Chapter 420: 157. Mountain God Festival: Miss Yukino Shyly Melting Away_2
I believe you, ghost...
Young Master, do you think I, Gou... no, I, Dark Crow, cannot understand your nature... Dark Crow straightened his back and moved to sit beside the Young Master.
The evening lawn still retained some of the day’s warmth.
Fujiwara Reya propped himself up with one arm, stretched out his legs, appearing very casual and lazy. Beside him, Gouzi, with head lifted to the same height, shoulders raised the same degree, and body tilted at the same angle as the Young Master, the two looked like a pair of lion dogs. Although unable to see the smile on Gouzi’s lips with his head lowered, he felt it was undoubtedly the greatest honor to assume the same posture as the Young Master.
"Izunaga Saburo is coming," Fujiwara Reya suddenly said.
Dark Crow immediately tensed up: "Do you want him to disappear halfway?"
"Sure, you handle it," Fujiwara Reya snapped half of the sugar cane in his hand and gave it to him, "Consider this your reward."
"..." Dark Crow took the sugar cane, bit into it gloomily, then looked up and asked, "Why not let Lord Longmao or Kiyoshi-dono handle it? First take care of Izunaga Saburo, then we advance on Yingyan Mountain, that way we eliminate two of the seven Great Tengu. The Boqi Fang Great Heavenly Dog at White Peak is just guarding Shikoku as a substitute for the old master. If the Young Master goes over, he will surely submit. The remaining four..."
Fujiwara Reya simply spat out sugar cane pulp in response to Gouzi’s suggestion.
"The Fox Clan envoy is here—"
A sudden commotion erupted from the docks.
The eyes of the master and servant both turned in that direction.
A group of dazzlingly dressed, geisha-like demon ladies slowly disembarked from the large ship that had docked.
On the riverbank, guests on the embankment all stood up with a "boom," and many yokai ran towards them to catch a glimpse of the Fox Clan’s procession.
Fox girls dressed in colorful garments, with silks fluttering, flew down from the ship’s side. Each bore a flower basket, passing over the pier, flicking their slender, elegant hands to scatter bright, fragrant flower petals that drifted down like a floral rain.
Amidst the waves of brilliant light, a colorful palanquin appeared within the rain of flowers.
The envoy of the Fox Clan sat upright in the palanquin.
Her white hair and red eyes, like a goddess descended to the mortal world, overlooked the earth, too beautiful to gaze upon directly.
Donning a five-colored tang garment, with a red veil drape over her shoulders, her long white hair cascading like a galaxy descending upon the mortal realm. Heart-shaped adornments adorned her hair, holding a hinoki folding fan in hand. This was a typical imperial style, with garments modeled after the Tang dynasty and classic makeup on her face that gave the illusion of being in the Heian era.
All eyes were drawn to her, for she was the nine-tailed fox of the Fox Clan, the most beautiful and enchanting demon in the world.
She was so beautiful that she seemed untouched by the mortal world.
For she was the very essence of the flame.
Every eye was fixated on her face, except Fujiwara Reya thought, it’d be great if Aunt Qing devoured her. Aunt Qing’s beauty was unmatched by any woman, and adding white hair and red eyes would be exhilarating!
"It’s that fox girl," Dark Crow pointed to the demon lady on the colorful palanquin and said, "She was the one who met with Miss Yukino last time and even used a barrier to stop me from eavesdropping."
"Rest assured, I will help you reclaim your ground," Fujiwara Reya comforted, "In the future, let her be your Young Lady."
"Eh? Eh—"
"Young Master!"
"Beauty ruins the nation—"
The bonfire burned fiercely, turning the ancient cedar treetops red, sparks lifting red smoke.
The commotion at the docks had just died down when it was disrupted again.
"Isegami Mountain Great Tengu arrives—"
A group of fox servants, riding bamboo tubes, floated down from the ship.
Fox servants, also known as Izunaga, are the servants of the Izunaga Envoy, who is the Isegami Mountain Great Tengu. Black wings spread wide as Izunaga Saburo swiftly soared past the docks, shooting into the night’s darkness of the sacred mountain like an arrow.
Ching—
A clear sound rang.
Waves rippled in the air, the wings created a metallic collision texture as they rubbed against the air.
The dock was suddenly abuzz with noise, some yokai who had lived in the Feitu Mountain for a long time could probably guess Izunaga Saburo’s purpose, their brows furrowing tightly.
"So arrogant!" Dark Crow cursed indignantly.
Fujiwara Reya nodded perfunctorily, "A bit."
"Young Master—"
"What?"
"I can’t stand it!"
"Rest assured, family is here."
As soon as those words fell, a figure in a black dress swept through the air, her graceful trajectory like a swallow approaching lightly. There was no overwhelming demon aura, yet every yokai present felt an unusual oppressive sensation in their heart.
Her fist followed her body.
Izunaga Saburo suddenly looked up.
He immediately retracted his fist to his waist and struck upward like a mighty dragon soaring.
With a bang, a massive shockwave abruptly exploded, rapidly sweeping across the surroundings.
At the center of the impact, Izunaga Saburo’s hands trembled, his expression shocked to the extreme.
At this point, all of Hidden God Town had already knelt on one knee, saluting a certain place in the void with utmost respect.
"Greetings, Butler Kiyoshi."
In the howling evening wind, that black silhouette stood tall in the air.
The charming, elegant woman raised her head slightly, her gaze casually sweeping over Izunaga Saburo.
"Within the sacred mountain, except for where Mountain God grants permission, flying is prohibited. First offenders are warned, second offenders eradicated. Lord Izunaga, do you wish to experience it again?"
Aunt Qing’s voice, as cool as mountain stream water, gently flowed through the hearts of those who heard it. In that gentle voice, however, lay an unyielding authority.
Izunaga Saburo’s face was ashen as he landed on the ground, proceeding on foot.