nycdaug Chapter 286 Working for free is not an option
Chapter 286 Working for free is not an option
After Xu Ning appeared at the teleportation anchor point in the north of Konta Village, he leaned against the anchor point, took a sip of wine, and did not move for a long time.
When Xu Ning left the island last time, he casually activated the teleportation point here.
However, instead of passing through Konta Village, they turned directly towards Kageyama.
The sky was already turning a dusky yellow, but it was still two or three hours before nightfall.
Looking from here at the weathered, towering fox statue at the entrance of Konta Village, Xu Ning didn't see any figures around him. However, he did catch a glimpse of a narrow fox eye flashing and disappearing in a clump of bushes beside him.
"Does it only happen on stormy nights? It doesn't look like it'll rain for the next couple of days."
Xu Ning casually walked to the shrine where the fox statue was enshrined, brushed the head of the chubby little fox statue, which was as big as a stone block, a few times, and then sat down.
He took out the smooth comb from his pocket and rubbed it between his fingers.
"Since you've all left your spirits in this world, why won't you come out to see me? I've passed by here twice already."
Xu Ning spoke as if to an unseen shadow, “If you’re thinking of waiting for those two freeloaders, I can tell you in advance that I won’t let them use the mirror and comb as magical artifacts.”
"What exactly happened after I left? There's no reason why, in just a few hundred years, so few people even know your story anymore. Are you all possessed by Mondstadt people? You gave everything for this land, and now you want to take away even the last few things you left behind?"
After sitting quietly for a while, Xu Ning did not get the result he wanted.
With a sigh, Xu Ning put the comb back in his pocket, took out a porcelain bowl from the cave, and poured a full bowl of Thousand Rocks into it, placing it in front of the fox statue.
"Fine, I won't see you then. Anyway, this whole purification thing has nothing to do with me..."
Before Xu Ning could finish speaking, the lightning patterns on the tall fox's body lit up slightly, and an object suddenly appeared out of thin air and fell next to the wine bowl that Xu Ning was offering.
It is a wooden stick with tassels hanging from the end, like a whisk, and seems to be a ceremonial item held by a priestess.
Xu Ning put down the wine bowl, picked it up casually, and looked around unwillingly, but still couldn't find it.
"Another talisman? Are you trying to make me do this work for nothing? Why should I? I won't!"
Xu Ning tossed the talisman into the Hidden Dust Cave, picked up his wine gourd, walked to the teleportation anchor point, slapped it, and teleported directly to Shadow Mountain.
After Xu Ning disappeared, a figure dressed as a shrine maiden slowly appeared next to the fox statue.
The face, clad in a pure white fox mask, leaned down deeply and gently sniffed the wine bowl.
It still tastes just like that!
Straightening up, the shrine maiden gently tidied the stray hairs hanging by her ears, turned to look at the shadow facing the mountain, and finally gradually disappeared again.
As for the bowl of fine wine on the ground, she ultimately didn't dare to touch it.
The moment Xu Ning appeared at the Kageshiro Shrine, the first thing he saw was Inashiro Hotaru.
The shrine maiden stood guard at the entrance of the shrine, scrutinizing Xu Ning from head to toe as he suddenly appeared.
His face was full of surprise, as if he thought, "How amazing!" and "Why can't I see my little master?"
"Lord Yae no Kami has been reading novels these past few days and is catching up on sleep in my cave. I've come here to ask Kano Nana for a favor."
It seems that there is nothing necessary to ask for permission from Narukami Shrine, and according to Inashiro Hotaru, when the chief priest is busy with other matters and not at Narukami Shrine, she takes care of everything on his behalf.
After listening to Xu Ning's explanation, Inashiro Hotaru led him directly to a house on the side of the shrine.
Nana Kano, who was summoned out, had an angry look on her face as she walked out of the house.
Before Inashiro Hotaru could speak, Kano Nana said angrily, "Why did you call me out at this hour? Hayaru has been hiding from me all day. This is the only time I can wait for her in her room. If she happens to run into me now, she might not come back all night."
Xu Ning glanced at the room from before; it turned out to be the room of Zaoyou's little raccoon.
Kano Nana is hiding inside, probably waiting to capture Hayasu when she sneaks back to sleep.
Seeing Xu Ning behind Inashiro Hotaru, Kano Nana calmed down a bit, lightly leaped onto the roof, looked around, and when she didn't see Zaoyou, she jumped down to ask Xu Ning what was wrong.
Xu Ning coughed lightly and told Kano Nana about the possible collusion between the Tenryo magistrate and the Fools.
"As you instructed, Lord Kuji, I've come to ask you to send a capable member of the Final Rank ninja to infiltrate the Tenryo Magistrate's headquarters and retrieve the evidence of treason they've hidden. Of course, in my personal opinion, there's really no need to take that risk. We can just forge a few documents, have the Final Rank ninja endorse them to prove their authenticity, and that would be enough to bring Kujo Sara to our side, and we can also take down that old dog from the Tenryo Magistrate's headquarters while we're at it."
Upon hearing the latter part of Xu Ning's words, Kano Nana couldn't help but chuckle and said, "That is indeed a quick method. However, for the work arranged by Lord Miyaji, it's really not a risky task to just fetch some materials. If this matter isn't too urgent, let's leave it to Hayayu. After all, that little guy has been a bit too idle lately."
"However, if you want to use these materials to turn Kujo Sara against his cause, now is probably not the best time to do so."
Xu Ning inquired with suspicion and learned that since Kujo Sara's great victory over the Coral Palace rebels, the rebels had indeed been quiet for some time.
However, with Kujo Sara returning to Inazuma Castle, and the resistance seemingly receiving strong support, they have recently become more active and launched a large-scale counterattack, even occupying Futsuna and approaching Kujo Jinya.
After receiving the news, Kujo Sara will soon lead the shogunate army to Kannazuka again.
If they choose to launch an attack on the Tenryo Magistrate at this time, without Kujo Sara, the mainstay of Inazuma, relying solely on their so-called evidence, even if they bring down the current head of the Tenryo Magistrate, they may not be able to change the existing situation in Inazuma.
"As expected, plans can't keep up with changes!"
Xu Ning sighed and said, "It seems that we still have to go to Futabasa. In that case, we might as well hitch a ride to the Shogunate. I wonder if Kujo Sara would agree?"
Two days later.
Five ships of the Shogunate army slowly sailed out of the remote island and headed towards the island to the south.
Xu Ning leaned against the gunwale of the leading ship, casually tapping the hard side, and smiled as he raised his gourd of sake to Kujo Sara.
"This cup is to thank the general and your generosity. Not only have you forgiven me for disrupting the eye hunt ceremony, but you have also allowed me to board the ship and be sent to Ta-ba-sha. I am truly grateful."
Kujo Sara stared at Xu Ning's hand tapping on the ship's side, but replied like a robot, "It's alright. The Mora you left behind last time is more than enough to build a ship like this, so giving you a ride is no problem at all."
"However, could you tap the gunwale one more time? That would make twenty-five taps perfect."