Chapter 187 - Childhood Nightmare

…

The top of Mt. Saagiri.

"...What is that?" My wife Shancun looked blankly at the huge shadow cast above her head.

Minazuki Shiro was stunned, and quickly took out the Mugen City map given by Uyashiki Sukeyo from his arms.

He raised the map in his hand and compared the outline of the map with the reflection in the sky.

——Exactly the same!

In a daze, the surrounding thick fog and blood mist merged with each other.

An infinite city created by Shang Quanna using the vampire technique suddenly appeared in the sky above the top of Mount Samagiri.

Of course, this is not an infinite city with real mass, it is just an illusion-like thing simulated using vampire magic.

Zhu Shi's vampire technique can create illusions and transform them to create a realistic VR effect with a touch of touch.

The layout inside is exactly the same as the layout of Infinite City that Shang Quannai saw last time.

——He even simulated a fake singing girl sitting in it.

After the reflection of the bloody Higan flower in my hand, I could barely make Infinite City feel a little more real.

Shang Quannai, who had transformed into a Wuhan-like figure, looked even weirder and colder when he smiled. He held the bloody Bana flower and stretched out his other hand.

"Snapped!"

Snapped his fingers.

The false infinite city slowly descended, and finally enveloped the entire top of Mount Samagiri.

The pillars looked at the enveloping Infinite City in amazement. When they came into contact, it was like passing through water, and a slightly heavy feeling pressed on the pillars.

His eyes also became very heavy, and he couldn't help but close them.

When they opened their eyes again, the scene in front of them had changed drastically.

The brightly lit Infinity City.

There are criss-crossed houses with overlapping sliding doors.

and platforms floating in mid-air that defy the rules of physics.

"bring it on."

Wu Mei's voice came from a platform not far away, and the voice echoed in Infinite City.

The pillars looked up subconsciously.

Wu Kuan half-squinted his scarlet eyes, looking down at the five pillars with contempt:

"Please please me well."

He raised his eyebrows and raised the corners of his mouth with disdain:

"…Can it be done?"

Bang!

Naruto knelt down next to Muzan, holding the pipa in her hand, playing it once or twice from time to time.

Wow——!

A red blood mist erupted from around "Wuxian"'s body! In an instant, he crushed the astonished pillars!

"Pooh...!!" My wife Shancun was the first to bear the brunt. He stretched out his hand to resist the wind pressure. The huge pressure made it difficult for him to stay standing in place.

He staggered and rolled back.

Shui Wuyuebai looked at Wuhan standing on the platform in astonishment. In a daze, he even thought that Shang Quannai had been replaced by Wuhan.

--real or fake.

Lift your head, view.

Creak... creak...

Several bone whips stretched out from behind Wu Mei, waving them wantonly in mid-air.

The previous Shang Quannai, who had no momentum, treated others calmly, and was often in a daze, has disappeared.

What is left behind seems to be the cold-blooded one who despises life.

It's... a ghost.

Mizuno Yuebai's pupils trembled slightly, and his hand had unconsciously grasped the knife at his waist.

The same goes for the other pillars.

At this moment, they seemed to really remember.

Shang Quannai is not a human being.

"Wuxian" frowned impatiently when he saw the faces of the pillars chattering.

next moment.

Uh-huh!

The twisted bone whip behind him whipped towards the pillars!

…

…

outside world.

Another place that is very different from Infinite City.

——This is a sunny and quiet courtyard.

The sunshine is dreamy, and the area outside the courtyard is white and looks very empty.

There is only half a mansion-like building on one side of the courtyard.

Two figures sit facing each other.

"Gudu! Gudu!" The ninja raised the bone bottle, expressionless, and drank it in one gulp.

Then he slowly opened his eyes.

Only then did he realize that the surrounding environment seemed to have changed in just an instant.

He held up the empty bone bottle in his hand, with some blood stains remaining on the corners of his mouth, and looked around with a dull look on his face.

--here it is…

The same was true for Jiguo Iwakatsu, who was sitting opposite him.

The scene around me suddenly changed, almost instantly, from the mist-shrouded mountain top to here...

——The courtyard of Jiguo's mansion.

On the eaves on the side, the words "Jiguo" are delicately carved on the tiles.

On the door of the mansion, the family crest of the step country is also depicted with lavender traces.

Although Tsukuni Iwakatsu was startled by the sudden change of scene, all his attention was still focused on the ninja.

