The Demon King, reborn in Japan as a monk

"Does my words have any effect? ​​If they did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here right now," Xia He sighed helplessly.

"So, you're being controlled by him?" Shen Chong's eyes flashed, and he went straight to the point.

"Why do you have to spell things out? If you do, Ishihara won't be able to let you off the hook anymore," Xia He replied.

"Just him alone? I don't believe it," Gao Ning sneered.

With the Twelve Labors Formation in hand, he fears no one among the extraordinary beings except for the top-level Celestial Masters!

Even if Xia He is no longer here, and the Twelve Labors Formation is no longer complete, it's still the same.

Gao Ning then released his Qi and set up the Twelve Labors of Emotion Array in the room. Shen Chong joined in, followed by Dou Mei, and then Xia He's Muscle Breath Qi...

"Hmm?" Gao Ning looked at Xia He with some surprise when he noticed her joining in.

Xia He smiled, remaining silent, but her actions clearly demonstrated her stance.

She was unwilling to be controlled by Ishihara Sho.

"The Twelve Labors of Emotions Formation really suits my abilities." Feeling the Twelve Labors of Emotions Formation disturbing his meridians and emotions, Ishihara Akira couldn't help but chuckle.

"You actually resisted. But how long can you resist?" Gao Ning smiled as he saw that Ishihara Sho wasn't immediately affected. At the same time, he fully activated the array's power, channeling it into Ishihara Sho.

Dou Mei and Xia He are the same.

"Tsk, you guys really won't learn until you're faced with a fatal mistake." Ishihara Sho shook his head and sighed, then flicked his finger, sending several orbs of light flying like meteors towards Gao Ning, Shen Chong, and Dou Mei. Before they could react, the orbs entered their bodies through contact, and instantly, the unique effects of the Twelve Labors of Passion Array began to activate within them—

Their emotions fluctuate uncontrollably, sometimes rising and sometimes falling, sometimes angry and sometimes laughing, or they might burst into tears without any warning.

Then, fear appeared on their faces, as if they had seen something they feared most. They lost their composure on the spot, and their aura went berserk, causing the Twelve Labors Formation to stop operating silently.

"Yes, the Twelve Emotions Formation formed by the combined power of the four of you is very powerful. Apart from the Old Master, it seems that no one in the current circle of supernatural beings can match you. But unfortunately, you have run into me, a guy who specializes in manipulating human emotions and desires. So the Twelve Emotions Formation not only cannot affect me, but will also become my help, allowing me to amplify my power. So why can't we sit down and talk things over instead of resorting to violence?" Ishihara Akira said regretfully with a helpless expression.

Then he stood up, walked behind Gao Ning, Shen Chong, and Dou Mei, who were somewhat exhausted and injured due to their emotions, used a sealing technique to imprison their Qi circulation, and took all three of them down.

"Are you full?" Ishihara Akira asked Xia He, who was still sitting in the same spot, after he had settled the three of them.

"What do you think?" Xia He picked up a piece of food with her chopsticks, dipped it in the hot pot, and asked in return.

"Okay, then we'll go back after you finish eating." Seeing this, Ishihara Sho shrugged, walked back to Xia He's side and sat down, picked up his chopsticks, and peacefully started eating the hot pot in front of him with Xia He.

Only after they had eaten and drunk their fill did he use puppetry to control the three of them, making them follow him and Xia He as they left the Sichuan hot pot restaurant and returned to the place where he, Xia He, Lü Liang, and Liu Yanyan had stayed.

……

"How was it?" After all that fuss, Ishihara Akira, who had finally managed to gather the four madmen together again, asked with a smile.

"No wonder you said you wanted to be the Apocalypse. Your ability is indeed very compatible with the characteristics of the four of us." Feeling his superpowers grow even stronger, Shen Chong couldn't help but respond with some emotion.

"Now you shouldn't refuse to become my knights anymore, right?" Ishihara Akira continued to ask.

"Do we even have a choice now?" Shen Chong and Gao Ning exchanged a glance and smiled bitterly.

As for Dou Mei, she's now on Ishihara Akira's side, just like Xia He.

As for the method, it was naturally the same approach used to deal with Xia He. So, with Dou Mei completely succumbing to temptation, she had no chance to refuse.

"Now you can tell us your plans for the future, right?" Resigned, Shen Chong inquired about Ishihara Akira's plans.

"Afterwards, I will have you contact the Corpse Demon and talk to him personally to confirm certain things. Then, I will formally challenge Gong Qing to seize the position of acting leader of Quanxing. As for what comes after that, we can arrange those things after I have truly become the acting leader of Quanxing," Shi Yuanzhang replied.

"Are you only looking for the Corpse Demon? What about the Six Thieves? Aren't you going to recruit them all together?" Gao Ning asked, puzzled.

