Tokyo: The Player Behind the Scenes

Near the sandbar where the rivers meet, the current is rapid.

Upon arrival, Ping Shenglong and his group immediately began searching the sandbar area.

After searching almost every corner where the statue might be hidden, they still found nothing.

"Could it be at the bottom of the river or under the silt?" Ping Shenglong asked, looking at the murky river water.

River channels are not static; if you zoom out over a longer timescale, you can see the river channel winding and stretching like an earthworm.

“Impossible.” Kurosaki Chimei immediately shook his head, his words resolute. “The language of the formation is very clear: three lands and three lakes, maintaining a delicate balance between land and water. If Shijizo were to sink to the bottom of the river or be buried deep beneath the land, this balance would be completely destroyed.”

Ping Shenglong pondered for a moment, then nodded: "Then, there's only one possibility left."

His gaze fell upon the distant land covered by dikes and farmland.

Kurosaki had a headache, clearly understanding what Taira no Ryu meant: "But if that's the case, this formation should have been severely weakened, not able to last this long."

Ping Shenglong said no more and quickly retrieved historical and geographical data for comparison.

The data quickly revealed that after the Boyong eruption in 1707, the mountain of volcanic ash completely altered the local landscape, leading to a series of subsequent river course changes.

The confluence of the two rivers is no longer where it used to be.

"Actually, we can't be that sure. Even now, we don't know when this formation was established. Maybe it was after 1707?"

“But we must consider the possibilities established earlier. According to the ancient river course reconstructed by AI,” Ping Shenglong pointed to the map on the tablet, “the real ancient confluence point is about two kilometers northwest of our current location.” He paused, then added, “and that place is already land.”

"Two kilometers," Kurosaki said, looking at the offset on the map. "At this scale, a few kilometers of offset has a limited impact on the Nine Star Formation and won't reduce its effectiveness too much. But the most fatal problem is that once the nodes lose their semi-land and semi-water environment, the balance will be broken, the effectiveness of the formation will be greatly reduced, and earthquakes and floods will occur frequently."

“In any case, we must confirm further.” Heisei Ryu made a decisive decision. “We’ll split up. Kurosaki, you and Nakajima go to the old intersection to search. I’ll continue to lead the search team to expand the search area here.”

Kurosaki hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded in agreement and quickly headed northwest with Nakajima.

The base of the stone shrine is usually specially treated and is exceptionally sturdy. It also seems to have a faint but protective aura that can ward off evil and harm. He was more worried that it might be buried in the soil, which would make the task of finding it incredibly difficult.

Just as Kurosaki and Nakajima arrived at their destination and began their search, news arrived that all three lake nodes had been destroyed.

It has been confirmed that the stone Jizo statue beneath the lake was destroyed by a water monster. Leon also sent confirmation that a similar incomplete stone Jizo statue was found at the location representing the Left and Right Auxiliary Stars.

Furthermore, even the remaining strokes of the Chinese characters have been basically confirmed to be the Nine-Character Mantra, rather than the Nine-Character Cut.

Thus, Kurosaki Chimei's speculation about the formation was perfectly confirmed by reality.

Leon's voice was grave: "All other nodes have fallen, and the command center is being moved to Fujikawa Town. I have informed the Prime Minister's Office of the urgency of the situation and the predicted consequences. The Prime Minister has convened an emergency meeting, and I expect the mass evacuation order will be issued soon."

"However, to flood the entire Kofu Basin, it would require at least half the volume of Lake Biwa. Can such water simply be conjured up out of thin air?"

Leon's question could not be answered by Ping Shenglong, because he didn't know either.

But Kurosaki's previous deductions had all come true, and until any other more convincing explanation emerged, he chose to believe it.

"I believe Kurosaki's judgment. The most urgent task is to defend the last giant gate node, but we have not yet been able to find the exact location of Shijizo."

