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

That is, Ashiya Dōman actually had a similar soul to Mantou.

If I had to describe it, it would be that out of 100% of their souls, more than 90% were very similar to Wan Deng.

To be honest, let alone Himiko believing Ashiya Dōman to be the reincarnation of Mandō, even Shimizu Asahi was quite surprised when he learned of this.

He practically wanted to look at Ashiya Dōman and say, "Jōwei—no, I should say, 'Ashiya Dōman, you still claim you're not the reincarnation of Mantō?'"

Well, it was later confirmed that Ashiya Dōman could indeed be considered the reincarnation of Mantō.

More than 700 years ago, Takiyasha-hime first clashed with Himiko, mainly because Himiko shattered Mantou's soul.

Although the scattered souls continued to reincarnate, the power of time was wrapped around Takiyasha-hime's blade. Therefore, a portion of the souls actually escaped from the City of the Sun and entered the cycle of reincarnation, being reborn as another person.

That person was Ashiya Dōman.

Therefore, Ashiya Dōman can indeed be seen as Mandō to some extent.

Moreover, perhaps because of their perfect fit, Ashiya Dōman absorbed the residual aura of Mandō in the City of the Sun.

Well, Ashiya Dōman, after absorbing the aura of Mandō, did not break through to the Demon King realm, but he was much stronger than before. At least, Shimizu Asahi could no longer defeat him so easily without the help of Aonōbo and the shrine maidens.

I believe that once he is fully familiar with this power, he will be able to reach the same level as Shimizu Asahi, and with a little more effort, he will be able to step into the final realm, the Demon King Realm.

In addition, there is another interesting point. Although Himiko always regarded Ashiya Dōman as a junior, he was, after all, the reincarnation of her lover, so her gaze would inevitably carry a trace of nostalgia. Also, after absorbing Mantō's soul, Ashiya Dōman seemed to have developed a slightly different feeling for Himiko.

They don't know the specifics yet, but for now, they think this is a story they can enjoy for a long time.

"Oh dear... I wonder how far that little guy and Himiko will go."

Ibuki smiled happily. To be honest, when they woke up today and saw Himiko and Ashiya Doman preparing breakfast together, their eyes almost popped out of their sockets in shock.

"Although you all have such high hopes, I don't think they'll make it that far..."

Lingzi touched her chin and said this with some unease.

"The age gap is just too big."

That's true. Himiko was over eight or nine hundred years old, while Ashiya Dōman was only in his early twenties—a difference of more than forty times. Normally, it would be virtually impossible for them to succeed.

However, Ibuki laughed heartily upon hearing this.

If we're talking about age, apart from Ali, no one here is the same age as Chaoyang.

Putting aside the two hundred-year-old demons, Qingnvfang and Yezi, to put it more broadly, aren't she and Lingzi both hundreds of years older than Shimizu Asahi?

Age and such are completely unnecessary for them.

Besides, if you really want to be together, age is completely irrelevant.

However, Ibuki did not mention this matter.

She chuckled and then turned her gaze to another person.

—Paper Dance.

This time, in addition to Takiyasha-hime, they also brought Kami-mai with them on their return to Heian-kyo.

The main reason is that Shimizu Asahi said he would help her find the truth from 800 years ago. Although she doesn't know how to find it after 800 years, she will just follow along for now.

From this perspective, even if Shimizu Asahi and the others leave the City of the Sun, they still have a lot to do.

To get the Imperial Family to reveal the truth about Ichizaki Island, help Kamimai find the truth from 800 years ago, and then investigate the identity of the person who caused the Sun Wheel City to become like this...

There's so much to do...

------

With Shimizu Asahi's urgent journey, they quickly returned to Heian-kyo...

Four days later, Shimizu Asahi returned home.

He pushed open the door and shouted, "Sister, I'm back!"

He took off his shoes while waiting for his sister's response, but to his surprise, she still hadn't responded even after he spoke for several minutes...

Not only has there been no response, but they haven't even shown up yet.

He blinked, quickly walked inside, and then... the huge house was completely empty.

"Where... is my older sister?"

Looking at the empty room, Shimizu Asahi couldn't help but scratch his head.

Where did my sister go?

"Hehehe...we should go find Huang to find out the master's whereabouts."

Ibuki followed her in, and seeing the empty room, she immediately realized the reason for what had happened, and then gave her answer with a smile.

"Mio's actions were within our expectations, but we've been gone for so long, hasn't Mio returned yet?"

Lingzi put down her things and sat down casually. Although she looked a little puzzled, she didn't seem to care too much.

After all, she is the goddess of the sun, the one who rules the entire divine realm. She is the one who bullies others, not the other way around.

"That's true..."

He smiled, thinking that this was the case, and then said nothing more, simply addressing the paper dance.

"Paper Dance, let me arrange a room for you first. Rest for the next couple of days. After we've dealt with the matter on Ichizaki Island, we'll help you investigate the events of eight hundred years ago..." Chapter 824, The Humble Little Emperor

The next day, Shimizu Asahi and the others returned home and rested for a night to shake off their fatigue before stepping out of their room to enjoy the sunshine.

