"Finally! After these rugged 2 weeks, I am back!"
From the mountainous region to the Lightning peaks, Yoichi returned with the 4 gods sealed inside the evil sealing pot. There's only one word to describe his journey: rock. In the mountains, there are people digging rocks for valuable minerals while unexpectedly not knowing the Earth God slept beneath the rugged mountains. While in the cloudy peaks, lightning strikes were obvious due to the engulfing ranges, unable to let go of the clouds as the Lightning God slept well with a back massage from the thunderous weather.
In both scenery, the stunning view of sky-high peaks and the quality of fresh air were different than the fertile lands. The atmosphere's rock formation and years of harsh climate made the mountains even more refined like iron-scented, it was gorgeous with the orange glow of the sun going up and down was exquisite to the sight.
So far, so good, the expedition was over.
"Well, guess who's back? I thought you never come back to us. Any news about the journey? Or about those 'divine' beings?" Satomi smirked and hugged him tightly like a monkey while the rest caught the wind of Yoichi's return.
All of them rushed to hug him tightly as the suffocating pressure of these familiar figures buried him in the ground, Yoichi merely smiled.
"I am only gone 2 weeks! And all of you are acting like this. Isn't this a little bit crazy?"
"But we miss you~ Anyway, what happened?" Satomi and the others gleamed curiously.
"... Can you let me get up? I can't explain my situation if all of you are pinning me to the ground as if I am a criminal or something!" Yoichi glared at them while the rest stood up and cheekily smiled.
"There's nothing new. It's just desert, rocks, and a bunch of lightning trademarks out of these lands. Heck, those mountains did not even have a specialty or rather a new thing! What? Should I give you are rock souvenir or a lightning?" Yoichi sneered as the rest's mood instantly became downcast as if betrayed by high expectations.
"Nevertheless, let's test the children's aptitude!" Yoichi excitedly scooped his children and rushed back into a similar house without any intervention.
The rest perked their ears and raised eyebrows. Testing the talents of the children at the age of what? 6 months? That's completely brand-new in their minds, especially the trial-taker wives of his.
"What are you going to do with these strange things on the floor?" Maki inquired, thoroughly baffled by her husband's uncommon ritual.
A bunch of items and goods including a wooden sword, a book, a paintbrush, a computer monitor, test tubes, and many other bizarre commodities scattered across the floor like a messy room.
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime event for our Murakami Clan, the Trial of Talents! It is based on their talents and potential for future endeavors. Here, we can see their subconscious mind to look whatever they wanted to have... It's a curiosity of a child! Their talents, hobbies, enjoyment, all of these things could be their key toward their prospects..."
Yoichi explained the trial while putting Harumi in the center of the items. His daughter's eyes glowed in sheer interest in the commodities near her yet she ignored some of its disliked things. Then, Harumi picked a cube, a stopwatch, and a net.
"Yoichi! What does it mean? Explanation?! Give me an answer!" Satomi shook Yoichi's shoulder incessantly. Understandable since she's the mother and was curious about her daughter's latent abilities.
"A SpaceTime Hunter... Wow, she's gonna be so adventurous one day!" Yoichi was genuinely surprised. A kid with a spacetime talent was something he never expected and a hunter too.
"Is that even rare? Or very powerful?" Maki glared at him, revealing the Asian mom's Bloodline. She wants her daughter to be the greatest, especially against Satomi's daughter. A rivalry even passed among the children.
"Well, it's rare to have spacetime talents, primarily due to the quote 'Space was the king, time is supreme'. Which means it was so valuable and rare even in the cosmos..." Yoichi's explanation made Satomi hug her daughter lovingly with a smug smile on her face.
"Next! Our daughter, Midori!" Yoichi noticed Maki's determined eyes like beaming lasers and shook his head in disbelief. Midori's eyes felt focused on the three things without any hesitation: a wooden heart, a body mannequin, and a soul lamp.
"What an exceptional child!" Yoichi took Midori in his arms along with the toys while Midori's shining eyes looked at him and said "Dada!" melting Yoichi's heart instantly, barraging his daughter with kisses on the cheek.
"Yoichi! Explain her talents!" Looking at the joyful state, Maki sighed in relief and demanded a description of Midori's talent.
