Tokyo bombing incident Nth time

“I didn’t say I—” Did it not hear Yuri’s addition?

"You, a ghost?" The train spirit lowered its voice again. "What kind of ghost are you—do you really think you're a ghost?"

"Yes?" That was the only response Yuri could give.

At least before the Train Spirit raised the question, his doubts about this point had been dispelled. But now he's starting to have doubts again.

But if not a ghost, then what is Yuri?

Before Yuri could come to a conclusion (and most likely couldn't), the train spoke again.

"This answer wasn't entirely unexpected, but the ghost... ha..." It only chuckled once before stopping. "Alright, it's your turn to ask a question."

Yuri immediately raised the question he had been preparing for a long time, which he had discussed with Minmei.

"What exactly is happening in this city right now? I mean, the thing about the spirits starting to become active. Why? What's going on? What will be the consequences?" The way the other person phrased their questions suggested that related issues could be asked together, so Yuri followed suit and asked them all at once. If the other person refused to answer, there was nothing he could do.

"You're not asking about your own situation, but about... this?" The train spirit's voice held a hint of surprise. "Are you really sure this is more important to you than your situation? Is this your honest opinion?"

"This is our first meeting, and I'm curious about the source of your expectations of me. I must admit I don't really understand my own situation. But why can't I care about the place I live in? Maybe that's what matters most?"

Yuri felt offended. This train spirit clearly lacked any sense of human nature. What did it take Yuri for? Did it mistake him for some guy who was overly concerned with himself but didn't care about others?

“So that’s how it is… there’s such a thing…” the train spirit muttered to itself, making no attempt to avoid Yuri hearing it.

Yuri waited a few more seconds.

“Very good, that’s a good question. I can explain it to you a bit more…” The train spirit paused for a moment, “By the way, to answer the question you asked before… you can just call me ‘Line 2’.”

Line 2, Yuri wrote down the name. The name might reveal a lot, but guessing randomly would likely lead to a wrong answer.

Chapter Seventy-Nine: The Essence and Influence of the Spirit

"It would be clearer to discuss this from the most fundamental perspective: what exactly is your understanding of spirits?" Line Two's voice echoed around Yuri.

Yuri sensed that the train spirit wasn't deliberately focusing its attention on him, but it was still keeping an eye on him.

“The spirit is the reflection of various things in the shadow world. Sometimes, strong emotions and specific events can also generate their own spirit. Only humans do not generate spirits, but human emotions and activities provide a lot of energy for the activities of spirits.”

Yuri paused for a moment, and seeing that the other party did not interrupt, he continued speaking.

"As the spiritual entity corresponding to a thing, the characteristics of the spirit are related to the thing it corresponds to. However, due to some subtle differences, the spirits generated by the same thing will have different characteristics. This may be because the thing itself has multiple facets, or because the spirits have different experiences after they are generated."

Line 2 still didn't speak to interrupt, and Yuri started to panic, but still continued the conversation.

“Spirits can react upon the things that produce them, and as the scope of what they represent expands, they can exert an increasingly profound influence. However, at the same time, the stronger the spirit, the more difficult it is to cross the perilous path between the spirit's shadow realm and the ordinary material world. Therefore, more powerful spirits often can only indirectly influence human society.”

Yuri wondered if it was simply waiting for him to finish speaking, since it still didn't interrupt.

“Like other spirits, spirits have their own taboos and sources of trouble, and need to fix themselves to specific anchor points—” Yuri heard a whistle.

"Alright, that's enough for now." Line 2 finally interrupted Yuri.

Yuri stopped talking, realizing that he would run out of topics if he continued.

“A very standard recitation, Yuri friend… almost exactly the same as the common understanding of humans. Did you humans all learn from the same teacher?” Line 2’s voice was not hostile, but it carried a hint of sarcasm.

"We humans?" This is how many times Line 2 has uttered this word—but Yuri had previously said he wouldn't ask about things related to him, so it would be too awkward to ask this question now.

