Sneaky bastard!

Since Li Xia did not like the girl, carrying her fell to Inuyasha, who was a half-demon and more agile.

He already had a small backpack on his own back.

The sun sank toward the west.

The sky gradually turned a dusky yellow.

Following a flight of stone steps, the group climbed halfway up the mountain.

An old-fashioned temple stood a short distance ahead.

"We finally made it before dark!"

The group breathed sighs of relief.

Only Li Xia had quietly tucked several Evil-Repelling Talismans capable of dispelling evil energy into his sleeve.

Just then, a kindly-looking old man walked out of the temple.

"Ogi, who are these people?"

At the sight of the old man, the sprained ankle of the girl on Inuyasha's back suddenly healed. First, she drove an elbow into the side of Inuyasha's face, then nimbly leaped off Two-Dog's back, and finally ran briskly up to the old monk.

"Master!"

Li Xia's mouth twitched at the sight.

Inuyasha rubbed his cheek and gritted his teeth in anger.

What was wrong with this woman?

"Ogi, why are you in such a state? Were you attacked by Spiderheads?"

Seeing how filthy and disheveled the young disciple he had recently taken in looked, the old monk stepped forward in concern, his heart aching for her.

Bathed in the last rays of sunset, the scene could not have looked more heartwarming.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

The girl lowered her head, looking aggrieved.

"I went out to pick some wildflowers to place on the graves of the murdered villagers and my parents! But these wicked demons caught me and brought me back! Master, I'm sorry..."

Her words immediately displeased both Inuyasha and Shippo.

They both found Ogi utterly irritating.

Even kindhearted Kagome frowned slightly. She began to wonder whether she had been right to show the girl kindness.

While they were each lost in their own thoughts, a mocking voice rang out behind them.

"What a touching bond between master and disciple."

As that voice rang out, several sharp whooshes cut through the air.

With the enhanced vision of his half-demon state, Inuyasha immediately recognized them as talismans.

To be precise, they were three Premium Evil-Repelling Talismans!

Li Xia threw convention out the window, opening by flinging Evil-Repelling Talismans straight at the old monk's face! Three of them at once! Not only had the old monk and his disciple failed to anticipate this, but Inuyasha, Kagome, and the others had not expected it either!

Then something strange happened.

Just as the three Evil-Repelling Talismans were about to stick to the unsuspecting old monk, the air in front of him warped, followed immediately by showers of tiny electrical sparks!

That only happened when a priest's spiritual power clashed with a demon's evil energy, wearing each other away!

In a single instant.

The heartwarming reunion between master and disciple turned into a tense standoff.

Ordinary Spiderhead grunts had only half a star of Demon Power. Aside from spitting silk to aid them in combat, they fought by controlling human corpses and using human swords and blades. Compared with ordinary, able-bodied humans, their scant Demon Power merely made them a little more agile. They also obeyed the Spiderhead Leader without question and thus had no fear of casualties... Otherwise, they held little advantage.

The Spiderhead Leader, however, possessed two stars of Demon Power and was an intermediate demon.

He was also highly skilled at disguising himself through transformation and manipulating others.

Most importantly, he was exceptionally good at concealing his aura. Even when he mingled with humans, ordinary people could not detect anything strange about him. Indeed, even Inuyasha's keen canine nose could not smell the Spiderhead Leader's original demonic scent once he had disguised himself as a human.

That alone showed how skilled he was at disguise and concealing his presence.

Unfortunately, the Spiderhead Leader had run into a sneaky bastard like Li Xia.

"A demon!"

Shippo's fluffy tail bristled straight up.

"Mr. Xia's guess was actually right! There really is something wrong with this old monk. He's a demon in disguise!"

Kagome hurriedly backed away, drawing her bow and nocking an arrow.

In the original timeline, Kagome had not brought a bow and arrows on this outing, leaving the entire burden to Inuyasha. As a result, once Inuyasha lost his Demon Power on the new moon night, it had nearly been game over. If the old flea Myōga had not appeared "by coincidence," reminding her to buy time with Tessaiga's barrier while also sucking most of the spider venom out of his young master Inuyasha's body, Kagome would have paid dearly for her senseless kindness.

