Stardew Valley of Gensokyo

Upon hearing this word, Rin the Flame Cat pondered for a moment. Suddenly, her eyes lit up. She remembered that there were indeed mushrooms of similar appearance growing in the field next to where she had dumped the corpse. However, it seemed that Lady Koishi had done something there several months ago.

After gathering her thoughts, Rin the Flame Cat said, "There are indeed cat mushrooms there that you mentioned, but I can't take you there."

The joy that had just appeared on their faces was instantly wiped away by the next sentence.

"Why?" This time it was Marisa who stepped forward and asked.

"Because you're human, you're too fragile. It wouldn't be good if you died there," Rin the Flame Cat said matter-of-factly, sitting on the white cloth and swinging her legs.

"Although I enjoy collecting human corpses, I am unwilling to obtain them in this way. If you go to Lord Enma and report me, I cannot bear the consequences."

"Wait a minute? You like collecting human corpses?"

The previous words struck a nerve with Akina Zeya, who asked in surprise.

"Is that so strange? You humans like to keep cats and dogs as pets, so why do I like to collect human corpses? Isn't that the same thing?" Flame Cat Rin asked with a puzzled look.

Looking at the still adorable catgirl in front of him, with her cute little legs swaying in the air like white jade, and her fluffy cat ears twitching, Akina Ze felt a different feeling compared to before. She looked the same, but some things had changed.

Suppressing his thoughts, Akina Sawa shook his head and said, "Don't worry, we definitely won't die there. Humans aren't that fragile."

“That’s right,” Marisa Kirisame chimed in.

However, perhaps only Marisa has the right to say this, as she is still just a magician, a simple human magician.

"Very good, then you can follow me. The next stop is the Ruins of the Scorching Hell."

Seeing the two's determined expressions, Flame Cat Rin didn't insist. She hadn't had a sale in a year, so she grinned, revealing her fangs, and pushed her cart toward the ruins.

......

"We're almost there! If you don't turn back now, it'll be too late!" Rin the Flame Cat said, pushing the cart, her words a stark contrast to her previous behavior.

"Don't worry, we're not ordinary people, we'll be fine, and I'm confident I can protect him."

With that, Marisa smiled and casually flicked her wrist, sending a star hurtling towards a distant mound.

With a muffled explosion, the mound was blasted away without a trace, leaving only an empty hole.

This move silenced Rin the Fire Cat for a few minutes, but she spoke again: "People really will die! Don't disbelieve me."

There was nothing she could do... Seeing that it had no effect, Marisa sighed and could only endure and move on.

Akina Ze didn't seem to care, or rather, he was actually staring at the cat ears on A-Rin's head the whole time, and completely ignored what he was saying to her.

Gradually, the ambient temperature began to change, but unlike what was expected, the temperature gradually began to drop.

"Strange, when did the temperature at the ruins drop...?"

A hint of unease appeared on Flame Cat Rin's face. She hadn't been here for a long time, because there had been no harvest all year.

Suddenly, a wisp of white mist drifted over from the distant mountaintop.

"Why is there fog?" Fire Cat Rin wondered to himself, feeling the dampness of the fog on his face.

"What's wrong?" Akina Ze had never been here before, so this was his first impression.

Fire Cat Rin didn't respond, but instead quickened its pace.

Soon, the three of them reached the top of the hill, where they could enjoy a panoramic view of the scenery.

Ding~

The sound of the cart falling to the ground rang out, and Rin the Fire Cat's face was filled with shock.

Looking up, a continuous expanse of pools appeared before my eyes, the liquid boiling, and a constant stream of mist rising up, then turning into rainwater and falling down.

Having been away for almost a year, Rin the Flame Cat couldn't accept the change and stood there dumbfounded.

"Ah Kong? Ah Kong!?"

Suddenly, she seemed to remember something, abandoned the cart, and ran towards a certain place. The cat demon was incredibly fast, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Akina Sawa and Marisa stood there, looking at each other in bewilderment.

I thought I would be facing a sea of ​​lava, but instead I found myself in a pool of boiling water. Although it makes no difference to humans, falling in would mean certain death anyway.

"The ruins of the Scorching Hell described in the book don't look like this, do they?" Marisa asked, her face full of doubt as she recalled the words in her mind.

"It's alright, just write this down and then correct the contents of the book," Akina Ze said, ruffling Marisa's hat.

"That's not the problem!" Marisa explained anxiously, "The habitat has changed, and there might not be a single cat mushroom left!"

"There's always a way out. Don't rush, let's keep looking, maybe we can still find it," Qiu Mingze said calmly.

He gazed at the vast pool of boiling water before him, pondering how to search in such an extreme environment.

......

Chapter 88 has been found!

The vast open space and the endless pools of boiling water proved that Rin the Flame Cat was right; for most humans, coming here meant certain death.

Phew~puff~puff~

It sounded exactly like the venting of a high-pressure vessel.

The solid ground was forced open, like a pressure relief gate being opened, and scalding hot steam from inside gushed out like a white sword. No one wanted to be sprayed in the face by this stuff.

Such horrific conditions are commonplace in this area; it truly deserves to be called hell.

However, this also indicates the difficulty of searching for cat mushrooms, which gave Akina Ze a headache.

Suddenly, the ground trembled slightly. Akina looked down at his feet in confusion and saw a crack quietly forming and expanding rapidly.

Oops!

Upon seeing this scene, Akina Zeya's mind immediately tightened!

Before he could explain, he shoved Marisa aside, and the next second, scalding steam gushed out from the gap and washed him clean.

This is scalding hot gas that can kill people. If an ordinary human comes into contact with it, they can only die screaming in agony. The current medical technology in the village is incapable of saving them. The only hope of survival is to go to Eientei.

