The Twelve Trials Starting from Zero

Chapter Twenty-Six: I have a cheat code; that's how confident I am.

So-called spiritual power is the power of the soul.

In Liuli's explanation, spiritual power and the magical power of mages and monks are essentially the same thing, only the methods of use and descriptions differ, hence the different names. Among martial artists, it is more commonly referred to as "psychic power," the power of intention.

The unique demonic power of monsters is different from that of humans because their souls are more animalistic. So, while the essence is the same, the nature is different and the demonic power is more aggressive.

As for the function of spiritual power, it is to distort reality with one's own will. Because the methods of cultivation are different, the ways of distorting reality are different, and the effects are also different, which has given rise to various different professions such as Taoist priests, sorcerers, monks, witches, warriors, priests, wizards, and shamans.

In Su Qi's perception, spiritual energy was not like the internal energy in martial arts novels, which is a kind of gas, nor water, nor a solid, but a special kind of fluctuation that radiates from the inside out.

This fluctuation changes in frequency and form according to the user's intentions. Under certain conditions, it can distort reality and perform things that seem miraculous to ordinary people, such as... cutting through steel with a wooden sword.

Clang!

A blurry vertical shadow flashed, and the old iron helmet in mid-air suddenly cracked open, not by being dented, but by being cut in two and falling to the ground.

"It still doesn't work, the cut is too rough."

Su Qi, carrying a wooden sword, stepped forward, picked up half of the iron helmet, looked at the uneven cut, and frowned slightly.

More than half a month had passed since he mastered the Thirty-Six Forms of Yoga. In order to strengthen and better control his spiritual power, he began practicing the Acala Vidyaraja (Fudō Myō-ō) meditation. Cutting iron with a wooden sword was one of the exercises in his practice.

However, compared to the Thirty-Six Forms of Yoga, the progress in learning the Acala Vidyaraja (Fudō Myō-ō) is somewhat unsatisfactory.

Wholeheartedly... These four words are easy to say, but extremely difficult to do.

Compared to when he first came into this world, Su Qi has undergone a lot of trials and tribulations and has lost much of his impetuousness. However, he is still far from being ascetic and tempering his mind and body like those high monks who have practiced asceticism for many years.

Cultivating the mind is not like swordsmanship or breathing techniques, which have tangible forms and cannot be accomplished in a short time. On the contrary, the more restless one is, the worse the effect will be. Therefore, although he has been able to enter a meditative state for more than half a month, he has only just stepped into the threshold.

“You’re fast enough.” Liuli appeared behind Su Qi. “Of all the people I know, you’re the fastest learner. Even He Yan is far faster than you.”

"But it's not fast enough."

Su Qi threw down his helmet, turned to face Liuli, and asked, "Is there any way to speed things up?"

Liuli frowned slightly. "Is it in such a hurry?"

"It's urgent."

He was indeed in a hurry because the later the game went, the stronger both Inuyasha's group and Naraku's side would become, as if they had been given a cheat code. Therefore, the early stage was the best time for him to intervene.

How urgent?

"I'm so anxious..." Su Qi said, then, realizing something, immediately asked, "Do you have a way to help me speed up my cultivation?"

Liuli didn't answer, but frowned and pondered for a moment before finally saying slowly, "Yes, but it's very dangerous."

"It's okay, I'm not afraid of danger!"

“I know…” the girl rolled her eyes, “You’re super brave, right?”

“That’s right, so you don’t need to have any concerns…”

Before he could finish speaking, Liuli interrupted him, saying irritably, "How could I not have any concerns? If my suggestion causes your death, I... I would feel guilty."

"Huh?" Su Qi looked surprised. "Could it be that, Miss Liuli, you... are worried about me?"

"Of course," the girl sneered. "If you die, where am I supposed to find such a useful shield?"

"What?! So I was just a shield?" Su Qi exclaimed in shock, clutching his chest with a hurt expression, "I'm so sad, I thought..."

What do you think?

"I thought I was at least a handsome man, don't you think I could be used in many other interesting ways?"

"I'm leaving." The girl suddenly turned stern and walked away. "You can practice here by yourself."

"Qiao Dou Sack!!"

With a snap, Su Qi leaped forward, grabbing the girl's slender, white ankle, and skillfully admitted defeat, "I was wrong, I was really wrong, I shouldn't have said those lewd things, please, Miss Liuli, forgive me just this once! Please!"

When her private parts were suddenly grabbed by a man, the girl's cheeks instantly flushed with a faint blush. She then suppressed the inexplicable tension that arose in her heart and said indifferently, "Let go of my hand first."

It's a pity she was wearing culottes instead of a short skirt...

Su Qi glanced up discreetly, feeling regretful but maintaining an indifferent expression as he released his grip and stood up.

The moment the hand left, the girl breathed a sigh of relief, then said somewhat casually, "If you want to temper your mind and improve your visualization skills, there is indeed a 'quick way,' which is combat... intense combat, urgent combat, combat where life and death hang in the balance."

"fighting?"

"Battle is when the mind is most focused, and the most terrifying thing in the world is death. So, constantly fighting and using death to temper one's mind is the fastest shortcut to cultivating an unyielding mind."

"I see." Su Qi said thoughtfully. "So my best option now isn't to stay home and meditate, but to go out and fight?"

"But people die in battle!" Liuli warned seriously, "Can you guarantee you'll survive every battle to the end?"

Su Qi's answer to this was...

"Of course."

He answered without hesitation, because with the amulet on his person, he could indeed do it.

Liuli, however, didn't believe her and asked with a skeptical look, "Where do you get your confidence from?"

Su Qi didn't answer, but pointed to his face and said seriously, "Liuli, do I look like someone who has lost all will to live and is looking for death?"

