Welcome to the Bizarre Games

Chapter 599 The End
A few days later.

After several days of continuous showers, the rain has finally stopped, and Kyoto is now sunny. Looking around, there is not a cloud in the sky, and the sky is as blue as if it has been washed clean. The scattered puddles reflect the sky, making this famous ancient religious city seem to shine.

All the incidents faded away. For the sake of maintaining stability, the fact that the governor was a high-ranking member of a cult and that he had murdered over a hundred people was not exposed—this may be a bit of an exaggeration, but countless people go missing in Japan every year, and given that it involved religious matters, they simply gave the explanation that he died of a sudden illness.

Although he died, his influence was purged, and the entire Kyoto government, from the highest to the lowest levels, was replaced. However, through certain manipulations, it was done so subtly that few people knew about it in the end.

These days, the most discussed topic in this ancient city is the tragic car accident that killed internationally renowned movie star Maki Aida—yes, probably for the sake of convenience, the reason given by the higher-ups is similar to that given to the governor—followed by the fact that a certain internationally notorious terrorist has finally been apprehended, ending a multi-day manhunt, and finally…
It was at the festival that there was a performance that was clearly beyond the usual standards, but unfortunately, neither the lead nor the supporting actors have been found so far.

Of course, none of this is relevant to Hu Shuang now.

After saying a simple goodbye to Zhou You, she transferred the doubled amount of money—originally, she had planned to give more, since money is just a number to her if she wanted to—but unfortunately, he firmly stated that he would only be paid for the amount of work he did, and he would not accept any more than that.

Recalling that awkward expression, Hu Shuang couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Indeed, people never change, no matter how much time passes."

Walking along the mountain path felt like returning to her hometown, and her steps became lighter and lighter.

This area is located a bit further back on Inari Mountain. It is private property and not open to the public. In fact, without certain special methods, it is impossible to enter this place.

However, Hanlu was quite familiar with this place and could always find winding paths in places that seemed to have no way out—finally, after passing through a dense forest, the view suddenly opened up.

Looking around, one sees a quiet and elegant shrine.

It looks much the same as Fushimi Inari Shrine, both being wooden buildings with fox-shaped stone statues at the entrance, but the style is clearly more Chinese, and it seems to be quite old. Although it is not collapsed, it has a sense of the vicissitudes of time.

It was afternoon, and the sunlight was gently shining on the bluestone path. The occasional mountain breeze made the place feel exceptionally peaceful and serene.

It's just like the legendary Peach Blossom Spring.

Hu Shuang sighed, but just as she was about to walk past the torii gate, she suddenly felt a furry touch at her feet.

Looking down, I realized it was a fox.

To be fair, foxes are not unusual in Inari Mountain—after all, the messenger of the Inari god is the fox, which symbolizes the protection of agriculture. While they may not be rampant, they are certainly ubiquitous in the forest.

But this fox is clearly different.

Its entire body was snow-white, and its two eyes were as blue as the lake water—of course, that's not the point.

The key point is that this fox has two tails growing from its rear end.

Seeing the little guy come closer, Hu Shuang smiled and squatted down to gently stroke his head.

"Little one, what's wrong? Is there something you need?"

The little fox let out a series of coquettish cries, and even rolled over, exposing its belly.

Hu Shuang shook her head, both amused and exasperated, but still went along with his wishes and scratched him for a while before raising her head to look ahead.

The little creature at my feet is just one of many; there are many more playing and frolicking among the shrines—and each fox has two or three tails.

Without a doubt, these are all demons.

Hu Shuang, as if it were commonplace, bypassed the playful fox spirits and walked to the front of the shrine.

Without knocking, they simply pushed the door open.

Inside, the room was filled with smoke, and it seemed that very expensive incense was being burned. The smell was not strong, but it was also refreshing and pleasant.

Upon smelling this scent, Hu Shuang's slightly amused expression turned somber again.

"What are you doing? You just escaped and you're already lighting farewell incense? Are you tired of living and planning to die?"

At the very back of the house, on the altar where the Inari god is worshipped, lies a graceful body.

Upon hearing Hu Shuang's words, the woman lazily sat up without replying. Instead, she yawned and stretched, revealing large swathes of white skin beneath her shrine maiden attire. The woman seemed completely unconcerned, even deliberately straightening her body to show off.

However, seeing this scene that could make any man furious, Hu Shuang's face grew increasingly gloomy. She directly tore a piece of cloth from the curtain next to her and threw it over.

