Tokyo: The evil god doesn't want to be the top star

Chapter 306 Toothache
"It's still early today, why don't we go check out a few other places first and then make a decision?"

Xia Fan grabbed Jinguji Aoi and walked out of the house as if he was avoiding the plague.

He works hard in the entertainment industry to earn money for medical expenses, but he doesn't want to be accidentally infected by "poverty".

"Okay...Okay, the car is waiting right next to us..."

Suddenly, Xia Fan grabbed her sleeve, and Jinguji Aoi's face turned red as if it was burning. She walked out with a dull expression.

The torii gate closed with a creaky sound, and time inside the shrine seemed to freeze along with the air.

"..."

Tian Yushen got a huge lotus leaf from somewhere and inserted it into the stone statue's hand, covering its head like an umbrella.

As her petite figure disappeared, only the lonely stone statue remained in the dusty shrine.

……

Half an hour later, Banqiao District.

"We're here. The second shrine we're going to visit today...Hachi-jinja Shrine."

Aoi Jinguji and Xia Fan got out of the black business car that belonged to Section 9 and came to an open green space.

"Originally, the 'Tooth God' was enshrined here. It is said that if you touch the huge stone-like body of the deity in the temple, the pain in your teeth will be relieved."

"According to historical records, when the shrine was prosperous, the 'Tooth God Festival' was held every June. Believers would hand in toothbrushes that they had prayed and brushed their teeth for a year in succession to the gods, and then exchange them for blessed toothbrushes."

After looking around and confirming that this was the place, Aoi Jinguji gave a detailed introduction.

"However, the shrine closed down a hundred years ago, and the walls and buildings were all demolished during the city's renovation. It is currently used as a green landscape for the nearby community."

"The land transfer fee for this plot of land is only about 8 million. It is the closest to Ikebukuro among the places we are going to see today."

"There are residential areas nearby, and the living facilities are very comprehensive. There are also many schools, so it is very convenient for children to study..."

When introducing some unclear content, Jinguji Aoi's voice became weak again.

"If you didn't tell me, I wouldn't have known there was a shrine here before..."

"This stone that looks a bit like a tooth, is it the former divine body?"

Walking to the center of the green space, Xia Fan looked at the eye-catching boulder with curiosity.

"The god who relieves toothache and encourages people to brush their teeth carefully is a very clear and specific god. Why did he decline?"

Muttering to himself, he touched the boulder curiously.

……

The scenery in front of him changed, and Xia Fan suddenly found himself in a very majestic red shrine.

"I don't know when it happened, but it seems that a human with a toothache, after touching me, the pain was gone, and he even claimed that a god had saved him?"

"Although I am just a stone that has done nothing, these foolish guys want to build a house or provide faith, so I will accept it without any burden."

"In return, I will remind them to brush their teeth properly. Those who still have toothaches after visiting the shrine can only blame themselves for not persisting in the daily 'brushing and praying' ritual."

An old voice, in a proud tone, muttered something to itself in his ear.

The tooth-shaped boulder in front of Xia Fan is covered with prayer notes for "healthy teeth", "no tooth pain", "teeth growing back", and "smooth tooth replacement". It looks like an old man wearing a straw raincoat. People like phantoms pass by him from time to time, kneeling and touching this "giant tooth" devoutly, then handing over their toothbrushes to the witch next to them and receiving new ones.

"Why? Lately, fewer and fewer people are coming to worship. There are basically only old men and women with almost no teeth left. Where are the children and young people? Where have they gone?"

"Foolish human, it's not too late for you to believe in the 'Tooth God' now. Otherwise, a fatal toothache may come upon you at any time!"

"You know, toothache is a very fatal disease. When it hurts, you can't even eat or sleep. It may also induce pneumonia and myocarditis..."

But just like the "Poverty God", fewer and fewer people came to worship, and the shrine declined.

"What, what are they talking about 'dentist'? What is that? No one can protect your fragile teeth except me, the God of Tooth..."

"No, my faith is not enough, my consciousness can no longer hold on..."

"Humans who have abandoned God have 365 sunrises a year. Before I leave, I will give you 365 blessings..."

"May every living thing on this land have a tooth that hurts three hundred and sixty-five days a year!"

Until finally, the roaring excavator took away the collapsed house, leaving only the huge rock in the middle of the grass, which was exposed to the wind and sun and became no different from an ordinary stone.

……

"Hey, hey, you didn't cure the toothache at all, you just told me to go back and brush my teeth. Does this count as 'faith fraud'?"

Coming back to his senses from the memory of the resonance with the divine body, Xia Fan was a little amused.

"If it were me, I would still choose to go to the clinic to get a quick fix for my toothache instead of praying to an illusory god."

In ancient times when medicine was not well developed, toothache was indeed a horrible disease that could cause people to suffer from severe pain until they died.

No matter how many primitive methods the ancients used, such as filling tooth cavities with linen, gargling with herbs, wearing amulets, praying to gods and Buddhas, they could not solve toothaches immediately.

As for tooth extraction, a "radical cure", it is very easy to cause serious infection, stroke, scurvy and other serious illnesses when the anesthesia and sterile conditions are not met. It is an ultimate solution that may end the patient and his teeth at any time.

In modern times, with the development of dentistry, it is naturally impossible for people to be so foolish as to pray to God because of toothache, and then go home and wait in agony for "recovery" that may come at an unknown time.

The shrines in District 11 are "corporate entities", which means they are individual religious businesses. If they are poorly managed and have no income, the clergy will not go hungry while serving the gods, so it is reasonable for them to resign from their positions and run away.

"Ahem, Jinguji, this plot of land is indeed in very good condition, but..."

"It seems that before his death, this Lord Tooth God had cast a vicious curse on this land that 'every tooth will ache for 365 days a year'..."

"Is it okay?"

Xia Fan turned around and asked Jinguji nervously.

"Although I can't sense any abnormality in this land, I would rather believe in the existence of gods when it comes to matters involving them..."

"After all, the curse before the fall of the gods should contain quite terrifying 'will power'."

"To be safe, let's look at a few more places."

Hearing what Xia Fan said, the witch held her cheeks with some worry, silently took a step back, and stood on the roadside outside the land, which did not belong to the "Tooth God's Territory".

If I have a toothache, I won’t be able to eat fried chicken for many days.

……

(End of this chapter)