Hogwarts Summoning Guide

In the center of the secret chamber, there was a luminous pearl that emitted a silver light. It was a national treasure-level artifact, but at this moment it only served as a light source. Minamoto no Hiromasa walked around the luminous pearl and came to the altar where the artifact was kept.

The three sacred treasures—the Kusanagi Sword, the Yasakani no Magatama, and the Yata no Kagami—were placed neatly on the altar, covered with yellow silk symbolizing royal status.

When Minamoto no Hiromasa unveiled the silk covering the Ame-no-Murakumo sword, he was still shocked despite being mentally prepared. His hope that "it's possible that Shuten-dōji had a fake" was completely shattered. Underneath the silk was an ordinary bronze and iron Ame-no-Murakumo sword, which only had the shape. It was completely different from the one Minamoto no Hiromasa had seen in his childhood. The one in Shuten-dōji's hand was the real one!

Minamoto no Hiromasa nearly collapsed to the ground, completely bewildered by the whole affair and the conspiracy it concealed. After a long pause, he finally put the silk back on, but in his dazed state, he accidentally touched the silk covering the Yasakani no Magatama. Upon closer inspection, he discovered that the magatama was also fake, and his jaw nearly dropped to the ground.

He quickly untied the third silk ribbon, but to his surprise, the Yata Mirror hadn't been switched; it was still the genuine article. He immediately panicked.

He didn't have time to think about the twists and turns of the plot, because a thought surged into his mind: he could use the Yata Mirror to greatly enhance his divine power!

Minamoto no Hiromasa was slightly conflicted, but he quickly convinced himself that since the Ame-no-Murakumo sword and the Yasakani no Magatama had been stolen, the Yata no Kagami was not safe here. It would be better to take it himself, find a safer place to store it, and return the Yata no Kagami after killing Shuten-dōji and retrieving the Ame-no-Murakumo sword, or after the truth came out. Wouldn't that be more perfect?

As for improving his divine power, that was just a minor matter. As a member of the royal family, he was destined to serve the royal family for life, and his increased divine power would be a blessing for the royal family.

Having figured this out, Minamoto no Hiromasa wrapped the Yata no Kagami in silk and stuffed it into his robes before retreating from the secret chamber. Bai Lin watched his actions without intervening. He had a premonition that Minamoto no Hiromasa would become the driving force behind some major event, and that his time was running out. The more significant the event, the easier it would be for him to find the source of the chaos.

Minamoto no Hiromasa did not return to the shrine of the Onmyōryō, but instead fled eastward alone. Hakurin did not follow him. He had too many questions and needed to have an open and honest talk with Seimei.

Bai Lin made up his mind that if Qingming didn't return, he would go to Fujiwara no Michinaga's residence today and try to persuade him with courtesy first, then resort to force. He didn't believe anyone could stop him.

However, just as dawn broke, someone came to the door. Bai Lin had just washed up and hadn't even had breakfast when Eri, who had become an apprentice shrine maiden, brought in a seriously injured person.

Bai Lin looked up and saw that it was Ali. He was wrapped in blood-stained strips of cloth like a mummy, and one of his eyes was a bloody hole.

"How is Seimei?" Bai Lin was shocked. If Seimei was in grave danger, all his efforts over the past few days would have been in vain.

Despite his serious injuries, Ali still bowed slightly to Bai Lin and said, "Lord Shangzhu is currently fighting in the Great Snow Mountain. Please, Lord Bai, come to his aid immediately!"

"Mount Daxue?" Bai Lin was immediately confused. Shouldn't Seimei be guarding the Imperial Palace or the Fujiwara residence? How did he secretly run off to some Mount Daxue?

Although Ari was very anxious, he still kept it brief and said, "Lord Kamisuke received orders from the Minister of the Right (Fujiwara no Michinaga) to go to Mount Daisetsuzuki to suppress the Yuki-onna, but he was ambushed by a monster. The accompanying monks suffered heavy casualties, and Lord Kamisuke was also trapped on the mountain."

