I'm a demon in Tokyo!

Chapter 219 The Feather of the Ubume, Defining the Sea of ​​Qi! One of the Four Extremes - Nine Tribulations Academy, The Manga Artist and Kisaragi Station
After discussion and reflection with others, your trait "Sword Skill" (3%) has been changed to "Sword Skill" (4%)!

[After discussion and reflection with others, your trait, Sword Principle (2%), has been changed to Sword Principle (4%)!]

"Based on the experience of the Linzi Jue technique, this type of skill should undergo a subtle change after reaching '5%', but it is not certain at the moment."

In the fortieth floor of the Sengoku Projection Secret Realm, Uesugi Tetsu sat and discussed the philosophy of the Natural Rishin-ryu school of thought with his own projection for several hours.

Although the projection's natural mental flow is far inferior to his own, and he hasn't even broken through to the expert level.

But it doesn't matter.

For Uesugi Tetsuya, the existence of the projection undoubtedly brings countless new ideas.

That's exactly what happened.

A single discussion without a clear purpose was able to increase the combined progress of technique and reason by a full 3%!

This pace is terrifying.

The effects of simultaneously improving both "sword skills" and "sword principles" are also quite noticeable.

Immediately.

In terms of swordsmanship, Uesugi Tetsu could clearly feel that his knowledge of all the knowledge he had acquired regarding the Tennen Rishin-ryu style had become much deeper.

Whether it's footwork, stance, or sword movements, the angles are all slightly better than before.

Don't underestimate this "little bit".

When the strong clash, even the slightest difference can be the last straw that breaks the camel's back.

All those who rise from humble beginnings and grow from weakness to strength are composed of countless individual contributions.

As for swordsmanship...

"Is this uncontrollable thing my 'Sword Principles'?"

In the somewhat cramped restroom, Uesugi Tetsu sat on the toilet seat, gazing uncertainly at the two or three scattered "threads" floating from his body.

He was certain that he wouldn't be able to see these things until he came out of the secret realm.

But what is the use of so-called sword principles, apart from representing one's own understanding of the way of the sword?
No matter whether Uesugi Tetsu used his mind, qi, or spiritual power, he could not manipulate these almost ethereal threads.

They also do not seem to bring about a clear increase in combat power.

After fiddling around for a while without any results, Uesugi Tetsuya had no choice but to take out his phone and ask Ririko, whose profile picture was still lit up, about the problem.

The next instant, Uesugi Tetsuya, who was about to put his phone on the sink, felt a vibration in his palm.

He checked his phone.

back in seconds.

[Li: The meaning of swordsmanship is completely different for everyone, so I won't say more.]

[Li: But generally speaking, it can be divided into four main stages: "discovery, observation, utilization, and convergence." Right now, Uesugi-kun, you've already entered the "discovery" stage.]

[Li: You've taken another step forward since you left. Congratulations!]

[Tsuki-suna-chan: Thank you.]

[Tsukisa-chan: Speaking of which, I just tried this Sengoku Projection Dungeon. It's really helpful for sword practice, and you get three lives to die for free. Ririko, why don't you come and join us?]

[Li: No, I have my own way of cultivating, it's no worse than this.]

[Moon Sand Sauce: Hesitating.]

After replying, Uesugi Tetsu stared at Ririko's last sentence for a while and couldn't help but laugh.

This statement may seem like a simple rejection, but upon closer examination, it turns out to be utterly arrogant.

Li Li Zi's words are practically equivalent to the ancient secret realm in cultivation novels where everyone discovers rich treasures and secret manuals, and all sorts of sects, rogue cultivators, and geniuses are fighting tooth and nail to get in and grab them.

But then, someone sitting in an ordinary cave said that my progress by sitting still and meditating is no worse than yours by fighting to the death.

Uesugi Tetsuya suddenly paused, lost in thought.

Speaking of which, just how strong is Ririko?

I haven't faced her since I came back, so I can't be sure.

But if things continue like this, what if one day a peerless swordsman from Shili Slope suddenly appears in our own home?

