I'm a demon in Tokyo!

Chapter 231 Gratitude to Mumu Lian, Eyeballs Everywhere! The Eerie Deepest Part of the Maze... The First Battle After Advancement!
"Hold on."

Just before stepping into the shadow cast by the cave, Uesugi Tetsu suddenly stopped.

He took out the [Eternal Light] from his storage backpack and handed it to Tamamo, who was still wearing her yellow helmet in the center of the group.

"Tamamo, put this on."

It's impossible for a light source to exist at all times deep inside a cave, and even a flame maintained by Yin-Yang magic is at risk of suddenly going out.

A headlamp that can illuminate hidden demons and stay lit is undoubtedly a very good tool for navigating dungeons.

Tamamo responded, stuffed the two black bricks she was holding into her pockets, then expertly put the headlamp on her head and checked the straps several times to make sure they were secure.

At the same time, Uesugi Tetsu silently transformed into a four-tailed fox.

Then, without anyone knowing, they evaded them and opened up the "Mirage" realm.

Mumu Lian can induce hallucinations and alter cognition, using this as a fulcrum to disturb a person's mind and even drive them insane.

As a talent of the same kind, Mirage definitely has a significant suppressive and weakening effect on it.

After stabilizing the Mirage Domain, Uesugi Tetsu did not wear the enhanced Hannya Mask on his waist—if he could still blend into the team by relying on the Jade Heart Technique and the Spirit Nourishing Technique.

However, if the masked mantra of Prajna were to appear, it would definitely expose his extraordinary nature to an unknown number of Mumumen.

Since most of the maze is unknown, Uesugi Tetsuya is not in a hurry to reveal too many cards in his hand.

Liu Shengchi turned his head with some confusion, feeling that there was a strange change in his surroundings, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.

He glanced at Uesugi Tetsuya again, and seeing that the latter remained silent, he didn't say anything more.

Because Uesugi Tetsu's perception is far superior to his.

Uesugi Tetsuya withdrew all his aura and spiritual energy fluctuations into his Qi circulation and said, "Before entering the labyrinth, I need to confirm everyone's information once again."

The tall, muscular operator grinned and said, "Ken Otomo. Like you, Operator Uesugi, you practice the Corona Breathing Technique and have a high level of physical strength. Your role in the team is a guard."

The short-haired female operator calmly replied, "Fukada Mei. She is skilled in astronomical arts and earth and wood-based Yin-Yang techniques."

The other three operators, their faces shrouded in opaque black cloth, said in unison, "C40, C41, C42. We are able to summon and control shikigami to carry out various missions such as exploration."

Kenjiro Otomo looked at the serious-looking Tetsuya Uesugi, then smiled and gestured with his chin towards him.
"Relax, Operator Uesugi. Don't feel too much pressure about our safety... Even without you, we would still have come at this time."

He shrugged: "It's just that the total annihilation might cause the Special Affairs Bureau to raise the danger level of this maze again."

Ken Otomo appeared relaxed, but Tetsu Uesugi couldn't detect a trace of magnanimity in his words.

Only those who have long been prepared to face death.

He glanced at the others and noticed that they were also nodding at him.

Then there's nothing more to say.

As Fukada Mei's spiritual energy surged and a very faint warning barrier opened, Uesugi Tetsu finally stepped into the area belonging to the Mumu Lian Maze.

In an instant, the sunlight, the sound of the wind, and all the other natural noises outside the cave disappeared.

A deep, viscous darkness rushed towards us.

Deeper inside, the sparse dripping sound flowed from the edge of the rock wall, echoing in everyone's ears.

— It's not surprising that a conversation in such an environment could travel hundreds of meters.

Uesugi Tetsu looked at Fukada Mei beside him.

The latter nodded knowingly, and after a small fluctuation of spiritual energy, a faint soundproof barrier enveloped everyone.

The next moment, a bright light shone from behind Uesugi Tetsuya, illuminating most of the distance in front of him.

Tamamo turned her head up, down, left, and right, and after scanning the surrounding rock walls, she breathed a sigh of relief: "There's nothing there."

Yagyu Chi touched the rock wall with his hand, his expression solemn: "It was a maze when we first came here, then it turned into a castle last time we came, and now it has completely turned into a cave."

—The Mumulian Maze changes its environment over time, and the Special Affairs Bureau still doesn't understand the reason why it does this.

Of course, the increased difficulty of exploration for Uesugi Tetsuya and his group was real.

Just then, the sound of clashing armor rang out. Uesugi Tetsu watched as two expressionless men with two-star insignia above their heads swept past him.
The C40 has a clear opening at the rear.
"These are summoned shikigami armored soldiers used for scouting."

The armored soldier stepped out of the barrier, swaggering and making noise as he headed deeper into the cave.

The others trailed far behind them.

Every so often, Uesugi Tetsu would have Tamamo use her headlamp to illuminate the surroundings, but so far nothing has happened.

