The afterlife blew up Gensokyo

"Is that so... He should have been reincarnated long ago, right?"

In Shi Bai's sight, Su Wo Tu Zi Gu Wo's expression dimmed rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"I wonder what the Immortal intends to do? Is it to take me back to hell to be punished? I have committed a heinous crime by hiding here, and I am fully aware of the consequences of my actions. I hope the Immortal..."

"So I'm here to arrest you?"

Shi Bai rolled his eyes inwardly; the formal, literary style of conversation was extremely unfamiliar to him.

"Qin Hesheng was a kind-hearted and virtuous man, pure and untainted by the mud, cleansed by the clear water without being seductive. He was a man of great merit. Entrusted by him, after he passed away, I came to visit my old friend on his behalf."

He didn't care about anything else; all he needed to do was to exaggerate Qin Hesheng's abilities. If he could plant the idea in Soga no Toko's mind that Qin Hesheng had been reincarnated, then the other party would basically have no way of connecting Qin Hesheng with him in the future... He really wanted to silence the only person who knew about this matter, Matara Okina, first...

A very subtle thought flashed through Shi Bai's mind, but it disappeared in an instant.

"So this..."

After hearing what he said, Soga no Toko was visibly stunned.

"Now that I've said this, you all should take care of yourselves."

Without giving the other person a chance to continue speaking, Shi Bai turned and gracefully walked out of the temple.

"If you have nowhere else to go in the future, you may go to Gensokyo on your own. It is a place where reality and illusion meet, and it is completely different from the outside world. There... the dead are not forbidden there."

P.S.: I keep dreaming that I'm sleeping, and I'm extremely sleepy in the dream... What could be the reason for this?

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Kaguya's Elder Brother of Mount Hourai

In the fickle weather of early spring, when the weather is warm one moment and cold the next, it is hardest to find peace. A few cups of weak wine are no match for the sudden, sharp wind of the evening.

Shi Bai vaguely remembered that when he first went to Fujiwara-kyo, it was early summer. In the blink of an eye, several months had passed, and the sweltering summer heat had passed silently, and the bleak autumn wind had arrived.

It is said that autumn has always been a season of sorrow and desolation, but now I only feel sorrow that reaches the heavens.

After three months, Kaguya Houraisan's physique finally returned to normal, but this was not a good thing. Instead, it showed him just how capable the now-free Lunar Capital Princess could be of causing trouble.

Because he forcibly deprived her of the right to sleep in, Kaguya Houraisan has always held a grudge against him and is always thinking about revenge. In the past, due to her physical limitations, she could only try to kill him with her eyes. Now that she is finally free, she has directly evolved to the point where she can take action.

Shi Bai will never forget the extremely "miserable" scene he saw when he entered the door after returning from Nara Prefecture.

Inside the blood-stained hall, Fujiwara no Mokou lay face down on the floor, blood gushing from beneath her. Beside her, Houraisan Kaguya, whose body had somehow returned to normal, sat hunched over in a corner, a blood-stained dagger protruding from her abdomen… The entire room reeked of blood, as if it were the scene of a large-scale post-mortem killing.

Shi Bai admitted that he was indeed almost startled at first... if he hadn't seen Fujiwara no Mokou's hand move unconsciously.

This was a "surprise" planned by Kaguya Houraisan and implemented with the assistance of Fujiwara no Mokou. In order to make it realistic and perfectly simulate the bloody smell in the air, Kaguya Houraisan abandoned things like ketchup and brought over a lot of animal blood... This was the obedient confession of a certain NEET princess after being forced to thoroughly clean the entire bamboo house.

Shiro waved his hand magnanimously, smiling, and said it was all a small matter. He added that Shiro's acting was perfect, but Mokou still needed improvement. After all, I'm not some kind of demon; why would I hold a grudge over something so trivial?

Okay, now that you've fully recovered, you can wake up half an hour earlier every morning. I'll use this extra time to teach you a set of exercises that Yonglin created before to help you exercise. You ask what exercises are? It's the Eight-Point Exercise, right? Didn't Yonglin tell you about it? Don't worry, it's very effective. I believe in you! Meihong, don't even think about sneaking away. I think it's perfect for the two of you to practice these exercises.

The next day, there was widespread mourning and despair.

Shi Bai felt he had to find something for Houraisan Kaguya and Fujiwara no Mokou, who had been corrupted by Houraisan Kaguya, to do, otherwise it was very likely that he would end up seeing Houraisan Kaguya and Fujiwara no Mokou pretending to be dead every day when he came home.

So he pulled out the King of Fighters arcade game, took out his PSP, and set up a mahjong set. He hadn't taken them out before because, given Kaguya Houraisan's size at that time, he wouldn't have been able to play even if he had, but now he could... and then he was quite annoyed to find that he had been abandoned.

Because rather than being abused by him, Kaguya Houraisan preferred playing games with Fujiwara no Mokou. The two were evenly matched, neck and neck, and he was mostly an observer.

