I'm a demon in Tokyo!

Chapter 196 A Crucial Choice: The Sea of ​​Qi Road, Shizuoka Prefecture's Call for Help, and Minamoto Shizumi's Apology (8k
The dark, deep forest suddenly fell silent.

It seemed as if those eerie sounds were just hallucinations.

The spiritual energy flowed quietly, forming a funnel-shaped vortex, and flowed directly into Prajna's body along with the Spirit Control Technique, which also operated instinctively.

Spiritual energy can also be considered a type of energy.

Uesugi Tetsu looked up, a deep smile on his face, at the terrifying and unpredictable tales that had caused the deaths of countless ordinary people during this period.

After all, in most cases, making phone calls is something people do every day.

Before he could even take two steps, Uesugi Tetsu realized that the distance between him and the black telephone booth covered in rusty iron sheets had not decreased.

I will definitely move forward.

So, it was the black phone booth that moved backward?
Prajna's hearty laughter sounded exceptionally clear in the mountains and forests.

Now you want to run away?

"Isn't it a little too late?"

The hideous mask of the white-faced woman, along with the voice, arrived in front of the retro telephone booth in an instant.

Uesugi Tetsu extended his bluish-black five claws and firmly gripped the loose, rusty handle.

crunch...

With a sickening clanging of the hinges, Bai Banruo, a burly woman whose mere movement could burst the narrow telephone booth, stepped inside.

boom!
He slammed the semi-transparent glass door shut.

Uesugi Tetsu turned around again and looked at the bright red, exquisitely designed rotary telephone.

The rotary dial telephone's meticulously polished finish reflects light, revealing an expensive enamel texture, while the surrounding dial keys are crafted from matte brass and engraved with elegant artistic lettering.

The overall feel of the rotary telephone is completely out of place with the old-fashioned telephone booth.

"The physical appearance is quite good."

Uesugi Tetsu exclaimed in admiration, even wanting to move the phone to his front door. Not for any other reason than that it was pleasing to the eye to look at every day.

But no matter how well the phone booth and the phone in front of you behave now, it can't change the fact that it once wanted to kill you.

Uesugi Tetsu reached out and gently grasped the phone's handle.

"The number... I think it's seven fours."

Bai Banruo, who was still absorbing the spiritual energy of the entire mountain forest, murmured to himself. He pressed the "4" key seven times in a row, and only picked up the phone and put it to his ear after confirming that the call was connected.

Beep, beep.

In just two seconds, the call was connected to an unknown entity on the other end.

There were no sobs, no sinister laughs, and no chilling death predictions from intelligence reports.

An eerie silence spread through the phone booth.

It's practically the same as dialing the wrong number and both sides waiting for the other to speak.

Uesugi Tetsu immediately and subtly activated his spirit control technique, following the "qi" of the black phone booth to trace the clues to the location on the other end of the phone.

After a few seconds, once the "qi" had found its direction and started opening the box, Uesugi Tetsuya said gently,

"Hello."

No one answered.

A few scattered hissing sounds lingered in the cramped phone booth.

As the unpacking process progressed smoothly, Uesugi Tetsu's tone softened: "You were the one who called me first, aren't you going to say a few more words now?"

There was complete silence on the other end of the phone, perhaps someone was thinking about how to answer, or perhaps they simply didn't intend to answer at all.

But it doesn't matter.

Because Uesugi Tetsu had no intention of engaging in idle chatter with the ghost stories that had killed so many people; he was just saying things to buy time.

This is so that when the "qi" arrives, the other party's coordinates can be displayed.

Soon, soon.

A chilling smile appeared on Bai Banruo's lips.

When the time comes, after watching, it will just come straight to your doorstep and that's it!

Just as Uesugi Tetsu was thinking this, a sharp screech suddenly came from the other end of the phone, filled with both resentment and terror, making his head ache.

In the final moments, a cold, mechanical voice came through the phone.

"I will find you...I will kill you!!!"