He also held a bone bottle in his hand, and he had even grasped the cork, ready to remove the cork and drink it at any time.

"Ninja." Tsukuni Iwakatsu looked at the sluggish look of the ninja after drinking the liquid in the bone bottle, and he suddenly said:

"How does it feel."

The ninja looked directly behind Tsukuni Iwakatsu.

Following Kuni Iwakatsu, in the corridor extending from the mansion to the courtyard, a figure wearing a red haori was sitting.

The figure is very thin and looks like a child.

Messy hair, simple clogs worn casually...

There are vague sun earrings on the ears.

The child-like figure was currently sitting on the wooden board in the corridor, with his feet dangling on the edge of the wooden board, and his blurred face looking up at the sky.

From time to time, he would reach out and observe his current appearance, which seemed very novel.

--child? Why are there children here?

——A very familiar figure...Who is it?

The ninja was stunned for a while, and then he realized and carefully felt the changes in his body.

"ah…"

But after a while, he raised his head stiffly:

"Sir..." Ninja hesitated, his face a little confused:

"It seems...no change..."

And the moment he said these words.

My heart suddenly tightened!

The majestic blood surged out like a collapsed water embankment.

The ninja's face turned red in shock! He braced himself against the ground.

"Pfft...!!"

His hands tightly grasped the edge of the huge stone on the side, leaning on it.

Tsukuni Iwakatsu frowned, and he stepped back slightly, looking at the ninja with some vague concern.

At this time.

boom! !

Most of the stone held by the ninja was crushed to pieces! It turned into several pieces of rubble and exploded.

Broken rocks flew in all directions, and a piece of debris grazed the cheek of Jiguo Yansheng, who was unable to react. Bright red blood slowly flowed down his cheek.

Tsukuni Iwakatsu stood up in surprise. He quickly stepped back several steps, allowing the ninja to lie on the ground and curl up in pain.

His eyes were in a trance, looking at the gravel on the ground and the actual boulder beside the two of them just now.

And the ninja's still unscathed hands.

He touched the warm blood on his face.

The ninja's strength increased, and right before his eyes, he broke through the restriction called "humanity".

That guy... wasn't lying.

In this world, there really are ways to become stronger without working hard.

In his mind, the image of Jiguo Yuanyi gradually became clear.

——No need to work hard.

Jiguo Yansheng slowly lowered his head and looked at the bone bottle in his hand.

Bo!

Remove the plug.

He looked carefully at the bottle filled with blood mist in front of him and slowly closed his eyes.

Raise your head!

Gudu, Gudu.

As his Adam's apple moved up and down, Jiguo Iwakatsu swallowed all the blood in the bone bottle.

As the blood slowly passes through the esophagus, it is integrated into the body along with the cells.

Jiguo Yansheng staggered back two steps, his hand weakly dropped the bone bottle in his hand, his whole body seemed to be drunk, and his spirit became a little confused.

Unlike the ninja who endured the pain, Tsukuni Iwakatsu felt like he drank too rich old wine in one go and his body couldn't digest it.

Snap, snap.

The clogs clanked on the ground.

Finally, he retreated in front of the red-haired child behind him.

thump!

He sat down.

The child with red feathers slowly lowered his gaze. He swung his legs slightly and looked at Tsukuni Iwakatsu.

Suddenly, there was a hint of emotion in the dark red pupils of Furui Muha, and the child spoke to Tsukuni Iwakatsu who was sitting on the ground:

"Brother."

In an instant, the child's blurred face suddenly became clear.

The young Stepkuni Enichi sat on the edge of the courtyard corridor, swinging his legs.

"...Huh." Tsukuni Iwakatsu's spirit was a little blurry. He turned his head almost subconsciously, looking away from Tsukuni Enichi with a disgusting expression.

——Why is the fate of my childhood here?

At this moment, Yan Sheng's thoughts were blurry. He only felt confused and disgusted, not surprised.

Oh, maybe I have some fantasies about Yuanyi's ability to appear anywhere at any time.

The young Enichi tilted his head, as if he didn't quite understand Tsukuni Iwakatsu's actions. He asked:

"Before, my elder brother has been asking me how to defeat that teacher..."

"Brother, why on earth...why do you want to become stronger?"

Tsukuni Iwakatsu leaned slightly on his katana, and he looked at the Tsukuni tattoo on the katana in a daze:

"This is my responsibility. I am the eldest son of the family. Everyone should rely on me for the future and protect everyone..."

Suddenly, he paused and his eyes seemed to become clearer:

"No, that's not the case."

