Naruko Anjou stared dumbfounded at the scene of Ye Xing stepping on Kuchisake-onna.
So... this was what he meant by surrender persuasion?
Physical persuasion?
Wait, is this normal exorcism practice?
In all the legendary tales Naruko Anjou had heard, exorcists would engage in battles of wits and courage, using various ritual tools, arrays, talismans, and the like, enduring life-and-death struggles before finally managing to eliminate the evil spirits.
What was happening here?
The way Ye Xing had just acted, it was like he'd transformed into a bulldozer, directly crashing Kuchisake-onna out of her hiding place in the two-storey building.
Was this style really not off-track?
With a stunned and dazed expression, Naruko Anjou turned her gaze to the others nearby, only to find that Shoko Makinohara, Kazusa Touma, Saki Kawasaki, Menma, and that beautiful kimono-clad woman who shared the name with the legendary great demon Tamamo-no-Mae all wore completely unfazed and calm expressions.
"But... you all..."
Seeing Naruko Anjou desperately trying to form words while pointing at Ye Xing standing there, completely at a loss for how to describe her shock, Menma smiled and reached up to ruffle her hair, speaking gently.
"Anjou, you'll get used to it eventually. This is just how Brother Ye Xing fights evil spirits."
Naruko Anjou licked her lips that had dried from tension, completely lost for words.
Just looking at this scene...
Didn't this Ye Xing classmate seem more like the evil spirit here!?
Just then, Kuchisake-onna, who was pinned to the ground facing upwards, originally wanted to say something. But when her gaze fell upon Ye Xing's face, she suddenly spoke in a voice tinged with laughter.
"Do you think I'm beautiful?"
Hearing this question, everyone, including Hachishaku-sama and Tamamo-no-Mae, looked completely bewildered.
Wait... are you that bold?
Even while being stepped on, nearly crushed to death by Ye Xing, your first words are to ask if he thinks you're beautiful?
What kind of top-tier obsessive woman is this!?
Ye Xing quickly realised it wasn't that his looks and charm had reached some exaggerated succubus level capable of captivating Kuchisake-onna at first sight.
Rather...
"Bloody hell, my passive skill triggered, didn't it?"
Looking around at everyone present, there was Saki Kawasaki with her delinquent-style beauty, the obedient and cute Menma, Kazusa Touma with her unapproachable aura and extraordinary elegance, Naruko Anjou with her gyaru style, and Shoko Makinohara, who appeared gentle and considerate like the perfect wife, yet carried a subtle hint of slyness.
There was even Hachishaku-sama playing the contrast of being both cute and silly, and the elegant, charming Tamamo-no-Mae - these two contestants who weren't even human.
But...
Among them, Ye Xing was the only male human.
Kuchisake-onna, formed from human negative impressions, had directly triggered her passive skill.
"Do you think... I'm beautiful?"
Kuchisake-onna's eyes were fixed intently on Ye Xing's face, her gaze as pitiful and moving as a fawn's. Combined with her curvaceous figure and smooth, wavy black hair, even while wearing a mask, anyone with normal aesthetic standards would give the same response.
"Beautiful."
"Then..."
Before Kuchisake-onna could say anything more, Ye Xing rapidly listed several names like reciting a menu.
"But far less beautiful than Naruko Anjou, Shoko Makinohara, Meiko Honma, Saki Kawasaki, and Kazusa Touma."
Hearing this, Kazusa Touma maintained her expressionless facade, though the slight upward curve at the corner of her mouth that she couldn't suppress betrayed her true feelings.
Shoko Makinohara and Menma showed openly delighted expressions without any attempt to hide them.
As for Saki Kawasaki and Naruko Anjou...
"This... this guy... what nonsense is he spouting..."
Both beautiful girls' faces simultaneously flushed with the kind of blush that comes from being directly hit by a straight ball, completely breaking through their defences.
The two girls exchanged glances.
Reading each other's eyes - so you're also someone with no defence against Ye Xing?
"Since you think I'm beautiful..."
Kuchisake-onna's passive skill was still triggering.
