Soon, based on what they saw in the flashback, the two arrived at the site of the underground ceremony beneath the Himuro residence.

“It is this door.”

Looking at the tall stone gate in front of her, Hinasaki Shinku seemed both nervous and excited. Of course, she still remembered that in the flashback she clearly saw that Sokata Ryozo seemed to have discovered the secret of the Himuro residence, and then came here. The moment Sokata Ryozo opened the stone gate, countless white hands stretched out from inside, grabbed him, and pulled him in.

This also means that...

"Ms. Shizuku, that female ghost is in here too!"

Looking at Hinasaki Shinku holding a camera and staring at the stone gate fiercely, those who knew her would think she was exorcising a ghost, while those who didn't would think that it was a wife bringing people to catch her husband and his mistress having sex.

Although for Shizuku, it's almost the same.

"I'm not sure. I don't sense any spiritual power... Anyway, let's go in and take a look first."

"But how do we open this door?"

Faced with the heavy stone door in front of her, Hinasaki Shinko couldn't help but feel a little at a loss. This stone door was about five meters high and was made entirely of stone. It was extremely heavy. Hinasaki Shinko had tried to push it, but couldn't push it at all.

"There seems to be a device next to it. Do we need to find something and put it on it to open the stone door?"

“That’s not necessary.”

Hearing Hinasaki's deep red words, Shizuku shook her head, then she tightly grasped Frostmourne and looked towards the stone gate.

Then there was a flash of sword light.

"boom!!!"

The next moment, accompanied by the flashing sword light, the solid and heavy stone door was scattered all over the ground like tofu that had been cut, and Shizuku also retracted the sword and breathed a sigh of relief.

It feels so comfortable...

Although I don't know who created this star seed, at least the other party doesn't have the same hobby of puzzles as the Goddess of the Sky, otherwise I would have to find the key to open the door, which would be really annoying!

"Miss Shizuku is really amazing..."

Seeing this, Hinasaki Shinku could not help but sigh, although she already knew that Shizuku was very powerful. But watching a petite girl easily chop the huge five-meter-high stone door into pieces, this shock was much stronger than Shizuku wielding a big sword to slay demons before.

"let's go."

Shizuku swung the greatsword and walked in with Hinasaki Shinkuro.

Behind the stone gate was a deep passage. Not long after they walked, they saw a skinny corpse in a kimono at the edge of the passage. Needless to say, this was the person they saw in the flashback, the one who was caught in the stone gate. When the two arrived, the corpse seemed to have some kind of reaction, and a strange and twisted aura emerged from it and gradually took shape.

"Ryozo Munakata, wake up."

Just like before, Shizuku stretched out her finger and flicked the sword tip. There was a crisp sound, and then the distorted spiritual energy began to become clearer. Then, the shadow of a man appeared in front of the two of them.

"I never thought that I could still wake up..."

The man muttered to himself as he looked around, then at the two men.

"I don't know who you are, but since you are able to come here, I think you already know something about what's going on here..."

"No, we're just stopping by."

Shizuku answered the man's question silently.

"But we know that you have been studying the secrets of Himuro Residence. I think you should know about the evil spirits in this place and the woman in white."

"Oh, of course, of course..."

Perhaps because they were talking about the topic of folklore, which he loved, Sokata Ryozo suddenly became excited.

"Yes, I have investigated it thoroughly! What exactly happened in the tragedy that happened in Himuro Residence that year, and what is the secret of Himuro Residence!!"

Next, under the chattering of Sokata Ryozo's ghost, Shizuku and Hinasaki Shinku also learned the deepest secret hidden in this mansion.

According to Sohō Ryōzō, there is a gate to the underworld below the Himuro residence. Once this gate is opened, miasma will cover everything, eliminating the boundary between life and death, and turning the entire world into hell. The Himuro family is the guardian of this gate. In order to avoid the disaster of miasma pouring in when the gate is opened, they have been guarding this gate and sealing it.

This sealing ceremony requires several steps.

The first is the "Mekakushi no Oni". The Himuro family will choose a girl and put a mask with spikes covering the eyes on her face, blinding her eyes and making her a "Mekakushi no Oni".