"Don't you have any shame? You're acting like an exhibitionist. Hurry up and get dressed!"

That woman—without a doubt, this was Asakura Masaki, who had previously made contact with Zhou You.

She took the cloth that Hu Shuang threw to her and then smiled.

"This is my own home, after all, and there are no outsiders here. Besides, I'm practically your elder, can't you show me a little more respect?"

Unlike her previous interactions with Zhou You, Masaki Asakura's words sounded quite old-fashioned at this moment—Hu Shuang's attitude towards her words was rather cold.

"This isn't just your home; there are so many children here. Do you want them all to become sluts like you?"

"I didn't mislead them, besides..."

Before she could finish speaking, Hu Shuang said coldly again.

"Besides, you're not my elder. Although our branch is of the same race as yours, we've been separated for thousands of years. Speaking of which, I do have some human blood. Do you expect me to claim kinship with every black person I see in the future?"

"I never imagined you, Xiaoshuang, were a racist."

“I’m not racist, I just hate bastards like you.”

Hu Shuang is usually quite gentle and mild-mannered, even speaking kindly to someone like Aida Maki who suffers from bipolar disorder. However, for some reason, when facing Asakura Masaki, she seems to be on fire, her words full of barbs and veiled threats.

Masaki Asakura was not annoyed at all, and even had the mind to laugh.

"Alright, alright, I know you're prejudiced against me. But think about it, if I hadn't helped you back then, how could you have achieved what you have?"

"—So, I've paid it all off now, haven't I?"

After this blunt remark, the scene suddenly fell silent.

The atmosphere was extremely awkward, but unexpectedly, after two or three minutes, Hu Shuang started the conversation again.

"Speaking of which, your plan was truly brilliant. Even I didn't expect such a move—using the ugly woman of the Yellow Springs to usurp the throne and use the faith of the Inari God for your own purposes. Even if you couldn't become an immortal or a god, at least you would have a means of survival in the great calamities of the future. Unfortunately, you messed it up in the end—a world-renowned great demon almost became a stepping stone in the end. Aren't you afraid of being laughed at?"

Upon hearing the first half of the sentence, Masaki Asakura still smiled smugly, but when she heard the last sentence, her face instantly fell.

"Can we not bring this up? It was an accident, and who would have thought that guy had someone backing him up? It's not a big deal, why do you keep bringing it up?"

Hu Shuang crossed her arms, sneered, and remained silent.

Masaki Asakura quickly found herself at a disadvantage, but fortunately, she was quick-witted and immediately came up with a solution.

She slowly straightened up and smiled. "There's something I find quite strange. I clearly asked you for help, and you should be the one repaying the favor, so why is it someone else who came?"

Hu Shuang remained silent, but Asakura Masaki seemed to have thought of something, and said something with a deeper meaning.

"But whatever, I've been rescued anyway, and although that guy isn't very good-looking, he's totally my type inside, so maybe I can get him."

A glint of cold light appeared first, and a wisp of black hair drifted down.

Masaki Asakura wiped the small cut on his face, then turned to look at the folding fan nailed to the pillar, and suddenly laughed.

That smile was as gentle as ever, but for some reason, it always gave people a sense of hidden gloom.

"Young man, I was only being polite to you out of consideration for our shared clan, and your branch of the family has a long history with mine. Yet you dare to lay a hand on me?"

Hu Shuang, however, didn't care at all.

"If you were at your peak, I naturally wouldn't dare, but how much strength do you have left now? One-tenth, or one-hundredth?"

Masaki Asakura stopped smiling and just stared at Hu Shuang.

But just when everyone thought she would lose her temper, she shook her head.

"Alright, you're right. The price we paid for crossing the sea to the east was too high, and I haven't paid it back yet. But with this foundation, we might be able to make up for it in the future."

Having said that, she lifted her empty robe and strode confidently to the altar.

"Tell me about yourself. What's your side of the story? You seem to really like that kid. I tested him before. Although he has a clear Dao heart, he's still a complete novice. Stop using this hideous disguise. Just show your true form, flirt with him a bit, and you'll have him all to yourself, right?"

Seeing Asakura Masaki suddenly change his tune and start gossiping like a busybody, Hu Shuang was at a loss as to how Yingdai should respond.

She seemed somewhat conflicted, but still sighed and confessed.

"I don't want to use that method. At least not now."

