Chapter 54: Through the Dark Realm
A subtle flick of her will made the Void-Severing Glaive appear in Su Yao’s hand hand. Its obsidian blade seemed to drink the light from the room. She held it aloft, allowing the man to feel the weight of its primordial energy that promised absolute division.
“This explains everything,” she said. Her voice was flat. “It severs bonds, spiritual or physical. The oni’s regeneration and the fox’s illusions were irrelevant.”
The man’s eyes widened. He actually leaned back in his chair, a low whistle escaping his lips. “Wow. A genuine demonic divine weapon. I've only seen replicas in auctions. No wonder you made such short work of them.”
He straightened up, all business now. “Alright, you've proven your worth. What do you want to know about the Hundred Demons?”
“How do they travel between here and Tokyo?” Su Yao asked, dismissing the glaive back to her spiritual repository. “Conventional teleportation is unstable across national borders.”
“They use the Dark Realm,” the man explained, steepling his fingers. “It’s a spiritual plane that exists as a juncture between the Real World and the Netherworld. Think of it as a hidden highway that bypasses normal space-time.
He paused, eyes flicking briefly toward the window as if checking for unseen listeners.
“It’s invisible to ordinary humans, but cultivators and supernatural entities can access it with the right keys or artifacts. The Hundred Demons have set up hidden gates at strategic points. One of them is near here, disguised as an old shrine. They use it to move personnel and resources quickly without alerting authorities.”
Su Yao’s mind raced. The Dark Realm sounded like a risky shortcut, but it fit with what she knew of the Yamato’s methods. “How do I find this gate?”
“I can give you the coordinates,” the man said, pulling out a tablet and tapping on it. “But fair warning, it’s heavily guarded by their elites. You'll need more than that fancy glaive to get through unnoticed.” He slid the tablet across the desk, displaying a map with a pulsating red dot. “Since we're friends now, let’s call it even.”
Her expression was unreadable as she took the tablet. “If this information is faulty, I'll be back for that kidney after all.”
She turned to leave, already planning her next move. The Dark Realm might be the key to reaching Tokyo and confronting the new Demon Queen. But first, she needed to deal with the guards.
The coordinates led Su Yao to the most nondescript, forgotten corner of the city. It was a narrow alleyway choked with weeds and reeking of stale urine. According to the map, the shrine was right here.
But only crumbling brick walls stood here. “It’s really hidden.”
Her spiritual sense flared out like a sonar pulse. She could feel the edges of a powerful cloaking array, one that folded something away, tucking it into a pocket of space that most senses would simply slide over. It was a masterwork of misdirection.
“A pain to break through without alerting everyone inside.”
After several minutes of meticulous probing, she found the seam in the spatial fold. With a precise application of spiritual energy, she parted it like pushing aside a heavy curtain.
The air shimmered and the brick wall dissolved, revealing a small, immaculately kept courtyard. At its center stood a simple but elegant stone shrine. Her eyes immediately went to the inscription on the gate.
Shrine of Taiyin Xingjun.
“Fuck,” Su Yao breathed out.
The word was heavy with exasperation. Of all the deities for the Yamato to use as a cover, it had to be the Moon Goddess. The very same celestial bureaucrat whose secret tryst with the Jade Emperor had indirectly led to her centuries of cursed alcoholism.
This was a personal insult.
At least the two elite guards flanking the shrine stayed still instead of attacking. They dressed impeccably in tailored black suits. Their spiritual auras were tightly contained and professional. As Su Yao stepped through the parted veil, they simply bowed in unison. Their movements were perfectly synchronized.
“Welcome,” the one on the left said. His voice was a neutral monotone. “Your presence was expected. The conduit is prepared for your journey to the Tokyo branch.”
They think I'm one of them. Or someone important they were told to expect.
She gave a curt, arrogant nod, the kind a high-level executive might give to underlings. “Good. The schedule is tight. Lead the way.”
The guards exchanged a glance, their questions unspoken. “Of course. Right this way.”
