Chapter 45: Right Outside Your Door

Donning the laughing Hannya mask, a surging and abundant torrent of power instantly flooded through his limbs and bones, causing Uesugi Toru to let out a long, refreshing breath of relief.

The internal qi that had been nearly exhausted moments ago instantly gushed forth from the depths of his body, wrapping his fingertips in a layer of pearlescent qi-blade.

"The Special Affairs Division people will be here soon, so let's finish this quickly."

The laughing Hannya assumed a straightforward, unadorned stance, took a deep breath, and tensed every muscle in his body. They bulged and intertwined until, from a distance, he looked precisely like a humanoid figure forged from black crucible steel.

Having already secured overwhelming power, Uesugi Toru decided to unleash his mightiest strength to crush his opponent in the shortest time possible.

"Roar..."

Even as foolish as the white Hannya was, it realized at that moment that the being standing before it was no longer a weak human, but a Hannya of a nature similar to its own.

A... bloodthirsty and formidable evil ghost!

Yet it must not back down—the white Hannya could clearly sense that if the projection it had smuggled across via the ritual were to be killed here and now, it would take an unknown length of time before it could once again return to the mortal realm, this place brimming with delectable souls.

Its only choice was to devour the laughing Hannya before it!

The white Hannya roared, emitting a rumbling sonic wave: "Die!"

It thrust forward its ghastly white, elongated claws, its mist-like body springing forward like a released catapult.

The surrounding walls erupted into cracks in a single instant, yet the terrifying sonic wave merely scattered the qi-blade on Uesugi Toru's skin for a fleeting second, leaving him with a slightly ringing sensation in his ears.

——This white Hannya certainly has quite a few tricks up its sleeve.

However, when the true body is utterly weak, no amount of flashy skills can turn the tide of battle!

Uesugi Toru stood unmoving, gazing quietly at the white Hannya charging toward him as a blurred afterimage, acting like a reef amidst a surging tide.

Closer, even closer!

Just as the white Hannya raised its clawed hands, two entirely different Hannya masks simultaneously displayed utterly exaggerated expressions.

The laughing Hannya grinned in wild mirth.

The white Hannya wept in profound sorrow.

An emotion of extreme grief brushed a momentary ripple across Uesugi Toru's lake-like calm heart, only to vanish completely the next instant.

Meanwhile, the white Hannya trembled all over, and the downward swipe of its claws slowed by more than a fraction.

"It seems I am stronger than you."

Seizing the fleeting opportunity, Uesugi Toru stepped forward without hesitation, closing the distance and using the hilt of his blade to knock aside the razor-sharp claws.

The blade of Kaga Kiyomitsu spun through the air, tracing a hundred-and-eighty-degree arc before plunging straight into the white Hannya's mask.

And then, he cleaved it cleanly in two!

Tennen Rishin-ryu: Tiger Tail Sword!

***

The white Hannya's hoarse roar was cut short. It glared at the laughing Hannya before it with immense hatred, engraving his previous human visage deep into its memory.

It whispered angrily: "I will... kill you!"

"I hope you can still say those words a moment from now."

Uesugi Toru remained unimpressed, performing a blood-shaking flick and sheathing his blade.

Amidst the crisp sound of Kaga Kiyomitsu sliding into its scabbard, the cracked evil ghost mask fell to the ground, shattering into countless pieces with a sharp click.

The white Hannya's projection that had invaded the mortal realm was thus exorcised!

[You have slain "Slightly Injured White Hannya Projection (1-Star)", no Soul Ash acquired!]

[Because you have slain the slightly injured white Hannya projection, Slightly Injured White Hannya (2-Star) → Severely Injured White Hannya (1.5-Star)!]

[The white Hannya's hatred toward you has increased significantly!]

[Your skill, Fragment of Qi-Harmonization Technique proficiency +15!]

[Your skill, Tennen Rishin-ryu proficiency +18!]

"How stingy."

Dispelling his avatar state, Uesugi Toru shook his head.

He glanced at the star-level notifications.

