Chapter 10

Standing atop the "Boundary between Illusion and Reality," Zi gazed into the distance at the white clouds, her eyes gleaming with an indescribable light.

"Mo'er, don't let your big sister down..."

Her lips parted slightly, and Zi recalled the scene when Yagumo Mo left Gensokyo.

================= I am the line of reminiscence =================

Under the cherry blossom tree, Yagumo Mo looked at Zi, who still appeared calm and composed, and said in disbelief, "Big Sister, you mean... the great barrier of Gensokyo is disappearing!?"

Zi nodded.

Yagumo Mo's brows furrowed tightly.

Gensokyo is composed of two major barriers: the "Boundary between Illusion and Reality," which was personally set up by Zi, and the "Great Barrier of Hakurei," established by the previous Hakurei Shrine Maiden.

The "Boundary between Illusion and Reality" was a barrier proposed and established by Zi 500 years ago during the "Yokai Expansion Plan." At that time, due to the increasing strength of humans and their gradual oppression of yokai, to restore the power of the yokai in Gensokyo, Zi initiated and implemented the Yokai Expansion Plan.

The core of this plan was to create a boundary between illusion and reality around Gensokyo, essentially creating a world through a clever theoretical method. However, this created world needed to rely on the outside world to exist, unlike the independent world created by the ancestor god Pangu of the Chinese pantheon.

The most wise aspect of the plan proposed by Zi was that the yokai in the outside world would gradually disappear, while the power of the yokai in Gensokyo would gradually increase, ultimately completely separating the worlds of yokai and humans.

The "Great Barrier of Hakurei," on the other hand, was a barrier that had been in place for over a hundred years to cut off the connection between Gensokyo and the outside world. Initially managed by the Hakurei Shrine Maiden, the management was later taken over by Zi with the reasoning, "Since I have to manage one barrier anyway, managing another one doesn't matter."

The "Great Barrier of Hakurei" is essentially a "barrier of common sense," used to distinguish the uncommon sense of the outside world from the common sense of Gensokyo. The "uncommon sense" of the outside world is the "common sense" of Gensokyo, and the "common sense" of the outside world is the "uncommon sense" of Gensokyo. This is not a physical barrier but a purely ethical one.

Because of the existence of the Great Barrier of Hakurei, the yokai in Gensokyo cannot easily leave the outside world.

Because of the two barriers, Gensokyo was able to exist.

However, now, Zi told Yagumo Mo that the two great barriers on which Gensokyo depended were gradually disappearing!

There was no more shocking news than this.

"Although I have entrusted most of the work of maintaining the great barrier to Aoi, I can still feel the state of the great barrier at any time."

Zi looked down at her reflection in the tea in front of her, her expression more serious than ever.

"Although the speed is very slow, the great barrier is indeed disappearing, so I have to strengthen it every so often."

"But this method only treats the symptoms, not the root cause, and ultimately cannot solve the problem."

Yagumo Mo looked at Zi, who had a hint of melancholy in her eyes, and felt a pang in his heart.

Since his birth in this world three years ago, Zi had always been extremely indulgent towards him. Although she appeared very devious and would tease him from time to time, the bond between Yagumo Mo and Zi was extremely strong!

After all, even Aoi, who had lived with Zi for a long time, was not as close to her as Yagumo Mo.

"So, Big Sister, why is the great barrier disappearing? Is there any way to solve this problem completely?"

Zi looked at Yagumo Mo for a moment, then smiled gently.

"I'm glad you care, Mo'er."

"Actually, if it were before, I could just strengthen the great barrier every so often. Although it wouldn't solve the problem completely, it could keep the barrier stable for a thousand years or so."

"But now that you have the seed of fantasy, I have a way to solve this problem completely."

Yagumo Mo's face lit up with a bright smile upon hearing Zi's words.

He was happy to be able to help Zi.

"Big Sister, what should I do?"

