Cheng Mo only felt the compass vibrate slightly.
Then, the air in front of him seemed to solidify for an instant, followed by a violent sensation of weightlessness, like falling from a ten-thousand-foot cliff into a cold, deep sea.
The city's clamor rapidly twisted and receded before his eyes, and he felt his consciousness plunge into boundless darkness.
He didn't know how much time had passed... The sensation of solid ground came, not concrete, but moist earth with a slight elasticity and fine gravel.
Cheng Mo suddenly opened his eyes, his chest heaving violently as he greedily inhaled the clean air.
The dizziness quickly receded, the powerful adaptability granted by his Myriad Realms Physique taking effect.
He quickly scanned his surroundings.
Behind him was an old oak tree with gnarled branches and mottled bark, its roots entwined with thick moss.
Not far ahead, a clear stream meandered, the gurgling sound of water hitting pebbles clearly audible.
In the distance, layers of dark green mountains outlined gentle curves, and a few wisps of faint cooking smoke rose from scattered houses at the foot of the mountains.
The sky was a clear sapphire blue, with a few cotton-like white clouds drifting slowly by.
The air was cool, carrying the unique fragrance of early spring.
Peaceful, serene.
Cheng Mo's True Sight activated instantly.
["Air composition: Oxygen 21.3%, Nitrogen 78%, Carbon Dioxide and other trace gases; no abnormal pollutants"]
["Water quality: Stream water is clear, pH 7.2, contains small amount of minerals; no visible microorganisms or toxic substance contamination"]
The crisis was temporarily averted.
Cheng Mo immediately sensed his personal space.
With a slight thought, several items quietly appeared in his hand:
A perfectly cut, egg-sized "pigeon's blood red" corundum, an exquisite high-quality replica from modern industry.
A heavy handful of copper coins, Meiji Tsūhō replicated using modern precision casting techniques for ancient coins.
And an inconspicuous coarse cloth pouch, containing a few inferior glass beads.
His cheap modern sportswear looked out of place.
He quickly took off his jacket and sweatpants, revealing the dark gray, narrow-sleeved cloth shirt he had put on beforehand for concealment.
He crumpled the changed clothes and stuffed them into his space, finally putting on a wide-brimmed straw hat and pulling the brim low.
The image of a dusty, simply dressed young peddler was initially formed.
He walked downstream along the stream.
Soon, a country path paved with gravel appeared before him.
In the distance, the outline of an ancient town was faintly visible, with layers of black tiled roofs, occasionally revealing pink and white walls.
The style was typical traditional Japanese architecture, yet he could occasionally glimpse power lines with insulator bottles erected on distant rooftops.
This was a microcosm of the blend of old and new in the Taishō era.
Stepping onto the stone-paved streets of the town, human voices became clearer.
Along the streets were low machiya houses, and people dressed in kimonos or samue walked with unhurried steps.
Occasionally, he saw students in gakuran uniforms passing by.
Cheng Mo walked purposefully towards the town center and soon saw a faded cloth banner with the traditional Chinese characters "pawnshop"—a pawn shop.
He pushed the door open, and the copper bell hanging behind the door chimed crisply.
The light inside the shop was a bit dim; behind the wooden counter, a thin old man with a goatee and round glasses looked up, his shrewd gaze sweeping over Cheng Mo.
"Greetings, shopkeeper."
Cheng Mo fluently spoke standard Edo-dialect Japanese, using his language universal skill, and bowed slightly, with a hint of the awkwardness typical of a traveling peddler, "I've just arrived in this esteemed place, and I'm a bit short on funds. I'd like to pawn a few things for some turnover."
The shopkeeper didn't speak, just nodded his chin towards the counter.
Cheng Mo didn't immediately pull out the gem; instead, he first took out the two inferior glass beads from the coarse cloth pouch: "These two glass beads... they're rare curiosities from the sea. How much are they worth?"
The shopkeeper didn't even lift his eyelids. He picked up the beads, held them to the light, then squeezed them: "Inferior goods from the South Sea, only good for fooling village women."
He casually tossed them aside, "Ten mon."
Cheng Mo's heart stirred; the price cutting was ruthless.
But that's exactly the setup he wanted.
He feigned distress and reluctance, hesitated for a moment, then carefully took out the heavy "pigeon's blood red" gem from his bosom.
He carefully placed it on the counter, cushioned with a cloth.
A deep red glow suddenly illuminated the somewhat dim room.
The rich, saturated color, perfect cut, and flawless purity instantly captivated the old shopkeeper's eyes.
"This... this is?!"
The thin old man suddenly leaned closer, even forgetting to put on his special magnifying clip, his cloudy old eyes fixed on the gem.
His fingers trembled as he reached out to touch it, then pulled back. "A treasure... I've never seen such a red... so vibrant! So translucent!"
"My ancestors... they acquired it by chance... when they traveled the sea routes..."
Cheng Mo deliberately spoke vaguely, "Shopkeeper, please appraise it, how much is it worth?"
The old shopkeeper's breathing quickened. He hastily put on his magnifying glass and examined it carefully: "Red like the morning glow... clear as ice crystal... not a single cloud inside..."
True Sight reported intense emotional fluctuations from the old man—greed, shock, disbelief.
After a long while, he finally put down the magnifying glass, took a deep breath, and forced himself to calm down, though his voice still held a subtle tremor: "This item... it is indeed a rare treasure. But red gems are not common in our Eastern country... difficult to trace its origin... this..."
"Shopkeeper, you are well-traveled and knowledgeable, I'll rely entirely on your appraisal."
Cheng Mo kicked the ball back, his tone respectful but his eyes calm.
