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Reimu was a little worried. She originally thought that the 'demon god' that Yakumo mentioned was someone pretending to be a god and using fireworks to deceive people. Now it seems that this is not the case.
Then Meli walked in as if he didn't know anything.
"Are not you afraid?"
"What are you afraid of? Aren't we here to investigate the anomaly?"
Merry said it so matter-of-factly that it seemed like she encountered this kind of thing all the time. Reimu asked unconsciously.
"It's not often, but it happened a few times."
It was just covered by dark clouds, which was nothing. But without Lianzi this time, I felt a little uncomfortable.
There was a cornfield at the entrance of the village. Because there was no sunlight, the leaves of the corn were drooping, listless, like rows of dead bodies propped up by wooden frames.
In a cornfield, there is a collapsed stone building, which does not look like a place where people live.
That should be a stone shrine, a place to worship gods. Generally speaking, the gods worshipped are the gods of the land. But Reimu had heard before that the villagers here used to worship the monster named "Yaki" in Gensokyo.
So what was destroyed should be the stone shrine of Yaqi, right?
Thinking of this, Meli had already stepped forward.
"Hey, this should be the stone shrine of the 'Fox Fairy'. People in this village used to worship the Fox Fairy?"
Not Yaqi?
Reimu went forward and, as expected, the collapsed stone shrine, which originally housed a stone statue of a fox spirit, had been overturned and was lying on the ground with half of its body broken into pieces.
Then the two of them walked towards the village. Along the way, they saw six or seven collapsed stone shrines, each enshrining a different deity. Reimu also saw the stone statue of Yaqi.
So, how chaotic was the village's faith in the past? It's OK to worship rural monsters as gods, which is the case in many places, but there are so many of them. Does every household here worship different monsters?
No wonder the evil spirit was attracted. It was strange enough that there was peace for so many years in the past.
After all, Reimu now knows that monsters do exist and are not just fantasies.
Because of the dark clouds in the sky, it feels like midnight here. There are stars at midnight, but here there is only darkness when you look up.
Reimu was already backing off. She really couldn't handle this. She held the Yin-Yang Jade in her hand, but the mysterious Yin-Yang Jade was only effective in Gensokyo and had no effect in the outside world.
Seeing Reimu stop, Merry also stopped.
"Not going over?" asked Merry.
Although she had felt it was a little weird before, the weird feeling in Reimu's heart became even more intense at this moment.
It's like a thorn. Although I want to endure it, I feel I can't endure it.
"Merry, aren't you scared?"
"It probably won't be to this extent. After all, compared to Gensokyo which is full of monsters, this place is much more normal, isn't it?"
"You know Gensokyo!?"
Nothing surprised Reimu more than hearing the word 'Gensokyo' come out of someone's mouth.
That should be a place that humans don't know about. Even if it's a monster, if it enters it, it won't be able to leave easily.
"So that place is really called Gensokyo, right?" Seeing Reimu stop, Merry stopped walking. She found a flat place on the ridge of the field and sat down directly without caring about the dirty soil.
"Yesterday I went to Izumo Taisha Shrine. It was just a normal visit during the holidays, as a relaxing trip, so I didn't bring Renko with me. But do you know what I saw? The torii gate that should have been written with 'Izumo Taisha' had 'Gensokyo' written on it."
Merry has had special abilities since she was a child. She can see the 'barrier' and see the other side of the world that humans cannot see.
This ability has brought her a lot of trouble. She always sees things she shouldn't see and goes to places she shouldn't go.
In human folklore, it is called "God's Hidden Land". She is born to step into the "God's Hidden Land", but fortunately her ability is not one-way, and she can also return from the "God's Hidden Land".
In the past, she always felt that such ability was a curse, until she met Lian Zi, an incredible girl, so enthusiastic and optimistic as if there was no sadness in the world.
Borrowing the power of Meili, they go to one "hidden place" after another in the name of "Secret Club" to investigate, adventure, explore secrets and find the truth. Lianzi also has superpowers. She can accurately know the current time and place with the help of astrology and will never get lost.
One is a universal key, the other is a universal navigator. They are indispensable to each other.
This time Lian Zi was not there, only Meli was there because she couldn't bear her curiosity.
She had dreamed about the place called "Fantasy Township" countless times in the past few months. She didn't know where it was, nor how to get there. There were all kinds of monsters in her dreams, until last night, when a human appeared in her dream.
A human named Reimu, who was called 'Hakurei Miko' by someone in the dream.
"So, you followed me here?"
"Sorry, this is what happened. I followed you from Izumo Taisha Shrine and saw you get into this car. Like a stalker, right?"
It's not 'like', it is.
