Chapter 99: Reincarnation for a Thousand Years
The disasters and miracles that occurred in Heian-kyō became a topic of conversation over tea that spread far and wide and was passed on by word of mouth.
The most shocking event was that the notorious King of Curses was finally sealed by sorcerers who were dispatched from all directions.
"Seal? Does that mean they didn't succeed in killing him?" The people who heard the news chatted casually, "Didn't they say that they mobilized a lot of people and set up traps and various curse tools specifically for the Curse King?"
"After all, that guy is too strong." Another person took a sip of the wine in his glass and talked about the [King of Curses]. His words were still mixed with the trembling and fear in his subconscious, and his voice was lowered.
"It is said that his twenty fingers are indestructible...! Each one contains a huge amount of cursed power, and is said to be a special-grade cursed item."
"It sounds like a lot of trouble. I hope this special cursed item can be well preserved, and the King of Curses won't be allowed to reappear in the world. In order to prevent him from killing more, we were forced to hold several festivals for him... Well, now that it's sealed, we can rest assured and don't have to worry about it - thanks to the presence of the six-eyed master."
"Yes, that Rokugan-sama has become quite famous recently. Moreover, that Rokugan-sama is not someone to be trifled with. It is said that at a meeting not long ago, those high-ranking officials in the Jujutsu world..."
"Shut up! Stop discussing this." Another person hurriedly stopped the topic and raised the small wine glass in his hand, "Let's not talk about this anymore, drink, drink!"
The person who just spoke also realized that he had made a mistake, so he quickly laughed it off and passed over the topic, then raised his glass to drink with his friends beside him: "Okay, okay, let's drink, come on!"
A few people shifted the topic to trivial things happening around them and no longer talked about what happened in Heianjing.
Not far away, a man wearing a straw hat and a long cape stood up, pulled aside the curtain and walked out of the small pub.
Under his hat, his black hair was naturally curled up like a sea urchin. Xiu Ji walked out of the tavern and walked alone on the busy street.
His blue-green eyes naturally fell on the road ahead, and his mind unconsciously followed the discussion of those people just now, recalling the previous sensational Heian-kyo incident.
At the very beginning, everything happened too suddenly.
The cursed spirits emerged from the city at an incredible speed, catching the people who were standing guard in the city off guard.
No one expected that the protective barrier of Heian-kyo would be attacked by cursed spirits, and even more unexpectedly, the barrier that was originally meant to protect them turned out to be a transparent cage that trapped them, restraining everyone in the city where cursed spirits were wreaking havoc.
What followed was an unsolvable mess.
In the battle that seemed to have no end in sight, at the last second before his strength ran out, he summoned the untamed Demon Vulra with an extremely crazy thought, intending to self-destruct to kill the enemy in front of him.
However, the next moment, the long-lost figure appeared again.
Just like back then, it was like a divine soldier sent from heaven, standing firmly in front of him.
More than ten years have passed since the time gate, and the meeting with that person was just a silhouette in the years, but he has not forgotten it.
He is not good at expressing his inner emotions, but he actually remembers the past. He has been saved before, and if he can, he will save others within his ability in the future. That's about it.
This time, he witnessed and experienced the miraculous power with his own eyes. His physical injuries and cursed power were restored in the blink of an eye.
The man asked him what happened and then said to go to the most dangerous [door].
He didn't think too much at the time, he just breathed a sigh of relief, and the thought popped up in his mind involuntarily: If Mr. Bai Wu is here, everything will be fine.
My tense nerves finally relaxed with relief after the arrival of the navy blue figure.
He led the other party all the way to the temple altar, and then left there with Kugizaki under the other party's instructions.
After running away from the temple area in a few steps, as if a tinder suddenly lit a flame, he suddenly remembered a small thing - perhaps a small thing - and he had not had time to tell the other party his real name.
Yes, [Xiu Ji] was not his real name. He was still young at that time and had the vigilance of a puppy. His real name rolled in his throat for a long time, but in the end he uttered a made-up pseudonym.
In fact, he has a real name from his father - [Mei].
Probably because he had completely broken off with the Zenin family, his father, who was living away from home, never revealed any information about the Zenin family, changed his surname and called him [Fushiguro Megumi].
But the thought of "I haven't told you my real name yet" only occurred to him for a moment, and he did not turn back because of this little thing.
The situation in Heian-kyō remains grim, the battle in the temple is massive, an endless stream of cursed spirits are still wreaking havoc in the city, the sounds of cursed explosions and collapsing buildings ring in the ears one after another, occupying the entire mind.
I will introduce myself to the other party after the battle is over, he thought. I will talk about small personal matters after the big crisis is resolved.
He didn't remember the details of the battle that followed, but it was just about exorcising the cursed spirit.