Bang bang bang!
The next instant, along with the bright red telephone in Uesugi Tetsu's hand, the entire black telephone booth exploded as if it had been cut apart and abandoned.

Then everything disappeared completely.

All that remained was Uesugi Tetsuya, covered in ash from the explosion.

[You killed the Black Telephone Booth Clone (Two-Star), gaining 171 Soul Ashes!]

Uesugi Tetsu looked at the kill notification in front of him and curled his lip unhappily: "I was discovered halfway through... It seems that my training in spirit control is still not up to par."

It's worth mentioning that this black phone booth is quite intelligent; it was able to discern from these subtle clues that I was doing something to harm it.

A strange phenomenon that is rapidly growing, possesses considerable intelligence, has an unknown location, and is capable of seeking advantage and avoiding harm...

The harm is indeed considerable.

Uesugi Tetsuya decided in his heart, "If the Special Affairs Department's agents fail to do it, then I will eliminate it next time we meet."

—When he made further progress in his mastery of the Spirit Control Technique: Qi.

After the black phone booth disappeared, everything around returned to the normal nighttime forest appearance.

Although the dark clouds still obscured the moonlight, making this place a forbidden zone for ordinary people who had no fire or light, in Uesugi Tetsu's view, everything was no different from daytime.

He took out his phone again and dialed Nanjo Aimi's number.

This time, there were no surprises.

Before Uesugi Tetsuya could even start listening to the intro of the song, his phone displayed a "connected" message.

"Why are you calling me at this hour? I'm very busy here."

Nanjo Ai's capable and powerful voice came through.

It was obvious that she was on a field mission.

After a rustling sound of fabric rubbing together, Nanjo Manami continued,

"Didn't the Astronomical Bureau issue a warning? Don't go out during this period, and try to make as few phone calls as possible, so you don't run into illegal phone booths..."

Uesugi Tetsu: "As for the black phone booth, I just encountered it."

—In front of the abandoned building used for fishing by the Special Affairs Department, Nanjo Manami peeked out from the still-sturdy van, revealing her tight, long legs wrapped in specially made black stockings.

Glancing at the phone strapped to her chest, Nanjo Manami clicked her tongue in exasperation.

This kid doesn't have any special physical constitution, so how come he always runs into these kinds of troubles?

She glanced at the super-abandoned building, which had been doubly reinforced by the Special Affairs Department and herself after the first wave, and had been transformed into a den of iniquity. She felt her phone vibrate slightly.

Uesugi Tetsu's voice came from within: "However, I have temporarily repelled it."

"That's okay."

Nanjo Aimi stood still, took out a cigarette from her pocket, bit it, and then lit it with a lighter.

After the car came to a stop, the woman in charge of driving floated behind her, skillfully took the black coat off her owner's shoulder, and put it on her own head.

Nanjo Aimi loosened her bow tie by running her fingertips under her neck and exhaled a smoke ring: "But don't let your guard down. The intensity of the attacks on the black phone booths increases in stages."

If you can't hold on any longer, it's best to stay with me for a while until it's exorcised.

After arriving at the abandoned building, within a few dozen seconds, Nanjo Manami deliberately released a portion of her aura, which had already permeated the entire building.

A demon-level human who came alone...

Countless crimson, bloodthirsty gazes shone from within the building, including several ghostly auras that had just arrived in the mortal world aboard the tide and were therefore relatively weak.

This building was originally a treasure trove where they could quickly recover from their exhaustion and injuries, and now a god-level blood prey was actually offering itself up to them.
A seasoned Red Oni general, his body covered in wounds, calmly commented, "Truly, lucky."

Suddenly, a cold wind arose.

The fierce wind made the loose hem of her dress flutter loudly, and twirled the strands of hair that were hanging in the air to one side.

But that's all.

The wind was so strong that it couldn't even disperse the smoke rings she exhaled.

Nanjo Manami raised her indifferent eyes, glanced at the screen, and then casually tapped her phone with her knuckles.

