Just then, Rio Futaba and Miko Yotsuya suddenly felt the air around them grow heavy, as though it had frozen solid.
Even the drizzling rain ceased at this moment.
The thick clouds obscured half the moon, casting the already dim shrine into a liminal space between the realm of spirits and the human world, filled with palpable tension.
"He's here."
At Ye Xing's words, Miko Yotsuya and Rio Futaba turned their gazes towards the shrine's entrance.
They saw a diminutive old man in traditional attire, with an unusually elongated back of his head, slowly ascending the stone steps. His stature was so small, and he carried no imposing aura whatsoever.
He looked like nothing more than a befuddled grandfather from the neighbourhood.
Yet trailing behind him were hundreds of yokai—each with grotesquely varied forms, moving in perfect unison, their footsteps synchronised, silent and disciplined.
"Commander!"
Seeing Nurarihyon finally arrive, Gyūki—still clutched in the pale ghost hand's grip—first sighed in relief, then seemed to remember something and urgently warned, "Commander, be careful! This guy—"
Before Gyūki could finish, Ye Xing extended his right hand and made a slight grasping motion in the air.
The pale ghost hand mirrored his movement, its fingers tightening slightly around Gyūki's form.
"Ugh..."
Gyūki grimaced, letting out a pained grunt.
Witnessing his vice-commander and sworn brother being humiliated like this, Nurarihyon's aged face couldn't help but darken with anger.
He raised his wrinkled right hand, and instantly, the hundreds of yokai behind him halted—without a single sound.
Observing the scene before them, both Miko and Futaba's expressions shifted subtly.
Neither girl had ever imagined witnessing such a staggering sight in the real world.
The sheer presence of these yokai made it clear they weren't to be trifled with.
What unsettled them even more was how the lead elder's mere gesture had instantly stilled the yokai. Unlike mindless evil spirits driven only by slaughter, these beings seemed to possess intelligence rivalling—or even surpassing—humans, much like Tamamo-no-Mae from the Reverse World.
Such enemies were far more troublesome than mere evil spirits.
Nurarihyon stepped forward slowly, his voice grave as he addressed Ye Xing seated before the shrine. "Friend, our visit bears no hostility. We merely wish to—"
"No hostility?" Ye Xing didn't spare the so-called leader of yokai any courtesy, shaking his head and interrupting. "Your Nura Clan's Gyūki here just threatened me moments ago."
Hearing this, Nurarihyon's weathered face showed a trace of resignation.
Gyūki was exemplary in every way—except for his... complicated attitude towards humans.
Though Gyūki had once been human himself, after becoming a yokai, he'd developed the arrogance of a great demon.
Nurarihyon could easily imagine Gyūki's less-than-diplomatic approach during negotiations.
"Regarding his offence, I must ask you to—"
Once again, Ye Xing cut him off, his tone indifferent. "This one has attacked villages before. Killed people too, hasn't he?"
At these words, Nurarihyon's heart sank.
He gazed at Ye Xing sitting there, thinking to himself that something had felt off ever since the other mentioned the Nura Clan.
The Nura Clan had always kept a low profile, and in recent years, hadn't set foot in Kyoto at all.
How did he know about the Nura Clan?
Moreover, when Karasu Tengu came to report, he mentioned that this young man had specifically named him to come.
Adding to that, just moments ago, he had casually mentioned the crimes Gyūki had committed when he first became a yokai, before joining the Nura Clan.
Nurarihyon had initially thought that his side was in the shadows while the other was exposed.
But now, it seemed the opposite was true.
Was it his side that had been kept in the dark?
"Not speaking?"
Seeing Nurarihyon remain silent, Ye Xing smiled, stood up from his chair, and slowly walked over to him.
As he approached within three meters of their leader, hundreds of yokai tensed, their expressions wary.
"Actually," Ye Xing said, his height towering over Nurarihyon. He even crouched slightly, as if worried the other might not hear him, his demeanour impeccably polite.
"I'm a very reasonable person."
Before Nurarihyon could even sigh in relief at those words, Ye Xing's smile vanished, his tone turning icy.
"What happens outside Kyoto is none of my concern."
"But as an exorcist, you bring hundreds of yokai from your Nura Clan—including Gyūki, an evil spirit who once slaughtered humans—into this city."
"And now you're telling me your Nura Clan means no harm?"
Beneath his black mask, Ye Xing's eyes burned with undisguised killing intent as he stared straight at Nurarihyon, his voice soft but deadly.
"Who gave you filthy creatures permission to step foot inside Kyoto?"
Feeling that unmistakable bloodlust, Nurarihyon's expression shifted, realising further negotiation was impossible.
Clang!
The moment the words left Ye Xing's mouth, he swung Onimaru Kunitsuna straight at Nurarihyon's head.
A metallic clash rang out as their spiritual powers collided, kicking up a cloud of dust.
When the dust settled, Miko Yotsuya and Rio Futaba saw that the short, elderly figure had vanished.
In his place stood a young man nearly 1.8 metres tall, with striking black-and-white hair, handsome features, and an air of lazy elegance, clad in a traditional male kimono.