There isn't even the dense network of branching paths that are essential for a "cave maze"; there's only a winding but single passage.

It's as if this is just an ordinary cave, not some strange cluster hiding a huge number of Mumumen.

“Brother Uesugi, something is really not right... It wasn't like this when we came here before. We've already encountered several Mokumen at this distance before.”

Tamamo's clear voice carried a hint of worry: "Perhaps we've come at the wrong time this time."

"No, perhaps we've come at the right time."

Uesugi Tetsu narrowed his eyes: "Something is definitely amiss. Perhaps these Mumulian are undergoing some crucial transformation."

The moment he finished speaking, Uesugi Tetsu felt the warning barrier that had been maintaining at the outermost edge suddenly disappear.

He immediately looked at Fukada Mei behind him and found that she had inexplicably rolled her eyes and started muttering some incomprehensible words.

Hidden?
Uesugi Tetsuya, who hadn't detected any unusual activity within his sensory sphere, clicked his tongue—this was just the kind of ghost story that would activate its abilities irrationally at times.

If these Mumulian were separate demons, he could chop them into a pile of charred remains in no time.

But if they come together and form the prototype of a new ghost story, then that is indeed a headache.

Tamamo seemed to have anticipated this, as she immediately smeared something on her palm and then slapped Fukada Mei's face twice.

clap clap!

The latter shuddered, feeling the pain and looking confused: "What...what happened?"

Within two seconds, Fukada Mei recovered, her face grim: "Their ability to create illusions has become even stronger."

"Let's hurry up and move forward."

Uesugi Tetsu drew Kaga Kiyomitsu, letting pale and black liquid drip from the blade, thus beginning the realm of sorrowful parting: "Tamamo,"

During the quiet journey ahead, the two armored soldiers far ahead still did not encounter any problems.

On the contrary, everyone except Uesugi Tetsu was confused by the "remote" for a while.

It's just that the time it takes to regain consciousness varies from person to person, depending on their state of mind.

For example, Yagyu Akira was only dazed for a moment, while Otomo Ken was shocked by Uesugi Tetsuya for quite a while before he came to his senses.

And this is the effect after the mirage realm has been weakened.

"As for me……"

Uesugi Tetsuya, still concealing his presence, pondered.

— This is probably because the previous special salvage operation had essentially brought his state of mind to the peak of the Hundred Refinements stage, or even beyond.

Amid the monotonous sound of footsteps, C40 suddenly shouted, "The armored soldiers lost contact at the same time!"

The next instant, Uesugi Tetsu could feel a very obvious malicious gaze sweeping across the edge of the headlamp's illumination range and landing on them.

The first boss, Mulian, has appeared!
"court death!"

Ken Otomo's eyes widened in fury. He raised his fist, which was adorned with steel brass knuckles, and slammed it heavily into the center of the body of the creature that resembled a writhing black carpet covered in scarlet eyeballs.

But in Uesugi Tetsu's eyes, it looked like he had punched an empty rock wall. Otomo Ken thought he had finished off his opponent with one punch, so he grabbed the "Mumu Lian corpse" and wanted to show it to Uesugi Tetsu.

The moment he turned around, the malicious gaze hidden in the darkness expanded and enlarged in an instant, trying to engulf Ken Otomo.

Uesugi Tetsuya regretfully withdrew his attention from his sensory circle.

It seems there is no one more hidden than Mumu Lian.

Footsteps overlapped and intertwined, and Kaga Kiyomitsu's blade tip slashed upwards.

With the extreme speed brought by Yaegaki, Momo, who was already in mid-air, didn't even have time to react before Kaga Kiyomitsu cleaved him in two from bottom to top.

It can be easily cut like paper.

Before the effects of the separation and the plague had even taken hold, the physically weak Mumu Lian had already lost his life.

Yagyu Akira never left Tamamo and the three C40s from beginning to end, steadfastly fulfilling his duty as a guard.

[You have killed Mumu Lian (2-star) and gained 81 Soul Ashes.]

This soul ash is rather scarce compared to other demons of the same star.

Uesugi Tetsuya remained vigilant, sensing his surroundings once more as the leader before him died.

But still found nothing.

You have obtained a large number of Eye-to-Eyes!

The newly popped-up notification startled Uesugi Tetsuya slightly, then a look of delight appeared on his face.

His guess was correct; after Mumu Lian died, a large number of eyeballs, which were useless to ordinary people and carried a lot of malice, did indeed burst out.

Therefore, the Special Affairs Department agents, who have explored the dungeons many times before, wouldn't bother collecting these things.

But for him, getting so many eyes is definitely a huge benefit!
While Otomo Ken was recovering, Uesugi Tetsu threw dozens of eyeballs, which were much smaller than the Hyakume Oni's eyeballs, into the Edo Castle gacha pool.

