Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 192 Blood Owl Lord's Weakness and the Terrifying Edo
At this moment...

Tang Min was terrified when she faced Yu Tianlun.

“If you can divulge some valuable information, I’ll let you go.” Yu Tianlun pointed his peach wood sword at her. “Otherwise, I’ll kill you right now and exchange you for a bloody key.”

Tang Min knew that betraying the Bloodthirsty Team would have serious consequences. The problem was, if she didn't speak up, Yu Tianlun would definitely kill her immediately.

Who is Yu Tianlun? Killing her would be as easy as playing a game for him.
"I said, I said!"

"I need Blood Lord's core intelligence."

"Ugh?"

"Speak," Yu Tianlun deliberately feigned, "I'm now certain that you possess the Blood Lord's weakness."

She's a healer, which is essentially the team doctor. With that kind of background, she might actually know something.

Whether there are dates or not, let's play a couple of rounds first, and if there aren't any, we'll see.

"How could I possibly know..."

"You mean my information was wrong?"

Yu Tianlun's voice turned cold.

"me……"

Jiang Jin raised his gun behind Yu Tianlun and pointed it at Tang Min's head: "Commander, I think we should just kill her."

"I'll talk, I'll talk!"

Tang Min was terrified. After all, she didn't know Jiang Jin's personality. What if he just opened fire?
Say?
In other words, does she really know anything?
"Speak," Jiang Jin said coldly. "If you don't speak within three seconds, I'll send you to meet the King of Hell right now."

"Yes, yes! The Blood Lord's weakness is... he will suffer from the backlash of the Seed Demon!"

A ghost?

Back then, it was widely known that the Blood Lord suffered a backlash from using forbidden techniques. However, the imperial court had kept the information under wraps, and no one knew exactly what kind of forbidden technique the Blood Lord had used.

"Tell me more specifically."

Then, Tang Min began to speak her mind, like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.

Back then, when Blood Lord was one of the founding members of the Insect Nest team, he was demoted to the Misty Swamp branch by Lady Pustuca, and the resources he received were no different from those of a rank-and-file member. Although he was very talented, advancing to LV3 was naturally extremely difficult.

What frustrated Blood Lord the most was Sima Jin's promotion. Sima Jin, whose talent was far inferior to his, actually made up for his shortcomings through hard work and became LV3 before him.

It's okay if your friends are doing better than you, but if they're doing too well, it's hard to maintain a balanced mindset. After Sima Jin's promotion celebration banquet, Blood Lord vented his frustrations alone at the training ground until the early hours of the morning.

That night, for the first time, the Blood Lord felt a deep resentment towards his own abilities. He stared at the beads of blood seeping from his wrist, as if they were mocking his incompetence.

A crazy idea sprouted in his mind: if the righteous path is blocked, then what about forbidden techniques?
In certain terrifying dungeons, by completing some very dangerous hidden quests, you can obtain alternative cultivation paths from NPCs. In the terrifying dungeon of Qingtan Community, Blood Lord found a cultivation manual called "Netherworld Records" that detailed the forbidden technique of "Ghost Seedling".

The opening of "The Records of the Netherworld" warns: "The art of planting ghosts goes against the will of Heaven. The practitioner must use themselves as a vessel to feed the ghosts as seeds. With each advancement, there is a risk of backlash. If one is not careful, one will become indistinguishable from a ghost and turn into a walking corpse."

But at this moment, Blood Lord was blinded by jealousy and ambition; he saw not warning, but hope.

The core of the forbidden technique of planting ghosts lies in "feeding ghosts with one's own body"—the practitioner needs to find a fresh corpse that has just died and inject his own blood into the heart of the corpse through a special ritual, so that it becomes a "ghost seed".

Subsequently, the cultivator must regularly feed the ghost seed with a certain amount of SAN points each month, allowing the ghost energy to gradually integrate into the depths of their soul. When the ghost energy accumulates to a certain level, the cultivator will face the "Ghost Tribulation." Successfully overcoming the tribulation will break through the limitations, resulting in a qualitative leap and advancement!
At that moment, the Blood Lord was overjoyed, feeling that this was tailor-made for him. He stroked the faded words on the ancient book, his eyes gleaming with a sickly light.

He relentlessly hunted down reincarnators in secret, obtaining their corpses.