He now held a long sword, locked in combat with Ye Xing's Onimaru Kunitsuna.
The metallic clang had been the sound of their blades meeting.
Rio frowned slightly, murmuring to herself.
"Could that... be the old man from before? I never imagined he could reverse ageing. So this is what he looked like in his youth."
Miko nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, who knew this yokai was so good-looking when he was young."
Then she quickly added.
"Still not as good-looking as Ye Xing, though."
Rio gave her a deadpan look.
"Stop swooning. They're fighting."
Rio had noticed that ever since Ye Xing mentioned needing Miko's help to verify something, the girl had been distracted.
Sometimes she'd space out with a dreamy, silly smile on her face.
Miko never used to be like this.
Could it be...
Had she caught it from Yuigahama?
Meanwhile, in the midst of the battlefield, the transformed Nurarihyon's entire aura had changed.
Locking eyes with Ye Xing beneath the black mask, he spoke slowly."We did not come here to start a war."
"You still don't understand."
Ye Xing pressed Onimaru Kunitsuna forward with a cold, detached tone.
"Kyoto is my city."
"What happens here isn't up to you—it's up to me."
"I can't be bothered with your nonsense."
As he spoke, Ye Xing switched the sword to his left hand and reached his right hand towards the pale ghost hand, fingers curling emptily in the air.
In response came Gyūki's muffled groan of suppressed pain.
"Stop this!"
Nurarihyon was truly alarmed now.
Gritting his teeth, he abandoned any pretence of negotiation and pushed Nenekirimaru forward.
The tip of the blade pressed against Ye Xing's chest, slicing through the black attire formed from evil spirit power as if it were paper.
"Interesting. Truly interesting."
Seeing that Nurarihyon could breach his defences with Nenekirimaru, Ye Xing showed no fear—only excitement flickered in his eyes.
"Give me more entertainment."
The moment these words left Ye Xing's lips, the pale ghost hand gripping Gyūki vanished without a trace.
Before Gyūki could even sigh in relief, a chilling sense of danger prickled at his instincts.
Not just him.
Nurarihyon, standing before Ye Xing, felt his hair stand on end as if plunged into an icy abyss.
The pale ghost hand didn't disappear.
It merged.
Miko Yotsuya and Rio Futaba, familiar with Ye Xing's abilities, weren't surprised.
But Nurarihyon was beginning to realise things were spiralling out of control.
His opponent's strength far exceeded his expectations.
Initially, Nurarihyon and the Nura Clan's executives had assumed Ye Xing was merely an Onmyoji who'd stolen Onimaru Kunitsuna to bolster his power—skilled, but not overwhelmingly so.
After their first exchange, he knew how wrong that assumption had been.
Onimaru Kunitsuna had acknowledged this man as its master.
Had Nurarihyon not seen it himself, he wouldn't have believed it.
What tier of spiritual object was Onimaru Kunitsuna?
From the news of Kyoto City Museum's breach to now, barely half a month has passed.
Yet this man had gained the sword's recognition in such a short time?
It defied all reason.
With the pale ghost hand merged, Ye Xing—previously slightly outmatched in raw strength—regained the upper hand.
Holding Onimaru Kunitsuna single-handedly, he applied slight pressure, forcing Nurarihyon to grimace and abandon decorum as he gripped the hilt with both hands.
Only by wielding his sword two-handed could he barely match Ye Xing's one-handed stance.
This wasn't just a physical disparity—their spiritual power levels were worlds apart.
Ye Xing even had the leisure to glance sideways at Miko Yotsuya and Rio Futaba, smirking.
"My opponent's too strong. I'll need to go all out, so the small fry are yours and Hachishaku-sama's problem."
Both girls rolled their eyes.
Yeah right.
Going all out?
You're the type who'd act like you're on the verge of death even after only using a tenth of your strength, all for the sake of caution.
If the enemy were truly that strong, would you still have the leisure to chat?
Both Rio Futaba and Miko Yotsuya understood that Ye Xing wanted to take advantage of his presence to give them more combat experience—but only under the guarantee of their safety.
"Open your eyes, Hyakume!"
"Tear off the disguise, Bone Woman!"
The yokai of the Nura Clan were stunned when they saw the true forms of the spirits summoned by Miko Yotsuya and Rio Futaba after invoking their true names.
Even Gyūki and Nurarihyon, who had lived for centuries, had never seen such an ability before.
Was that... a Shikigami?
It didn't look like one, and the energy felt entirely different.
"Never seen this before, huh? First time, right? Fresh and new, isn't it?"
Ye Xing's mocking triple-question made Nurarihyon's expression stiffen slightly.
After regaining his youth, his mentality had shifted as well—no longer as composed as in his elderly state, but more akin to the audacity and unrestrained nature of his younger days.
"What an arrogant brat."
With a flicker, Nurarihyon vanished from in front of Ye Xing and reappeared behind him in an instant, swinging his longsword Nenekirimaru without hesitation.
"That's it?"
As if he had eyes on the back of his head, Ye Xing sidestepped the slash effortlessly.
His left hand slowly reached into his coat.
