Tokyo Unnatural Forensics

Chapter 579, The Path to Ascension

According to the village flower palace, there are roughly three paths that mortals can take to ascend to become new gods.

First, like the last old god and the first new god, he thoroughly understood the essence of the entire world through reason and logic, through extreme rational thinking and spiritual enlightenment.

He thoroughly understood the mysteries of the world and, through the power of pure thought, denied the existence of the Old Gods and Chaos. He then imposed his own logical concepts on the entire world, thus changing the origin of the world. His influence on the world was so great that he himself had to leave it.

Or, through extreme violence and symbolism to prove it.

Its core principle is "to prove to the world that you are the embodiment of this concept through unparalleled achievements or violence."

However, this is also very difficult in modern society. In ancient times, a single duel by a warrior might have changed the outcome of an entire war. But with the continuous improvement of technology and the overall productivity of humankind, the possibility of an individual changing the world is getting smaller and smaller. A typical example is that after the establishment of the Han Dynasty in ancient China, the personal bravery of generals was no longer an important factor in determining the outcome of wars. After the Tang Dynasty, the bravery of generals could no longer influence the battle situation. Therefore, generals began to sit firmly in the central army and rarely went to the front line personally.

In Japan, in the early Genpei Wars, whoever won a one-man duel was basically guaranteed to win. However, in the modern Satsuma Rebellion, even if Saigo's rebel army defeated the enemy general in a one-man duel, the Metropolitan Police Department's sword-wielding squad, composed of Aizu samurai, still managed to defeat the Satsuma soldiers.

It is becoming increasingly difficult for an individual to accomplish a great feat.

Therefore, it is highly likely that Kishibe Masaomi becoming a new god is the last resort.

Taboo rituals and theft.

As we all know, the Old Gods have merely left this world; they have not perished. The traces of their activities and their former power have formed the Inner World and all the mysteries. The birth of new gods actually depends on the power of the Old Gods. Those forbidden places that connect the Old Gods and the mysteries of the universe may contain the remaining divinity and power of the Old Gods. Perhaps there are ways to steal the legacy of the Old Gods and become a new god.

Alternatively, since the Old Gods did not perish but left this world, they still exist somewhere in a higher dimension or deeper in the universe. And since the tide of logic is not invincible, sometimes, through the most primal, darkest, and most insane rituals, a small opening can be made in the laws of the first new god. Then, those ancient Old Gods will hear the call of mortals and bestow power to elevate them to new godhood—but not necessarily in the way mortals desire. Just as the Village Flower Palace cannot understand mortal language, what the Old Gods might hear is this:

"Hakimi touches the north and south green beans~ Asiga yakuna lu~ Washama zili mambo~ Hakimi defeats the green beans~"

What is this guy mumbling about?

Even if the ancient gods deciphered "Honey Special Drink~Drink the Honey Special Drink~Festival Mambo~Run Fast Fast Fast~", they still couldn't understand what it meant.

"Perhaps it was by chance, perhaps through some forbidden ritual, or perhaps his powerful, insane mind broke through the barriers of logic; in any case, that's how he became a new god," Mai-senpai said earnestly.

Uesugi Muneyuki nodded and began to think.

The Old Gods are natural phenomena (such as darkness, destruction, and fertility). As long as these phenomena exist in the universe, the power of the Old Gods will exist. Their power is self-consistent and essential.

New gods are cultural phenomena (such as logic, science, and specific forms of warfare). They depend on specific stages of human civilization's development. Their power is heterogeneous and derived.

Therefore, the new gods are not "weak," but rather "temporary." Their power is manifested in the instant they change the rules of the world, but this power is highly purposeful and time-sensitive. They are special weapons created by the world to "solve problems," and once the problems are solved, the weapons are stored away and gradually rust.

However, Uesugi Muneyuki himself seems to be different, because the unique power he possesses seems to have nothing to do with cultural phenomena. The power he possesses is to awaken dead souls, flash back memories, reclaim curses, and fulfill last wishes.

Following this path, the "death" and "wandering spirits" represented by Uesugi Sōsetsu are not cultural phenomena of human civilization, but natural phenomena based on biological instincts, just like the Old Gods.

As long as life can die and consciousness exists, Uesugi Muneyuki's power will not diminish with the completion of the concept, and his "mission" will never end—because death and emotions are destined to be endless for living beings, and this is part of the laws of the world.

What, it seems like I've become a bug in this system?
Uesugi Muneyuki felt something was off, but at that moment Mai-senpai gently tapped him: "Anyway, before we figure out what Kishibe Masaomi is up to, let's lie low and lay low for a while. Otherwise, if he comes to Kanto at any cost, even with the protection of the Metropolitan Police Department and secular forces, we'll be in trouble. There's no such thing as being able to guard against thieves for a thousand days. We're fine, but you also have family, friends, and... your Minami E, Reina, and Asuka. Can you protect them every day?"

"So, we're just going to accept their 'statement' first?" Uesugi Muneyuki thought for a moment and could only reluctantly agree.