The only thing that impressed him was a brilliant meteor shower that almost turned night into day.
First, one or two burning stars trailed white tails across the sky, and then, the myriad lights hanging overhead began to pour down like heavy rain.
In this strange dreamlike scene, the time gate became an immeasurable unit.
At that time, he was simply shocked by the vast beauty and amazed at the stars falling from nature.
Later he realized that this was the man's final closing ceremony before leaving.
After the Heian-kyō incident, he heard about that man from Gojo-sensei. At that time, he opened his mouth and the first words he murmured subconsciously were:
"……name."
——I haven't told him my real name yet.
However, the teacher in front of him seemed to understand it in a different direction. After a pause, he spoke in a normal voice with a slightly raised ending tone:
"I don't even know that guy's name~ Well, anyway - next time we meet, just ask him first."
Fushiguro Megumi raised his eyes. It was not until this moment that he realized: it turned out that not only he, but also the teacher had unspoken words surrounding his name.
If it were an ordinary day, this might be a trivial matter, but when it comes to parting and you don't know if you will meet again, it is magnified infinitely.
He stared at the person with long white hair in front of him, and after half a second, he said calmly, "Will there be a chance for us to meet again?"
Teacher Gojo did not respond immediately. He had a black and gold cloth wrapped around his eyes, covering half of his face. He said, "The time gate is so long, there must be a chance."
The teacher said that the time gate is long, not that life is long. Fushiguro Megumi did not say anything more, he just lowered his eyes silently.
Next to her, Kugizaki No Rose sighed and said, "What? I just met this mysterious person and I have many questions to ask him... What a pity."
It's a pity, a shame. It's like a perfect circle, but it's missing a corner.
With the past in his mind, he did not slow down his pace as he walked along the roads of Edo.
Fushiguro Megumi came to Edo this time to complete a mission. In this era, there are still many cursed spirits that need to be exorcised, and he still has a lot to learn.
The regrets of the past remain in memory, but they will not become shackles that hold you back.
Although I am not sure whether we can meet again, but if I have expectations, maybe there will be some response.
Before that, just keep going without stopping, so that you can face each other with a better attitude next time, and then -
Say your name out loud.
——
Gojo Satoru sat in front of a wooden desk, browsing through the documents that were delivered to him one by one.
The scent of ink and wood lingers at the tip of your nose, and the faint aroma of spices burning in the small stove slowly drifts through the house.
He was not the type to sit quietly and read documents. Although he was the head of the family, he usually left these tasks to the elders or his confidants.
What made him sit down at this moment was the content related to the Heiankyo Temple - of course, now it should be called the Gojo Family Temple.
After the incident, Gojo Satoru learned from two of his students that the man had left the message, "Ryomen Sukuna came here for a deal."
Because of his strength, he rarely cares about power struggles, but that doesn't mean he doesn't understand.
In an instant, Gojo Satoru pieced together the whole incident, and the details that Xia Yujie told him after waking up made his guess even more certain.
In the past, Gojo Satoru, because he was influenced by aristocratic culture since childhood, did not show his violent side too often in front of others.
The most common casual arrogance he displays on a daily basis is being late, leaving early, missing meetings, beating people, damaging buildings, and playing pranks.
At the meeting of the Jujutsu world after the Heian-kyo incident, he released the pressure of his cursed power for the first time in the entire meeting, crushing the few people who had been shouting and distorting the facts like crushing a bug!
The force was so strong that not even a corpse was left at the scene, only a pool of blood of moderate size.
The white-haired young man held his chin with one hand and said in a nonchalant tone: "I have never been a good-tempered person - what gave you the courage to plot against me?"
“What…?!”
"Are you planning a rebellion?"
"Well, I don't mind, but are you sure you want to give me such a name?" Gojo Satoru responded with a smile, while the person on the other side hesitated and did not dare to continue the conversation.
No one dared to force Liuyan to the opposite position.
"Okay, the interlude is over, let's move on," Gojo Satoru clapped his hands exaggeratedly, and then said, "This was just a warm-up, right?"
Although the corners of his lips were raised, Gojo Satoru's cerebral eyes were so cold that there was not even a trace of a smile.
"..." Under the suffocating pressure that was like an iceberg pressing down on one's head, the scene fell into complete silence.
The white-haired young man crossed his slender fingers and continued in a cheerful tone:
"It's okay, it's okay. Today I have plenty of time gates. We can slowly. slowly. settle the matter."
This "reckoning meeting" did not last long, but in the end, the number of people walking out was much smaller than the number of people going in.
Gojo Satoru let some people go because it was too troublesome to kill them all in one go, leaving some to continue working. He let his friends and the forces he cultivated fill the vacancies.
