"Thank you very much for your help, my lord. This is an offering to the gods, please accept it!"
The wealthy merchant bowed deeply to Retsu, who was dressed in priestly attire, and handed over a heavy money bag with both hands, his tone full of gratitude.
Retsu held a comatose giant Rat Demon in his left hand. With his other hand, he took the money bag, secretly weighing it twice. A gentle smile, fitting for his status as a Priest, appeared on his face as he said in a steady tone, "Thank you for your offering. The gods will bless you and your family with peace, prosperity, and good fortune."
Read Taiwan novels at Chao Kaopu.
After the pleasantries were over, he turned and left the bustling Castle Town under the respectful gaze of the wealthy merchant.
Walking to a quiet mountain forest outside the city, Retsu put the money bag into the Kamui Dimension, then unfolded the sealing scroll in his hand and shouted softly, "Sealing: Kishō Tensei Seal!"
Pale green life force was continuously drained from the Rat Demon's body and poured into the scroll. A moment later, the demon turned into a skeleton and scattered among the fallen leaves. Retsu put away the scroll, a satisfied curve hooking the corner of his mouth. "The life force needed for resurrection is almost enough. However, there's no rush now; I'll continue collecting. After all, there are so many demons in this world, I can't let them go to waste."
He looked up at the sky; the sun hung high, its light piercing. "I wonder if Kikyo has been resurrected yet..." As his thoughts drifted, his peripheral vision caught a glimpse of a strange thundercloud appearing in the distance. The pitch-black thundercloud rolled, with lightning darting through the layers, yet the surrounding sky was clear for miles, making it exceptionally conspicuous.
"Is that... a demon?" Seeing this abnormal situation, Retsu's heart stirred, and he immediately reacted. Anything capable of creating such a commotion was either a powerful Great Demon or related to the shikon jewel. Either way, it was worth a trip.
Thinking of this, he immediately released the Transformation Jutsu, revealing his Edo Tensei body. Chakra erupted from the soles of his feet, and he sped towards the direction of the thundercloud like an arrow released from a bow.
Ten minutes later, Retsu arrived at his destination. By then, the strange thundercloud had already dissipated, leaving behind a mess: the ground was covered with lightning craters of varying depths, the charred soil smelled of burning, and corpses were everywhere—mostly soldiers in armor, along with some carcasses of cattle and horses. They had died miserably, yet there were no signs of being gnawed on.
"Two armies were fighting, and they were all wiped out by a demon." Retsu scanned the scattered weapons and different styles of armor on the ground and understood instantly. "Looking at the situation, the demon wasn't looking for food; it was pure slaughter."
He frowned. Although he had no good feelings for the humans of this world, he equally detested demons that killed indiscriminately. "Pray that I don't catch you."
He carefully sensed the demonic aura remaining in the air and followed the trail, thinking to himself, "A demonic aura of this intensity is definitely a big fish. Whether it's for collecting life force or obtaining a new shard of the shikon jewel, the harvest will be bountiful."
Following the trail, the movement of the demonic aura was almost a straight line, completely unhindered by mountains or rivers. "Moving so fast, it seems it can fly." Retsu judged. He condensed Chakra beneath his feet, traversing the forest. He walked on water when encountering rivers and used Chakra to adhere to cliffs and precipices to pass directly. Although he couldn't fly, with Body Flicker Jutsu and Chakra enhancement, his speed was not slow at all, and the distance to the source of the demonic aura continuously closed.
What surprised him even more was that as he got closer, he sensed from the demonic aura that it wasn't one demon, but two.
Not long after, he arrived at a barren mountain where not a single blade of grass grew. A manor built on the mountainside came into view. At this time, the sky was covered with thick dark clouds. The manor, built against the mountain with black tiles and white walls, gave off an eerie atmosphere under the shadow of the clouds. "Found it; it should be here."
Meanwhile, inside a room deep within the manor.
Hiten had just returned from outside, holding a seductive female demon in his arms. He spoke nonchalantly to his younger brother Manten, "By the way, Manten, did you find any new shard of the shikon jewel?"
Hearing Hiten's words, Manten froze, his face showing some guilt as he rubbed his head and said, "Sorry, Brother... I found one, but I couldn't help myself..." As he spoke, he pointed to a young girl on a nearby bed who was staring blankly at the two of them—it was Kagome Higurashi.
"Couldn't help yourself?!" Hiten instantly flew into a rage, his roar making Kagome's body tremble. "Don't tell me that instead of the shard of the shikon jewel, you only cared about catching this woman and watched the shard of the shikon jewel slip away?!"
Consumed with rage, a dazzling flash of electricity suddenly erupted from his palm. The female demon he had just brought back had no time to react before she was enveloped by lightning, instantly turning into a lump of charcoal and falling to the ground.
Kagome trembled with fear, quickly closing her eyes, her heart pounding.
Meanwhile, outside the manor, Retsu suddenly sensed the strong demonic aura erupting within and a smile curled on his lips. "Found them."
His figure flashed, and he soon arrived at the room where he had just sensed the demonic aura. Just as he was about to push the door and enter, he sensed the two demons inside were coming out.
What he found even more interesting was that Kagome's presence was also among them. "Interesting, it seems I've gotten involved in the plot again." He looked up at the occasional flashes of lightning above the manor and understood instantly. "Two demons, plus these thunderclouds... Is it the Thunder Beast Brothers, Hiten and Manten?"
As the thought flashed through his mind, Retsu drew the samurai sword from his waist. Chakra poured into the blade, and Wind Release Chakra condensed into a wide, white Chakra wind blade around the edge. "Wind Release: Vacuum Blade!"
He wasn't sure if this world followed the Ninja world's rule of "Wind Release counters Lightning Release," but he still added the Ninjutsu enhancement. During this time, he had discovered that although the demons in this world weren't particularly strong, their physical defense was exceptionally tough.
If he used the samurai sword meant for ordinary people in his hand to slash at demons, the blade would shatter after a few hits. However, if it was infused with Chakra, it could break through their defenses like cutting through ordinary flesh.
He guessed it was because the demons used Demonic Power to strengthen their bodies. As long as there was no supernatural power enhancement, it would be difficult to damage a body protected by Demonic Power.
Hiten and Manten were leading Kagome out of the room, preparing to find Inuyasha to seize the shikon jewel, only to have their path blocked by Retsu standing outside with his sword.
"Who are you? How dare you break into our brothers' home!" Hiten's face darkened as he saw the suddenly appearing Retsu, looking at him with murderous intent.
Retsu looked up, the scarlet Sharingan appearing in his eyes, three tomoe slowly rotating in his pupils, exuding a cold murderous intent. "Hand over the shard of the shikon jewel, and I'll leave your corpses intact."