Miss Riddler just wants to level up in peace.

"Yes, I'm very satisfied."

Wearing wooden clogs, Ziyao went to the window. Not far away, on the highest mountain, was the Yae Shrine.

The lights were on, but there was not a trace of cooking smoke.

Tomorrow is the so-called festival day, and she wants to see what Otto is up to.

To avoid being betrayed, it's important to scout ahead. Before that, you need to find the master of the consciousness space.

"Should we bring one more person?"

When Ziyao mentioned bringing an assistant, Mei hesitated. It was already difficult enough to bring a stranger into the shrine.

Adding another one would probably be unacceptable to the priests at the foot of the mountain.

The entire town of Yae is under the shrine's control, and since only the shrine can subdue demons, no one dares to rebel.

"Don't worry, you don't need to treat her like a human being."

Ziyao took out a piece of paper and folded it into a small box.

"It might be okay for young children, but it would raise suspicion if they were too old."

The clever Mei immediately understood Ziyao's meaning, hid the helper in a wooden box, and secretly brought her back to the shrine.

"Don't worry, she's short, she could even be shorter."

As the two were discussing, there was a knock on the door.

Upon opening the door, one finds Yae Sakura, also dressed in a shrine maiden outfit.

Mei was a little curious. Had she stumbled upon a shrine maiden's den? How come there was another one?

"This is your assistant?"

"She won't be back for a while, Sakura, is there something you need?"

Ziyao turned her head and asked. She was very observant and immediately noticed that there were several tears on Yae Sakura's clothes.

Judging from the dust, it appears to have been torn not long ago.

"I just killed a few demons at the Stone Forest. The celestial phenomena today are very strange."

The sun hasn't set yet; demons and ghosts shouldn't be appearing at this time.

In recent days, they have become extremely agitated, and it may only be a matter of time before they invade towns in large numbers.

Hearing that Ziyao and the other girl were leaving tonight, Yae Sakura couldn't help but worry about their safety.

Ziyao was somewhat impressed by Yae Sakura's kind-hearted nature and told her not to worry.

After Theresa returned, night gradually fell.

Mei found a cart with wooden crates on it.

The wooden crates were specifically designed for storing grain and remained completely clean.

After a little mental preparation, Theresa reluctantly crawled inside.

The wheels rolled forward, occasionally bumping against something.

The vibration caused the base to shake, and the wooden box trembled as well.

Theresa, hiding in the box, gritted her teeth and clenched her little pink fists.

Such a presumptuous act! Nightingale must be taught a lesson afterward!

Upon arriving at the foot of the mountain, the priest conducted his usual inspection.

After confirming Mei's identity, he nodded and allowed them to go up the mountain.

The porters responsible for pulling the cart naturally couldn't stay any longer, and under the watchful eyes of the guards, they quickly returned to town.

Leaving the torii gate and walking through the purification shrine, they arrived at the rear shrine where the shrine maiden resided.

Unlike typical shrines, Yae Shrine has only two shrine maidens.

They were responsible for sacrificial rites and prayers, and their status was second only to the palace officials, but they had no real power.

Pulling back the roller shutter, one sees Kiana kneeling on the tatami mat, her face pale.

"I'm not a fake..."

The girl murmured.

He was so engrossed that he didn't notice anyone coming.

A few minutes ago, she woke up from a painful nightmare, the memory lingering.

"Are you okay?"

Mei took out a damp towel and wiped the sweat from Kiana's forehead.

"Ring...Ring, are you alright?"

Kiana hasn't rested at all these past two days, and her haggard appearance is heartbreaking.

"Ling is still resting in her room; you should be more concerned about yourself now."

"Can't sleep..."

As she spoke, Mei gave Ziyao a look.

"Do you see anything?"

Once outside the door, after confirming that Kiana couldn't hear her, Mei asked.

"It is the power of the Key of Erosion."

The taste was unmistakable; Ziyao had a deep impression of it before entering the Jizo Mitama.

Interesting, does he treat Rin like his own younger sister?

The place that should have belonged to Yae Sakura has been taken by Kiana.

The Key of Erosion distorted perception; without being told, one might mistake it for Feather Dust.

Ziyao was having a headache; she really didn't know how to solve it.

Perhaps leaving the Jizo-myo-no-Mitama will solve the problem.

"Here, take it to her."

I redeemed a cup of black tea from the system and gave it to Mei.

Looking at the translucent black tea in the cup, Mei cautiously took a small sip first.

"This will restore Kiana to normal?"

"No, but you can get a good night's sleep."

Meiyi:..........

"The one who tied the knot must untie it; if the source is not eliminated, things cannot return to normal."

The idea of ​​addressing the root cause is timeless.

To solve the problem, we must start with the fundamental contradiction.

Mei shook her head. "I've checked, but I can't find any clues."

They had no idea where the thing emanating the corrosive power was.

Many attempts were made, but all were unsuccessful.

"It has a name—Hiyokumaru."

In other words, it is Jizo Mitama itself, formed by the combination of the Herrscher's consciousness and core.

During this trip to the shrine, Ziyao intends to find out what happened.

"Wait, I'm going too!"

Seeing that Ziyao was about to leave, Theresa quickly followed.

Mei couldn't do much to help, except give them a hand-drawn map and warn them to be careful of the patrolling guards.

Controlled by the power of corruption, they are like puppets and will show no mercy to outsiders.

"call---"

A cool breeze swept by, and the shadows of the trees swayed gently.

The night is dark and windy.

Just as Yae Sakura said, tonight is a little different.

The bright moon was tinged with a faint red, foreshadowing something extraordinary about to happen.

(P.S.: Some plot points have been deleted due to sensitive content. Sorry QAQ)

Volume 1: Chapter 83 The Fox Mask, The Man in the Shadows

"...Click."

A small stone fell to the ground, attracting the attention of the guards.

After searching around to make sure no one was there, he returned to his post.

Two girls sat on the rooftop, looking down at the entire town of Yae.

The moon gradually turned red, and the ominous premonition grew stronger.

They searched almost the entire shrine, but failed to find the source of the corrosive power.

They were almost discovered several times in the process.

Fortunately, they infiltrated from inside the shrine. If they had started from the foot of the mountain, they probably would have been intercepted before they even reached the halfway point.

Inside the main hall, a middle-aged man knelt before the statue of a god, and half an hour passed without him getting up.

Deep inside the main hall, Ziyao sensed something unusual.

The man is the priest of this shrine, and he suffers from corruption more severely than others.

If there hadn't been a clear difference, I almost would have targeted him.