I'm a demon in Tokyo!

Chapter 297 Back and Forth, a Clash of Titans! Lord Mokujin cursed Uesugi Tetsuya... Where did the curse go?
Before being teleported to the arena by the pillar of light, Uesugi Tetsu landed next to the main arena and retrieved Kaga Kiyomitsu from Ririko's hands.

Uesugi Tetsu, swaying with a happy and carefree air, smiled at the girl, though he dared not show it at all.
"Borrow it."

As he spoke, his gaze fell upon Tsuchimikado Arashi, who was now on the other side of the arena, calmly and silently observing him.

"After all, they are not opponents to be underestimated."

"It was your knife to begin with, why are you saying all this..."

Ririko sighed, then flicked her finger and used her inner energy to push Uesugi Tetsuya: "Hurry up and go up. I'm waiting to see what kind of trouble you and this Tsuchimikado will cause."

"it is good."

Uesugi Tetsu expertly put Kaga Kiyomitsu back on his waist, causing the latter to finally shudder with a refreshing tremor.

Before he stepped onto the ring, he heard a voice behind him.
"I am looking forward."

Without turning his head, Uesugi Tetsu waved behind him.

Uesugi Tetsu and the demon referee stepped onto the arena together, but his gaze was fixed on Tsuchimikado Arashi, who was hundreds of meters away.

—Tsuchimikado Arashi wore a plain hunting robe, without the traditional ebony hat, and his long black hair fell to his shoulders. He did not hold the fan that most Onmyoji would choose.

There were no other ornaments or props within the visible area.

Hmm... I can't sense any spiritual energy fluctuations from him at all.

Even master-level spirit control techniques seem powerless at this moment.

It wasn't that Tsuchimikado Arashi had concealed his aura and fluctuations very well; rather, it was as if the perception of the Spirit Control Technique had been abruptly cut off by something halfway through.

In short, we know nothing.

After a brief glance, Uesugi Tetsuya, who hadn't received any information, became unusually serious.

Fighting an Onmyoji from the "Tsuchimikado" family is definitely not as easy as before.

"Game start!"

As the referee's powerful voice fell, the arena fell into a silent standoff once again.

Quiet.

Whether it was spiritual energy, internal energy, or the two people's movements and breathing, everything remained almost completely still, allowing tranquility to spread.

On the high seat of TOP3, He Maohui frowned in confusion.

strangeness.

Why didn't Arashi unleash his full power against Uesugi Tetsu from the very beginning?
Regardless of the circumstances, at the very first moment of the match, Tsuchimikado Arashi, with a natural barrier of over 150 meters of straight-line space, would have an absolute advantage.

This is the best time to "fire".

There's no reason for Arashi to confront Uesugi Tetsuya, whose methods are relatively simple, from the very beginning.

Even though the Arashi Society possesses a vast array of Yin-Yang techniques, the moment Uesugi Tetsu makes a move, the nature of the situation changes instantly.

If Uesugi Tetsu charged in with full force, then Tsuchimikado Arashi, having lost the initiative, would find it difficult to inflict any effective damage on Uesugi Tetsu, whose stats are high.

If Uesugi Tetsu, who has mastered the Spirit Control Technique, is determined to use guerrilla tactics to buy time, it will also put Tsuchimikado Arashi in a passive position.

—In fact, Tsuchimikado Arashi's initial idea was exactly the same as Kamo Teru's.

But not now.

On the arena, Tsuchimikado Arashi's gaze shifted slightly, landing on the blood-red katana at Uesugi Tetsu's waist.

Because the opponent has this sword.

Judging from his appearance, is that Kaga Kiyomitsu...?

Tsuchimikado Arashi had a premonition that even if he controlled Uesugi Tetsu, Kaga Kiyomitsu could still pose a deadly threat to him on his own.

So, it is a spirit weapon possessing its own intelligence?

Perhaps they even know a sword technique or two.

Even though Kaga Kiyomitsu had not shown any signs of high intelligence in Tokugawa Ririko's hands, Tsuchimikado Arashi still had to be on guard.

He gave a dismissive scoff to himself.

This is really...unpleasant.

However, at this moment, Tsuchimikado Arashi was not doing nothing.

— Relying on the microscopic barrier that was always present on his body to block the fluctuations of spiritual energy, he had already cast the Leakage Dao: Subjective Time Slowing on himself as usual.

This is equivalent to doubling the thinking speed.

With twice the amount of time, Tsuchimikado Arashi calmly pondered.

If you want to defeat Uesugi Tetsuya... or rather, truly injure him, you must first shatter the Flame Armor and then break the Qi Circulation that has fused with spiritual power.

Indeed, Tsuchimikado Arashi had already recognized that Uesugi Tetsu had mastered the ancient Yin-Yang technique "Flame Armor," which was a prerequisite for "Zhou Tian Flame Armor."

This Flame Armor is not only little known, but it's also quite difficult to cultivate.

Unexpectedly, Uesugi Tetsuya actually pushed it to a perfect state.

In addition, there are the restorative and repairing abilities of spirit control techniques...

Tsuchimikado Arashi thought expressionlessly—

This is practically a turtle shell within a turtle shell.