She slowly removed the black mask from her face, revealing features with an exquisite structure, but terrifying slits stretching from the corners of her mouth.
"Then..."
Kuchisake-onna opened her mouth wide, the corners nearly reaching her ears, and chuckled in a tone that sent chills down one's spine.
"Now... do you still think I'm beautiful?"
"Open wider."
"Huh?"
Ye Xing bent down, looking directly at Kuchisake-onna's terrifying face, and smiled.
"Didn't hear me? I said open your mouth wider."
Faced with such a request, Kuchisake-onna was stunned.
Normally, when humans saw her like this, they would either flee in fear and get killed by her, or stubbornly insist she was beautiful while meaning the opposite, allowing her to deliver her classic line:
"You think this is beautiful? Then I'll make you just as beautiful as me!"
But...
Open wider?
What kind of request was this?
"Not going to do it? Come out then."
As Ye Xing spoke, the black and white ghost hand appeared in the size of a normal human arm. Before Kuchisake-onna could even react, they forcefully propped her mouth open from both sides, preventing her from closing it.
"Come..."
Seeing Ye Xing take out a pale pink bento box, Saki Kawasaki seemed to realise something, her expression abruptly changing.
'Could it be...'
With a benevolent smile on his face, Ye Xing opened the lovingly prepared bento box made by Yui Yuigahama - filled with heartfelt feelings (and murderous intent) - then turned it upside down and poured the contents directly into Kuchisake-onna's wide-open mouth.
"Here, mate, let me treat you to something good!"
"Mmm... mmm..."
Kuchisake-onna struggled desperately, but Tamamo-no-Mae and Hachishaku-sama, who had approached, pinned down her limbs.
Despair surfaced in her eyes as she tasted what was in her mouth, feeling like her entire ghostly being was about to collapse.
The next moment, after pouring most of the contents from the bento box into Kuchisake-onna's mouth, Ye Xing gently set the box aside, then crouched down. He extended both hands, one pressing against the top of Kuchisake-onna's head and the other supporting her chin.
"Come now, you should chew your food slowly and thoroughly, or you'll get indigestion."
Under Kuchisake-onna's despairing gaze, an irresistible force emanated from Ye Xing's hands, gradually closing her wide-open mouth and helping her chew the food inside.
"This..."
Naruko Anjou looked puzzled.
"What is he doing? Isn't this supposed to be an exorcism? Why is he feeding her? Has he gone soft?"
"You're mistaken, Anjou."
Menma patted Naruko Anjou's shoulder, her fair, delicate face wearing the same complex expression as Saki Kawasaki and Shoko Makinohara. She sighed and spoke gravely.
"What Kuchisake-onna is experiencing right now... is the most terrifying torment in this world, something even Ye Xing himself would struggle to endure."
"Huh?"
Naruko Anjou frowned slightly, looking sceptical.
"It's just a bento meal, is it really that bad?"
"It absolutely is. Look..."
Naruko Anjou followed Menma's pointing finger and saw Kuchisake-onna's body convulsing strangely, almost like an epileptic seizure.
Though she couldn't clearly see the other's face, judging from Kuchisake-onna's faint, breathless moans...
Was Kuchisake-onna... really at her limit?
Naruko Anjou found it hard to believe.
A powerful evil spirit that Ye Xing had grabbed by the neck, smashed through a wall with, and then slammed hard onto concrete without seeming injured - could such a being really be showing such agony over a simple bento meal?
Could it be that the bento had been blessed or something?
After helping Kuchisake-onna chew thoroughly for nearly two minutes, Ye Xing signalled to Tamamo-no-Mae and Hachishaku-sama that they could release her.
The black-and-white ghost hands disappeared accordingly.
But by this point, Kuchisake-onna looked completely broken, her body twitching involuntarily, her eyes vacant. Only the faint, dying moans from her nose suggested she was still clinging to life.
"I... I..."
Kuchisake-onna lay on the ground, staring at the crimson moon, her ghostly consciousness growing hazy.
It was too cruel.
Seeing Kuchisake-onna in this state, Saki Kawasaki, Menma, and Shoko Makinohara - all familiar with the potency of Yui Yuigahama's cooking - wore expressions of pity.
