I planted a sacred tree in Tokyo.

Chapter 240 Extraordinary swordsmith, come quickly!

Around four o'clock,
Standing atop Mount Fuji, which reaches a height of 3700 meters,
The deep red sun was already visible, appearing like a disc in the clouds on the horizon.

"call---"

Raising the sword blank in his hand, raging flames spewed from 'Totosai's' mouth, turning it a deep red.

Then he raised his hand and gestured towards the lava in the crater next to him:
"Come!"

The 'lake', the size of several football fields, immediately began to boil and surge, and the crimson magma turned into a torrent that flew towards it.

Splash,

The lava flowed thinner and thinner, eventually seeping into the blade's blank. It was clearly just an ordinary longsword, yet the space within seemed endless, allowing hundreds and thousands of tons of lava to pour in without stopping. Until it sank tens of meters into the massive crater:

The old man-looking 'Daodaozhai' raised his iron hammer high and slammed it down on the blade blank.

"seal up!"

Clang—

A melodious metallic clang echoed from the summit of Mount Fuji.

The sound was not loud, but it was continuous, which made Director Takeya, who was sleeping in the shrine and was taking a rare 'break', suddenly open his eyes.

"What was that just now?"

"It's the sound of the old master of 'Daodaozhai' forging swords."

The secretary outside rushed in to report, which made Director Zhu Ya, who had been looking a bit dazed, brighten up.

"Let's go and have a look!"

With such a commotion, could it be that the forging of the sword is complete?
That shouldn't be the case. According to the legend, it should take at least 49 days or 81 days to trigger a celestial phenomenon before it can be considered a success.
Before she could even take off her clothes, Director Zhuya collapsed into bed and went to sleep. When she arrived at the mountain peak, she saw a crater that had sunk dozens of meters into the ground, and an old man holding a long, crimson sword, striking it.

"Master Daodaozhai, have you... finally succeeded?"

Braving the sweltering heat, Director Zhu Ya approached and curiously looked at the crimson longsword in the old man's hand.

"Whether it succeeds or not, let's test the knife first."

Testing the knife?

Director Zhuya paused, wondering if the other party was planning to chop her up.
“Disperse!”

With a swing of his crimson longsword, the old man 'Daodaozhai' unleashed a torrent of magma that surged forth from the blade, transforming into a crescent-shaped crimson beam that slashed toward the 'Sword Peak' beside him.

Pfft

Amidst the soft sound,

Dozens of meters away, on the edge of the crater, crimson scratches cut through the black rock.

Rumble,

After a brief pause, tens or even hundreds of tons of basalt crashed down.

Only a reddish-brown sloping cut remains, resembling lava that has not yet solidified.

???

"This"

Director Zhu Ya's gaze sharpened.
It's not that I'm shocked by the damage to Mount Fuji.

Although this mountain is a symbol of the island nation, in order to protect Mount Fuji, not only are cable cars not available, but even the roads leading up the mountain are paved with 'natural' stones.

However, in Director Zhu Ya's view, what is the point of a mountain if the people are all gone?
"Amazing!"

He was surprised by the power of the 'knife'.

what?
Why not the power of 'Totosai' himself?

There's no such thing as 'testing a knife'; you'd use your own abilities to cover up the knife itself. What could you possibly learn from that?

"Not bad,"

Daodaozhai nodded slightly at his first and only work.

Yu originally planned to directly forge the 'Decapitation Blade - Enhanced Version', but after trying it, he encountered the awkward situation of 'knowing how in his mind but not in his hands'.

Fortunately, it was the middle of the night, and no one saw his failure; while remelting the broken sword, Yu had a sudden inspiration and tried to use the materials on the spot to make this 'bloodline limit' ninja sword.

As for the specific process, the person who failed to forge the sword, in a fit of anger, grabbed an evil spirit, gave it the ability of 'melting escape', and then sealed it into the sword.

"Hmm, although it's not even one ten-thousandth of 'Flowing Blade Like Fire,' it's already quite good for an ordinary 'Demon Messenger.'"

The old man, known as 'Taodaozhai,' seemed to be in a good mood as he twirled his crimson longsword.

This ninja sword, forged from an evil spirit, is equivalent to an unconscious 'Lava Release' ninja.

By injecting chakra into it, one can perform Lava Release.

As for the extent to which it can be applied.
God knows!
However, this knife was indeed prepared for a 'ghost'.

Lava Release is a bloodline limit formed by combining fire and earth nature chakra, manifesting as the nature of magma or volcanic ash. This bloodline limit is possessed by Roshi, the Four-Tails Jinchuriki, and Kurotsuchi, the granddaughter of Onoki and nicknamed "Leg Shadow."

Mizukage Mei Mi uses 'Lava Release,' a combination of earth and water chakra. Although the two may sound similar, they are actually quite different.

"Sir, you just mentioned 'ghost messengers'?"