"The Six Thieves... forget it. Their abilities have gone astray and don't align with my ideas. However, you could try to win them over to increase our support, lest the elders of Quanxing use some excuse to disown me as their leader," Ishihara Akira said after a moment's thought.

“That works too. I’ll contact the Corpse Demon later and invite him to meet you. Then I’ll go with Gao Ning to negotiate with the Six Thieves,” Shen Chong replied after thinking for a moment.

"can."

Things proceeded smoothly, and Ishihara Akira returned to his room to ponder the matter of the Double-Handed Technique...

Of course, she didn't forget to call Dou Mei, Xia He, and Liu Yanyan to keep her company.

Chapter 288 Tu Junfang

A few more days passed.

"So you're the one who wanted to see me?" The burly, honest-looking Corpse Demon Tu Junfang appeared before Ishihara Akira and asked casually.

“Not bad.” Ishihara Akira nodded.

"Now that we've finished meeting, is there anything else?" Tu Junfang asked again.

"Do you want to complete the cultivation techniques of your Three Demon Sects?" Ishihara Akira asked directly, without wasting any words.

"What do you mean?" Tu Junfang, who had remained calm throughout, frowned and asked in a deep voice.

“It means exactly what it says,” Ishihara Akira said with a smile. “Now, can we sit down and have a proper talk?”

Tu Junfang glanced at him, then walked to a chair and sat down.

"As a Corpse Demon, how much do you know about the Three Corpses?" Ishihara Akira asked Tu Junfang, who was standing to the side.

"Testing me?" Tu Junfang glanced at him and said calmly, "The Three Corpses are the manifestation of the three poisons of greed, anger, and ignorance in humans. They are inherent traits that cannot be eliminated. They can only be controlled through cultivation until one reaches the legendary realm of a sage, at which point one can completely get rid of the influence of the Three Corpses on a person."

"Besides that?" Ishihara Akira asked again.

"Hmm?" Tu Junfang looked at Ishihara Sho with a surprised expression, not quite understanding what he meant by asking that question.

"Aren't you three demonic sects a branch of Taoism? How come you don't even know anything about Taoism?" Ishihara Akira asked with a strange look.

“Our Three Demons Sect did indeed split off from the Taoist sect, but that’s all ancient history, hundreds of years ago. Now, apart from cultivation techniques and such, nobody really cares about Taoist things anymore,” Tu Junfang replied.

"No wonder you haven't been able to find a solution to the Three Corpses and complete your sect's cultivation method," Ishihara Akira sighed.

"Ok?"

“Although the Three Corpses are poisons in the human body, inherent flaws, and barriers and obstacles to cultivation, it doesn’t mean there’s no way to deal with or subdue them,” Ishihara Akira said with a smile. “At least in the Taoist cultivation system, the Three Corpses can be subdued and suppressed. I think this is also the reason why your Three Demons Sect split off from the Taoist sect. Because your lineage’s founder wanted to use other methods to attract and subdue the Three Corpses, thereby bypassing certain steps that the Taoist sect considers the threshold for cultivation.”

"Unfortunately, that method only circulated among the leaders of the Three Demon Sects, otherwise it should have proven my guess."

"Therefore, as long as you are willing to return to your roots and return to the Taoist sect, or start studying those Taoist classics again, you may not be unable to follow the path of your Three Demon Sect's founder and rediscover the method of subduing the Three Corpses."

"That's true, but I'm afraid it won't be short," Tu Junfang said thoughtfully.

"But it's still better than the Three Demon Sects dying out in your generation, isn't it?" Ishihara Sho retorted.

"You called me here just to tell me all this?" Tu Junfang nodded, bringing the topic back to the present.

"That is indeed one of the purposes."

"What about the others?" Tu Junfang pressed.

"I'd like to be friends with you, Lao Tu," Shi Yuanzhang said with a smile.

"Making friends? If it's really just about making friends, then based on what you just said, I, Tu Junfang, will accept you as a friend. The scary thing is that your motives for making this friend are not pure," Tu Junfang replied meaningfully.

“Well, alright, I’ll get straight to the point. I’m interested in the position of leader of Quanxing and plan to formally challenge Gong Qing for the leadership after our meeting. But you know what kind of people are in Quanxing, so to avoid some ungrateful individuals or old fogies finding other reasons to deny my leadership or to steal the limelight, I need some people to support me,” Ishihara Akira said bluntly.

"So you had Shen Chong contact me because you wanted me to support you at that time?" Tu Junfang confirmed.

“Yes.” Ishihara Akira nodded.

"That's not a problem. Anyway, I have no objection to whether it's you, Gong Qingyi, or anyone else becoming the leader of Quanxing," Tu Junfang replied indifferently.

“That puts my mind at ease,” Ishihara Akira said with a smile. He paused, then continued, “Also…”

"What, is there anything else?" Tu Junfang interrupted Ishihara Sho, asking in confusion.

