This Japanese Monogatari Isn't Lame
Chapter 507 - 329: Beichuan Si Is Not an Impulsive Person (4000 words)_2

Chapter 507: Chapter 329: Beichuan Si Is Not an Impulsive Person (4000 words)_2

It seemed as if several villagers were guarding this path.

Chang Ze Aoba turned off the flashlight and whispered to Beichuan Si and Shen Gu Mirai beside him:

"The path leads to Mikami Forest at the end, and inside the Mikami Forest, there are no signs or paths. It is said that, at the deepest part of the Mikami Forest, the most famous Divine Tree of Ihui Island is enshrined, and only those who have reached true enlightenment can get there."

"I see," Shen Gu Mirai nodded.

Chang Ze Aoba continued, "As you have seen, there are quite a few guards now. We’ll probably have to look for another opportunity to come and observe the situation. After all, what the few of us can do at night is very limited, right?"

He was about to suggest that Beichuan Si and Shen Gu Mirai should consider heading back, but Beichuan Si, who had been quiet all along, spoke again, "In other words, Mirai’s parents are in the Mikami Forest, right?"

"...That is one way to understand it," Chang Ze Aoba nodded.

Beichuan Si thoughtfully nodded, then pulled a small doll from his collar and handed it to Shen Gu Mirai, instructing her, "Take Kelian with you, you can go back now. If there is any problem with the villagers, find a place to hide, and Kelian will leave marks on the road for me to find you. Similarly, Kelian now also possesses a certain fighting ability, but try to avoid getting into a fight or entanglement at all costs, understood?"

Mr. Beichuan’s tone sounded like he was making final arrangements, which instinctively made Chang Ze Aoba feel uneasy, "Mr. Beichuan, what are you planning to do—"

Mr. Beichuan glanced at Chang Ze Aoba, "Please take care of Mirai for the time being, Mr. Chang Ze."

"What exactly are you planning to do..." He was completely clueless.

Then—

Under Chang Ze Aoba’s gaze, Mr. Beichuan moved swiftly, dashing towards the lit area of the path with a speed that he couldn’t comprehend...

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

Five dull thuds came from above.

Those were the sounds of bodies falling to the ground.

While the shock on Chang Ze Aoba’s face hadn’t yet faded, Mr. Beichuan swiftly returned from above, calmly stating:

"The guards have all been taken care of, you should leave this place now."

"...," Chang Ze Aoba.

Mr. Beichuan was someone to rely on?

Mr. Beichuan seemed not too rash?

Was there no need to worry especially about Mr. Beichuan’s character?!

Chang Ze Aoba now only felt that all the psychological descriptions he had written a few hundred words ago were as if they had been fed to a dog. His mouth twitched, he took several deep breaths before nodding, "I understand."

Mr. Beichuan’s abilities were beyond his expectation.

At least, Chang Ze Aoba hadn’t seen clearly what Mr. Beichuan had just done, and those seemingly strong villagers had simply fallen down.

If they left the matter to Mr. Beichuan, there should be no problem.

But the key lay in what came next.

If someone came to replace the guards and found that all the previous ones had fallen—

That couldn’t be good, could it?

"Mr. Temple..." Shen Gu Mirai opened her mouth.

Seeing her expression, Mr. Beichuan just nodded and whispered in her ear:

"Don’t worry."

"Mm," Shen Gu Mirai nodded and then opened her arms to give Mr. Beichuan a tight hug:

"Mr. Temple, thank you."

"Let’s go."

Mr. Beichuan waved his hand, then, pulling his backpack, turned and headed into the depths of the Divine Forest Path without looking back.

A dark stream of air flickered through his eyes—

...

On the third day of being trapped, today’s exploration around didn’t yield any findings, but instead, too much good will was spent.

Shen Gu Jiro put down his notebook, looking at the dim light of the flashlight beside him, his brows furrowed tightly.

The flashlight’s battery was running low, and there was only enough food left for one more day. If they couldn’t figure out a way by tomorrow, they might really die trapped in this dark, dense forest.

