DipNovel Chapter 2224 2222 Supreme Great Ghost
Chapter 2224 2222 Supreme Great Ghost
Chapter 2224 2.222 Supreme Great Ghost
"Welcome." Before Empress Huanglongtian could even enter the zashi, a group of Edo beauties emerged from the inner room.
Like the previous grid houses, it is based on the story of the Kaga Maeda Domain's Oku-no-middle school girl, Maeda Sensa (Nakamura Tamao), the illegitimate daughter of the domain lord Maeda Nariaki and a famous courtesan, from "Nemuri Kyoshiro: Killing Scroll". The characters are: Yanagihashi Kakichi (Ogimachi Keiko), the geisha Tokiwazu Monjiwa (Mashiro Chitoyo), Maeda Daimyo's concubine Miyo (Miyoshika), and Okawabata (the landlady of Kitagawa Funaya) (Tachibana Koko).
Some might ask why most of the "extraterrestrials" who were teleported in by the Purple Coral Spirit Coral were young women. That's because they were carefully selected by Wu Chen's [Ω Microcosm]!
That's a completely unnecessary question.
Even a powerful dark quasar like Shul, if it were to invade Wu Chen's Ω Cosmos, wouldn't it be crushed by the goddess Gine?
Leaving aside the heroine Maeda Chisa, who has an extraordinary background, the geisha Yanagihashi Kakichi and the geisha Tokiwazu Monjiwa also have their own origins.
Yanagibashi and its adjacent Asakusa Bridge were important hubs connecting the Sumida River and inland waterways during the Edo period, and were also one of the famous entertainment districts. Yanagibashi was once home to a large number of boat inns (boat-dwelling inns) and geisha houses. The "yagata-bune," a symbol of Edo elegance, is the most distinctive feature of the Asakusa Bridge area. These luxurious pleasure boats with roofs and tatami seating were only enjoyed by nobles and wealthy merchants who could drink, make merry, and appreciate the scenery of the four seasons. The prototype of the yagata-bune can be traced back to the Heian period, but it flourished in the Edo period due to river management and the rise of urban culture. The boats were mostly made of wood, with yagata-shaped cabins (sliding windows, latticework, and ceilings), tatami mats on the deck, and some were decorated with gold and silver lacquer and gold leaf, especially the "taisen" (large boats) on the Sumida River; the name "yagata" means that the boat is like a mobile residence, and it is also called "roofed boat".
As is customary, Yanagibashi Kakichi takes his surname from Yanagibashi, where the performer lived. Furthermore, Tokiwazu Manjika is derived from the renowned Japanese storytelling art form, "Tokiwazu Setsu."
Tokiwazu Setsu is a Joruri (storytelling music) style founded by Bungo-no-yomi of Miyakoji during the late Edo period. It uses the nakagara shamisen and is performed by "tayu" (storytellers). Themes often revolve around love suicide, loyalty, and contemporary themes. Representative works include "Jūrensetsu Kanbou" and "Shinobi Rengokusha". The stage name format for Tokiwazu Setsu performers, known as "mono tayu," is "Tokiwazu + Monji + [someone's name]". For example, "Tokiwazu Monji Heibei (a famous 19th-century tayu)" or "Tokiwazu Monji Waka (the 5th generation Tokiwazu Setsu)".
Kitagawa boat house lady Tachibana no Koko perfectly captures the charm of the Sumida River shore during the Edo period.
"Lady Miyo" originated from the title of Sengyōin, a concubine of Tokugawa Ienari, the eleventh shogun of the Edo period. It was later adopted by various daimyo (feudal lords) to refer to their favored concubines. The Lady Miyo, Miyoka, who appears in this drama, was a concubine of Maeda Nariakira, the lord of the Kaga domain.
Seven ghost masks hung on the wall, but there were only five beauties in the room, which was clearly an incorrect number.
"Where is the mistress?" Empress Wang, the demon queen of Huanglongtian, simply asked directly.
"Please take good care of me, esteemed guest. My mother will be here shortly," replied Chisa Maeda from Oku Girls' High School.