"To think it recovered from one star to two stars in just these past few days," Uesugi Toru recalled how the foreman had once said the white Hannya ate anyone it saw. "Still, under equivalent tiers, the white Hannya is no match for me at all."

Half a star was hardly an insurmountable chasm, not to mention that his opponent was presumably still in a weakened state.

Although the white Hannya was originally above two stars and possessed more innate skills than he did, skills lacking sufficient strength were merely equivalent to him being tickled while raising his combat power.

"And here it was talking about how it would definitely kill me. Is it trying to be funny?"

Watch me show up right at your doorstep!

Uesugi Toru laughed heartily and clapped his hands: "Lord Nishaku, has the curse been planted?"

"Popopo!"

A small head topped with a white cap immediately popped out from the staircase not far away and saluted him: "Report! The mission given by Lord Toru has been completed to perfection!"

Lord Nishaku reluctantly dragged her gaze away from the brilliant sun and said, "It's almost impossible to sense it properly here, though. We might need to return to Arakawa Village to pinpoint the exact location."

"That's a minor matter." Uesugi Toru patted the small head of Lord Nishaku as she walked up to him. "Head back into the Jizo statue first."

"Po!"

Lord Nishaku's figure slowly dissolved into nothingness.

Releasing a hundred-eyed ghost eyeball to scout ahead, Uesugi Toru spotted the high-end black vehicle of the Special Affairs Division speeding toward the location in the distance, and he nodded with satisfaction.

***

Credit where credit is due, the Special Affairs Division was still quite efficient; their branch office could dispatch people within half an hour.

After walking around the building once to confirm that no hidden specters or urban legends lurked nearby, Uesugi Toru sat cross-legged beside the unconscious Kitano Runa and poured a drop of the Awakening Spirit Mist into her mouth.

Following that, Uesugi Toru closed his eyes and stepped into Tokoyo.

——Strike while the iron is hot!

***

"Lord Nishaku, can you track the white Hannya's location?"

"Po~ It's crystal clear."

Pushing open the wooden thatched door, Uesugi Toru followed closely behind diminutive Lord Nishaku as they stepped outside.

After following Lord Nishaku's short legs for a while, he finally couldn't help but say, "You're walking way too slowly. Watch me."

"Popopo!"

With that, amidst Lord Nishaku's startled cry, Uesugi Toru scooped her up and placed her right atop his head: "Just point the way; leave the traveling to me."

The fierce wind whipped Lord Nishaku's hair about, and she let out a couple of startled yelps, only stabilizing herself once she grabbed hold of the Hannya's twin horns.

In less than ten minutes, the two of them arrived at the place where the white Hannya was hiding.

Amidst a withered and yellow-brown dense forest, the crunching sounds of feeding echoed from within.

Uesugi Toru peeked through the foliage and discovered that it was indeed the white Hannya, clutching the half-corpse of a farmer as it chewed voraciously. Next to the white Hannya, a small mound of white bones had been piled high.

[Severely Injured White Hannya (1.5-Star)]

The prompt popped up, confirming the opponent's identity.

——No wonder he had noticed during his travels that the farmers on the streets had noticeably dwindled; it turned out they had all been eaten by this white Hannya.

No wonder it had recovered so rapidly. After devouring dozens to a hundred peasants and workers consecutively, how could its recovery not be swift?

Lord Nishaku hid behind a tree stump and asked quietly, "Lord Toru, what should I do next?"

"Just watch the battle from the sidelines for now," Uesugi Toru silently drew Kaga Kiyomitsu, preparing to deliver a pleasant surprise to the white Hannya while it was engrossed in its feast. "Show yourself only if you see me falling into a clear disadvantage."

Lord Nishaku uttered a "po" to signify her understanding, watching as Uesugi Toru silently circled around and walked up behind the white Hannya.

The white Hannya, currently immersed in the bliss of its meal, suddenly felt a tap on its shoulder.

It turned its head in confusion.

And then, the razor-sharp, crystalline blade light came crashing down!