"Hold on."

—Then Uesugi Tetsuya will wait.

About a minute later, after a series of indescribable and eerie noises, Nanjo Manami's steady voice finally came through.

"Just tell me what you want from me."

Uesugi Tetsu asked, "Nanjo-nee, did you just encounter a demon?"

"Ah."

Nanjo Manami sat on the still-warm pile of corpses, took out a second cigarette to perk herself up.

She's going to be guarding this door all night tonight.

"Just a minor demon, easily dealt with."

Uesugi Tetsuya, without any suspicion, went straight to the point: "I want to know what the path selection for the Qi Sea is, and how I should choose this so-called path?"

He added a few words to prove that he had not obstructed official business.
"Because Ririko hasn't developed her Qi Sea yet, and I'm not very familiar with the other people in my contacts, I decided to call you, Nanjo-nee, after thinking it over."

"The Qi Sea Road? Why are you asking that?"

Nanjo Manami was a little confused.

The Corona Breathing Technique used by the Arakawa Ward Special Affairs Department does not support the cultivation of the Qi Sea at all.

In fact, the number of people in the entire Special Affairs Bureau who have cultivated their Qi Sea through the complete Corona Breathing Technique can be counted on one hand.

Aside from being easy to learn and relatively simple to understand, the Corona Breathing Method doesn't have any other major advantages.

If you're looking for a complete breathing technique that can cultivate the Qi Sea, then the Corona Breathing Technique would definitely be among the last few.

Thinking of this, Nanjo Manami paused for a moment.

—Given Uesugi Tetsu's personality, he generally doesn't talk about far-fetched things.

Since he's asking himself this question, it means that there's definitely a Qi Sea (energy center) inside his body.

Nanjo Manami finished the remaining half of her cigarette in one gulp, casually tossed it aside, stepped on the giant corpse of the Red Oni, and then rested her elbows on her thighs, supporting her chin.

In other words, Uesugi Tetsuya's body contains a sea of ​​qi without any attributes, and it was definitely not created by breathing techniques.

"This kid's got pretty good luck..."

No wonder he asked that question.

"Although information related to the Qi Sea is relatively scarce, it is not particularly valuable knowledge in essence."

Nanjo Manami called over the wet woman who was not far away.

"Put the handset on, I'll talk to you while I'm cleaning."

—The cleaning is naturally Xiao Ru's responsibility; she only needs to kill the animals.

The overseer, Nanjo, began to watch as the wet woman released water all over her body, washing away all the blood around her.

She explained slowly,
"Generally speaking, the Qi Sea is opened by breathing techniques after reaching the stage of 'Understanding All Apertures'."

The resulting sea of ​​qi will naturally possess the attributes of breathing techniques, with previously opened acupoints sitting in the center, thus inherently possessing a 'path'.

The nature of Qihai is determined by the acupoints, and the area and thickness of Qihai will continuously expand due to the Qi generated by the acupoints.

However, once the Qi Sea reaches a certain limit, the Qi generated by the acupoints will cancel out the Qi needed to maintain the Qi Sea—this is the origin of the upper limit of a Qi Sea.

Nanjo Ai-mi paused for a moment: "The above describes the general situation."

The acupoints opened up within the body will automatically determine the pathway of Qi Sea.

—Uesugi Tetsu quickly understood.

He used the empty sea of ​​qi that the mountain god had just opened up, so he skipped this step and naturally could not choose a path.

In the mountains and forests, Uesugi Tetsu, who had transformed into a four-tailed fox and disguised himself as a human, wandered around aimlessly, hoping to try his luck at this moment.

If you happen to encounter one or two lone demons, you'll gain hundreds of Soul Ash or a few Soul Spirit Points.

Why not do something that's easy to do?

"But you are different."

In the silence, Nanjo Manami's voice, emanating from the loudspeaker, carried far.

"In your case, you'll probably need to find some external objects to define the path."

