Looking at the horrifying scene on Luzi's arm, the originally noisy crowd immediately fell silent.
Even those who were most excited couldn't help but weigh the pros and cons upon seeing this.
Luzi nodded, thinking to himself that it was a good thing for them to have their own thoughts.
He raised his hand, took off the Hannya mask that made his face look like a demon, and slowly said,
"Although some things that humans don't have will grow, it's still possible to maintain your human identity."
Luzi paused, then added, "At least, from our observations, no one has been affected."
Luzi's exposed face was weathered, like a middle-aged man who had endured much hardship.
Through the gaps in his helmet, one could even see his chonmage—a hairstyle typically favored by old-school Inazuman samurai.
Seeing Luzi's obviously normal face, everyone couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. As long as these things didn't grow on the most visible part of their face, it seemed... acceptable?
Infection by tatarigami was a death sentence; this was the conclusion reached by the residents of Yashiori Island after exhausting all methods.
With Inazuma's existing medical treatments, at most, they could only delay the onset of death. If they wanted to cure the tatarigami, they would probably have to go to Sumeru, where medical technology was most advanced, to find a solution.
Although they thought so, no one spoke up in response. Such a change in Luzi was something the residents of Yashiori Island had only heard of in legendary ghost stories. The shock was too great, leaving them momentarily unsure of what to do.
Subconsciously, more and more gazes converged on Enjou, who felt as if he had daggers in his back, making him uncomfortable all over.
"If you ask me, just go for the cure! There are no free lunches in this world; growing some fur can keep you warm in winter, but if you die, you'll have nothing!"
Seemingly unable to bear the stares, Enjou waved his hand, offering his advice.
"Personally, I feel the same way." Luzi nodded and continued, "Actually, if you plan to settle in Higi Village, you'll eventually become like this."
Meeting their puzzled gazes, Luzi pointed to the golden fragments floating in the sky behind him and said,
"See those golden fragments? That's the blessing the great tree gives us. It can restore the dead land and eliminate the omnipresent tatarigami. Our bodies have also become like this because of it."
Saying this, Luzi gave a bitter smile, "Perhaps in the great tree's eyes, humans in this state are stronger than before."
Luzi walked to an open space and assumed an Iai stance.
"Hooah!" Just as everyone was puzzled, they heard Luzi let out a loud shout, and then a flash of sword light erupted. A fierce cross-shaped sword energy swept through, leaving a terrifying sword mark on the ground.
"Can a human cut like this?!" Enjou was greatly alarmed at the sight.
There were no traces of elemental power fluctuations on Luzi's body, which meant that this sword energy was unleashed solely relying on Luzi's extraordinary strength.
Looking at the dumbfounded crowd, Luzi raised his arm and said, "Now you know why I say this state is stronger than before."
As Luzi spoke, his exposed arm began to twitch rhythmically, his muscle fibers so clear that it seemed Luzi could control the movement of every single muscle strand.
And in fact, it was true. Ever since inhaling those golden fragments, Luzi felt his control over his body becoming increasingly precise.
Initially, he could only keep his limbs steady and unshaking, but later, he could control how his muscles moved.
Under this peculiar change, his strength also grew daily. Compared to his past self, his strength had increased three or fourfold.
Coupled with his precise control over his body, Luzi was very confident that he was stronger than ten of his past selves!
"Gulp..." Enjou swallowed, now he also wanted to try the blessing of that great tree.
After all, no matter how much his body changed, could it be more significant than when an Abyss Mage advanced to an Abyss Lector?
"Alright, if you choose to live here, sooner or later you will become 'monsters' like me..."
"But there's no need to worry too much; there are hardly any normal people left in the village anyway."
Luzi waved his hand, and the villagers behind him took off their robes, revealing that their exposed limbs, more or less, showed some non-human characteristics.
Everyone looked at the serious Luzi, recalling the days since the war began.
The war between the Shogunate Army and the resistance had been going on for a long time, probably a year or two. Everyone who could escape Yashiori Island had fled.
And they were the small portion who truly couldn't escape. War turns people into demons.
Everyone looked at the various traits on the villagers' bodies—feathers, scales, and even horns... Becoming a yokai was better than becoming a ghost.
So, the crowd behind Enjou nodded to Luzi.
"Good, I'll take you to get treated." Luzi nodded, turned around, and led everyone towards the Golden Tree in Higi Village... "Bip bo!"
The huge bonfire shook as a branch burned through, and a large number of sparks splattered from the rising flames, illuminating Enjou's expressionless face.
"S-sir, this is for you!"
Next to Enjou, a child wrapped in bandages hopped over, giving Enjou a worn-out pendant.
"Hoo—" Enjou took a deep breath, rubbing the girl's head. The "treatment method" Luzi mentioned was to wrap patients infected with tatarigami entirely in bandages.
As for the medicine under the bandages... Enjou looked at the Golden Tree's trunk, which had a bald spot. Now he finally understood why this Golden Tree was so thin; who wouldn't get thin if their skin was constantly being ground off?
During the day, after Luzi led everyone to the Golden Tree, he began to gather everyone to start grinding the bark.
Even with negative effects such as malnutrition, consuming remnants of a god, and having just broken ground less than a year ago, the Golden Tree's bark was still very tough.
Eventually, even Enjou began his bark-grinding journey. They worked tirelessly until nightfall, finally grinding enough bark powder for treatment.
"Thank you, how do you feel?" Enjou's hand trembled as he accepted the scratched "crystal" pendant, forcing a smile as he asked.
"M-my body doesn't hurt anymore."
The bandages on the girl's head twitched a few times, apparently she was very excited about her body no longer hurting.
"It's good that it doesn't hurt. It wasn't in vain that I spent the whole afternoon on this tree." Enjou nodded with satisfaction. It worked, so his time wasn't wasted.
The girl ran off because her mother had just let go of her hand, allowing her to run around.
She didn't know when, but her hand had never been separated from her mother's. Her mother had pulled her everywhere, never stopping for a moment.
Now it was good; her mother had just said they had a place to stay. They would stop here from now on, and she had also met many new friends, so now she was going to have a good time playing.
"Little brat, it seems it really works." Enjou watched the girl run quickly, knowing it was truly effective, and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
"Of course it's effective, this is my invented treatment method." Luzi sat beside Enjou, smiling proudly.
He had changed into casual clothes, and the parts of his limbs that differed from normal people were openly displayed.
In Higi Village, most villagers were like this, so there was no need to hide it.
"Then you're a smart person, huh?" Enjou raised an eyebrow, thinking Luzi was just praising himself.
The excellent treatment effect was entirely due to the Golden Tree itself being powerful. Enjou even suspected that the tatarigami could heal automatically without doing anything under the Golden Tree.
"I wouldn't dare claim that. The person who planted this tree is the smart one; he must have foreseen this."
"The person who planted this tree? Who is it?" As Enjou said this, a familiar figure appeared in his mind.
"Hmm, he's a strange person, completely covered in old Mondstadt knight armor, even more thoroughly covered than I am when I leave the village," Luzi sighed with emotion.
The figure became clearer and clearer, and then, as if sensing something, that figure surpassed Enjou's conscious control and gave Enjou a thumbs up.
"Ding—" Enjou even saw a flash of light at the corner of the armor's mouth.
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