They turned and began walking toward the stone shrine. As she followed, Su Yao’s eyes scanned the area. The entire courtyard was a focal point of lunar energy, a direct tap into Taiyin Xingjun’s domain. Using the Moon Goddess’s power to fuel a covert transport network was a level of audacious blasphemy she could almost respect.
It was also a glaring vulnerability, if one knew how to exploit it.
The guard on the right gestured to the shrine’s offering box. “Please state your designation and destination for the log.”
Su Yao looked him dead in the eye. Her voice was flat and commanding. “Designation: Jade Purity Maiden. Destination: Hundred Demons Headquarters, Tokyo.” It was a gamble, layering one misconception on top of another.
The guard nodded. He pressed a hand to the stone, and chanted a low invocation. The air before the shrine rippled, tearing open a vertical slit of absolute darkness that shimmered with faint, cold starlight. Then the entrance to the Dark Realm opened.
“Safe travels,” both guards said, bowing again.
Idiots, Su Yao thought, stepping through the tear without a backward glance.
The spatial fold closed behind her, plunging her into the silent, star-dusted void of the hidden highway. She had secured the first leg of the journey.
Now, for the welcoming committee on the other side.
The Dark Realm was a disorienting void, a corridor of whispering shadows and cold starlight that stretched between worlds. As Su Yao moved through it, her thoughts turned to the practicalities of her impending arrival in Tokyo.
The only Japanese I know is ‘Korosanai yo.’ Hardly useful for asking directions or demanding an audience. She grimaced. I could try English, but from what I've heard, the Japanese butchered it into ‘Engrish.’ All mispronounced words and confusing grammar.
Then she remembered the Yamato was a multinational conglomerate, a chaotic mix of factions and nationalities. If they're truly global, they must have English speakers, or at least people used to dealing with foreigners. I'll just pretend to be a mysterious outsider. It might even work in my favor.
With that decided, she focused on the journey. Traveling through the Dark Realm felt like walking through a dream. The laws of physics were fuzzy there. Time seemed to stretch and compress. After what felt like both an instant and an eternity, a light appeared ahead, swelling into a gateway similar to the one she had entered.
Su Yao stepped through. The silent void vanished, replaced by the humid, neon-drenched air of Tokyo night.
She found herself in a narrow alley behind what looked like a high-end sushi restaurant named Kurotora, just as Dōman had said. Two figures in black suits stood guard by a back door. Their auras were sharp and vigilant.
They turned as she emerged, hands moving to hidden weapons.
Su Yao strode forward, projecting an aura of unshakable authority. “I am here for the audience with the new Demon Queen,” she said in clear English. Her tone implied that any delay would be met with violence.
The guards exchanged glances. One, a tall man with a scar across his cheek, replied in heavily accented but understandable English, “You are expected? Your name?”
“Jade Purity Maiden,” Su Yao said, using the title the Wild Hunt had mistaken her for. She kept her expression neutral, though internally she noted that the “Engrish” wasn't as bad as she'd feared. These were professionals, after all.
The scarred guard nodded and spoke into a wrist communicator in rapid Japanese. After a moment, he gestured for her to follow. “This way. Please leave your weapons at the door.”
Su Yao almost laughed. As if I'd part with my glaive.
But she simply nodded, knowing that any weapons check would be futile against her spiritual storage. They led her through the restaurant’s bustling kitchen where chefs in white uniforms worked silently, ignoring them, and into a hidden elevator that descended deep underground.
As the elevator doors opened, she was met with a stark, modern lobby that looked more like a corporate office than a demonic lair. People in business attire moved purposefully, some with visible non-human traits like tails or horns, all speaking a mix of Japanese and English.
So much for the Yamato being a pure Japanese invasion force, she thought. This is just another soulless multinational company with better décor.
A woman in a sharp pantsuit approached, tablet in hand. “Welcome, Ms. Maiden. The CEO will see you now.” She gestured toward a set of double doors. “But I must warn you. She is quite particular about her introductions.”
Su Yao raised an eyebrow. “CEO? I thought this was the Hundred Demons.”
“It is,” the woman said with a plastic smile. “But we prefer corporate titles. It streamlines operations.”
Shaking her head, Su Yao pushed through the doors, ready to face whoever was on the other side. The double doors swung open to reveal a sleek, minimalist office with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Tokyo’s skyline.
