Ancient Spirits in Modern Times: Vignettes of Yokai
The Kyōrinrin
The Kyōrinrin
Jan 31, 2021
For rectifying an injustice, one would receive thirty points of good merit. For saving a life, one hundred would be received. Such actions were documented in the Ledger of Merits and Demerits, a scripture for the conduct of Daoist disciples. The scrolls were once handed down from each reigning zhenren, the spiritual master that led the abbey. However, as times changed, so did the exchange of knowledge. Computers made it easier and safer to archive old practices, and left precious scrolls to be preserved. The spirits of the scrolls were more strict of their handling though.
They demanded constant readings, to always be learned from, to never know the curse that is the dust of neglect.
Alas, such was the fate of this valued scroll, and such a fate angered the learned soul within. On the second night of Xìngyuè, the night of the dragon head raising festival, the scroll’s fiery anger sparked a second life within it. It flung itself from the shelf, and unrolled its long body. One end ripped itself from a handle and folded itself into a dragon, with whiskers and a thin trailing beard.
“Five demerits for the neglect of sacred scripture. Years of neglect multiply these demerits for every day of ignorance from my teachings. It is time for a lesson of re-education...”
We open with a lesser known yōkai, the kyōrinrin. They are a spirit of knowledge that inhabits an old piece of written work, left to gather dust and be unread. Such an act is almost scandal to such a spirit, and so...
This idea was helped by the advising of Alistar Alternis and Torncloak, the latter being a fellow Tapas writer. Not only have they done my thumbnail and cover, but is also the writer of Grim the Vampire. Their tapas: tapas.io/torncloak
Good day to you! If you wanted to see whether you can get paid by distributing the current work or getting financial support by writing new work, you might want to email mollyringdom*@*gmail.com (delete *)We are mainly looking for adventurous novels (Fantasy, Sci-fi, Paranormal Urban, Action, Thriller/Suspense, Game Fiction). Looking forward to your email.
A short story collection on the modern lives of yōkai, a catch-all term for Japanese spirits, monsters, and urban legends. It is time to reawaken the sleeping creatures and resurrect the night parade of one hundred demons!
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