Dango's culinary skills could only be described as divinely gifted.
Moreover, this time she had taken it to another level - a peak masterpiece created with overflowing heartfelt effort!
Saki Kawasaki, Menma, and Shoko Makinohara didn't even dare to use their limited imagination to speculate what this magnificent creation of Dango's might taste like.
At least it wasn't meant for them to eat.
"Is it really that bad? Let me try some."
Under the gazes of the stunned crowd, Ye Xing actually picked up the lunchbox that had been placed beside him earlier, plucked a slightly misshapen takoyaki with a faint, eerie green hue from it, and slowly put it in his mouth.
He was even savouring it carefully!
"Hmm... this spiciness... is it facing heaven pepper? And that numbing sensation... Sichuan peppercorns?"
At this moment, only one phrase could describe Yui Yuigahama's cooking in Ye Xing's mind.
A whirlwind of emotions.
The heat of facing heaven pepper, paired with the sweet spice of green peppers, the numbing spice of Sichuan peppercorns, complemented by the unique seasoning of houttuynia cordata, with an underlying flavour of cloyingly sweet cream, and then the taste of cocoa powder... it was simply...
No, there was no 'simply' about it – it was an indescribable flavour.
The key was that so many ingredients, concentrated in one small takoyaki, did not interfere with one another, remaining distinctly layered as they entered the mouth. Yet after chewing, they converged instantly like goblins beholding a beautiful Saintess, erupting into a mind-numbing stimulation.
Truly worthy of you, Yui Yuigahama.
Kuchisake-onna, who had already eaten to the point of losing her senses and was teetering on the brink of death, saw Ye Xing voluntarily eating that bento and even being able to comment on it. Her eyes betrayed disbelief and shock.
Without the slightest hesitation, she struggled to sit up from the ground, directly performing a dogeza before Ye Xing, pressing her head against the floor and speaking from the bottom of her heart.
"Please... please allow me to follow you!"
Kuchisake-onna was utterly convinced.
She had lost.
Too strong, he was simply too strong!
Kuchisake-onna had originally thought that what Hachishaku-sama said about the 'strongest exorcist in history' and how joining the Supernatural Society would bring boundless bright prospects was all nonsense.
But now she was sincerely convinced, prostrating herself in admiration.
To eat that cooking without changing expression, and even comment on it...
What defined the strongest was immediately clear!
Hachishaku-sama watched Ye Xing standing there, accepting Kuchisake-onna's submission, her eyes sparkling with worship.
Truly worthy of the boss!
He had effortlessly accomplished what she couldn't achieve.
It seemed that merely copying lines wasn't enough.
She had to become stronger; she had to become like the boss, capable of making evil spirits bow down and submit through sheer charismatic power!
"Very good."
Looking at Kuchisake-onna performing dogeza before him, Ye Xing nodded with satisfaction.
"In that case, I'll leave the contract signing and work arrangements to you, Hachishaku."
"Right away!"
Hachishaku-sama beamed with joy, nodding repeatedly.
Promotion time!
Ahem.
Hachishaku-sama placed her hands behind her back, slowly walking over to Kuchisake-onna with a haughty demeanour, and spoke in a deep voice.
"Very well, let's proceed with signing the contract then."
"The terms of the contract..."
Hachishaku-sama paused slightly here, as if recalling something. After a few seconds, she continued.
"Six days of work per week with one day off, minimum twelve effective working hours per day. If you fail to complete the tasks I assign within the designated working hours, you must work overtime voluntarily without overtime pay, and your bonuses will be deducted."
"Holidays follow a shift system. You can take time off, but any missed working hours must be made up during regular times."
"Even during non-working hours after clocking off, you must be available at my call. Whenever I call your name, you must appear immediately; otherwise, it will be counted as one day's absence."
"As compensation, your weekly wage will be the right to devour one evil spirit, plus protection from me... and my boss."
After saying this, Hachishaku-sama crouched down and patted Kuchisake-onna's shoulder, adding another sentence.