A woman stood with her back to Su Yao, staring out at the neon-lit city. She wore a sharply tailored white pantsuit. Her hair was an impeccable silver bob. The woman spoke without turning. Her voice was a mix of irritation and expectation. “Finally. I was beginning to think they'd gotten the order wrong. Just put the pizza on the desk. Extra anchovies, right?”
Su Yao froze for a fraction of a second. Pizza? She assessed the woman quickly. The CEO or whatever she was radiated power, a dense, ancient aura that felt oceanic and deep, but looked Japanese. So she’s not Kali. Then who...?
“There have been complications,” Su Yao said. Her voice was steady as she decided to ride the absurdity. “Shuten Dōji intercepted the delivery. The pizza was lost.”
The woman spun around. Her eyes widened in surprise. She looked Su Yao up and down, taking in her complete lack of a delivery uniform or a pizza box. A slow, impressed smile spread across her face.
“You survived an encounter with Shuten Dōji? And you still came here? That is impressive. He may be a drunken lout, but he is still one of Japan’s Great Three Calamities like my husband.”
“Your husband?” Su Yao asked, her mind racing through the legends. If Shuten Dōji was one, and Tamamo-no-Mae was another...
“Otakemaru, of course,” the CEO said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. She gestured to a framed scroll on the wall depicting a terrifying, horned samurai demon wreathed in storm clouds. “Though he’s been indisposed for a few centuries.”
“Sorry for your loss,” Su Yao said automatically. The polite words left her mouth before she could fully process the bizarre situation.
The CEO waved a dismissive hand. Her smile remained. “Oh, don't be. I'm the one who killed him, after all.”
She leaned against her desk, examining her perfect manicure. “It took three years of pretending to be his doting wife to learn all his secrets. The final battle was almost anticlimactic.
“You'd be surprised how soft a demon lord’s skin gets when he lets his guard down around someone he trusts. A little poison in his nightly sake, a specific cursed seal applied during a, moment of vulnerability, and poof. No more Otakemaru.”
Su Yao stared. Her mind struggled to categorize what she was hearing. This was a nest of legendary betrayals run by a woman who treated marital homicide as a strategic career move. What in the world did I just walk into?
The CEO’s expression then shifted to one of genuine, professional concern. “But are you okay? Shuten Dōji is no joke. Do you need medical assistance? We have an excellent on-site clinic. Our health insurance package is one of the best in the supernatural corporate sector.”
She gestured to a door marked with a medical cross.
Her offer was so jarringly, bureaucratically kind that Su Yao was momentarily thrown. In that moment, Li Xuan’s words echoed in her memory, the ones from the movie that had once filled her with such rage: “All truly strong people are kind.”
This CEO had killed one of Japan’s Great Calamities through years of meticulous, intimate deception. Now, she commanded a multinational occult corporation. She was offering a complete stranger health insurance. The sheer, terrifying dissonance of it all drove Li Xuan’s statement home with more force than any righteous hero ever could.
Is this what he meant? Su Yao wondered. A chill ran down her spine. That true strength is about the absolute, unshakeable confidence to be kind because you know you can afford to be? Because you know you can always just kill them later if you need to?
“I'm fine,” Su Yao managed. Her voice was slightly hoarse. “The oni was an inconvenience.”
“Good,” the CEO said. Her smile returned. “Then let’s talk business. You're clearly not a pizza delivery girl. So who are you, and why are you in my office?” Her violet eyes held a glint that was both hospitable and utterly merciless.
“I am Mizukume,” she said, using the name Kayo had adopted, though it felt strange on her tongue. “Tamamo-no-Mae’s cousin. I was curious to see who managed to beat her to the coveted CEO position.” She kept her tone light, almost casual, but her senses were alert for any sign of suspicion.
The CEO’s eyebrows rose in recognition. “Mizukume? I see. The family resemblance is uncanny.” She stepped forward, offering a hand. “I am Suzuka Gozen. It’s a pleasure to meet a relative of Tamamo's, even if she did apply for my job.”