If one tries to break through this double defense using ordinary means, then Uesugi Tetsuya would be giving far too much time to react.

He'll just end up like Takizawa Kai, wasting his spiritual energy.

Therefore, we need to change our approach—we need to harm Uesugi Tetsuya without confronting the turtle shell.

Mental attacks aside... judging from the "sword heart" thrown out by Tokugawa Ririko, it's highly likely that this was also a waste of time for Uesugi Tetsuya.

So, what about curses?

As Uesugi Tetsu gradually compressed the ki and lightning within his body, Tsuchimikado Arashi finally felt a sliver of light appear in the gloom before him.

Do curses work?
Tsuchimikado Arashi didn't know.

But he felt it was worth a try.

Otherwise, what other method has a higher win rate?
Therefore, the objective has changed.

Tsuchimikado Arashi raised his hand and clenched his fist towards Uesugi Tetsu on the other side of the arena.

—Uesugi Tetsuya will finish him off with the strongest curse before he kills himself with a knife!
For a fleeting moment, Uesugi Tetsuya and Tsuchimikado Arashi's eyes met.

Uesugi Tetsu could sense that it was the coldest, calmest killing intent.

Kill him, then win.

That's all I'm thinking about.

"Well come."

After a soft, silent whisper, Uesugi Tetsuya activated Yaegaki, forcefully shattering the air pressure coming from all directions, which was trying to crush him into a lump of flesh.

"Lan."

As the Onmyoji whispered, an invisible pressure difference suddenly appeared, instantly transformed by spiritual energy into an even more terrifying vacuum cannon.

Boom!

But what responded to him was the drawing of Kaga Kiyomitsu's sword!

The pale blade of light effortlessly cleaved the vacuum cannon, which would be considered a killing move by most Onmyoji, in two, without slowing down Uesugi Tetsu's forward speed in the slightest.

The shattered winds scattered in all directions, causing Tsuchimikado Arashi's hair to flutter wildly.

"As expected, it couldn't be stopped..."

If he himself had been struck by that blade, he would probably have died instantly.

With a thought, Tsuchimikado Arashi pointed at Uesugi Tetsu from a distance of eighty meters.

As if manipulated remotely by some mysterious force, Uesugi Tetsu first missed a step when his left foot landed, and then missed a second step when he used his right foot to compensate.

This caused his momentum to be abruptly interrupted, and he fell to the ground and rolled around on the ring.

Tsuchimikado Arashi ended this momentary, subjective time slowing, and then opened a fixed-coordinate space displacement technique in front of Uesugi Tetsuya.

After a brief flash, Uesugi Tetsu returned to the starting point at the edge of the original arena.

Kaga Kiyomitsu's sword flashed forward, but it missed its target.

what happens?

Uesugi Tetsu moved his hands and feet somewhat inexplicably, without feeling any stiffness or sluggishness.

But why, just now, did he suddenly feel a sluggish disconnect between his thoughts and his body?
Without a second thought, Uesugi Tetsuya knew it was most likely Tsuchimikado Arashi's doing. "The Hourglass..."

Generally speaking, the Yin-Yang techniques of the Louke Dao are mainly used for scientific research or daily life.

This was the first time Uesugi Tetsu had encountered an enemy who could skillfully apply the clef technique in actual combat.

As expected of an Onmyoji from the Tsuchimikado family, they did not let their surname go to waste.

At this moment, Tsuchimikado Arashi had already sculpted a clay figure in the likeness of Uesugi Tetsu.

A dark, inverted pentagram lit up at the little man's feet, and ominous incantations climbed up from the soles of his feet, while invisible "black nails" only appeared briefly to the side.

Unfortunately... Uesugi Tetsuya's wearing of the Hannya mask slowed down the completion of the curse.

Tsuchimikado Arashi's eyes were fixed on Uesugi Tetsu.

Could it be that he knew the curse was his weakness?
As the inverted pentagram lit up, Uesugi Tetsuya suddenly felt an immense, boundless malice envelop him.

Surprisingly, he did not have a premonition of death.

strangeness……

Without time to think, Uesugi Tetsu gripped Kaga Kiyomitsu and once again transformed into a phantom streak of light, tearing through the air.

—No matter what, we can't let Tsuchimikado Arashi cast this curse so easily!

As he shattered the surface of the arena, terrifying bolts of lightning, as thick as a finger, shot up from behind Uesugi Tetsuya like missiles, scattering in mid-air and hurtling towards Tsuchimikado Arashi!

Lightning illuminated the sky above the entire stadium.

It's like divine punishment!

Tsuchimikado Arashi took everything in view, still standing in the same spot, freeing up his other hand to create an indistinct phantom in a small area in front of him.

And so, one after another, giant brown trees covered with soil and stones rose from the ground, forming an impenetrable barrier.

It devoured all the lightning in the sky!

The back-and-forth exchanges between the two players caused the audience in the stadium to erupt in cheers, shouting that it was incredibly exciting.

