Chapter 15 Hope

Suren was now certain that the cursed space of [Death Novel: Land of Yomi] was connected to reality.

Moreover, he had distinguished two types of "natives."

One type was the yokai, like Shuten-dōji, who had always existed in this space.

The other type was people like Granny Okiku and Ryuichi Akutagawa, who had died and come here from Yamagakure.

Although Suren hadn't figured out how the "Mite Yoru Hime" had done it, the question now was:

What was her purpose in creating such a cursed space?

It definitely wasn't just to absorb outsiders and kill them. Figuring out her motive might reveal how to leave this space.

Besides, this space itself was strange in every way.

Normally, the story in a cursed space would be a segment of a "main will's" memories from life.

But what was odd was that the story here wasn't something that had already happened, but had a complete timeline and continued to develop as time passed.

In all the memories of the ghosts and monsters Suren had extracted, everyone believed that this "Land of Yomi" was the Land of Yomi that had existed in mythology for countless years.

But the truth was that Fujiwara Hayato had only written this novel in the last thirty years.

Could it be that the great writer had used his pen to write countless years of history for this world?

To do so without any flaws was incredibly difficult.

However, as a transmigrator, Suren didn't find it particularly inconceivable.

After much thought, he came up with a relatively reasonable explanation.

That was that the beings in this world had their cognition limited by something, such as dimension!

All illusions could not avoid one premise: this was a world within a book.

Suren further thought, if they really couldn't get out, would a sentence be added to the [Death Novel]: "In the end, Suren and Chitose failed to leave the Land of Yomi and remained there forever..."

Two living people, summarized in a few lines of text in this dimension.

Suren felt a slight sense of melancholy, but also found it quite interesting.

Could the so-called real world itself be a novel story?

.......

In the courtyard of Sensō-ji, snowflakes fluttered in the sky.

Chitose was still in the snow, comprehending the kenjutsu she had learned.

Under the eaves, Ryuichi Akutagawa's aged hands were using a carving knife to slowly carve the outline of a Buddha statue from wood.

The sound of the blade embedding itself in the wood was very subtle, "shua," "shua"...

Wood shavings fell to the ground one by one.

Suren stood beside him, taking out a half-finished strange puppet and patiently seeking guidance.

Although he didn't understand kenjutsu, he had quite a bit of experience in carving.

Moreover, he had thoroughly studied too many Yamagakure documents, so there was no communication barrier. He could offer his own insights on any topic, and they quickly became familiar.

"Mr. Akutagawa, is carving Buddha related to your 'Battō: Hellscape Sword Intent'?"

"Yes. Swordsmen who cultivate the Path of Hell emphasize slaughter. Without compassion, they will eventually fall into the demonic path. Moreover, after I entered the Sacred Realm in my later years, I began carving Buddha, and only then did I realize that Buddhahood was not suppressing my Hellscape Sword Intent, which had grown due to slaughter, but instead allowed my kenjutsu to advance further. A realm is like a bucket of water. When the water is full, you need higher walls to hold more water. The higher the Buddhahood, the higher the kenjutsu. Your friend has excellent talent, but she still needs some insights. Your situation is similar, young friend..."

"..."

Suren knew that although the old man was talking to him, he was actually guiding Chitose at all times, and he nodded from time to time.

He also asked about some things related to the Land of Yomi, but didn't get too many of the clues he wanted.

Even the Sword Saint, who was the top powerhouse of Yamagakure in life, considered this to be the real Land of Yomi in his cognition.

Moreover, the residents of Yamagakure had an unspeakable worship of Izanami as a god. It was like the sun should exist in the sky, a fixed cognition. Not to mention asking what level the Lord of Yomi was, even discussing it was not easy.

The only thing he could be sure of was that the Lord of Yomi was "unfathomable."

......

Time flew by, and half a month passed in a flash.

Suren and Chitose had been staying at Sensō-ji, and because of the temple and the mudra, no ghosts or monsters came to disturb them.

With a Sword Saint constantly giving guidance, Chitose was able to stay put, practicing her swordsmanship in the courtyard every day.

In her words, as long as she could comprehend the true meaning of kenjutsu, it wouldn't matter even if she couldn't get out.

Suren wasn't idle either. After his injuries healed, he repeatedly sneaked into the city, which was full of various ghosts and monsters, to inquire about the Lord of Yomi and look for a way out.

Because he had prepared in advance, he managed to get in and out safely several times.

However, after these few trips, he had seen many strange yokai in the Land of Yomi, but with little success.

The information he learned was very limited.

The only way out he could think of was still to go directly to Izanami.

However, that lord was too mysterious, making Suren feel that it was best not to risk trying before he was sure.

In the myths and legends of Yamagakure, this lord who controlled Yomi was the first dead person in the world, and because of her, the concept of "death" came into being.