She paused, her head tilting. “But why are we speaking English? If you're Tamamo’s cousin, I would assume you'd be fluent in Japanese. Your accent is perfect, yet you haven't uttered a single word of it.”
Su Yao shrugged, forcing a self-deprecating smile. “I've spent most of my life abroad. Mostly in India, and then Europe. My Japanese is rusty, and I didn't want to accidentally insult you with a poorly chosen honorific or a grammatical slip. Business conversations are tricky enough without language barriers causing misunderstandings.”
It was a flimsy excuse, but delivered with enough confidence to sound plausible.
Suzuka laughed, a sound like wind chimes. “How considerate! Don't worry, I'm not easily offended. Still, English is fine. We're a global company, after all.” She gestured to a sleek sofa. “Please, sit. Can I offer you a drink? We have excellent sake, or perhaps something stronger?”
“No, thank you,” Su Yao said. Her voice was even but firm. “I don't drink anymore.”
The refusal was simple, but it hung in the air between them, weighted with a significance that Suzuka Gozen seemed to instantly sense. Although the CEO’s perfectly composed expression remained, her violet eyes sharpened, analyzing Su Yao with renewed interest.
“Oh?” Suzuka murmured, placing her own untouched glass back on the desk. “A curious choice for one of your lineage. Giving up the cup is no small thing. Especially given the legendary thirst of the celestial fox.”
She let the matter rest, but the unspoken question was clear: Why?
Su Yao stayed silent. The decision was too new, too deeply personal, and too tied to the shattering revelation about Li Xuan and her own cursed existence. To discuss it here, with this ruthlessly charming stranger, would be like handing her a weapon.
Suzuka, ever the adept corporate player, smoothly shifted gears. “A commendable discipline. It must clarify the mind wonderfully.”
She smiled, a gesture that was both approving and subtly calculating. “Then, perhaps we can discuss why you're really here, now that your mind is so clear. The new Demon Queen, was it? Or is this about your cousin’s wounded pride?”
Suzuka’s polished smile finally wavered, replaced by a look of genuine, almost weary bemusement. She let out a soft sigh, turning to gaze back out at the sprawling Tokyo skyline.
“To be perfectly honest with you,” she said, her voice losing its corporate sheen and taking on a more contemplative tone, “I myself don't fully understand why I was hired for this particular, role.” She glanced back at Su Yao.
Her violet eyes seemed to look through her, into some distant past. “I am Suzuka Gozen. A celestial maiden, a sword-bearing attendant of the heavenly court. My nature is order, clarity, divine mandate. Not this.”
She gestured vaguely at the sleek, demonic corporate office. “I only became associated with the ‘demonic’ because I married a Demon King. It was a strategic decision, a means to an end. Once that end was achieved,” she trailed off, leaving Otakemaru’s fate unspoken but clear.
Suzuka turned fully back to Su Yao. Her expression was frank. “They headhunted me. The Yamato board. They saw ‘Demon King’s Widow’ on my resume and decided that qualified me to lead their Hundred Demons. It’s absurd, like hiring a lion tamer to be the CEO of a zoo because they once got a lion to sit on a stool.”
She shrugged elegantly. “The compensation package was exceptional, and it beats being eternally bored in the celestial plains. So here I am, a celestial maiden, playing the part of a Demon Queen in a multinational occult conglomerate.”
Her voice dropped as she leaned forward slightly. “But it makes me wonder, doesn't it? If they hired me, someone whose very essence is anathema to true chaos, what does that say about their actual goals? This ‘Hundred Demons’ might be a misdirection. A label for something else entirely.”
Su Yao listened. The pieces shifted in her mind. A celestial being, weaponized by a corporation, presiding over a faction outside her own. It was a level of irony Li Xuan would have appreciated. Also, it perfectly illustrated his maddening maxim that true strength was about transcending label. Suzuka was powerful enough to redefine a role entirely, all while questioning its very premise.
“So,” Su Yao said slowly, “you're upper management.”
Suzuka’s laugh was genuine this time. “Precisely. If you're looking for the real power, I suggest you look deeper. Frankly,” she admitted, “even I'm not entirely sure who, or what, is pulling the strings above me.”