At the end of the Heian period in Japan, it was a period of turbulent undercurrents, from the Fujiwara Kamazu for hundreds of years, the Fujiwara clan took advantage of the trend, especially the northern branch interfered in the government affairs, and to the Fujiwara Michicho, there was a story of three daughters becoming queens. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

However, because of the Fujiwara clan's interference in the government, the bureaucracy lost its progressive ability to maintain power, and with the emergence of the phenomenon of selling officials, the samurai group began to rise, and local forces became more and more.

Legend has it that the Heian period was a dark and unclear era, and due to the darkness of the human world, more and more karma gathered, and there was a phenomenon of people and demons coexisting and branching day and night. During the day, humans move as usual, but at night, the streets are empty, and this is the place where Hyakki walk at night. And it was during this period of demon breeding that the legend of Minamoto Yorimitsu and Watanabe Tsunade subduing demons and eliminating demons appeared.

This is also a good story that has been passed down in these dark times.

After autumn, the weather gradually cools down, and although it is not yet winter, Kyoto is already showing a depressed scene.

in an expansive courtyard.

The cherry blossoms in spring have long since withered, and in the withered cherry blossom bushes, the sound of running footsteps is heard, and an old man with a long sword hanging from his waist appears in the bushes.

When the old man came to the girl standing quietly in the bushes, he said calmly:

"Miss, the maidservant girl in the West Garden committed suicide by throwing herself into a well. ”

Hearing this bad news, the still girl did not turn her head, staring at the huge cherry tree in the depths of the cherry blossoms, although in late autumn, the tree is still blooming cherry blossoms, the splendid autumn cherry blossoms with a strange beauty, making people feel that the world is depressed at the same time, and at the same time, there is a sadness of liberation from the past life.

And the girl's back and the scenery of the cherry trees are integrated, as if the discolored picture scroll reveals a miserable autumn coolness.

The old man looked at the girl's back, his mood was a little heavy, and he waited patiently for a reply.

"What is the reason?"

The lonely back asks questions without waves.

Her parents were believed to be rebels of Fujiwara Yorichi's faction, and the family was killed by the samurai of Taira Kiyomori during the purge. ”

"Hasn't the Pingyuan Rebellion passed yet?"

"Yes, Miss, the Taira clan is still picketing the remnants, and there are soldiers knocking on the door today, but because of the relationship between Lord Fujiwara and Narifan, they just came to ask and left. ”

"Miss, what should I do about this? Is it still the same as last time?"

"I don't think the Sato family has any extra money. ”

"Yes, eldest lady, because of the recent turmoil, the family's business has also been cut off, and many servants have left, and it may be difficult to bury them. ”

The girl turned around, her calm face slightly moved: "Then seal the well." ”

"But that well was chosen by Haruake-sama, and it is a continuation of the luck of the Sato family......"

"Does the Sato family have a future?" the girl said in a cold voice.

The Sato family is already the end of the road to Yuyuko-sama, the old man grimaced, and clenched the sword at his waist: "I will swear to protect the eldest lady to the death." ”

A few days ago, Lord Fujiwara Chengfan came to find the eldest lady, and for the sake of her father's friendship, he proposed to her a plan to marry the emperor, but once the eldest lady marries, everything in the Sato family will be taken away, so she refused to marry, and now the Saihang Temple family is really at the end of the road.

"Youji, those who are willing to leave should be dismissed, and if the money is not enough, sell the things in the storehouse. ”

"Yes, Miss. ”

The soul demon left the garden to complete the eldest lady's orders.

After a few more days, more than half of the people of the Xixing Temple family have left, and what is left behind may be because of homelessness, or because of the prestige of the master, in short, the Xixing Temple family has maintained stability for the time being.

It's just that the soul demon is faintly worried.

At night, the yoji patrols the courtyard as usual, and the wild cats make strange whirring noises on the rooftops.

The air in the backyard was a little heavy, and Youji clenched his sword and stared at the white figure in the grass.

"Who are you?"

The soul demon asked in a deep voice, and the woman in white turned her head.

The woman opposite her was pale, her eyes were deep-set, her lips were purple, and her long hair hung down from her waist, like the symptoms of a drowning person.

"No return!

The woman let out a terrible scream, and spat out her mouth with muddy water that covered the entire courtyard floor, and soon it was up to her knees.