...Shi Bai felt like he was repeating the situation he had experienced before in the underworld and hell where no one wanted to play mahjong with him.

Although Hieda Rei could easily fill a group of four if he had the time, he was not only repeatedly outmaneuvered by Hieda Rei, but he was also relentlessly targeted by Houraisan Kaguya, who would risk losing his hand to break his hand.

In situations like Kaguya Houraisan's suicidal playstyle, he's usually the one who loses the most after a round of mahjong, while Kaguya Houraisan is the one who loses the most miserably, always having the most paper strips or ink marks stuck to his face, followed by Kaguya Houraisan... The gaming experience is extremely poor.

Besides these, there were other things that bothered him, namely that he and his sister had become extremely famous in Fujiwara-kyo, the kind of famous people who were known to everyone.

He originally wanted to make a living through his talent, so for the first three months, he carried his canvases and went to Fujiwara no Kyoto to work as a painter, but unfortunately, he didn't earn much. However, after Houraisan Kaguya returned to normal and excitedly went to Fujiwara no Kyoto with Fujiwara no Mokou, she caused a sensation throughout the entire city because of the heavenly beauty of a certain Princess of the Moon.

How famous were they? In Fujiwara Kyo, everyone from top to bottom, young and old, knew about the existence of the two siblings. It's like a certain idol star who became famous throughout half of China by singing, dancing, rapping, and playing basketball. You might not have known them before, but you will definitely have heard of them later.

Actually, becoming famous isn't a big deal, but he didn't become famous because of his talent or his good looks. Instead, he became famous as an accessory to the brother of Kaguya-hime, the most beautiful woman in the world... Shi Bai felt he couldn't accept it, and even felt a little indignant.

What does this represent? It represents that it was a basketball in the hands of some idol star, which became popular along with the song "You're Too Beautiful"... If we could find the basketball that was played in that video, it could definitely be sold for a high price on the market. That's the value of an accessory.

But the problem is... who's going to be that basketball?!

Are people in the world all so superficial? I have created so many masterpieces that are worthy of being displayed in museums for future generations to admire, which proves that I am talented. I am also incredibly handsome, with an elegant and refined demeanor, which means I am good-looking.

You all ignore such a good-looking and talented guy here, and instead frantically idolize a gamer girl who needs constant supervision to get up on time every day. If this continues, the country will be ruined. The idol economy is unacceptable!

Someone looked heartbroken.

Ever since Kaguya of Houraisan made her public appearance that day, this once remote bamboo forest has been transformed into a bustling marketplace.

Every day, a steady stream of carriages would stop in front of this bamboo house surrounded by a fence, all seeking an audience with Princess Kaguya. Many nobles and wealthy families would spend lavishly to bring expensive gifts and money, just to catch a glimpse of Princess Kaguya.

These were all people who had the good fortune to see Kaguya of Houraisan that day. They were practically insane. Their madness reminded Shi Bai of the fanatical idol worshippers he had encountered in his previous life, which was incredibly annoying.

Before he could even speak, overnight, the once somewhat dilapidated bamboo house and its surrounding courtyard were completely restored. An artificial pond had even been added to the courtyard, where a dozen or so beautiful goldfish swam leisurely...

Shi Bai thought these guys who wanted to get close to her were crazy.

What's even more infuriating is that the runaway princess from a certain month quite readily dumped these matters on him, innocently claiming that he was her elder brother and therefore these things were definitely his responsibility.

So while he was busy dealing with the endless stream of nobles, Kaguya Houraisan was happily playing King of Fighters with Fujiwara no Mokou, who had secretly slipped in. While he was chatting about history and current events with the visiting nobles, Kaguya Houraisan was happily hiding in the house playing Connect Four with Fujiwara no Mokou...

Shi Bai felt that this was a big problem.

If it weren't for his image, he would have liked to hold a Guan Gong sword and stand majestically in front of the courtyard, ready to slash anyone who dared to come near.

It has to be said that it's truly unpredictable what some people will do in the face of absolute beauty.

Some guys took an unconventional approach, even secretly sending a large force in the dead of night to forcibly kidnap Princess Kaguya and bring her back to their mansion.

Faced with these unruly individuals, Shi Bai naturally wouldn't give them a friendly look. From the person in charge to the mastermind behind the scenes and the executor, no matter who they were, they were all stripped naked and tied up in the street overnight.

After several such incidents, those who still harbored such thoughts gradually calmed down.

However, solving this problem did not mean that other problems were solved. Every day, countless people came to the door, either to investigate after hearing the rumors or because they were still hopelessly infatuated with seeing Princess Kaguya one last time. Shi Bai was extremely annoyed by this.

...especially when you see the culprit still leisurely playing games with Fujiwara no Mokou every day.

Happiness is always relative. While I'm stuck miserably entertaining guests, the other person can leisurely play games. Indeed, autumn has always been a season of melancholy and desolation…

However, he couldn't stand having to entertain those nobles every day. Although he was patient in order to maintain his image, since Kaguya Houraisan might cause even bigger trouble if she were to handle it, he also needed rest and privacy.

