The Infinite Powerhouse Mixed in with Sakura Dormitory

Then Kiba Yuto told Jiang Jing in detail about the monster he had seen last night, whose strength was a bit too strong.

Last night, Kiba Yuuto killed a total of four mutated corrupted creatures. The strongest one was comparable to the peak of a lower-level demon, which is the peak of a one-star level. The other three mutated creatures also had the strength of a mid-one-star level.

"This is very abnormal."

Kiba Yuto frowned and said suspiciously, "The only recorded instance in hundreds of years was the sealing of the Silver Moon-rank evil artifact in Africa three years ago."

"At that time, the area within a radius of a thousand miles was affected and polluted by the evil energy. Countless animals, plants, people, and dead objects were mutated and polluted. Even with the combined efforts of major forces to suppress it, more than a million people were killed or injured."

"The incident had such a huge impact that it was eventually covered up by the excuse that an evil organization was researching chemical poison gas."

"The strongest of the first batch of mutated creatures reached the Silver Moon rank, but according to records, they were only at the mid-stage of the first star when they first mutated. They only became that strong after killing and devouring many people."

Jiang Jing raised an eyebrow: "You mean the sealed evil creature this time is actually at the Silver Moon rank or higher, and the authorities deliberately concealed it or made a mistake?"

"I don't know," Kiba Yuto said with a wry smile.

"Because the seal shattered three years ago, the evil energy leaked out and affected a range of thousands of miles. This time, the minister said it was only a hundred miles. This morning, I checked with some people I know, and the range of pollution and mutation is indeed within this range."

Jiang Jing said calmly, "The area is ten times smaller, but the pollution is stronger. There are only two possibilities: one is that the evil energy leaking from the seal has been artificially restrained, which has caused the local evil energy to be more concentrated and the pollution mutation to be stronger."

"Secondly, that evil creature's strength far exceeds that of a four-star being, but it is currently very weak and has been mistaken for a four-star being. Its power is more condensed, and the evil energy it emits has corrupted those mutated monsters, which is why it is so strong."

Kiba Yuto looked at Jiang Jing with great admiration and said, "I didn't expect Kanda-senpai to see things so clearly. Does senpai know which one it is?"

"How would I know?"

Jiang Jing rolled his eyes and said irritably, "Alright, there's no use thinking about it. Just tell Rias and the others when they get back."

"With their shrewdness, they will surely make the right judgment."

After saying that, Jiang Jing waved his hand and left without paying any attention to Kiba Yuto.

Over the next two days, as the leaked evil energy was purified and neutralized by the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, the hidden underground realm of the extraordinary also quieted down, and nothing major happened in the seemingly peaceful society.

A few days later, Rias and Akeno Himejima returned from the Underworld and called a club meeting.

There wasn't much to say; it was just five people getting together to drink tea and chat. Afterward, Jiang Jing received a gift from Liya—a local specialty from the Underworld, a food item—and the meeting ended.

For the next week, Jiang Jing lived a very peaceful life. He went to school, came home, and then lay on the backyard porch, doing nothing and passing the time. Occasionally, he would casually draw a few original EVA manga sketches.

After finishing the fifteen color illustrations for the second volume of Toradora!, Shiina Mashiro began to adapt the content of the first volume of Toradora! into a manga, and that's when she encountered a problem.

Shiina's drawing skills are fine, but she often falls short in panel transitions and character expressions. The real problem is that her inner world is too bland, which often leads to her portraying a world that is too detached from reality.

Even if there's a story about dragons and tigers, while painting, the great river that should be roaring and furious will suddenly have a quiet, indifferent face appear, instantly ruining the whole atmosphere.

After pointing out the problem to her, Jiang Jing left it to her alone. She had to overcome it on her own, either letting her emotions rise and fall with the story or restraining her mind so as not to interfere with the world she created.

After Misaki Kamiigusa's work was approved in writing, the other members of Sakura-sou were busy again. However, sometimes they would suddenly appear from the sky and jump down from the second floor on a rope to play with Eijiro and Mashiro.

As always, San Tingren spent six nights a week taking turns staying out overnight, yet he never showed signs of physical exhaustion or weakness in his limbs. Even Jiang Jing had to admit that he was strong.

Chihiro Sengoku is the same; she's busy with blind dates after school, but she always wears heavy makeup. I wonder if she really wants to succeed in her blind dates.

As for Ryunosuke Akasaka, no one has seen him since that day. Of course, Jiang Jing knows that he often goes out to use the toilet, eat, and take a bath, but only when no one is around.

"Mr. Kanda, tomorrow is the release date of your work. Are you looking forward to it?" Yuriko Uemura, who came to visit, smiled at Jiang Jing.