Next, the Mekakushi Demon will play a "ghost tour" or hide-and-seek with all the seven-year-old girls in the Himuro family in a room. The demon is played by a blinded girl, and the other girls need to escape from the Mekakushi Demon.

According to records, this is not an ordinary game, but a ceremony to select the Rope Maiden.

In the game, the first girl caught by the Mekakushi oni will become the next Mekakushi oni, and the last girl caught will become the rope maiden - because according to the records of the Himuro family, the last girl caught by the Mekakushi oni possesses the most powerful spiritual power, which can be used to seal the gate to the underworld.

After that, the chosen Rope Maiden will never be allowed to step out of the Himuro family's door, and will be locked in the room like under house arrest. Ten years later, when the Rope Maiden is seventeen years old, the rope-breaking ceremony to seal the gate to the underworld will begin.

The rope-breaking ceremony itself is very simple. In fact, it is similar to the chariot-breaking ceremony, except that horses and chariots are not used. The people of the Himuro family will tie special ropes around the hands, feet and neck of the rope maiden, and then wrap the other side of the rope around a mechanism, and then rotate and pull it hard to tear the body of the rope maiden apart. The ropes used to pull the rope maiden are then used as props to seal the gate to the underworld.

The Rope Maiden was required not to have any attachment to the human world - this was also the reason why they placed the Rope Maiden under house arrest. When a person had been locked up in a small dark room for ten years, she probably wouldn't have any particular hope for life or death.

“That’s too much…”

Listening to Sohō Ryozo's story, Hinasaki Shinkuen covered her mouth with her hands and showed a disgusted expression.

"Why, why do you have to do such a cruel thing? Is there no other way?"

"In theory, the Himuro clan's approach is indeed valid."

Shizuku thought for a moment and gave an answer.

"Extreme pain can cause a person to burst out with strength far beyond normal, and this is especially true for children with higher spiritual power. Although I don't know where the Himuro clan learned this method from, at least it is indeed effective."

"But, but they can find someone to help."

Hinasaki Shinkuen obviously still didn't understand.

"There should be many exorcists like you in the world, Miss Shizuku. Can't they go find a miko or a monk and ask them to help seal the gate to the underworld? In this way, wouldn't they not have to sacrifice those girls so cruelly?"

"Ancient Japan was quite closed, and they probably never thought about it..."

Shizuku spread her hands helplessly. What a joke! There is only one exorcist like her in the entire history of the earth... where can you find one more?

After learning the secret of the Himuro family, the tragedy of the Himuro residence becomes understandable.

Obviously, the rope-breaking ritual failed, the Yellow Spring Gate opened, and the miasma poured out. According to the following records, in order to seal the Yellow Spring Gate, the patriarch of the Himuro family killed everyone in the family and used their wronged souls to suppress the miasma of the Yellow Spring Gate.

Ultimately, this approach was successful, but because of it, all the members of the Himuro family turned into underworld evil spirits and were bound here forever.

"Although what he did is not worthy of praise, I have to say that this Himuro clan leader is really awesome."

Hearing this, Shizuku couldn't help but praise it. Indeed, those rituals were barbaric and bloody, but the Himuro clan really cared about the world. Even when the ritual failed in the end, they did not choose to give up, but used the lives of their entire clan to protect the world from being eroded by the Yellow Springs miasma... To be honest, you really can't simply judge this approach by right or wrong.

The same is true in modern society. For example, if a virus is leaked, the entire laboratory must be closed and no one is allowed to leave. Although it is unfair to the people in the laboratory, it is at least better than the virus being completely leaked and spread to the whole world.

Of course, if it were the United States, they would definitely only care about saving their own lives, and would not care about the life and death of others.

After all, freedom is the most important thing in the world. If you don't have freedom, you would rather die. It is only natural even if you have to drag the whole world with you to be buried with you.

Although Japan is almost the same, there are still some stubborn people. They are not ashamed of it but proud of it, thinking that they have done nothing wrong for freedom... just like those guys who escaped from the quarantine zone in the zombie movie.

If there is also a Gate to the Underworld in the United States, then Shizuku wouldn't mind using the entire United States to suppress it.

"So, is that female ghost in white also the Rope Maiden?"

Hinasaki Shinkuro still remembers that the female ghost in white seemed to have ropes tied on her hands and feet.

