Chapter 3: Beyond the Sky, Greater Heights Await

Fengcheng University Affiliated Senior High School.

Second-year, Class A.

Qiao Qiao had just finished the morning classes, tidied up his textbooks, and headed to the cafeteria for lunch.

Since it was an affiliated senior high school, naturally, there was a main university.

Fengcheng University was located in Shinjuku, a renowned private university in Wa Country, and its main financial backers were rather remarkable.

The Meiji Shrine, Senso-ji Temple, and the Tokyo Onmyoji Bureau.

Shinto, Buddhism, and Onmyodo.

The three institutions had jointly funded the establishment of this university.

Aside from standard academic disciplines, Fengcheng University was most famous for its three departments under its banner: Shinto, Buddhist, and Onmyodo studies. Over seventy percent of exorcists across the nation graduated from Fengcheng University.

With such a prestigious main school, the affiliated senior high was naturally a gathering place for many talented youths.

“Hey, isn’t that Seimei Tsuchimikado from the Onmyoji Bureau? I heard he’s the youngest exorcist in all of Tokyo. I saw news about him in an entertainment magazine last time, and apparently, he’s still single.”

“Speaking of which, last week, Shoji Ii, the young master of Meiji Shrine, completed another exorcism. That spirit killed a lot of people—it was a particularly dangerous evil spirit.”

“Ahhh, isn’t that Miyoto Hoshikawa? The most formidable monk of the ‘Eternal’ generation at Senso-ji! He’s so handsome! When will I ever get to meditate with him on Zen riddles?”

Such figures were commonplace at Fengcheng University Affiliated Senior High.

Qiao Qiao was just an ordinary high school student in Wa Country, with no one paying him much attention.

He had no chance to work with those prodigies either.

Yet, from the fleeting feeling when passing them in the corridor—

Those three were incredibly strong.

Because Qiao Qiao could barely sense any spiritual power from them.

Which was only natural.

When one’s spiritual power reached a certain level, one naturally achieved unity with heaven and earth, returning to an unadorned state.

Having power, yet appearing as if one had none.

For instance, Qiao Qiao himself could already control his spiritual power at will, concealing it to a perfectly ordinary level.

Most exorcists would never notice anything special about him.

But for those whom even Qiao Qiao couldn’t discern the depth of their power, their strength was evident.

In fact, Qiao Qiao suspected—

There might be even more powerful individuals at this school, their presence so thoroughly erased that they were as unnoticeable as chairs or desks to the average person.

Qiao Qiao dared not recklessly probe the depths of others.

What if, with just a glance...

Suddenly, a dozen elite bodyguards would descend from the sky and obliterate him for his curiosity. That would be quite unpleasant.

So Qiao Qiao always kept a low profile.

Never ostentatious, never boastful.

After all, there is always a higher sky, and someone stronger.

...

Lunch was a pork cutlet set meal.

Crisply fried, golden on the outside, tender and juicy within.

A warming bowl of miso soup.

A side of pickled vegetables to whet the appetite.

Unlimited cabbage salad and white rice.

Such a set meal was designed with the daily nutritional needs of young people in mind.

Pork cutlet set was one of Qiao Qiao’s favorite lunches.

Not because it was cheap.

It cost only seven hundred yen.

But because it was balanced and nutritious.

And only seven hundred yen.

Sitting in the cafeteria, Qiao Qiao checked his bank balance on his phone.

Counting yesterday’s five hundred thousand yen, the total still hadn’t reached eight digits.

Qiao Qiao frowned deeply.

So poor.

Exorcising spirits was truly a money-burning profession; the fees paid by clients barely kept the books balanced.

For example, the Type-11 93mm anti-personnel rocket he used yesterday—imported through a friend—cost five hundred thousand yen. Adding his own modification expenses, the exorcism had resulted in a loss.

“...Five hundred thousand yen.”

Poverty gnawed at Qiao Qiao so much he didn’t even catch the conversation happening nearby.

“Hmm?”

Five hundred thousand yen?

Qiao Qiao looked up at the classmate beside him.

“What about five hundred thousand yen?”

“I mean, I heard Tsuchimikado-san’s appearance fee alone is five hundred thousand yen every time he takes a job. So enviable! If I had spiritual power, I’d study Onmyodo in a heartbeat.”

The boy in uniform was called Kazuya Sakamoto. He had naturally curly blond hair, and because he sat near Qiao Qiao in class, they occasionally had lunch together like this.

He had no spiritual power at all; his family’s wealth and company sponsorship were what got him into Fengcheng University Affiliated Senior High.

But Qiao Qiao didn’t quite believe that.

If he truly had no spiritual power, why go to such lengths to enter this school?

