Tokyo, the shady intelligence of private detectives

Chapter 165 Sado is coming

Yuzuru Masahiro was taken aback. "This cliffside temple and ancient spirit site was actually donated by Abu Ruri?"

The old monk nodded. "Yes, originally this cliff temple only had caves and nothing else. This outer courtyard was built after Abu Liuli donated money."

"Since this outer courtyard was built, she has come here to stay every few months, sometimes for three to five days, sometimes for several months. Therefore, I am quite familiar with Benefactor Abululi. She lived here a year ago and has not returned since. How could she have disappeared?"

Masahiro Hanyu didn't drink his tea immediately, his fingertips lightly touching the warm rim of the cup: "Abu Mizure suddenly lost all contact with her sister. She tried the method they had agreed on before, placing a trivial marriage advertisement in the bottom left corner of the social news section on page three of the Mainichi Shimbun—their secret way of contact. But after posting it multiple times, she received no reply."

"I am a private investigator."

The old monk frowned slightly, and his withered fingers curled up on his knees.

"We need to hire a detective. Things seem to be getting serious. I'll tell you everything I can think of."

"Actually, when Abuli came to stay this time, I felt that her condition was somewhat abnormal."

"I remember that when she used to come, she would always meditate by the pond in the early morning, facing the rising sun, and sit for an hour at a time. But this time, she hardly left her room."

Yuzuru Masahiro leaned forward slightly: "What kind of abnormality? Please explain in detail, Master."

The old monk thought for a moment, "She came at dusk, wearing a wide-brimmed cloth hat with the brim pulled low. I welcomed her into the temple, and only in the candlelight could I see clearly—her face was terribly swollen, and her eyebrows and eyes had become unfamiliar. I asked her if she needed to see a doctor, but she only said that it was nothing serious and that it would subside in a few days."

"And then?" Masahiro Hanyu asked.

"From the second day onward, she wore a white wooden mask that only revealed her eyes and lips. The mask was exquisitely crafted and fit the curve of her cheekbones as if it were custom-made for her."

A white wooden mask! Yuzuru Masahiro thought of the White Peach Dharma King; her mask was made of white wood and fit perfectly. Could it be that the masks of the founders of the Fusheng Society were all identical?

The old monk lowered his voice, "When I asked again, Abululi still refused to say more, only telling me not to worry and that I would recover. But she never took off her mask until the day she left."

Yuzuru Masahiro's finger hovered over the edge of the teacup. He had a vague feeling that it must contain clues to finding Abu Ruri, but he couldn't be sure.

"Is there anything else unusual?" he continued to press.

The old monk remained silent for a moment, then turned his gaze to a yellowed scripture scroll on the shelf: "This time, Benefactor Liuli came to ask me about some secret techniques of the Shugendo. She asked very detailed questions, about methods of changing one's voice, and about techniques of adjusting one's bones and muscles. She said she wanted to understand whether, in the ultimate state of Yin and Yang harmony, the physical body can truly transcend its original form."

Yuzuru Masahiro felt a slight chill; those techniques sounded more like some kind of method to change one's identity. Voice alteration, bone modification—was Abu Ruri hiding, or was she preparing to do something else?

"Master, I'd like to go check out the room she stayed in; perhaps we can find some missing clues." Yuzuru Masahiro stood up.

The old monk nodded and led him out the door, through the corridor, to a meditation room on the east side of the courtyard facing the pond.

The paper door was opened, and the last rays of the setting sun flooded into the room, where dust motes floated silently in the light.

The room was extremely simple: a low bed covered with a faded blue cloth mattress, a low table in the corner with a tea canister on it, and a dried calamus in the niche.

Several Buddhist scriptures were scattered on the bookshelf in the corner. Masahiro Yuzuru flipped through them one by one. They were all common printed editions, without annotations or interlocking pages.

He bent down and began to examine every part of the room, from under the bed to the seams of the floor and the edges of the tatami mats, leaving no stone unturned, but found nothing.

Yuzuru Masahiro's gaze fell on the tea canister. He picked it up and opened it; there was still a little less than half a canister of tea inside. He brought it close and smelled it, and a thought struck him—the scent was somewhat familiar.

He held up the tea canister. "Master, have you drunk the tea from this canister?"

The old monk nodded slightly, "I've had it before, but I'm not used to it. You may have a taste, benefactor."

The two returned to the meditation room, where the old monk used the tea from the tea caddy to brew another pot of tea. Hot water was poured into the rough earthenware pot, and the tea water turned a clear, bright green, releasing a refreshing aroma.

Before the tea leaves had fully steeped, Masahiro Hanyu took a small sip, and then his movements stopped.

This tea has a rich aroma with a crisp minerality, and a subtle salty taste of the sea in the aftertaste.

"This is—Holy Tea!" he blurted out. He had felt it was familiar earlier, and now he was absolutely certain. However, after drinking it, he did not experience that sense of dizziness, and there were no drugs from the Fusheng Society mixed into the tea.

The old monk looked puzzled. "Holy tea? This is just ordinary tea that Abululli brought from the island where she lives. She never mentions the name of the island, only saying that this tea is grown all over the island, and that its taste is different from other places because of the sea breeze and fog."

Masahiro Hanyu clearly recalled Officer Yamamoto's words: The tea used in the sacred tea ceremony is called "Sado Zairai".

This tea is a unique variety from Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture. It is cultivated in a small area and produced in very small quantities. Due to the unique island climate, the leaves contain special mineral salts and a sweet aftertaste after being moistened by the sea breeze. It is rarely available on the market, and even seasoned tea connoisseurs may not have tasted it.

Masahiro Hanyu is now certain that the island where Abruri is living in seclusion is Sado Island. The Holy Tea of ​​the Fusang Society and Abruri...

It has something to do with glass.

There was no need for him to reveal his thoughts to the old monk.

He put down his teacup and looked at the old monk: "Master, please tell me more about the human-faced stone statue."

The old monk's gaze seemed to pierce through the wall and look towards the courtyard. "I used to practice in a cave behind the mountain. After the outer courtyard of this cliff temple was built, it was Abu Liuli who invited me here. At that time, there were already these two human-faced stone statues."

"Ancient spiritual sites for practicing Taoism often use yin and yang statues to guard the two polarities. The male stone statue in the front courtyard pond is yang, exposed to the sunlight, symbolizing the practitioner's outward seeking and establishing themselves with strength."

"The female statue deep in the cliff cave represents yin, hidden in the darkness, symbolizing introspection and cultivating one's character with gentleness and resilience."

"The two images face each other from afar, one outside and one inside, one bright and one dark, which is the ultimate test of the cultivation of Tao, the balance of Yin and Yang, and the harmony of Heaven and Earth."

Yuzuru Masahiro asked, "But I saw stone statues in the cave that not only had human faces, but also complete bodies, and those bodies were androgynous. The master said that they didn't exist from the beginning!"

The old monk nodded slightly. "Yes, it was originally just a stone statue of a woman with a human face. I saw it when I came to this ancient spiritual site before."

"When the outer courtyard was completed, the stone statues in the cliff cave were carved into androgynous shapes."

Yuzuru Masahiro looked puzzled. "The outer courtyard was built with money donated by Abu Ruri. Did she alter the statues inside this cliff?"

A deep, misty look appeared in the old monk's eyes. "It's not Abu Liuli, but it's related to her."

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