How did I, an Onmyoji, become the Lord of Yokai?

However, she eventually let go of his hand.

Whether she's right or wrong, at least she won't lay a hand on Ibuki again until she truly shows hostility.

After all... Suzuka Mountain never craved war. Chapter 228, Part Two Hundred and Twenty-Five: Major Events in the Maritime Kingdom!?

"Alright, let's get down to business, little one."

With just a few words, the Scorpion Woman calmed down and put aside her emotions and ferocity. She looked at Ibuki and asked again in a calm tone, "What do you want to know?"

"I want to know everything, but you probably won't tell me everything, so I'll ask you one by one."

After thinking for a moment, Ibuki asked the question out of curiosity.

"First of all... well, that makes sense. Why did you fall into the sea? Was it part of a test?"

“Since you’ve set up three checkpoints, then there will only be three checkpoints. Suzuka Mountain doesn’t do anything unnecessary. I’m going to sea just to find someone.”

"Alone? Who?" Ibuki raised an eyebrow and continued to press.

However, the Scorpio woman ended the first question and answer session with "I refuse to answer this question."

"Refusing to answer... It seems this is someone very important to you. Heh, although I'm quite curious, never mind, since you don't want to talk about it, I won't ask anymore. So, my second question is, is Suzuka Mountain really friendly to humans?"

Without pressing her for answers, Ibuki skipped straight to the second question.

"Suzuka Mountain...doesn't dislike humans. We welcome every guest who comes to Suzuka Mountain, no matter who they are."

"Is that so? Will the treasure of Suzuka Mountain be given to someone else? I think you can guess. People or monsters who go to Suzuka Mountain are either after the treasure or the divine artifact. Whoever goes there will have a purpose. So, my lord, you also have a purpose."

Ibuki narrowed her eyes slightly and said with some seriousness, "But don't worry, the master has no intention of forcing it. He will talk to Ōtakemaru and use his utmost sincerity to obtain the treasure."

Seeing Ibuki's serious expression, Sasori remained silent for a while before finally saying, "Ootakemaru... doesn't dislike bartering."

It's actually quite normal. Although Mount Suzuka has countless treasures, these gold and silver jewels are just a pile of stones on Mount Suzuka. The monsters don't care about them at all. They can use these things to exchange for food or spices, which is a way of making use of waste.

Therefore, Ōtakemaru does not dislike making deals with humans or yokai.

As for what Arakawa no Nu said about not being able to look into the treasures of the sea kingdom, otherwise it would anger Ōtakemaru, that's actually quite normal. After all, it's the property of Suzuka Mountain. Without Ōtakemaru's permission, what right do you have to touch it?

Upon receiving this answer, Ibuki's eyes brightened slightly. Bartering was possible? That was good news... However, she couldn't relax too much yet. Bartering alone wouldn't yield the divine artifact; it was only a possibility.

"Good news indeed. Now, my last question: has anything significant happened at Suzuka Mountain in the past hundred years?"

"....!?"

At that moment, the Scorpion Woman's eyes widened!

......

While Ibuki was trying to glean information from Sasori, Shimizu Asahi and the other two on the deck were doing their utmost to resist the impact of the whirlpool.

Since entering the vortex region, the three of them have joined forces to break through more than a dozen massive vortex calamities. However, no matter how far they go, they can't see the end. Countless terrifying disasters stand in their way like fearless soldiers.

Demonic and spiritual power were rapidly depleted in this terrible disaster, and even A-Li, who possessed the most demonic power, became more solemn.

"Qingnufang, can it still hold on?"

Feeling his spiritual energy was running low, Shimizu Asahi looked at the blue-haired girl beside him and asked with concern, "Do you want to rest for a bit? I'll send someone to call Ibuki up here."

"......Um."

Qingnufang, pale-faced, remained silent for a long time before finally gritting her teeth and nodding.

