Chapter 1341

<Chapter 1341> 1341. Ghost Romance

Dojin gazed up at the heavens. He could see hundreds of ghosts.

The term “Hyakki Yakō” doesn’t mean there are exactly one hundred ghosts—it’s more symbolic. In reality, the number of ghosts could reach hundreds or even thousands.

“Judging by the rough count, it’s over 300.”

He wasn’t afraid—in fact, he was excited.

For sixty years, he’d been sealed in a jar, his concentrated ghostly energy writhing restlessly. With this extraordinary body and his mastery as a true spirit warrior, he believed he could take down hundreds of ghosts all on his own.

Dojin burned with fighting spirit. But that didn’t mean he charged recklessly like a wild boar. The open sky would leave him surrounded by enemies—perfect for being attacked. Even in excitement, he wouldn’t do anything stupid. Besides, they were bound to descend to the ground to kill him anyway.

“Nataku-Ghost.”

Someone called out to him.

The ghosts of the Hyakki Yakō stepped back cautiously, revealing an old man dressed in a kimono stepping forward. His head was grotesquely oversized, far beyond human proportions, yet this demon possessed an overwhelming amount of ghostly energy.

Dojin immediately recognized the old man as the leader of the Hyakki Yakō—the Nurarihyon.

“I’ve heard rumors about a Nataku-Ghost who wreaked havoc on this peninsula decades ago. And you’re the protagonist of those rumors, aren’t you?”

“That’s correct. I am Nataku-Ghost Dojin.”

Their conversation wasn’t in Japanese or Korean. It was a language that existed in this world but couldn’t be used by humans—the language of ghosts. Sung Yoojin, possessed by a ghost, could understand their dialogue.

“You’ve been rumored about for centuries. What brings you here to the peninsula when you already control the islands?”

“We’ve come to kill the human you’ve possessed.”

“Is this some kind of karmic retribution?”

“No. We have no connection to that human. This is our first time seeing them. Simply put, we judged that human to be dangerous.”

“Hmph. So that’s it? Preemptive extermination? To fear a mere human… the Hyakki Yakō has truly gone too far.”

“…We have a seer among us who can predict the future. He says that if we leave that human alone, thousands—even tens of thousands—of ghosts will fall to them. Already, in just three days, they’ve exorcised dozens of ghosts. Even a top-tier exorcist couldn’t accomplish such a feat. That human must die here.”

Nurarihyon’s attitude brimmed with hostility and caution, leaving Dojin impressed.

“So you’re not an ordinary human after all… though I never imagined it’d be to this extent.”

“Nataku-Ghost, leave the human’s body. We are both ghosts. There’s no need for us to fight each other. Your slaying of the Oni will be forgiven. You didn’t know, and the Oni acted too hastily.”

“I refuse. This body is mine now. You mentioned having a seer among you? Let them foresee again. As long as I possess this body… the events you speak of will not come to pass.”

Nurarihyon crossed his arms and surveyed the Hyakki Yakō.

“Kudan.”

From the crowd of the Hyakki Yakō, a ghost with the body of a cow and the face of a human stepped forward—a yokai capable of predicting the future.

“Has the future changed?”

Kudan slowly looked around before speaking leisurely…


The body replied.

“It hasn’t changed… That human will become a calamity of ghosts…”

Dojin let out a hollow laugh.

“This is ridiculous. Is this really a prophecy? It’s just some random blabbering.”

“Night Demon, Kudan’s prophecies are accurate over 90% of the time.”

“So you’re saying 10% is bullcrap?”

“A 90% chance can’t be ignored. Night Demon, come out of that human’s body. We have no intention to oppose you, a fellow ghost.”

Dojin raised the Sacred Demon Blade and pointed it at Nurarihyon.

“How many times do I have to say it? This body is mine now.”

“You’re beyond reason. Abandon that body. Isn’t it easy enough to find another human body anyway?”

“Hahaha. You know nothing. Finding a body with compatibility this good is impossible, even after tens or hundreds of years.”

“I don’t understand. You’re a ghost too – why are you so fixated on a human body?”

“The sensation of being alive is like a drug. Once you taste it, you can never quit.”

Nurarihyon frowned.

He raised his right hand. The ghosts of the Hyakki Yakou unleashed their ghostly energy, brimming with fighting spirit. Dojin smirked. His body trembled with excitement in anticipation of battle.

“I’ve upheld my duty as a ghost like you. If you like that human body so much… then die with that human.”

From within the ranks of the Hyakki Yakou, three ghosts shot out like arrows.

The Daitengu with its long nose and black wings.

The Inugami with a dog’s face.

The Gashadokuro, a giant skeleton.

These were the strongest among the Hyakki Yakou, and they charged at Dojin as if they’d been waiting for this moment.

“Night Demon Dojin! I’ve been curious about your strength ever since I heard your name!”

“I’ll devour you and grow even stronger!”

“Heheh… This one is my prey…”

Dojin mocked them while swinging the Sacred Demon Blade widely.

“Foolish lesser spirits… Back in the day, you wouldn’t have even seen my shadow. Die!”

A massive sword qi formed from compressed ghostly energy flew toward the three yokai. However, the yokai easily evaded Dojin’s attack. Daitengu flew upward, Inugami dashed along the ground, and Gashadokuro, despite its massive size, performed a light jump.

As Dojin panicked, Nurarihyon smiled and said,

“Night Demon. The peninsula and the islands are different. Unlike the peninsula where exorcists dominate, the islands are the land of ghosts. There were too many ghosts. Thus, territorial battles between ghosts were always happening. This is on a different level from the peace-loving ghosts of the peninsula!”

