Lancer was naturally no stranger to the Youkai 'Tengu', after all, it was one of the most famous Youkai in Japan, so he naturally nodded, but also looked at him with a puzzled expression.
There are many theories about the strongest Youkai in Japan, but the most famous are definitely 'Tengu', 'Kappa', and 'Oni'. Speaking of which, it was strange that Lancer had been here for quite some time, but he hadn't encountered these three types of Youkai.
However, the existence of 'Tengu' itself is very strange. According to legend, the first generation of 'Tengu' were basically monks who died and transformed, but in reality, Tengu have long become a separate race. They can reproduce and even have many branches, such as 'Karasu Tengu', 'Shirō Tengu', and 'Yamabushi Tengu', etc.
But precisely because they are famous, they should logically be taken more seriously by the Onmyōryō, right? If so, why are there still problems?
Seeing Lancer puzzled look, the funashiyaku led the way out of the Fujiwara residence while asking Lancer to change his clothes, explaining the specific situation on the way.
"Lancer, you should know, right? About His Majesty the Emperor's admiration for Buddhism?"
"I've heard of it."
"Then it's much easier to explain. His Majesty the Emperor ordered the construction of temples all over the country, which led to the emergence of many temples in the country in a short period of time, but because of this, there was a shortage of monks, and even a situation where the quality was uneven occurred. Recently, there have been many cases of monks committing crimes, and the monks of one of the temples were all killed after provoking someone unknown..."
At this point, the funashiyaku's expression was a little grim. Although there was professional competition between Onmyoji and monks, there was actually not much friction between them. After all, unlike later generations, the number of Youkai increased sharply all over the country at this time, and neither the Onmyoji nor the monks alone could completely suppress the Youkai, so the two sides chose to cooperate. Now that their old rivals and partners had such a big problem, they were originally a little gloating, but when they were preparing to help the other party out, an even more troublesome thing appeared.
"It seems that your target shouldn't be the ones who killed the monks, right?"
"That guy is also our target, but the most important thing now is to deal with the dead monks. Those guys were not good things themselves. They not only oppressed the villagers, but I even heard that they were doing absurd things in the Buddha hall. Now, after being killed, they have turned into Tengu for unknown reasons. Several towns nearby have been attacked by them, and a team of Onmyoji we sent to investigate has also gone missing..."
At this point, the funashiyaku gritted his teeth, and even the bat fan he loved so much made a strange sound as he clenched it. Undoubtedly, this man, who always wore a smile, also had his own principles.
However, Lancer still calmly thought about the other party's words, and he also found some strange things.
"Wait, Shipmaster, although Tengu are troublesome, logically speaking, you should be able to handle them, right?"
"That's right, those Tengu are indeed very strong, but if I perform a large-scale technique, I can also completely annihilate them. But compared to 'Tengu', something else is the real big trouble..."
At this point, the funashiyaku's expression also became complicated.
"In fact, our Onmyōryō also had contact with the 'Tengu Clan', and even had some friendship with 'Ōmine Zenkibō', but this time when we sent people to find Lord 'Ōmine Zenkibō', we were told that he could not interfere for special reasons, and even the 'Tengu Clan' would not interfere too much. And not only that, I heard that even the 'Oni' Clan also had abnormalities. Most of our manpower has been deployed near the Oni Clan's habitat. Now, various places basically rely on local talented people to protect them. Ordinary enemies are fine, but 'Tengu' are difficult for them to deal with, after all, Tengu... can fly."
At this point, the funashiyaku's expression became increasingly grim. Among the three major Youkai races in Japan, the Kappa Clan is loosely organized and rarely gathers, but the good news is that they rarely cause trouble. Although the Tengu Clan did not help this time for unknown reasons, at least they themselves did not cause trouble. But the 'Oni' are different. The 'Oni' are not an inherently cruel race. Strictly speaking, they simply ignore the existence of humans.
For the 'Oni', humans are no different from pigs, dogs, cattle, and sheep. They simply don't care about the lives of these weak creatures. Some cruel Oni even put humans on their menu.
"Phew~"
After exhaling sharply, the funashiyaku bowed deeply to Lancer.
"Lancer, I know you hate constraints and are unwilling to join our Onmyōryō, but this matter is very important. I hope you will definitely help us! Both our Onmyōryō and His Majesty the Emperor will give corresponding rewards after the matter is completed..."
Seeing the funashiyaku's extremely serious expression, Lancer also sighed helplessly.
"There's no need for that. This is also a good thing for me, isn't it? But we agreed, the reward cannot be skimped on."
"Thank you!"
Hearing Lancer accept the task, the funashiyaku also breathed a sigh of relief. Normally, fighting Tengu would require several Onmyoji to restrain them from flying, and then the samurai protecting the Onmyoji would defeat them. But even now, the funashiyaku could not see through Lancer. In his opinion, Lancer should be able to handle this matter.
In fact, similar situations were occurring all over the country. This time, the abnormal situation made the Onmyōryō, major temples, and folk exorcists all sense a hint of something unusual...
——————
On Youkai Mountain, several extraordinary-looking men and women sat around, and in front of them was a curtain. One of the tall men was full of terrifying aura, but it was precisely because of this that he stood out from the others.
"Lord Tenma! Do we really have to let those remnants dirty the reputation of our Tengu Clan!"
There was no doubt that the reputation of 'Tengu' among the common people in Japan was not good, but in reality, their impact on ordinary people was not too great. The two most excessive things they did were 'hindering the cultivation of monks', which originated from the birth of the Tengu Clan; they were naturally opposed to those monks; and the second was the famous 'Kamikakushi' (spirit away) of Japan, which was actually the Tengu secretly taking away people suitable for transformation into their clan members.
But that was all. Other than that, they would not deliberately harm humans. If they were to be categorized, they should belong to the type of 'Order · Evil'.
And although the other Great Tengu did not speak, it could be seen from their silence that they actually agreed with the other party's words.
After all, Youkai also have their own principles. They were not those small, insignificant Youkai.
Undoubtedly, everyone's eyes were fixed on the curtain...