Then, according to the Records of the Underworld, he cut his own wrist and let his blood drip into the runes carved on the corpse's chest. When the last syllable of the incantation fell, the corpse would open its eyes and transform into a ghost.

Next, Blood Lord continued to feed his ghost seed. As the ghost energy gradually merged into his superpower core, he felt his abilities undergoing subtle changes—the originally bright red bloodline began to turn a strange bluish-black, and the range and intensity of his control were significantly improved.

However, it wasn't just his abilities that changed. Blood Lord found himself having nightmares, in which a woman with an indistinct face stood by his bedside, stroking his face with cold fingers. Even more terrifying, he sometimes saw his reflection in the mirror, displaying a smile that wasn't his own.

When the first Ghost Tribulation struck, the Blood Lord experienced excruciating pain, worse than death. But because of this, he elevated himself to near-LV3 strength, equivalent to Wu Qin's level! Many LV2s can't even reach this level, while over 60% of near-LV3 reincarnators can truly enter the LV3 rank!

However, after a mission, Sima Jin stopped Blood Lord and began to see some clues.

Blood Lord appeared calm on the surface, but inwardly he was in turmoil. He knew that Sima Jin was always upright, and if he discovered the truth, he might very well report him.

Although he initially managed to deceive them, Sima Jin was more cautious than the Blood Lord had imagined. After several tests, Sima Jin finally confirmed the Blood Lord's heinous act of assassinating reincarnators, compiled it into a report, and submitted it to the Meme Contamination Monitoring Department.

The imperial court's punishment for users of the forbidden Ghost Seed Technique is extremely severe. Soul Masters are a common profession chosen by reincarnators, and the Ghost Seed Technique could lead many to take shortcuts, but the cost is a significantly reduced chance of advancing to LV5. For the imperial court, cultivating one more LV5 reincarnator is of utmost importance.

However, since Blood Lord is a near-LV3 reincarnator, it would be a pity to kill him directly, so he was put into the completely rule-based dungeon - "The Note Left by Mom" ​​- a strange tale of rules.

Of course, everyone knows what happened next.

After this incident, Blood Lord was promoted to LV3, established the Bloodthirsty Team, and adopted the title "Blood Lord".

However, as his power increased, the side effects of the forbidden ghost-planting technique became increasingly severe. After he advanced to LV4 Soul Prison Master, on the 13th of each month, known as the "Backlash Day," the ghost energy within Blood Owl's body would become extremely unstable, requiring treatment from a specialized healer.

"So that means that on the 13th of every month, due to the backlash of ghostly energy, the Blood Lord's SAN value will drop drastically?"

“Yes,” Tang Min said, trembling, “I absolutely did not lie! This is Blood Lord’s greatest weakness!”

"He didn't order you to keep it a secret?"

"Of course, but the Soul Imprint's command has a time limit. If the time interval is too long, the command's effectiveness may weaken. He will change the Zhu You reincarnator who implants the Soul Imprint every month. No one knows which Zhu You will be responsible for the treatment the day before. This is to prevent anyone from harming him in advance. But as a result, the interval between each command will also become longer."

That's it!

Yu Tianlun was overjoyed! Without a doubt, the Blood Lord absolutely did not want this secret to be known to the outside world!
……

On the second-floor bar of the izakaya, several jugs of warm sake were placed.

Yu Tianlun and Matsuzaki Ken sat down at a table and began to drink together.

Matsuzaki Ken poured Yu Tianlun a glass of wine with respectful and practiced movements. He bowed slightly and said, "Mr. Yu, in Japan, when pouring wine, you can't just fill your own glass; you have to fill the guest's glass first. This is the etiquette of 'motenashi' (hospitality)."

Yu Tianlun nodded his thanks and took a small sip.

Matsuzaki Ken noticed Yu Tianlun's gaze fixed on the katana at his waist. The scabbard was jet black, intricately engraved with patterns, clearly indicating it was a renowned sword. Yu Tianlun asked with interest, "This sword seems quite extraordinary?"

Matsuzaki Ken smiled slightly, his fingers gently tracing the scabbard, a look of nostalgia appearing in his eyes: "This is my family heirloom sword, named 'Oborozuki-yo'. My ancestors were swordsmiths during the Taisho era. At that time, although Bushido had already declined, swords were still the symbol of the Bushido spirit."

