PDLP Chapter 123 The "Geniuses" of the Land of Cherry Blossoms
Chapter 123 The "Geniuses" of the Land of Cherry Blossoms
Kyoto, the land of cherry blossoms.
The largest square in the city center was packed with people.
The temporary platform was decorated in the traditional style of Japan, with shimenawa (sacred rope) and gohei (homophones) hanging from it, and a shrine in front of it, with incense smoke swirling around it.
Below the stage, the crowd was packed so tightly that it was impossible to move, and many people were holding up their phones and broadcasting live.
Many more people followed the nationwide live broadcast of the "Shikigami Selection Ceremony" through television and the internet.
A dedicated waiting area is set up on one side of the platform.
Hundreds of "lucky ones" who qualified through an online lottery are waiting anxiously.
Among them are men and women, young and old, students, office workers, and housewives.
Every face was filled with tension, anticipation, and a hint of barely perceptible fervor.
The allure of gaining extraordinary power, achieving instant success, and changing one's destiny is simply too great for ordinary people.
Abe Shokichi and several high-ranking members of Shintoism sat in specially set-up viewing seats behind the high platform.
Looking at the enthusiastic crowd below the stage and the ever-increasing online buzz, a high-ranking member of the Shinto cult couldn't help but laugh:
"Lord Changji, your proposal is simply a stroke of genius."
"Not only has it added fresh blood to the world of extraordinary beings in our country, but with the progress of the ritual and the appearance of the shikigami candidates, public opinion in the country is now almost one-sided, and the situation has been completely reversed."
"At the same time, it also allowed all countries on Earth to witness the power of my Sakura Extraordinary Realm."
Upon hearing this, Abe Shōkichi revealed a reserved smile.
The gloom of the shikigami's backlash and the Hundred Demons Parade seemed to be diluted by the lively scene before them.
If the "Amaterasu Project" proceeds smoothly, cultivating a large number of extraordinary individuals loyal to the country, coupled with the imminent recovery of the Ame-no-Murakumo sword...
The future of Japan remains promising!
As for the Great Xia...
A cold glint flashed in the depths of Abe Shōkichi's eyes.
Let you be smug for a few days.
Just then, the priest presiding over the ceremony on the platform shouted loudly:
"Next up, Kenichi Sato!"
A young man who looked to be in his early twenties, dressed in ordinary sportswear, took a deep breath and walked onto the platform.
Following the priest's instructions, Kenichi Sato walked to a long table placed in the center.
On the table, a dozen or so items were neatly arranged.
There were broken samurai swords, rusted fragments of armor, cracked magatama ornaments, faded rag dolls...
These are all "objects entrusted to shikigami," serving as vessels for sealing shikigami and yokai by Onmyoji or priests throughout history.
Kenichi Sato pricked his fingertip and applied his blood to each of the entrusted items.
The first few items had no effect whatsoever.
Until the seventh item, a jet-black beast horn with eerie spiral patterns on its surface was stained with blood...
A sudden change has occurred!
Buzz!
The beast's horn suddenly trembled, its surface gleaming with a dark, purplish-black light!
A cold and violent aura erupted from the beast's horn!
In an instant, gasps of surprise erupted from the audience like a tsunami!
Abe Shōkichi suddenly sat up straight, his eyes flashing with a sharp light!
Such a strong spiritual energy fluctuation!
This "demon horn" seals a demon god who is quite famous in the ancient legends of the land of cherry blossoms—the Ushi-oni!
The Ushioni is said to be a fusion of a bull and a demon, possessing immense strength and a cruel nature. It can manipulate water and is considered a powerful being of the upper-middle tier in the legends of the Japanese monsters.
Abe Shōkichi never imagined that an ordinary young man could be so perfectly compatible with the Ox-Demon!
Before everyone's shocked eyes, the demon horn shone brightly with a purplish-black light. A hideous phantom with a bull's head and a human body, wrapped in dark water vapor, flashed in the light and then disappeared into Kenichi Sato's body.