Tomorrow is May 1st. Due to its own holidays and the Xia Kingdom's holidays, Japan has started its nine-day Golden Week a day early. In addition, due to the influence of the Xia Kingdom, most countries around the world will be on holiday for the next two weeks.

When asked by Yuriko Uemura, Jiang Jing, who had almost forgotten about the matter, paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "Looking forward to it... I guess so."

"As expected of Kanda-sensei, so confident."

Jiang Jing didn't explain that he had been too lazy to talk about being seen as calm and confident, and that he had almost forgotten about it and didn't care much about it.

Regardless of whether Dragon and Tiger sells tens of millions or millions of copies in this prosperous Japan, the royalties he receives are enough to cover his daily expenses.

"Mr. Kanda, this is the official Weibo account that our company has verified for you." After the pleasantries, Yuriko Uemura got down to business and handed Jiang Jing a piece of paper with the account and password written on it.

"I believe that after tomorrow, many readers and fans who like Dragon and Tiger will want to get to know you. If you have time, you can update and manage your content yourself. Building up popularity will be of great help to your future new works."

"Now Weibo is used as a publicity channel, and many famous novelists and cartoonists interact with their fans on it."

"Uh... Weibo." Jiang Jing blinked as he took the note.

With the widespread adoption of smartphones, many things that were expected have emerged, such as Tencent, the world's most powerful communication platform, and WeChat and Weibo, which also exist in this world.

I never paid attention to the river view before, because it wasn't important.

P.S.: First update! Still asking for votes today, brothers, I need your support! ^-^

Chapter 53 Victory or defeat is not on the battlefield

After taking the note, Jiang Jing looked at the woman opposite him who showed no intention of getting up and leaving, and elegantly and calmly drank her tea. He asked with slight curiosity.

"By the way, haven't those bookstores been heavily promoting that light novel martial arts tournament champion's work on many billboards lately?"

"Even the bestselling author Senju Muramasa lost to him. The advertisement says that this work will be released tomorrow along with the top three winning works."

"There's also some kind of youth campus celebration event. Although it's not as popular as the martial arts tournament, it's still quite a lively event. Several famous campus romance authors have released new books, which will also be available for sale tomorrow."

"These are all events organized by your paperback station. I heard from editor Iida that they seem to be aimed at you. Aren't you worried about this?"

"If you, Kanda-sensei, the author of this work, aren't worried, why should I be?" Uemura Yuriko gently put down her teacup, her beautiful face revealing a confident and proud air of having everything under control.

"And as long as it's within the rules, I don't take these little tricks to heart at all."

"I've read all three of the winning entries from the martial arts competition, and they're really good, especially the one that won the championship, which is specifically about the younger sister. It really appeals to a certain segment of the audience right now."

"However, this work doesn't clash much with Kanda-sensei's style, so there's really no need to worry about it too much."

"As for the campus youth celebration event that they collaborated on with Shinazugawa, the group of romance novelists they invited, who were supposed to be up-and-coming masters, were actually just average-performing writers, and they were not worth worrying about."

At this point, Yuriko Uemura's red lips curled up slightly, and she smiled meaningfully, "Actually, my goal this time is very small. As long as the online publishing department produces a work with a sales volume of three million copies before July, that will be enough."

"And that's all. With the quality of your work, Mr. Kanda, plus Dengeki Bunko's extensive distribution channels throughout Japan, and the vigorous promotion by more than 100 bookstores in over 40 prefectures and Kyoto."

"I'm confident that we don't need to wait until July. After the third volume is released at the end of May, we might be able to reach this goal by mid-June, so there's nothing to worry about."

These words seemed to be spoken to Jiang Jing, yet also to herself. After speaking, Yuriko Uemura's sharp eyes became even more confident.

"Uh... your goal is actually so small?" Jiang Jing blinked, somewhat surprised. He had spent so many resources on such a large-scale promotion, but he hadn't expected Yuriko Uemura's request to be so small.

“There are some things you don’t know, Kanda-sensei, so you won’t understand.” Yuriko Uemura smiled faintly. “Sometimes, the outcome of the battle on the battlefield is not actually that important.”

……

In the suburbs of Kyoto, a luxurious manor features flowing streams, dense gardens, and exquisitely crafted artificial hills nestled among the trees, creating a delightful scene.

However, in this vast private courtyard, security guards dressed in black suits with indifferent expressions occasionally walk by, which seems out of place in the harmonious natural setting.

In the reception hall, a young man in his thirties with an extraordinary demeanor and a gentle yet noble air knelt down. Opposite him was an elderly man with a sharp face and neatly combed white hair.

Behind the two, several well-dressed attendants knelt on each side, while a beautiful woman in a lotus-patterned kimono slowly poured tea for them.

