I'm a demon in Tokyo!

Chapter 348 Not a lover, but an important ally! A curse of illness and suffering, something that won't find peace even in death!

Uesugi Tetsu remained unfazed.

"You can't say that, Ririko."

Uesugi Tetsu said with a slightly serious tone, "The relationship between me and Imagawa Yoshimoto is that of allies and comrades-in-arms, which cannot be summarized by such vulgar language and relationship."

Ririko stared at him without saying a word.

But that clearly disbelieving look in his eyes was saying, "Keep making things up, keep making things up."

The lady sitting to the side, Erchi, knew that her master Che was full of lies, but she didn't say anything to pop the bubble.

She was still figuring out who to ally with next, and then excluding everyone else one by one.

Imagawa Yoshimoto, of course, is not an option.

This woman is far too powerful and much smarter than me. Cooperating with her would be like asking a tiger for its skin; I'd be sold out while still counting the money for her!
As for Ririko... well, she's not a very good choice either.

She had seen Ririko's sword heart; it was far too domineering, and its possessiveness was far too strong.

Not to mention that the other party is unlikely to agree to cooperation and alliance, even if they do agree, they might still kick you aside before you can "reap the rewards".

The two-foot-tall man firmly believed that the flat-chested demon king could easily do such a thing.

Just then, Ririko looked over with a thoughtful smile, which startled the deep-thinking Erchi.

"Po... Could the Great Demon King possibly read my mind?!"

The two-foot-tall man quickly lowered his head, not daring to look any further.

Uesugi Tetsuya continued to explain, "Imagawa Yoshimoto's abilities were exceptionally outstanding. He was a choice I made in that era, an important ally during the Sengoku period... and even..."

He was halfway through his sentence when he saw Ririko's "I'd be a fool to believe that" look in her eyes, and he sighed helplessly.

It seems that to convince Ririko, I need to talk about something "deeper".

After thinking for a moment, Uesugi Tetsuya first activated the villa's barrier, and then activated the Zhou Tian Yan Armor that was originally attached to the Wanling Furnace Core, sticking it inside the barrier to isolate the outside world.

Finally, he channeled his thoughts into his dantian, and then pulled the consciousnesses of Ge Liuduo, Qing, and Lilizi, who were listening in, into it as well.

As a powerful individual whose swordsmanship has reached the other side and whose spirit can even easily materialize, Ririko could easily have her consciousness steadily pulled in as long as she didn't resist.

She opened her eyes and glimpsed the vast, multicolored sea of ​​energy below, containing four extremely precious elements that were almost forming a cycle, as well as lightning and flame seeds floating in the sky.

Of course, her own consciousness also suddenly emitted a light that could instantly blind the consciousness of ordinary people.

Ririko noticed this and quickly withdrew her sun-like radiance, transforming into a small figure made entirely of gold.

When Qing saw her, a hint of surprise inevitably arose in his heart.

He glanced around at Uesugi Tetsuya's multicolored Qi Sea and nodded secretly.

"Uesugi-kun, this is... the Qi Sea? It's quite large and luxurious."

Ririko blinked: "But why did you pull me into your Qi Sea?"

"It's safer to talk here."

Uesugi Tetsu's voice boomed in the empty sea of ​​qi.

Soon, he connected a temporary heartstring to Lilizi and condensed a semi-transparent body in his dantian.

In his heartstrings, Uesugi Tetsu said, "Because what I'm about to say to you might cause problems if I speak directly outside."

Having lived for a thousand years, Qing naturally understands this point.

So Uesugi Tetsu mainly explained to Karuta and Ririko.

He first spent some time telling Ririko about the sword saint he met in the Nine Heavens Guardian [Cloud Pavilion] in Kyoto, and the celestial fox he met at Fushimi Inari Shrine.

Lili marveled, filled with curiosity about "Dreaming Through the Vast World".

Then, he formally introduced Ririko to Aogumo Kiri—the former giving the latter a respectful greeting.

Then, Uesugi Tetsu gave an example: "Even though we are so far apart, and the celestial fox is not even in the real world, if I talk to it from home, it will definitely sense it."

If you were to genuinely say something bad about the Sword Saint, a sword beam might just fly down from the sky in a couple of minutes.

Uesugi Tetsu made a snapping gesture in front of his neck.

"—Of course, not just anyone doing this would make these beings, who are difficult to describe in a few words, feel it."