"Master Akina!"

Pushed away abruptly, Kirisame Marisa turned around and saw Akina Sawa also covered in dirt, and she exclaimed in surprise.

Steam billowed out rapidly, and the deafening roar completely filled the surrounding environment, making Marisa's shouts seem particularly powerless.

Amidst the commotion, Akina Sawa also heard Marisa's anxious shouts outside, but at that moment his attention was completely drawn to something that appeared in the lower right corner of his field of vision.

—The long-lost health bar, along with the stamina bar.

When did I go back to the cave? He was stunned; this was an unexpected situation.

Fortunately, the steam rose quickly and dissipated just as fast; in the blink of an eye, the steam trapped beneath the ground was completely released.

Akina Ze remained standing still, completely oblivious to the pain he should feel from the burns. He only felt the force of the gas was quite strong.

"Ze Ye!"

Watching his health bar fill up in just a few breaths, Akina Sawa was a little dazed. He turned his head at the sound but before he could react, Marisa tackled him to the ground.

As she fell to the ground, he seemed to see a crystal tear slide down her reddened eye.

That crying face, I'll probably never forget it for the rest of my life...

thump~

The heavy object fell to the ground, stirring up a layer of dust.

A familiar scene... Akina Sawa found himself being pushed to the ground by a girl once again, even though he was supposed to be all muscle...

The tall witch's hat rolled off Marisa's head and fell to the ground, spun around a few times, and then lay quietly flat.

Feeling the weight coming from his waist, Akina Sawa reached out to rub Marisa, who was lying on his chest, to comfort her.

But before he could reach out, he heard a sob.

"Why...why did you do this...when he was just a farmer..."

After a long while, the hand that had been hovering in the air finally landed on Marisa's head.

"I'm sorry, I'm just a farmer." Rubbing his head, Akina Ze smiled and comforted him.

"You don't need to apologize... I'm a mage! I should be protecting you." Marisa Kirisame wiped her eyes, looked up, and said remorsefully.

For a brief moment, she truly thought she was about to lose a... friend.

Akina Ze also disliked this somber atmosphere. He pointed to the tear tracks on Marisa's face and laughed:

Haha, were you crying just now?

"No!"

Taking a deep sniff, Marisa forcefully wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and glared at Akina Sawa, retorting defiantly.

"Okay, okay, no, no, but..." Akina Ze patted the ground and said humorously, "Could you get off me first? This ground seems a bit flat and burnt. I'm not a squid without ten legs, but if you want to sit here, I don't mind if my back gets burned, but it definitely won't taste as good as squid."

"Pfft~" Marisa was amused. She got up from Akina Zeya, stood on the ground to the side, bent down and stretched out her right hand, and said with a smile: "Get up, my 'ten-legged' gentleman."

"If I really did have 'ten legs,' don't cry then!"

Holding Marisa's hand, Akina Sawa also stood up from the ground with a smile.

"It's alright, we can just cut it into two legs later, right?" Marisa replied calmly.

Upon hearing this, Akina Sawa also felt a chill run down his spine for no apparent reason. He should at least keep three...

Steam still filled the air as the two walked together along the edge of the boiling pool, searching for traces of the cat mushroom, but they couldn't find it anywhere.

Suddenly, Akina Sawa also spotted a small black dot in the distance, its color somewhat different from the surrounding environment. However, his left hand was firmly held by Marisa, and if he wanted to go there, he would have to take her with him.

This is a form of protection. According to Marisa, by shaking hands, she can distribute her magic power equally and form a magical shield around her body, so she won't have to worry about being suddenly attacked by steam. Although Akina Sawa also said he didn't need it, he couldn't persuade Marisa otherwise.

Although security has been greatly improved, the search area for the two has been significantly reduced because they can no longer split up, which has reduced their efficiency by at least half.

Helpless, Akina Sawa tugged at Marisa with his left hand, signaling her to follow him.

After walking around the boiling water pool, the two soon arrived at the black spot.

Upon closer inspection, he discovered it was a dark, glass-like object. Akina Sawa wasn't interested in it either. He turned to leave, but when he pulled her hand, he found that Marisa was standing there motionless.

"What's wrong?" Akina Ze asked, turning around.

“It’s obsidian!” Marisa exclaimed in delight.

"Oh~"

"This is obsidian! It's an excellent material for magical items!"

Seeing that Akina Sawa was still pulling at her, Marisa said with dissatisfaction.

“...But I don’t understand magic, and we’re not here to find it,” Akina Ze explained.

“That’s alright, let me collect some before I leave.” Marisa was reluctant to leave, staring intently at the obsidian.

"I'll go check other places first, and then I'll come find you." Qiu Mingze didn't want to wait either. Although he couldn't see the exact time while he was underground, after experiencing so much, he felt that it must be getting late.

"No!" But Marisa grabbed Akina Sawaya's arm and wouldn't let him go.

Seeing that he couldn't escape, Akina Ze had no choice but to say helplessly, "Then you'd better hurry up."

Having received permission, Marisa walked back to the obsidian with a grin, already thinking about how to use the stone for experiments.

However, she overlooked one problem: obsidian is very hard, and it would take some effort to remove it.

Feeling a bit bored, Akina Sawa yawned and looked into the distance, but the next moment, he rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

Suddenly, a figure appeared standing there, even though it hadn't been there just a moment ago.

"Found it!"

On the hilltop, Komeiji Ren looked this way and said with a light smile, while holding a mushroom that looked like a cat mushroom in her hand.

......

Chapter 89 The Impulse to Conceal

I think I remember now?

The moment Akina Sawa saw the girl in front of him, his lost memories returned.

He had already met her on the streets of the old capital.