Chisa Maeda, the biological mother of Oku Girls' High School, was named "Hyakkoin." During the Edo period, concubines of the Shogun, members of the imperial family, or high-ranking nobles who became nuns often received the title "Hyakkoin." This "Hyakkoin" was not a common naming convention for nuns, but rather a "Hyakkoin title" reserved for a specific social class. It was a prefix of an honorific title, usually granted by the Emperor or the Shogunate, and not all nuns could use it. Originally used by imperial women to retain their status after becoming nuns, the "Hyakkoin title" was extended during the Edo period to include the mothers and concubines of the Tokugawa Shogun, as well as high-ranking women and daimyo of various domains. However, the "Hyakkoin title" required formal authorization and often coexisted with the status of a "quasi-Sangon" (equivalent to a high-ranking female official), and could not be used independently.
The structure of a temple name is often "place name/image name + temple", such as "Gekoin" or "Chūwamonin". "Monin" often incorporates Buddhist connotations like "moonlight" or "perfect enlightenment," or palace imagery. It is part of a broader category of Buddhist names, and a complete Buddhist name typically consists of "temple name (referring to the temple) + monastic name (representing spiritual attainment) + precept name (bestowed upon the monks) + rank title (indicating gender)". For example, the full Buddhist name of Gekkoin, the concubine of the sixth Tokugawa shogun and stepmother of the seventh Tokugawa shogun during the Edo period, was: Gekkoin Riyo Seigyo Chiten Daizenjōni.
Not all women who entered monastic life were entitled to the title "In". Ordinary women, temple nuns, or wives and daughters of low-ranking samurai who entered monastic life were only referred to as "Ni" or simply by their Buddhist name, such as "Shinkyō" (心霊), and were not entitled to the title "In". The title "In" for concubines of the shogunate was often related to their sons succeeding as shogun: for example, Katsuta Teruko, a concubine of Tokugawa Ienobu, succeeded to the throne as the son of Tokugawa Ietsuke and was given the title "Gekoin" (鉄光鄊) after entering monastic life. Those who had no sons or were not involved in the core of power, such as some concubines, may only be referred to as "Kitsugu" (局) or "Ni" (尼), and were not granted the title "In".
The only reason that the famous Edo courtesan, who became a nun at Hyakkoin Temple, gained the approval of the Maeda Domain in Kaga Province was because Maeda Chisa, a high-ranking female courtesan, held a stable position within the Maeda Domain, even possessing a degree of family power with "life and death authority." Considering the original storyline, there's only one possibility for her to wield such power: she possessed irrefutable evidence of collusion between the Maeda Domain lord and the wealthy merchant Zeniya Gobei, violating the shogunate's isolationist policies by secretly engaging in large-scale smuggling and accumulating immense wealth—smuggling documents hidden within a jade Buddha statue. Using this as leverage, she bestowed the Buddhist name "Hyakkoin" upon her birth mother.
Wu Chen was also very curious about who this Hyakkoin was, who had only made a brief appearance as a corpse in the original story and hadn't even had a chance to show his face.
The mystery was soon solved.
The true identity of Maeda Chisa's biological mother, Hyakkoin, is Princess Kikuhime (Ikuko Mori), who appears in the fourth and seventh parts of Nemuri Kyoshiro's novels, "The Demoness Sword" and "The Passionate Sword." Because of her own ugly appearance, she is jealous of all beautiful things in the world and wears a mask day and night, afraid to show her true face. She and Chimi, the most popular courtesan in the Iron Fire Market, are each other's alternate counterparts.
"I understand." Wu Chen had already spoiled the plot: "The Eighth Ghost Face."
Princess Kikuhime's mask was also a large demon mask made by the Noh mask maker Jinbei: its wide-open eyes represented anger and majesty.
"Great Demon" refers to the giant evil spirit in the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons. It has a blue face and fangs, two horns on its head, wears a tiger skin, wields a giant axe, has immense strength, and eats human flesh. It is the main force of the demon race.
Just like the One Ring, forged by Sauron and capable of controlling all the other Rings. The eighth One Mask can control the remaining seven Masks.
This is also why Maeda Chisa of Okyoku Girls' High School regards Princess Kikuhime as her birth mother, Hyakkoin. Her mind had long been possessed by the Great Demon Mask, making her Princess Kikuhime's captive. Furthermore, possessed by the demon "Menreiki," her mind had already succumbed. Therefore, the Maeda Chisa of Okyoku Girls' High School at this moment was no longer the original her. She had already transformed into the demon—the Great Demon Mask.