External objects?

Uesugi Tetsu thought of the two demon incarnation cards he had thrown into his Qi Sea.

However, judging from the fact that his Qi Sea hadn't changed much before, it didn't seem like he had successfully defined the path.

Moreover, he can take out cards at will, which makes it even more impossible to define them—they cannot be taken out from the acupoints inside the body.

Nanjo Manami: "But there are some points to consider regarding how to define it."

"Commonly, one might seek out a master who practices a breathing method they admire and ask them to separate a portion of the core energy from the dantian and send it into their body, thus establishing a connection."

Thus, even those who have never practiced this breathing method can possess the exact same path and nature.

While this method offers many options and is fast, its foundation is not very solid, so I wouldn't recommend it for you.

Uesugi Tetsu listened attentively and wrote down all the key words and phrases.

"After that, it's about utilizing other extremely important things within oneself... such as sword principles, a sword heart after enlightenment, or the three flowers of essence, energy, and spirit."

Nanjo Ai-mi abruptly stopped halfway through her speech and changed the subject.
"However, you probably haven't mastered these more advanced techniques yet, so let's leave that aside for now."

Kenri and Kenshin Uesugi Tetsu both knew this.

The former is a path one can choose after swordsmanship reaches the expert level, while the latter is the "Sword Heart Clarity" cheat that brought him a lot of shock from the very beginning.

But these three flowers... can this thing be materialized?
Uesugi Tetsu scratched his head. Having practiced the Spirit Nourishing Technique, he did indeed have a deeper understanding of essence, energy, and spirit than ordinary people.

But it's limited to simple tasks like gathering, compressing, and releasing these three "qi" (vital energy).

He noted down this question, intending to discuss it with Ririko later—Nanjo Ai must have her reasons for not elaborating on it now.

Uesugi Tetsuya wouldn't question "how a teacher should teach a class".

Nanjo Manami: "In that case, Uesugi-kun, you'll have to use real external objects, rare materials, as the boundary marker for your Qi Sea."

"For example?" Uesugi Tetsu asked.

"For example, the sacred relics of the great Yin-Yang masters who cultivate the four paths, by placing those objects they left behind and touched for a long time into the Qi Sea, can define the path as one of the four paths."

There are also materials related to the Five Elements (metal, wood, water, fire, and earth), which are plentiful, but their potential is generally not very high. Besides these, there are also sword fragments left behind by sword masters and sword saints, which can allow you to generate a sea of ​​sword energy…

In short, the nature of the Qi Sea is strongly correlated with the properties of the defining object itself.

After listening to Nanjo Ai's words, Uesugi Tetsu once again looked inward and saw two cards fighting back and forth in his dantian, giving off a feeling of "palace intrigue".

So he asked, "Is there a way to balance the various forces within the Qi Sea?"

What Uesugi Tetsu was thinking was,

—Since the cards that are transformed from demons can continuously generate energy, they can achieve the same effect as acupoints in expanding the Qi Sea.

—Then let's find a way to stop the cards from fighting amongst themselves and let them work together.

Uesugi Tetsu's intuition told him that using the transformation cards as the foundation of the Void Sea was absolutely the right choice.

This makes sense, because the transformation cards are "materials" that can be continuously upgraded in quality and star rating, rather than being static and inanimate objects.

Nanjo Ai's real intention was to try combining spirit control techniques, swordsmanship, and other powers into her Qi Sea, just like Uesugi Tetsu wanted to.

—This kid has quite a lot of ambition.

Nanjo Manami smiled and said, "In that case, let's choose the Five Elements. The cycle of the Five Elements perfectly matches your idea... mutual generation and mutual restraint, endless generation, and continuous cycle."

Hearing sporadic sounds coming from afar, Uesugi Tetsu turned his head and asked, somewhat puzzled,

"Nanjo-nee, didn't you say that the upper limit of the five elements is generally not very high?"