Reimu felt that she should be angry, but she had no time to be angry because she heard a strange singing voice coming from her ears.
"somebody is coming."
This is nonsense, and Reimu heard it too.
【People who are suffering, people who are sad, please pray sincerely. 】
【People who suffer, people who are sad, God blesses those who are suffering. 】
[Confess your sins, God will forgive you. One day you will be in God's warm embrace.]
The unknown ballad sounded like a prayer, but it was creepy.
Many people were singing, and there was a long line of people in the cornfield, some holding torches and some holding branches. The line was getting closer and closer, and Reimu held her breath and wanted to hide deeper in the field.
Then the procession suddenly stopped, and the singing stopped. Someone looked over here.
At the front of the team was a woman wearing white clothes and holding a water bottle, just as the rumors said. But Reimu knew very well that she was definitely not a human, because humans would not give her such a weird feeling.
If there really is an evil god, then she is it.
Now, the evil god's eyes are on her. But now she is no longer the Hakurei shrine maiden of Gensokyo, but the Hakurei Reimu of Izumo Taisha.
I'm dying, dying, dying
In her confusion, Reimu felt herself being pulled and fell backwards.
The woman in white looked into the depths of the cornfield, where there should have been people, but they suddenly disappeared. She walked a few more steps into the cornfield, and indeed, there was no one there.
"What's wrong, Lord God's Messenger?"
"Nothing, just keep praying."
So the team began to march again amid the strange singing.
On the other side, Reimu took a deep breath and finally felt alive. The culprit who caused all this was beside her.
"Yakumo Yukari! I said I never wanted to enter your gap again! How did you get out of Gensokyo?"
Meli just felt confused.
"Who is Yakumo Yukari you are talking about?"
Reimu looked at her for a moment and realized she wasn't kidding.
"You're not Yakumo Yukari? Then how do you know how to use 'Gap'?"
Looking closely, this woman named Merry looks very similar to Yakumo Yukari, especially her clothes and that strange hat.
Reimu should have discovered it earlier, but it was as if her subconscious mind had been modified. When she saw Merry before, she was dressed in the same way and looked very similar, but she didn't associate her with Yakumo Yukari at all.
It was as if the thought had been stolen.
Until she used 'Gap' to let Reimu confirm it. Then the modified subconscious was restored.
But Merry really didn't know 'Yakumo Yukari', at least in her consciousness, there was no such name at all.
Chapter 322 Dream Seal
Reimu no longer intends to stay in this village, as she is sure that she cannot resolve the "strange incident" here.
What is needed here is the TAC team, the Giant of Light.
She is just the Hakurei shrine maiden in Gensokyo. In the outside world, she is nothing.
As for Merry, whether she is Yakumo Yukari or not has nothing to do with Reimu.
Even if Yakumo Yukari can enter and leave Gensokyo at will without her consent, that is the business of the "god" who created Gensokyo. For her, it is just a matter of saving 5000 dan in handling fees.
But Reimu found that she couldn't leave because there were people at the entrance of the village, and there were even people at every intersection.
Perhaps it's because the people here are already aware of the intruder.
Although we can't find them, we don't intend to let them go.
"Can you give us a break to leave?"
Although it was very uncomfortable in the gap, Reimu said she could still endure it in order to escape.
Unfortunately, Meli shook his head.
If it was Yakumo Yukari, of course it would work, but that girl did not admit that she was Yakumo Yukari. Her gap was also far less skilled than Yakumo Yukari.
"I'm sorry, I can't do that. But in my dream, Hakurei Miko, you were very powerful and you shouldn't be afraid of these people."
I'm really sorry, Merry is not Yakumo Yukari, and the one here is not the Hakurei shrine maiden in the other's dream.
Reimu suddenly realized that the relationship between Merry and Yakumo Yukari was the same as her and "Hakurei Reimu"?
There is an altar in the center of the village.
There was an incense table in front of the altar, with a pair of tall candles lit. The dim flames could only illuminate an area of several meters. Dozens of villagers knelt in the darkness in front of the altar, shivering.
"Pray earnestly, that's all. Then God will forgive you and return the sunshine to you."
Their village has not seen the sun for a whole week, and the dark clouds only briefly disperse during prayers.
Let them bask in the light for a moment.
The sun, which was once taken for granted, has become an incomparable luxury.
【Ah, we pray, forgive us, forgive us. 】
Countless voices combined into a strange prayer.
"But today, the sun will not rise. God is angry because filthy people have entered the village. Only if you find them and kill them, will God forgive you."
【Find them, find them, and ask God for forgiveness! 】
The villagers were like zombies, with dozens or even hundreds of them wandering around the fields in confusion, some holding torches, others holding sickles and hoes.