Tokyo Soft Rice King.

Kuroba Akira didn't have a deep impression of Shikoku. Not to mention that he, as a transmigrator, didn't have a deep impression of it, even the people of the island nation themselves probably didn't have a deep impression of this place.

Although its location is actually considered 'lower-middle', it is considered a 'remote area' in Japan, with even lower profile than Kyushu and Hokkaido.

This is because Japan's Shinkansen runs through the north and south, connecting Kyushu and Hokkaido, passing through Honshu, but it misses Shikoku.

So if you want to go to Shikoku, you either have to take a plane or cross the Seto Inland Sea via the bridge...

"Yes, we were invited to the opening ceremony of the Shikoku Shinkansen together, and took the opportunity to travel around Shikoku Island. That's where we found the 'origin' of Kuroo."

"Huh? Wait, Shikoku has a Shinkansen now?"

“This didn’t exist before. The Shikoku Shinkansen project was halted due to economic and technical reasons, but thanks to my husband’s efforts, the project was eventually restarted, realizing the dream of connecting the entire country with a national subway.”

"Wait, it's state-owned!"

Seeing the frequent expressions of surprise on Kuroba Akira's face, Granny Kobayashi revealed a proud look and said smugly.

"Hehe, nowadays all of Japan's Shinkansen are state-owned, which is probably different from what you know, right?"

“Very different… Did the old man do this too?”

Grandma Lin just said a very pretentious word with a half-smile.

"one."

This means that this is just one of Mr. Lin's achievements.

"This is just too amazing... I don't even know how to praise the old man enough..."

The genes of the infrastructure-obsessed nation... have been brought to this world as well!

"That's not important. Let's get back to the origin of the Black Tail. Shirako, have you ever heard of the term 'divinity'?"

“I’ve heard of it, but I don’t know if my understanding is the same as yours, Mother-in-law.”

"Well, let me start with divinity. Divinity is what God represents. Simply put, it's a 'vessel for holding faith,' and this thing is a real 'object.'"

"Oh? It's actually an object?"

"Yes, it's not an abstract concept, but rather that people's beliefs are projected onto objects, which is why corresponding gods are born."

"Anything is fine?"

"Anything that exists in reality, even if it's just one person's faith attached to an object, can give birth to a weak god. That's why there are so many weak tsukumogami."

At this point, Grandma Kobayashi raised her teacup and said.

“For example, this teacup was made for me by my husband. I like it very much. It contains most of my beliefs. However, my own thoughts are still too weak. Such a weak god can hardly do anything and cannot manifest.”

Kuroba Akira stared at the teacup for a long time but couldn't see anything special about it.

"Then when the person who believes, that is, me, dies, or when this teacup breaks, the faith gathered on it disappears. So in fact, many gods disappear without people knowing."

"I see……"

To put it bluntly, many gods died in the womb before they could even hatch from their eggs.

From this perspective, it is actually humans who created the gods, and this world is not particularly different; it is just that there is an added element of idealism.

"So what is Black Tail's divine essence?"

Grandma Lin pointed to the floor.

Kuroba Akira was taken aback. Of course, he wasn't stupid enough to think that Granny Kobayashi was talking about the house or the floor.

"Earth...? Land! So Kuroo is a land god!"

“That’s right. The land of Shikoku is the ‘divinity’ of Kuroo as a god. Kuroo is actually a very remarkable god in that land.”

"Isn't it Inari? I've been to its new shrine and met Mr. Tomita."

"That kid Faquan... his family used to live near our house, and he was one of my old man's few students... I remember his daughter is about the same age as Xiaotong."

"Yes, I know Haruka too. Isn't their Inari Shrine the shrine that enshrines Kuroo?"

Although Kuroo really dislikes Tomita Hoken.

That said, now we can understand why Tomita Hogen was trying to curry favor with Kuroo. It wasn't because the old man loved cats, but because he knew Kuroo was a true god.

Haruka Tomita seems unaware of this, suggesting that the existence of gods is known only to a few.

Speaking of which, since they already have their own shrines, why did Kuroo choose himself as the representative instead of the shrine maiden from his own shrine?

"That's because Kuroo was mistaken for Inari at a shrine in Tokyo, but Kuroo actually has another very famous name in Shikoku..."

Grandma Kobayashi paused for a moment and then asked Kuroba Akira a question in return.

"Bai Zi, do you know the 'Great God of the Underworld'?"

Kuroba Akira had certainly heard of the great god Huang Quanjin, so he stared wide-eyed in astonishment, his face filled with disbelief.

"Huh? Izanami?! Wait, that cat? It's actually the mother goddess from Japanese mythology?! Really?!"

"Myths are stories created by people, but faith makes them real. Kuroo is undoubtedly the god of Yomi-tsu, because Shikoku is actually the ancient Yomi-hirasaka."

"Why?!"

"Based on our collected data analysis, it is probably because transportation was very inconvenient in ancient times. To the people of Honshu, Shikoku Island was a place with a mysterious aura. After the bodies of the dead were thrown into the sea, they were washed ashore on Shikoku Island by the ocean currents, which is why corpses could often be seen on the beach. So people said that it was a country where ghosts lived, and that the souls of the dead would come there. It was regarded as the entrance to the underworld and was also called Yomizu-no-kuni (Land of the Four Directions). It was ruled by Yomizu-no-o-kami (Great God of the Underworld) and was also called the country of the four directions. The name 'Shikoku' also has the meaning of 'land of the dead' because it is composed of the radical 'shi'."

