Chapter 911 - 28: The Protagonists
In a split second, a myriad of thoughts had already raced through Gu Mo’s mind.
He even started a data storm directly in his consciousness, establishing multiple processing threads, preparing to calculate and verify the probabilities of those possibilities one by one, while also preparing countermeasures.
In the end, however, he was somewhat skeptical whether the upload records of the dog system had just covered this world line. Was it because the multiple histories he created were in the process of merging, leading to some subtle chemical reaction?
It seemed like he couldn’t stop thinking about it and even spent a full second seriously pondering it, and he felt that the suspicion of this possibility was relatively high.
But temporarily he had no way to prove it, moreover, it could also be that something went wrong on his side. After all, Gu Mo always thought the first run of his Technique couldn’t be perfect, without any bugs... even he didn’t believe it would go so smoothly, so of course, there would be doubts.
His face remained expressionless, gesturing casually with his hands: "That’s because you’re ignorant. The concept of the Nine-tailed Fox is surely much older, it appeared very early on. Moreover, as long as one perseveres in practice and keeps going, it’s only a matter of time until the Fox Race grows nine tails..."
"Tsk..."
Kenshan Yellow Springs was clearly unmoved by this, fundamentally disbelieving what this person said.
Everyone knows what the end of the road looks like. After all, many legends, myths, and even historical folklore have mixed accounts, describing the form of the Nine-tailed Fox... But the problem is, not everyone can reach the end of the road, just as not everyone can score full marks in exams?
"Alright, it seems like you don’t quite believe me."
Gu Mo doesn’t insist, just shakes his head, then reaches out to point around—
"...!!"
This action nearly set off the already highly-strung Kenshan Yellow Springs, almost triggering a defensive counterattack reflex, but she luckily restrained herself. There was a very obvious hand-raising motion as if intending to raise the sword, but then putting it down.
Behind her, Togami Kagura almost subconsciously released the Food Spirit she had just retracted, summoning the huge Spirit Beast named Bai Rui again, it showed just how taut their nerves were.
As for the surrounding Demon Exorcists who had quietly perked up their ears, their faces full of disbelief, a series of commotion erupted simultaneously, some instinctively took a step back, while others suddenly drew their weapons, a desperate look as if struggling for survival.
"..."
"..."
Yatsugaya Miko slightly parted her lips as she stared dumbfounded at this Domino effect-like phenomenon, suddenly feeling that she might have stumbled upon something big.
Even these professional Demon Exorcists, who had seen a lot, were nervous to the point of neurosis, so what level of severity was the issue with this person?
"Let’s put it this way, if I were Tamamo no Mae, that root of Evil Spirits you’re so terrified of, then I could completely choose to do nothing just now, right?"
The young man opposite, entirely indifferent to the fact that his action nearly caused chaos, maintained a calm expression, stating, as he gestured around, in a factual manner with a reasonable tone, inexplicably making it seem logical.
"With your Power, you absolutely cannot withstand that mad Evil Spirit, all I have to do is patiently wait, and your Strategy Room faces total annihilation, the entire city might fall... In this way, I would reap the benefits, isn’t that a better option? Why bother?"
"..."
"..."
"Hmph, this doesn’t prove you’re without suspicion, how do I know you don’t have bigger schemes...and you might not be helping us but rather intending to deal with the Evil Spirits here, and just happened to run into us, isn’t it?"
Kenshan Yellow Springs thought for a moment, blinked, but still had a guarded expression. She didn’t relax her vigilance while wisely pointing out the key among them.
Who knows if this person is lending a hand or harboring an intent of black-on-black crime, no evidence indicates that he realized the dire situation and came specifically to eliminate the urban threat. At this point, one shouldn’t be led astray by him, maintaining a scrutinizing attitude is necessary.
"Nine-tailed Fox"...
"Killing Stone"...
"Root of Evil Spirits"...
At this moment, these significant keywords flowed one by one through Kenshan Yellow Springs’ mind, truly of grave importance, no matter what, she couldn’t let her guard down.
—If Tamamo no Mae, this legendary Demon Fox wasn’t known for opening a rampage upon mere appearance.
—Considering the display in legends, this Evil Spirit adept at disguise undoubtedly cannot be ruled out.
"In that case, according to what you’ve said, what else can I say..." The black-haired, white-clothed youth across very evidently raised his eyebrows, after a simple probe, becoming more certain that some issues had arisen within the world line he created, or even changes at the core setting level had occurred.
The settings he clearly abandoned strangely resurfaced, occupying visibly significant weight in this worldview.
The tension level from the opposite side was entirely observable.
"Hmm..."
Kenshan Yellow Springs also furrowed her brows.