He paused, his tone becoming serious, "The Taisho era was the last romantic era for samurai, and then... everything changed."

Yu Tianlun listened quietly, and Matsuzaki Ken continued, "My idol since childhood is Kenshin Himura from 'Rurouni Kenshin.' Although he was a 'man-slayer,' he ultimately chose the path of atonement. Unfortunately, in real Japan, there are many people who are still unwilling to face the sins of the past."

His voice lowered as he said, "Lord Yu, there is something I don't know if you are aware of. Heian-kyo has sent an envoy to your country, actually hoping to invite your country to station troops in our country."

"Is that so?" Yu Tianlun was a little surprised.

“Yes, ever since the Edo Incident five years ago, we have known that we cannot rely on Uncle Sam to protect us. And as for the stationing of troops, there is actually a legal basis for it.”

Matsuzaki Ken took a deep breath and slowly said, "In 1941, according to the arrangements of the Allied powers after the war, Tokyo should have been jointly administered by China, the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union, similar to the four-power occupation model in Berlin. Your country's government has never abolished this clause, so legally, your country's government still has the right to station troops in Japan."

"This kind of operation is possible?" Yu Tianlun studied law in college, but he hadn't researched international law. "Does the Heian-kyo court mean that the Yanjing court will send troops to garrison Edo?"

"Not bad!"

How could the Imperial Guards of Yanjing be allowed to station troops in Edo?
This is simply unbelievable!

"But...given the current danger level in Edo..."

"So it's still under negotiation. If this clause is fully implemented, your country's troops could even be stationed in Nagoya and Osaka."

Yu Tianlun wanted to ask, "You seem to really want foreign troops to be stationed in your country," but then he thought, "They're Japanese..." Well, that's not surprising.

Uncle Sam is now preparing to withdraw completely.

"Furthermore, we hope that your country can station troops in our country for an extended period," Matsuzaki Ken poured another glass of wine. "As reincarnators, we can still learn about the situation at the Imperial Court. And we promise that, as long as your country agrees, before the troops arrive, that building in Edo will definitely be demolished! Demolished completely!"

"Are you talking about that...toilet thing?"

"Toilet... Ah yes, yes, it's that kind of toilet!"

Yu Tianlun slowly drank his wine, nodded, and said, "Tell me about the situation in Edo."

Matsuzaki Ken's fingers unconsciously traced the rim of his wine glass, his gaze gradually becoming serious.

"Edo fell five years ago, and it still feels terrifying to think about it now... At first, there was a sudden outbreak of large-scale meme contamination in the Tokyo metropolitan area, which was roughly a form of mass hysteria... Of course, we now know that it was not hysteria."

"Initially, it was just a strange video circulating online—the video showed a man in a suit repeatedly bowing. People who watched for more than 30 seconds would start to unconsciously imitate his movements until their cervical spine broke."

“At first, the government thought it was just a routine meme contamination, but soon, things got out of control.” His fingers tapped lightly on the table, the rhythm like a countdown. “Shadow passengers appeared in the subway station. They wore Showa-era uniforms and held old yen tickets. If someone spoke to them, they would disappear, and the person who spoke to them would become one of them after 24 hours.”

"Within three days, all 23 wards of Tokyo fell. The Cabinet urgently issued the 'Oedo Special Ward' decree, declaring Tokyo a 'no-go zone for irreversible meme contamination,' and the Imperial Family and the Imperial Court collectively moved the capital to Heian-kyo in the Kansai region."

Matsuzaki Ken sighed and said, "Edo now... is truly a demonic realm. For example, the tap water sometimes has a pale blue fluorescence, and after boiling, terrifying images of a hundred demons parading at night appear on the surface. When the last Shinkansen train arrives at a station, the announcement will occasionally suddenly interrupt with radio communications from the US military during the Vietnam War. If passengers respond, the train will head to the non-existent Yokota Air Base Station, and the passengers will disappear. And the most terrifying thing is 'history repeating itself'."