“I did learn these things from humans, isn’t that right?” Yuri didn’t find anything that contradicted this theory.

"This theory has a certain correctness, but it overestimates the human world... or rather, the material world." Line 2's voice was gentle, at least by the standards of a metallic clanging sound.

"This theory holds that the material world is the foundation of everything, and everything originates from the material world... But why can't it be the other way around? Why won't humanity consider that the spiritual world came first, and then the spiritual world created pressure, prompting the corresponding matter to be produced?"

It seems that in order to give Yuri time to think, Line 2 has been shut down.

This is indeed a novel idea, but something seems off. If the clock spirit existed before the clock itself, what did that clock spirit represent back then? Or could the spirit not actually represent a specific substance...?

Yuri stopped his pointless thinking; the evidence and information were too far apart.

"Is there any evidence to prove that this is how it is?" If the Train Spirit really produced evidence, Yuri would have to seriously consider this possibility.

"No evidence is the same as you having no evidence to prove your idea. Based on my experience, it's better to believe that the two occurred simultaneously and are interconnected, rather than one completely determining the other." Line Two abruptly changed the subject, catching Yuri off guard.

"So what does this have to do with what's happening right now?" Yuri, regaining his composure, decided not to dwell on the matter and to get straight to the point.

"If you understand that the spiritual world and the material world interfere with and determine each other, rather than the material world unilaterally determining everything in the spiritual world... then you should have a deeper understanding of the current situation."

"I still don't quite understand." Yuri had a guess, but it wasn't a sure thing. He could fully understand the idea that the two influenced each other, but what role did that play in this matter?

“For a spirit to influence the material world we inhabit, it needs to go through several steps. The first step is to create a resonance with that world—what you call an anchor point. Actually, anchor points are a term used by ghosts; they appear in places or things closely related to themselves. The connections they establish are tighter, but also narrower in scope. The resonance we spirits use is relatively fragile, easier to break, but also more widespread.” Line Two made no attempt to hide its prejudice against ghosts.

Well, this doesn't contradict Yuri's experience; ghosts usually stay in one place, while spirits have a wider range of movement. Furthermore, it's true that Yuri hasn't seen any ghost anchor points broken, but he's seen spirit anchor points broken several times.

"And this resonance, once accumulated to a certain degree, can support the spirit to manifest—or, as you understand it, can help the spirit break through obstacles and enter the material world. After manifestation, the resonance can be continuously strengthened, creating a mutually reinforcing effect with our spirit. —At the same time, a resonance may not be usable by only one spirit; many smaller spirits can actively or passively hitch a ride on these resonances. Do you understand?"

Yuri felt he had grasped something key.

"In other words, the current situation is actually due to a powerful spirit preparing to manifest itself. It is constantly strengthening its resonance and accumulating power, and the aftershocks are causing a large number of smaller spirits to become active!"

Is the current chaos just the aftermath? Or is this aftermath becoming too significant?

"Yes, that's about it, you understood correctly. I've seen some professional mouse catchers running around trying to find the problem... How could they possibly find enough information here? They have to go over there, but with their skill level, I'm afraid they wouldn't dare."

If the Train Spirit's voice was only slightly sarcastic when mentioning Yuri and the ghosts, it became obviously malicious when mentioning these "mouse catchers."

"The ones you're talking about catching mice, are you referring to the Soul Hunters?" Yuri asked cautiously, trying to sound like he had only heard of them and had no connection with them. He even prepared himself for the question beforehand.

To be honest, only after speaking out in this situation did he truly realize how much of a mockery this name was to the spirit.

"Who else could it be but them? Soul Hunters, that's what they call themselves when they talk to humans." Line Two's tone was quite sinister. "Let them deal with this problem themselves. We'll talk about it after they're all dead."

Yuri quickly analyzed the information he had just received in his mind.

First, as Mingmei said, "Line 2" is quite hostile to the Soul Hunters. Although they are not going to launch an attack, they would probably only consider cooperating with the Soul Hunters when it comes to life and death.

