Long before Think had used every ounce of her strength to drag Sū ěr down from the Sea of Spirits burning with blue flames, their blood had already intermingled through the holes pierced in their bodies. It reached their abdominal cavities, flowed through their flesh, and permeated their entire beings. In that primordial sea that dissolved all, their physical bodies melted away. Except for their wills, which remained under Sū ěr power, everything else was assimilated into the purest essence of spirits.
And therein lay the root of the problem.
Like those who had already sacrificed themselves and completely lost their self-will, Think self-will was also gradually vanishing in that ocean of light, being assimilated toward Sū ěr essence—and that was precisely the future Sū ěr least wanted to see.
When the spirit oil used by the God of Forging to suppress the unknown thing in Sū ěr soul gradually lost its effect, Sū ěr existence became like a poison. Unlike the humans who had long since consumed his blood, Think was only recently exposed. However, just like the people Sū ěr could not save in the end, his presence was a toxin that, once tainted by it, one could never recover from—not even with the power of the One True God.
Upon realizing this, Sū ěr had no choice but to "stitch" Think soul to his own. He deceived his own power—which, though independent, could not change its nature—by conceptually viewing Think soul as a part of his own, originating from the same root but manifesting differently. Only then did he manage to stop things from heading toward the worst-case scenario.
While he still held the power of the One True God, Sū ěr could let Think move freely in the outside world. But now that he had lost that power and had spent too long traversing the gaps between worlds after being sent out by Tet, the current Sū ěr could no longer be so arrogant.
Sū ěr gazed at Think before him. She still wore the white robe from his deepest memories; every detail was present. If he reached out to touch her, he could still feel her hair sliding through his palm—yet she was translucent, radiating magnificent colors, an ethereal body as crystalline as emerald.
From the thighs down, her illusory form gradually merged into Sū ěr chest, but this was merely a location chosen at will; the connection between them had long since transcended physical limitations.
"Don't worry, I will definitely find a way... to let you walk upon the earth with your own strength," Sū ěr vowed with utmost solemnity, taking a deep breath.
"Eh? No, I wasn't complaining about my current state, you know?" After a brief moment of surprise, sensing the waves of emotion coming from his heart, Think smiled and drew close to Sū ěr. Her two translucent palms lightly cupped his cheeks. "Don't carry such a burden. If anything, I quite like this state of being in sync with your heart... never to be separated."
As their lips met and Sū ěr relaxed slightly, Think suddenly winked playfully and said with a mischievous grin, "But while this state is wonderful, occasionally I do crave physical pleasure too~... Hmm? For example..."
Amidst her suggestive words, Think hand gradually slid down Sū ěr chest, only to be firmly caught by the wrist in the next second.
"At least read the room! Don't start talking dirty during such a romantic and solemn moment!" Feeling quite exasperated, Sū ěr practically dragged the translucent Think, who was connected to him, back toward the bamboo house.
Aside from the time before they left the previous world, where they had done... quite a lot in that palace built of petals and wind, in this world, they could only huddle together in the ocean of souls... Well, regardless! How could she say such things so openly in broad daylight?!
Bang!
Slamming the bamboo door shut, Sū ěr felt he needed to brew himself a cup of green tea immediately.
Whether Yakumo Yukari was friend or foe could not yet be concluded. The stance of a yōkai with such grand ambitions was not something that could be determined in a few words. Nevertheless, her final warning was taken seriously by both Sū ěr and Think.
[Beware the Nine-Tailed Fox coming from the west. That haughty existence won't be as easy to talk to as a 'minor yōkai' like me~]—Was this truly a tip?
Was it a gesture of goodwill? Or a hidden trap?
Was she bullying Sū ěr and Think because they were "country bumpkin" outsiders?
They knew nothing.
Sū ěr could only try his best to recall the parts of his memory related to yōkai for Think, as well as various bizarre and illogical abilities.
First was the Nine-Tailed Fox—firstly, she must have nine tails. Uh, generally, it's a 'she' rather than a 'he'.
Beyond that, each of the fox's tails seemed to have a different ability, but Sū ěr couldn't remember what they were exactly. Moreover, some versions of the Nine-Tailed Fox didn't have that many abilities; Sū ěr vaguely remembered something about the tails being able to act as decoys or extra lives—losing a tail each time she died, like a gecko's tail.
Thinking of this, Sū ěr became uncertain again. Was the "extra lives" thing supposed to be for cat yōkai? The nine-lived cat, losing a tail for every death... Did the Nine-Tailed Fox have that ability? Or not? Or did she?
Furthermore, those were just Nine-Tailed Foxes from various stories. The one Yukari spoke of was a real yōkai in this world. In a world inhabited by gods, Sū ěr knew nothing about what kind of yōkai this fox was, how she appeared, or how she became so famous.
"This is hard..." Sitting on his bamboo porch and feeling the breeze, Sū ěr took a sip of tea and let out a long sigh. He then turned to Think beside him and asked, "Any thoughts?"
Sū ěr was referring to the unique abilities characteristic of yōkai, which were theoretically myriad—ranging from simple and crude manipulation of wind, water, and fire to complex things like resurrecting the dead or enchanting human hearts. Those were about the only examples he could think of at the moment.
"Doesn't this feel a bit more fun than the previous world?" Sū ěr said, stifling a laugh. "Come to think of it, in the old world, everyone just infinitely repeated the process of developing bigger bombs and blowing each other up. In terms of variety, it really can't compete, can it?"
"It was simply unnecessary," Think said, seeing through Sū ěr mischief with a raised eyebrow before slapping his leg, producing a crisp thwack.
"Instead of playing with these complex but weak tricks, I could use that time to develop a more powerful spell and directly crush the enemy along with all their little tricks—is there a problem?"
Pinch.