Zongman: A journey through time starting from the Supreme

Saigo just listened quietly and didn't say anything.

Soon, after walking out of the forest path, there is a road leading straight to the top of the mountain.

The mountain is not high, and at the top there is a shrine that looks dilapidated.

Walk a few steps forward and you will see the torii gate of the shrine.

I don’t know how long it has been since the Torii was repaired. The bright red pillars look mottled and a lot of paint has fallen off.

If this shrine enshrines a god, it must be a poor god.

When you enter the shrine, you will see the small square and the main hall, surrounded by some old-looking houses.

The shrine is not big, and the dilapidated houses have been in disrepair for a long time. The only thing that is noticeable is that the shrine is very clean. There is not even a fallen leaf to be found in the square in front of the temple where the ground is already bumpy.

A pretty girl in a red and white witch costume was sitting on the steps in front of the main hall. She was holding a worn-out teacup and staring blankly at the sky.

The witch was pretty and looked only about fourteen or fifteen years old.

Unlike Yakumo Yukari who pretends to be young, this is a real girl in her teens, and there is still some childishness on her face.

The red and white shrine maiden costume wrapped around the girl's thin body. Whether it was the white calves exposed under the costume or the wrists in the sleeves, it could be seen that the girl was very thin and even a little malnourished.

However, the witch was naturally beautiful. Even though she was a little malnourished, her jet-black hair and tender skin were still as beautiful as a lotus emerging from the water.

"Xiao Lingmeng, we come to see you again, don't you want to welcome us?"

Yakumo Yukari gave a pretentious laugh, then walked towards the main hall of the shrine step by step with her plump and slender legs.

The shrine maiden sitting on the steps trembled when she heard Yakumo Yukari's voice, and she subconsciously looked up at the sky.

Then the witch belatedly looked forward and said in an incredible tone: "...Old Lady Zi, why did you go through the main entrance today?"

Normally, even if Yakumo Yukari appeared in the shrine, she would appear in the gap in the air. This was the first time that Reimu Hakurei saw Yakumo Yukari walking through the main gate like this.

"I am so young, how can I be called an old woman? I am obviously a 17-year-old girl. Xiao Lingmeng, you are still so rude."

Yakumo Yukari narrowed her beautiful eyes, revealing a malicious expression.

If other people saw Yakumo Yukari like this, they would probably be terrified...

However, Hakurei Reimu didn't care at all. She said lazily, "... Forget it. What on earth do you want to do here?"

"...Don't talk about free meals. I didn't eat last night and my stomach is growling with hunger."

The witch doesn't seem to be lazy, but rather she is using this method to save as much energy as possible.

Reimu Hakurei doesn't like Yakumo Yukari.

In other words, except for those who are fascinated by Yakumo Yukari's beauty, no one would like her mysterious and malicious character.

Besides, Reimu Hakurei knew that Yakumo Yukari was definitely the culprit for the miserable life she was leading now.

When I was young, there were people coming to the shrine to worship, and the shrine did generate some income.

But now no one comes to worship, because there are many little monsters on the road leading to the shrine, and those little monsters were placed there specially by Yakumo Yukari.

Gensokyo does not allow random killing, even the shrine maidens can only exorcise monsters at best.

Besides, the monsters on the mountain trails didn't attack humans, so Reimu Hakurei couldn't find any reason to do anything to them.

After a while, when the humans in the mortal world discovered that there were too many monsters here, no one wanted to come anymore.

Coupled with the fact that there are other shrines in Gensokyo competing for customers, the Hakurei Shrine is now in complete decline.

As the Hakurei shrine maiden, she can only survive on the support of Yakumo Yukari.

Although Reimu Hakurei is not very old, she guessed that this should be Yakumo Yukari's way of controlling her as a shrine maiden.

However, Reimu Hakurei is easy-going and carefree, and she doesn't care about these things. Besides, she also knows that Yakumo Yukari does this for the sake of Gensokyo.

From the perspective of 5.5 Hakurei Reimu, Yakumo Yukari is undoubtedly a bad monster.

But from the perspective of the entire Gensokyo, Yakumo Yukari is the guardian of this land.

"Old Lady Zi, did you bring rice or flour today? Well, I'm out of tea leaves here, so please get me some."

