CHAPTER 136 – THE START OF THE SEMI-FINALS

At this time, in the mountains and forests of Tanba Province, it was raining heavily and fog was everywhere. A group of warriors, who were drenched by the rain, were walking aimlessly in this mysterious forest in a somewhat wretched state.

“Cough, cough…” The face of the rich boy, Nakajou Mikazuchi, was getting paler with each passing day, and he had dark circles under his eyes. A bandage was wrapped around his chest and he held a cane in one hand while holding onto a wet tree trunk with the other, coughing and constantly panting, “I, I can’t walk anymore…I…”

Before he could finish speaking, he fell headlong into the mud.

The other accompanying samurai had to stop, each with a tired and frustrated look on their faces.

Toyama inspected Nakajou’s wound and took a deep breath of cold air, “The wound is infected and the bones haven’t healed properly. If we don’t find a village again where he can recuperate and get treatment, I’m afraid…”

Hatano went forward to touch Nakajou’s forehead, “So hot.”

Fevers were nothing to the common people of the Heian Dynasty who lived in poor conditions, but if a Spirit Jade adept contracted a fever, it was a very ominous sign.

The body of an expert was extremely resilient, and unless it was some otherworldly disease, mortal illnesses would not affect them. If an expert developed a fever, that meant that their spiritual power was almost withered, and they weren’t far from death.

“Sigh!” Toyama sat on a rock, obviously distressed, “What to do? What the hell should we do?! When will we get out of this hellish place?”

Uesugi Rei stood in front of the team, also in a helpless situation. Her goals had always been very clear and her physical condition was also good, but at this moment, she felt lost. The condition of her companions was deteriorating and they could no longer keep up with her.

Although Uesugi Rei was unrestrained and arrogant, as a samurai, once she made a pact to adventure together, she would never do things such as abandoning her companions. However, when it came to caring about people, except for her Sister Lily, she wouldn’t show any feminine affection to others, especially men1.

Therefore, although everyone could barely keep up as she led the way forward, she couldn’t do anything to comfort or encourage her companions who were injured and depressed.

Even Uesugi Rei, who was always confident, had things she was not good at2, which could make her feel a kind of powerlessness.

These days, they wanted to get out of this mountain forest first, but they only seemed to go deeper and deeper. In fact, Uesugi felt that even if they really let her lead the way, the situation couldn’t get any worse. During this period, they experienced a number of large and small battles as demons were encountered almost every day, and the team’s spiritual energy was on the verge of exhaustion. In such a harsh and dangerous environment coupled with their huge consumption, the little bit of recovery and absorption each day was simply not enough.

All kinds of treasures, elixirs, and supplies had also long been used up.

Uesugi Rei’s clothes were torn at this time, and the back of her short skirt almost revealed most of her buttocks. The thin black cloth belt in the middle was also visible. However, even the men who were a little lustful at the beginning didn’t have the heart to appreciate the view at this moment. In their hearts, the only thing they cared about now was their own lives and whether they could walk out of this forest alive.

The armor on Minamoto no Kenki was also damaged in many places. There was also a crack in the armor on his chest and the condition of the wound inside was unknown. This was done by the sharp claws of a peak Spirit Jade demon a few days ago.

He looked around and began to cut down the surrounding branches with his sword.

“What are you doing?” Uesugi asked.

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“Cutting down some branches to make a stretcher to carry Little Brother Nakajou.” Minamoto no Kenki said with a firm look.

“I’ll help you.” Uesugi Rei’s delicate white skin was dripping with rain. She drew the short sword at her waist and raised her arms to cut down the branches.

The group made a stretcher and put Nakajou on it while Hatano brought some water to feed him.

When Nakajou finally woke up, he was weak but irritable, “It’s all because of you! If I had known, I wouldn’t have ventured into Tanba Province with you guys! How can we crusade against Shuten Doji with just us? Cough— not even the shadow of Mount Ooe is in sight! We are going to die in the middle of this deserted mountain and no one in this world will know about it! We are going to die in obscurity! Cough cough— I want to go back! Send me back!”

Seeing a man crying and screaming like that also put Uesugi Rei in an irritable mood. She shook her head and walked to the side. The black undergarment on her towering chest was torn in many places and couldn’t cover the area anymore… But in this deserted mountain, except for the underwear, the replacement clothes that she brought were all damaged beyond repair and discarded3.

If Uesugi Rei could find the way out, she would have sent everyone to a safe place already, and maybe then she could take the risk on her own. Not only could she travel quickly by herself, but she also wouldn’t need to worry about her body being exposed in front of men due to torn clothes.

“Nioh…I also don’t know where it ran off to.” Uesugi Rei was not too worried about Nioh. Although all their horses disappeared overnight and the other horses may have been dragged off to be eaten by demons, Nioh was extremely strong and an average demon was not its opponent. It’s just that Nioh had disappeared for several months now and Uesugi Rei couldn’t even remember how long they had been lost in Tanba Province. Because of the extended night, there was no longer the concept of date.

“Nakajou! We are not going to leave you behind, but you should stop complaining. As a samurai and as a man, shouldn’t you face everything bravely at this time?! Since you have chosen this path, why should you regret it?” Minamoto no Kenki shouted, grabbing him by the collar.

In return, all he got was a cowardly cry and a heart-wrenching cough.

