Dark Gathering - Vol. 13 Ch. 50 - Route 1 5: Human Realm

[MangaDex]

 

[Harv0707]

le monk is too chad so he negated his own death, ty for chapt

 

[yarrayora]

MY BOY IS OKAY!!! also the choice to use the human realm as subtitle instead of hungry ghost realm is so good actually thank you for giving my boy some sort of peace in his not-afterlife

 

[sssr]

le monk is too chad so he negated his own death, ty for chapt

Nah, he's a wimp. Who even dies from getting hit by a truck? Not enough training.

 

[zanonyn]

Really interesting set of events. So for the first time, the three of them are going to have to deal with an "Authority", maybe (or maybe not) an official government agency but an actual group of adults who know what they're doing, have real history, and are clearly a lot more competent then it was first made to appear which is both an amusing twist by the author and pleasant to see. "Rando amateurs > incompetent authorities" gets overdone a lot.

A nice thing too is that a lot of the assumptions about the sacrifice being some eternal ancient thing were all wrong and what was really happening was a lot more sensible. The temple doesn't condemn anyone to eternal torment/fighting like some stereotypical heartless "greater good" type of thing, rather it's a 50-year term of "work beyond life" at a time and probably massively honored and such, then someone else takes over. Which probably helps the seal strength and stop the adversary from subverting as easily. Though I suppose that'd still require heavy faith that the organization would continue to exist and not be defeated and that someone new would always be found to take your spot. Here though they clearly got lax on verification and the head monk took the evil selfish way out.

Anyway, time for our team to face some authorities, it'll be very interesting to see how that goes. Both recklessness and competence have been demonstrated, they've won a real victory but not at no cost. Though at the same time if the seal was going to come undone anyway and it was the improper job that let them even notice, plus (I still think really stupid) lack of physical security, then the temple is still heavily to blame. I'm assuming an organization is going to be more conservative about just running around messing with stuff and kids having that kind of power, but author has done well balancing things so can't wait to find out what is planned next.

 

[geistchevalier]

[ISEKAI TRUCK DIDN'T LIKE THAT]



also glad that the little boy ghost found peace

 

[katorirudo]

Wait, why the monk said only 4 deaths but we saw 5 of the monks in the temple all got turned

 

[Forikorder]

Wait, why the monk said only 4 deaths but we saw 5 of the monks in the temple all got turned

one of them was supposed to have killed himself 10 years ago to become the mummy so they thought only the other 4 were in the temple

 

[Mang-Oh]

I feel like there has to be a better way to do these fights instead of "sudden flashback deus ex machina"
Am I stupid? Is this a good writing technique and watching cinemasins that one time just killed my braincells?

 

[egi321]

That's a LOT of shenanigans in a single chapter.

Like, it's a good chapter, but it's a LOT of weird, specific, things going on

 

[Mondemon]

I feel like there has to be a better way to do these fights instead of "sudden flashback deus ex machina"
Am I stupid? Is this a good writing technique and watching cinemasins that one time just killed my braincells?

Hm? Everything that is set up in the fights was already introduced before in the series, the author uses the flashback to further explain it, just that.

 

[zanonyn]

I feel like there has to be a better way to do these fights instead of "sudden flashback deus ex machina"
Am I stupid? Is this a good writing technique and watching cinemasins that one time just killed my braincells?

It's a fair criticism that this series doesn't always have the strongest writing or foreshadowing, though it's solid enough, creative enough, and with flashes of real gems that I think it's still a fun ride and fun to discuss/speculate about. But for example the hair in this chapter showing the mummy is a woman, there is really not a hint of it when the encounter the sealed mummy, and it's very long, a lot to hide even under that big hat. So while it's not a bad twist I think, I'd accept a complaint that the execution is a touch cheap. Horror often does a lot to play around with expectations and showing that what people think they saw isn't what they actually saw, but that is tricky to pull off in a really strong way.

I don't think you're correct to call this "deus ex machina" though, all this feels like it lines up fine. The monks being summoned makes sense if they're all part of the same organization/religion/network. Them being actually competent and powerful isn't deus ex machina either, if anything it's weird to fall so into tropes that one assumes the equivalent of government special forces would be weak/incompetent. Them having a way to survive being crushed isn't at all wild by the kind of stuff we've seen in this series, like look at the gel damage absorbers our squad came up with themselves that has allowed them to take stupendous physical damage despite zilch formal training. And then the monks specifically did not save them.

So sure could have been somewhat more polished but I still think this was reasonable overall. I also don't think there's really any changes in style here. We're 50 chapters and 13 volumes into it, you should know what you're reading at this point . You're either having enough fun with it to ignore some rough spots and enjoy the ride, or not.

 

[Clover_Zero]

MY BOY ASURA IS FINE!!! THANK GOD!! I somehow didn't expect "remote control", in hindsight it's a possibility. Piloting the mecha yourself is a dream, but remote controlling it is also a dream! And it makes for a much better defense. And that smile in the end?? God, he is so precious.
Edit: I checked the previous chapter and there's a page where it shows mecha Asura having the normal Asura as its reflection. It was there all along lol.

Unexpected but cool cooperation between Asura and the Shikigami there. As they fight stronger enemies, perhaps more and more team play will happen.