After all, it was founded by exorcists.

Qiao Qiao thought Sakamoto Kazuya might actually be a master who had reached the ultimate realm.

His every action appeared ordinary, even a bit careless.

But in truth—

There was great wisdom hidden in such simplicity.

Surely, the reason Sakamoto Kazuya invited Qiao Qiao to lunch was because he had seen through his cultivation and was subtly guiding him as a fellow adept.

Qiao Qiao never mentioned his own affairs.

To boast in front of a master would be like showing off one’s meager skills before a grandmaster.

Would an elementary school student brag about knowing addition and subtraction to a university professor?

That would only reveal ignorance.

“Five hundred thousand yen, huh.”

Qiao Qiao gathered his thoughts, his concerns quite different from Sakamoto Kazuya’s.

For a professional exorcist with a background like Seimei Tsuchimikado, the appearance fee alone was at least five hundred thousand yen, regardless of the specifics.

If the job involved a particularly wicked spirit, the fee would multiply several times over!

In this profession, income had little to do with actual strength.

Most commissions from ordinary people involved weak earthbound spirits or ghosts filled with resentment.

Even without an exorcist’s intervention, given time, their malice would dissipate and they would vanish.

Moreover, exorcism itself was child’s play for anyone with spiritual power.

For instance, shortly after Qiao Qiao arrived in this world, knowing nothing, he had already exorcised a vengeful spirit lurking near his home with just his own spiritual energy.

As long as one possessed a standard unit of spiritual power, exorcism was a straightforward matter.

Anyone with hands could do it.

Even without hands, it could be done.

Qiao Qiao had heard stories of holy children—

Newborn babies, with just a single cry, banishing great demons.

Such was the might of spiritual power.

But back to the point.

Because most vengeful spirits were such feeble creatures, there was little difference between masters and novices when dealing with them.

As for those malevolent spirits that ordinary exorcists could not handle, the Metropolitan Police Department and Onmyoji Bureau would step in, commissioning grand shrines and major temples to solve the problem.

Even if both Qiao Qiao and Seimei Tsuchimikado could resolve an issue, their appearance fees were ten thousand and fifty thousand yen, respectively.

Someone might ask, if there’s no difference in the result, why wouldn’t the wealthy hire a cheaper exorcist like Qiao Qiao?

The answer is simple.

For Qiao Qiao, ten thousand versus fifty thousand yen is a huge difference.

But for the wealthy, it’s meaningless.

A one-yen street snack compared to a five-yen branded treat—they’d choose the brand every time.

Therefore.

They preferred exorcists with status, background, and fame from prominent families.

They would never bother to seek out lesser-known, budget exorcists.

By the time they finished comparing options, those wealthy households could have earned over a million yen.

Qiao Qiao was poor.

He couldn’t begin to imagine the lives of the rich.

“I’ll just have to try harder.”

After lunch, on the way back to class, Qiao Qiao encouraged himself.

...

In the afternoon, Qiao Qiao continued to study diligently. Even in a school filled with prodigies like Fengcheng University Affiliated Senior High, he never fell behind, always ranking in the top five—a model student.

Though high school classes could no longer increase his spiritual capacity, Qiao Qiao never slacked off.

As a saying from Huaxia goes, “Without accumulating small steps, one cannot reach a thousand miles.”

In all things, one must not grow complacent.

Even if the teacher’s lectures no longer helped him spiritually, focusing for forty minutes was itself an exercise in discipline.

After school.

“Qiao, want to go to karaoke?” Sakamoto Kazuya slung his bag over his shoulder and asked.

Two girls from their class stood by his side; it was impossible to tell which one admired Sakamoto.

Truly, as a master, ordinary cultivation methods likely no longer benefited him.

Perhaps only in the raucous atmosphere of a karaoke bar could Sakamoto temper his will.

He invited Qiao Qiao along, probably hoping to help him further his cultivation.

As for the two girls, they must have been brought along to increase the challenge, like added weights.

Such is the arduous and helpless path of a genius’s training.

Qiao Qiao was full of admiration.

“No, I have to work,” Qiao Qiao shook his head, unwilling to disturb Sakamoto’s cultivation.

His own resolve was not strong enough yet.

Given time, he believed he would grow into an independent exorcist.

Only then could he step into a karaoke bar.

For now, he lacked the conviction.

“Qiao, you really work hard,” one of the girls sighed.

Qiao Qiao offered no further explanation. He slung his bag over his shoulder and headed to a building in front of Shinjuku Station.

This was the Shinjuku branch of the Wa Country Exorcists’ Association, one of four branches in Tokyo.

This was where Qiao Qiao worked part-time.