Beneath this dead zone were many corpses, and it was common to suddenly encounter a vengeful spirit halfway through a journey, the resentment here was the thickest he had ever seen.

"Could this be the primary reason for the sharp decline in the population of Ihui Island?"

Shen Gu Jiro pondered.

If he did not put his mind to it, he was certain to die here, but if he took a moment to think, perhaps there would be a glimmer of hope.

"How is the Yingjing doing, Chiharu?" Shen Gu Jiro asked, as he added some sticks to the fire.

Shen Gu Chiharu shook her head, knowing well that the situation was not optimistic, despite her usually carefree nature.

She took a small circular mirror out of her bosom.

The rim of the mirror was smooth, and at the very center, there were a few snowflake-like, beautifully patterned petals.

Entwined with a pale golden flow, the whole piece of mirror sparkled with a strange gleam.

Yingjing. This was something Shen Gu Jiro and Shen Gu Chiharu had found years earlier in an ancient earth-style building, with mysterious snowflake patterns that could gather positive energy and alleviate bodily illnesses.

And since positive energy restrained vengeful spirits well, Shen Gu Jiro and Shen Gu Chiharu had kept it.

In fact, they had many other items designed to counter vengeful spirits, but those were just consumables they carried around, which had been quickly used up in this deadly realm.

The two remaining items were Chiharu’s Yingjing and an ancient Divine Hammer he now carried with him.

These two items, having been kept close for years, gained some capacity to gather positive energy, which is why they could immediately notice the oddity with the Voodoo Doll that day.

Speaking of the Voodoo Doll... Shen Gu Jiro couldn’t help but think of Beichuan Si.

That young man with the stern appearance.

Although he hadn’t said it outright, Shen Gu Jiro guessed the man probably had feelings for Shen Gu Mirai.

"I wonder how Mirai is doing now," Shen Gu Chiharu said, hugging her knees and tilting her head to look at Shen Gu Jiro.

Shen Gu Jiro glanced at her, "With her character, she won’t suffer any loss, even if the two of us are gone."

"Hehe," Shen Gu Chiharu let out a little laugh, moving closer to Shen Gu Jiro, "By the way, how did we meet? Was it while investigating folklore? Or was it—"

Shen Gu Jiro looked at her with slight disdain, reminding her, "It was during our school days."

"Right," Shen Gu Chiharu’s eyes rolled, and with a giggling smile she said, "You always had a good memory, Jiro."

Shen Gu Jiro shook his head upon hearing this, "It’s not about having a good memory; some things must be remembered with heart."

Indeed, whether it was someone’s kindness or any important matter, Shen Gu Jiro would engrave it deeply in his mind.

Maybe he lacked the ability to repay now, but once he was capable, he would make it up one by one.

However, considering the current situation, the chances of survival seemed very slim indeed.

They fell into silence.

After a while, Shen Gu Chiharu proposed, "Jiro, why don’t we just go... to that place tomorrow?"

Shen Gu Jiro’s expression darkened slightly.

The place Shen Gu Chiharu was referring to was an ancient village cluster they had discovered quite some time ago.

That area of the ancient village had long been abandoned, with no one residing there.

Strange totems, rotting wood, rising malevolence...

Every corner of that ancient village reeked of decay and eeriness.

That old village was also the spot in this death zone where malevolent energy was most intense.

Perhaps there, they could find a chance to escape the peril.

But at the same time, they both might also end up dying there.

This was the so-called coexistence of opportunity and risk.

Seeing her husband non-committal, Shen Gu Chiharu continued, "We have enough food for one more day. If we keep this up, we’ll weaken naturally without even encountering those terrifying things, and then there really won’t be any chance left."

She stood up, cupped her husband’s face in her hands, her eyes shining, "No matter what! We have to try, Jiro."

The lively sparkle in Shen Gu Chiharu reminded Shen Gu Jiro of the first time they met—

"No matter whether it has research value or not! Studying these things is interesting! Don’t you think so, Mr. Jiro?"

He took a deep breath:

"Alright."