IW: Chapter 246 - Seimei Returns from Hell, the Miko Protecting the shikon jewel!
"That bastard Seimei isn't completely dead. At the final moment, his soul managed to slip through the Rift of Death and escape straight into Hell."
Hell, in the context of this world, was the Underworld—the very same bleak, spiritual realm that Inu no Taisho had descended to after his demise. The original records of history only ever showed a few brief, fleeting glimpses of its borders, but the true Underworld was a vast, staggering dimension of its own. Deep within its uncharted territories lay countless terrifying, ancient entities that had never once set foot in the living world.
And now, the group stood precisely at the unstable boundary separating the living world from the otherworld.
"The Black Pearl in your possession should be more than enough to grant us passage, correct?"
To enter the Underworld alive, one had to utilize one of four known gateways: the first was the Black Pearl forged from the tears of the Hōsenki; the second was the Gate of the Land of Fire, which those wielding the Tenseiga could freely open and traverse; the third was the perilous ascent via the Blood River of the bird demon Tekkei; and the fourth was by drawing the legendary sword, So'unga (Tsumuryuha).
Though Inu no Taisho had actually bestowed So'unga upon Bai Ye a long time ago, Bai Ye had simply tossed the demonic blade into his Kamui Space and left it there to gather dust. He already possessed his own signature arsenal and had absolutely no need for it. The sword was notoriously evil and corrupting, but raw power wasn't the issue—Bai Ye could easily suppress its malice with a single glance. He just couldn't stand the damn thing constantly chattering in his ear every single day.
If he were like his counterpart back in Arad, possessing a specialized, magical scabbard capable of completely sealing away a weapon's consciousness and forcing it to stay quiet, he might have considered carrying it. Without it, it was just an annoying headache.
"Are you truly determined to let So'unga rot in your pocket dimension?"
Inu no Taisho rubbed his temples in mild distress. He had gifted the catastrophic blade to Bai Ye with the genuine hope that the young man would harness its world-ending power for good. But seeing how little Bai Ye cared for the weapon, the Great Dog General couldn't help but feel a twinge of ironic pride; refusing to rely on the corrupting crutch of So'unga was a level of spiritual fortitude he had always deeply respected.
"So'unga... is in his possession?!"
Sesshomaru's head snapped toward Bai Ye, his golden eyes narrowing to sharp points. Only now did he consciously register that the third sword of supreme conquest—the one his father had carried into his final battle—was completely absent from the General's waist. He had noticed its absence earlier, of course, but he hadn't given it much thought. Hearing his father openly admit it now, it turned out So'unga had been handed over to Bai Ye ages ago!
"Since my older brother inherited So'unga," Sesshomaru hissed, his regal composure fracturing under a wave of intense, burning indignation, "then why did you not immediately pass Tessaiga down to me?!"
Oh, Sesshomaru, Sesshomaru...
You still haven't learned how to control that impatient pride of yours, have you?
Listening to his eldest son's immediate, demanding outburst, Inu no Taisho could only manage a bitter, silent chuckle internally. The boy had barely processed the fact that So'unga belonged to Inuyasha Bai Ye before his obsession with the family heirlooms kicked right back into overdrive, demanding ownership of the sword of destruction.
It wasn't hard to tell from Sesshomaru's expression that he might have thought that he would no longer participate in those battles.
So, keeping this weapon would be useless; it would be better to give it to him.
However, Inu Daisho already had ideas for the arrangement of these weapons in his heart.
"Sesshomaru, this weapon is not suitable for you."
Inu Daisho sighed, why did it feel like Sesshomaru couldn't be persuaded?
Looking at Sesshomaru's cold eyes, the atmosphere became a bit awkward for a moment.
"Innately strong is what matters most; everything else is external power. Sesshomaru, what have you always pursued?"
"To surpass Father!"
Sesshomaru looked at Bai Ye and said without hesitation.
He wanted to surpass Inu Daisho, and now that Bai Ye had surpassed him, he believed he could too.
"Then why do you insist on inheriting Tessaiga?"
"Because..."
Oh right?!
Why did he have to inherit it?
Sesshomaru's thoughts drifted back to when he had just started fighting.
At that time, he had witnessed Tessaiga's power.
