Outside Penglai Village.
Most villagers were aware of the strange creatures that gathered in their village.
But they all kept quiet, pretending nothing had happened.
Yokais and demon exorcists each occupied their own territories.
Knowing of each other's existence, both sides maintained peace, granting the village a brief period of tranquility.
Indra and Ashura took on ordinary appearances, blending into the village without drawing attention.
That night.
The sky glittered with twinkling stars.
The moonlight was faint.
An unusual silence hung over the village.
A thin purple haze drifted around the entire village.
At the demon exorcists' temporary camp.
A middle-aged man named Kagarubi, wearing simple clothes, with a scar above his left eyebrow, deep brown pupils and black hair, sat on the grass eating his prepared dinner.
Beside his feet lay a massive boomerang—his weapon, called Hiraikotsu.
He was Kagarubi, Village Headman of the exorcist village.
He had also been entrusted by the lord of a certain city-state to lead local demon exorcists here for investigation.
Not far away, a light yellow-furred Nekomata cat lay on the ground with its eyes closed.
Thud-thud-thud…
Footsteps pounded toward them.
The cat's black ears twitched slightly. Its two long black tails stirred as well.
It opened its glossy red eyes, gazing toward the source of the sound.
A male demon exorcist in uniform rushed over anxiously, reporting to Kagarubi, "Lord Kagarubi, those yokais have already vanished! The village is covered in miasma—it must've been set before they left…"
Kagarubi immediately frowned, put down his bowl, and said seriously, "Notify everyone—cleanse the miasma immediately and prepare to move out."
Toxic miasma—a deadly vapor released by yokais that could poison everything alive, causing decay and dissolving corpses.
If untreated, this might lead to a great disaster.
"Kirara…" He called toward the Nekomata cat.
Kirara immediately stood up.
Meanwhile, hidden among the villagers, Ashura and Indra also sensed the purple mist growing denser, its coverage shrinking as if it were continuously moving inward.
"What exactly is this?" Ashura asked curiously.
"Don't breathe it in! Those demon exorcists are yokais' sworn enemies; they should know how to handle it," Indra replied while covering his nose.
"At worst, The Grandparents should be nearby. If anything serious happens, they'll definitely take us away."
Outside the village, two figures slowly approached.
Watching the floating toxic mist, Kikyo murmured, "Such a widespread miasma—could something serious have occurred inside?"
Inuyasha's ears twitched. "Kikyo, I heard coughing from within. Someone must've been poisoned."
Hearing this, Kikyo hesitated no longer, releasing several [Holy Arrows].
The miasma shattered, thick fog dispersing—peace once again restored.
She entered the village with Inuyasha and immediately met Kagarubi and others who were just leaving.
Seeing her, Kagarubi revealed a look of surprise.
He had met Kikyo before, and it was he who had entrusted the 'Shikon No Tama' to her for safekeeping all those years ago.
As a Miko tasked with guarding the 'Shikon No Tama', Kikyo bore great responsibility. She shouldn't have been moving around so freely.
"Kikyo, was that you helping just now?"
"Yes," Kikyo replied calmly, nodding. "Did any of you come across any suspicious figures?"
Beside her, Inuyasha kept sniffing the air.
"Miko-sama, why are you mingling with a yokai?" someone from the crowd recognized Inuyasha and asked in an accusing tone.
"He's my..." Kikyo hesitated briefly before continuing, "...companion, Inuyasha. If Inuyasha causes any trouble, I will take responsibility."
With words like that, even Kagarubi found it hard to stir up further conflict. He instead asked, "Kikyo, did you also come here because of the yokai gathering on this island?"
"Let's talk as we walk."
Ignoring the others' attitudes, Inuyasha, somewhat excitedly, said to Kikyo, "Those people were definitely here..."
Under the starry night, the moment the miasma cleared, Indra and Ashura boarded a small boat and rowed toward Penglai Island.
However, the moment they set foot on the island, the two brothers were forced to halt.
"More miasma," Indra said disdainfully, looking at the green barrier.
He turned his head to look.
On the water, several more boats appeared, carrying groups of people.
The two brothers watched calmly as Kikyo, Inuyasha, Kagarubi, and others came ashore.
"Kikyo, it's them! They're the ones who were following that man and woman," Inuyasha pointed at the two.
Indra remained expressionless, while Ashura couldn't help but sigh, "We've changed our appearance completely—how could they still recognize us?"
"No matter how you change your appearance, your scent never changes," Inuyasha explained.
Hearing that, Ashura pulled at his collar and took a whiff.
"Do I smell weird?"
"Don't waste time anymore. Hurry up and break through this outer layer," Indra ordered coldly.
His naturally commanding attitude annoyed certain exorcists.
"Hey, who do you think you are?"
"This island is crawling with yokai. If you value your life, you'd better get out."
Ashura immediately stepped forward to mediate.
"Everyone, please calm down. Our goals are the same—we both want to eliminate the yokai on this island and defeat the powerful demon lord occupying Penglai."
"Kikyo, are *the two of you* inside as well?" Kikyo didn't answer immediately. Instead, she looked toward the two brothers and asked.
"This conversation is exhausting. You're wasting time," Indra finally snapped impatiently.
"Come on, Ashura. We're going in right now."
Before Ashura could respond, he suddenly felt his body lift into the air. His vision was immediately tinted with purple.
"You're already wasting chakra? Is that really okay?" he sighed helplessly before holding his breath.
[Susano'o]
A hundred-meter-tall purple giant suddenly appeared, holding Ashura in its palm as it strode forward.
Seeing the colossal purple figure disappear into the distance, everyone present stood frozen in shock.
They were all dazed.
What immense chakra—spiritual or demonic—it must have taken to accomplish such a feat…
With a "zzzt" sound, part of Susano'o's chakra began evaporating the moment it pierced through the miasma, causing its form to visibly shrink slightly.
Fortunately, this minor loss was nothing significant for Indra.
This sudden gigantic appearance naturally drew attention from others on the island as well.
The yokai couldn't help but turn their gazes toward it.
The mocking expressions on their faces instantly vanishing, Ushiki's face turned cold, his mind filled with confusion as he stared toward where Indra stood.
Chakra?
How could someone in this world possess chakra?
Strange—this was just too strange!
In the next instant, he stopped engaging the yokai and rushed toward Indra and Ashura.
After setting Ashura down, Indra deactivated his Susano'o.
"Aniki, what should we do next?"
A red-haired man with a flame-shaped mark on his forehead asked.
His delicate features gave him a kind of feminine charm, but his eyes burned with cruelty and fury.
Beside him stood three other men.
The yokai who had landed on the island this time were far stronger than the half-baked ones Ushiki had originally dealt with, whose physical forms hadn't even fully materialized.
These four were the most powerful among them.
They called themselves the Four Fighting Gods. Their true forms resembled Qinglong (Azure Dragon), Suzaku (Vermilion Bird), Baihu (White Tiger), and Genbu (Black Tortoise) respectively.
The Four Fighting Gods had always coveted Penglai Island. Now that they found out Ushiki had already taken control of it, they felt even more resentful.
Yet during their previous battle, they had gained no advantage at all.
Ushiki moved like a shadow—so fast they couldn't even touch him, much less hurt him.
Now, Ushiki had abandoned them entirely, clearly showing no regard.
After standing silently for a moment, Luo Long, the leader among the four, said, "Let's go find the God Tree."
The others nodded simultaneously and each took off in separate directions.
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