Halloween Jiangshi Night Episode 1 Part 3

Narration picks up by saying that Li Chou is thinking about what happened before the school festival started while he’s running to the gym. Flashback tunes in with him hanging around on the school roof when Sanat Kumara flies over to ask why he seems so lost in thought.

Li Chou explains that he’s become the school festival’s committee exec. He then sighs that after he was made into the council secretary the President and Vice President have taken to skivving off and leaving almost all the work to him. He’s kinda freaking out about all the work he’s been saddled with.

Sanat Kumara is quiet for a second before laughing and saying Li seems to be enjoying himself regardless. Li Chou’s narration says that it was then that he noticed there was something prickling at his heart. But anyways Sanat does say that Li seems to be suffering and calls him kind.

Li Chou asks if that’s why everyone disrespects him and dumps their work on him. Sanat laughs it off and says that if Li weren’t kind he’d have run off. It’s because Li is kind that he’s taking on the work, which means he needs to have plenty of strength. He says that Li has the strength to do things in other people’s places and the strength to do things for other people’s sakes.

Sanat Kumara says there are plenty of people who don’t recognize it as strength and people who look away from it, so they mistake it for something else. He then says that what Li feels is disrespect is just people not paying attention to his strength. Li doesn’t say anything, so Sanat continues by saying he believes there aren’t many who are as strong as Li is. He’d have to be to carry on things that other people would rewrite off as bothersome. As such Li needs to accomplish something great to make people recognize him.

Back to the present, Li Chou has a self-satisfying rant to himself about how ‘everyone’ looks down at him, and how they don’t understand the feelings of those in his position as a weakling or the terror of failing.

Scene then shifts inside as jiangshi continue attacking. Tetsugyuu has noticed that their numbers are increasing and wonders why they’re drawn towards him. Nezha thinks they just want to fight but laughs and suggests that Tetsugyuu could just be losing steam. He in turn demands to be called senpai again.

Narration says that Nezha seems to be having a good time while Tetsugyuu indeed seems to be getting tired. Nezha then comments on the jiangshi being the moving dead, and since the dead are just like him, it’d be fine to just tear them apart and put them back together later.

Tetsugyuu picks up on Nezha casually calling the jiangshi the dead and asks him to explain. Hanuman reminds Nezha to not hurt the mobs, who cheerfully responds that that they understand. Tetsugyuu speaks up again and presses Nezha for an answer.

Nezha is surprised Tetsugyuu doesn’t know, so they explain that jiangshi are the living dead representatives from Hourai. They figure the mobs came because Li Chou called for them from the underworld.

Flashback has Li Chou briefly going over the story over jiangshi, calling them brutal and bloodthirsty dead people who move even after death, controlled by a charm attached to them and put to work. He thought they seemed fitting for Halloween and asked them to scare people.

Back to the present, Nezha laughs and says they get how different the strongest attacks are coming from people who died once and came back. They then notice that Tetsugyuu is acting differently. Tetsugyuu doesn’t say anything as blood rushes to his arms, and Hanuman tries talking to him too.

Tetsugyuu flips out and yells to the heavens before punching the floor and cracking it. Nezha, Hanuman, the mobs and the audience members all go quiet at this. You finally manage to get there and notice something is up with Tetsugyuu.

Tetsugyuu yells for Li Chou to come out, livid at the idea of people coming back to life and then being used. It’s at this point Nezha finally notices how Tetsugyuu’s been feeling. They wonder if they’ve hit Tetsugyuu’s berserk button and asks what Li thinks when they spot him hiding by the door.

Li Chou is freaked out as he says he only just talked about what he knows from legends. Nezha shrugs and points out that Tetsugyuu is really out of it now. Things look really bad, which just makes them so excited.

Tetsugyuu starts talking about how he went around going wild with his boss and how he wanted to die together with them. Yet when the time came he failed to die, living on in shame. Tetsugyuu says dying is something special as it is the end and the saddest thing there is. He feels that if you die with someone you’ll never be parted from them again. It has to be that way. If death isn’t the end, then all there is is hell.

Tetsugyuu rants that people are making light of death, then demands to know who is laughing at him, he who outlived his time. You try to calm him down, but Tetsugyuu waves his arms and legs around and creates a whirlwind through his anger.

Nezha says this could be bad as Tetsugyuu isn’t seeing or hearing anything around himself. Hanuman tells Nezha, Li Chou, and you to retreat for now. Li Chou is shocked about Tetsugyuu, so Hanuman tries getting through to him and telling him to grab on.

Tetsugyuu breaks out into Chinese telling people to come to him if they want to see what death is really like before as he calls himself the Killing Star, the Black Whirlwind. His tornado then starts tearing around near the gym entrance. Most people have stayed away, but the jiangshi nearby get sucked in.