Therefore, he specifically designated rest days and also established a rule that anyone who came on rest days would not be seen and would be blacklisted, which was a barely acceptable way to get out of trouble.

"You're responsible for the mess you've made. I don't want to waste my time on such meaningless things in the future."

Looking at Hourai San Teru, who was sitting behind the table with a very obedient expression, Shi Bai spoke to him with a dark face.

Aside from Fujiwara no Mokou coming over to play games and Hieda no Rei occasionally visiting, the bamboo house was usually just the two of them. Having lived under the same roof for several months, he knew the princess's nature all too well.

He had considered showing Kaguya Houraisan's fanatics another side of her in her ordinary life to dispel their unrealistic ideas, and he even conducted an experiment for this purpose, but that experiment only proved one thing.

—Being good-looking allows you to do whatever you want.

"We have wandered the world and finally found a place to stay. Does my elder brother no longer care about me?"

Covering half her face with her sleeve, Kaguya Houraisan looked as if she was about to cry.

“Brother, have you forgotten the promise you made to me? Under that magnificent starry sky, brother…”

"If things don't return to normal soon, you'll be punished by not eating dinner tonight."

Shi Bai's face remained expressionless.

The food he was referring to was not the standardized food represented by the [Food Tablecloth], but rather food he made himself.

Ever since Kaguya Houraisan personally cooked a delicious meal to celebrate Fujiwara no Mokou's birthday, she has developed a bad habit of being a picky eater. Fujiwara no Mokou has also been coming over to freeload every few days around mealtimes, and the originally very useful "food tablecloth" has been gathering dust ever since.

Actually, cooking is nothing to him. After all, he did it this way when he was taking care of Xiaoye and the others. At the same time, it gives him a handle to use against this NEET princess in front of him. Why not?

Sure enough, after he said those words, Kaguya Houraisan immediately returned to normal.

"As the eldest brother, you are like a father. Naturally, this kind of matter should be handled by you, my brother who is my concubine, right?"

Kaguya Houraisan coughed a few times in a very serious manner.

"And if I were to deal with those men, aren't you worried that something unexpected might happen? I thought all men were the same because you were so calm about my beauty... but who knew something like this would happen?"

"Those guys think they can compare to me? My handsomeness is on a completely different level, by a million orders of magnitude!!"

With his arms crossed, Shi Bai wore a cold smile.

Kaguya Houraisan: "..."

"And are you sure you want me to handle everything? Since you know the saying 'the eldest brother is like a father,' then you should also understand that there's another saying here: 'arranged marriage by parents and matchmakers.' Do you believe I'll marry you off?!"

"Uh……"

"So, if you don't want to be married off, you'd better obediently follow my arrangements and debut as an idol. Coincidentally, I have a song called 'Gokuraku Jodo' that's perfect for you. You can go for it then..."

"Hmm... it's not impossible for me to get married."

Her eyes darted around, and Houraisan Kaguya suddenly interrupted him, looking up at him with a sincere expression.

"But my husband must be as handsome as my elder brother, right?"

"Hmm... your requirements seem a bit high..."

Shi Bai looked thoughtful.

"I am a princess from the Moon Capital, so it's normal for me to have high standards, isn't it?"

Kaguya Houraisan held up a finger and waved it in front of her, her face serious.

"So, until a suitable candidate is found, I would like to trouble my elder brother to handle this matter for me!"

P.S.: I feel like I'm about to suddenly die ヽ(ー_ー)ノ

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Fujiwara no Mokou and Houraisan Kaguya, the Two Princesses of Hourai

Often, things happen in ways that are far beyond what was originally expected. Some things are more likely to happen the more you try to prevent them from happening, while others are less likely to happen the more you try to prevent them from happening.

This was what Shi Bai called dramatic.

Human life is made all the more wonderful by its brevity. But when life becomes infinite, how many people can remain true to themselves and not waver throughout that long period of time?

People always change.

Putting down his pen and looking at the open diary in front of him, Shi Bai sighed softly.

August 11th, Sunny

play cards.

August 12th, Sunny

play cards.

[August 13th, Light Rain]

play cards.

August 14th, Sunny

Shi Bai, Shi Bai, have you forgotten what you're supposed to be doing? How could you fall so low so quickly? Starting tomorrow, this can't continue!! You're destined for great things!!!

August 15th, Sunny

play cards.

[August 16th, light rain]

play cards.

August 17th, sunny.

People always change...

Looking at his diary, Shi Bai silently closed it and then solemnly locked it in the drawer. He felt that he had basically possessed all three essential human qualities.

Things like wanting to write a diary to record each day and prevent his life from becoming too decadent... are definitely not suitable for him.

Yi also sighed inwardly, Shi Bai walked out of the bedroom and came to the courtyard.

Today is a day off, and the courtyard, which is usually bustling with activity, has become unusually quiet.