"I'm talking about ordinary people who define their Qi Sea using a single material, that is, one of the Five Elements," Nanjo Manami countered. "Uesugi-kun, are you an ordinary person?"

I think I... well, I don't think so either.

After receiving a silent response, Nanjo Manami continued,
"But the materials are really hard to find - since you've already chosen to have all five elements, you probably wouldn't even look at ordinary materials."

Uesugi Tetsu lightly stepped forward, quickly heading towards the direction where the demonic roars were growing louder: "That makes sense."

The phone went silent for a while, seemingly as Nanjo Ai was thinking.

After a while, after the sound of a lighter clicking, she spoke up: "Oh right, didn't I tell you before that there was a place where you needed to put out a fire?"

"Ah? Is there any?"

There have been too many things going on lately, and Uesugi Tetsuya really couldn't think of anything that was so low in the priority list.

"As for the eyeball material you requested," Nanjo Manami said with some helplessness, "it's just the beginning of a small wave, and Shizuoka Prefecture has already made several calls for help."

"So when the next small wave, which is now called the 1.5 wave, comes, you can just go there as part of our Arakawa District's reinforcement force."

The Special Affairs Department over there has a piece of the "Sea-Shining Scale Armor." Once you've resolved things there, just ask them for one.

"This thing is quite precious, and it directly solves the need for water-attribute items."

Nanjo Manami's tone suddenly carried a hint of displeasure, but it was clearly not directed at him.

Uesugi Tetsu blinked.

Shizuoka Prefecture?
He had never been there, but the name of the place sounded strangely familiar.

Where have I heard the same thing before?
Not having the energy to think about such trivial matters, Uesugi Tetsu replied, "OK, OK."

"As for the 1.5 wave, Astronomical Path said a few hours ago that the scale seemed to be larger than they had anticipated."

If there aren't enough people, you might be forced to go out on your own.

"I can't ask for it."

"That's good."

Is there such a good thing?

Uesugi Tetsuya would love for more demons to come and slay.

"Ask everything you have to ask at once, stop beating around the bush." ​​Another voice came from Nanjo Manami's side. "My work here is too troublesome."

Uesugi Tetsu immediately said, "How to use the Qi Sea..."

"this is not OK."

Upon hearing the sound of something exploding, Nanjo Manami immediately rejected the idea: "This cannot be explained clearly without hands-on instruction."

"Besides, I don't even know exactly what your Qi Sea looks like."

As soon as she finished speaking, Nanjo Manami remembered that Uesugi Tetsu had practiced spirit control techniques a long time ago.

Once you've mastered the Spirit Control Technique to a certain level, you should be able to easily communicate with your Qi Sea and have it "personally" explain how to use it.

But the one who taught her the art of summoning spirits was some unknown netizen, not Nanjo Aimi.

She was still hoping to use this pseudonym to get some "little secrets" from Uesugi Tetsuya that she would only share with netizens she had never met.

We can't let such a small thing expose our true colors.

She thought for a while before giving a roundabout hint.

"Then try to feel your Qi Sea more carefully. Maybe one day your Qi Sea will open its mouth and tell you how to use it."

Uesugi Tetsu: ...

He laughed and said, "That's alright then, Nanjo-nee. You can continue focusing on your work. I'll treat you to a meal next time."

"No going back on your word."

Before hanging up, Nanjo Manami gave a meaningful smile.

Without giving it much thought, Uesugi Tetsu put his phone back in his pocket and suddenly realized that all the movements of the demons had disappeared, as if someone had beaten them to it.

He clicked his tongue and stopped walking.

The Special Affairs Bureau is really efficient these days... They've already dealt with the demons that just descended in just a few minutes.

—Although it's a pity that we didn't figure out the more specific uses of Qi Hai, the path we need to take in the future is clear.

—The contradictions are resolved by the cycle of the five elements, and then a series of transformation cards are placed in.

Less than half an hour has passed.

There was still a little over an hour before we were at the safe line to return to the Warring States period.