This day was like any other.

After carving a Buddha statue every once in a while, the "Sword Saint" Ryuichi Akutagawa would go out to look for suitable wood.

As usual, only Suren and Chitose were left in Sensō-ji.

In the courtyard, Chitose was still practicing her swordsmanship day after day.

"Swish," "swish," "swish"...

The sound of sword energy breaking through the air was endless.

Unlike her usual fierce slashes, Chitose was now "playing" with her sword.

A dead leaf was floating on her blade. Every time the leaf was about to fall, it would be lifted up by a sword energy. The strength was just right, like a goose feather, rising and falling.

Upon closer inspection, a pattern had been drawn on the dead leaf with the sword energy as a pen.

Suren, who was carving a strange puppet under the eaves, glanced at it and rolled his eyes.

It seemed that the drawing on the dead leaf was of him, Suren, but it was too潦草 a bit?

But just then, a crow suddenly flew across the sky. With a "shua" sound, the sword energy was used too strongly, and the dead leaf was cut into two pieces.

Seeing this, Chitose pouted and muttered, "Ah... I failed again."

Suren smiled and said, "Chitose-nee, take a break. Your qi is a bit disordered."

He naturally knew that this was a very clever way to control sword energy with precise micro-operations.

Logically speaking, a fourth-tier professional like Suren couldn't understand this high-level secret technique at all, and couldn't even get a word in.

But as it happened, after stripping away [Miko-ryū: Overlord Body] before, he really knew what was going on.

This was the secret sword ultimate of "Akutagawa Ittō-ryū," which required grasping the sense of meticulous control over sword energy.

It was very difficult to get started.

But after learning this secret technique, even when facing monsters like the [Rotting Abomination] that were almost immune to physical attacks, ordinary sword energy could still have a good killing effect.

The scientific explanation was that this secret technique turned the slash from a "line" into a "particle-level" slash, using qi to destroy the target's structural form.

Suren looked at Chitose's troubled expression, gestured with the carving knife a few times, and said, "You should do this first, and then that..."

Chitose glared at him. Although she thought it made sense, she couldn't help but retort, "Do you think everyone has your talent?"

This secret technique was simple to say, but it was very difficult to grasp that feeling. Only by constantly trying, letting the body learn, and developing muscle memory could one finally achieve stable output.

She let out a breath of stale air, then picked up another dead leaf from the ground and began a new practice.

Suren looked at her increasingly skilled slashing techniques, and a smile appeared in the corner of his eye.

He naturally knew how important it was to have a good teacher.

Especially at certain major bottlenecks that required comprehension.

These days, the "Sword Saint" Ryuichi Akutagawa had been constantly giving guidance, and Chitose's swordsmanship had visibly improved by leaps and bounds. Especially her comprehension of "sword intent" seemed to be just a step away.

No wonder Chitose didn't want to go anywhere now, and was focused on practicing her swordsmanship at Sensō-ji.

Coming to "Yomi" this time could be considered a blessing in disguise. Seeing the Sword Saint who had already passed away in the real world was a rare opportunity.

.......

Not long after, Suren looked at his pocket watch. It was already twelve o'clock in the afternoon.

At this time every day, he would go out for a walk and look for some clues.

He packed up the strange puppet, stood up, and said, "Chitose-nee, I'm going to the city again today."

Chitose asked while slashing at the leaves, "Do you want me to go with you?"

Suren shook his head, "No, this time I'm not going to contact any great yokai, just going for a walk."

If he wasn't trapped, he would really be very interested in this novel world.

The laws of this Land of Yomi in the book were flawless, and there were many dangers. But that also meant that there were many potential treasures and secrets to be discovered here, just like outside.

There were many materials containing the laws of death in the Land of Yomi, which were difficult to find in the real world, and which Suren needed. There were also those fairies, ghosts, and monsters that were rarely seen outside.

Just strolling around here, one could see countless rare species.

These were top-level scarce resources.

In the past half month, Suren had used some of his own inventory to exchange for Yomi materials worth hundreds of millions. If these materials were sold in the real world, they might not be bought for a hundred or a thousand times the price.

He felt that if he could really get out alive, he could write a travelogue about it, called *I Was a Reseller in Yomi*.

Chitose didn't say much, "Okay."

They both knew very well that if they were discovered going to the city, they would have to run.

Two people were not as good as one.

After a pause, she looked at Suren and added, "Be careful."

"Okay."

Suren put on his cloak, picked up the rune umbrella, and as usual, first released the black crow to scout the way ahead, and then walked towards the dilapidated Buddhist temple gate.

But before he had taken a few steps, suddenly, a beam of white light lit up in the sky, shining on the east side of the city!

In this dim world, the beam of light was as eye-catching as a shooting star falling to earth.