Director Zhuya listened intently to the 'Daodaozhai's' mutterings, not daring to miss a single word.

"yes,"

"This weapon is the Zanpakuto that the one from 'Fengdu' in the underworld asked me to forge."

As he spoke, the old man raised his hand and stroked his beard.

"The blacksmiths of the underworld can only forge ordinary items."

"Since I have been entrusted with this important task, I have no choice but to come out and stretch my muscles."

Even if Yu—no, it was Ghost Messenger Bai—taught the blacksmiths of the Underworld how to forge blades, in the short term, those blacksmiths could only forge some ordinary swords. The ones that could complement the owner's chakra were all 'fine-quality' swords that only squad leaders were qualified to wear.

And the captains are still unarmed!

???

"Didn't you say no one agreed?"

"If someone asks me to forge a sword, and I agree, then who needs to grant my request?"

Hearing the old man's eloquent rebuttal, Zhu Ya was speechless. If you were helping Huang Quan forge a sword, why didn't you say so earlier?
"Sir, would you be so kind as to forge a sword for my island nation?"

Taking this opportunity, Director Zhu Ya quickly proposed:

"Compensation? No problem!"

Whatever this 'Totosai' wants, as long as the island has it, we'll get it for him!
Mountains of gold and silver, beauties and treasures, and even human lives—there are plenty of people in prison awaiting execution. Recently, a number of them have been used up by 'voluntarily' participating in various experiments, but there are still quite a few left.

"remuneration?"

He pulled a pipe from his sleeve, ran his fingernail across it, and lit the tobacco.

"You can't afford it—"

Daodaozhai took a puff of his pipe and looked at him with disdain.

"However, I do not require payment or materials for forging swords."

"The swords I forge can only be used by those who can wield their power; otherwise, it will bring misfortune."

"Easy to say, easy to say!"

Upon hearing that this person not only expressed a willingness to forge the sword, but even provided the materials themselves, Director Zhuya's face flushed red with excitement.

We don't need the weapons forged by the other party to be as powerful as that crimson longsword just now; as long as they are half, no, a third, they will be enough to greatly improve the strength of the Extraordinary Countermeasures Department!

In theory, island nations are still governed by governments, but nowadays the government is the weakest: the Imperial Palace's Tenma Ai-no-Mikoto has the "eye of God," her future is limitless, and she has a legitimate cause; the Army Self-Defense Force is led by Kafka, and it is not weak in either modern weapons or supernatural power.

The Isogai family is backed by Kainin, who is actively training 'Onmyoji'; Master Shio is rebuilding the 'Kōyasan Esoteric Buddhism', appearing as a recluse who is detached from worldly affairs.

Each faction believes its actions are correct, and each faction is constantly expanding, leading to numerous hidden conflicts.

If the Nine-Tailed Fox forces hadn't only temporarily left, the supernatural forces in the island nation might have started fighting first.

Compared to those complex situations, the old man before me:

Look at them, look at them!
If all the extraordinary individuals in the world were this dedicated...
"By the way, kid."

Just as Director Zhuya was lost in thought, Daodaozhai pointed his pipe to the side. "Didn't I tell you not to disturb my sword forging?"

"What's with that little brat peeking around like that?"

???

Following the other person's pipe, Director Zhu Ya saw a familiar young man and the filming equipment in his hand.

"you"

"Director, give me a smile."

The blogger 'KYG', who was holding photography equipment, waved.
"I heard that Mount Fuji erupted in the middle of the night, so I rushed over overnight. I never expected to encounter such a major event."

After speaking, the young man placed one hand on his chest and bowed deeply to 'Daodaozhai'.

"Don't worry, sir."

"I will make sure all the extraordinary beings in the entire island nation try out your knife: I guarantee I will find the right fit."

"Okay,"

Daodaozhai picked up his pipe and took a puff.
Can't!!

Director Zhu Ya, standing nearby, roared inwardly and angrily turned to look at the extraordinary blogger.

asshole!

Why aren't you broadcasting live from the many major battles in the southern seas? What are you doing here?!

"Hey, hey, hey, Director~~"

"Your government wouldn't be trying to keep the old man's knife all to yourself, would it?"

Despite the murderous glare from Director Zhu Ya, the extraordinary blogger 'KYG' wore a carefree grin.

Aside from those top-tier "great demons," his speed is unparalleled in the island nation; being fast, he naturally fears nothing: last night, upon hearing a report from his "informant" about unusual activity on Mount Fuji, he immediately rushed up the mountain, only to stumble upon this scene:
"That won't do. Every extraordinary person should have a chance, so—"

Amidst Director Zhu Ya's livid expression, the young man shook the equipment in his hand.

"I will release this video."

Hehehe,
That would make for a truly spectacular scene, wouldn't it?

For the extraordinary blogger 'KYG', he's wherever there's fun!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Tokyo, Ashirochi Ward
"Ok?"