"Yooo chill out. It's Trinity Force, one of the best talents out there in the cosmos! Also, it was equal to the SpaceTime talent that Harumi had. However, you two should calm down and let my daughters out of your calculations, alright? I don't want any kind of debacle or problems between my daughters, understand?" Yoichi warned the two rivals while Satomi and Maki were banging heads to heads against each other like a bull.
Yoichi shook his head and took Harumi away from Satomi, filling his head with a delightful smile on his face and satisfied with her daughters' talents.
Therefore, the trial passed smoothly with Kenshin's Sword Demon talents and Miyako's Sun and Moon Priestess. Both talents were too good and significant in their potential as Murakami Clan heirs. If they didn't meet their future selves and strayed off the path, it's fine for Yoichi. After all, to learn from mistakes, someone must fail first. With the overabundance of resource materials, it's safe to assume that his kids would be the best in their respective jobs and reputation for their talents and determination.
Afterward, Yoichi and the rest ate their food in relish as laughter and happiness soared in the atmosphere, a mood for a satisfied family.
->->->->->->->->->->->->->->->->->->->
In an instant, 2 years passed. Time was too quick for bored people like the Murakami Clan to unexpectedly ignore the time with the joyful moments and scenes around the house yet something was happening out there that Yoichi's unaware of.
"HAHAHAHA! So what now, 3 great monks? No matter what happens, I, Jashin, will be back once more while you 3 are old decrepit creatures heavily injured by your one and only, Jashin! Wait for my eventual return, three sacred monks, it will be a cataclysmic event with my ascension to immortality and godhood! HAHAHAHAHA!"
The soul form left the scene with his wicked speech while the supposedly 3 monks lay down on the ground, heavily panting due to multiple evident circumstances.
In three years, the Jashin Cult became one of the worst theocratic unions centered around sacrificing children and bloodbaths across the fertile lands. The monks decided to nip the tumor before they left the world and build a paradise for the dead, the Pure Land. It was painstakingly problematic to catch the leader yet they managed to kill his physical body, fighting ruthlessly against the undying nature of the leader, Jashin.
"Time's up... Bu... Chaiya..." The green-dressed monk sat down, still pale from the aftereffects, and looked at his comrades for the past decades.
Bu and Chaiya exchange glances, nodding in response as they also sit down without any words, pure natural energy beams through the atmosphere, skyrocketing in the starry night and unleashing devastating earthquakes across the lands beneath the fertile grounds.
In the last-ditch effort to defeat the devil, they killed his body yet a bittersweet sensation chimed in their mind, looking at a certain distance as their bodies eventually lightened up and remembered their recollections of an individual they wanted to meet in this time of their passing.
'Benefactor... We will leave this world in peace with your benevolent presence... I hope your journey to this world will become exciting and thrilling to experience... Thank you for everything...'
Three monks smiled at each other with peace of mind as the burden of the world was finally able to find its way into another person with capability.
->->->->->->->->->->->->->->
"Yoichi! The earthquakes intensely reverberate as if the world was torn asunder!" Maki and the rest narrowed their eyes while protecting the children and potential debris falling into them.
"Shit! This is not a normal earthquake! What is happening—" Yoichi scanned the harsh fluctuations until he grew unhappy and sighed in disbelief. The tremors gradually receded as the rest looked at his downcasted expression.
"The three monks are gone and accomplished their plans... However, I don't feel if I am gonna be happy or sad with this news..."
All of them were shocked at the moment. They knew the plan yet it was earlier than they expected it to be. Some of them lowered their heads and prayed for their passing as the monks laid down along with perseverance and the commitment to save the dead people from the hands of evil.
He smiled bitterly and remembered the past with their meet-ups, moments, and debates. Yoichi will never forget Ananada, Bu, and Chaiya in the history of this world for being compassionate and dutiful helpers, not by the Buddha but by the people.
A salute wouldn't be enough for their sacrifice as the spiritual essence they left was so tremendous, that it built a paradise for the people to enjoy their struggle even in death and it's called: Pure Land.
(A/N: sorry for the occasional delay in chapters, I will make sure to write even more and improve the inconsistencies so stay tuned! Thanks for reading XDD!)