"Yes, she should be the last Rope Priestess Himuro Kirie..."

"Why?"

Upon hearing Sohō Ryozo's answer, Hinasaki Shinku screamed in surprise.

"But isn't Himuro Kirie a little girl?"

“…”

However, Sohkata Ryozo did not answer Hinasaki Shinku's question. After telling her all about his research, he seemed to have fulfilled his wish and gradually disappeared into the air.

"Let's go."

Hinasaki Shinku followed Shizuku and continued to move forward. Along the way, they also encountered many wronged spirits of the Himuro family. Just as Sohō Ryōzō said, the ritual failed at that time and many people of the Himuro family died here. Now they have all become wronged spirits and indiscriminately attack anyone who dares to step into the forbidden area of ​​the Himuro family.

But for Shizuku, this is naturally not a problem.

She raised Frostmourne, and the next moment the banshees rushed over with wailing, tearing the wronged souls in front of them into pieces. After all, the levels of both sides were there, the banshees were equivalent to fully armed regular troops, and these wronged souls were at best militia organizations, without any weapons or equipment. The two sides confronted head-on, and naturally they were one-sided and directly knocked to the ground.

However, when the two reached the end, they were dumbfounded.

I saw that the other end of the passage had completely collapsed and was buried under rubble. It was obvious that the road was completely blocked.

However, at this moment, Hinasaki Shinkuen saw a familiar figure.

"elder brother!!!"

While shouting, Hinasaki Shinku rushed to the pile of rubble and looked across through the small hole on it. She saw Hinasaki Mafuyu standing there silently on the opposite side of the hole, with her back to Hinasaki Shinku without saying a word.

"Brother! Brother! Can you hear me? Brother! Answer me!!"

However, Hinasaki Mafuyu seemed to have not heard Hinasaki Shinku's call at all. She walked straight forward and disappeared from Hinasaki Shinku's sight.

"……elder brother……"

Seeing her brother leave, Hinasaki Shinku suddenly collapsed to the ground, giving people the feeling that she was an ex-girlfriend abandoned by her boyfriend...

Something seems wrong?

Never mind, there's nothing wrong with it.

"He's not in our space, let's go! Chase him!"

Shizuku grabbed Hinasaki Shinku, then held Frostmourne tightly in her right hand and stabbed the collapsed rocks in front of her. Soon, the pile of rubble exploded and turned into a dark cave, and then the two quickly jumped in. Then Hinasaki Shinku's eyes flashed with light, and the next moment she left the narrow cave and came to an elegant courtyard.

"here……"

Hinasaki Shinku looked around and saw bamboo forests, rockeries and ponds. The Himuro family was a wealthy family anyway, so this courtyard would definitely not be too shabby.

But just like before, it was still pitch black here, as if trapped in a bottomless night.

However, Hinasaki Shinku also discovered that the Himuro residence in front of her was somewhat different from before.

The Himuro residence they first came to looked like a dilapidated building on the verge of collapse.

Next, Shizuku brought Hinasaki Shinku to Sokata Ryozo's Himuro residence. Although it was a bit dilapidated, it still maintained the function of a house.

And now, this Himuro residence - except that there is no one there, everything else is no different from an ordinary residence.

"Miss Crimson."

"I see."

With two experiences, Hinasaki Shinku would not hesitate again. She nodded, then reached out to hold the wall next to her, and then held Shizuku's hand. In fact, at this time, Hinasaki Shinku even had some expectations in her heart. When Shizuku held her hand and pressed it against her forehead, feeling the warm power entering her body, Hinasaki Shinku felt extremely intimate and eager.

Soon, when that comfortable feeling appeared again, the scene in front of Hinasaki Shenhong changed again.

This time, they saw the history of the Himuro family.

According to Shizuku, only the most intense emotions and memories can be preserved in objects, so they don't need to watch the Himuro family members eat, drink, defecate and urinate. Soon, they found the scene of the ceremony and saw the ceremony - they watched the woman in a white kimono being pressed into the room, and the man in the lead wearing a demon mask raised the mask of the Mekakusu no Oni high and pressed it hard against the girl in front of him. With a scream, the mask was put on the girl's face, and the two sharp knives inserted in the eyes of the mask also pierced her eyes.