However, this was an unavoidable matter...
After all, she couldn’t risk on this matter, seeing the colleagues around, each as if facing a major enemy, taut bodies not even daring to breathe, one should realise how well-known this name is, how frightful this possibility is.
Speaking of which, she herself was somewhat reckless—
The moment she realized this possibility, she couldn’t help but probe directly.
It was probably really terrifying. When her thoughts linked these clues together and came to such a conclusion, she was already in turmoil and couldn’t think calmly, only thinking that she must immediately expose the conspiracy... Looking back now, perhaps she should have held back and reported to the director later.
Wait, no, if the other party is really Tamamo no Mae, then such a Demon Fox is surely a super Evil Spirit that sees through people’s minds...
Can I really bluff my way through in front of them? For safety, would the other party decide to silence us directly?
But since they haven’t done so yet, maybe they’re really not... We also can’t rule out the possibility that the other party is actually doing the opposite, exposing themselves first to gain the trust of the Mind Industry—if they know exposure will alert others but still insist on doing so...
That often only means there’s some benefit to alerting others.
Her mind was a mess, her spirits heavy; Kenshan Yellow Springs felt like her head was about to explode. Who knew this sudden event would extend in this way?
She’s just a Demon Exorcist under the Strategy Room now, not the head of any Demon-Exorcising Clan, and doesn’t have much authority. Moreover, being too young, she truly lacks adequate experience in this aspect, and doesn’t know how to handle such a situation at all.
Thrum, thrum, thrum—
Coincidentally, a loud noise sounded from outside the unfinished building, the sound of helicopter rotors.
This means the second wave of reinforcement from the Strategy Room has arrived.
"Let’s leave it at that for today, Miss Yellow Springs. This tension isn’t good for either of us; let’s both calm down, and you should go back and properly evaluate what I’ve said..." Gu Mo glanced outside, then gently waved his hand in a farewell gesture.
At the moment the words fell, he and the Yatsugaya Miko behind him disappeared together, as if a delicate holographic projection had suddenly been turned off.
"..."
Kenshan Yellow Springs slightly opened her mouth, but it was too late.
She pressed her lips together, then glanced at the people behind her. Indeed, as the other party said, there was a somewhat tense atmosphere. Everyone was like facing a formidable enemy, highly tense as if ready to open fire at any moment.
Only now did they finally relax a bit...
"Yellow Springs!"
A somewhat anxious voice came, and a graceful figure appeared quickly, walking in from outside the building.
"Sister Ming!"
Seeing a beautiful girl with long silver hair appear, Kenshan Yellow Springs also breathed a sigh of relief. This was her elder sister Kenshan Mei; the sisters had always had a good relationship. Now that she rushed over at the first moment, it seemed only natural, and she must have been anxious.
"Are you okay..."
Grabbing Yellow Springs’ shoulders and looking her up and down, the silver-haired ice beauty let out a long breath, then surveyed the surrounding scene, feeling the lingering dark aura, frowning deeply: "Is it resolved? I heard this sudden situation was very severe..."
"It is quite severe, suspected to be an A-level Evil Spirit, yet not complete, and in a terrible state like it suffered severe injury after a failed breakthrough..."
Kenshan Yellow Springs nodded slightly, answering with a complex expression: "But we’ve already dealt with this trouble, only that it might have brought out an even more troublesome issue... By the way, who are these people?"
"An even more troublesome issue..."
Arching her eyebrows, Kenshan Mei nodded thoughtfully, then started introducing them: "These are the young Demon Exorcists from the major clans invited to participate in that operation plan here in Kyoto. The heads of the clans couldn’t come temporarily, only they managed to come and support..."
"This is Miss Ishimura from the Sagamiya family..."
"This is Miss Qiu Ye, the next Lord of the Toono family..."
"This gentleman is Mr. Nakamura Takashi, who has recently become very famous among free Demon Exorcists..."
...
...
Not to mention the protagonists here meeting and greeting for the first time.
On the other side, Gu Mo also brought Yatsugaya Miko’s sibling duo back to an alley near their home.
"Amazing..."
Feeling a blur in front of his eyes, then directly arriving back home, the little scamp Yotsuya Kosuke was first dumbfounded, then his eyes lit up. The direct feeling of the power’s convenience and strength made his heart surge for a moment.
Yatsugaya Miko, however, felt a bit uneasy; she instinctively shielded her brother, pulling him behind her to protect him.
"Okay, how do you feel now..."
The young man in front turned back as if he didn’t take the earlier matter to heart at all, casually asking, seriously watching her:
"Miko, would you like to make a contract with me to become a Magic Girl ... or a Witch?"