The aroma of tea wafted through the air. The old man looked at the young man opposite him with his cloudy, calm eyes and said slowly, "Taro hasn't been back for a year, has he? You came to see me right after returning to Kyoto without going home. I don't think you just came to visit this old man."

Across from him, Shintaro Uemura smiled faintly, his gentle and refined face revealing sincerity. He said in a slow and gentle voice, "Uncle, you are too kind. Isn't it only right for a junior to come and visit you?"

"I just happened to get some good tea in Yunnan this time, and I invited Chieko, a master of the Urasenke tea ceremony, to come and invite my third uncle to taste it."

“If that’s truly what you think, then let’s just reminisce today and not discuss anything else.” Uemura Katsuyuki glanced indifferently at Uemura Shintaro across from him before picking up his teacup, taking a sip, and closing his eyes to savor the tea.

“Third Uncle will decide everything.” Shintaro Uemura said with a smile, also picking up his teacup.

After a long while, Kamimura Katsu slowly opened his eyes and exclaimed, "Good tea, good tea ceremony."

"It seems that Chieko has not disappointed Uncle San."

As he spoke, Shintaro Uemura cast an admiring glance at the beautiful woman beside him, and a gentle tenderness immediately appeared in her eyes.

Next, as he had said, Shintaro Uemura simply greeted Katsumi Uemura, reminisced about the past year, and chatted about what had happened in Kyoto. On the surface, the atmosphere was quite pleasant.

However, as noon approached, Shintaro Uemura shook his head and sighed, then bowed slightly to Katsumi Uemura and said solemnly, "Taro's composure is still not as good as Third Uncle's."

From his serious face, no one could tell whether he was truly inferior or not.

Stroking the few remaining whiskers on his chin, Uemura Katsumi showed no air of seniority or smugness, and calmly said, "Ask whatever you want. For your mother's sake, I'll tell you what I can, but don't expect me to tell you what I can't."

"Thank you very much, Third Uncle."

Shintaro Uemura bowed deeply, then sat up straight: "I wonder how my grandfather has been these past few years?"

“He’s eating and sleeping well. According to his personal doctor, his condition is under control, and he should be able to live for a few more years,” Kamimura Katsumi said calmly.

Shintaro Uemura's eyes flickered slightly as he continued, "I wonder how the other seven brothers are doing? Has anyone returned ahead of schedule?"

Uemura Katsumi calmly said, "Your two questions are too general, but I won't hurt to tell you."

"Among the eight of you, you and Ichitaro have achieved the best results in the past two years. The others have done well, but their vision is too narrow and they are not capable of shouldering great responsibilities."

"And Ichitaro returned half a month ago and has already met with his older brother. Ichitaro's performance made him very happy."

"Oh, by the way, Ichitaro has been going to see the second brother quite often lately. Given the second brother's influence in managing the family's underground organizations throughout Kyoto, he should already know that you're back."

Shintaro Uemura's gaze sharpened slightly, but his face remained impassive as he said with admiration, "As expected of the eldest brother."

Ignoring whether Shintaro Uemura's admiration was genuine or feigned, a sharp glint suddenly appeared in Katsumi Uemura's cloudy eyes as he stared directly at Shintaro Uemura.

"Actually, among you brothers, I think you have the best chance."

Shintaro Uemura was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Uncle, you are joking. I am just surnamed Uemura."

The glint in his eyes faded, and Uemura Katsumi said calmly, without any apparent agreement, "Alright, I've told you everything I could."

"Yes, thank you, Third Uncle. I won't disturb your rest any longer." Sensing that he was being asked to leave, Shintaro Uemura bowed slightly, took his leave, and stood up.

"I think you should go see your sister first. In the time since Ichitaro came back, she seems to be targeted at Dengeki Bunko. I heard that Miyuki's cousin, who manages the bunko, is getting engaged to Ichitaro."

Shintaro Uemura paused, then bowed deeply to Katsumi Uemura once more: "Thank you for informing me, Uncle."

P.S.: Second update complete. Thank you for your donations and votes, brothers.

Chapter 54's grades were average.

On May 1st, early in the morning, Shiina Mashiro, who had been drawing comics upstairs until late at night, came downstairs with messy hair.

Today, Shiina Mashiro was wearing a white nightgown and a short skirt. She walked with her long, beautiful legs, opened the door, and came to Jiang Jing, saying in a daze, "Sorata, your hair is messy."

Jiang Jing had already gotten up and was squatting on the ground scratching the belly of the white cat Xiao Guang. Before dawn, the kitten sleeping on his belly suddenly made an uncomfortable sound.

Awakened, Jiang Jing immediately realized that the person had eaten too much fish and meat the night before, which had caused indigestion.