There's just one thing—Ririko initially really enjoyed sparring with unfamiliar geniuses and strong individuals.

This was evident even before she came into contact with the extraordinary.

Even though she had to drag along the humorous amateur team of the Sakura High School Kendo Club, Ririko still had to frequently participate in kendo competitions all over the country.

And there was the genuine joy in her smile every time she practiced with me...

So, Ririko has actually been enduring this all along?
Perhaps the moment she heard the words "Warring States Challenge Secret Realm" and "Top 100 List," her heart was filled with longing and burning desire. She wanted to fight against unknown strongmen and experience battles, victory and defeat more than anyone else.

Ririko suppressed all her thoughts and emotions and sat alone in the empty dojo to cultivate.

Because she knows that, at least at this stage, doing so will allow her to progress and grow faster.

Complete unity of knowledge and action.

Uesugi Tetsu shook his head: "Terrible, terrifying."

After waiting a while and not receiving any questions or anything from Ririko, Uesugi Tetsu put his phone aside and turned his attention back to the notification in front of him.

Because what he gained was far more than that.

[Your skill, Natural Rational Flow proficiency +122! ]

[Your skill, Five Thunder Method: Qi Combination Proficiency +821!]

[Your skill, Spirit Control Technique - Qi Proficiency +677!]

The three proficiency indicators above represent the sum of all the proficiency points Uesugi Tetsu gained after fighting his way to the fortieth floor under the blessing of the secret realm rules.

Most of these were obtained from battles with projections on the thirtieth floor and beyond, and the majority of this part consisted of life-or-death battles with the Grand Mage that lasted for more than ten minutes.

Therefore, Uesugi Tetsu was very grateful to the Great Master.

Not only did the mountain god send him the rock heart to open up his Qi sea during his lifetime, but even after his death, the mountain god did not forget to hone his skills with his own.

[After discussion and reflection with others, your skill, Five Thunder Technique - Qi Harmony Proficiency +172!]

—After discussing the Natural Mind-Body Flow with his own projection on the fortieth floor, Uesugi Tetsu also spent a considerable amount of time studying the Five Thunder Technique with his projection.

Because the projection is in a state of "anger," its five senses are incredibly strong, and the spiritual power within its body is terrifying; it doesn't even matter if it dies.

In this way, the projection directly became the best test subject for the Five Thunder Method.

After all, Uesugi Tetsu would never normally use the Five Thunder Technique to wantonly destroy his body, nor would he have time to cultivate and research it during the short period of "rage".

"But with projection, it's different."

Without even raising his hand, Uesugi Tetsuya caused a flash of lightning to appear on the edge of the sink mirror with a thought.

Ordinary people wouldn't even realize that the lightning came from Uesugi Tetsuya; they would just assume it was static electricity.

"In this way, the use of the Five Thunder Technique in battle becomes even faster and more covert."

Uesugi Tetsu nodded in satisfaction.

This is just the result of an exchange and discussion, and I will have two more opportunities every day from now on.

—Everyone else was either electrocuted into a pile of charred remains by their own projections on the fortieth floor of the secret realm, or experienced their first ever separation of body and head.

Only he was happily making the projector work for him.

Just thinking about it makes Uesugi Tetsuya's lips almost curl into a grin.

He glanced over the proficiency levels of the three skills again.

【Natural Mind-Body Flow (Expert 330/10000)】.

【Spirit Control Technique - Qi (Expert 1755/4000)】.

【Five Thunder Techniques - Qi Harmony (Mastery 1616/2800)】

Among them, the Natural Reason Flow improved the least, and it is still a long way from the maximum proficiency value... The difficulty of cultivation after choosing "Technique and Reason" is greatly increased, which is no joke.

"But as long as we keep going step by step, we will definitely reap the rewards."

Uesugi Tetsu calmly waved his hand to dismiss the proficiency panel.

Then, he looked at the rewards he had obtained from the projection realm.

Let's put the spell scroll aside for now; we can use it when we need it.

The next item is a plain gun.

No, a more accurate term would be "ordinary unpainted gun".