Kenichi Sato trembled violently, and his eyes were instantly shrouded in a dark purple light.
He felt an incredibly violent power surging wildly within his body!
"what!"
He couldn't help but roar to the sky, his hands unconsciously waving in the air!
boom!!!
Two thick, purplish-black water columns shot into the sky, intertwined and exploded in mid-air, turning into a sky full of black raindrops!
Although the water column only rose a dozen meters high and its power didn't seem strong, it was actually a genuine superhuman force!
It's a realm that ordinary people can never touch, even if they spend their entire lives!
"The Ox-Demon! It's the legendary Ox-Demon!"
"That's amazing!"
"This guy is so lucky!"
The audience erupted in cheers!
Exclamations, envious shouts, and cries filled the air.
Countless gazes, like spotlights, focused on Kenichi Sato.
At this moment, he was the focus of the entire audience, and in the eyes of countless ordinary people, he was a lucky person who had risen to the top in one step!
Kenichi Sato felt the surging power within him and looked at the countless fervent gazes below the stage, his heart filled with immense excitement and vanity.
Is this... what it feels like to be a superhuman?
Fantastic!
However, at that moment, he suddenly felt a strange weakness.
It was as if something had been drawn away along with the release.
Is it just my imagination?
Kenichi Sato frowned, but his doubts were quickly suppressed by excitement.
Because he saw that the great Onmyoji Abe no Masakichi, accompanied by several high-ranking members of the Shinto Church, walked over with smiles on his face.
"Congratulations, Sato-kun!"
Abe Shokichi patted Sato Kenichi on the shoulder affectionately, his voice carried throughout the venue through the microphone.
"Your compatibility with Lord Ushioni is unprecedented!"
"You will be the rising star of the extraordinary world in my Sakura Kingdom! The future S-class guardian!"
A rising star! A future S-class guardian!
These two titles raised the level of astonishment from the audience to an even higher level!
Sato Takeru's face flushed with excitement, and he quickly bowed, saying, "Th...thank you, Lord Changji!"
Abe Shokichi then publicly announced the reward given to Sato Kenichi:
One hundred million Sakura coins in cash!
A luxury apartment in the heart of Kyoto!
He directly entered the Yin-Yang Bureau and became Abe Masayoshi's disciple!
And the demon horn that sealed the Ushioni was officially bestowed upon Kenichi Sato!
Each award elicited envious gasps from the audience.
Countless people watching the live stream in Sakura had tears in their eyes.
This reward is incredibly generous!
The name "Kenichi Sato" spread throughout the entire Sakura region in an instant.
He was given dazzling titles such as "Rising Star", "Ushioni Fellow", and "Future S-Class", becoming the object of envy and admiration for countless young people.
After Kenichi Sato was taken away by special personnel, Shokichi Abe received several more messages.
"Lord Changji, a seventeen-year-old high school girl has appeared in Osaka who has been chosen to awaken 'Aoandon'!"
"Nagoya reports that someone has awakened the 'Hone-woman' with an extremely high compatibility!"
"Hokkaido……"
Good news kept coming.
Abe Shōkichi's smile grew wider and wider.
He proposed holding a small-scale selection ceremony in order to quickly quell the panic in the country and divert public attention, but he never expected that so many ordinary people would appear who were highly compatible with the objects entrusted to the shikigami.
It even has a higher compatibility than many Onmyoji who have trained since childhood!
God bless the cherry blossoms! This must be a blessing from Amaterasu!
"Pass down the order."
Abe Masakichi instructed his trusted confidants:
"Next, we need to put a lot of effort into promoting these people."
"The more high-profile, the better! Label them with 'geniuses who only appear once every few centuries, even millennia'!"
"Make sure they become stars in the eyes of the entire nation! Influential figures!"
"We must show everyone that becoming an extraordinary person can lead to instant success, glory, wealth, and status!"
