors. From then on, under your influence, the overall atmosphere of Heian-kyo underwent subtle changes.

Bai Ming: Huh? I Have a Plan

Mount Ooe, also known as Mount Tanba.

It was said to be the city of evil oni led by Shuten-dōji. Mount Ooe was not far from Kyoto and was a necessary route for entering and leaving the capital.

Bai Ming left Heian-kyo overnight and headed for Mount Ooe.

When he was still some distance from Mount Ooe, Bai Ming stopped and thought, Since Mount Ooe is a city of evil oni, it must be filled with many spirits and monsters. Killing them alone would inevitably take too much effort, and some might slip through. Using thunder arts in haste would not be enough to kill them all. I need a foolproof plan.

You looked toward the dark sky, and a plan suddenly came to mind.

You began praising yourself as Type-Moon's King of Ideas.

You began activating Thought Key Patterns.

Bai Ming's magical energy surged, and even the surrounding magical energy grew restless. First, he formed hand seals and recited the Mysterious Essence Incantation, contacting the many unoccupied immortals of the Thunder Department. Then he used the Incantation for Inviting Gods with Incense to invite the immortals over as guests. After that, he formed hand seals and chanted, using thunder arts against Mount Ooe from afar.

Suddenly, thunder rumbled and heavenly sounds echoed.

Bai Ming stared foolishly at the sky with a delighted grin.

The oni of Mount Ooe, who had been enjoying themselves, also looked curiously toward the sky. They did not know why dark clouds had suddenly gathered or why thunder rolled without end.

Then lightning illuminated the heavens. Countless bolts of lightning and heavenly fire fell upon Mount Ooe like a curtain, while some lightning shot directly toward Bai Ming. Seeing this, Bai Ming turned and ran. He ran as lightning struck after him, earth and stone exploding wherever he passed.

A streak of light flew down from the sky. No matter how Bai Ming ran or dodged, he could not escape it. It relentlessly pursued him.

With a dull thud, Bai Ming was knocked unconscious. The lightning finally struck his body.

Lightning flared across Mount Ooe. After a while, the dark clouds and thunder vanished, leaving behind only the silent Mount Ooe and Bai Ming, who had been knocked unconscious and severely wounded by the lightning.

However, all negative effects in the simulation were borne by a false body condensed from the system's energy. Thus, Bai Ming forcibly endured the lightning strike while conscious and in pain.

You obtained the magical artifact: Five Thunder Command Plaque. It has been stored in your Sea of Consciousness.