Under the pounding rain, the ruins of Fort Mumei appeared even more desolate.
Through the curtain of rain, broken walls and debris faded in and out of view. Normally, a place like this should be teeming with seabirds, but at this moment... it was unusually quiet.
Even along the beach, living creatures like crabs were rarely seen.
"Do... do we really have to go in?"
Hiding under Bai Luo's oil-paper umbrella, Sayu fearfully shrank behind him.
It must be said: when there is no danger, Bai Luo is absolutely the biggest danger.
But when there is danger, being by his side gives an absolute sense of security.
"Let's go. I'm here."
Bai Luo brushed the raindrops off her hood and walked down the path trodden by the Resistance soldiers nearby.
Tatyana followed suit.
Only Sayu remained standing there, looking at the ruins before her without moving.
"I don't wanna go. It's too depressing. Not suitable for sleeping."
Seeing that the two of them ignored her and walked on, Sayu felt the urge to retreat.
But just as she turned around, she saw the massive skeleton covered in moss and vegetation.
Under the washing rain, the vegetation swayed gently, making it look as if the skeleton itself was moving.
Not only that, but behind the skeleton, the Resistance camp was visible.
In other words... if she wanted to run, she would not only have to climb over that terrifying skeleton but also face the encirclement and interception of the Resistance.
And that wasn't the most important part. The most important part was that she might get slapped into the sand by that man descending from the sky.
"Wait for me!"
Turning around without hesitation, Sayu slid down the slope that Bai Luo and Tatyana had taken.
Fort Mumei hadn't been maintained for a long time. What was once clearly a stone-paved road now seemed to have been destroyed by something.
And the traces left behind looked very much like a snake.
A very large snake.
"The water seems a bit deep."
Bai Luo looked at the severed path before him; the gap was filled with seawater.
From the traces on the edge, there used to be a wooden bridge here, likely built by the Resistance or the people guarding the wards.
Unfortunately, this sole passage had been destroyed by someone with ill intentions, making it impossible to cross normally.
"Let's wade across."
Bai Luo gauged the water's depth; it would barely reach Tatyana's chest.
Hmm... but it would go over the top of his head.
"My Lord, shall I carry you across?"
Tatyana looked at the seawater, then at the contemplative Bai Luo, and tentatively offered her suggestion.
With her strength, carrying one Bai Luo through the seawater would be more than easy.
"Forget it, forget it. I'll just jump over."
With the effect of the One-Winged Angel, jumping this distance wouldn't be a big problem.
After collapsing his oil-paper umbrella, Bai Luo took a few steps back, preparing to sprint.
Unexpectedly, Sayu beside him tugged at the hem of his clothes and pointed at herself.
Her meaning was simple: Since Bai Luo couldn't wade across, what about her?
Although her mujina outfit was rainproof, it wasn't a diving suit.
Swimming across would be very uncomfortable.
So...
She proactively turned around, lowered her head, and presented the scruff of her neck to Bai Luo.
"..."
Bai Luo didn't stand on ceremony with her. Grabbing her by the scruff, he accelerated and leaped across, landing steadily on the ground.
Since Sayu often rolled on the ground, a leap of this magnitude didn't cause her any discomfort.
She even settled into a comfortable position, wanting to rest for a while.
But Bai Luo unceremoniously dropped her onto the ground, then turned around to pull up Tatyana, who had waded across.
"Stingy! If you won't carry me, you won't carry me. I'll walk by myself."
Patting the mud and sand off her mujina outfit, Sayu took out her Debate Club again, seemingly wanting to show that she was a prickly tanuki—not to be trifled with.
After crossing this stretch of water, they reached the stone path that was still relatively intact.
However, "intact" was relative to these ruins.
The rock was solid, but under the erosion of time and seawater, wear and tear were inevitable.
Pale blue, coral-like plants stubbornly sprouted from the cracks in the stone, swaying gently in the wind and rain.
Through the fissures in the stone slabs, thick, intertwined roots were clearly visible, yet no tree-like entities were seen nearby.
This raised a question.
Was there something else hidden beneath the sea?
The further they went in, the more numerous these roots became. Their size grew from the thickness of Sayu's arm to the thickness of Bai Luo's waist.
These roots no longer just coiled beneath the stone path; they broke through the constraints of the slabs, entangling the ruins themselves like tentacles.
They even left their marks on the sturdy structures.
Splash...
Ripples in the water caught the attention of Bai Luo and Tatyana.
The latter made a praying gesture and gently nudged Bai Luo's shoulder with her elbow.
The oil-paper umbrella at Bai Luo's waist had transformed into the Reverse-Blade Sword, though he didn't draw it.
Gripping the hilt, he shook his head at Tatyana, signaling her not to act rashly.
Only Sayu, walking at the very front with the Debate Club on her shoulder, failed to notice this.
It wasn't that she lacked vigilance; as a Shuumatsuban ninja, she prided herself on her keen sense of danger.
But the Tatarigami was affecting her judgment, coupled with the cover of the rain and the lingering resentment from Bai Luo dropping her just now.
She actually missed the movement in the water.
SPLASH—
Finally, just as the three were about to pass, the thing in the water couldn't hold back and lunged out.
It's target wasn't the tall Tatyana or the formidable-looking Bai Luo, but the human child, Sayu, who was walking in front carrying what looked like a toy spiked club.
However, he quickly learned that the thing was no toy.
Sayu was sharp; the moment the thing in the water attacked her, she reacted. Using the momentum, she swung the Debate Club and smashed it onto the man, knocking him to the ground.
Bai Luo didn't wait for the thing to get up; he followed up with a strike from the sheath of his Reverse-Blade Sword, knocking him out cold.
"It's... it's a person!"
After flipping over the soaking wet fellow with her club, Sayu exclaimed in surprise.
"Yeah, it's someone from the Shogunate army."
Judging by the attire, it was indeed someone from the Shogunate, and not just rank and file.
This attire... didn't belong to the soldiers of Kujou Encampment. Instead, it closely resembled the people who followed that old geezer, Kujou Takayuki, whenever Bai Luo dealt with him.
In other words, a confidant of Kujou Takayuki?
Even if not a confidant, he must be related to him.
After flipping the man over, the sight before him made Bai Luo suck in a breath of cold air.
Even Sayu beside him hid behind Bai Luo in fear.
This person had clearly been affected by the Tatarigami, and judging by his appearance... the influence ran deep, making him almost indistinguishable from those madmen at Musoujin Gorge.
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