"It's a pun?!"

Kuroba Akira rolled his eyes at the sound.

However, after complaining, he understood the origin of this legend.

In fact, in Eastern culture, the "underworld" has a specific "location". For example, Mount Tai in the East has another name in the underworld, which is Luofeng Mountain. The surrounding area is the ancient Fengdu, which is the so-called underworld.

Therefore, the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak is the deity who governs life and death, yin and yang.

Akira Kuroba didn't believe in these things before, but if the gods of this world are the embodiment of human faith...

“I understand. It’s because people believe that Shikoku is Yomohirasaka, so Kuroo, who was born in Shikoku, has a corresponding faith. Although he is a land god, he has become the true Yomotsu Okami.”

"That's exactly why Kuroo's shrine in Tokyo is the Inari Shrine. It's because the emperors of the past thought it was very unlucky to have an 'entrance to the underworld' in the capital, so they changed it to the Inari Shrine."

"So that's why that gluttonous cat that always begs for food is Inari God... Turns out they forcibly changed it."

"That's not entirely unfounded. After all, in mythology, Izanami ate the food of the underworld and was unable to leave Yomi-hirasaka. So, in Shikoku, Yomi-tsu-o-kami is also a deity related to food."

"I suddenly understand why Kuroo is such a foodie."

After learning what kind of god Kuroo really was, Kuroba Akira suddenly understood something.

Grandma Kobayashi explained these things to tell Akira Kuroba the 'reason why he can't go back'.

In other words, the reason why Kuroba Akira and the other time travelers couldn't go back was actually quite simple.

"I think Bai Zi, you should have realized it by now, right? Actually, you, my wife, and everyone else who has come to 'this world' all have one thing in common..."

Grandpa Lin, Miss Tian, ​​Mr. Fang, and Bai Yuming himself...

Everyone is...

'deceased'.

“My old man died on the battlefield. When he woke up, he found himself behind enemy lines. So he started organizing ‘work behind enemy lines’. Later he discovered that this world was not the original world, but ‘another world’.”

"Another world... Ah! The meanings overlap!"

Generally speaking, when we say someone has gone to another world, we are actually saying that they have died.

Because there is only one world, and all living people live in the same world; there is no second world.

However, there are special beings in this world, such as gods, who possess incredible power, and what gods can do depends on faith.

"The Great God of the Underworld possesses the power of 'Return to the Underworld,' but the dead cannot be brought back to life; this is the natural order of things, and even gods cannot defy it. Therefore, Black Tail cannot revive the dead, but he can 'bring the dead back from another world.' You are all 'dead' who have been 'revived' by Black Tail..."

There was one more thing that Grandma Lin hesitated to say.

That is, most of the people brought back by Kuroo are 'people with regrets'.

These regrets are mostly related to 'home'.

Fang Yong, who established himself in the industry but never married, Tian Hongxiang, who was unable to marry and have children due to blindness, Bai Yuming, who was unable to fulfill his filial duties after his father fell critically ill, and Lin Dewan, who never saw the rise of the nation.

They were all 'homeless dead'.

The fact that people who have left their hometowns can never return is a profound sorrow.

It's also a kind of resentment.

This resentment acted as a signal, allowing Kuroo to find these poor souls and bring them into this world.

"You also have the story of 'The Prince Replaced by a Civet Cat' where you live, right? Actually, 'Returning from the Underworld' is similar to it, which means that 'the person who returns from the Underworld will be different from the original one.' This description fits your current situation quite well, doesn't it?"

"Ah... I see... No wonder we can't go back... It's because there's 'nowhere to go back to'..."

Kuroba Akira took a deep breath, and then slowly and slowly exhaled.

With that exhale, he felt as if he had released all his regrets from his body.

All the missed opportunities, the unspoken words, and the irretrievable past, in this instant, drifted away to another world with this wisp of smoke.

The real Shiraha Akira is dead.

Farewell, Father, Mother...

Kuroba Akira gradually relaxed, and his previously furrowed brows eased slightly.

Although a faint trace of melancholy still lingered on his face, the solemn expression had quietly faded, replaced by a sense of relief and tranquility.

"I'm telling you this so you won't blame Black Tail. It's not an evil god that toyed with your lives, but a god that gave you a second life."

"Of course I won't blame it; I'm more than grateful to it... Speaking of which, did Blacktail 'revive' us to choose a replacement?"

“Yes, my old man doesn’t plan to find a successor among his own kind, because he always wants to finish what needs to be done in his own generation, rather than leaving it to his descendants to solve… Blacktail, on the other hand, is the one who will only choose a representative from among 'Returnees from the Underworld' like you.”

"Oh, no wonder you chose me... Then why didn't you choose Hijikata-san or Kouka-san? Also, everyone's situation is a bit different, isn't it? And what's going on with Grandpa Kobayashi?"

“My old man is the same as Mr. Hijikata; his two souls have merged together, which is why he reluctantly accepted the name ‘Kobayashi’.”

"Then why don't I have the memories and feelings of this body? And Miss Hongxiang's side is still separate, not integrated at all?"

"Hmm... I'm not too sure about that. Maybe you can ask Blacktail about its powers after it can speak."

"So it can talk?"

"It's not possible now, but it used to be."