With a single swing, it could annihilate countless demons; that scene is still etched in Sesshomaru's mind even now, which has caused Sesshomaru to develop a slight obsession with Tessaiga.
"If you want to surpass him, you can't follow his old path. Following the old path will only make you him. Go find your own power, Sesshomaru, one day you will know what you truly want."
Bai Ye had said similar words to him before.
At first, Sesshomaru had scoffed a bit.
But now, he really couldn't say that anymore.
His own power?
For the first time, Sesshomaru pondered these words deeply.
"Let's still talk about Seimei."
Sesshomaru will grow up eventually; he is just too stubborn now, and this matter has become a knot in his heart.
So, it's clearly impossible to correct Sesshomaru immediately.
Compared to this, Bai Ye was more concerned about Seimei's matter.
"How to put it, it won't be long before that guy returns from the Underworld!"
"You've already been to the Underworld?"
Bai Ye had thought about going to the Underworld to search, but he later gave up.
There are still many unknowns there, and there is also the existence of Heaven in this world. It seems that Seimei's escape back then was also related to someone from Heaven.
"I've been there once, and almost didn't make it back. Seimei's strength has increased incredibly."
Inu Daisho looked at Bai Ye and said seriously.
"So... your intention in coming here to remind me is?!"
Clearly, Inu Daisho didn't just come here to chat with him or anything.
He obviously came to talk about Seimei.
"He will be resurrected and return, but he is still missing a part of his soul. If he obtains that part of his soul, he will become even stronger, more powerful than he is now!!"
When Inu Daisho went to the Underworld, he always thought that an Onmyoji like Seimei, who lacked a soul.
Even if he entered the Underworld after death, he still couldn't become too powerful.
So he went to the Underworld alone to investigate, but almost didn't make it back.
"Seimei's next return will be even stronger."
It seems he had heard about it somewhere.
After careful consideration, a thought suddenly came to Bai Ye's mind: wasn't this the legendary Seimei who returned from Hell, no longer the human Onmyoji Seimei, but a demon upon his return?
Therefore, an increase in strength was certain, and it was in Hell that Seimei gained the ability of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons; he became the master of the hundred demons.
Looking at it this way, no wonder Seimei felt that his strength wasn't very strong last time.
It turned out it was because he hadn't died once yet. So, his becoming stronger was all because of him.
"Those guys in Heaven probably contributed a lot, otherwise Seimei couldn't have become so powerful!"
Regarding the people of Heaven, Bai Ye had investigated almost everything: Takama-ga-hara!
The place where the so-called gods reside.
The gods look down on all beings, and everyone is a pawn in their hands.
Bai Ye was very clear that Seimei's survival back then must have involved intervention from someone on Takama-ga-hara.
Otherwise, his soul should have directly become all of the shikon jewel, not just a part.
"Yes, I was also in that chess game back then. What they wanted seemed to be to collect the souls of some strong individuals, and some might have other purposes, so you need to be careful!"
Inu Daisho timely reminded Bai Ye that Bai Ye must have entered the eyes of those guys now.
Because his fate seemed to have been broken last time, Inu Daisho knew very well that Bai Ye would be targeted by those people.
Before breaking fate back then, he always felt as if he was being led by fate.
The battle with the Leopard Cat, and after the battle, he even had a desire to fight his archenemy Ryukotsusei, followed by a series of events involving Setsuna no Takemaru.
He had clearly wanted to rest for a while after fighting the Leopard Cat.
Fortunately, Bai Ye's appearance changed all of this, which also made Inu Daisho realize that sometimes the things he wanted to do were not his true intentions, but rather there was one or countless black hands behind him pushing him towards the development they wanted to see.
"Who exactly are you two talking about?!"
Inuyasha scratched his ear; at first, he could understand what Bai Ye and Inu Daisho were saying about Sesshomaru.
But after they started talking about other things, Inuyasha was also confused.
"Can you be clearer?"
Sesshomaru was also curious about who the two were talking about.
Why couldn't they just say it clearly?
"Gods."
Bai Ye said slowly.
"Gods?!"
Why would gods be involved?
"But why would those guys do that?"
Tsukuyomi also didn't expect it. Although she had always known that the person Bai Ye was investigating was probably very powerful.
They could even save Seimei, who was supposed to die, but she couldn't understand why the other party would do that.