Hakurei Reimu said weakly.

Yakumo Yukari moved her delicate body aside, allowing Hakurei Reimu to see Saigo standing behind her.

The Yokai Sage smiled sweetly and said, "...This time I am bringing people to visit this shrine."

Upon hearing this, Hakurei Reimu said in dissatisfaction: "...When did the shrine become a tourist attraction?"

"...Although it's fine to use it as a tourist attraction, but you should always pay homage when you come to a shrine, right?"

Reimu Hakurei touched her rumbling stomach and a cute little expression of greed appeared on her face.

But after seeing Saigo, Hakurei Miko was surprised and said incredulously: "...Old Lady Zi, could it be that your former lover came to Gensokyo to look for you?"

Chapter 4: Uncle, come to the shrine often!

Reimu Hakurei looked at Saigo and Yakumo Yukari with a look of doubt and the more she looked, the more she felt that her guess was correct.

The entire Gensokyo is shrouded in a barrier, and the only entrance and exit is the Hakurei Shrine.

In the past, it wasn't that there were people who accidentally entered Gensokyo, but whether those outsiders left or settled down there, they had to pass by the Hakurei Shrine.

However, the outsider in front of him entered Gensokyo without even passing through the shrine. The only one who could do this was the hidden monster Yakumo Yukari.

Reimu Hakurei was very sure that Saigo was an outsider because there was no aura of Gensokyo around him at all.

Anyone or any monster that stays in Gensokyo for a long time will be affected by the barrier and common sense will be reversed.

Such an outsider would actually be accompanied by Yakumo Yukari herself. In Reimu Hakurei's opinion, the only possibility was that the old woman Yakumo Yukari's former lover.

Yakumo Yukari's face was full of black lines. She subconsciously raised her jade hand and used a western-style fan to cover the lower half of her pretty face, leaving only her beautiful and cold eyes exposed.

"Xiao Lingmeng, you are joking. This is the first time we meet this gentleman."

Yakumo Yukari said with a smile, and at the same time glanced at Saigo inconspicuously.

She actually feels a little regretful now.

Gensokyo was once located near Lake Suwa and had a large geographical area.

Although Yakumo Yukari knew almost all the monsters in Gensokyo, knowing did not necessarily mean being familiar with them, especially since some of the monsters still had old grudges against her.

If 28 were to visit Gensokyo with Saigo, and he met someone who spoke without thinking and made the devil angry, the consequences would not be something Yakumo Yukari could have predicted.

Fortunately, although Reimu Hakurei is also a person who speaks without thinking, what she says is not excessive.

Hakurei Reimu gave her an 'I understand' look.

Old Lady Zi also needs privacy and face, so it's normal that she doesn't admit it.

The red and white shrine maiden just looked at Saigo in surprise for a few seconds, then collected her thoughts and became lazy again.

Although the witch is young, that's just her personality, as if she doesn't care about anything.

Saigo was also looking at the shrine maiden in front of him.

She was wearing a shrine maiden costume that was washed to a pale color, but very clean.

Although she is not as stunningly beautiful as Yakumo Yukari, who will astound you at first sight, she also has a pretty appearance.

Especially the elegant temperament like a lotus in clear water makes the witch look quite holy and divine.

Within that divinity, there is also a touch of temperament that is unique to ordinary people, which can easily win the favor of ordinary people. She is a natural born witch.

She has delicate features. Although she is slightly malnourished, she is still naturally beautiful, with fair and tender skin. She is a rare beauty.

I don’t know if it’s because of poverty, but the material used for the shrine maiden’s costume is very small, and even the private parts of her armpits are exposed.

However, it can be seen that although the witch seems to care about nothing, she also takes care of herself. At least her armpits are smooth and without a trace of hair.

Judging from the attributes of a shrine maiden alone, the Reimu Hakurei in front of her is actually not qualified because her clothes are a bit revealing.

When Yakumo Yukari saw that Saigo seemed indifferent and just looked at Hakurei Reimu with amusement, she didn't know whether she should be relieved or annoyed for a moment.

In order to prevent Hakurei Reimu from saying something excessive, she quickly dismissed her and said, "…Reimu-chan, guests are here, shouldn't you serve some tea?"