If you really want to overturn the rules of the rotten oranges, it is not feasible to follow the rules they set. Only by breaking the rules they use as referees can you integrate your own ideas.
In addition to the settlement, Gojo Satoru also redivided some areas of Heian-kyō Castle at this meeting.
The area of the temple at the back of the mountain was directly incorporated into the territory of the Gojo family by Gojo Satoru, saying it was compensation and reward.
The reason was very legitimate, and no one here dared to object. Those who had objections had already disappeared from the spot.
However, although it is impossible to stop Gojo Satoru from incorporating the temple area into the Gojo family's territory, it is possible to do something in the process and the surrounding area to delay time and cause trouble.
The idiots in the world of spellcasting had learned their lesson this time; they did not directly voice their opposition, but secretly instructed some people who had no family support or were from small families to handle these procedural matters—they knew that Gojo Satoru would not really make things difficult for these people.
Gojo Satoru was too disdainful to argue about these issues; he chose to lazily ignore the little idiots and then carefully planned the new forested temple area.
That's why he's sitting at his desk now, handling these documents himself.
Even though he had not actually seen that person for the last time, he knew that he must be in the forest where the temple rose from the ground, sleeping peacefully with the light and the moon.
…Then let’s fence off that area for protection. Nagaha-Gojo thought. And then move the Gojo Family Shrine here.
In this way, on the one hand, there is a reasonable reason to protect the forest and set up conditions for going up the mountain; on the other hand, perhaps the person sleeping there can also more or less absorb the incense of sacrificial offerings.
His thoughts flowed through the door of writing. Gojo Satoru read books and documents day and night, and finally planned the layout of the shrine.
After hearing about this, two good friends, Jie and Gaozi, also helped Gojo Satoru to the best of their ability.
After the area was completely settled and the Gojo family and the shrine were relocated and constructed, Gojo Satoru invited two friends to a small banquet for friends, where they drank wine and chatted under the moonlight.
"You're not the only one who drinks, Satoru?" Xia Yujie said half-jokingly, shaking the thin-necked porcelain bottle and sniffing the wafting aroma of wine. "This wine is not bad."
"Of course - everything in my house is naturally top-notch." Gojo Satoru reached out and picked up the dessert on the small table and stuffed it into his mouth. "What do you mean by one cup? I'm the best."
"How can you drink alcohol with dessert?" Ieiri Naoko poured the wine into the cup in front of her with a bold gesture. "Besides, one cup can be considered the 'strongest' in a sense."
"What is that, Glass--" Gojo Satoru dragged out the last syllable, and then said, "Come to think of it, I don't know if that guy can drink. He might even fall down after drinking half a cup."
The two people in front of him knew who the person with the long hair was referring to.
Gojo Satoru filled the glass with wine, turned sideways toward the shrine, and splashed it on the ground in a casual manner.
It feels a bit ceremonial but not serious, like an interaction between friends.
Xia Yujie paused for a second, rubbing his fingertips on the porcelain cup, and said, "Although I was unconscious at the time... and perhaps I had died once, but in the dimness, I seemed to feel that someone pulled me and pulled me out of the quagmire."
"Ordinarily I should thank you in person, but unfortunately I haven't had the chance so far." The young man with the ball-shaped haircut smiled lightly and said gently, "Then let's just have a drink for now."
He raised his shot glass and pointed it at the distant shrine.
The bright moon hangs overhead, and twinkling stars surround us.
Gojo Satoru raised his beautiful blue eyes and looked at the starry night sky. He felt that this scene was not as unchanging as described in the book - perhaps it was he who had changed, not the starry sky.
"A thousand years... is a reincarnation, right?" After the long-haired man drank the wine in the glass, a layer of red appeared visibly from his neck to his face. He was still the so-called drunkard, but his words were still quite clear after being drunk.
"There is such a legend," Ieiri Shoko replied, "but who knows whether it is true or not?"
"I hope it's true." Xia Yujie laughed, "It would be great to meet you and become friends a thousand years later. Besides, maybe I can thank you in person by then."
"It's a bit troublesome, but someone has to keep an eye on you two idiots." Ieiri Naoko shook her wine glass, "It will be the same a thousand years from now."
"Then it's a deal—" Gojo Satoru raised his voice with a perfect curve at the corner of his lips, "We'll meet again after a thousand years of reincarnation."
Under the moonlight, they raised their glasses and drank together.
Later, a long time passed. Many stories happened in the long years.
The former head of the Zenin family died unexpectedly in a battle with a curser, and the Zenin family had no successor who could take on the responsibility.
So after going around in circles, they found Fushiguro Megumi, who had left the Zenin family in the first place, and invited the master of ten kinds of shadow magic to return to the family to inherit the seat.