Youji understands that he has bumped into a ghost, he is a half-human and half-spirit samurai, he is not a normal person, and he will not be as afraid as ordinary people when he encounters a ghost.

Pulling out his sword, the demon recited the sentence "Purify all evil paths, the Buddha is the top of the Buddha", and rushed towards the female ghost with a little foot.

"No return!, no return!"

The woman roared, and her hair suddenly became longer and wrapped around Youji, who raised his sword horizontally and slashed out a cross sword qi. The female ghost's hair was immediately cut in half when it touched the sword qi, and the demon jealousy took advantage of the situation to cut off the female ghost's body sideways.

The female ghost let out a miserable scream, her body turned into a cloud of smoke, and the water that had covered her knees suddenly disappeared, and there was not a drop of water left on the ground, as if everything that had just happened was an illusion.

Youji reported this to Yuyuko, and after a few days, nothing abnormal happened in Xixing Temple, but on the fourth day, the female ghost appeared again, and Youji cut her off, and the female ghost still turned into a smoke as before.

The soul demon knew that his sword still couldn't kill the ghost, but he still told the eldest lady the truth.

"Is it because the sword qi is useless against that monster?"

The eldest lady pondered for a moment and took out a sword from her room.

"Youji, this is a sword given to me by a friend, named Louguan Sword, I won't make a sword, just give it to you. ”

Soul Demon took the sword in ecstasy, and he could feel the special power attached to the sword, and even the body of the half-spirit was terrified of it.

"Thank you, Miss. ”

The soul demon knew that this sword was comparable to a priceless famous weapon, but the eldest lady gave it to him like this, and the demon jealous felt that he was willing to die for the eldest lady.

With this sword, the soul youji fulfilled the commission, and the female ghost was scarred by the sword light, and finally could not maintain the form of the youkai and turned into ashes.

The yokai thing has passed, and the people don't know that it happened, and the Saigyoji family has spent a cold winter, and this year's snow is exceptionally heavy, and even Kyoto, the center of royal power, is a scene of mourning.

After the snow melted, Youji and the eldest lady enjoyed the cherry blossoms in the backyard, and the wine they drank was their daughter red.

Because it is impossible for the eldest lady to marry someone else, her daughter Hong will not have the day of opening, so instead of burying it in the ground, it is better to have a full mouth in advance.

After drinking a bowl of wine, a gust of wind blew, and the cherry blossoms fell colorfully, and the eldest lady suddenly asked about the monster.

"Youji, what do you mean by not returning?"

These were the only words shouted by the beheaded monster, and when I thought of the servant girl not long ago, the monster had some conjectures.

"Is that the female ghost the woman who committed suicide by throwing herself into a well? her home is gone, so she is homeless. It's like the mud field, where the peasants turn into monsters when they die, shouting things like 'give me back the land'. ”

The female ghost has a drowning symptom.,And can spit out muddy water.,It's really like a monster like a water ghost.,It seems that the words of the monster are too reasonable.,The eldest lady lost interest in the origin of the monster.,But she asked about the ghosts.、Wenche Demon Concubine These are the monsters.,Especially when she asked about the two monsters of the eyes and the hundred eyes of the ghosts.。

Hyakenmu Ghost is a woman who is good at stealing, and the money she stole will grow copper coin-like eyes on her body, and she has been wandering in the world at that time, and she was shot by Fujiwara Hidego and gradually disappeared from human sight.

And Fujiwara Hidego can also be regarded as the ancestor of the eldest lady.

The eyes are similar to those of a youkai, except that everywhere it passes by, it is covered with dense eyes, not on its body.

Although I don't know why the eldest lady is interested in this, Youji still told her everything.

It wasn't until later, after Miss Yuyuko killed herself under the Westward Demon, that he understood everything.

"Whether it is a ghost, a monster, or a ghost, it is all born of human obsession and resentment, and when these conditions are met, as long as there are enough external conditions, they will become inhuman things, and their name is to realize fantasy. ”

Because of this sentence, Yuyuko committed suicide, and blood smeared the trunk of the westward demon, and indescribable symbols were painted on it.

That was the last blood of the Saiyuki family.

――――――――――

The fiery red sunset on the horizon gradually dimmed, and Yumu and Fujiwara Ki sat in the corridor with their heads held up in boredom, waiting for Yuyuko to return.