Before Hyakume could react, he exited the gacha pool and looked at Ken Otomo, who looked embarrassed.

"I wonder how much progress these eyeballs can provide..."

After the thought flashed through his mind, Uesugi Tetsu asked the latter.

"If a two-star or so Mumu Lian can put you into an illusion, how did you manage to defeat it before?"

Ken Otomo opened his mouth: "In the past, I would only fall into hallucinations during battle when a dozen or more mobs targeted me at once, but I never expected this time..."

Uesugi Tetsu's first reaction upon hearing this was—Has Momomen evolved over time?
Just like his demonic incarnation, although the star rating remained the same, the quality was improved.

But he immediately realized that it shouldn't be like that.

Based on his meticulous perception along the way, the truth should be that "as one delves deeper into Mumu Lian's maze, the effects of being influenced by Mumu Lian's spirit will become stronger."

Even if it's not quite right, it should be pretty close.

If that's the case, those with weak wills might even become valuable fighting force for the enemy if they continue down this path.

"Otomo, Fukada." He called out the names of the two operators. "You two will temporarily withdraw from this mission and follow the white marks on the road behind you to leave."

"Remember, do not step outside the white area."

Apart from the two of them, Tamamo was hardly affected, while the three C40 members could hardly be considered normal humans.

"Yes."

The two replied with resentment.

After seeing several armored soldiers who moved very quietly leave with the two of them, Uesugi Tetsu continued, "Let's move on."

So the three C40 members summoned new armored soldiers to scout ahead.

Several minutes later, after the group had safely passed the spot where the armored soldiers had been damaged, Tamamo glanced at her phone and said,
"The deepest I've ever been before was around this time... By this time in the past, I would have already encountered dozens of Mumu Lian."

Uesugi Tetsu looked up, gazing at the seemingly endless black cave, feeling a deep malice from afar in the unknown darkness.

Even if this malice wasn't specifically directed at him, or even if it hadn't been discovered, Uesugi Tetsu could still sense its immense power.

Deep within this Mumu Lian labyrinth, there surely lies a terrifying behemoth that matches the current eerie tranquility, awaiting them.

"Tamamo, is there still a cell phone signal?" Uesugi Tetsu channeled strands of lightning into the energy ball at his fingertips. "Call for backup, someone available, at the demon god level."

Faced with the unknown tales that have transformed from demons, Uesugi Tetsuya is confident, but he doesn't dare to guarantee that he can solve them.

"Huh?" Tamamo stopped raising her finger, somewhat surprised. "Uesugi-nii-san, is it that serious...?"

"Just in case," he added.

Tamamo stopped talking and chose to believe the other person.

After a brief pause, Uesugi Tetsu and his six companions continued forward.

As they walked, Uesugi Tetsuya, who had been focusing his attention on the unseen Mumu Lian, suddenly realized what was happening.

correct.

After those two left, shouldn't there be six of them?
Uesugi Tetsu suddenly turned his head and saw a dark figure at the end of the group that looked almost exactly like C40 and the others.

Upon noticing his gaze, the dark figure also looked up, revealing an enormous, pitch-black eye that gleamed with a sinister smile and mockery.

'I see you.'

In an instant, the malice that Uesugi Tetsu could feel suddenly increased by several orders of magnitude, almost becoming the surrounding darkness, surging towards him overwhelmingly.

He sneered indifferently, "Your eyes... now that you've seen me, you still want to run away?"

A pale flash of light appeared, and without damaging the eyeball in the slightest, it completely gouged out the face of the shadowy figure that had vanished after the flash ended.

Thus, the sharp killing intent and malice swelled again, and even Tamamo, whose perception was the weakest, swallowed hard.

She stammered,

"Uesugi-nii-san, shouldn't we wait a bit...?"

"It's too late."

Uesugi Tetsu interrupted her.

Looking up slightly, one is greeted by a breathtakingly open and towering cavern, dozens of meters high.

It turned out that they had somehow arrived at the deepest part of Mumu Lian's maze!

Not far ahead, an indescribable black object was slowly wriggling, and apart from Uesugi Tetsu, no one dared to look directly at it with such immense malice.

When Yagyu Chi turned back, he saw dozens of Mumu-men blocking his path, their many eyes radiating a twisted, sinister grin.

"The plan has changed; you should leave now."

Uesugi Tetsu glanced behind him, flicked his finger, and the lightning ball that had been accumulating for several tens of minutes suddenly popped out.

With a deafening roar, the piled-up Mumu Lianmen were reduced to ashes in an instant.

The path forward became clear again.

He retrieved a lifelike Prajna mask from nothingness, grinned, and revealed his gleaming white teeth to the thousands upon thousands of oncoming gazes.

"I'll test how deep the water is in this thing."

　My performance was poor today, 4.3k
　　Sorry orz
　　We'll get them all back in a couple of days.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)