Li Mo was not one to stay idle. Around strangers, he might act a bit reserved, but with those he knew well, he was completely at ease. He had even chatted with Yae Miko about the concept of "childhood fiances."
How the topic had come to that was beside the point—conversations could take fantastical leaps like that.
What was more important was the words Yae Miko chose to say at this moment.
What did it mean?
Li Mo was puzzled, but someone else was even more confused.
An aged voice spoke up—it was the voice of Hakushin: "What? This shrine priest is your husband-in-training? Girl, oh girl. Have you lost your mind? He's a human!"
Hakushin should have left with the other youkai, but instead, he had circled back and now stood before them.
It seemed he hadn't left earlier but had hidden nearby to watch the commotion.
Li Mo should have noticed, but his habitual restraint had kept him from sensing Hakushin's presence.
He noticed Yae Miko's subtle gesture.
Because they were familiar with each other, he knew exactly what that look meant—she wanted him to play along and trick old Hakushin.
What a mischievous habit…
Li Mo wasn't particularly concerned about his "virtue." After all… there was no way Kanae and Shinobu would suddenly appear in Teyvat, right?
In the end, he chose silence.
"Human? Hakushin, oh Hakushin, not only have you lost to me in writing, but now your eyesight fails you too? Hey, show him your ears and tail."
Under Yae Miko's expectant gaze, Li Mo silently revealed his ears and tail.
Instantly, Hakushin's attention was seized. He gasped in surprise. "An… an astral fox? In this era, an astral fox can still be born? So that's it… Miko, you're taking on the duty of preserving the astral fox bloodline."
The "Hakushin" lineage had not been severed.
As a once-great youkai fox, Hakushin had foreseen the decline of youkai when he fell in battle.
In truth, when the Shogun left for Khaenri'ah and Lady Saiguu took charge of Inazuma's affairs, she had repeatedly warned that the situation was dire and the cost to youkai would be heavy.
Back then, Lady Saiguu had already prepared for the possibility of the "Hakushin bloodline" dying out.
The worst-case scenario hadn't come to pass, and Hakushin felt a wave of relief.
Li Mo nudged Yae Miko with his elbow, smirking. "Miko, seems your plan completely backfired."
"You're selling me out this quickly?"
"Look at your own actions first, Yae Miko!"
The two began to bicker—or rather, their shikigami started squabbling. Yae Miko had once said that someone of her status shouldn't engage in such undignified behavior. Coincidentally, Li Mo felt the same. And coincidentally, they both had shikigami.
So, shikigami fighting was basically the same as them fighting.
Thus, Hakushin witnessed a bizarre scene—one moment, the two were arguing, the next, they had made up without a trace of hostility. Then, a miko-like shikigami and a Sesshou Sakura fox spirit began tussling.
There was no real killing intent. To Hakushin, it looked more like playful roughhousing.
The situation had become something Hakushin couldn't comprehend. Just what was the relationship between these two?
"You've been deceived, Hakushin."
"Your Excellency, what do you mean?"
Hakushin turned to see that the Shogun had appeared beside him without notice.
"Before, Mo was purely human. But through certain means, he borrowed Miko's blood and became an astral fox."
Having just finished urgent official documents, Ei watched the two with amusement. "You must be confused, Hakushin. How can a human become a youkai, right?"
"Your Excellency speaks my very thoughts. What is the origin of that shrine priest?"
Too much information was piling up, clouding Hakushin's understanding.
From the golden-haired Traveler, he knew the shrine priest was formidable—someone who could fight the Shogun to the death and survive was undoubtedly a powerhouse.
From his own observations, this Liyue-born priest's abilities were enigmatic. The so-called "inspection" earlier had left Hakushin astounded. He had lived a long life, yet he had never seen such methods before.
And judging by how Yae Miko and the Shogun treated him, their relationship was clearly close.
"His origin? He is a traveler from beyond this world, a visitor from another realm. As for Miko's words… consider them a jest," Ei said with a smile.
Hakushin nodded.
The complexity of his emotions was something only he could understand.
The playful scuffle didn't last much longer.
Soon after, Li Mo excused himself to attend to his own matters. Yae Miko had informed him of the scheduled time for the "Hyakki Yagyou."
The Hyakki Yagyou wasn't held on a fixed date. But it was often held on the night of a full moon—youkai believed that dancing under the bright moon held the greatest significance.
The past never truly vanished. Tales of the supernatural, myths, and legends passed down through word of mouth or recorded in texts were all remnants of history, though they might carry distortions. And these very distortions were the "collective beliefs" of humanity.
In the world of *A Certain Magical Index*, "collective belief" was a foundation of magic.
By tapping into Inazuma's understanding of the Hyakki Yagyou, Li Mo could extract the "mystery" he sought. The Grand Narukami Shrine had no records on this—at most, there were accounts of people accidentally witnessing the Hyakki Yagyou, panicking, and rushing to the shrine for the miko's protection.
For this, he needed the Yashiro Commission's help.
Of the Tri-Commission, the Tenryou and Kanjou Commissions were beyond the reach of ordinary people. The former maintained public order—after the military was restructured, their focus shifted to peacekeeping, dispute mediation, and, in cases of crime, evidence collection, arrests, and trials. The latter oversaw commerce, dealing with every merchant in Inazuma.
Crime and business were distant concerns for most.
But the Yashiro Commission was different. It managed cultural events, festivals, and artistic activities—things like firework displays required their involvement.
Being closely tied to the people, the Yashiro Commission was also the best-informed. Using the shrine's connections with them, Li Mo successfully gathered accounts of how people viewed the Hyakki Yagyou.
—Even if these were old tales and most now saw them as mere stories, to Li Mo, such collective beliefs were perfect for his purposes.
Taking a symbol as a foundation, he could reshape it into the form he needed through "approximation."
This was the way of magicians. This was the way of sorcerers.
On the eve of the next full moon, after analyzing the youkai's data, Li Mo finally perfected the ritual that would allow their transformation—the true **Hyakki Yagyou**.