The bonus commentary is great, I love to see such things - mangaka put so much thought in things you might not realize. It's such a nice touch to remove "Hungry Ghost Realm" to show how much he had developed. Yayoi did so well to communicate with him, I want to see the process. Thank you, mangaka. I think he's probably the most developed (personality and power-wise) ghost in Yayoi's army so far. Maybe because he's a kid and thus still has lots of room to grow, even in death.

These monks are badass!!
I think Asura is a good introduction for them. He is relatively more cooperative and controllable than the rest, so it might put them at more ease. It'd also be interesting to see what they think about the Shikigami. Such interesting turn of events, I'm very eager to find out what happen next!

 

[LilithRaven]

It's a fair criticism that this series doesn't always have the strongest writing or foreshadowing, though it's solid enough, creative enough, and with flashes of real gems that I think it's still a fun ride and fun to discuss/speculate about. But for example the hair in this chapter showing the mummy is a woman, there is really not a hint of it when the encounter the sealed mummy, and it's very long, a lot to hide even under that big hat. So while it's not a bad twist I think, I'd accept a complaint that the execution is a touch cheap. Horror often does a lot to play around with expectations and showing that what people think they saw isn't what they actually saw, but that is tricky to pull off in a really strong way.

I don't think you're correct to call this "deus ex machina" though, all this feels like it lines up fine. The monks being summoned makes sense if they're all part of the same organization/religion/network. Them being actually competent and powerful isn't deus ex machina either, if anything it's weird to fall so into tropes that one assumes the equivalent of government special forces would be weak/incompetent. Them having a way to survive being crushed isn't at all wild by the kind of stuff we've seen in this series, like look at the gel damage absorbers our squad came up with themselves that has allowed them to take stupendous physical damage despite zilch formal training. And then the monks specifically did not save them.

So sure could have been somewhat more polished but I still think this was reasonable overall. I also don't think there's really any changes in style here. We're 50 chapters and 13 volumes into it, you should know what you're reading at this point . You're either having enough fun with it to ignore some rough spots and enjoy the ride, or not.

holy hell you reply bette to that accusation some people love to throw around that stories aren’t set up in the way they think is should be and more often are exaggerated expectations or preference for how the story should be written

 

[nhansieu1]

the weakness of Asura was revealed during the fight with the Oiran. To be called "Strongest" in Yayoi's rank, at least he could do something like remote control to negate that weakness

 

[fsadddfsa]

It's a fair criticism that this series doesn't always have the strongest writing or foreshadowing, though it's solid enough, creative enough, and with flashes of real gems that I think it's still a fun ride and fun to discuss/speculate about. But for example the hair in this chapter showing the mummy is a woman, there is really not a hint of it when the encounter the sealed mummy, and it's very long, a lot to hide even under that big hat. So while it's not a bad twist I think, I'd accept a complaint that the execution is a touch cheap. Horror often does a lot to play around with expectations and showing that what people think they saw isn't what they actually saw, but that is tricky to pull off in a really strong way.

I don't think you're correct to call this "deus ex machina" though, all this feels like it lines up fine. The monks being summoned makes sense if they're all part of the same organization/religion/network. Them being actually competent and powerful isn't deus ex machina either, if anything it's weird to fall so into tropes that one assumes the equivalent of government special forces would be weak/incompetent. Them having a way to survive being crushed isn't at all wild by the kind of stuff we've seen in this series, like look at the gel damage absorbers our squad came up with themselves that has allowed them to take stupendous physical damage despite zilch formal training. And then the monks specifically did not save them.

So sure could have been somewhat more polished but I still think this was reasonable overall. I also don't think there's really any changes in style here. We're 50 chapters and 13 volumes into it, you should know what you're reading at this point . You're either having enough fun with it to ignore some rough spots and enjoy the ride, or not.

I think what he means is when asura was shown dead but "oh wait! flash back time!" and he's fine because the author gave him a new ability.

 

[helloxo-hell]

look at those muscle! Ghosts sure is full of protein

 

[twincubus]

I think what he means is when asura was shown dead but "oh wait! flash back time!" and he's fine because the author gave him a new ability.

the H castle ruins ghost also used bunrei though, so its not like that wasnt an already established concept in dark gathering

 

[fsadddfsa]

the H castle ruins ghost also used bunrei though, so its not like that wasnt an already established concept in dark gathering

of course, other ghosts have had it. but just because others have it doesn't mean we are to expect him to have it. If that were the case, why can't we expect asura to start chanting the death sutra that one monk uses, or use the butterflies that were used against him, or do any ability a previous ghost has done. Anything is possible with fiction, but for shit to matter it has to be grounded in some in-universe logic.

 

[twincubus]

of course, other ghosts have had it. but just because others have it doesn't mean we are to expect him to have it. If that were the case, why can't we expect asura to start chanting the death sutra that one monk uses, or use the butterflies that were used against him, or do any ability a previous ghost has done. Anything is possible with fiction, but for shit to matter it has to be grounded in some in-universe logic.

oh yeah another ghost using a pre established ability based on a real shinto concept sure is the same as using another ghosts curse that is rooted in their own personal grudges, for sure /s

i dont think anyone complained when more than one ghost was shown to be able to possess the living. if anything, the real twist is that the asura can effectively use a bunrei in combat without being screwed over for splitting his power.