Seeing this movement, Nurarihyon immediately raised his sword defensively, wariness flashing in his eyes.
What technique was this?
Iaido? A draw-cut? Or just a brute-force thrust?
Nurarihyon's combat experience was vast—he could predict an enemy's next move from the subtlest shifts in their shoulders or waist, allowing him to counter with precision.
Yet, to him, Ye Xing showed no signs of tension or preparation for an attack after reaching into his coat. In fact, his body seemed to relax entirely.
What kind of advanced swordsmanship was this?
Could it be... the legendary martial arts pinnacle, where one relaxes the body to its limit to nullify all attacks—the art of 'dissolving force'?
"You old fogey..."
After several thoughts raced through Nurarihyon's mind, Ye Xing finally withdrew his left hand from his coat.
What he pulled out left the leader of all yokai utterly dumbfounded.
The dark muzzle of a gun aimed squarely between Nurarihyon's brows, and with the gunshot, Ye Xing's light chuckle followed.
"Times have changed."
Bang!
After the gunshot, Nurarihyon remained standing where he was.
Only his hands trembled slightly.
Clink...
The bullet casing hit the ground with a crisp sound.
Nurarihyon stared straight at Ye Xing, teeth clenched, his expression deeply conflicted.
'You little punk... playing dirty with me, huh?'
'Since when do Onmyoji pull out guns during exorcisms?!'
All fear stems from insufficient firepower.
At this moment, Kyoto's top exorcist, Ye Xing, had finally fulfilled the dream he'd harboured since enrolling at Sobu High School.
"Who said anything about comparing sword skills with you two?"
"I'll just go American-style!"
Bang, bang, bang, bang...
Ye Xing gave Nurarihyon no chance to catch his breath, continuously pulling the trigger.
Nurarihyon's speed, naturally, couldn't outpace bullets.
He could only dodge with all his might, trying to avoid being hit or at least protecting his vital areas.
If it had been the Nurarihyon of his youth, perhaps he might have dodged them all.
Unfortunately, though his appearance was youthful now, he was ultimately already old.
A bullet pierced through Nurarihyon's calf.
He winced slightly in pain, but as the leader of all yokai, such a minor injury clearly couldn't affect him much.
"Hmm..."
After emptying the magazine, Ye Xing looked at Nurarihyon with his wounded calf, holstered the gun, then suddenly extended his left hand, speaking in a tone that brooked no argument.
"You stay right there, wait for me."
As he spoke, under Nurarihyon's complicated gaze, he pulled out a black-covered notebook from his pocket along with a ballpoint pen.
After opening the notebook, Ye Xing began writing while muttering to himself.
"Even a great yokai of the Nura Clan's calibre can't defend against close-range gunfire. Recovery rate still needs verification..."
Writing up to this point, Ye Xing raised his head and smiled at Nurarihyon opposite him.
"Oh, do me a favour—how long would such an injury take for you to fully recover? How's the pain level? If a normal human being shot would rate the pain at 5, give me a number for how you're feeling now."
Nurarihyon was stunned by the question.
"Why are you asking this?"
"You don't get it?"
Ye Xing looked at him as if he were an idiot and replied matter-of-factly.
"Of course it's to gather more intel, to summarise the most efficient, convenient, and safest way to kill your kind of yokai."
Nurarihyon was completely dumbfounded.
Well, aren't you honest?
Taking me for a fool?
Like I'd tell you?
"Don't want to say?"
Seeing Nurarihyon's utterly bewildered expression, Ye Xing flashed a friendly smile.
"Fine, don't tell me. After all, even if you did, I couldn't be sure it was true. I'll verify it myself then."
"Oh, let me show you something interesting."
Hearing this, Nurarihyon frowned slightly, his right hand gripping the hilt of his sword, tightening further.
What new trick was the other planning to pull?
Surely he wasn't about to pull out another gun?
Ye Xing transferred Onimaru Kunitsuna to his left hand, then stretched out his right palm upwards towards the sky.
A dense black Qi began swirling in his palm.
"Let me mention—I have a very special ability."
"As long as I know how to make a weapon, I can recreate it with evil spirit power just by visualising it in my mind."
Watching as the black Qi gradually elongated and took shape, Nurarihyon's pupils contracted in shock.
He didn't even have time to consider just how powerful this ability of Ye Xing's was.
Surely the other wasn't planning to create... that thing?
Under Nurarihyon's stunned gaze, the black Qi fully formed into a weapon.
A weapon, but not a melee one.
Ye Xing sheathed Onimaru Kunitsuna at his waist, then cradled the black, sleek, fluidly curved object in both hands - this exquisitely crafted work of art...
A shotgun.
Nurarihyon was utterly dumbfounded.
This thing could be fabricated on the spot using so-called evil spirit power?
How was that possible!?
How could you use supernatural abilities to create modern technological weaponry!?
The aesthetic was completely inconsistent!!!
"Heh."
Ye Xing nodded in satisfaction, raised the shotgun and aimed it at Nurarihyon across from him.
"Let me reiterate."
"Old man, times have changed."
"What era are you living in, still practicing traditional exorcism?"