Chapter 290 - To Deal with a Demon King

Yuzu rejected Jun Yi Kong’s offer immediately, causing a silence to fall over the chamber.

“I’ll be honest with you,” Yuzu said with an apologetic smile, “I don’t know the first thing about the seal that is trapping you here. I can’t promise that I can release you, even if I tried.”

“However, I’m willing to try.” Yuzu said seriously, staring up at the statue with a firm gaze as she let the words settle.

These words put Jun Yi Kong into a difficult situation, but he couldn’t argue because she was speaking the truth.

Even if he thinks I have the ability to break the seal, he’s already derided my abilities enough that it gives me an easy excuse. Even subconsciously he’s inclined to believe I lack the power to help him. Yuzu analyzed calmly. However, if I’m reading him correctly, he is considering the possibility that I’m his only hope. In which case he can’t afford to break contact with me.

“Take a look at the seal, then.” Jun Yi Kong said with a measured tone, “And tell me what you can do.”

Yuzu turned her attention to the strings in the chamber. The golden threads glittered softly, secured in place in a three dimensional cage that reminded Yuzu of an extremely intricate birdcage. Rather than flowing in the air like fabric, the threads more were like wires, arranged in a complex structure full of concentric circles, spirals and neatly arranged cables that pulsed gently with energy.

Each statue in the cage was encased in a set of concentric spheres of the golden wires which gathered into a thick cord that spiralled around the outside of the sphere. The chords extended from each statue to the monstrous statue which formed the center of an even more complex sphere.

Yuzu picked the cord of one statue to follow, trying to trace the strings around the central sphere, but she quickly grew dizzy from the sheer complexity of the construction. Each loop, each twist of the thread seemed to be carefully and intentionally crafted for reasons beyond Yuzu’s comprehension.

The strings wound themselves in complex shapes and forms, and Yuzu identified several ‘shapes’ that repeated themselves across the overall construct. For example, there was a shape that had thick, heavy wires that wound around a central core in a tightly looped spiral. There were four ‘spiral cores’ around each statue, that connected with the concentric spheres.

What those spiral cores did was beyond Yuzu’s ability to guess.

There were two main sphere shapes that Yuzu identified. One sphere was formed from a cable that formed a neat spiral. Each statue had four such spiral spheres, and the center cage had sixteen. These spiral spheres seemed to form the main body of the whole seal, as if they were the structural support for the entire construction.

The other sphere shape shape was a set of interlinked rings that formed a sphere. These ringed spheres encircled not just the statues, but there were also smaller ones that encircled individual portions of the cage such as the ‘spiral cores’.

At first Yuzu thought the ringed spheres did not carry any energy within them, as she didn’t feel any pulsing sensation from them the way she did from other parts of the cage. However, after a while she realized that the ringed spheres were actually absorbing energy within it and preventing that energy from escaping.

Yuzu spent quite a bit of time on these ringed spheres, feeling something familiar about the energy of the shape. She eventually realized that there was an element of concealment as well embedded into the construct, similar to Argus’ powers and the energy in the basement of his import shop.

So this shape might be an anti-divination mechanism… Preventing Jun Yi Kong and this pocket space from being discovered by others?

There was also a piece of the cage that wasn’t connected to any statue. It was intricate, but felt strangely out of place though Yuzu could not discern why she felt this way. It had three layers of spiral spheres, two spiral cores and no ringed sphere around it. The cords from this piece attached to one of the inner ringed spheres around the central statue, but didn’t seem to interact with any other pieces of the cage.

A few hours passed as Jun Yi Kong let Yuzu analyze the structure without interruption.

Eventually Yuzu relaxed, sighing softly from mild exhaustion.

As I thought, it’s beyond my ability. Yuzu was calm as she confirmed what she already intuitively knew. After all, she didn’t actually need to comprehend the seal. Her goals were not dependent on her current ability to help the Demon King. Rather, it was her future potential that she planned to use to her advantage.

Still, it was important to know where she stood, and just because she couldn’t comprehend the workings of the seal right now didn’t mean it wouldn’t be valuable in the future.

From what I can tell there are three main components… Yuzu summarized in her mind. First, the sphere around the central statue. This is probably the main part of the seal that contains Jun Yi Kong. Then, the spheres around the statues of the saints. These probably feed the main sphere. Maybe as an energy source? Finally, there’s that strange part that isn’t connected to anything…

The sun was rising in the physical world as Yuzu reached out to Jun Yi Kong’s silver thread.

“As I thought, it’s too complex for me. However I think with time I may be able to understand it better.” Yuzu said.

“You are but a mortal, I should have known better than to entertain the idea.” Jun Yi Kong growled with disatisfaction, “Your words are nothing but an empty promise.”

“Still, it’s what I can offer.” Yuzu replied calmly without any excuse or apology.

Jun Yi Kong was unable to respond.

“For now, I propose we work together.” Yuzu said, “If you help me, I will help you. I have no connection to the Goddess of Fate or Her followers, your deal with Her is between you and Her. If her followers show up in the future, then perhaps you won’t need me anymore. However until then, I think we can both benefit from cooperation.”

Yuzu stated the facts plainly, pointing out her own weaknesses to Jun Yi Kong clearly and giving him no way to refute her proposal. There was no denying that if Akahi’s followers showed up here Yuzu would have no bargaining power anymore. However that was a problem for the future.

“Right now, we are being chased by another guru-chi— The same one that we fought at the top of the cliff, that destroyed the ritual site. If he catches up to us, we will probably die.” Yuzu stated, “The guru-chi I am with said he has a way to escape, but he needs Nilya to return to the physical world. I believe you can help with that. Furthermore, he will likely only protect me if Nilya returns with a hollow ember.”

Jun Yi Kong listened without response. The mountain was silent as Yuzu laid out her offer to him.

“With the sending ritual not working anymore, the other thing I’ll need is a way to return here.” Yuzu said, “If you give me a way to return to this place, when I am able I will come to analyze the seal more. I also have friends in Kumin that may have knowledge to help, if I can eventually return there.”

The friends Yuzu had in mind were Argus, the Keeper of Knowledge, and Li Ru, Angel of Death. She was sure that their interest would be piqued upon hearing about an ancient evil sealed away somewhere.

Of course, Yuzu wasn’t particularly interested in releasing an ancient evil upon the world, however that was a problem which she could handle in the future. For now, returning to her body and helping Nilya successfully complete his trial was her priority.

Jun Yi Kong’s original proposal gave her those things, in return for his release. However now he was asked to give them to her for nothing but the promise of future cooperation.

No, in fact she was even asking him for one more thing— a method for her to return to the pocket space on her own initiative.

If Yuzu had simply rejected his proposal and bluntly demanded for him to send her back with Nilya and the hollow ember, he would have been insulted. He would have felt like Yuzu was taking advantage of her position and squeezing out benefits from him.

However Yuzu had put in a sincere effort to understand the seal and analyze her capability of following through on his ultimate request. She clearly laid out her intentions and requirements. She even considered Jun Yi Kong’s existing deal with the Goddess of Fate.

Jun Yi Kong could not fault any of Yuzu’s logic. In fact, he felt that Yuzu’s proposal was both fair and reasonable.

He recalled how Akahi had treated him with a mixture of caution and fear. Even at her most desperate she was guarded against him, only agreeing to what she needed to in order to obtain his cooperation.

This mortal girl was different. She was giving Jun Yi Kong nothing but promises in return for his material assistance, and yet he still found himself inclined to accept her offer.

“Very well, Little Yuzu.” Jun Yi Kong said with a rumbling chuckle, “I agree to your terms.”