I have an unlimited number of shikigami

The yin energy is becoming increasingly intense.

Fujiwara Izaya also sensed something.

He found it strange, however, that this yin energy was extremely chaotic and disordered, as if it was emanating from many individual entities.

The sudden drop in temperature in the hallway also caught Ito Takumi's attention.

"Woo~"

A mournful cry rang out, and the fire went out.

In the darkened space, the humans had no idea what was happening, but they sensed danger and evil from the strong smell of blood in the air.

Something unusual and ominous has appeared!

The vengeful spirit, which had just been roasted by fire, suddenly began to crawl. With half of its long, blood-stained hair burned away, it revealed an extremely pitiful face.

Ito Takumi rubbed his eyes, instantly getting goosebumps all over.

A large gash was split open horizontally on his forehead by a sharp blade, his eyes were bloodshot and bulging outwards, his half-open mouth was overflowing with viscous blood, and his throat was making intermittent "ooh...ha..." sounds.

"Ouch, it hurts so much—"

The vengeful spirit writhes like a snake, crawling towards the living.

The blood that dripped onto the ground flowed rapidly toward Ito Takumi.

As it crawled, the vengeful spirit raised its head, its lips, which looked swollen from repeated beatings, twitching as if it wanted to say something.

But once it opens its mouth, only blood flows out continuously; it cannot utter a single word.

“Master Ito, this thing is very dangerous,” Fujiwara Rinya kindly advised. “Why don’t you step back and let me handle it?”

"I...I...I'm not afraid!"

Terrified, Ito Takumi forced a shout to bolster his courage!

After a moment of stunned silence, he frantically pulled out a bunch of talismans.

Then, as if money were no object, he scattered all sorts of talismans in his hand.

He poured all his energy into the spell, and the talisman transformed into dazzling beams of light, causing the vengeful spirit to writhe in agony and wail incessantly.

But the resentment churning on the vengeful spirit did not dissipate at all; on the contrary, it became even stronger with each subsequent whipping.

“Senior, have you noticed?” Kasahara Asuka leaned closer and gently tugged at his sleeve, “this vengeful spirit seems to have died for the same reason as the one we just encountered. Attacks that cannot kill it in one blow will increase its resentment.”

Fujiwara Izaya nodded and said to her, "I suspect they were artificially created using the same method."

Upon hearing this, Asuka Kasahara's expression turned serious.

The vengeful spirit was clearly tortured to death, so the scraping therapy not only failed to purify it, but also caused it to relive the inhuman torture it suffered before its death, resulting in a rapid increase in its resentment and a super-multiplied power.

After a barrage of attacks and defections, Ito Takumi was exhausted and panting heavily, his forehead covered in sweat.

The vengeful spirit, utterly powerless to fight back, raised its blood-covered face and stared at him with pleading, begging eyes: "A few more hits."

It is not very aggressive.

But it's very insulting.

Ito Takumi shrank his neck, wanting to continue showing off.

But he really didn't have the courage to stay there any longer, so he stubbornly said, "I'll let you go this time because you were pitiful when you were alive. Now hurry up and leave!"

The experienced Fujiwara Izaya immediately rolled up his sleeves and stepped forward.

He is very clear.

From this moment forward, Miss Vengeful Spirit is about to go berserk.

It's about to start its counterattack against the incompetent priest.

really.

Just as Fujiwara Izaya had predicted.

After hearing what Ito Takumi said, Miss Wraith's blood-covered face suddenly changed drastically.

From a pleading, begging expression to a desperate, sorrowful expression on the verge of tears... and then to a terrifying expression of resentment, anger, and hysteria.

"Mmm...uh..."

A surge of immense resentment, seemingly from nowhere, erupted, enveloping it and churning endlessly.

Its strength broke through to the upper level in that instant. The vengeful spirit's originally broken body expanded rapidly, and its blood vessels bulged and appeared on the surface of its skin. The tearing pain made it roar incessantly, and a large amount of blood gushed from its whole body.

The sudden change completely terrified Ito Takumi.

"what--"

Startled by this sudden turn of events, he staggered two steps, lost his footing, and screamed as he landed on his backside, awaiting his death.