“Those monsters, or rather, the manipulators behind them, are aware that we have uncovered their plans, and they will likely launch a large-scale offensive soon.” Leon did not press further. “Himeko Minamoto and Taki Muramasa are on their way. They will fully cooperate with you in finding the Giant Gate Node. I will be responsible for organizing the outer defenses to ensure that Fujikawa Town is not overrun by the monsters.”

After settling the plan in a few words, Leon hung up the phone with Ping Shenglong; he had many other things to attend to.

The wild boars and giant bears could barely be considered mutations, but the fish-headed monster and the serpent were completely monsters.

He simply categorized them all as monsters.

Leon suspects that the wild boar and giant bear initially maintained their original animal forms to avoid provoking them too much. Apparently, the mastermind behind it was also worried that humans would know its purpose too early, thus posing a threat.

Now that humanity has seen through the plan, there's no need for the mastermind to keep it a secret any longer.

Anyway, there's only one node left, as long as we break through it...

Leon shook his head. If he were to adopt the perspective of the mastermind, the best opportunity would be to launch a blitzkrieg and quickly capture the giant gate node before humanity had fully organized its defenses.

He even said that when he called Pyeongsung Dragons, he was already mentally prepared for the other side to enter a battle state.

But the mastermind behind it didn't make a move. Was there some kind of constraint or was there some other scheme?

But regardless, the defenses must be established.

At least the previous battles proved that these monsters are not immune to modern firepower or have terrifying regenerative abilities like the demon sword or the Kyoto giant.

Unlimited ammunition is their biggest advantage.

On the sandbar.

Muramasa Taki arrived at the rendezvous point a step ahead of Genji Himeko, and learned about the entire deduction process in detail from Taira no Ryu.

On this point, there was no longer any need for Ping Shenglong to keep it a secret.

After listening, Takii pondered for a moment. Without a doubt, the grand formation here was inextricably linked to Doman Akatsuki, the true protagonist of "The Pact of the Underworld".

The information gleaned from reality can then be used to help her explore the perfect ending and unravel the subsequent plot of the game.

It is clear that Mount Fuji is a key location for rebuilding Yomi, and Doman Akatsuki probably chose to completely betray his family and seal it away here.

The reason for the seal is unclear. Could failing to fulfill the mission of rebuilding the Underworld cause some great disaster?

Speaking of disasters, the Bao Yong earthquake and volcanic eruption of 1707 are quite close to the main storyline of the game, but it cannot be confirmed that they are related to the game yet, as she has not yet reached that point in the game.

Just then, Kurosaki Chimei's communication came through: "I think I found Shijizo. It's in the yard of a house within the search area. I'll send you the location first and then explain when I get here."

Kurosaki seemed unsure how to phrase his words.

Heisei Ryu instructed Takagi to continue searching the sandbar, while he and Muramasa Taki rushed to the location sent by Kurosaki.

It was a typical detached house, and the house was a bit old.

In one corner of the courtyard wall, there indeed stands a simple and ancient stone statue of Ksitigarbha.

The owner of this house is nowhere to be found; he was probably taken away by the sociable Nakajima for a talk to avoid disturbing Kurosaki.

Upon seeing Heisei Ryu, Kurosaki said, "This stone Jizo statue is quite old; according to the owner, it's at least a hundred years old."

"But this looks like an ordinary Ksitigarbha statue, completely lacking the mysterious feeling left behind by the Ksitigarbha statues that destroyed the scene before."

Kurosaki crouched down and touched the chest and abdomen of the Jizo statue: "More importantly, there are no words here! There is no trace or engraving of the character 'soldier'. My previous deduction was clearly correct, and as the Jizo statue is a node of the giant gate, this place must correspond to the mantra of the character 'soldier'."

"So this is an ordinary stone Jizo statue that has nothing to do with the sealing node?" Heisei Ryu asked.

“But that’s the strange thing,” Kurosaki said, his tone full of struggle. “If it were just an unrelated Jizo statue, I wouldn’t be bothered. The problem is, look at the quality of its stone.”