Ririko immediately understood: "You mean, can we perceive a crucial connection between the importance of the person who speaks ill of us, or their [weight] and [degree of connection]?"

Uesugi Tetsuya, who was about to continue explaining, paused for a moment and revealed an expression that said, "This kid is teachable."

"However, a more accurate term would be 'position'."

He continued, "There is a very important connection between [position] and [information]."

—This is also the reason why Xiao Jia and Er Chi were not allowed to come in and listen to the proceedings.

Because the gods in the song are incomplete.

The Azure Blade is a legendary, even mythical, sword that has survived for thousands of years and has even served as a "landmark".

Ririko also helped Kenshin reach the other side, becoming a great swordsman that might not have been seen in a previous era.

All three of them were of a high enough rank to be able to bear the information he was about to convey.

And it is because Uesugi Tetsu himself is at least "a rare person in the world, who is favored by the calamity, watched by Takemikazuchi and the Heavenly Fox, and is also a walking god with the Spider Cutter".

Therefore, his "status" is certainly not low; he certainly wouldn't be just another face in the crowd.

At this point, he is more likely to be noticed when he speaks, and less likely to openly discuss matters that might concern those in higher positions.

If an ordinary, introverted guy who spends all his time scrolling through his phone were to curse all the gods, both real and non-real, in the real world a thousand times, nothing would happen.

But if he speaks rashly, a terrible thing could happen.

—This knowledge was something Huojin had briefly explained to him before, and Qing filled in the gaps.

Uesugi Tetsu then explained the above to Ririko in simple terms, and the latter immediately understood.

Ririko pouted, suppressing her playful mood: "Tell me, let me hear what this has to do with whether or not we're having an affair."

Uesugi Tetsu held up two fingers: "One is related to [walking]; the other is related to [the eight sufferings]."

Ririko, who had previously experienced the pain of separation from her lover, narrowed her eyes: "Explain in detail."

"—You all know I can go back to the Warring States period, but do you know what I'm going to do when I go back?"

Qing remained silent.

The golden-haired Ririko pointed at him and said, "Is it to save your lover?"

"I already said, it's not..."

Uesugi Tetsu sighed helplessly, considered it for a moment, and then looked at the [Walking Clock] in his storage backpack.

【Walking Clock (Special Item)】

[Effect: Precisely measures the degree of influence of the Shigemi-kō (a type of historical figure) behavior on history.]

[——Respected Changshi Xingzhe, please maximize your influence on history and leave your mark on history.]

[Warning: Do not expose any information directly related to "walking" or "future" to avoid any unknown consequences.]

This warning prevented him from discussing travel and the future during the Warring States period.

For now, things seem fine, but it's always good to be cautious. First of all, his identity as a traveling agent and his ability to change history have already been stated, so there aren't many problems with that.

Because of the phenomenon of "walking" to "change history," this phenomenon was not common in the past, but it should not have been too rare either.

This can be seen from the attitude of Huojin towards the key to history back then.

However, he had a vague feeling about the more specific and detailed aspects such as the "walking timepiece," the "degree of influence," and the "traces left behind," and it was indeed not easy for him to speak about them casually.

After thinking for a moment, Uesugi Tetsuya came up with a compromise: "Ririko, have you seen Steins;Gate?"

Karuta and Ao looked bewildered, while Ririko nodded.

“Runa showed me this before.”

"That'll be easy."

Uesugi Tetsu smiled and said that if Karuto and the others didn't understand, they could just write it down and watch the anime later.

"Simply put, what I need to do is make the numbers behind the world line change as much as possible, and for me, this change in numbers is linear."

I can also benefit greatly from this.

"So the reason I sought out Imagawa Yoshimoto is that, in the original history, she was a daimyo who was directly opposed to Oda Nobunaga."

"Secondly, her personal abilities are truly remarkable; I'm completely impressed by her."

Uesugi Tetsu shrugged.

"However, I only recently realized something."

He paused for a moment, then said seriously, "I can't let the world line experience any particularly serious or huge jumps, because that would lead to unforeseen circumstances."

In the past, when he was weak and inexperienced, he was carefree and thought about overthrowing Oda, the Monkey King, and Tokugawa just for a reward. He wanted to cause trouble.

But now he understands that changing history is not something to be done recklessly.

Otherwise, who knows what might happen—if he comes back and finds that the mortal world has already descended, then he's doomed.

Even ghosts and gods are not among them, and what are their strengths compared to the mortal world?
Therefore, the correct approach is not to change the original course of history, to kill those important figures, or to destroy those key moments.