The vengeful spirit floated into the air and rushed over with a roar.

The distance was less than two meters!

With Ito Takumi's blank expression, Fujiwara Izaya charged forward, heading straight for the vengeful spirit.

What does he want to do?

Rushing forward to wrestle with the vengeful spirit?

Is this still a priest...? Ito Takumi was completely dumbfounded.

The vengeful spirit lunged forward, its two pale, slender hands clasped together, and slammed them heavily onto Fujiwara Izaya's head.

It looked like a soft, weak little hand, but the whistling sound it made as it broke the wind made you believe that even a wall could be shattered into pieces by that one slap.

Kasahara Asuka watched this scene unfold.

She felt her rapid heartbeat blend into the sound of Fujiwara Izaya's footsteps.

"Keep it up..." she murmured involuntarily.

Amid the little shrine maiden's encouragement, Fujiwara Izaya suddenly bent down, dodging the vengeful spirit's hands, while maintaining a forward-leaning posture. He stretched out his hands and embraced the vengeful spirit's slender waist.

Upon close contact, one can even smell the stench of decay emanating from the vengeful spirit.

Rest in peace... Fujiwara Izaya mourned for it for a second in his heart, then used both hands and waist to pull the vengeful spirit back and throw it.

Click—

The vengeful spirit's head hit the ground, and its neck bones snapped.

On that head, which was only held together by a thin layer of skin, those pitch-black eyes, devoid of any white, were still filled with resentment towards the living; the obsession had not dissipated in the slightest.

Fujiwara Izaya sighed and raised his fist.

Slam it down.

The entire head instantly turned into countless tiny black grains of sand, scattering on the ground, and the twitching remains of the vengeful spirit followed suit, turning into the same black sand.

This……

Ito Takumi does not practice physical skills.

But in his eyes, Fujiwara Izaya's simple punch was full of a return to simplicity, a power that he could not describe.

Then, Ito, a priest from Yoshiwara Shrine, asked in a trembling voice, "What kind of fist technique is this?"

Boxing?

Fujiwara Izaya was taken aback.

He hadn't really considered anything about boxing techniques.

This punch was essentially a random strike, devoid of any technique; it was simply the power that had been honed over seventeen years.

What should we call it?

A flat A?

Normal attack?

A serious punch?

No matter how I think about it, it feels so perfunctory.

After a moment's thought.

Fujiwara Izaya replied slowly with a serious expression, "This punch is called the Iron Fist of Materialism."

"...Huh?" Ito Takumi was completely dumbfounded.

Is this person still angry, so they're just teasing him?

"Your words are really interesting, senpai." Kasahara Asuka walked forward from behind with a smile.

Looking at the black gravel scattered on the ground, she maintained her smile and gently tugged at Fujiwara Izaya's sleeve: "Senpai, your work isn't finished yet."

"Hmm?" Fujiwara Izaya turned his head to look at her.

In the dim night, the girl's already pure and refined temperament appeared even more otherworldly.

“We need to completely eliminate this resentment,” Kasahara Asuka said, examining him like a carpenter looking at a piece of wood, taking in every corner of his body. “Please use your magic to purify it, senpai, otherwise it will come back to life.”

Fujiwara Izaya was certainly aware of this.

He didn't use any demonic power.

When facing a high-ranking vengeful spirit, purely physical attacks can only disperse its resentment.

After a period of time, once the resentment has regrouped, the vengeful spirit will come back to life.

"Uh, I don't know any magic." Fujiwara Rinya wiped his hands, his expression casual. "You know perfectly well that I've said before that I don't know any magic at all, I only have brute strength. Please don't make me..."

"It's okay, I'll teach you right now!"

Kasahara Asuka remained motionless, staring intently at Fujiwara Izaya's face.

Her professional instincts told her that Fujiwara Rin was avoiding something. His choice of words and tone of voice both seemed off, making it difficult to be truly convinced.

Such a discovery was merely a fleeting intuition, without any evidence.

But she firmly believed that Fujiwara Izaya must have some unspeakable secret.

During the silence, Fujiwara Izaya took several deep breaths and asked, "Can I have my shikigami come out and help?"