He understood the other party's tactic of underpricing, but this "gem" cost him almost nothing.
The key was to acquire a starting fund.
The old man's eyes darted around, and he finally held up two fingers: "Twenty gold yen... that's the absolute most."
Cheng Mo used his True Sight to look at the gold yen on the shopkeeper's counter.
["Taishō Fifth Year Gold Yen: 90% gold content, exquisitely minted, good credit. Exchange rate with silver yen approximately 1:10 ~ 12"]
Cheng Mo shook his head, a bitter smile on his face: "Shopkeeper, you must be joking. This rare treasure... my father said it could buy a thousand acres of fertile land... twenty gold yen? That's not enough for travel expenses to return home..."
He made to retrieve the gem.
"Wait!" The old man panicked, "Thirty... no, forty gold yen!"
After some probing and haggling.
Cheng Mo held firm, constantly emphasizing its rarity and perfection, while also hinting that his family members knew its value.
Ultimately, the two sides settled on—
One hundred and twenty gold yen.
Or one hundred and ten gold yen plus thirty "silver ni-bu" coins.
Cheng Mo ultimately chose the latter.
It was safer and more convenient for subsequent small transactions and daily expenses.
When the old shopkeeper, with trembling hands, handed Cheng Mo a heavy money bag and a cloth pouch full of small silver coins, and quickly locked the "rare treasure" deep inside a sturdy iron safe.
Cheng Mo could feel the old man's rapid heartbeat and the uncontainable ecstasy in his eyes—the old man thought he had found a huge bargain.
However, such a crafted item was indeed considered a treasure in this era.
Cheng Mo bowed respectfully on the surface and took his leave.
Carrying the heavy, valuable money, Cheng Mo didn't immediately spend lavishly.
He found a simple but clean small inn, exchanging one silver ni-bu for two days' room and board.
The inn's proprietress was a cheerful, stout woman. Seeing Cheng Mo speak politely and spend generously, she was quite enthusiastic.
In the evening, in a corner of the inn's front hall, Cheng Mo ordered a small pot of sake and a dish of dried fish, seemingly casually striking up a conversation with the proprietress.
"Obasan, your town is truly peaceful, much better than the smoky places in Edo."
The proprietress, who was wiping the counter nearby, chuckled: "Oh my, guest, you're from Edo-fu? No wonder your accent is so smooth. Our Fujisawa Town is a small place, we live off the mountains and the sea, and what we value most is peace!"
"Peace is good."
Cheng Mo agreed, taking a sip of the bland sake, "On the way here, I heard people mention things like 'night cries' and 'mountain wanderers,' which sounded quite eerie..."
The proprietress's hand, wiping the counter, visibly paused.
The smile on her face also faded a bit, and her voice lowered: "Guest, you heard about it on the road too? Oh my, it's not just idle talk."
She glanced warily at the deepening twilight outside the door, then leaned closer, "Two years ago, in the neighboring village, old Jii-san, the night watchman, was perfectly fine, and then overnight... he was gone! Only half a piece of his clothing was left in the woods at the village entrance... the blood on the ground... it was unsettling!"
She shivered.
Cheng Mo frowned slightly: "The authorities didn't investigate?"
"They did, the police came several times. Said it was a bear attack? But where would a big bear come from in that old forest? They couldn't even find a single bear hair! Besides... what kind of bear eats a person and leaves no bones behind?"
The proprietress shook her head, her voice even lower, "Everyone's quietly saying it's a 'demon'! A man-eating demon hiding in the mountains!"
"A demon?" Cheng Mo showed just the right amount of surprise and doubt, "Do the officials also catch demons?"
"Shhh—don't speak so loudly!"
The proprietress waved her hand frantically, "How would the government officials believe such things? But..."
She hesitated, "But I did hear some traveling merchants mention a few things, saying that deeper in the mountains, there are some strange people in black clothes, carrying peculiar long swords... I think they're called... 'Oni Goroshi'? They specialize in dealing with these unclean things! I don't know if it's true or just something storytellers made up." She was clearly half-believing, half-doubting.
"Oni Goroshi..."
Cheng Mo repeated it softly, committing it to memory.
This might be one of the common names for the Demon Slayer Corps.
"Thank you for telling me, Obasan. It's getting dark, I'll go rest upstairs." He politely said goodbye and left the money for the sake.
Returning to his simple single room on the second floor, Cheng Mo immediately locked the door.
The tranquility of Fujisawa Town was merely an illusion.
As night fell, a certain invisible fear permeated like mist.
The proprietress's narrative details perfectly matched the characteristics of low-level demons preying on victims.
More importantly, the Demon Slayer Corps seemed to exist nearby.
This meant he was one step closer to contacting the target organization.
But with it came enormous risk—wherever there were legends of demons, there was bound to be the possibility of demons existing.
Here, too, was not absolutely safe.
As the last trace of daylight outside the window was swallowed by the mountains, night descended.
He put the money bag into his space, leaving only a few silver coins in his bosom.
Cheng Mo walked to the window and pushed it open slightly.
The small town was completely engulfed in silent darkness, with only a few scattered lights.
The distant mountains were like crouching beasts, their outlines blurred.
The night wind blew, bringing a chilling aura, mixed with faint, indistinguishable scents.
He quietly took out a small, inconspicuous cloth pouch, which contained his pre-portioned dried wisteria flower powder. This scent had a natural repellent effect on demons.
He hung the cloth pouch near the window frame.
"Fuji House..." Cheng Mo looked at the boundless darkness in the distance, whispering the key phrase of his target. "Too little information... I need to find a way to locate the Fuji House. Or... should I observe for a few days first?"
In the darkness, countless eyes seemed to be spying on the sleeping town.