Bai Lin frowned. Transferring Qingming away at this time sounded like a conspiracy, but he couldn't just stand by and watch him die. So he had his servant bring horses and set off with A Li under the cover of night.

Throughout the journey, Ali struggled to stay afloat. Bai Lin couldn't bear to see him like this, so he asked Qianfu Jiaer to treat him. Only then did Ali explain the whole story.

More than ten days ago, Emperor T's delegation was attacked by monsters on their way back from Ezo (i.e. Hokkaido, which was an independent country at the time) while passing through the Daisetsuzan Mountains. Only one person survived and returned to Kyoto to report the news. Because the delegation was carrying the Ezo Kingdom's sacred artifact, the North Wind Jewel, the Onmyōryō (Bureau of Yin and Yang) was required to go and retrieve it immediately.

Mount Daisetsu is the lair of the famous yokai Yuki-onna. Although Yuki-onna is different from Yasha and rarely comes down the mountain to harm people, when something happens in her territory, Seimei's goal naturally becomes to suppress Yuki-onna.

"With Seimei's magical power, he couldn't even deal with a few ambushing monsters?" Bai Lin was quite puzzled. In his opinion, Seimei himself was a LV9, and he had a large number of high-level shikigami under his command. Even if he was at his worst, he shouldn't have been completely wiped out.

"Lord Haku, you may not know, but the demons seem to have undergone a strange transformation, becoming ridiculously powerful..." Ali paused and continued, "Not only did they ambush the Onmyōryō's forces, but the Right Minister also summoned the Demon Slayer Corps, who were also trapped by the Yuki-onna's magic. Lord Kamisuke said that perhaps only Lord Haku could rescue him, which is why he had Ōtengu risk his life to send me out."

"Oh?" Bai Lin spurred his horse while lost in thought. He wasn't shocked by the Snow Woman's strength, but rather puzzled by Fujiwara no Michinaga's intentions. It seemed that he intended to divert all the forces in Kyoto that were fighting against demons. Wasn't he afraid of being killed by Fujiwara no Kenko and the monk Domo?

It was over 400 li from Kyoto to Daisetsuzan. Even if they rode at full speed through the night, changing horses at post stations along the way, they didn't arrive at the foot of Daisetsuzan until noon the next day. The further north they went, the darker the clouds in the sky became. Looking at Daisetsuzan from afar, the peaks were completely covered by clouds and mist. The dark clouds seemed to press down on the mountaintops. The road up the mountain was also shrouded in a thin mist. Although it was a bit chilly in Kyoto, the temperature here suddenly dropped to freezing.

Ali was panting heavily, exhaling large amounts of steam. Bai Lin looked at him. Although his wounds had been treated by Sifugar, blood and energy couldn't be replenished by magic. After finding out the possible location where Qingming was trapped, Bai Lin said, "You stay down the mountain to provide support. I'll go first!"

Seeing Bai Lin instantly teleport away, Ali was stunned, but he gritted his teeth and continued climbing up the mountain path.

The Great Snow Mountain is vast. Less than three miles up, snowflakes began to fall. Due to limited visibility, Bai Lin could not teleport very far at a time, but he still quickly heard the sounds of fighting in a snow forest.

With a thought, he teleported over and saw several warriors dressed in black Taoist robes fighting against a monster. The battle was nearing its end, and the snow was a mess, with the corpses of monsters and warriors scattered everywhere. It was a battle in which both sides were severely injured.

The leading warrior was none other than Song Quan. He took the lead and forced the four-armed demon to retreat repeatedly. Although it was clear that he was running out of strength, he had already secured victory. The other surviving warriors were also finishing off the demons that had not escaped.

Bai Lin watched as Song Quan beheaded the four-armed demon with a single sword strike, clearly no longer needing his help. He was about to go up and say hello when the next scene completely blew his mind.