The Fox with Nine Tails

The film is based on a novel by Okamoto Kidou, which draws from a legend about a lifeless stretch of land near Mt. Chausu, an active volcano in Tochigi Prefecture. For centuries, since the Heian period, the area has been known to emit toxic gases-hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, and arsenic-killing animals and people who strayed too close. According to the legend, long ago in China, a kitsune (fox spirit) took the form of a beautiful woman, seduced the emperor, and brought disaster to his kingdom. Later, the same fox spirit traveled to Japan, disguised herself as a woman named Tamamo, and repeated her schemes-seducing the emperor and sowing chaos-until she was exposed and slain. With her dying breath, she cursed her killers and turned into a poisonous stone called Sesshoseki at this very spot.