Although she wanted to keep going, the demonic power within her wouldn't allow her to push herself any further.

The three of them are barely holding on, but once her demonic power is exhausted and not replenished, the ship will be shattered into pieces in an instant.

She couldn't let everyone on the ship perish at sea because of her stubbornness.

At her signal, the crew quickly notified Ibuki, and soon after, the petite Oni King once again came to the deck.

"Is it my turn to appear?"

She walked up to Shimizu Asahi and asked with a smile, "What should I do, sir?"

"You and I will stop the force of the water, and we will rush out as fast as we can."

"Hehe...Leave it to me."

After a brief exchange, the Ghost King began to gather her power. Her vast and terrifying demonic power surged forth, and in an instant, it overwhelmed the power of Qing Nufang and Qing Shui Chaoyang.

“Ibuki, you…”

Upon noticing that his power was also being covered, Shimizu Asahi was momentarily stunned. He was about to speak when Ibuki interrupted him before he could finish.

"Master, leave the rest to me. You and Qingnufang should go and rest."

"But......"

"I know you want to help, but you can't be of much help now that your spiritual energy is depleted. You should go and rest. Besides, I've rested for a while now, so it's time for me to do my part."

Looking at the way the Ghost King was wrapped around me, Shimizu Asahi thought for a while and finally nodded in agreement.

However, when he sat down to rest, he still told Ibuki, "Then I'll leave it to you for now, Ibuki. If you can't hold on, just tell me, and I can keep going."

"Hehe, don't worry, my lord, I would never do something that forces myself to do something like that."

After receiving a positive answer, the boy felt relieved and rested. Because of the excessive consumption of spiritual energy, he was feeling a little unwell and felt sleepy after sitting for a while.

However, he managed to stay conscious and did not fall asleep easily.

"..."

Beside him, Qingnufang, who had sat down with him, sighed softly. "You said you'd rely on us, but you still don't trust us with anything. Can't you just rest quietly?"

With a hint of dissatisfaction, the girl mobilized the last of her demonic power.

The cool, refreshing power enveloped the black-haired boy, and the raindrops that had been clinging to him disappeared without him noticing. At the same time, a faint sense of comfort enveloped his heart.

As her tense nerves gradually relaxed, she began to feel drowsy, and soon, with the help of Qingnvfang, Qingshui Chaoyang fell asleep.

Although the situation remained critical, the ship managed to stabilize thanks to the efforts of the four crew members, and the crew members were temporarily relieved.

However, just as Shimizu Asahi relaxed, the sea monsters, who were still some distance away, were on tenterhooks... Chapter 229, Chapter 226: Could there still be SSR characters that can't fly? No way, no way?

In the vast and boundless sea, there exists a very special island. This island contains countless treasures that people can never exhaust. Countless people are crazy about it and yearn for it day and night. Even knowing that there is an endless abyss ahead, they do not hesitate to embark on the journey.

On the perilous journey, most people died along the way, a few gave up the struggle, and a very small number of people, with unimaginable luck and strength, braved storms, crossed whirlpools, and avoided sea monsters to reach the island.

The group that arrived on the island frantically searched for the treasure, unaware that their own greed would be the greatest test...

At this moment, on that enormous island that drives countless people mad, a monster with long, pointed horns, dressed in a kimono and an outer robe, stands on the edge of a cliff on the coast.

He stood there quietly, gazing into the distance, his pale yellow eyes filled with a calm and profound stillness like the sea.

Although he was merely standing, the calm aura emanating from him was boundless and suffocating...

This yokai is named Ōtakemaru. Yes, he is the master of this island and this sea, the strongest yokai who protects his homeland and his people, and brings nightmares to his enemies!

"The waves seem a bit big today..."

Looking at the surging waves before him, the leader of the sea kingdom murmured something lightly.

As the master of this island and this sea, he knew everything about the surrounding ocean.