"If you perform well, the boss might be in a good mood and give you a raise - that would be the most delicious thing in the world. Work hard and do your best, little Kuchi."
The contract terms offered by Hachishaku-sama sounded very familiar to Ye Xing.
Thinking about it carefully... no wonder it sounded familiar!
Wasn't this the same contract terms he had originally offered Hachishaku-sama?
Well, well, well.
The formerly exploited Hachishaku had now evolved into a workplace traitor, beginning to ruthlessly exploit the newly joined workplace newcomer Kuchisake-onna.
"Understood, Hachishaku-sama."
"Ah, that's more like it, good sister. Please rise quickly."
Watching Hachishaku-sama's overly refined manner, Ye Xing couldn't help but complain from the side."
"That's enough already. Act normal, do you think you're Lin Daiyu? Are you performing Dream of the Red Chamber here with me?"
Then, Ye Xing looked at the dozens of timid evil spirits nearby that neither dared to approach nor leave, and casually waved his hand.
"Let them all go. They're too disgusting-looking."
"Alright."
Hachishaku-sama turned around, imitating Ye Xing's gesture, waved at the group of evil spirits and said coldly.
"You can scram now."
Hearing this, the evil spirits sighed with relief and quickly scattered like birds and beasts, disappearing into the distance.
"I never thought it would end so simply."
Tamamo-no-Mae gracefully walked over, extended a finger to lift Kuchisake-onna's chin, and smiled while examining her, though her eyes revealed a chill.
"Little Kuchi, what are your special skills?"
"Special skills?"
"Meaning abilities you're good at."
"Abilities I'm good at..."
Kuchisake-onna thought for quite a while before replying with a serious expression.
"My mouth can open almost to my ears. Does that count as a special skill?"
Tamamo-no-Mae: "..."
Tamamo-no-Mae looked at Ye Xing with a helpless expression.
"Ye Xing-kun, this one, although her power isn't bad, only ranks as above average among the evil spirits in the Reverse World. She doesn't seem very bright either, and has no special abilities. She won't be very useful."
"Doesn't matter."
Ye Xing smiled indifferently.
"She's just going to be patrolling, to help share some of Hachishaku-sama's workload. As for whether she can develop special abilities or become stronger, that depends on future training. If she were the type of evil spirit with particularly powerful strength, she wouldn't be so easy to control either. The ability for rational thinking is my top requirement."
"Since you put it that way, of course I won't object."
Tamamo-no-Mae smiled gracefully and didn't say anything more.
At this moment, Kazusa Touma walked to Ye Xing's side and said calmly.
"Mission completed?"
Ye Xing nodded and replied with a smile.
"Pretty much, but let's stick to the original plan and stay here overnight. After all..."
Ye Xing glanced at Naruko Anjou, Menma, and Shoko Makinohara, not far away, who were trembling and visibly unsettled.
"I have no patience to cultivate their mental fortitude by having them wander the Reverse World surrounded by evil spirits all night. Let's just force their growth directly."
It wasn't that Ye Xing was specifically targeting Menma and the others.
Every psychic in the Supernatural Society had gone through similar experiences.
Miko Yotsuya had eaten boxed lunches in abandoned buildings surrounded by evil spirits.
Rio Futaba had also visited the Reverse World, where, as an ordinary girl at the time, she encountered the powerful Tamamo-no-Mae on her first visit.
Haruno Yukinoshita's mental fortitude didn't require special cultivation - it was already remarkably strong from the start.
Yui Yuigahama had also endured numerous trials, including attacks by Hachishaku-sama, travels through the Reverse World, and the Sunny Doll Killer incident.
As for Mai Sakurajima, being an Adolescence Syndrome patient who had experienced nearly disappearing completely, fighting evil spirits was nothing particularly remarkable to her.
And there's the external member Light Yagami far away in Tokyo...
Well, he's mentally unstable and probably doesn't experience emotions like fear or terror.
"Since the mission is complete..."
Kazusa Touma plucked the strings of her bass and spoke softly.
"Shall we practice playing together?"
Kazusa Touma never forgets her original passion.