Uesugi Tetsuya exclaimed in surprise that things were progressing so smoothly. He had originally prepared himself for busy signals and silence when asked questions.

"Could we ask Imagawa Yoshimoto to help us with the Five Elements boundary marker for the Qi Sea later?"

Uesugi Tetsu smiled and clapped his hands.

Even though the Warring States period was just beginning to see the revival of the world, the Imagawa clan's sphere of influence was already quite large, with an area equivalent to several Tokyos or more, and it might continue to expand in the future.

—And if he were to make this request, Imagawa Yoshimoto would absolutely do everything in his power to find it for him.

Thinking this way, Uesugi Tetsuya suddenly felt the burden on his shoulders lighten considerably.

Upon realizing this, Uesugi Tetsu raised an eyebrow: "Without realizing it, I've actually started to become a little dependent on her...."

Roar--!
Two demonic auras interrupted Uesugi Tetsuya's thoughts.

He glanced up and realized that the two unknown little demons combined weren't even worth a star or two, probably not even as strong as a homeless person.

Uesugi Tetsu sighed: "Why bother coming to the real world if you're this bad?"

The present world is not some heaven flowing with milk and honey.

It is a hell that surpasses even the mortal world...

Despite saying this, Uesugi Tetsu still flipped his palm, letting blinding lightning shoot out from his fingertips.

Even the smallest mosquito leg is still meat; why would you refuse something offered to you?
After two mournful cries, Uesugi Tetsuya waved the panel away with satisfaction.

But in the next instant, Uesugi Tetsuya suddenly shuddered.

He immediately grasped Kaga Kiyomitsu in his hand before looking up at the faint light several hundred meters away.

Because at the edge of his perception circle, a terrifying demon suddenly appeared whose aura was as profound and ancient as, or even surpassed, that of the Grand Master!
Perhaps Uesugi Tetsuya's strength has improved considerably compared to when he faced the Great Master.

But with the threat of illness looming, he couldn't afford to gamble on whether he could kill his opponent without using "rage".

Besides, this is still the real world!
Unlike in the ordinary world where dying once or twice a day is no big deal, here, dying once will consume an extremely precious substitute doll.

retreat.

Without the slightest hesitation, this word came to mind for Uesugi Tetsuya.

A reasonable assessment of the gap in combat capabilities between ourselves and the enemy is crucial for determining operational plans. Intelligence gathering and management capabilities are also an important aspect of strength.

Just as Uesugi Tetsu took out his folding fan, intending to use the rarely used "Gentle Breeze" technique to retreat, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Hey.

Kaga Kiyomitsu seemed to sense something and began to hum and vibrate.

Uesugi Tetsu gazed steadily in that direction.

The next breath, the next moment, the next instant...

How short a time should we say?
Within a time unit even smaller than a fleeting moment, the pitch-black sword energy rose up like a beam of light, completely filling Uesugi Tetsuya's eye sockets.

Aura, spiritual power, life... everything about that powerful demon, comparable to a Grand Master, melted away like ice and snow under this sword light, devoured without a trace.

It vanished into nothingness.

The black sword light sliced ​​through the black sky, causing the cold moonlight to fall in profusion.

"Excellent swordsmanship, excellent sword light, excellent sword intent."

A few seconds later, Uesugi Tetsuya, recovering from the sudden shock, exclaimed in sincere admiration.

A hint of curiosity flickered in his eyes.

In his perception, the person who wielded this sword was definitely not at the level of a demon god, and might even be far from it.

On this point, Uesugi Tetsuya, who has seen multiple demon-level beings, is particularly qualified to speak.

Yet, despite being at the same three-star level, that person was able to unleash such a clean sword strike.

Uesugi Tetsuya asked himself honestly, and he knew he absolutely could not do that.

Anyway, there's still plenty of time... Shall we go take a look?

hum!
Kaga Kiyomitsu, sensing his thoughts, hummed in agreement at his waist.

"Then take a look."