Uesugi Tetsu first gestured to the lower left and upper right corners of the toilet before taking out a dusty box about one meter long from his storage backpack.

["Ordinary Plain Gun" (Special Item)]

[Quality: Ordinary]

Current reserves: 99

[Effect: Generates one base gun of the same quality as a "normal base gun" daily.]

—A samurai does not die unarmed.

That's right, the "ordinary stock gun" is not actually a stock gun.

Instead, it is a box that can store raw guns, generate raw guns daily, and adjust the length of the raw guns that can be taken out at will when they are taken out.

Uesugi Tetsuya unfastened the iron latches on the top and bottom of the box, and then saw a plain gun, less than a meter long, lying in a box made of ordinary wood.

Five white, cheap paper labels were stuck in the center of the gun barrel.

[40cm], [80cm], [150cm], [300cm].

There's also a last blank tag, whose length can be defined by the user.

Because the toilet space was small, Uesugi Tetsu pulled out the "40cm" tag and then took out the plain gun from the box.

There was a snap.

The plain gun, which was originally about one meter long, immediately transformed into a short gun forty centimeters long after leaving the box.

Uesugi Tetsu raised the unremarkable plain gun and examined it closely: "Little Jia, this is quite amazing, isn't it?"

More importantly, this plain gun has no outstanding features whatsoever; in every respect, it is just an ordinary piece of iron.

But it is characterized by its flexibility and large quantity!
Right now, there are a full ninety-nine plain guns in the box, and more will continue to be added!

If the prefix "ordinary unpainted gun" were changed to "excellent unpainted gun," "rare unpainted gun," or even higher...

Uesugi Tetsu licked his lips; the future of this box truly held promise.

Thinking of this, Uesugi Tetsu couldn't help but sigh.

If only Zashiki were my shikigami... With her skills, not to mention the later parts, making a "superb plain spear" would be no problem at all.

But that's impossible.

—If Zashiki had been willing to become his shikigami, she would never have possessed her current exquisite skills, nor would she have been able to effectively enhance the box.

Uesugi Tetsu sighed with some emotion, quite moved.

"We can do it too!"

Hearing the sigh, Kaga Kiyomitsu thought his master was complaining that he couldn't change size at will, so he immediately flew out of his scabbard.

However, it struggled to swing in mid-air for quite a while, but didn't change the length of the blade by even a centimeter.

Unfortunately, the old blacksmith didn't include the "get bigger and smaller" function for Kaga Kiyomitsu when he was coding with his hammer.

Just as Uesugi Tetsu was about to pat and comfort Kaga Kiyomitsu, who was inexplicably feeling down, he suddenly realized that the commotion on the street outside had completely disappeared.

strangeness.

He pushed open the tiny floral window, barely big enough for a head to peek out, and looked out onto the street.

In an instant, Uesugi Tetsuya understood.

Because he saw a figure from behind.

The silhouette of Yuan Jingshui.

—The plain white clothes and the Hotarumaru sword at his waist made him so easy to recognize that Uesugi Tetsuya knew who he was at a glance.

You can't look at that back view for too long...

Uesugi Tetsu quickly looked away, intending to close the window again.

But it's too late.

His calm yet intrigued gaze swept across the residential area, but deliberately lingered on Uesugi Tetsuya's face for a couple of moments.

It's like they're saying hello.

--broken.

Uesugi's face twitched as he slammed the window shut.

I just wanted to see what was going on, but I ended up being caught by Minamoto Shizumi herself.

If Minamoto Shizumi reveals this during a later challenge, then we'll be in big trouble...

Uesugi Tetsu rubbed his temples, not too bothered.

After all, this kind of thing happened too suddenly, catching people a little off guard.

If you can't avoid it, then you'll have to face it head-on.

—Let's just consider it a test before the seeding battle.

After the thought flashed through his mind, Uesugi Tetsu cleared his mind of distractions, closed his eyes, and began to introspectively examine his dantian.

Currently, with the help of the Totsuka Sword fragments, the Qi Sea is evenly matched with the Four-Tailed Fox card, and they coexist peacefully without interfering with each other.