Rather, it leaves a trace.

Simply put, it means ensuring the overall direction while exerting one's own influence.

Whether overt or covert.

Uesugi Tetsu raised an eyebrow—If that's the case, could the Imagawa clan be the first power in the Sengoku period to prepare for war in the Tokoyo five hundred years ahead of schedule?
That's quite an idea.

After all, no matter how powerful you became during the Warring States period, or how great your influence was, in the end, you were nothing more than a handful of dust when the world was only in the initial stages of recovery.

It's just a town mayor who oversees dozens of villages; let whoever wants the job take it!
It's different now.

To revive in the mortal world, one must first conquer all beings of the same era.

It would be even more interesting to conquer the world alongside the overlords of thousands of years ago and all those demons, monsters, and evil spirits.

If successful, becoming a god or ancestor is not impossible.

If Imagawa Yoshimoto succeeds, then wouldn't I be...?

As he thought about it, Uesugi Tetsu couldn't help but smile more, which made Ririko feel a chill. She then delivered a sharp chop to his head from a distance.

This strike snapped Uesugi Tetsuya out of his reverie.

"Cough cough."

Uesugi Tetsuya put aside this immature idea for the time being: "As for why I would do this, it's not convenient to say."

Ririko looked at him and suddenly asked, "Since Okabe Motonobu has come to our door, does that prove that Imagawa Yoshimoto is already in Tokoyo..."

"I understand."

She revealed a genuine look of realization, as if she understood everything.

"Uesugi-kun, you have two options: first, you need to complete the 'Walking Adult' mission; second... go back in time to play the game of raising an empress, and then cling to her powerful backer now, right?"

Ririko nodded approvingly: "If there really is a powerful figure, I'll definitely latch onto them too!"

—She saw right through me!?

Uesugi Tetsuya was deeply shaken.

However, he didn't show any expression, but instead changed the subject and said, "Also, at that time, Imagawa Yoshimoto and I exorcised the incarnation of illness that came to the mortal world wanting to do bad things."

Upon hearing this, not only Ririko, but even Ao, who had been listening silently to the side, straightened up.

In awe.

The exorcism of the eight sufferings and their manifestations is an achievement worthy of praise in any era.

Qing did some calculations—five hundred years ago, according to them, was precisely the period when heaven and earth were reviving.

If we had allowed that manifestation of illness, which could easily conceal its existence, to run rampant back then, it might have caused a great disaster by now, as the illness has been dormant.

He nodded earnestly: "That was indeed camaraderie, I'm saved."

Ririko also breathed a sigh of relief, quite agreeing.

At this moment, the black book outside trembled violently and even emitted a faint, painful scream that resembled a human voice.

【Ah ah ah ah ah--】

The bloody words appeared on the pages, only to be quickly stained and corroded by an ominous blackness that consumed the entire page.

Uesugi Tetsu strangely detached himself from his Qi Sea and looked at Karuta's hand.

At this moment, the black book, which was being corroded by clumps of black slime gushing from its center, was thrown to the ground by Karudo as if he had been electrocuted, and it was trembling incessantly.

Lines of identical blood-red characters appear and disappear.

[It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts...]

This terrifying sight persisted until a purer, more pristine black emerged from the black book before disappearing.

Lord Mokujin's contingency plan easily swallowed up this backlash.

Fortunately, Karuto was not implicated. Only about ten pages of the black book were corroded, and it has already begun to regrow, so it is not a big problem.

Uesugi Tetsu's eyes were cold.

After he broke free, he immediately recognized the source of the black, slimy substance.

He remembered it clearly.

Without a doubt, it is the suffering of illness!
Uesugi Tetsu realized that Imagawa Yoshimoto's problems were actually related to his illness.

But from beginning to end, until he killed the sick, Imagawa Yoshimoto never even appeared in the other's sight or perception range!

The only connection might be the words spoken by the suffering being before death.

"If I die, the curse of my last wish will befall you all."

However, as the one who slew the illness, he has not felt any curse so far, so he did not take these words seriously, only as the words of a loser trying to get revenge.

Unexpectedly, the curse bypassed him, which was right in front of him, and landed directly on Imagawa Yoshimoto!
Uesugi Tetsu's face twitched uncontrollably, and a savage killing intent surfaced in his eyes.

These damned things, even when they're dead they can't find peace!
(End of this chapter)