At first, Fushiguro Megumi was not very interested in the position of head of the family, but after careful consideration, he finally returned to the Zenin family and became the head of the family, Zenin Megumi.
Kugizaki No Rose pulled the other party and said that such a big event must be celebrated properly.
However, neither of them wanted to stay at the Zenin's house, so they simply found an ordinary restaurant in Heian-kyō and asked for a small private room.
After growing up, they each have their own things to do, and it has been a long time since they got together like this, had a peaceful meal and had a simple chat.
Kugizaki Norose rested her hand on her chin, her eyes wandering as she said casually, "Teachers are always in groups of three, and our seniors were also in groups of three, so why are we in groups of two? I always feel like there's one missing."
Fushiguro Megumi didn't show any special expression. He said calmly, "In fact, most of them are solo groups."
"Hey, what's the matter? You must feel honored to have studied with me! In this era, it's rare to be a famous sorcerer!"
Kugizaki No Rose pretended to slap the table, her tone quite bold and unrestrained.
Fushiguro Megumi smiled inconspicuously, and then he continued with his previous question: "Maybe. It seems like there is a feeling of missing someone."
"I told you so—" Kugizaki Norose leaned back and sighed, "We should form a trio someday. It would be best if the one with the other is a lively guy who is as enthusiastic and caring as a dog."
"I agree." Dog-loving Fushiguro Megumi nodded silently. In his heart, "dog" is the highest adjective.
"I hope that in the next life - if there is a next life," Kugizaki Norose joked, "we can form a fierce trio."
"Maybe," Fushiguro Megumi said, "maybe in a thousand years."
“Eh——?! A thousand years??”
"I heard from Gojo-sensei that a thousand years is a cycle."
"Huh?" Kugizaki Norose pouted. "Can we really trust what that guy said? It feels like something out of a storybook."
"But, if there really is such a thing as a thousand-year cycle," she smiled like a blooming flower, "you, me, and the missing future teammate must become the best trio."
Fushiguro Megumi nodded slightly, his blue-green eyes showing a serious look, and said calmly, "Of course."
After two or three seconds, Kugizaki No Rose began to think: "Then you two will carry my bag on my left and right and act as my guardians. I will become a famous person in the world of sorcery."
"...No, I refuse."
"I said—"
"refuse."
Friends are bickering back and forth.
A breeze blew in from the window, shaking the bouquets of flowers piled decoratively against the wall, and a small cluster of knotweed flowers floated gently to the empty space next to it.
…
Later, a long time passed through the time gate. However, no one carefully counted the number of years that had passed.
Still wearing his family crest and gold-edged kimono with the seven-star pattern, Gojo Satoru stood in the woods near the shrine. On weekdays, when he was annoyed by the elders, he would come here for a walk.
The rotten oranges are deeply rooted in the world of sorcery, but Gojo Satoru has also changed some of the rules in his own way, and those high-level sorcery guys can no longer act as recklessly as they once did.
The quiet forest is a great place for Nagato Gojo to relax.
Sometimes, he would mutter random things to the empty woods. It was just pure soliloquy, and he didn't need to respond.
Occasionally, he would think back to the past.
People will experience many mistakes in their life. Some mistakes will bring about a better reunion after a long separation, while some mistakes will linger in the heart and become an obsession that cannot be let go for half a lifetime.
Gojo Satoru feels that he is not the kind of person who would dwell on "missings" for too long or indulge in too many emotions.
He rationally knew that what he had to grasp and would definitely grasp was everything at the moment.
However, at certain moments, he would feel that there were still regrets in this life, like a moon that could never be completely full.
Okay, okay, regrets are normal. Who doesn't have regrets in this world? Even the strongest will have regrets. After all, the strongest is still human. These are nothing big.
He would tell himself this.
Then, in the next second, a sentence that has been lingering for a long time will emerge in my mind.
——But he still owes me a few stories, and I haven't asked his name yet.
The man with long white hair looked out at the vast forest with his beautiful blue eyes. He knew that his friend was there.
In the swaying leaves at the forest gate, in the dew reflected by the sunlight, on the fluff swaying in the wind. One day, the other person will appear here again, shaking that old book, smiling.
But maybe he won't be able to wait for it in this lifetime.
Then wait for reincarnation for a thousand years. Changfa Gojo thought. After such a long time, it's time for you to wake up, right?
By then, all the regrets left in this life will be made up.
——
So, after a thousand years of passing, and great changes have taken place in the world,
That day, the young Rokugan who came to the shrine to seek shelter looked at the figure and asked subconsciously:
"Who are you?"
That day, the young man with black hair and brown eyes placed the ancient book against his lips, smiled gently, and said softly:
"Let me tell you a few stories."
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