"The reason why I want to become stronger..."

In his mind, countless teachings from his father when he was young flashed through his mind.

The reason at the beginning seemed to be for the family and to become a stronger warrior.

--but.

——Do you really think so?

Jiguo Yansheng lowered his eyes, and he felt that his arms were a little weak.

——If you really think that way, then you won’t have the idea of ​​abandoning your family...

Sudden.

In his mind, dusty memories from his childhood surged out.

The image of the younger brother wearing a simple haori easily defeating the teacher stood out.

yes!

He turned his head suddenly, his eyes became firm, but still unclear. Jiguo Yansheng stretched out a finger and pointed at the young Yuanyi:

"It's...to surpass you!"

The young Yuanyi tilted his head, as if he didn't understand, and pointed at himself very cooperatively.

"...Why, why do you have such a talent?"

Jiguo Iwakatsu held the handle of the knife with both hands, supported the ground with the knife, and stood up his upper body: "Beyond the character of ordinary people, with an attitude of not caring..."

"Why do you have so much power..."

"You are obviously so powerful...but it still doesn't matter..."

"I can't understand it at all...it's really frustrating..."

He took a deep breath, his tone rising and falling:

"envy!"

The young Enichi quietly listened to the unclear words of Jiguo Iwakatsu. He lowered his head silently, not knowing what he was thinking.

He opened his mouth, but did not make a sound. He seemed to be saying, "Why do you want to surpass me?" But he hesitated for a while and did not say anything.

Instead, he changed his mouth shape and said slowly and in a childlike tone:

"Brother, as long as you surpass me, is it enough?"

"What happens after you surpass me...?"

As soon as Xiao Yuan raised his head, he asked his brother so seriously for the first time.

Jiguo Yansheng was also stunned for a rare moment. He leaned on the knife, his eyes slowly cleared from confusion.

yes.

After transcending Yuanyi...

It seems that I haven’t thought about it at all…

…

No.

Jiguo Yansheng came back to his senses. At this moment, he only felt a little headache and was surprised by his subconscious.

He was - never thought that he would surpass Yuanyi.

He has subconsciously denied the possibility of surpassing Yuanyi one day in the future, so he has not thought about what will happen after surpassing Yuanyi.

"...I don't know." Jiguo Yansheng shook his head. He slowly closed his eyes, and his mind, which had become confused due to Shang Quanna's blood, gradually returned to normal:

"I just, simply want..."

He slowly lay down on the ground and reached out his hands to grab the sky:

"want to…"

He slowly retracted his outstretched hand and touched his face, which was similar to Yuanyi's.

"...I want it, that's all."

His eyelids became heavier and heavier, and his mind became clearer, but he could hear the voices next to his ears clearly.

He closed his tired eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

Da da da.

It was the sound of someone stepping on wooden clogs and approaching slowly.

The voice is very clear, it must be someone of very small weight.

At this time, Young Yuan's childish voice sounded in his ears:

"Brother, do you want to continue to become stronger now?"

"…So."

"Just tell my brother the secret of my becoming stronger."

Subconsciously, Jiguo Yansheng's spirit was aroused, and he looked like "Sure enough, you must have a secret."

Young Yuanyi’s voice still rings in my ears:

"Brother..."

“…please remember my breath.”

Snap.

Jiguo Yansheng felt a small hand on his chest.

Pressing slowly and hard, controlling the rhythm of his breathing.

Breathe in - breathe in - breathe in...

In a deep sleep, Jiguo Iwakatsu slowly accepted Jiguo Enichi's breathing method from his subconscious and muscle memory.

…

Shortly after.

It is still in this courtyard that was simulated by Shang Quannai using the vampire technique.

The young-looking Jiguoyuan knelt down next to Jiguo Yansheng who was lying on the ground. He lowered his eyes and the sun earrings on his earlobes swayed slightly.

The image just now was also simulated by Shang Quanna, but in Yan Sheng's eyes, it was just like when he was a child.

"...Enichi-san." The ninja knelt on one knee, lowered his head, and respectfully called Enichi Tsukuni.

Ji Guoyuan didn't answer him, he just looked at his brother's rising and falling chest quietly.

He slowly raised his head and looked at the false but dreamy and beautiful light blue sky.

"...Lord Iwakatsu, when will you wake up?" The ninja hesitated for a while, and finally asked in question.

"I have no idea."

Jiguo Enichi's answer was very concise and decisive.