Li Chou seems lost in thought, and Hanuman tries to call him over before he gets caught up by the tornado as well. Nezha wonders what they should do and considers running before thinking that means forfeiting the game with Hanuman. They then decide to leave things to someone smarter since they suck at thinking.

Hanuman calls out to Li Chou again when Nezha figures they may as well act since they can be fixed later, telling Hanuman to take care of things. Li Chou tunes back into reality wondering what he’s doing when he tries asking if Nezha is running away.

Nezha cuts him off mid sentence by kicking him aside before letting themselves get caught by the whirlwind. Li asks if they were protecting him. Hanuman doesn’t think so but decides it’s fine to let Li think that.

Sanat Kumara is watching from somewhere as the whirlwind draws closer to the audience and the stage. You say you guys have to stop Tetsugyuu before you guys or the audience get caught in the tornado. Li freaks out and yells for Sanat for help.

Hanuman feels that weakening the tornado is the only option available. Li asks what the plan is, so you suggest using force to push it back. Li is flabbergasted at this lack of a plan, and the episode battle starts as you stand at the ready. The story continues afterwards.

After the battle, narration describes the Black Whirlwind as comparable to a small typhoon. It is Tetsugyuu’s battle style; normally it is used for disabling enemies and sometimes used for rescuing, but not this time. At the moment its sharp winds cut any who draw near and prevents most damage to himself.

You push forward and call to Tetsugyuu, eventually getting to where you can be heard. Tetsugyuu however refuses to stop, angry with how Nezha, the jiangshi, and Li Chou seem to view death. Hanuman also tries to talk to him, but Tetsugyuu rants about how he can’t stand for people treating death so lightly.

Shinya, Taromaiti, and Kalki make it to the gym at this point. Taromaiti is surprised about there being a tornado in the gym and spots you fighting it. Shinya says they have to put a stop to things quickly, but Kalki stops him saying that the mad bull has lost his head and can’t be talked down easily in this situation. None of them can get close at the moment anyways.

Audience members start complaining for an explanation as they’re ready to call everything happening an incident. Li Chou is alarmed and tries to cover things up, but the audience doesn’t believe him. As he desperately tries to think his way out of it, he happens to spot Taromaiti. Li then claims that this is a play since they’ve started stealing ideas from emulating Daikanyama’s plays.

A rando starts advancing on Li Chou, not accepting his explanation. Before anything happens, Taromaiti plays with the lights for a sec before supporting Li and says she came to participate in it. Li is terrible at thinking on his feet and expresses confusion at this. Taromaiti continues acting, greeting Li, apologizing for being late, and suggesting they get started.

The audience is surprised at all this. A mage swoons over Taromaiti calling her a rising star in Tokyo’s theaters and the beauty of Daikanyama. Some other rando seems willing to believe Taromaiti but is baffled that she’d refer to this as a play.

Taromaiti walks over to Li Chou and whispers to him. She tells him that Shinya asked her to do this, and that if Li wants to play this off as a show then she’ll happily join in. She also says that as things are the audience is half doubtful, so she asks if he has anything that could convince them.

Li Chou says he does have something. He’d rather not use it but doesn’t see any other option, then with some heartache takes out a scroll and brush. Li then activates his NP and proclaims that what’s happening is a festival performance, even adding in a roar.

When Li Chou roars everyone present goes silent, including Hanuman, Tetsugyuu, and the jiangshi. Taromaiti then asks Li what happened, so Li explains that by reciting a poem he can make everyone around himself believe what he says. In other words they’ll go along with his incorrect convictions. In this case, so long as Li insists that things are a play, people will act like it’s the truth.

Li Chou then adds that this doesn’t remove people’s memories and leaves their consciousness alone. All people are doing are going along with what he says. The only people he thinks are probably completely taken in by his NP would be Tetsugyuu and the jiangshi.

You get it mostly but point out that Tetsugyuu hasn’t actually stopped. Li repeats that he’s passing everything off as a play so he can’t just make Tetsugyuu stop midway. He tells you to bring an end to it and make it look good since this is all he can do. You either agree enthusiastically, be shocked at having to take part in a play, or shrug and go along with it.

Taromaiti greets you, noting that you’re one of the actors and wishing you good luck since it looks like it’ll be an improv show. Li Chou tells everyone else to help out with the backstage stuff but tells them they’ll come out if needed. He then calls for the start of his improv poem screenplay “A Certain Oxman’s Tragedy.”

As the stage is put up, Tetsugyuu starts calling out for his big boss, wondering where they went. He already said that when they die, he’ll go with them. He said they’d be together over there too. It’s why he fought, and he asks Hiten Taisei/Sky Soaring Great Sage/Li Gun from Water Margin if they think so too.

Hanuman is surprised to be on stage all of a sudden and tries to say he’s pretending to be Seiten Taisei instead of Hiten before remembering to play along, saying that having so many dead bodies around might open to door to the world of the dead. You comment on how it really is turning out to be a play and/or how convincing Tetsugyuu’s acting is.