Toyama shook his head with unbearable worry, “His spirit jade has dimmed and gone into decline… We must find medicine as soon as possible and let him rest in a comfortable environment, otherwise, I’m afraid…”

Uesugi Rei came over and said in a low voice, “How about using the healing power of my ice crystal spiritual energy?”

Uesugi Rei’s ice attribute spiritual energy could replenish the spiritual energy of her companions to a certain extent and help them heal their wounds. However, she mostly focused on offense and this auxiliary power was actually incidental to her spiritual energy attribute. She had never practiced it before so the effect was very weak. It was more useful for low-level spiritual energy users such as the Uesugi Clan Army and sword masters. For experts of the Spirit Jade stage, it was like a drizzle, which was almost useless, and this supplement could only be temporarily effective. It was generally used in battle emergencies and would soon wear off. Repeated use would only make the other party more tired. Ultimately, Uesugi Rei had not practiced this application well at all.

Minamoto no Kenki shook his head, “That will only make his body more exhausted…”

Although Uesugi Rei seemed unable to show a sad expression for such a thing, she was actually sad and worried in her heart.

“Let’s go,” Uesugi said, “Although I don’t know when we can get out of this labyrinth forest, we will never be able to find a way out without moving forward. If one day, I am the only one left to walk out of Tanba Province, I will definitely carve your deeds onto monuments and let the world and your family know about your valor and tenacity4!”

“…” Everyone looked at Uesugi with stunned eyes, and they seemed to be even more depressed after hearing her words.

Hatano kept giving Uesugi a look and complained in her heart, I know Sister Uesugi is a kind of woman with a straightforward personality and she is very strong, but how hard is it to say a few eloquent words to boost our morale?!

The ninja had been standing behind a tree, silent and not saying a word, but his condition wasn’t very good either.

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“All right, no matter what, Miss Uesugi is speaking the truth. Let’s carry Little Brother Nakajou and keep moving! Onward!”

Minamoto no Kenki and Toyama lifted the stretcher.

“I’ll have to trouble Brother Kuki to clear the way in front while Miss Uesugi and Miss Hatano guard the back.” Minamoto no Kenki instructed

“Hm.” Uesugi nodded. She blushed slightly and was wondering why her impassioned speech failed to stir up everyone’s fighting spirit…

Forget it, I’ll just be a good guard, Uesugi Rei thought5.

The group of people continued to walk in the rainy and foggy mountain, not knowing where they were or where they would end up tomorrow.

…
…

Three days later, the semi-final of the Yoshitsune Memorial Competition was about to begin!

The lower half of the competition, where Lily was placed, was held at the Taira main dojo.

This day was different from previous days. Anyone who had obtained an invitation or purchased an admission ticket could enter the outer courtyard of the Taira main dojo and watch the competition in the square in front of the central gate.

Compared to the main dojo of the Genji Clan, the pavilions of the Taira Clan were more elaborate and luxurious, with copper, red and white colors.

This was related to the custom of the Taira Clan’s martial arts family, which was located near the southwest.

The Taira Clan had the number one navy in the world and controlled maritime trade. They were not only tough and brave, but also very wealthy. Although their financial resources were not comparable to the Fujiwara’s, they were definitely richer than the Genji Clan and were not like the Genji who advocated simplicity and self-discipline. Instead, they were more unrestrained and open.

Of course, Taira no Hachiro’s style was a bit too much and was not recognized by the Taira Clan.

Outside the central gate, there was a group of round ancient stone platforms 50 meters in diameter surrounded by several layers of temporary stands and tents which flew the flags of the major forces participating in the competition. Of course, there were more flags of the Taira Clan. At this time, the stands and even the surrounding open space were already full of seats and people. The atmosphere of the competition field seemed very enthusiastic and the group of young people was eagerly waiting.

A large matchup chart stood at the side of the entrance to the competition arena.

After entering the Taira Clan dojo, Lily was led to the area behind the circular competition stage which was surrounded by cloth and served as a resting place. Each contestant had their own resting place, which was a three square meters wooden box with a small table and a tent roof to shelter from the rain. Lily was told that the competition would last for a week, and the contestants were required to rest here and weren’t allowed to leave without reason.

The competition had always been stipulated like this until the final round. Lily didn’t bother thinking about the meaning of this rule. In short, she just needed to stay here for a few days. Not far away, a road surrounded by cloth led to places such as a men’s and women’s bath.

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There was a public resting area for the contestants outside where they could wait to enter the competition or watch the competition directly from the edge of the ring.

When Lily was brought in, Honda and the others were already there. He stood up immediately upon seeing her, “Lynne! I didn’t expect that we would be in the same half, but don’t worry! My promise will not change!”

“Ah…hehe, I wish you good luck.” Lily narrowed her eyes and laughed leisurely.

At this time, there was the percussion of taiko drums outside accompanied by the lingering but powerful sound of the biwa, which was the very famous Taira biwa performance.

“The semi-finals of the Yoshitsune Memorial Hero Selection Tournament— officially begins!” A man with a bold and loud voice announced.

 

References

Robinxen: Yuri to the endRobinxen: Like getting to her destinations.Robinxen: Author was this needed?LazyButAmbitious: How reassuring!Robinxen: It’s the thought that counts.