He scratched the surface of the stone statue with his fingernail: "This is basalt, and the stone Jizo statues found at the previous sites of destruction were also made of basalt. Because basalt is too hard and difficult to carve, it is expensive and time-consuming. People generally prefer to use tuff, which is relatively easy to process. In particular, Kofu is rich in a type of tuff. I dare not say that there are stone Jizo statues carved from basalt, but I don't believe it's just a coincidence that they are carved at the confluence of ancient river channels."

"Therefore, it is almost certain that it and the stone Ksitigarbha statues that served as the core of the formation were all made by the same person!"

Heisei Ryu nodded slightly; Kurosaki's meaning was very clear.

Judging from its location and material, the stone Ksitigarbha before us should represent the Giant Gate node.

However, it lacks the most crucial symbol, the military mantra, which creates a paradox:

If this is the key node of the formation, why is there no character for "soldier"? If not, why is it so special?

Muramasa Takii's focus was somewhat different. She carefully observed the image of the stone Jizo and found that it was very different from the one she had seen at the bottom of Lake Motosu.

"Are all the stone Jizo statues discovered so far different in appearance?" Taki asked.

“Yes.” Kurosaki answered instinctively, “Mizuko, mother and child, nail pulling, etc.”

His gaze refocused on the carved tin staff and shimenawa rope held by the stone statue in front of him, and a tingling sensation flowed through his brain, as if a light bulb had suddenly been turned on above his head.

In an instant, he froze on the spot, his eyes glazed over, lost in a state of rapid thought, his lips moving silently.

Taira no Ryu and Muramasa Taki exchanged a glance, then tacitly stepped back a few paces, standing guard at the entrance of the courtyard, giving Kurosaki some quiet space to think.

Kurosaki didn't ponder for long; a few minutes later, he walked out with his head down, muttering to himself.

"This is... the fusion of Dao Ancestor and Ksitigarbha statue." Kurosaki showed no excitement, his expression hesitant.

The Daozu he refers to has nothing to do with Taoism, but is a very primitive form of guardian deity in ancient Japanese folk religion.

Two natural stones, one yin and one yang, are often placed at the entrance of a village to ward off evil spirits and protect the border. Later, they gradually merged with the belief in Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva and evolved into a special image.

His face showed uncertainty: "I have a guess, and I'm probably less than 50% sure."

“Speak,” Ping Shenglong said succinctly, “We will be responsible for verification.”

Kurosaki pointed to the Dao Ancestor Ksitigarbha statue in the courtyard: "This stone Ksitigarbha itself may indeed be the node set up by the original array setter, representing the Giant Gate Star position. This can be basically confirmed from the material and its proper location. So, the key point is the Nine True Words."

"What I want to say is that the mantras engraved on Ksitigarbha's chest and abdomen may not have been left by the original person who set up the formation, but were added by a Taoist priest later. This also explains why the nine-character mantra appeared instead of the nine-character cut."

Ping Shenglong's thinking speed was also extremely fast. He instantly understood Kurosaki's unfinished meaning and deduced from it: "So you mean that the original setter set up the Nine Star Earth Treasury Formation, and this place served as the Giant Gate node. Later, at some point, the node's position shifted due to changes in the river channel, and its power weakened."

"At this time, a Taoist priest discovered the hidden danger in this formation. His solution was to find these Ksitigarbha statues and add the Nine Syllable Mantra to strengthen or repair it. But this wasn't enough, because the location of the nodes had shifted deep into the land due to the change in the river channel, losing the crucial balance of being half-water and half-land. Simply inscribing the characters couldn't completely solve the problem. Therefore…"

Ping Shenglong pointed towards the sandbar: "So, the newcomer also established a new Stone Earth Treasury replacement array node at the new river mouth sandbar location?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Kurosaki was enjoying the feeling of not having to say much, as others would understand without him having to explain much.

Muramasa Taki listened from the side, his eyes flickering slightly.

I never expected that joining the official organization would have such benefits. It would be very difficult to access this information on my own.

