The afterlife blew up Gensokyo

"...Yes, I'm scared."

After a moment of silence, the little girl nodded gently.

Before she unexpectedly stumbled into the bamboo forest, her life was almost entirely bleak and devoid of color. She spent her days desperately fleeing with her sister, constantly narrowly escaping death...

Blood, slaughter, and chaos constitute her entire understanding of the world beyond the bamboo forest. What seems to exist forever in her memory is a blood-red sky that is always shrouded in gloom and darkness.

Even after she finally settled down in the bamboo forest and struggled to emerge from the darkness and the ordeal, she felt an unprecedented sense of unease for the next ten days or so.

Unable to adapt.

Unable to adapt to this peaceful life, unable to adapt to days when I can eat my fill and sleep soundly without worrying about being hunted down, unable to adapt to this tranquility and peace that I had almost never dared to imagine before... even though it all seems so wonderful.

After her sister left the bamboo forest alone, during that period of escape when there was no sunlight, she would sometimes have nightmares about it at night. After waking up, she would be unable to sleep all night, and would sit there hugging her knees against the wall, staring blankly until dawn...

This kind of life is just a fantasy, isn't it? It's all just a dream, isn't it? I'm already dead, and this is the world of my dreams after death...

—Until that afternoon in the sunlight, someone came over and sat down beside her.

Perhaps it wasn't until that time that she truly realized and saw the existence of the golden sunlight.

...That was golden sunlight that was only for her.

P.S.: Tickets

Chapter Fifty: The Journey

Many times, Xiao Siji would think about this question.

What would have happened if my sister and I hadn't escaped into this bamboo forest that day?

There was someone she had thought about for a long time, but she still couldn't come up with an answer... or rather, she was afraid to think about that answer.

But it was precisely because of her past experience of a precarious existence that she cherished her current life all the more. She didn't know when it started, but she stopped having nightmares, and her dreams were no longer filled with only black, white, and red. The first thing she did upon waking wasn't worrying about escaping, but saying good morning…

She could have endured the darkness, but after experiencing the light, she began to fear returning to it. It was as if everything she had experienced before was just a balloon, and stepping out of the bamboo forest was the needle that popped it.

She didn't want to leave the bamboo forest, so she deliberately lingered there for a long time. But when she saw her brother smiling and waving at her from afar, she inexplicably went up to him.

"Afraid? With me here, you don't need to be afraid at all."

With a soft laugh, Shi Bai reached out and took the other person's hand.

"Your brother is very strong, I can beat you in one go..."

Turning his head to glance at the succubus beside him, Shi Bai nodded, his tone resolute.

"Hmm, I could beat up ten thousand of your sisters in one go."

Succubus: "???"

"Alright, this is a rare opportunity to go on a picnic, so relax and have a good time... Do you need me to cheer you up?"

Ignoring the indescribable gaze of the succubus beside him, who had been reduced to a unit of combat power, Shi Bai first took out a green apple-flavored lollipop from somewhere and handed it to the little girl, then asked her in a serious tone.

"...Give them a boost?"

After calming herself down a bit, the little girl took the lollipop and looked up with some curiosity.

"That's right, it's a method to help you overcome fear, and it works really well, let me tell you."

Meeting the gaze of a certain little girl, Shi Bai clenched his fist in front of his chest, his face serious.

"No matter what difficulties we encounter, don't be afraid, face them with a smile! The best way to eliminate fear is to face it. Keep going, you can do it!!"

"........."

—Thanks to Shi Bai's interruption, the little girl successfully forgot what she was afraid of before.

........................................................................

Originally, Eirin Yagokoro was quite worried about the battles they might encounter on their journey, but in the following days, she was amazed to find that her group of six, who were quite conspicuous, had miraculously not run into anyone.

Based on the information she had previously obtained from the succubus, the succubus had been surrounded and besieged on all sides during the months she was away in the bamboo forest. Now, her side had more people than when the succubus was alone, and should have been a bigger target, so why was it so peaceful?

To be honest, Eirin Yagokoro was a little confused.

She had already prepared to strike again, but to her astonishment, she discovered that her group had actually been sightseeing all along... The succubus, who was constantly on edge, was even more bewildered than she was.

She and the succubus couldn't understand it, but Shenqi did.

However, after glancing thoughtfully at the Detective Shinigami, who had been extremely quiet since the start of the journey, Shinki didn't say anything. Instead, she moved closer to the succubus.

After becoming interested in the strange magic used by the succubus, she became interested in the equipment on the succubus's body and was eager to make one herself during this time.

...Then, in order to figure out the principles behind those devices, she successfully broke the succubus's crescent-shaped staff three times along the way.

Currently, she plans to use persistent persuasion to get the succubus to lend her her staff for her fourth research...

"Alright, let's camp here tonight."

Stopping on a wide, open plain, Shi Bai looked up at the darkening sky and nodded.

The world millions of years ago is completely different from the world millions of years later. When he first came out of the heavens, there were no gods or monsters in the entire world, not even a slightly larger animal. It was nothing like the world now, where species are so abundant...

"Hmm... is this a pigeon?"

Tokihaku looked thoughtful as he fiddled with the pigeon-like bird that Yagokoro Eirin had shot down with an arrow.

"A pigeon? This bird is called a 'coo'."

Releasing her grip, letting the longbow formed from spiritual energy in her hand disappear, Yagokoro Eirin looked on in astonishment.

Did birds like the "gu" already exist in the teacher's time?

"No, because the birds of my time were called the Roc and the Phoenix..."

Standing up, Shi Bai delivered his final verdict on the "Gu," the creature that dared to spit on them as it flew by and almost land on his head, only to be shot down by Yagokoro Eirin, who was anxious to protect her master.