—The amount of internal energy contained in his dantian is about 40% of the internal energy in his body, and his recovery speed is twice as fast as he would be in his normal state.

However, compared to when the debris was first placed inside, the expansion speed of the Qi Sea has slowed down considerably.

It is foreseeable that the rate of expansion of the gas sea will become slower and slower.

Then, we should continue to use a strong medicine to stimulate the Qi Sea so that it doesn't forget its roots!
Uesugi Tetsu's gaze shifted between the [Anchor] and the [Ubume's Feather], before finally settling on the Anchor—the perfectly proportioned, transparent triangular crystal that was already in his palm.

[Effect: Placing it in the Qi Sea will greatly enhance its stability. It will also produce unknown beneficial effects depending on the specific Qi Sea.]

Since that's what the anchor does, there shouldn't be any major problems if we place it in the Qi Sea first.

On the other hand, the feathers of the Guhuoniao... might even get into a fight with the fragments of the Totsuka Sword in the Qi Sea.

Uesugi Tetsuya examined his Qi Sea for a while longer, and only after confirming that he had completely mastered every bit of space and every bit of Qi within it did he move the anchor above his Qi Sea.

Nothing happened.

Neither the fragments of the Totsuka Sword nor the two cards floating in the Qi Sea reacted to the anchor's appearance.

It seems we can just throw it in like that.

As Uesugi Tetsu was thinking this, the large hand of qi that was floating above the sea of ​​qi and holding the small anchor suddenly loosened its grip.

"—Oh oh oh oh oh oh!"

Before the anchor even reached the sea of ​​qi, waves of excited shouts came from outside the window.

"What are you doing?"

Taking a small portion of his attention to the outside world, Uesugi Tetsu first opened the window and glanced out, then picked up his phone and opened the Special Affairs Bureau APP.

His pupils shrank slightly.

[Yiyuan Jingshui, 40th Floor]

Uesugi Tetsu glanced at the time again and fell into deep thought.

He did indeed guess that Yuan Jingshui was able to kill forty layers of his own projection.

I didn't expect it to happen so quickly.

In just over ten minutes, she was able to hack her way up from the first floor and kill him.

Uesugi Tetsu looked up, as if he saw the projection annihilated by that dark blade: "You bastard, you couldn't even stop him for half an hour? What a waste..."

Despite this, Uesugi Tetsuya showed no sign of fear or backing down.

On the contrary, they were filled with anticipation.

Shizumi Minamoto, Ryuichi Saito... these are the opponents I will face in the seeding battles in the future, the stronger the better.

What's the fun in defeating the weak?
Only by overwhelming these strong individuals and geniuses can one truly benefit oneself.

That's what makes it more fun.

Uesugi Tetsu smiled and once again focused all his attention on his body.

"Ok?"

Within the Qi Sea, all was calm.

But the anchor has clearly already fallen into it, hasn't it?

Uesugi Tetsu lowered his mind and found that the equilateral triangular crystal was lying steadily at the very bottom of the center of his Qi Sea, emitting a negligible fluorescence.

He tried to move it with his inner energy, but found that he couldn't do it no matter what.

It's as if they've already taken root there.

In other words, the anchor has been attached to his Qi Sea and has taken effect.

But what is the effect?

Apart from the fact that the edge of the two-colored sea of ​​qi had become more relaxed, Uesugi Tetsu couldn't find even the slightest change.

"That's it?"

He suspected that he hadn't figured out the correct way to use the anchor.

However, no notification popped up.

After pondering for a long time, Uesugi Tetsu decided to ask Katsumi again when they met again soon.

As a prominent merchant whose footprints have spread throughout the mortal and present worlds, Sheng Hai must have seen such special items and figured out their uses.

A few minutes later, after several unsuccessful attempts, Uesugi Tetsuya took the Ubume Feather from his backpack and placed it on his Qi Sea.

This jet-black feather is different from the anchor.