Uesugi Tetsu was about to use these giant trees as a foothold to continue his journey when he discovered that the soil and rocks on the trees had all turned into sticky mud in the blink of an eye.

boom!
The pale color, along with the burst of qi imbued with the aura of the Guhuoniao bird, tore apart all the giant trees blocking the way.

Flames rose, turning all the debris obstructing the view into ashes.

Red Prajna's ferocious face reappears!
"Well……"

Tsuchimikado Arashi let out a muffled groan.

He originally wanted to absorb some of Uesugi Tetsuya's spiritual power through the giant tree as a supplement, but he found that the latter's spiritual power composition was extremely strange and incompatible with his own.

With ten seconds remaining, the strongest curse he currently possesses, the one he is most confident can kill Uesugi Tetsu, will be completed.

tsk...

But how many attacks could this guy launch in ten seconds?

As Tsuchimikado Arashi formulated his next plan, he silently pondered to himself.

I'm afraid my own head will roll twice.

In Tsuchimikado Arashi's eyes, the purple-white sonic boom wave representing Yaegaki's attack exploded once again.

He raised his hand and used a smooth combo of subjective time slowing and spatial displacement to send Uesugi Tetsuya back to the starting point.

"We have to get used to it."

Looking at Uesugi Tetsuya, who had just landed and was already rushing towards him again, Tsuchimikado Arashi thought to himself.

But he still raised his hand and, just like before, sent Uesugi Tetsuya, who was already reacting, back for the third time when he was fifty meters away from him.

A good trick should be used until it becomes useless.

"The fourth time, it failed."

A hundred meters away, Uesugi Tetsu narrowly dodged the astronomical formula that even Spirit Control Techniques required careful observation to detect, and accelerated a second time toward Tsuchimikado Arashi, who was frowning.

At 30 meters, three cold white blades suddenly appeared beside Uesugi Tetsuya.

They merged into one again after thirty meters.

Click.

The blade flashed, but there was no unexpected touch or reaction.

Instead, the sound of shattering glass reached Uesugi Tetsuya's ears.

boom!
Unbeknownst to them, the one-way mirror technique that had been projecting Tsuchimikado Arashi's image exploded, its crystalline fragments dissipating into specks of spiritual light.

Uesugi Tetsu turned his head with a slight surprise and saw Tsuchimikado Arashi standing at the opposite corner of the arena.

On his right side, the black nail was already halfway visible.

"Five seconds."

Tsuchimikado Arashi stretched out his five fingers and grabbed the lifelike clay figurine, the incantation already spreading to the figurine's chest and abdomen.

Uesugi Tetsuya also knew that this curse, which his opponents were determined to continue even at the cost of their lives, was about to come to an end.

The next moment, the plain spear, enveloped in lightning, flames, and qi, floated in the sky.

There were dozens of them!
Upon seeing this scene, Yan Liu involuntarily twitched.

The deafening roar echoed throughout the stadium.

If Tsuchimikado Arashi were to resist in the same way as before, those giant trees would be reduced to scorched earth upon encountering the first batch of plain spears.

"go back."

The veins on Tsuchimikado Arashi's forehead bulged.

The pre-set astronomical and Taoist incantations unfolded, sending back all the terrifyingly powerful plain spears.

Boom boom boom!
A violent explosion, powerful enough to turn several great demons into dust in an instant, blew directly in front of Uesugi Tetsuya!

Thick black smoke billowed out, only to be completely dissipated by the howling energy a second later.

Uesugi Tetsu took a deep breath and narrowed his eyes after repairing the broken Qi circulation.

Four-Tailed Fox Talent - Soul Imprint, activated!

Tsuchimikado Arashi's eyes remained calm and unwavering, as firm as iron.

"Ineffective?"

Uesugi Tetsu immediately tried the mirage again, only to find that it was still ineffective.

"What a nuisance, no wonder they're that man's descendants..."

The name at the top of the stone tablet flashed through his mind, and Uesugi Tetsu quietly raised the blade of Kaga Kiyomitsu, aiming it at Tsuchimikado Arashi, who had already grasped something.

Originally, he intended to save this ultimate technique at least for his confrontation with Kitada Kei.

But unexpectedly, I've already been forced to reveal it.

not bad.

Uesugi Tetsu grinned.

—The Secret Technique of Natural Mind-Style: The Sword of No-Knowledge!
In the instant before the invisible sword fell, Tsuchimikado Arashi's pupils suddenly shrank to the size of pinpoints.

I'm going to die—

Without any hesitation or thought, he decisively pulled out the black nail that was still not fully visible at the end, causing his face to turn dark instantly.

A massive amount of black blood gushed from Tsuchimikado Arashi's seven orifices.

then.

Before his hands broke, he precisely inserted the black nail into the clay figurine's forehead.

Won!

Tsuchimikado Arashi's nearly blind eyes widened, and his face, which had never shown any expression before, finally revealed a look of wild joy at this moment.

But two seconds later, Tsuchimikado Arashi did not hear the referee announce his victory.

He struggled to lift his head, only to see Uesugi Tetsuya standing not far from him, head bowed in a strange manner, completely unharmed.

Tsuchimikado Arashi's eyes momentarily lost focus.

What about the curse?
What about Lord Mokujin's... curse?

(End of this chapter)