"Speaking of which, if you can't interrogate, why did you capture them in the first place?"
In a clearing within the jungle.
Luo Shu stared at the radiant girl with a hime-cut hairstyle before him with a wry expression.
"Because we lack information."
"Mum and Mr. Masao both said that accurate intelligence is the top priority in Abyss exploration."
Sun Seto replied with an utterly guileless expression, as if completely naive.
"Besides, I ran into Aotabō earlier and escaped with him. If we regroup, he should know how to interrogate, right?"
Hearing Sun Seto's uncertain tone, Luo Shu didn't know what to say:
"If Aotabō was with you, where is he now?"
Learning that Aotabō of the Nura Clan had ended up with Sun Seto, Luo Shu couldn't help but ask for further information.
After all, Yukari Oikawa was still holding down the fort for him at Kikyo Shrine.
Now that he'd encountered her companion, it was only natural to ask more questions and help them reunite if possible.
"Mr. Aotabō and I escaped in different directions. We agreed to meet at that mountain over there."
Sun Seto pointed towards the peaks on the left. Luo Shu glanced briefly before turning to Kuesu Jingūji:
"How's it looking?"
"She should be ready to wake up soon."
Kuesu Jingūji clapped her hands together and stood up.
Before her, the village girl, Xiaocui, had several thin silver strands tied around her neck, wrists, and ankles.
Noticing the strands, Luo Shu glanced at Kuesu Jingūji's hair.
At that moment, Kuesu Jingūji explained:
"To monitor brain activity without physical harm using a technique, my hair is currently the only perfect medium for such a spell."
A witch's hair serves as a vital magical conduit.
Spellcasting, curses, divination, proxy deaths – many techniques utilise hair, which is why witches generally never cut theirs. This is partly why both Kuesu Jingūji and Natsuki Minamiya have long hair.
Of course, what intrigued Luo Shu wasn't this, but Kuesu Jingūji's methods:
"I thought you'd use something more violent, like directly extracting memories or something~."
Yet the moment he said this, Kuesu Jingūji frowned:
"How could I possibly use such techniques on innocent humans?"
'Innocent humans are off-limits, but innocent yokai are fair game? Such humanocentrism...'
Luo Shu didn't necessarily think this approach was bad. On the contrary, his stance was actually quite similar to Kuesu Jingūji's.
Unfortunately, as a man, he harboured an inexplicable fondness for enchantresses to some degree, which manifested as a bit of double standards.
"Since preparations are complete, let's wake her up."
Hearing this, Kuesu Jingūji nodded, raised her right hand and formed a hand seal.
Whoosh.
The village girl abruptly opened her eyes, her gaze vacant as she pushed herself up from the ground and sat on the grass.
Seeing this, Luo Shu glanced at Sun Seto, who looked astonished, and said:
"You're the involved party, so you should do the questioning."
"Alright." Sun Seto immediately stepped forward, bending her knees as she asked the village girl: "What's your name?"
"Xiaocui," the village girl replied lifelessly.
Noticing this, Sun Seto nodded at Luo Shu before continuing:
"Who is the Celestial Maiden the villagers speak of?"
"The Celestial Maiden is the Celestial Maiden."
Hearing this answer, Sun Seto blinked before asking further:
"Then why does the Celestial Maiden need sacrifices?"
"Because the Celestial Maiden needs to eat. If she doesn't eat her fill, she'll get angry, and when she's angry, she'll eat the uncles and elders."
Xiaocui's response left Sun Seto at a loss for words.
At this moment, Senhime Rin Getsu suddenly spoke:
"Does the Celestial Maiden only eat people from this village?"
"Yes."
Xiaocui's answer made Luo Shu turn to Senhime Rin Getsu:
"What do you make of this?"
Among those present, Senhime Rin Getsu, as a Great Yokai, had the most profound understanding of yokai matters.
Thus, Luo Shu posed this question only after Senhime Rin Getsu's inquiry.
Senhime Rin Getsu frowned, her expression somewhat puzzled as she said:
"There are particularities to how yokai consume humans."
"Under normal circumstances, yokai would prioritise eating spiritual practitioners with Spiritual Power. Their soul energy can enhance a yokai's Demon Power and purify impurities within it."
"Of course, they wouldn't eat them whole - usually just absorbing the soul from a distance, leaving the practitioner's body intact."
"Without practitioners, yokai would eat children. Their souls are pure and, while not comparable to Spiritual Power, still highly nourishing. At this stage, they're swallowed whole since children aren't large portions."
"Next would be adult human livers. Not only are they highly nutritious, but as the body's energy-circulating organ, they provide substantial energy despite the small quantity, producing less waste than consuming an entire regular person."
"And this refers solely to eating humans, not absorbing their essence."
"For a case like this, where only one village's people are eaten, including adults, there are generally two possibilities."
At this point, Senhime Rin Getsu sounded somewhat uncertain as she speculated:
"One is that those eaten possess special bloodlines. The other is due to a seal."
"A seal?" Luo Shu's expression shifted as he frowned. "You mean this Celestial Maiden is sealed?"
'A village, a sealed Celestial Maiden...' Luo Shu vaguely recalled a similar character from Inuyasha's original story.
But as he hadn't paid much attention before, it was just a faint impression.
"A seal, huh."
Kuesu Jingūji narrowed her eyes, her expression somewhat mocking as she said:
"So that's how it is."
"The ancients believed that poison's antidote always grows nearby - the so-called principle of yin and yang counteracting each other."
"Therefore, under normal circumstances, yokai believe that eating humans living near their sealed locations can break their seals."
"This notion isn't entirely incorrect, as it does have some effect."
"But in reality, it's not eating people that weakens the seal. Rather, locals who live near the seal gradually absorb its power through daily exposure."
"When yokai consume these affected humans, they accumulate trace amounts of the seal's energy within themselves. Once enough is gathered, there's a chance to deceive the seal."
"Of course, this unsealing method requires years of accumulation and depends entirely on luck. Only fools would attempt it."
Luo Shu could clearly hear the disdain in Kuesu Jingūji's explanation, but his current concern was the Celestial Maiden affair.
'Could this Celestial Maiden be the key figure related to So'unga?'
Luo Shu thought it highly probable.
After all, it was unlikely So'unga's target would be ordinary villagers.
"In that case, the location of the Celestial Maiden's seal becomes crucial."
With this thought, Luo Shu turned to the village girl Xiaocui:
"Tell me, where does the Celestial Maiden receive her offerings?"
Xiaocui raised her hollow eyes and uttered a name:
—Bamboo Mirror Lake.