"Otherwise what? Are we supposed to go to Kansai and fight him? The New God is not an enemy we can deal with, even if this New God doesn't like or is not good at fighting... As for other things, can you convince the Metropolitan Police Department to 'cross districts' to Osaka with heavy firepower for law enforcement? Or should we have the Self-Defense Forces and the US military stationed in Japan launch a 'special military operation' against Osaka?"

Mai-senpai chuckled, gripping Uesugi Muneyuki's large hand tightly. A blush rose on her bright face, and a certain unspoken aura burned in her clear eyes as she revealed her uniquely aggressive smile: "Alright, don't worry too much about it. We've done our best. Since we're here on vacation in Karuizawa... Junior, did you leave me anything?"

"???!!!" As soon as Uesugi Muneyuki saw Mai-senpai's expression, he knew that a big battle was inevitable!
But he just played a relentless game last night, and now he's doing it again?
I don't have a single drop left!

"Oh? Judging from your expression... you're not impotent, are you?" Mai-senpai saw Uesugi Muneyuki's face turn green and chuckled with displeasure. "You're capable of being my partner in the other world, but not of satisfying me? That won't do! But my requirements aren't too high..."

After saying that, Mai-senpai wrote a "five" in Uesugi Muneyuki's palm.

Uesugi Muneyuki closed his eyes in anguish. Five times wasn't enough!

But Mai-senpai pinched his cheek hard.

Void Infusion, go for it!
Our delightful Karuizawa vacation is about to begin!

........................

Meanwhile, in the third year of the Uesugi calendar, in August.

While Uesugi Muneyuki was vacationing in Karuizawa.

Red Canary is located at the secret headquarters of an abandoned textile factory in Shizuoka Prefecture.

The air was filled with dust, cheap printing ink, and a faint smell of rust.

When the joint special investigation team, composed of elite officers from the Shizuoka Prefectural Police and the Metropolitan Police Department, carefully broke through the last reinforced iron gate, armed with riot shields and submachine guns, they anticipated all sorts of possibilities: a fierce gunfight, a scene of hastily destroying documents, or even fanatics who sacrificed their lives.

But what they saw was a sight powerful enough to break even the toughest nerves.

The room was once the factory director's office, spacious but oppressive. There were no signs of a battle, no bloodstains, no scattered documents. Only in the center, directly beneath a solitary, dimly lit light bulb, stood something... "something".

It wasn't a pile of junk; it was a bizarre aggregate formed by four human bodies—former human bodies—that had seamlessly merged together in a way that absolutely defied the laws of physics, common sense of biology, and human comprehension.

What's most astonishing is that the surface of this enormous fusion is completely unmarked.

There were no stitches, no torn cuts, no welded scars. Their skin was as smooth as wax figures, and the differences in skin color between individuals blended and transitioned naturally like a watercolor painting, as if they had been born this way, a deformed conjoined twin, magnified by time to the size of an adult.

The four heads faced different directions, their eyes wide open, pupils dilated, frozen in an extreme astonishment that transcended pain and was almost philosophical. The mouths of the four Red Canary members were slightly open, as if they wanted to scream, but no sound came out, forming an eternal, silent cry.

Some of their arms and legs hung limply at their sides, while others stretched out strangely upwards, as if they were collectively supporting something invisible, or as if they were praying to some non-existent deity for liberation.

I'm so lonely, so incredibly lonely!

Time seems to have frozen.

The first few mobile team members who had charged forward froze instantly, their hands holding guns trembling uncontrollably. Some instinctively stepped back, bumping into those behind them, but no one uttered a word of reproach; only heavy, suppressed breathing echoed in the deathly silent room.

"What...what is this..." A young policeman's voice was choked with sobs, as if he was about to vomit.

The veteran detective leading the team was deathly pale. He had handled countless murder cases and seen the most gruesome corpses, but this scene before him defied all common sense, directly attacking the very foundation of his understanding as a human being and a law enforcement officer. He forced back the churning in his stomach and, in a hoarse voice, ordered, "No, don't touch anything! Seal off the scene! Call...call the forensic department! Call the medical examiner! Go to the Metropolitan Police Department and get Chief Inspector Uesugi right now!"

An invisible fear permeated the air, stronger than the smell of blood.

They felt as if they had stumbled into a pagan temple, not a crime scene, where the fused "icon" at the center was silently mocking all their laws, logic, and weapons.

However, when Inspector Yokomizo of Shizuoka Prefecture, who was leading the team at the scene, reported their findings to his superiors, the Special Investigation Headquarters issued another order.

"Chief Uesugi is currently undergoing special recuperation arranged by the Imperial Household Agency. All matters concerning him require the highest level of caution, and we should not call the forensic pathologists."

"Since the Red Canary members are here, we can close the case now. Preserve their identification evidence, and then... burn the site! Afterwards, announce to the public that the organization's members made a serious operational error during the illegal manufacture of explosives, resulting in a leak of high-energy chemicals that triggered a violent but non-spreading reaction."

"This is an order, execute it immediately!"

"Yes!!!"

(End of this chapter)