Qiongmei, who had just gotten up, picked up her phone, read the message, and without even washing up, put on her slippers and ran downstairs.

"Look, there's big news."

"What news?"

Yu, who was sitting on the living room sofa with her eyes closed and resting, opened them. Even Yura, who was cooking in the kitchen, tilted her head and looked over.

"Last night, Mount Fuji experienced a magma eruption."

"But it wasn't formed naturally; rather, it was created by an extraordinary swordsmith named 'Totosai' who forged the sword using magma."

However, these are not the main points; the main points are what follows:

"The swords forged by that swordsmith, when wielded, emitted surging lava."

"Furthermore, he promised to forge swords for humans, provided that the user is worthy of his sword!"

The content of this video is so bizarre that if it were posted by someone else, everyone would just laugh it off. But since it comes from the extraordinary blogger 'KYG', its reliability is extremely high.

That blogger's favorite thing to do is livestream extraordinary battles, and with Director Zhu Ya's ashen face on screen, his intention to make things worse is obvious.

"Is this happening?"

Yu couldn't help but sigh as this video came out:
"Mount Fuji is about to descend into chaos."

Any extraordinary person with even a little confidence in themselves will head to the summit of Mount Fuji.

The scene in the video of the old swordsmith cleaving the mountain in two was enough to spur the superhumans into immediate action.

Why do so many superhumans fight bare-handed? Is it because they don't want to use weapons? No, it's because there are very few weapons that can withstand their immense strength!

Just like the 'exoskeleton powered armor' developed by the island nation's government, although it is constantly being updated and iterated, it is completely unable to keep up with the pace of superhumans: as the number of wolf-level superhumans increases, powered armor is becoming more and more useless.

How can mere metal compare to muscles trained with chakra?
Ninjas may seem 'fragile,' but that's relative to their attacks: even a Chunin can be sent flying dozens of meters, passing through walls, breaking trees, and creating deep craters, but they can just dust themselves off, get up, and keep fighting. Ordinary technological creations can't withstand that kind of torment.

"Are you interested?"

Shake head, X2
Let's not even talk about Qiong Mei. She's a typical tech geek, and the Yin-Yang technique she learned is 'clay explosion,' so wielding a weapon would be redundant for her.

The same principle applies to Yura. After the fusion of the three, Guiya and Luo, it is entirely possible to simulate various 'bloodline limits'.

The weapons are pretty useless, so—

"Then that has nothing to do with us."

What other forces think or whether they will take action is none of Yu's concern.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Hai Nin Village,
"The extraordinary swordsmith, Totosai?"

In the offices of the 'Haiying' building,

The two siblings, who had a bunch of Yin-Yang techniques copied by a certain 'God's Eye' while they were out, also received this message.

"Shall we go, sister?"

Kaoru Igarashi, with her long hair and freckles, spoke up.
Both of them are standard "turret" type Onmyoji; their damage output is undoubtedly fierce, but they become vulnerable if someone gets close or encounters the previous "Eye of God." Obtaining a powerful weapon would greatly enhance their ability to cope with danger.

"But we don't have time to practice swordsmanship."

"Give the weapons to Zhichen,"

Kaoru Isoya made a decision.

The "Zhichen" she mentioned was a member of the family's leadership and also their "eldest disciple."

He was the first person to stand up and express his opinion at the apprenticeship ceremony.

He has a positive attitude, is hardworking and ambitious, and both his siblings have high hopes for him.

"From now on, he will be our bodyguard."

After being ambushed by Poison Island, the two siblings also realized their weakness and needed a melee bodyguard.

"To govern ministers? Good."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Koyasan,
"Daodaozhai?"

On the desolate mountain peaks, there was a cacophony of construction machinery and workers.

Buildings sprang up at a visible pace; the mere thought of building a temple for 'Master Zhixiong' was enough to fuel their enthusiasm.

After Master Shio rebuilds the Koyasan Esoteric Buddhism temple, he will certainly take on disciples and teach. These workers themselves aren't capable, but the younger members of their families can.
If one could join the Tantric sect and learn the supernatural powers to subdue demons, even if one didn't achieve great success, at least one's family could live a peaceful life.

So the construction team and workers were very enthusiastic, even to the point of wanting to turn this entire mountain range into a temple!

Four hundred and eighty temples stretch out, countless pavilions shrouded in mist and rain.

"Perhaps I should also pay a visit."

We can ask him to help.

Thinking this, the young monk Zhixiong took out from his sleeve:

A broken tri-cobalt pestle!

He damaged this magical artifact himself when he was trying to overcome his inner demons.

Now that his inner demons have been eliminated, Master Zhixiong naturally wants to find a way to repair the ritual implement: putting aside the 'flying and traveling' function of this ritual implement, the fact that it is a relic of Master Kukai, the founder of Tantric Buddhism a thousand years ago, alone makes its repair necessary.

"Amitabha,"

The young monk uttered a soft Buddhist chant and stood up.

(End of this chapter)