As soon as it entered the Qi Sea, the feathers of the Guhuoniao seemed to have some hidden switch activated, and began to swagger out its aura, circling at an extremely fast speed above the Qi Sea.

And a faint shriek emanated from within the feathers.

If you close your eyes, it might even look like a real Ubume patrolling its territory.

The fiery and cursed aura belonging to the Guhuoniao descended, splitting in two and pressing down on the two cards located at the east and west poles of the Qi Sea.

—They want to usurp the throne and become the sole ruler of this Qi Sea.

Uesugi Tetsuya, who was quietly observing this scene, was amused.

This feather of the Guhuoniao is indeed the essence of a great demon; it's quite ambitious.

"But I'm sorry."

Before the two avatar cards could react clearly, Uesugi Tetsu's indifferent voice echoed throughout his Qi Sea.

A blazing white hand of qi condensed from nothingness, grabbing the rapidly spinning feather of the Guhuoniao, causing it to tremble and shake, and attempting to resist.

"—Once you're inside me, if you're a dragon, you'd better coil up for me! If you're a tiger, you'd better lie down for me!"

Soon, the indomitable feathers of the Guhuoniao were forced to quiet down under the suppression of Uesugi Tetsu's powerful hand.

Even if its essence is superb, it is now just a handful of boundless water.

Even those “ambitious” actions just now were merely a remnant of instinct left behind by the great demon Guhuoniao.

The two fingers of the powerful hand pinched the tip of the Guhuoniao feather and flung it into the sea of ​​qi.

Gululu.

Accompanied by the unwilling cry of the Guhuoniao feather and the churning of the Qi Sea, the jet-black feather was embedded into the second empty space of the "Five Elements Rotation Delimitation".

【fire】.

Even when it yielded, it did not choose to merge with the Four-Tailed Fox's card.

Instead, it floats alone in the Qi Sea, existing as a slightly weaker third party.

The Qi Sea, which was originally dominated by black and red and pink and white, suddenly stirred.

A moment later, a purer and deeper black surged up from the depths of the Qi Sea.

In an instant, Uesugi Tetsu felt a faint burning sensation all over his body.

[Because your Void Qi Sea is affected by the "Feather of the Guhuoniao" definition, your Physique +1].

[Because your empty Qi Sea is affected by the "Feather of the Guhuoniao" boundary, your Spiritual Arts +1].

[Because your Void Qi Sea is affected by the "Feather of the Guhuoniao" effect, your fire resistance has increased!]

Before he could even savor the changes brought about by the Ubume's Feathers, he discovered that the two cards were trying to work together to swallow the dark part again, but the progress was somewhat slow.

This is not okay.

A tangible, powerful hand of qi immediately descended, drawing two avatar cards and slapping each of them once. Only then did it use qi to separate the Guhuoniao Feather from the boundary between the two sides.

In this way, the three can continue to expand and develop steadily.

"The expansion speed of the Qi Sea has returned to normal... and it seems to be even faster than before?"

After observing for more than ten minutes and confirming that nothing had happened, Uesugi Tetsuya pulled his attention away from the thriving Qi Sea.

Compared to the ordinary Qi Sea, the Void Qi Sea—especially since it has chosen the path of defining the Five Elements—is naturally focused on long-term development.

It requires a full five avatar cards and five high-quality defining items to be complete.

And now, with less than one-fifth of the vacancies filled, it has already developed to this extent.

Its potential is truly limitless.

Uesugi Tetsu raised his fingertip, observing the qi emanating from it, which carried an extra "scorching" sensation and was theoretically much more damaging.

Not only that.

A deeper black lightning flashed before Uesugi Tetsuya's eyes than before.

Under the influence of the Ubume's Feather, his Five Thunder Technique was no longer as magnificent as before, but its lethality had increased to a new level, and it also carried an additional sense of curse.

In layman's terms, it meant changing the Five Thunder Technique's skin from white to black—Uesugi Tetsuya had no complaints.

He naturally loves whoever is stronger.

Uesugi Tetsu sat on the toilet seat, savoring the expanding Qi Sea within his body that was increasing with each passing second.