"Bake it."

"Uh... but this should also be considered wild game, right..."

After hearing Shi Bai's words, the succubus seemed a little confused.

"No, the pigeons that coo are domesticated, not wild."

Shi Bai nodded firmly.

"The death of the pigeon is not a pity."

"........."

For this rare long journey, Shi Bai made thorough preparations before setting off, even managing to rummage through the boxes inside the storage ring on his hand to find several luxury camping tents.

Having gained experience from setting up tents before, the four tents were quickly erected next to the campfire as darkness fell and the fire was lit. Shi Bai even thoughtfully placed a few extra torches next to each tent.

To fit the occasion, we had barbecue for dinner. The six of us sat around the fire, enjoying the barbecue while admiring the night view and the starry sky above, which had a unique charm.

The view from the plains was incredibly expansive, and given that this was an era free from any pollution, the countless brilliant stars overhead seemed almost within reach.

Such a vast night view can only be observed in places like the plains. It would have been absolutely impossible to see such a magnificent starry sky in the bamboo forest.

"Has such a long time passed? All the stars are in the wrong positions now..."

Looking up at the starry sky above, Shi Bai narrowed his eyes slightly.

Early Meow.jpg

P.S.: Good morning!

Chapter 51 Red Horned Triple Speed

How long has it been?

How much time did the world advance after I fell asleep?

Originally, Shi Bai didn't have a precise concept of time for these things, but it wasn't until he looked up at the dazzling starry sky tonight that he realized just how enormous that number was.

That is the changing of the starry sea, the annihilation of the stars, and the so-called transformation of the world into mulberry fields, which is insignificant in the face of this enormous number.

The night before he chose to be frozen, he looked up at the night sky just like he does now, except that at that time, he was all alone.

With a soft laugh, Shi Bai raised his wine glass slightly towards the starry sky above. Spanning billions of years, he toasted his past self, who had raised a glass to the vast starry sky on that night billions of years ago. Then, he raised his head and drank the wine in his glass in one gulp.

"Brother, you've been drinking again."

He had just put down his wine glass when a little girl next to him reached out and grabbed his hand, looking rather displeased.

"No, I was just paying homage to the past."

In the flickering firelight, Shi Bai poured himself another glass of wine, then turned and smiled at the little girl beside him.

"We just toasted to the past, so now we need another toast to tomorrow... What would you like to drink? I have all kinds of beverages here!"

"Hmm... orange juice."

Perhaps sensing something, the little girl surprisingly refrained from lecturing. After hesitating for a moment, she extended her cup.

"Okay, the finest orange juice will be here soon."

With a snap of his fingers, Shi Bai took out a large bottle of orange juice and placed it in front of the little girl.

As for other types of beverages, he might not have many in his storage and wouldn't need to summon them temporarily, but for something like orange juice, he has a large, separate collection stored away.

While the little girl was staring blankly at the large bottle of orange juice in front of her, Shi Bai turned to the others and asked them a question.

"Alright, what would you like to drink?"

As time passed and the night deepened, the firelight in the center of the campfire grew weaker and weaker, but the stars in the night sky seemed to become even more dazzling.

The night was quiet.

"what happened?"

Hearing the faint sounds coming from the tent next to him, Shi Bai, who was still sitting by the embers of the fire with a wooden stick in his hand, turned his head with a slight puzzlement.

Stopping by the fire, after gently shaking her head, the Detective Girl handed him a card that appeared to have been written just moments before.

Looking at the card handed to him by the female detective, Shi Bai paused for a moment before laughing again.

"It's alright, you've already helped me a lot. Leave the rest to me."

"........."

After receiving a response, the goddess was silent for a moment before sitting down quietly by the fire and looking at the embers that were now just embers.

"Well, if any of them wake up later and ask me where I went... just tell them I'll be back soon."

Shi Bai casually put away the card in his hand, stood up from the campfire, said something to the rare female detective sitting by the fire, then turned around and disappeared into the darkness of the wilderness.

"........."

After Shi Bai left, Xi Shen Tan Nu turned around and glanced in the direction he had left, then quietly turned her head away again.

..................................................................

Far away from Shi Bai and his group's camp, a figure was faintly visible in the night.

The figure was an extremely tall blonde woman with chains binding her wrists and ankles. However, as she moved, the dangling chains made no sound, and her blood-red eyes reflected the silent night.

Her most striking feature was a red right angle extending forward from the center of her forehead.

The figure wasn't moving very fast, but after just a few steps, she would appear in the far distance in the blink of an eye.

Following some special guidance, the direction she was heading and the places she had passed through seemed quite chaotic, but they all pointed straight to a place in the distance.

"It was her who came...?"

Looking at the figure approaching him from afar, Shi Bai couldn't help but frown.

This is an age of monsters and gods, where war rages on.

Whether among the demons or the gods, power determines everything. Among the demon race, the oni, with their immense power, seem to be eyeing the position of leader.

The most striking feature of the Oni race is the chains they wear on their hands and feet, as well as the horns on their heads. No one knows the meaning of those shackle-like chains on their hands and feet, but there is no doubt that the Oni race firmly occupies the strongest fighting force among the monsters.

Among the demons, there is a long-standing saying about supernatural powers and strange phenomena. These supernatural powers and strange phenomena do not refer to any special meaning, but rather to the four strongest beings among the demons.

And the one arriving under the cover of night is none other than Hoshiguma Yuugi, the Demon King of Power among the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Clan.

"Although I knew that the spy's abilities would eventually become useless, I didn't expect it to be this one... Who starts a game of Dou Dizhu with a royal flush right from the start?"