“How cruel…”

Although Sohkata Ryozo had told her this before, witnessing this ceremony with her own eyes still made Hinasaki Shinku feel uncomfortable.

And after that, it’s the ghost hunting game.

A young girl is playing hide-and-seek with a group of little girls in the room. Although it seems like they are having a lot of fun, it is obviously not so pleasant when you think about the fact that this is also part of the ceremony.

In the end, the Mekakushi demon captured the last girl, who was also the one that Shizuku and Hinasaki Shinku had seen before - Himuro Kirie.

What awaits this seven-year-old girl next is ten years of imprisonment.

"…Why would they do this?"

Looking at Himuro Kirie who was locked in the room in front of her, and seeing this originally lively and cute little girl gradually become a taciturn girl, Hinasaki Shinku couldn't help but ask, while Shizuku shook her head.

"In short, is this their last act of mercy to the victims?"

"Mercy? Is this mercy?"

"certainly."

Shizuku nodded.

"We all know that the Rope Maiden is bound to die, but death is not a beautiful thing for anyone. If she knew the beauty of this world, she would definitely be attached to it, and she would definitely not want to die. So they have to numb the girl's mind and make her fearless of death. To put it bluntly, this is actually like giving you anesthesia before surgery, so that you can't feel anything, so that the surgery can be performed."

Shizuku explained to Hinasaki Shinkuren and looked at the front again.

"It's just that for this girl, it was a ten-year period of anesthesia."

Soon, time passed and it was almost time for Himuro Kirie to turn seventeen years old.

This year was also the time when she would become the Rope Maiden and sacrifice herself to perform the ritual.

If everything is working fine, then there won't be any problem.

However, fate changed at this time.

A stranger came to visit the Himuro residence. While he was walking in the courtyard, he accidentally met the eyes of Himuro Kirie, who was looking at the outside world through the window. Himuro Kirie was so frightened when she saw the stranger that she quickly shrank back and dared not move.

At the same time, Shizuku and Hinasaki Shinku also saw the appearance of the stranger clearly.

That's exactly...

"elder brother?!!"

Looking out the window at Hinasaki Mafuyu, who was wearing a kimono and dressed like a character from a period drama, Hinasaki Shinku was stunned and speechless.

After that, what unfolds before the two of them is a period drama of love.

Seeing a stranger for the first time made Himuro Kirie very nervous, her face flushed and her heart beat fast.

The second time they met was when Himuro Kirie was out for a walk. They met the stranger again and started chatting. This was the first time Himuro Kirie chatted with someone from outside, and she was very happy.

The next day, the stranger came to the room where Himuro Kirie was and let her out. The two chatted and had a great time (literally).

After that, the priest also found out about this and Himuro Kirie was asked not to go out again. The stranger appeared again and came to her room to chat with her.

Then the two of them strolled in the courtyard together, admiring the cherry blossoms...

Seeing all this happening in front of her, Hinasaki Shinhong's expression was extremely complicated, although she also knew that this person was definitely not her brother. But a man with the same face as her brother was flirting happily with a woman she didn't know, and they were so affectionate... Hinasaki Shinhong really felt a little green on her head now.

This naturally caused the Himuro family to feel uneasy. You know, the reason they imprisoned the Rope Miko for ten years was to cut off her thoughts of the outside world and life. But looking at her now with a rosy face and a happy look, how could she look like someone who was about to die?

In this way, the ceremony may fail!

So in order to eliminate the trouble once and for all, the people of Himuro's family secretly killed the stranger, threw his body into the pool, and then told Himuro Kirie that the stranger had left.

However, Himuro Kirie is not a fool. She has a strong spiritual power. She also noticed the lies of the priests and cried for the death of the stranger. Obviously, Himuro Kirie also knew that if it was not for her, the stranger would not have died.

So, of course, the ceremony failed.

The hatred deep in Himuro Kirie's heart, her reluctance to leave the world and her sadness defiled the ceremony, and the seal of the Yellow Springs Gate failed, the rope broke, and then the miasma in the opened Yellow Springs Gate quickly gushed out, swallowing up everything. Not only was the magic mirror used to seal the ceremony shattered, but the entire Himuro residence also became a death place.