The sea breeze, the cries of seabirds, the rippling waves... whatever it is, just one glance is enough for him to understand the sea's mood that day.

In the past, the winds blowing from afar were always light and gentle, but today, the breeze from afar carried a hint of anger.

"Has Hai Ming activated the formation he set up? This guy who can stir up waves across the entire ocean... seems to be quite an extraordinary guest."

The array set up by Haiming will determine the power to be activated based on the strength of the intruder; the weaker the intruder, the easier the array, and the stronger the intruder, the more difficult the array.

Hai Ming once said that only when a demon king or seven great demons come together can the power of the formation be increased to its limit. Now, the formation has been fully activated, which means that a demon king or seven great demons are constantly approaching this island.

"Although I don't know why those guys came, since I've noticed them, I might as well go and see... It's not Suzuka Mountain's way of hospitality to leave guests unattended. If she finds out, she'll definitely scold me again."

With a soft exhale, Ōtakemaru prepared to turn and leave.

However, just as he was about to greet the guest, a monster hurriedly ran up the slope.

It was a majestic demon with red horns, white hair, and wearing bone armor. He ran up to Ōtakemaru and shouted in a solemn tone, "Young Master, something terrible has happened! The Scorpion Woman has disappeared!"

"The Scorpion Woman has disappeared?"

Ōtakemaru paused for a moment, but quickly recovered. His expression didn't change much, and he replied in a very normal tone, "She went out to sea alone to find Suzuka Gozen again, didn't she? Isn't this a common occurrence? Why are you in such a panic, Kyūjīra?"

The Scorpion Woman's frequent solo voyages in search of her master, the legendary former leader of the Sea Kingdom, Suzuka Gozen, and her being brought back from the sea by sea monsters, have become a unique feature of the island.

As a land-dwelling yokai, Scorpion Woman does not like the sea. In fact, she is not used to the sea. Even with a ship specially built by Suzuka Mountain, she rarely manages to cross the sea and reach the other side. Most of the time, she falls into the sea due to storms and is sent back by sea monsters.

Therefore, it is not surprising that the Scorpion Woman goes out to sea alone; we can simply wait quietly for her to be brought back by the sea monster.

It's not that Ōtakemaru doesn't value Scorpion Woman, but rather that anyone who has experienced this kind of thing hundreds or thousands of times will find it reassuring.

Moreover, after hundreds of years of drowning, even if the Scorpion Woman cannot swim back from the sea on her own, she knows how to ask the sea for help.

That's why Ōtakemaru appears so calm at this moment.

However, Kyūjīra's next words caused Ōtakemaru's expression to change drastically.

"But young master, the formation is activated now, and whirlpools and storms are gathering in the sea. Apart from the ships that came from there, there are no sea monsters in that area. Once the Scorpion Woman falls into the water, there will be no one to save her!"

"What did you say!?"

The leader of the Sea Kingdom grabbed Kyūjīrā's shoulder, his calm and profound composure shattered. He opened his eyes wide, as if just realizing what was happening, and turned his head to look at the distant sea.

"Damn it! How could I have overlooked something so important!"

Normally it wouldn't be a problem, but now that the formation is activated and giant waves are rolling, Scorpion Woman's ship simply cannot withstand such terrifying waves!

We must save her as quickly as possible!

"Kyujira, go find Haiming and tell him to stop the formation. I'm going out to sea to find the Scorpion Woman!"

Almost instantly, Ōtakemaru made his decision.

"Yes, young master!"

Upon receiving the order, Kyūjīrā immediately responded with a shout and decisively turned and left.

Watching Kuraji leave, Ōtakemaru took a deep breath, then transformed into a bolt of lightning and flew at an extremely fast speed towards the direction where the Sasori Woman had set sail.

As the ruler of the sea kingdom, being able to ride the waves is the most basic skill. However, compared to riding the waves, Ōtakemaru prefers to fly in the sky, as this makes his movements more convenient.