Multiverse: Why does the world show a health bar? !

When Li Mo returned to the Kamai household, it was already late. That day, breaking the barrier and performing the purification hadn't taken too long. The main time-consuming part had been the trip to the Grand Narukami Shrine.

He didn't like that path because it felt like it had only been half-finished.

"Did you go to the Grand Narukami Shrine, Li-kun?"

"Yes. Did something happen today, Kamai?"

At Li Mo's request, Kamaiichiro and his brother had started addressing him more casually. As for Kamai's wife, she didn't need such formalities.

Kamai said, "I came to drink with you, Li-kun. I'm feeling a bit troubled."

"What's bothering you?"

"Remember how I mentioned joining the Tenryou Commission? I'll soon be leaving Konda Village and heading to Inazuma City."

"Are you reluctant to leave Konda Village?"

Kamaiichiro was a wanderer who had returned home. In his younger days, he had run off with his rowdy friends to become ronin, living a rough life outdoors. It was only because of his stubbornness that he hadn't wanted to return home. If it hadn't been for a conflict with another group of bandits that led to them obtaining some Crystal Marrow, which they sold for money, they might never have come back.

Now, the wanderer who had just returned home was about to set off again. It was natural to feel a little attachment.

"That's one part of it. The other part is that I'm worried about Jirou... I can tell he's like me, unable to endure loneliness. Is this something ingrained in the Kamai bloodline?" Kamaiichiro said. "Also... my parents asked me to bring back a wife once I join the Tenryou Commission in Inazuma City."

Where there are people, there will always be pressure to marry. This is something that transcends worlds. If there's one commonality Li Mo has found across the multiple worlds he's experienced, this is it.

Later, Li Mo realized that Kamaiichiro was using him as a sounding board. He poured out all his troubles, from his childhood conflicts with his parents, to the bitterness of running away from home, to the complex emotions of returning... Under the influence of alcohol, Kamaiichiro vented quite a bit.

The alcohol wasn't very strong, and in Li Mo's opinion, it wasn't enough to get drunk on. But Kamaiichiro was drunk.

Really, why did I have to sit under the moonlight, listening to a guy ramble on and on?

If it were a beautiful girl, it might have been different.

Li Mo held his cup, thinking of the masked shrine maiden.

—Does Hana Saruri have the desire to confide in someone?

"Hey, Kamai. What do you think is the same between Inazuma five hundred years ago and Inazuma now?"

"Huh?"

Kamaiichiro, who had been rambling like a river, paused for a moment, then slapped his thigh and said, "Li-kun, you've asked the right person. When I was younger, I actually explored this with my friends. If you're asking what hasn't changed in Inazuma, there are only two things: the Shogun, who has always resided in Tenshukaku, and the fireworks!

The Shogun goes without saying. Fireworks are a specialty of Inazuma. Five hundred years ago, the people of Inazuma set off fireworks. Three hundred years ago, they did the same. And now, the people of Inazuma still set off fireworks.

The older generation always says that if one day, you feel that the fireworks in the eyes of your opposite-sex friend are more beautiful than the real ones, then you can marry her."

Kamaiichiro spoke at length about the significance of fireworks in Inazuma over the centuries. They could be fireworks celebrating love, family, or friendship. When the fireworks rise into the sky, their brief display forms a unique beauty in people's hearts.

...

...

The next morning, when Li Mo went out, he saw a somewhat embarrassed Kamaiichiro. It seemed he remembered his behavior from the previous night and was feeling awkward.

Previously, he had always presented himself as mature and steady. Even the most frivolous youth would become like that after bearing the responsibility of more than ten lives.

Li Mo didn't mock Kamaiichiro. Instead, he said, "Ichiro, do me a favor."

There was something he needed someone in Inazuma City to do, and he couldn't go there himself for now.

Leaving Konda Village, even though he hadn't made a specific appointment with Hana Saruri, both of them instinctively knew where they would meet the next day.

Chinju Forest.

In the game, this place wasn't very large. But in reality, it was quite expansive. Remembering the previous day, on the way to the Grand Narukami Shrine, they had passed through here and encountered a ronin chasing a tanuki.

It seemed there were quite a few tanuki in this forest.

Arriving at the torii gate of Chinju Forest, Hana Saruri, dressed in her red and white shrine maiden attire, stood there like a beautiful painting. "You've come, Sir Li Mo."

"Yes, I'm here. Shall we go meet him now?"

"I'm a bit hesitant," Hana Saruri said, her back to Li Mo. "To meet that old friend of hers... I don't know what emotions he holds in his heart... or how he views me."

"You won't know until you meet him, right?" Li Mo said.

The sealed tanuki spirit was acquainted with Lady Saiguu. Or rather... five hundred years ago, there was probably no one in Inazuma who didn't know Lady Saiguu.

The village chief of Konda Village, the Konda family—even after five hundred years, they still vaguely remembered Lady Saiguu. How many generations had the Konda family passed down this memory? Why hadn't it been forgotten?

Li Mo said softly, "I think you should meet him. In my opinion, it's better to face the pain now than to prolong it."

"You're right," Hana Saruri smiled. "I'll take you there. I've never been there before, but I can sense the location."

She was a youkai, with the blood of Hakuzōsu flowing through her veins. As her "continuation," Hana Saruri naturally possessed certain magical abilities. She didn't need a tanuki to guide her; she knew where to go.

Along the way, she explained, "The friend we're going to meet is named Goshiki. He's a tanuki spirit who has existed for many, many years. During the war five hundred years ago, to prevent Goshiki from throwing his life away, she tricked him into hiding in Chinju Forest. Decades later, he was sealed here by Kano Natsuzoro for causing trouble."

Kano Natsuzoro again.

Since traveling with Hana Saruri, Li Mo had heard this name many times.

In Li Mo's view, Kano Natsuzoro was likely a figure like Abe no Seimei. He had gone to Liyue to study adeptal arts and then created his own system of onmyōjutsu. He was a founding figure.

Hearing his name so often was to be expected.

Soon, Hana Saruri led Li Mo to a chubby tanuki statue. To Li Mo, the statue looked a bit too plump.

Hana Saruri cast a spell, one meant for communication.

"Who's there, disturbing my peace...!!! Lady Saiguu, you've returned?"