If they were gods.
Then they shouldn't just stand by and watch a guy like Seimei wreak havoc on the human world.
"I don't know that!"
Inu Daisho shook his head; he didn't know any of this.
Although he knew that all of this was a conspiracy concocted by the other party, there must be some purpose that would give the other party a reason to act.
But he hadn't investigated it clearly.
That time in the Underworld, he thought he could find some information, but he was beaten back by Seimei. Thinking about it, it was really a bit embarrassing.
"I think it should be related to the Tree of Ages."
Bai Ye stated his guess.
His first encounter with Seimei was near the Tree of Ages.
Based on some subsequent information, Bai Ye also roughly understood the situation.
Seimei wanted to create the shikon jewel, so he first observed Tsukuyomi. After determining that Tsukuyomi was suitable to become the shikon jewel, he began his actions.
Without any surprises, if he hadn't appeared, Tsukuyomi would have become the shikon jewel.
It's just why Seimei didn't take the shikon jewel later, but instead let the plot develop in the anime. In Bai Ye's opinion, perhaps he had obtained the shikon jewel at first.
However, the strength of the shikon jewel at that time did not meet his expectations.
So he let the shikon jewel flow out to be obtained by others.
The ability of the shikon jewel is to fulfill the desires in people's hearts, and after that, this person will become a puppet of the shikon jewel and eventually be absorbed into the shikon jewel.
And in this, the birth of Magatsuhi also indicated that it would not see its own death.
So, during this period of circulation, the shikon jewel continuously absorbed the evil souls of greedy people and the good souls of pure-hearted people to enhance the jewel's strength.
And after reaching a certain level, Seimei would take action to retrieve the shikon jewel.
This was a series of deductions made by Bai Ye based on subsequent developments.
And besides the shikon jewel, the most mysterious thing was the Tree of Ages.
No one knew how the Tree of Ages appeared, and at the same time, it possessed the ability of time and space. Even blades made from its spiritual wood would be imbued with the power of time and space.
And in this era, the only person who could take down the Tree of Ages was Tsukuyomi.
This was very strange.
Bai Ye had been wondering why.
Later, he also asked Tsukuyomi, but she didn't know either. She only knew that by protecting the Tree of Ages with her spiritual power, she could make the Tree of Ages temporarily possess that effect.
At the same time, after being broken, the Tree of Ages almost immediately replenished the damaged part, which was also a very unusual thing.
It was based on this incident, combined with the reactions of those guys from Takama-ga-hara, that Bai Ye seemed to understand something.
"Tree of Ages?! Why do I get more confused the more you talk?"
It even involved the Tree of Ages. Tsukuyomi looked at Bai Ye with some confusion.
Bai Ye had asked her many questions about the Tree of Ages before.
"Haven't you noticed? The Tree of Ages has always been in a state of self-protection. No matter how you destroy it, it can recover as before. Have you ever thought about why the Tree of Ages appeared here? And why does it have this ability?"
Everyone knew about the uniqueness of the Tree of Ages; even if they hadn't seen it, they must have heard of it.
"I think I understand what you mean."
Inu Daisho analyzed from what Bai Ye had said earlier exactly what Bai Ye meant.
"You mean that those guys can't come down directly, or even if they do, they won't be at their peak, so they need to use some people to break something, and this key is the Tree of Ages.
So, did Seimei have some kind of deal with them back then, or rather, they didn't want to see Seimei just disappear, and needed someone to destroy the seal of the Tree of Ages?"
Inu Daisho stated all his conjectures. Could this be the only explanation?
"That's right, that's my guess too. Those guys aren't satisfied with Takama-ga-hara, or rather, they want to control this world, but no matter what, they need to use Seimei."
"In that case, his purpose in returning this time must be that those people have a hidden hand behind them?!"
Tsukuyomi also realized that Seimei's return this time must be related to this matter.
"Didn't he say he wanted to retrieve his soul? This time he came back to look for the shikon jewel, right?"
Since Seimei's soul was contained within the shikon jewel, he would definitely seek out his soul upon his return.
The current Seimei was not in his complete state, so he would certainly retrieve his soul first.
"So where is the shikon jewel now?!"
For all these years, the shikon jewel seemed to have a mind of its own, always hiding from them. Whenever Bai Ye wanted to retrieve this jewel, it would simply disappear.