He exhaled with relief.

This feeling of constantly becoming stronger is just so incredibly satisfying...

But just a few minutes later, another wave of exclamations came from outside the window.

"What are these onlookers trying to do? Do they have to shout at every passerby?"

He opened the window impatiently and leaned out, trying to calm the crowd of onlookers on the street who were yelling and disturbing the peace—Tamamo was still sleeping.

If a child doesn't sleep well, they may not grow tall.

However, Uesugi Tetsu didn't say it aloud.

Because of his understanding of swordsmanship, his clear mind, and the sudden twitch in the corner of his eye where the Eye of Interpretation was attached.

Warning!

On the street, surrounded by several men in black exuding a powerful aura, a beautiful woman dressed in a loose black kimono and wooden clogs stepped out of the back seat of a car, rubbing her eyes sleepily as if she hadn't fully woken up.

—That's how it is in other people's eyes.

But in Uesugi Tetsu's eyes, she wasn't a beauty at all...

No, it's not human at all!
Staring at the humanoid creature that radiated a blazing white light representing destruction across the entire world, yet possessed no spiritual power whatsoever.

What's the difference between this thing and a tactical nuclear weapon...?

Uesugi Tetsu's eyes narrowed involuntarily from the sting.

"Only the Four Extremes Breathing Method can achieve this level of skill."

Under the silent gaze, the kimono-clad beauty seemed to notice the look, so she turned around and bowed her head slightly apologetically.

This action actually earned Uesugi Tetsu a lot of goodwill.

He commented, "This face is quite good-looking, comparable to mine."

Looking at his phone, Uesugi Tetsuya searched for a while in the forum before finally finding out who the other person was.

——【Kyuukakuin Kin】.

The Kyuukein family, along with the Tokugawa and Minamoto families, is one of the three great families that master the Four Extremes Breathing Technique.

Nine Tribulations Institute Jin is the third son of this generation who is not very famous, but still receives a lot of attention... and so on.

Uesugi Tetsuya was taken aback.

Three sons?

Was that a man?

After observing the other person in his memory for a while, Uesugi Tetsu couldn't see how he looked like a man.

Besides tablets.

But you can't determine gender just by whether someone has a flat chest!
This Nine Tribulations Academy member, Jin, is not affiliated with the Special Affairs Department and will most likely not participate in the Seed Battle.

Now that I'm here... it's probably purely to challenge this secret realm and see my ranking.

Is that right?

Uesugi Tetsu recalled Kyuuketsuin Kin's expression and felt that this person didn't seem very willing or expectant.

However, reality soon proved that Uesugi Tetsuya's idea was wrong.

Because the top 100 list changed again in less than half an hour.

[The 40th floor of the Second Nine Tribulation Courtyard]

This proves that yet another Uesugi Tetsuya projection has been blasted to smithereens.

At this point, some busybodies who were "live-streaming" the event commented in the forum that Yuan Jingshui had been kicked back to the real world.

This means that she failed to complete the forty-first floor challenge.

The crowd was in an uproar, and the number of posts on the forum increased several times over afterward.

Not long after, someone else said that the progress of Nine Tribulations Courtyard Jin's strategy had also stopped at the fortieth floor.

Most people were shocked that these two could only conquer one more level than the "strategist" Saito Ryuichi and the anonymous person No. 666.

But some people don't think so.

……

"This is not good. This is very bad."

In the slightly dimly lit room, comic books, crumpled pieces of paper, an old drawing tablet, and empty plastic soda bottles were scattered haphazardly throughout the space.

Someone sat on an ergonomic chair with their knees drawn up, eyes downcast, staring at the "Anonymous Person No. 666" on the top 100 list stone tablet, which had been trampled to the bottom by these guys.

She raised the digital pen in her hand and placed it on the board.

In the cluttered interior, only one spot remained spotless.

It was a clean open space specially isolated by an acrylic cover, inside which was a delicate model of a train station.

There was a small label on the top of the model.

It says above,

——【Kisaragi Station】.

(End of this chapter)