She would not only have gotten Inuyasha and Shippo killed, but lost her own life as well.

"The monks at this temple were probably eaten long ago!"

Inuyasha stepped in front of everyone without hesitation and decisively drew Tessaiga from his waist.

Infused with Demon Power, the battered, rust-covered sword immediately transformed into an imposing great blade.

"Hmph! Show your true form!"

Why had Li Xia let everyone come here when he knew the trip would be dangerous?

His aims were obvious.

First, to rein in Kagome's kindness a little.

Kindness was a noble virtue, but kindness without boundaries or wisdom was irresponsible toward the people around you.

Second, to subtly increase his influence within the team. At the same time, he could make Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippo trust him more. Only after accomplishing both could he implement some of his later plans more effectively.

Lastly, it gave him a natural opportunity to try something out...

His actions might have been a little sneaky, but in an era where danger lurked at every turn, only sneaky bastards could get far.

"M-Master..."

Ogi stared in disbelief at the old monk. His once kindly face had darkened, and a vicious gleam surged in his eyes.

"You stupid woman, what are you standing there for? Get away from him!"

Inuyasha warned her anxiously.

He was about to step forward when, to his astonishment, Ogi spread her arms and stood between the two sides.

"He's my master, not the demon you say he is! Leave! Just leave!"

With a human girl standing in their way, the group suddenly hesitated, afraid of hurting her.

"Heh heh, Ogi, you really are my good little disciple!"

The old monk had been surprised that his disguise had been exposed so easily, but since he could no longer hide his identity, there was no point in pretending otherwise.

He transformed into the Spiderhead Leader's hideous true form, then seized the girl from behind and held her against him as a hostage.

In those brief moments, he had read from Inuyasha's and Kagome's movements and eyes that they did not want innocent humans caught in the crossfire. That made this disciple he had picked up the perfect human shield, or perhaps a bargaining chip.

The instant he saw the Spiderhead Leader's true form, Li Xia snorted.

"So it was you!

"You killed that girl's parents too, didn't you?

"You only kept her around as cover! To lure prey into your trap! What a clever scheme!"

The giant spider that had been the old monk grinned hideously.

"Heh heh! That's right! Taking in this stray girl was just a casual move. I never expected it to actually bring me a half-demon and humans carrying Shikon Shards! And this girl is so adorable! Not only did she treat her father's killer as her great benefactor, she even helped lure you here. What a huge help! Now hand over your Shikon Shards at once, or I'll kill this little stray! You wouldn't want an innocent person to die because of you, would you?"

"Despicable!"

Shippo was furious.

"N-No, Master, you're lying to them, aren't you? This is just an illusion, right?"

The girl could not accept the truth.

"What do you think?"

The old spider stretched his neck out a good two or three meters.

At that sight, the girl's desperate hopes shattered completely.

"No, no, no! You damned demon! Give me back my parents!"

Unfortunately, no matter how hard she struggled, she could never break free of a demon's grip.

By then, more than half the sun had sunk behind the mountain.

The last rays of sunset spilling from the horizon grew fainter and fainter.

Li Xia, who had been keeping a wary eye on their surroundings, noticed this and hurriedly warned Inuyasha.

"Either attack or retreat!"

Ending this swiftly and decisively was the best choice.

A quick retreat would also be a sound strategy.

They only needed to withdraw and wait out the night. It would not be too late to return and kill him tomorrow in daylight! After all, unlike in the original timeline, they had not lost half the Shikon Shards they were carrying! Under these circumstances, there was no need to fight to the bitter end, much less pit their weakness against the enemy's strength.

Yet neither Inuyasha nor Kagome showed any intention of retreating.

The reason was simple. As far as Kagome was concerned, Ogi would surely die if they left.

Inuyasha, meanwhile, believed that as long as he got an opening, he could kill trash like the Spiderhead Leader with a single slash.

Seeing this, Li Xia gritted his teeth and sighed inwardly.

Ugh!

After a mere two minutes of confrontation, the sun set.

At that instant, Inuyasha's expression changed.