Bai Ye suddenly felt like the World Government couldn't find the Nika fruit.
So this thing is the same, right?!
The shikon jewel itself also had consciousness, and this evil spirit might be Seimei dominating it.
"The shikon jewel seems to be in the hands of a Miko now."
"Miko?"
Kikyo?
The Miko guarding the shikon jewel in this era seemed to be Kikyo, right?
But then again, after all these twists and turns, did the shikon jewel end up in Kikyo's hands again?
Then...
Bai Ye glanced at Inuyasha. Under his gaze, Inuyasha suddenly felt a very strange sensation.
He...
What did that look mean?
"It seems that in this life, there's no way for you, Big Dog, to mess with Kikyo anymore!"
Bai Ye thought silently to himself. At this time, Inuyasha was well protected and hadn't been wandering outside.
He was currently in Inu no Kuni. Originally, as a Hanyo, he would definitely be discriminated against.
But that was based on when Inu Daisho died. When Inuyasha was young, Inu Daisho died, so a Hanyo living in a place full of demons would naturally be ostracized, even if his mother brought him back to her kingdom, it would still be the same.
But now Inu Daisho was still alive, and the fact that Bai Ye married a human woman was naturally known to many demons.
This meant that Bai Ye was different from Sesshomaru.
And now he was going to pursue the shikon jewel, so what about this Big Dog afterwards...
But thinking about it, it made sense.
In the anime, the reason Inuyasha targeted the shikon jewel was to transform his Hanyo identity into a demon.
This way, he wouldn't be bullied and wouldn't have to live in fear as a human during the new moon.
But now, Inuyasha had no obsession with becoming a demon, so he naturally wouldn't go looking for the shikon jewel.
Moreover, after knowing about this matter, Inuyasha probably wouldn't interfere with the shikon jewel's affairs.
"Are you going to take Inuyasha with you?"
"..."
What kind of look is that?
Bai Ye's mouth twitched. He really didn't know what to say about Inu Daisho's gaze.
He had only simply glanced at Inuyasha, and then to Inu Daisho, it meant he was going to take Inuyasha with him.
He knew that Inu Daisho's intention was most likely to want him to take the little brother along to grow up.
"No, I'll have to ask you to take Mai away first then."
Bai Ye shook his head and directly refused. He didn't even want to bring Mai, so how could he bring Inuyasha?
"Ah? Not taking me?"
Such a fun thing and they weren't taking her?!
However, Mai thought for a moment, if her parents weren't around, wouldn't she be able to play wildly?
It seemed that Tsukuyomi would probably go with Bai Ye, so thinking this way, she really felt free.
"It's not impossible for us to take you."
"No, no, no, I won't cause you any trouble!"
Mai waved her hands repeatedly. She had just wanted to go along, but then she suddenly realized that it might be better if she didn't go with them.
Looking at Mai, Bai Ye decided that he would leave a clone to watch over her later.
He already knew what she was thinking.
"Speaking of which, you don't need to have so much pressure. Those guys, according to your speculation, should not be able to come down for now."
Inu Daisho didn't want Bai Ye to feel so much pressure.
Since the other party needed to take some action through the Tree of Ages, it meant that direct intervention seemed impossible at present.
And since Seimei had failed once before, he would still fail at Bai Ye's hands.
"I'm not under pressure, I just find it quite fun. So, I will go look for the shikon jewel later."
Since it was confirmed that those guys couldn't come for now, Bai Ye wasn't worried anymore.
At this time, he actually had more room for maneuver.
"You want that Miko, right? Too bad... someone like you who's already useless can never get her."
In a Village near Kikyo.
A small spider demon was currently lying next to a burned man, tempting him.
Onigumo squinted his eyes. He actually knew very well why this little demon had come here to find him.
Knowing the sheer, rotting malice festering in his own heart, Onigumo was acutely aware that the demons crawling along the cavern walls wanted nothing more than to tear his soul to shreds and devour it whole.
"You'd completely fail to win her over if you reduced yourself to a demon," Onigumo muttered hoarsely to himself.
He was paralyzed, but he wasn't brainless. He knew with absolute certainty that the moment he offered his broken body and soul to a horde of base demons to become a Hanyo, there was no guarantee his human consciousness would remain in the driver's seat. He refused to blindly hand over his agency just to become a vessel for a mindless pack of monsters.