He stretched and went to the living room, greeted everyone inside, and asked if Paper Dance and Takiyasha-hime were doing well with their water.

It's worth mentioning here that although the Shimizu family has expanded, there isn't much room left for Kamatari and Takiyasha-hime because of the large number of people now and the fact that they've retained the positions of the Kuzunoha and Tamamo-no-Mae families.

These two slept together last night...

Fortunately, neither of them cared about these things and they slept well even in the middle of nowhere, so they were both full of energy.

Having received a satisfactory answer, he said, "That's good," and then went to his seat to eat breakfast.

After finishing breakfast, he left the house alone.

Because they were going to find the Emperor, they didn't bring anyone else with them... With the little Emperor's courage, he would probably be terrified the moment he saw Ibuki and the others.

The older sister's 'kindness' had long since passed, and they were all so frightened they couldn't move...

Because the girls knew about this, they didn't pay much attention to it. They casually said, "Come back soon," and then went about their separate ways.

------

Walking from the south street to the north street, and traversing most of Heian-kyo, Shimizu Asahi arrived at the Imperial Palace.

As a qualified Onmyoji and a prominent figure in Heian-kyo, Shimizu Asahi could easily enter even without holding an official position.

The guards had all heard of him.

Therefore, upon learning that he had important matters to report, the emperor immediately went to inform him. The young emperor, who knew his true identity, was almost frightened to tears and sent someone to invite him in.

Oh, no, it can't be said that they sent someone to invite him in; the young emperor actually came out to greet him himself.

Seeing him shrinking his neck, looking like he was saying "I'm being good, don't hit me," he couldn't help but wonder how ruthless his older sister had been last time to scare such an obedient child like this.

Rubbing his head, he calmly told the young emperor not to be afraid, and then walked into the palace hall amidst the compliments of the crowd.

After entering, he first looked at the young emperor, and then hinted that there should be no outsiders here. Although the young emperor was trembling with fear, he still dismissed the maids around him with a mournful expression.

The black-haired boy had a helpless smile on his face. He felt that next time his sister went to see someone, unless it was someone she knew and had a good relationship with, she would definitely ask the other person to be kind.

After muttering this to himself, that was all he could do to talk to the young emperor.

Of course, it wasn't him, but Himiko.

Because Himiko needed to be stationed on Ichizaki Island to ensure that the island wouldn't appear before the world until her mission was accomplished, she could only give Shimizu Asahi a talisman, which he would then take out when he met the Emperor.

This thing can link two places, allowing Himiko to appear in the palace like a projection.

So, after speaking earnestly and carefully to the young emperor, Shimizu Asahi took out the talisman, and then... Himiko appeared.

Even with Shimizu Asahi's warning, Himiko's appearance still terrified the young emperor, causing him to scream loudly.

Fortunately, Shimizu Asahi had set up a barrier beforehand; otherwise, news of his 'attack on the Emperor' would have spread the next second...

Of course, Himiko was slightly taken aback when she learned that the little guy who was yelling in front of her was the Emperor.

This... even for her, it was the first time she had ever interacted with such a little guy.

Fortunately, the wisdom accumulated over eight hundred years allowed her to know how to approach the other party.

She smiled slightly and revealed her identity.

The lord of the City of the Sun Wheel, the ruler of the Kingdom of Yamatai, and the priestess of the Great God.

Such a string of titles was enough to make the little guy understand what was going on.

But... after saying that, the little guy actually... became even more frightened?

"..."

After some time, Himiko finally understood why the young emperor, who was about the same age as herself, was so afraid.

So it turns out he was reprimanded by Lord Omikami...

She sighed helplessly. Although she felt a little helpless, she still had to do what needed to be done. She thought for a moment and then earnestly explained to the young emperor.

The disappearance of the City of the Sun, the experiences of these years, the plan to reappear, and the matter of handing the island over to Shimizu Asahi.

As a qualified emperor, even though the person in front of him was the ruler of Yamatai and the messenger of the Great God, the world was ultimately the emperor's world. It was really unlikely that he would just give up such an important island.

There has to be some back and forth before they 'reluctantly' agree, after receiving some benefits.

But the young emperor was so frightened that he agreed to everything without any thought of negotiation.

As for how the ministers would react if this were to be revealed?

If you're so capable, go and talk to the Great God.

For some reason, as the only emperor to have seen Ōmikami and still working for her, this young emperor might be the most confident emperor in history...

After discussing the follow-up matters with the young emperor, Himiko didn't bother him any further. She asked Shimizu Asahi about Shimizu Mio and learned that Shimizu Mio hadn't returned yet to ensure Shimizu Asahi's safety. She didn't say anything and left directly.

Ah, it's not like she's just leaving like that; she left with a final remark.

"If there's anything, you can try discussing it with Yao-hime, and rely on her more. That child is very reliable."