Chitose turned her head sharply, looked at the beam of light, and exclaimed softly, "What is that!"

Suren's eyes turned, and a hint of anticipation appeared in the depths of his eyes. He immediately said, "Let's go take a look!"

He had been looking for a way out all this time, but this world was like a circle, with a complete closed loop, and he couldn't find any flaws at all.

But this kind of anomaly...

It seemed like sunlight?

How could there be sunlight in the Land of Yomi?

.......

Suren and Chitose left Sensō-ji and headed east.

But the commotion caused by the celestial phenomenon was not small. Along the way, they also discovered that other yokai were being attracted to it.

Because they were outside the city, the two of them moved very fast, but as they got closer, they also found that there were more and more yokai around, and there were some powerful beings hidden among them.

The two of them were not in a hurry to get close. In the woods in the distance, they joined a group of little imps who had come to watch the fun.

Although the distance was far, it was enough to see clearly.

The sky seemed to have been pierced by sunlight, and a "spotlight" shone down, making the mountain look like a monk's head.

Suren looked at the location of the mountain and vaguely felt familiar. He muttered, "The place where the beam of light landed seems to be the location of the Iga Shrine outside Edo Castle?"

"It seems so."

Chitose also noticed this point: "Could it be a commotion caused by Miko?"

In Yamagakure, the sun was synonymous with Amaterasu, and the Shirofuku Miko was a shrine maiden who served the gods.

The two of them also remembered that when they came in, a great war should have been taking place in Edo Castle outside.

Although half a month had passed in the cursed space, it didn't necessarily mean that much time had passed outside.

With so many coincidences put together, it was likely that they had guessed correctly.

"Hiss, if it's Miko, then wouldn't we have a chance to get out?"

As Suren spoke, he glanced at the golden light that cut through the sky.

But maybe it was his bad luck, but as soon as he said this, the hole in the sky suddenly closed, and the "spotlight" went out!

Suren "..."

Chitose "..."

The two of them looked at each other and saw the speechless expression in each other's eyes.

No matter how you looked at it, this situation looked like someone had thrown another "thing" in from the outside.

Chitose guessed, "Could it be that something happened to Miko?"

"Most likely."

Suren also frowned slightly, "Let's go take a look."

This was very likely.

The people of the Ashikaga Shogunate chose to launch a war during the "Black Sun Festival," and used this method of polluting the sun to solve all the outsiders. It seemed that they were completely confident in taking action.

Even if he didn't know how the battle outside was going, the result was predictable.

Chitose nodded.

The two of them got off the tree and quietly sneaked over.

.......

The yokai of Yomi were very afraid of sunlight, and no ghosts or monsters dared to approach that mountain.

Although there was no "spotlight," the top of the mountain still had a residual light like a moonstone.

As Suren and Chitose walked over, they saw an illusion of a palace, like a mirage.

"It's Iga Shrine! It should be a projection of the real world..."

Suren looked at the illusion with a stern look.

There were no shrines in the Land of Yomi. Even if there were, the shrines on this hillside would be as dilapidated as Sensō-ji.

Chitose gripped the sword in her hand and asked, "Should we go take a look?"

Suren nodded.

Whether it was Miko or something else, it was necessary for them to investigate clearly.

The two of them walked up the glowing mountain.

The light on the top of the mountain and the palace illusion were dimming at a visible speed because there was no external light source to replenish them. The illusion on the periphery of the palace also began to disintegrate, and the area became smaller and smaller.

Without sunlight, the ghosts and monsters around went crazy and surged towards the top of the mountain.

The top of the mountain seemed to have an aura that was very attractive to these ghosts and monsters.

The two of them noticed this and rushed over quickly.

The two of them were human, so they were not affected by the light at all, and went directly to the mountain where the palace was located.

There was indeed a dilapidated shrine here.

And the ghosts and monsters that could walk here were all at the level of fourth or fifth-tier professionals.

The number was not too many, nor too few.

A [Ōkubi] with a huge head, a [Tatsu-no-ko Tarō] with an ugly face and a snake body, a [Aobōzu] with a one-eyed blue skin and a monk's appearance, a [Boar Demon], a [Mushroom Demon], an [Octopus Demon]...

Suren had seen many ghosts and monsters that only existed in stories these days, and he also saw a few familiar great yokai.

When the two of them arrived, some yokai had already withstood the not-so-glaring sunlight and rushed in.

A fierce battle could be heard from inside the dilapidated shrine.

Suren and the two of them did not approach rashly. He released the black crow to overlook everything from the sky.

When he shared his vision, he saw several yokai besieging a human inside the shrine. The battle was very fierce.

Looking at the black-haired girl holding a bow and arrow and wearing a red and white shrine maiden's attire, Suren recognized her at a glance. Who else could it be but Shirofuku Miko?