This current reality diverged sharply from the tragic sequence of events in the original timeline. In that lost history, Onigumo had been consumed by a frantic, claustrophobic desperation—fully aware that without sacrificing his humanity, his mangled body would never allow him to crawl out of that cave, let alone lay a hand on Kikyo. Furthermore, watching Kikyo's growing intimacy with Inuyasha had ignited an incandescent, blinding fire of jealousy within his chest. It birthed a fleeting, psychotic urge to completely destroy what he could never possess.
If I can't have her, I will never allow that half-demon to have her either.
Under the absolute tyranny of that spiteful mindset, the original Onigumo had willingly surrendered his flesh to the swarming shadows. A fusion of this magnitude required the human soul to actively, maliciously consent; only then could a truly catastrophic, apex Hanyo like Naraku be forged.
Because of this rigid cosmic rule, the lesser demons lurking in the dark corners of the cave weren't rushing their prey. They continuously whispered, hissed, and prodded, slowly chipping away at Onigumo's resolve, tempting him to unlock the gates of his mind.
"Look at yourself. You are a charred, unsightly corpse," the spider demon hissed from the ceiling, its voice dripping with venomous mockery. "Do you truly believe a pure priestess like Kikyo could ever look upon you with love? And look closer, fool—someone has already arrived to claim the Shikon Jewel. Once that artifact is violently torn away, Kikyo will have no reason left to guard this wretched village. She will vanish from your life forever!"
The demon's words struck a raw nerve, but the true architect behind the curtain wasn't the spider—it was the Shikon Jewel itself. The jewel possessed an innate, self-preserving sentience, and it had already accurately predicted its own absolute annihilation.
It was desperately searching for a champion to carry it away from the blast zone.
As it stood, the jewel was merely a polished shard of spiritual crystalline; it lacked the physical agency to directly force Kikyo to do its bidding. To survive over the centuries, it had learned to actively protect itself by manipulating human greed, causing itself to circulate endlessly through blood-soaked wars and avaricious hands. Whenever Bai Ye's terrifying aura drew too close, the jewel would utilize a burst of its stolen spiritual reservoir to rapidly shift its location, slipping through his fingers like sand.
For a long time, Bai Ye hadn't given the jewel his undivided attention, allowing it to play its game of cat-and-mouse. But this time, the evil spirit trapped within the core knew it was completely cornered.
Pinned beneath the crushing, immaculate weight of Kikyo's pure spiritual power, the entity realized a bitter truth: if it didn't find a powerful, corruptible host to latch onto immediately, it would be permanently seized and dismantled by Bai Ye.
The Shikon Jewel had always been orchestrating its own salvation. In the original timeline, the moment Kikyo allowed a tiny, human wish to blossom in her heart—the desire to use the jewel to turn Inuyasha human and live a normal life—her tragic downfall had already been sealed. The jewel fed on that hidden vulnerability. Later, upon sensing that a dying Kikyo intended to have her body cremated alongside the artifact to trap it in the void forever, the jewel naturally refused to let its existence end. It hijacked her soul, forcing a spiritual reincarnation that dragged it right back into the mortal coil generations later.
Now, history was trying to repeat itself. The evil spirit within the jewel could feel the freezing touch of an absolute seal closing in.
Even though Abe no Seimei's soul had been fractured during his descent into the Rift of Death, the remnants of his consciousness were fundamentally stronger and far more terrifying than an ordinary entity like Tsukuyomi. Seimei had willfully fused with an astronomical number of ancient demons; despite the jewel's deceptively pure, radiant exterior, its beating heart was a concentrated well of pure malice.
The spirit of Seimei would absolutely not sit idly by and watch his legacy be erased from existence.
Furthermore, having transitioned into the jewel's core entity, a fractured piece of Seimei's soul had achieved a profound, terrifying realization: if these scattered remnants could somehow navigate their way back to his main body in the Underworld while maintaining a perfect fusion with the Shikon Jewel, he would transcend mortality entirely. He would become an unstoppable, god-like calamity.
Therefore, before Bai Ye could initiate his grand purge, the jewel had to build a fortress. And Onigumo's shattered, jealous soul was the perfect foundation.