“But we conducted a full search on the sandbar and did not find the stone statue unless it is at the bottom of the river or underground.”

Heisei Ryu interrupted Kurosaki's excitement.

"The reason it can't be found on the sandbar is because the later visitor was a Taoist priest who didn't understand Yin-Yang techniques. So what he erected shouldn't be a stone Jizo statue, but a Taoist spell that could barely blend into this formation. It was just what Miss Muramasa said that reminded me that Taoism also has a kind of belief similar to the Taoist Ancestor statue. Have you ever heard of the Taishan Stone Guardian?"

"This also evolved from a kind of worship and belief in natural spirits; at least the two have something in common."

Almost the instant Kurosaki finished speaking, the detailed layout of the sandbar immediately appeared clearly in Heisei Ryu's mind.

In the middle section of the sandbar, where the water flow is most rapid, there is indeed an inconspicuous mound, mainly composed of sand and gravel.

The elevation is relatively gentle, but overall it is five or six meters higher than the horizontal plane.

Could it be right there?

They called Nakajima, and the group rushed back to the sandbar. Kurosaki went to the raised area and started digging at the sand and gravel on top.

After fiddling around for a while, he stopped, took out the Three Purities Bell, and shook it gently a few times with a hint of uncertainty.

"The sound of jade pendants resonates, and all directions are purified."

The river flowed swiftly, and everything else was silent.

Kurosaki chuckled self-deprecatingly. He wasn't a real Taoist priest, and he didn't know much about formations, so how could he possibly control the core of a formation?

Just as he was hesitating about whether to ask Ping Shenglong to arrange an excavator.

He suddenly realized that the silence behind him was somewhat eerie.

He was about to turn around, but as soon as he turned half of his face, he froze in place, as if he had been frozen in place.

In reality, he was able to move, but some mysterious, or perhaps aura, locked his soul in place, preventing him from moving, as if his soul would be scattered if he moved at all.

White clothes and a mask.

Standing not far from him was the mysterious superhuman who had only appeared once in official records, yet had annihilated the centipede monster with a single gesture. To make it easy for people to understand his identity, the official code name was "White-Clad Mask".

Only by witnessing it firsthand can one truly understand the despair the centipede monster felt at that time.

Without exception, everyone on the sandbar, including Muramasa Taki, felt their hair stand on end, their souls seemingly drowning in a tide of impending death, unable even to breathe.

Beneath the pure white mask, he remained silent, simply reaching out to take the Sanqing Bell from Kurosaki's hand, while the latter could only watch helplessly.

As he swayed, invisible ripples spread out, a crisp bell sound echoed, the ground began to tremble in sync, sand and gravel fell, and a basalt rock the size of half a room slowly rose up in front of him.

The white-clad masked man released his grip, and the Three Pure Bells automatically returned to Kurosaki's hand.

He walked forward, stood in front of the basalt rock, examined it for a few seconds, and then extended his index finger and gently touched it.

Ripples spread out, and in the center of the basalt, a dark red "soldier" character slowly appeared.

The white-clad mask remained silent, simply gazing at the basalt rock.

It wasn't until everyone on the sandbar was so suffocated that their faces turned red, their tactical wristwatches flashed red to indicate abnormal heart rates, and they were about to suffocate and roll their eyes back.

The figure in white vanished without warning, just as abruptly as their arrival, as if it were all an illusion.

It seems that only at this moment has time been allowed to flow here.

Nakajima immediately clutched his heart dramatically, slowly lay down on the sand and gravel, gasped for breath with his mouth open, and was drenched in sweat, as if he had just fallen into the water and climbed out.

The ordinary people present reacted similarly to him, with the best being like Heisei Ryu and Kurosaki, who hunched over, pressed their chests, and used panting to calm their racing hearts.

Even the extraordinary Muramasa Taki was no better off, his body tense, still afraid to move.

Several minutes later, people gradually calmed down.

"That...that guy...was he here to help us?"