Liuli stared at him for a moment, then sighed softly, "Alright, although he's an oddball, he certainly doesn't seem like someone who wants to die. Perfect, if you're looking for intense battles, here's an opportunity that might suit you."

"What opportunity?"

"Demon Extermination Request"

……

Half an hour later, Su Qi, Liu Li, Muto Ishii, and Yamada Yasuhiro gathered in the reception room at the back of the dojo.

Why are you here too?

Ruri glanced at Yamada Yasuhiro, who had arrived uninvited, and frowned slightly.

The latter smiled and said naturally, "Because Miss Liuli wants to discuss the commission, right? I am one of the people who will take over."

"What? You've already taken over?"

"That's true."

Liuli's eyes flickered slightly as she looked at Shijing. "He took over first?"

The latter nodded in confirmation.

"No!" Her face turned cold as she stared at Yamada Yasuhiro and said decisively, "This request cannot be taken by you."

The latter showed no weakness, but her smile vanished instantly, and she said expressionlessly, "So, Miss Liuli, as the acting teacher, is going to break the rules on her own initiative?"

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Making Trouble

The rules in the dojo dictate that exorcism requests are handled on a first-come, first-served basis. Each request is usually handled by two to three disciples. The disciple who takes on the task first has the lead, while the later disciples act as assistants and must follow the leader's instructions during the operation.

Liuli's position should be that of a "manager." If she intervenes, kicks out the leader first, and then assigns someone else to take over the task, it can certainly be considered a violation of the rules.

“Even so…” Glancing at Su Qi out of the corner of her eye, Liu Li said resolutely, “I will not allow you to be the leader of this mission.”

She knew very well that Yamada Taihiro harbored ill intentions towards Su Qi. Moreover, last time, Kazuhiko had gone on a mission with him in a similar way, only to die mysteriously at the hands of a monster. How could she possibly make the same mistake again?

"Heh..." Yamada Yasuhiro chuckled ambiguously, then looked at Su Qi. "Is it all for him?"

"Wait, Senior Taihong, Miss Ruri, it's just a demon-slaying request, why get so worked up over such a small thing?" Seeing the atmosphere getting tense, Ishii tried to smooth things over. "How about this, Senior Taihong will take charge of this request, and Kenshin and I will go out for training another time?"

Originally, he was asked by Liuli to take Su Qi, a novice, out for training, but now it seems he can only wait for another opportunity.

“No need,” Su Qi interjected at this moment, smiling slightly. “Let me go with Senior Yamada this time.”

Then he turned to Yamada Yasuhiro and asked, "Yamada-senpai, you don't have any objections, do you?"

"Of course, I'm worried that I'm not capable enough on my own. If Kenshin could come, I would be more than happy to have him."

This was exactly what the latter wanted, and he immediately agreed with a smile.

But as soon as I finished speaking, suspicion arose in my heart. Strange, he couldn't possibly not know that I didn't have good intentions towards him, so why did he volunteer to take on the same mission as me? Did he have something else to rely on, and wasn't afraid that I would do something sabotage during the mission? Yes, that must be it.

Hmph, utterly foolish! My preparations are flawless. Given the opportunity, no matter how talented you are, you'll never be a match for me. Just wait, your inexplicable confidence will lead to your demise!

"Sword Heart!" Liuli frowned, looking at Su Qi with some incomprehension. "Why did you do this? Are you in such a hurry?"

The latter did not answer, but simply looked into her eyes, his gaze clear, and said earnestly, "Trust me, okay?"

After a moment of silence, Ruri suddenly turned to Yamada Yasuhiro, "Three people, bring Ishii along too."

“Sure.” Yamada Yasuhiro readily agreed. “If Ishii can come along, I’ll be even more confident.”

What I was really thinking was...poor thing, another junior is going to die. Ishii, blame Ruri if you have to. If it weren't for her, you wouldn't have had to die...

……

That night, in a village near the city.

"Here's what happened..." After dinner, the village chief explained the situation to the three in the Japanese-style reception room. "Starting three days ago, every day someone in the house was beheaded and died silently in their room. After asking around and asking the servants, no one heard a sound. They only smelled blood and found the body when they woke up in the morning."

"Is that all?" Su Qi frowned slightly. "Didn't you arrange for anyone to keep watch at night?"

"It was indeed arranged, but it had no effect at all. The night watchmen all said that they fell asleep without realizing it as soon as night fell and slept soundly until dawn, without hearing any noise at all."

"Have you ever thought about moving out of this house?"

"No, no, no, how can that be?! This is a house left by our ancestors, we absolutely cannot give it up."

"What if someone else dies?"

"Anyway, they're just a few servants, it's no big deal."

They were just a few servants...

Because of their differing values, Su Qi was disgusted by the client's disregard for human life. However, he was not a saint and understood that this was the way of the world, and that trying to change things on his own would be like trying to put out a fire with a drop in the ocean. So he stopped thinking about the topic and continued, "What if that monster comes after you? What will you do?"

"That's precisely why I've invited you all here." The village chief lowered his head and said, seemingly flattering but actually provoking, "I've heard that the warriors in the Changgu Dojo are highly skilled in swordsmanship, even capable of slaying ghosts and gods. I imagine that these mere little monsters are no match for you gentlemen."

Su Qi didn't respond immediately, but instead said, "Whether it can be resolved depends on the specific situation. How about this, we'll stay and keep watch tonight to see if we can catch that monster..."

As he spoke, he turned to look at Yamada Yasuhiro, who had been smiling and quietly watching the interaction between the two, and casually said, "Yamada-senpai, you don't have any objections to my arrangement, do you?"

"Okay, let's do it that way."