"Yes, sir!" The trusted aide accepted the order and left.
Soon, the internet in Japan was flooded with propaganda.
Tomorrow's Star! Kenichi Sato, the Chosen One of the Ushioni!
A once-in-three-thousand-years genius! A seventeen-year-old girl awakens the blue lantern!
The Future of the Divine Realm! Bone Woman Contractor!
Various exaggerated headlines, coupled with meticulously edited videos and pictures, portrayed Kenichi Sato and others as chosen ones, as if they were destined to lead the Sakura Kingdom to its peak.
In an instant, public opinion in Japan completely reversed.
The fear of a hundred demons parading at night transformed into a fervent yearning for a transcendent era.
And this trend, with the spread of the internet, quickly spread around the world.
……
It all happened overnight.
The propaganda from Japan has made it known to everyone on the entire planet Earth.
The high-ranking officials from various countries' supernatural realms looked at the intelligence reports in their hands with grave expressions.
Some of them actually believed the boasts made by Japan.
After all, the power displayed by those "geniuses" was basically at level C, or even close to level B.
This was an astonishing achievement in the early stages of the Reiki revival.
Suddenly, the pressure on extraordinary organizations in various countries increased dramatically.
They also began to consider whether they should follow the example of Japan and find some similar "shortcuts" to quickly enhance their country's extraordinary power and boost morale.
Ordinary people in various countries are also discussing it online.
"Why doesn't our country hold those kinds of ceremonies like Japan?"
"I also want to rise to the top in one step!"
"What is the government doing? It's so inefficient!"
Complaints, doubts, expectations... a mix of emotions.
Within the Great Xia Dynasty, public opinion was also somewhat turbulent.
Fortunately, the Night's Watch had made preparations in advance and guided public opinion appropriately, so the situation was still under control.
In Luxian County, there is Qingfeng Temple.
Li Jun saw these news reports early in the morning.
He scoffed at the "Shikigami Selection" system that Japan had come up with.
Even though he was just a novice on the path of cultivation, he could still see the hidden dangers.
"Contract with a ghost, borrow its power to cultivate..."
Li Jun shook his head.
"What seems like a shortcut is actually a case of asking a tiger for its skin."
In his view, the shikigami of the Sakura Kingdom and the shamans of the Northern Lands are of the same lineage and are somewhat similar in form.
But their essence is completely different.
The spirits of the shamanic lineage cultivate themselves by doing good deeds and accumulating merit, and the two sides benefit from each other.
The current predicament faced by the shamanic lineage is mainly due to the break in the lineage and changes in the natural environment.
What kind of creatures are the shikigami from the land of cherry blossoms?
Most of them are the vengeful spirits of those who died in ancient battles, evil mountain spirits and monsters, or even man-made demons!
These things are inherently full of hostility and obsession; to make a pact with them is like planting a time bomb within yourself.
These things are inherently full of hostility and obsession; to make a pact with them is like planting a time bomb within yourself.
Perhaps we can use its power to enjoy a period of glory now.
But sooner or later it will backfire, harming both itself and others.
"Unorthodox methods can never be respected in the mainstream."
Li Jun put down his phone and stopped paying attention to the noise.
The greatest truths are the simplest, and the greatest achievements are those of excellence and sincerity.
He does have that much awareness.
Just as Li Jun was thinking, the old Taoist priest pushed open the door and walked in.
"Jun'er, when will the expert you invited arrive?"
Li Jun glanced at his phone.
"It should be soon. Jin Hao called this morning to say he was going to pick someone up in Nancheng."
The old Taoist priest nodded, took out a red envelope from his pocket, and handed it to Li Jun.
"This is a token of gratitude; we can't let them come all this way for nothing."
Li Jun smiled and pushed the red envelope back.
"Master, don't worry, I've prepared everything."
The old Taoist priest glanced at him but didn't insist.
"Okay, then, as long as you keep that in mind."
"I'll go prepare some tea; they've come all this way, we should treat them well."