Truth be told, Baishi Shū was slightly disappointed after hearing what Asada Senna said.
As a monk who had experienced 141 enlightenments, how was it possible that he had not developed a skill to restrict the movement of an evil spirit?
His physical strength was only at the level of an ordinary high schooler and he had considered many circumstances where the evil spirit attempted to run away. Therefore, to prevent that from happening, he had combined the scriptures and created a skill that could temporarily rob the targeted evil spirit of its ability to move.
However, he did not have the chance to put that skill into practice. He thought today was the day he finally could test it, but never did he expect that Miko Asada would turn down his offer to help her stall time.
'It seems like I can only make my appearance at the last moment,' Baishi Shū thought, sighing as he picked up the camera.
On the other hand, since she had spent so much time on training, Asada Senna hadn't been adequately prepared. As such, she could only act according to circumstances. Her panic soon subsided, for she remembered she still had Baishi Shū as backup. If anything went wrong, he would step in.
The only problem that might arise would be more people would call her "miko-chan" in her fan group.
'This is all for the purpose of entertainment! I just don't want to show my true strength yet, and I am not a loser!'
After she stashed a large stack of charms in her sling bag, she turned around to face the camera. Taking a deep breath, she pasted on a wide grin and her eyes turned into two crescents.
"Hello everyone, once again, welcome back to our channel, and this is the second episode of Midnight Ghost Hunting! Tonight, it will still be Baishi-san and I who will guide you through the entire process. As always, if anything bad happens, our dependable and trustworthy Baishi-san will step in and protect us. So, without further ado, let's get rolling. First of all, I will begin with the introduction of our target for today. Our target is known as the human-faced spirit. It used to be the pet of the owner of this animation studio before an accident happened and claimed its life…"
Since she was going to make a video, she had to record the entire process from start to finish, no matter how little time she had. However, she was unflustered. With a warm grin plastered across her face, she began talking, though she spoke a lot faster.
Baishi Shū was truly amazed by her unflappable behavior. At the same time, he realized how foolish he was for wanting to imitate her and shoot a similar exorcism video.
He wouldn't be able to do it even if he owned a consecrated camera. The reason was simple: he didn't have a way with words.
In his previous incarnation, Baishi Shū was considered a homebody. He was as dumb as an oyster. He often played with his phone at work and spent most of his time in front of a computer when he returned home. His life was boring and as dull as ditchwater. After he got reincarnated into this new world, his daily routine remained mostly the same. Other than reading scripture, learning, and training, he only interacted with ghosts and spirits. He was never a social person, so it was easy to imagine how embarrassing the scene would have been if the video had actually been shot…
Besides, would a video with ten minutes of awkward talk and one second of exorcism become popular? The answer was obviously no. Hence, the best solution for him right now was to cooperate with Asada Senna.
This way, he did not have to actively participate in the exorcism. All he had to do was play his role as a holy monk and step in when the situation called for it. Then, he would get the pay he deserved. It was a piece of cake.
He was immersed in his own thoughts, but he suddenly saw a shadow behind Asada Senna through the camera.
It was a Jinmenken with a grotesque face. Right now, it sprawled in the corner of the ceiling as it slowly approached them. This was apparently the culprit that caused the closure of Daemon Animation Studio for a week and sent several of its employees to the hospital.
Baishi Shū gestured to Asada Senna when he saw the human-faced spirit. Keeping the smile on her face, Asada Senna picked up her pace and summarized the things she wanted to say into several sentences, "We will be doing things a little different from last time. Since the Jinmenken just got turned into an evil spirit not too long ago, it will just roam about in this office building. We don't need to use the backflow incense to lure it or set up a trap to restrict it. All we have to do is wait for it to show itself and then destroy it! Just like this!"
With those words, Asada Senna turned around. At the same time, the Jinmenken let out a guttural growl and ran towards her at full speed while still on the ceiling.
The moment both of them locked eyes, Asada Senna made a motion with her hand and flung several charms towards the Jinmenken. As a dazzling light burst out, the Jinmenken growled painfully and recoiled several meters back.
'The Shinto's charm technique! No matter how many times I see it, it's still so cool,' Baishi Shū couldn't help but compliment.
Be that as it may, it's power did not do justice to its florid effect. Although the Jinmenken yelped and growled painfully after being hit by Asada Senna's volley of charms, its resentment and Yin energy were being purified at a very slow pace and the damage it received was extremely low.
That aside, at the very least, the superiority of the confrontation belonged to Asada Senna. As she fought the Jinmenken, she continued to explain what was going on to her "friends" in front of the camera.
"Maybe some of you will ask why we must eliminate this Jinmenken? Although it looked monstrous, it was simply just a pet during its lifetime. It ended up like this due to its attachment to its master, right? Well, let me explain it to all of you. There is a saying in Shintoism and Buddhism that goes like this: all ghosts and demons are evil. No matter how good-natured the ghosts and demons were before they died, the moment they get turned into either a ghost or a demon, what constitutes their body would be Yin energy and resentment. The Yin energy and resentment inside of their body accumulate and make them stronger as time passes. Their temperament undergoes drastic changes and they become excessively aggressive. They begin to yearn for the soul of the living and display antagonistic behavior towards us. Compared to humans and other living organisms, animals and wild beasts are amongst the most susceptible group towards these changes. They are easily controlled by their instincts and can harm the living. It is true that the Jinmenken may have been a docile pet, but over time, it will slowly lose all common sense and reason. By the time it's been completely taken over by its instinct, it will begin to wreak havoc across everything and everyone in its path, and it will be too late to stop it by then. As such, the only thing we can do right now is end its pain and help its soul to find peace…"
''All ghosts and demons are evil?' Why did the old abbot never tell me that?' Baishi Shū wondered.
He had never considered such a thing before when he was exorcising an evil spirit. Now, after listening to what Asada Senna had said, he suddenly saw the reason as to why some evil spirits would rather chase humans out of their territory than harm them, despite having the ability to do so.
'So that is how it is. Amitabha. I guess it is considered saving them as well for sending them to the Western Paradise before they commit something worse,' Baishi Shū felt gratified.
On the other side, Asada Senna's expression changed, and she stopped talking after she dove her hand into her sling bag.
She had been so immersed in the explanation that she hadn't realized that she had used up all her charms.
Although the Jinmenken looked weaker, its power did not diminish. It was enraged. Without the charm to stop it, it let out a roar and leaped towards Asada Senna.
"Baishi-san, save me!"
"On it," Baishi Shū replied.
Even though Asada Senna would still pay him, regardless of his participation in the exorcism, he felt relieved to be doing something.
Slowly and calmly, he stepped out from behind the camera and went to Asada Senna's front. Facing the Jinmenken, he stretched his arm outward. The Jinmenken could not stop in time and rammed headfirst into his palm.
"Rest in peace, Pi-chan."
A warm light erupted and the Jinmenken was gone. The traces it left behind disappeared as well, the wall returning to how it used to be.
Baishi Shū clasped his hand together and began chanting the Rebirth Mantra. Even if Pi-chan was a dog, it had still been a life.
He hoped he could be a docile dog in front of Buddha.
Asada Senna fell silent. She hadn't gotten the chance to look when Baishi Shū had exorcised the Onryo last time, so she opened her eyes.
She did not know how to explain her feelings when she saw Baishi Shū defeat the Jinmenken with one hit.