"Of course, and it's also very beneficial for you to complete the Three Demon Sect's techniques. Are you sure you don't want to listen?" Ishihara Sho chuckled and handed the choice to Tu Junfang.

"Alright, go ahead and tell me," Tu Junfang said helplessly.

After all, it concerns his own cultivation and the future of the Three Demon Sect, so he has no choice but to compromise on this matter.

"I'm planning to attack Quanzhen. Do you want to get involved?" Seeing that Tu Junfang had compromised, Shi Yuanzhang didn't waste any words and revealed his pre-existing plan.

"Attack Quanzhen?" Tu Junfang frowned. He knew Quanzhen was one of the two most popular branches of Taoism, and along with Longhu Mountain, which still held the title of Taoist leader, they were considered the pinnacle of Taoism. This did indeed fit his purpose. But why Quanzhen, and not Longhu Mountain, or other Taoist sects that were relatively less famous and easier to deal with and succeed in?

"Regarding this, we need to go back to the Taoist topic of the Three Corpses. In Taoism, subduing the Three Corpses is not about directly attacking them, but requires a process, namely refining the primordial spirit. The origin of the primordial spirit lies in sexuality, and the condensation of sexuality forms the Yin spirit. This is relatively easy to cultivate. As long as there is a lineage of visualization within the sect, one can basically cultivate their own Yin spirit smoothly," Shi Yuanzhang explained.

“But the subsequent transformations from Yin Spirit to Primordial Spirit, and from Primordial Spirit to Yang Spirit, are not so easy to cultivate. They involve the absorption of the seven souls of the human body and the subjugation of the three corpses…” At this point, Ishihara Akira smiled meaningfully at Tomohiro.

Naturally, Tu Junfang's eyes also flickered, and he listened to Ishihara Akira's story even more attentively.

"Combining them into one creates the perfect primordial spirit. At this point, the cultivator gains the ability for their soul to travel, for their spirit to live on even after death, and even for a surviving body to possess another after death. After that comes the process of the primordial spirit transforming into Yang, cultivating into an immortal, and even ascending to immortality. Thus, it is evident that the Yang spirit is a very profound state of cultivation in the orthodox Taoist system, capable of reaching the realm of Quanzhen..."

The Quanzhen School can actually strengthen the Yin Spirit at the very beginning of cultivation, and then, when cultivation reaches a certain level, allow the Yin Spirit to travel and even fight, and even euphemistically call it the "emerging Yang Spirit"...

If this were someone who didn't understand Taoism, it would be one thing, but for a member of the Quanzhen School to openly call it that, if there isn't some mystery involved, then it really must be a ghost story.

Therefore, it is possible that there is a method to subdue the Three Corpses and Seven Souls, which also explains why Ishihara Akira chose Quanzhen as his target.

It's just that other Taoist sects and Longhu Mountain don't have Quanzhen's kung fu that matches the Three Demon Sect's kung fu so well.

"When to take action? Remember to call me then." Tu Junfang was very straightforward and responded immediately after listening to Ishihara Sho's explanation.

Chapter 289 Progress

With Tu Junfang dealt with, the rest was simple. First, they used Quanxing's own channels to spread the news that someone wanted to challenge Gong Qing and become the new leader of Quanxing. They also helped spread the news to all Quanxing members, especially the elders who held important positions. Then they waited for Gong Qing's reply and to determine the location of the final duel.

So there was plenty of time to use in the middle. Just then, Ishihara Akira felt that Lü Liang was almost ready, and it was time to let him awaken the Dual Hands.

Then, he took Xia He and Dou Mei out to spread the news. Liu Yanyan and Lü Liang went to the home of a certain supernatural family that Shi Yuanzhang and Xia He had jointly dealt with. They entered the basement that the latter had prepared and kicked Liu Yanyan and Xia He out.

"Ready? I'm about to begin." Ishihara Akira smiled at Lü Liang, who was standing in front of him.

"If I said I wasn't ready, would you stop?" Lü Liang asked back with an expression more like he was about to cry.

"No," Ishihara Akira shook his head.

"...Then bring it on. Anyway, I can't avoid it no matter what." Lu Liang was silent for a while before gritting his teeth and saying.

"That feels good." Before Lü Liang could react, a large gushing of blood suddenly spurted from his shoulder, followed by excruciating pain, and Lü Liang screamed uncontrollably.

"what!!"

Seeing this, Ishihara Akira didn't stop. He swiftly cut off Lü Liang's other arm and both legs, then twisted the dagger into Lü Liang's mouth, and a piece of his tongue fell out along with the gushing blood.

Then, Ishihara Yu produced several steel bars of varying lengths, each as long as an adult's forearm, from who knows where. With one hand holding the blood-soaked Lü Liang and the other holding the steel bars, he walked to the basement wall, then pinned Lü Liang against the wall and stabbed him with the steel bars.