Secondly, the arrival of this new and powerful spirit is also a "problem" for "Line Two." It may not be urgent, but it doesn't particularly like it, likely due to territorial division issues, or some deeper implications.

This may also be one of the underlying reasons why it was willing to tell Yuri the information; if Yuri showed any intention of going after the new troublemaker, it would probably be quite supportive.

Next, considering the rapid growth rate of the number of little spirits that can be used as indicators, unless the resonance required by the other party is extremely strong, it is probably not long before this guy rushes over.

And then... Soul Hunter, that's a big question and not urgent, let's put it aside.

So the most crucial question is...

"So who is this powerful spirit that is about to manifest in the world? What impact will it have?"

Yes, that's the problem. Although not a single part of Yuri predicted that its impact would be good, there's always a chance of something going wrong.

The spirit of the train in front of us may not be credible in this respect, but it is still a reference point.

"I've already told you some things. Do you have any guesses about them?" Line 2 answered the question with a question.

What exactly does it want to do?

Yuri guessed at the other party's attitude while responding.

"My guess is that it's an animal spirit, and its effect is that the animals in the city become more active."

After all, the spirits that roam around are all small animal spirits. According to the previously mentioned theory of shared resonance, the spirits that are finally preparing to appear in the mortal world should be of the same type.

An exceptionally powerful animal spirit... perhaps a beast from some ancient legend?

Considering this is Tokyo, could it be some kind of creature with eight heads...?

“I can’t guess what kind of animal it is or what its habits are, but…” Yuri thought of the Fire Spirit, “but it should be inclined to be unfriendly towards humans.”

If the spirit of the fire is not from the train in front of us, then "that person" is probably the one who is about to emerge.

Those who can associate with the spirit of fire are mostly not good people.

"Your guess is rather simplistic, but it's not wrong. You'll understand the more detailed things once you see them."

Yuri couldn't tell if the other person was satisfied with the answer, but... "saw"?

“Animal spirits are actually not well-suited to the environment of Tokyo. Their era is hundreds or thousands of years past, but this one is relatively more suitable right now—even so, it will take some time for it to raise the resonance in the Tokyo area to a level that would allow it to squeeze in.” The train spirit paused and changed its perspective. “On the other hand, as the relatively wilder side, animal spirits are generally not very friendly to humans—and even less so to modern humans.”

Yuri was annoyed by the other party's pretense of mystery, but he had no way to solve the problem—what could he do, "If you don't get to the point, I'm leaving"?

"However, you should think more about it! Why does it want to turn such a large area into its resonance zone? Haven't you ever seen a high-level spirit? Is there anything different about it?" The train spirit's words were almost explicit.

"Because it wants to choose its own place in the world, instead of being confined to a small area? It has its enemies, and it doesn't want these enemies to be able to prepare too many things in advance?" At this point, Yuri thought he understood what the other party meant.

“…That’s not what I wanted to say, but there’s some truth to it, and it might indeed be considering that.” The train spirit didn’t look at Yuri as it spoke. “It’s very ambitious. It doesn’t just want a simple present world. It doesn’t want to wait until it arrives here to slowly expand its power. It wants to strike once and for all.”

Yuri secretly wondered if this was the same as he had thought. If there weren't enemies, such as some unnamed train spirit, who might take the opportunity to attack it, it could have come to the material world and then slowly expanded.

Unless its plans don't allow it to linger too long in the material world, but why would it?

Yuri posed the question to the Train Spirit, only to have it thrown back at him: "You'll find out soon enough; there's no point in guessing here."

This is the second time that "Line 2" has been emphasized as "very soon".

"You previously said 'soon,' 'see'? What does that mean? Does it mean it has already arrived in the material world?"

"Not yet, but it will be soon. And it's hard to stop it in advance. If no hero steps forward, the citizens of Tokyo will probably have to accept the future where new spirits begin to affect their lives—and that effect won't be small."