Next, the Himuro clan leader who had luckily survived knew that the situation was hopeless, but he still took up his weapon and killed the rest of the clan members, using their souls and blood to suppress the spread of the miasma. Finally, he committed suicide in the hall.

“It’s so cruel.”

Arriving at the ceremony site, looking at the bloodstained round stone platform and the five mechanisms around it, Hinasaki Shinku could not help but whisper, "Here, tie the girl's hands, feet and neck with ropes, turn the mechanism to tear her apart alive... Such a cruel thing, Hinasaki Shinku could not imagine it at all."

"Now we finally understand why she is so attached to your brother. It seems that it's not just about her good looks."

Shizuku complained silently beside her, and Hinasaki's deep red face became even weirder.

"Ugh... even though I say that..."

"Don't you feel sorry for her?"

"Of course I feel sorry for her, but...but these are two different things!"

In response to Shizuku's question, Hinasaki Shinku hesitated for a moment, but finally gave an answer.

"No matter what, she's dead, but my brother is still alive. Besides, even if they look alike, they're still different people! In short, this is absolutely not possible!"

Well, there is no cure for brother complex.

Soon, the two of them crossed the ritual platform and came to the innermost gate of the underworld. There, they saw Hinasaki Mafuyu standing in front of the gate of the underworld.

"elder brother!!"

Seeing Hinasaki Mafuyu, Hinasaki Shinku hurriedly shouted and ran over. However, at this moment, the female ghost in white appeared behind Hinasaki Mafuyu again and hugged him tightly in her arms.

"Let my brother go!"

"Deep red..."

Hearing Hinasaki Shinhong's voice, Hinasaki Mafuyu slowly raised his hand, but this time, the female ghost suddenly grabbed him and stuffed him forcefully into her body.

"From now on, we will always be together..."

"Let him go, he is my brother, not your lover!!"

As she spoke, Hinasaki Shinku also raised her camera and pressed the shutter button hard at the white-clothed female ghost. Soon, a white light flashed, and then the female ghost screamed, but even so, she did not give up on Hinasaki Mafuyu. On the contrary, dozens of arms suddenly appeared behind her and grabbed Hinasaki Shinku!

"Ah, I knew this family ethics drama would end in a fight."

At the same time, with a sigh, Shizuku swung the Frostmourne in her hand downwards, easily cutting off the arm of the white-clothed female ghost that was reaching out to Hinasaki Shinku. The white-clothed female ghost screamed and stepped back after being severely injured. Then she raised her head fiercely and glared at Shizuku and Hinasaki Shinku in front of her.

"I say, you should return your brother to him. After all, you are not Nie Xiaoqian, and this is not Lanruo Temple. If you are willing to give up, then I can still give you a quick death."

"No..."

However, in the face of Shizuku's advice, the white-clothed female ghost obviously did not intend to listen.

"He's mine...mine...! We'll be together forever!!!"

Along with the screams of the female ghost in white, countless ghosts from all directions soon flew towards the two of them. They were all people who died in the tragedy at Himuro residence, and now, they have all become part of Himuro Kirie's wronged soul.

"That can't be helped."

Looking at the scene in front of her, Shizuku sighed helplessly, then she raised Frostmourne in her hand high.

The cold wind is howling.

With Frostmourne as the center, the bone-chilling cold wind swirled and exploded, spreading out like a huge whirlpool. Soon, all the evil spirits were sucked into the whirlpool, and with unwilling screams, they were sucked into the sword of Frostmourne. Even the white arms on Himuro Kirie's body were torn apart. The invisible force pulled those arms and directly separated them from Himuro Kirie's body - then tore them into pieces and disappeared into the sword of sword Frostmourne.

When everything disappeared again, the female ghost in white in front of him had turned back into the appearance of Himuro Kirie, while Hinasaki Mafuyu was standing behind her with a pale face.

"elder brother!!!"

This time, seeing her brother, Hinasaki Shinku hurried to his side and looked at him anxiously. Hinasaki Mafuyu opened her eyes and smiled at Hinasaki Shinku.

At the same time, in front of Himuro Kirie who collapsed on the ground, the girl in kimono appeared again - it was Himuro Kirie when she was a child.