"Ah... no rush, no rush." Zi closed her fan and tapped it lightly on Yagumo Mo's forehead, smiling indulgently. "First, use the power of the seed of fantasy to enter some worlds formed by the intentions of living beings. In those worlds, the seed of fantasy in your mental sea can absorb the residual power of fantasy left behind after the world's creation."

"Power of fantasy?"

Zi nodded. "The power of fantasy is the condensed intention of living beings, the mysterious power left behind after the creation of a fantasy world. This power can be absorbed by your seed of fantasy. When the seed absorbs enough power, I can, with your help, make Gensokyo completely independent from the outside world, existing as a small world in the gaps between countless worlds."

"This will solve the problem once and for all."

There was one thing Zi did not tell Yagumo Mo: when she used his power to make Gensokyo completely independent, Yagumo Mo would become the supreme deity of Gensokyo!

After all, at that time, the entire Gensokyo would exist solely because of Yagumo Mo's power, wouldn't it?

Thus, with Zi's help, Yagumo Mo began his journey through countless fantasy worlds.

================== I am the line marking the beginning of the journey ==================

"Look, look, that person is so handsome!"

"Really! And his outfit is so strange, is he cosplaying?"

"But I can't tell which character he's cosplaying as."

...

"Hmph, putting on airs..."

"Oh, you're just jealous because you think you're not as handsome as him, right?"

"I'm not jealous of anything! Stop being so annoying!"

...

Standing on a bustling street, Yagumo Mo felt extremely uncomfortable.

After learning from Zi how to use the seed of fantasy in his mental sea to travel between worlds, Yagumo Mo, with her help, began his first journey.

"According to Big Sister, the worlds born from the power of fantasy will transform from 'fantasy' to 'reality' after their creation, so the power of fantasy at the beginning of the world will be left behind and gradually dissipate."

"So, absorbing the power of fantasy from the world will not harm the world itself..."

"And when the power of fantasy in this world is completely absorbed, I can use the seed of fantasy to travel to another world."

"Regarding the original inhabitants of this world, Big Sister said that if necessary, I can bring some characters who have interacted with me back to Gensokyo for temporary accommodation..."

"But the most pressing matter is..."

Yagumo Mo looked around, his expression extremely gloomy.

"Figuring out where I am..."

This should be a bustling commercial street. From the text on the billboards on both sides of the street and the conversations of the passersby, it seemed to be the 11th District.

The 11th District of some fantasy world.

"Excuse me, sir, I'm very sorry to disturb you!"

Suddenly, a man in a suit approached Yagumo Mo, bowed deeply, and then handed him a business card.

"My name is Shimada Mitzuki, and I am a talent scout for the 'March Sky' entertainment company."

Looking at the business card handed to him, Yagumo Mo was taken aback for a moment, then took it and read the name, position, and contact information on it.

"Is there something you need?" Yagumo Mo asked.

Shimada Mitzuki sized up Yagumo Mo, looking at his luxurious black robe with gold trim, and his eyes gleamed brighter and brighter. "Sir, your appearance and aura are perfect. Do you have any interest in becoming an idol? If so..."

"I'm sorry, I have no intention of becoming an idol."

Yagumo Mo shook his head, interrupting Shimada Mitzuki.

Seeing this, Shimada Mitzuki's face showed disappointment, but he did not press the matter. He bowed again to Yagumo Mo and then left.

This person isn't unpleasant.

Yagumo Mo thought to himself. Suddenly, a giant advertisement on a nearby screen caught his attention.

"Ladies and gentlemen! This week, 'MMO-Stream' is back! Starting today, the highly anticipated game 'Sword Art Online' begins its closed beta test! The lucky few among thousands are now entering the game!"

Yagumo Mo looked at the giant advertisement screen not far away, his eyes narrowing like the vast sea of stars.

Sword Art Online!!

SAO!!

Sword Art Online!!!

Glancing at the corner of the advertisement, Yagumo Mo saw the time displayed.

2022!

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