“At the Tama purification plant, what was originally the core facility for treating contaminated water has now become a breeding ground for ‘transparency’,” Ken Matsuzaki said in a low voice. “Workers must wear special gas masks, otherwise their bodies will gradually become transparent—not invisible, but their material structure will be broken down by PFAS (perfluoroalkyl substances), just like the land contaminated by US military chemical experiments. The security guards on night patrol say that human-shaped targets at the bottom of the pools will crawl out…”

“Also, at the Shibuya All-Way Crossing… the curse here has precise trigger conditions.” Matsuzaki Ken drew a cross on the table with his liquor. “When the green light comes on, if the pace of people crossing the street is inconsistent, black slime will seep from the ground and devour the last pedestrian. Also, never look at the big screens on the street! They display promotional videos for ‘Ideal Tokyo,’ but these are actually meme carriers. Anyone who watches for more than 10 seconds will be replaced by one of the actors in the video. Last month, five young people went missing, and it was later discovered that they had become ‘smiling office workers’ in the promotional videos, forever repeating ‘Tokyo is safe’ in front of the camera.”

Matsuzaki Ken gulped down a glass of wine, his eyes bloodshot: "Yu-kun, do you know why the Heian-kyo court proactively requested your country to station troops here?"

Without waiting for an answer, he answered his own question: "Most of your country's territory is in a very stable material state. Your national system and the army's rapid rescue are hard for us to believe."

Yu Tianlun asked, "Is your Musashi team studying the patterns of meme contamination in the Edo region?"

Matsuzaki Ken gave a bitter smile: "That's right. We've discovered that these curses have 'regularities.' For example, on the anniversary of the Tokyo bombing, cold ashes fall from the sky, and those who touch them will experience the symptoms of burn victims from Showa 20. If someone enters that... what-what-what toilet, the next day there will inevitably be a 'memory rewind' within a 1-kilometer radius—everyone will repeat the words and actions of the previous day, like a stuck videotape."

Yu Tianlun nodded, using the act of drinking to conceal his true feelings.

It should have been a tragic story, but why do I feel increasingly pleased as I listen to it?
"That's why we have to tear it down!" Matsuzaki Ken suddenly became agitated. "That's not an ordinary building, but an 'anchor point' for meme contamination! As long as it exists, Edo will never be purified!"

That really is the truth.

"A fisherman who was night fishing in Tokyo Bay last December captured this photo."

Ken Matsuzaki pulled up a video on his phone.

In the video, a colossal object is slowly emerging from the surface of Tokyo Bay.

It was a rusty battleship, with the two Chinese characters "Yamato" still faintly discernible on it.

The deck was densely packed with human-shaped black figures, their bodies charred like coals, yet they maintained an orderly formation.

“Watch the turrets,” Matsuzaki Ken’s voice trembled, “they’re firing.”

In the video, the 460mm main gun suddenly turns towards the sky, spewing out eerie flames from its muzzle.

However, there was no whistling of shells, only a sound wave that resembled a wail.

Even more terrifying were the actions of those "crew members"—they mechanically repeated the process of loading, aiming, and firing.

"The person filming said the sea was unusually calm, yet they could smell a strong, acrid burning odor." Matsuzaki Ken turned off the video, cold sweat beading on his forehead. "The strangest thing was that the radar didn't react at all; it was like facing a tangible memory."

"Membrane scientists at the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare believe this is a manifestation of collective resentment. When the Yamato sank, many sailors were boiled alive inside the ship—after the boiler room ruptured, seawater and high-temperature steam..."

“They’ve been appearing more and more frequently lately,” he muttered, “especially when American ships pass by, it’s like a conditioned reflex. Rumors are circulating among the sailors at Yokosuka that they hear artillery orders shouted in Old Japanese during night watch.”

Yu Tianlun noticed that Matsuzaki Ken's left hand was always on the hilt of the knife.

Matsuzaki Ken suddenly lowered his voice: "After the Manhattan meme, the control tower at Haneda Airport received a distress signal using naval codes from 1945... The location data shows the signal originated on the seabed, precisely at the actual sinking location of the Yamato."

The sinking of the battleship Yamato was one of the most symbolic events for the Imperial Japanese Navy at the end of the Pacific War. This super battleship, known as the "unsinkable battleship," was ultimately sunk by American carrier-based aircraft on April 7, 1945, during the Okinawa attack.

At that time, the Japanese Navy had lost air superiority. The Yamato was discovered by American submarines and subsequently bombed by more than 300 American carrier-based aircraft. In the end, the Yamato quickly sank in the waters southwest of Kyushu.

No wonder Uncle Sam fled so quickly after the Manhattan meme... they were afraid of being haunted by these ghosts...

(End of this chapter)