To avoid being discovered, Uesugi Tetsu made no attempt to conceal his movements as he hurried towards a location several hundred meters away.

Not long after, Uesugi Tetsu emerged from the bushes after smelling the strong stench of blood. As soon as he looked up, he saw the swordsman who had just unleashed that strike.

Before a mound of demon heads, a girl in white stood holding a huge, azure-blue katana, staring blankly at the corpses and blood before her.

The starlight fell on her blood-splattered cheek, a few stray strands of hair stuck to it, obscuring most of her face.

Hearing the noise behind her, the girl suddenly turned around.

Those eyes were calm and indifferent, devoid of any murderous intent, yet chilling to the bone.

After a brief eye contact with Uesugi Tetsu, she murmured something.
"It's not a demon..."

The indifference in their eyes gradually faded, replaced by human emotions.

The girl suddenly smiled at him, a smile pure and admiring: "Are you here to slay demons too?"

Uesugi Tetsu didn't answer; he felt that the girl's profile looked somewhat familiar.

He frowned, pondered for a while, and then asked himself a question.

Do not……

This answer is not good.

Because if he's not mistaken, the swordswoman standing before him now, who just unleashed that dark sword light... is his number one opponent in the Tokyo Seeds Tournament, the one who apologized to him before.

—Source: Still Water!

"Well?"

Yuan Jingshui sheathed the Hotaru in her hand, stared at him for a while, and then asked uncertainly, "You are, Uesugi Tetsu, Uesugi-kun?"

“Ms. Gen.” Uesugi Tetsu looked at Gen Shizumi, whose eyes had suddenly brightened, and nodded. “We are quite destined to meet.”

"It's Uesugi-kun. I didn't expect to run into you here."

Yuan Jingshui was somewhat surprised, and a smile appeared in her eyes.

She admires people who can venture out alone to slay demons in their current circumstances.

—Speaking of which, although she apologized last time, she hasn't delivered the apology gift to the other party yet.

My uncle often taught me to be polite, that I must be polite.

Last time, I was blinded by my competitive spirit and followed Saito to spy on Uesugi Tetsu without his consent, which was extremely impolite.

Adding to tonight's events, Yuan Jingshui decided to send a decent apology gift to Uesugi Tetsuya.

But what should I give as a gift?

The other person, like himself, is a swordsman who, at this juncture, yearns to fight demons and monsters, so he certainly has little interest in mundane things.

Yuan Jingshui thought.

She scrutinized Uesugi Tetsuya from head to toe for quite a while, not missing a single detail, making the latter feel somewhat uncomfortable.

Oh, found it.

So this gift should be passable, albeit barely.

After all, Uesugi Tetsuya has already reached the "Palace of Flesh" stage of his Corona Breathing Technique training.

Yuan Jingshui reached out towards the mound of corpses and demon corpses behind him.

In the blink of an eye, with a faint, eerie fluctuation, the mountain of demon corpses vanished before Uesugi Tetsuya's eyes.

Clean and tidy.

Not even a trace of blood remained.

What does she want to do?
Uesugi Tetsu became wary and placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.

But then, he saw Yuan Jingshui, dressed in white, conjure up a bright red ball of flesh that was still overflowing with juice, and then offer it to him in both hands.

Minamoto Shizumi used polite language but did not bow: "Consider this an apology to Uesugi-kun."

"I hope you will accept it."

What's the situation?
He gave me a gift as soon as we met?

Uesugi Tetsu stared at the bizarrely shaped mass of flesh, and after hesitating several times, tentatively touched it with his fingertip.

Snapped.

Unexpectedly, a panel popped up on top of the lump of meat.

Uesugi Tetsuya's pupils shrank drastically as soon as he glanced at the panel.

He then looked at Yuan Jingshui, whose expression was meticulous.

—This thing, she actually made it by hand in just over ten seconds?!
　8k!

　　Double monthly votes in early May! Brothers, please, please, please!!!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)