Li Chou takes the moment to brag about the power of his artifact and asks if you get it yet. He then says that since Tetsugyuu’s feelings were the strongest, the play seems to revolve itself around him.

Back on stage, Tetsugyuu asks if the gate to the next world is there, would that mean his mother who was killed and eaten by a tiger be here? Li Chou is shocked to hear about that while Tetsugyuu stumbles around calling out to her. Tetsugyuu also voices a fear of dying alone away from his mother and his boss, and Hanuman is noted to have already left the stage.

Tetsugyuu notices Hanuman being gone now, then calls out for Eight-armed Nezha (Xiang Chong) and God of Death (Bao Xu). He asks if this means he has no place with neither the dead nor the living.

Girl A: oh this is so sad I stopped going for popcorn

Guy B: oh no what happens next oh noooo

Guy C: shut up guys I can’t hear

Tetsugyuu’s acting is such that the audience is holding their breath and watching. Li Chou says it’s your turn to get out there and says he’ll use a smoke ball for you. You are surprised by this ad lib being thrown in or ask if Taromaiti is on standby. Li tells you to stop sweating the details before pushing you out.

When you get pushed out you end up standing in a spotlight that makes your silhouette stand out in the smoke around you. Tetsugyuu takes notice of you, so you fumble for a bit before pretending to be a ghost talking to him. Off to the side Li Chou tells you to make it more exciting since this is the climax.

While that’s happening the jiangshi have taken to being the chorus singing nothing in particular for the play. Tetsugyuu then asks if it’s his mother he’s seeing. Taromaiti steps onto the stage and says she is. The audience is moved, and Tetsugyuu starts apologizing.

Tetsugyuu says he’s always wanted to protect her, even when he left her at home alone and ran from the village. When he saw how badly his brother treated her later on, he took her with him. She had gone blind in the meantime. When he looked away for a bit, that was when the tigers killed her.

Taromaiti says it’s okay, and that ‘his mother’ doesn’t hate him for it. No matter how far apart they are, even if he wasn’t able to do anything else, ‘she’ is always watching over him. Tetsugyuu then asks her to pat him on the head and refers to a time he hurt himself from falling out of a tree. Taromaiti obliges.

After that’s done, Tetsugyuu asks her to come with him since there’s people he wants her to meet. He takes Taromaiti’s hand and starts walking, but he abruptly stops after a few steps. He remembers about back then, when he tried bringing his mother to see his boss. He went looking for water for her when the tigers attacked. When he returned to the village after killing said tigers, they lauded him as a tiger killing hero.

Tetsugyuu says that was a lie by people looking to claim the bounty on him, even when he was crying his eyes out over her. He angrily calls the people no different from man-eating tigers, and a few jiangshi join in the play acting as tigers attacking Tetsugyuu. Li Chou stays quiet as he listens.

Tetsugyuu quickly takes out the mobs playing their part, and you call out to him saying you came to see him. He bursts into tears asking where you went and why you left him behind. He cries about how he wanted to always be with you.

Tetsugyuu then talks about how all he can do is kill as that was the star he was born under. He figures he should leave things to his boss and serve them, and in doing so be of use to the world. And then one day, he hopes to die together with them killed by the same enemy. He thinks that by dying he’ll never be separated again like his mother was. If he dies the same way, maybe he can go to where his mother is.

Tetsugyuu starts running after you with tears in his eyes. He asserts that even if he dies he’ll always be with you. Even over there he’ll be your best fighter and asks if it’ll be okay. He begs you to say you’ll die with him there.

Taromaiti asks why Tetsugyuu is in such a hurry to die and asks if he ever thought about living together with you. Tetsugyuu answers that he’s afraid. He worries that in living there’s a chance he’ll be separated and never find you again. He’s afraid of living alone, saying he’s too dumb to think of anything himself.

Taromaiti tells him everyone has that fear, yet they still live. Even the people who lost their support still go on. She tells him to get stronger so that one day, he can support someone else like he was supported. Just like she supported him. You add in that his old boss would want that of him too.

Tetsugyuu is surprised by this, and Taromaiti goes on by saying no one can tell him how to get to where his mother is. It’s possible then that he can find her by dying the same way. Taromaiti also says that his death wish might not be mistaken and no one can deny how he lives.

Despite that, she asks that he try living his life the same way as them at least once. Taromaiti says that maybe one day he’ll look back on his regrets and see them in a new angle. She believes that the people he’s looking for will be there.

Li Chou steps up to act as narrator, saying that in the smoke of the Resurrection Incense, Tetsugyuu held in his arms the people he loved and cried as he nodded so many times. Where he went after that, nobody knows. Li, Tetsugyuu, Taromaiti, and you all exit stage left through the smoke. When it clears up, all that remains is the applause of ten thousand thunders of the audience as the episode ends.