"Isn't it your enemy?" It might be too blunt to say it like that, but Yuri felt that dragging things out any longer wouldn't lead to any rapid progress. "Do you really want to see it come into this material world and start acting?"

It might be too blunt, but Yuri believes the reasoning is sound.

"It's definitely not my friend, and I wouldn't mind giving it a good beating, but not now, and not as convenient as you think... Hmm?"

A strange, humanoid spirit walked in through the passage. Its spiritual aura was noticeably weaker than that of the Train Spirit, but still far stronger than Yuri's. It was roughly judged to be at the level of the Fire Spirit.

It was clear that it had engaged in a silent communication with the spirit of the train, with subtle spiritual energy swirling between them.

Yuri attempted to read these spiritual forces.

This was the first time he had ever witnessed such spiritual power, and it was clear that he couldn't get too immersed in it, especially since he hadn't prepared beforehand...

Yuri stopped making excuses; in any case, it was a great pity that he only had time to sense some fragments.

Moreover, the order of the fragments is uncertain.

Further analysis revealed only two words: "now" and "already".

A bad feeling rushed into Yuri's heart.

Chapter Eighty Chaos

Yuri could clearly sense that both spirits were focusing their attention on him.

This feeling was terrible; Yuri felt as if he were being observed with some kind of interest by two wild beasts.

"Yuri, they don't want to eat you yet, at least not now. Calm down!" Yuri struggled to break free from this terrible feeling and then shifted his attention to observe the newcomer.

It looks very much like a human, but its limbs are cylindrical and connected to a sandbag-like body by flat, ribbon-like joints. The most distinctive feature is its head—if spirits have heads at all—which looks like a searchlight or a camera.

To be honest, it's a bit like a robot, but three meters tall. Yuri hadn't seen many films so he couldn't find a suitable analogy, but he was certain that if he said it was a robot, most people wouldn't immediately doubt it.

“My friend Yuri, I have many things I want to discuss slowly, but I can’t. This new friend you met brings me news: what we mentioned before is about to happen soon, very soon.” The Train Spirit’s voice remained calm.

"How fast?" Forget about complaining. Although Yuri was convinced that the fact that the matter hadn't been finished was simply a result of the other party rambling on, a sense of unease urged him to ignore this small problem.

"Ten—" the train spirit slowly spoke.

"Ten?" Yuri repeated in a low voice. Ten what? Ten hours?

The spirit of the train paused, waited five seconds, and then said, "--two-one."

Yuri never imagined that someone in reality... a spirit, would actually do such a thing. His shocked thought center sent him a signal, "This is bad," but he couldn't react immediately.

Then a familiar yet much stronger shock surged through Yuri's mind, suppressing his confusion, anger, and doubt.

After the brief dizziness subsided, Yuri felt that the train spirit in front of him had risen considerably, as had the unknown new spirit. Looking at the ground, which was closer to him, he pulled himself out of the ground.

"To be precise, right now."

For the first time since meeting Yuri, the train spirit moved, slowly moving forward along the tracks in the material world. "I need to do a patrol, my friend Yuri, and you may also have things to do, such as confirming what this fluctuation has brought about."

“Wait, we haven’t finished speaking yet—” Yuri instinctively tried to call out to the other person to stop.

"—You'd better see it for yourself."

The train's acceleration ended in a very short time. Yuri was certain that after accelerating to a certain point, the train's spirit vanished from his sight as a beam of light. It didn't remain in its original form outside Yuri's field of vision; rather, it disappeared suddenly after reaching a certain initial velocity.

Only Yuri and the new spirit remained at the scene.

"Excuse me--"

Yuri wanted to find out the other party's identity, but he was cut off as soon as he opened his mouth.

The sound wasn't loud; compared to the roar of the train spirit, it was very gentle. The speed was on the fast side, but not so fast that Yuri couldn't hear it.

"—You'd better think about your own affairs instead of worrying about me. Just because there's nothing unusual at the station doesn't mean there isn't something unusual outside." It sounded like a warning in some sense.