Reimu Hakurei pretended not to hear what Yakumo Yukari said and just looked at the sky, as if the clouds in the sky were marshmallows that could satisfy her appetite.

Seeing this, Yakumo Yukari threatened: "...We originally brought you rations, but it seems that we have no dinner for today."

When Hakurei Reimu heard this, her expression immediately changed. She said to Saigo with a standard waiter's smile: "... Please wait a moment, sir. I will make you a cup of tea!"

Having said this, she stood up reluctantly and went to the back of the main hall.

"This child's personality is just like that. Lord Zaratul, please don't mind it."

Yakumo Yukari said with a faint smile.

Saigo shook his head and said, "...I don't mind, but this child is more like a poor little girl imprisoned here."

Yakumo Yukari's smile disappeared when she heard this. She was silent for a moment and then sighed, "...To maintain the great barrier, the power of the miko is needed."

"...The witches in the past were all brought from the outside world."

"Now that the mysteries of the outside world have faded, it's not easy to find a miko as gifted as Reimu, so she is very important to us."

"...She must continue to live and maintain the great barrier until a new priestess is found."

"It's just that Reimu is still too young and easily tempted by the outside world, so we don't let her come into contact with people from the human world."

"…We know humans very well. If they come into contact with us too much, Reimu will be easily contaminated."

"But we still care about her."

Saigo glanced at Yakumo Yukari. He could see her tiredness. He smiled noncommittally and said, "...You are right in one thing. This miko is very talented."

"She can even become the spokesperson for eight million gods."

"…If you are really tired, Zi, you can consider my suggestion."

Hearing Saigo's words, Yakumo Yukari felt annoyed for no reason. She clenched the handle of the parasol in her hand, bit her lip and said, "...We'll consider it."

In fact, Yakumo Yukari knew that Saigo's method might really be the only way to save Gensokyo, and she had already agreed in her heart.

However, her excessive concern and care for Gensokyo made Yakumo Yukari feel uneasy and she dared not say some things.

"Guest, tea!"

Just as Saigo was talking to Yakumo Yukari, Hakurei Reimu trotted over holding a tattered cup.

There was warm tea in the teacup, but the color of the tea was very light, with only a few drops of tea foam, and it looked no different from plain water.

After bringing the tea with a service-like smile, Hakurei Reimu looked at Yakumo Yukari eagerly, as if to say, she has already entertained the guests, where are your things.

Yakumo Yukari suppressed her impatience, covered her mouth with her hands and smiled, and said to Reimu: "...I will not break my promise to you."

Reimu Hakurei curled her lips, it seemed that she didn't believe a word of what Yakumo Yukari said.

After the tea was brought, Reimu Hakurei sat on the steps again, looking at the sky bored.

Saigo picked up the tea that looked no different from water and burst out laughing.

After thinking about it, he flipped his wrist, took out a small golden stone, and threw it directly into the offering box.

The golden stone fell to the bottom of the offering box, and there was a sound of collision with wood, which showed that there was not a single copper coin in the offering box for worshiping the gods.

When Saigo took out the golden pebble, Reimu Hakurei's attention was attracted.

Her eyes followed the small piece of gold in a parabola until it fell into the offering box, and her delicate ears trembled.

Reimu Hakurei has a natural sensitivity to gold. Even though she didn't touch it with her hands, she knew that the gold was pure, really pure!

Immediately, the witch's smile became sweet, without the perfunctory attitude she had before.

She quickly picked up the teacup with only tea foam on it and said enthusiastically, "... So you are a distinguished guest. How can we entertain you with such vulgar things? Please wait for me for a moment!"

After saying this, the witch immediately used her spiritual power, walked quickly, and disappeared in front of the main hall in the blink of an eye.

Not long after, Hakurei Reimu came over with a proper tea tray, and even the teacups were changed.

The previous teacup was full of holes and I didn’t know where it came from.

Although this new teacup is not a luxury item, it at least looks complete.

"This is the best tea and snacks from our shrine. Of course we have to use the best things when entertaining distinguished guests."

"...Old Lady Zi, why didn't you tell me in advance that such a distinguished guest was coming? I didn't even have time to prepare."

In the end, Reimu Hakurei blamed Yakumo Yukari.