She stretched out her hand and pointed at the dark doorway behind her.

"Remember your mission."

After saying this, the girl slowly disappeared, and after hearing the girl's words, Himuro Kirie's eyes gradually regained clarity. She stood up, walked to the black tunnel, turned her head, looked at everyone, and finally, she cast her gaze on Shizuku.

"Please, help me seal the gate to the underworld completely."

"You mean...you want to close the door and let me destroy it completely?"

Hearing Himuro Kirie's request, Shizuku raised her eyebrows, and hearing what they said, Hinasaki Mafuyu and Hinasaki Shinku showed puzzled expressions.

"What's going on? Miss Shizuku? What are you talking about?"

“It’s very simple.”

Looking at the brother and sister, Shizuku decided to explain to them.

"Originally, this ritual was only a temporary seal. Otherwise, there would be no need to offer sacrifices every few decades. But now all the members of the Himuro family are dead. Even if we continue the ritual now, it will only seal the door for a few more decades at most. Then it will open due to the weakening of the seal. This time, no one will be able to seal the door to the underworld."

"Then, what should we do?"

After hearing Shizuku's explanation, the brother and sister turned pale. They only now realized that this was indeed a problem.

"The way to make a door useless is to destroy it forever. When it is no longer a door, it no longer has the ability to be 'opened'."

Having said this, Shizuku looked at Himuro Kirie again.

"So, Himuro Kirie will close the door from the inside, and then I will completely smash it from the outside. In this way, this will no longer be the entrance to the underworld, and there will be no need to worry about any problems."

"Yes."

Himuro Kirie also nodded at this moment.

"It is my mission to close this door."

As she spoke, Himuro Kirie raised her hands, and with her movements, the half-open gate to the underworld slowly closed. Then, the ropes that were originally tied to the stones suddenly sprang up, tied up Himuro Kirie's hands, and hung her in front of the gate to the underworld.

Having said that, Himuro Kirie looked at Hinasaki Mafuyu and smiled at him.

"Thank you, it's enough for us to have this memory."

After saying this, Himuro Kirie looked at Shizuku and nodded slightly to her.

"I'll leave it to you."

"I see."

After hearing what Himuro Kirie said, Shizuku raised Frostmourne in her hand again.

Soon, the runes on the pitch-black sword lit up one by one and turned into a dazzling blue light. Then Shizuku grasped the sword tightly with both hands and swung it hard at Himuro Kirie in front of her and the Gate of Hell behind her!

“Shua——!!!”

The sword flashed.

The next moment, the gate to the underworld behind Himuro Kirie suddenly broke into two halves, and then was sucked into the endless dark void behind her. At the same time, Himuro Kirie, who was tied to a rope, was also sucked into the deep underworld along with the broken door.

But at this moment... Hinasaki Mafuyu, who was originally standing next to him, suddenly ran forward, then he suddenly leaped up, and rushed into the dark and deep tunnel along with the cold howling wind, and hugged Himuro Kirie who was tied to the door panel tightly.

"elder brother?!"

This scene shocked Hinasaki Shinku and she screamed in a hurry, while Hinasaki Mafuyu turned her head and looked at her sister.

"I'm sorry, Crimson, I still can't let her go."

"What are you talking about? Come back soon, brother!!!"

Hinasaki Shinku hurried forward, but at this moment the swirling rubble had begun to gradually fill up the entire tunnel, and she had no way of getting close.

"This is something only I can do."

Holding Himuro Kirie tightly, Hinasaki Mafuyu looked at her sister and then at Shizuku.

"I'm sorry, sister, I'll...please."

Along with these words, Hinasaki Mafuyu's figure disappeared at the end of the Yellow Spring. At the same time, the last stone directly blocked the passage to the Yellow Spring and turned into an extremely solid stone wall.

"elder brother......!!!"

At this time, Hinasaki Shinku threw herself against the stone wall and burst into tears.

Shizuku, who had put down Frostmourne, was also stunned when she saw this scene.

Forget about your sister when you see a beautiful woman? Don't care about your sister when you have a girlfriend?

Is there such an operation?!

At this moment, looking at Hinasaki Shinhong crying bitterly, Shizuku was completely speechless.