The moment Nurarihyon finished speaking, Daitengu, riding the wind, positioned himself behind Dojin. His fist struck Dojin’s back. Though allowing the attack, Dojin counterattacked, slicing off Daitengu’s right arm with the Sacred Demon Blade.

“Heheh…”

From above, Gashadokuro’s massive bone hand came down to crush Dojin. Without a moment to catch his breath, Dojin violently moved his legs to evade Gashadokuro’s hand. He climbed up the arm and thrust his sword into the forehead of the giant skull.

“I am Night Demon Dojin! Starting with this damn huge skull, I’ll slice all of you bastards to death!”

Dojin proudly shouted while attempting to decapitate Gashadokuro. However, the sword embedded in the forehead wouldn’t budge. Gashadokuro’s durability was beyond imagination.

-What are you doing, idiot? It’s coming from below.

At Sung Yoojin’s voice, Dojin hastily looked down. Inugami was charging with its long snout wide open. Dojin used his ghostly energy. It enveloped his body. Immediately after, his body reappeared on the ground. This was Dojin’s secret technique: Shuuchi.

Dojin kicked off the ground and targeted the defenseless Daitengu from behind. Daitengu took out a feather fan from his sleeve and swung it. Wind struck Dojin’s body. The wind blades inflicted small wounds all over Dojin’s body. Blood trickled down his skin and dripped onto the floor.

“Guh…”

Dojin wobbled, having lost a considerable amount of blood.

“Night Demon, you are strong. But you’re too crude. There’s a difference of several decades. Your movements lack refinement. One-on-one might be a different story, but one-against-many isn’t suited for you…”


“So, you’ve shown your true form.”

Nurarihyon’s voice had set Dojin’s temper off.

“Shut up! After I slice these guys, your head will be next!”

“Hmph. Foolish one… Your flaw is that you’re alone. If you abandon that body and bow to me now, I’ll give you a chance to join my Hyakki Yagyou.”

“Your Hyakki Yagyou ends here. I’ll finish it myself!”

Nurarihyon shook his head. As he raised his left hand, countless ghosts watching from Heaven descended all at once toward Dojin.

“Hehehe! Let’s kill the Nachal Ghost!”

“Killing the Nachal Ghost means becoming an officer!”

“Weak-ass Nachal Ghost!”

Dojin distorted his face as he swung his Demon-Slaying Sword.

“You damn minor ghosts…!”

The weaker ghosts were cut down by the Demon-Slaying Sword without even being able to counterattack. Still, they didn’t retreat and clung onto Dojin. Dojin opened his mouth wide and bit into a charging minor ghost, swallowing it whole.

Nurarihyon stroked his chin while watching Dojin’s battle.

“Oh ho. So the human-eating Nachal consumes ghosts to recover spirit energy and stamina… Remarkable. Truly a peerless warrior. However, you cannot stand against my Hyakki Yagyou.”

Dojin continued swinging his sword at the ghosts. The minor ghosts couldn’t evade his blade and met their end. But the real problem was the stronger entities mixed among them. Powerful fighters that Dojin couldn’t ignore attacked him from within the swarm of minor ghosts.

“GAH!”

Dojin was hit by Gatou’s headbutt in the abdomen. Flying backward, he crashed into a rock and fell to the ground.

-What are you doing? You were so full of yourself, but now you’re getting completely demolished. If you’re going to do that, just hand over your body to me. I’ll show you what real swordsmanship looks like.

“Shut up… What makes you think you can do anything, being just a human? This body is mine.”

Dojin forced himself back up. The flesh that had undergone three transformations had mostly healed its wounds, and any lacking spirit energy could be stolen by eating minor ghosts. There was still plenty of fight left in him.

CRUNCH.

Rotten tree roots burst forth from beneath his feet and wrapped around Dojin’s body. He panicked. Using Earth Travel to escape was impossible.

Because for Earth Travel, he’d first need to move his feet.

“Hehehe! Now’s the time! Kill him!”

A nearby tree burst out laughing rudely. It was a ghost disguised as a tree.

“Damn it…”

Dozens of minor ghosts simultaneously charged at Dojin.

-Do you desire power?

The human in his head started spouting nonsense. Annoyed, Dojin tried to shout. He attempted to explode his spirit energy to instantly dispel the minor ghosts clinging to him. But his body wouldn’t respond as expected.

‘I haven’t been injured to this extent! There’s no reason my body shouldn’t move!’

-You idiot. You really can’t fight. This is hopeless. Hand over your body.

Control over the flesh was slipping to Sung Yoojin.

‘Damn it. Could it be… you had control from the beginning but gave it to me?! Why the hell would you do that?!’

Sung Yoojin heard Dojin’s thoughts but didn’t answer his question.

‘Don’t do it, Sung Yoojin! You can’t handle spirit energy! Taking control of this body will only result in you dying to these minor ghosts! Is that the kind of meaningless death you want?!’

-Idiot. Quite the opposite. Since you’re about to die, I’m stepping in.

Dojin resisted until the very end, but ultimately lost control of his body to Sung Yoojin.

CRACKLE. SPARK.

Spirit energy transformed into lightning energy, sending blue sparks flying.

Raitenryu (Lightning Heaven Flow) Electromagnetic Barrier Maximum Output.

The circular electromagnetic barrier made of lightning temporarily expanded, forcefully repelling the clinging minor ghosts. Most of the repelled ghosts died from electrocution. Sung Yoojin personally swung the sword at the surviving minor ghosts.

With strikes far more experienced than Dojin’s, the minor ghosts were cut down without any chance to resist.

“Good. Much better than my real body.”

Sung Yoojin smirked while looking at the surrounding ghosts.