Masaki Asakura laughed.

“But that guy is a complete blockhead—or rather, something has shielded him from all knowledge, preventing him from recognizing it—hiding things like this won’t solve anything. In my opinion, it would be better to be direct with him, or even reveal your identity. That might have a surprising effect.”

Hu Shuang stared speechlessly at the guy giving her random advice, then suddenly turned her head to look at the sunlight outside the shrine.

Then, she revealed a relieved smile, as radiant as blooming flowers.

"He will always be mine, no matter when or where, no matter the cycle of cause and effect, he will ultimately belong to me—it's just that he still has his own destiny to fulfill, until the end."

The girl stretched out her palm and slowly closed it, as if she wanted to grasp the warm sunlight.

—This damn weather! Why is the sun so strong? It's practically killing me with its heat!

As he walked out of the Metropolitan Police Department, wiping the sweat from his brow, Shinichi Domoto cursed under his breath.

He knew that this cleanup would be very troublesome, and he was prepared to deal with all sorts of troublesome things, but he did not expect it to be this troublesome!
For a whole month, he spent his time on a series of tedious and exhausting tasks, such as reporting, self-criticism, reporting, performance review, self-criticism, reporting, and so on.

Faced with the endless stream of difficult questions, he sometimes just wanted to retort with a single sentence.

—Why are you being so hindsight-wise now? If you were so capable, why didn't you promote it back then?

Unfortunately, he didn't dare say those words out loud. In order to keep his job, he could only bow and apologize again and again, swallowing his anger and swallowing his pride, in order to face those who criticized him.

Fortunately, his teacher still had some influence in the underworld, and by disregarding his own reputation, he contacted a bastard through that gangster and begged and pleaded with him to put in a good word for the Asakura family, thus preventing him from having to strip naked and dogeza (a form of kneeling in prayer).

—God knows why there are so many gay guys in the Metropolitan Police Department who stare at his anus with ill intent every day, and they almost blurted out the unspoken rules!

Under the scorching sun, after finally managing to get back to his rented room, Domoto Shinichi threw himself onto the bed, wanting nothing more than to fall asleep and never wake up again.

pity.

Things never go as planned.

The phone rang urgently, and he picked it up listlessly, glancing up at it.

Immediately afterwards, I felt a jolt.

That was his girlfriend.

He hadn't contacted the other party for days because he was busy cleaning up messes—so he ignored his exhaustion and quickly answered the call.

Fortunately, his girlfriend is also a reasonable person.

The complaints were brief at the beginning, but the rest was filled with concern and worry—only after receiving his repeated reassurance did I feel relieved.

"Now that it's resolved, you should get some rest. Don't worry about me; your injuries from last time are almost healed. Yes, thankfully they didn't kill you. That's all for now. Get some sleep, and I'll contact you later."

As they were talking about this, the other person suddenly seemed to remember something and added something else.

"And didn't you ask me to help you find something a few months ago? My uncle happens to have a spare one, which is now at your house. Do you think it's okay?"

Sending something?
Domoto Shinichi scratched his head, and it took him a while to recall.

—Back then, the teacher assigned me some tests, saying that I should study the development of the Three-Way Shinto through faith and vows, so I asked my girlfriend to get me a blank statue, but now…
Not to mention my own, I bet even the teacher has forgotten about this.

After rummaging under the bed for a while, I found a cardboard box—inside was a wooden statue, faceless and undecorated, so much so that it was impossible to tell whether it was male or female.

Although he no longer needed it, this thing was quite expensive, and he couldn't bear to throw it away. Just as Domoto Shinichi was scratching his head, planning to find a place to put it, for some reason, he suddenly had an extremely outrageous idea.

He took out a knife and carved the words "Tai Xuan Fu Mo Xian Sheng Zhen Jun" on the bottom of the statue. He recalled the Han Chinese method of communicating with the gods that he had learned before, tapped his index finger slightly, and then tapped it upwards.

As expected, after waiting for a long time, there was no response.

"I must have been delirious from the heat! That's a True Lord! Even if a deity of that level wasn't corrupted, how could he descend to the mortal realm so easily?"

Shaking his head, he opened the drawer, threw the statue inside, and yawned widely before heading off to sleep.

and so.

He didn't notice either.

It was faintly visible in the gap between the drawers.

It emitted a faint, yet unmistakably real, emanation.
A hazy blue light.

(End of this chapter)