Chapter 362: All Beings Under the Night (2)

Chapter 362: The Night of the Living Beings (Part 2)

Chuanteng solemnly declared, "If it weren't for the numerous Taoist orders that have vanished from the imperial homeland, wouldn't the Taoist sect only send a few minor operatives to scout ahead? Now they're resorting to such underhanded tactics as 'replacing earth immortals' to lure those fearless Taoist bandits into testing the waters?"

"The new Donglin Party alone wouldn't allow those cold-blooded cowhorns in Baiyujing, who have been reincarnated, to be so fearful. If it weren't for Su Ce, top earth immortal figures would have already stepped onto their swords and arrived!"

"If that old man hadn't been disillusioned and lost interest in participating in the order struggle during the 'World Divided into Military Forces' due to other orders of the same rank, how could he have remained in the Japanese district as a small thousand-household leader? Don't forget, he was a ruthless figure who, during the imperial royal family's heyday, was just one step away from controlling the entire Jinyiwei!"

Chuanteng earnestly advised, "The reason he can tolerate us now, as well as the newly appointed true lord in Osaka, is because he needs us to suppress these Japanese people and fulfill his final wish in this life. At a time like this, going against Su Ce's wishes for a potential threat like the Yan Lord would be a losing proposition, wouldn't it?"

I only uttered one sentence, and I was immediately met with a barrage of rebuttals.

The crucial point is that every word and sentence is said in a way that I cannot retract, which caused Kongque to frown tightly.

"Even if he was powerful in the past, he is now just an old, decayed order three!"

"Who would want to perish alongside him?"

Chuanteng sighed, "There are two types of people who disregard their lives: one is a young bull who has not yet experienced the world. The other is someone like Su Ce, who is old and about to die, feeling that he has lived enough. With power and no regard for life, who dares to provoke such a person?"

"This can't be done, that can't be done. Are we just going to watch the Yan Lord grow stronger and then come against us?"

This woman is utterly unreasonable when she becomes confused.

Even when she retreats into the Buddhist order, it's the same.

This wild woman.

Chuanteng rubbed his throbbing temples and reluctantly closed his mouth.

At that moment, the golden Buddha statue standing on Mingwang's shoulder stopped chanting and, with a point of his toes, rose up and gently landed on Mingwang's head.

After performing eleven prostrations to Chuanteng and Kongque, it shrank into a small cylinder and, with a mechanical clanging sound, entered the scar-like brain machine.

"Chuanteng, what news did you bring back when you returned to Hanshan to report?"

Mingwang's eyes trembled and he slowly opened a slit.

Chuanteng clasped his hands together and said solemnly, "In response to your question, the temple's intention this time is to take advantage of the turmoil in the guilty district to establish temples and enterprises, gather disciples, and distribute incense money. The Japanese district is their most prized piece of incense land."

A cold light flashed in Mingwang's half-closed eyes, "The temple has been somewhat imprudent this time."

"Yes, now the entire empire is openly focused on the new policies in the Japanese district, trying to gain more cultural and military achievements to secure a better position for themselves in the new-old transition of the Donglin Party."

"Secretly, there is a large-scale disappearance of Taoist orders, and Hongwu is also becoming restless. I really don't know how they can still be interested in getting involved in this mess."

Mingwang calmly inquired, "How is the investigation into the disappearance of Taoist order personnel going?"

"There hasn't been much progress so far, as most of the energy has been diverted by Hongwu. However, when I left the imperial homeland, I learned that most small guilty districts had already announced the completion of a thorough investigation and found no trace of missing personnel."

"Now only large guilty districts like Siam, Annam, and our Japanese district are still investigating, which shows that several orders in the court are not very enthusiastic about this matter."

Chuanteng shook his head, "However, the four companies have been unusually quiet lately, and I have a bad feeling about it."

"Assign some personnel to strengthen the deployment. If this matter is really related to the four companies, then our Edo Castle Hundred Households will inevitably be the first to suffer."

"Understood."

"As for the temple's orders,"

Mingwang paused for a moment, "Let's put them aside for now. With Su Houqian in charge, we don't have the qualifications to reach out yet."

Chuanteng's face showed a clear expression of relief and he laughed, "It's good that you, Brother, understand the situation."

"Lord, what about the situation in Inuyama Castle?" Kongque's eyes still held anger.

"He's not a threat, nor will he become one."

As soon as Mingwang finished speaking, he closed his eyes again, and a chant emerged from the scar.

But this time, what leapt out of the brain machine was not the previously majestic Buddha, but a bodhisattva with a compassionate expression.

The bodhisattva wasn't the only one with a compassionate expression; the demoness also had one.

In the most secret place of the Black Dragon Capital Building, Meichi Harukata quietly watched the naked body immersed in a colorless liquid.

On the towering body, blocks of clearly defined muscles resembled armor, and the long yellow hair floating behind the head moved freely, exuding an overwhelming and majestic aura.

Meichi Harukata removed the hood from his head, revealing a withered and gaunt face, and a faint whisper came from his sparse teeth, "Kouzeiretsu, you should wake up."

As soon as the words left his mouth, the vertical oval glass container suddenly developed cracks.

Crack, crack, crack.

As the cracks spread and deepened, the owner of the body suddenly opened his eyes, and a fiercely hot gaze shot out.

Crack!

The glass shattered with a sound, and the liquid surged out.

The bare feet stepped on the broken glass on the ground and slowly walked to the old woman's side.

A strong arm wrapped around Meichi Harukata's body and gently lifted her up.

"My current body can't withstand your torment."

Hot breath hit Meichi Harukata's face, blowing her loose white hair around.

"Once I destroy the Huangtian Gate, I'll find you the most perfect body!"

Kouzeiretsu's voice was like thunder, and his lips moved towards the person in front of him.

After a long breath, the thin and weak body finally landed again.

Kouzeiretsu took a big step away, leaving behind a terrifying shadow that resembled a ghost's face.

Meichi Harukata lowered her head and slowly reached into her mouth, removing a tooth that had almost fallen out during the impact, and casually threw it away.

Bang.

Bang.

Electric sparks flew from Yu Canghai's palm, and the smashed electronic documents were scattered all over the floor.

He stared coldly at the unwelcome guest, his expression sinister, and said coldly, "Do you really think that the True Lord will cooperate with you again just because of this bandit report?"

"It's not cooperation, it's joining."

The man who called himself Morooka extended a finger and held it up in front of him, gently moving it, "We hope that the True Lord can become a true Hongwu."

"Absurd!"

Yu Canghai roared in anger, and a red sword tip constantly swallowed and spat out in his ears, "Infiltrating my household, trying to seduce my official, don't think that because you're a master of the Five Sages you're untouchable. At this close distance, I can still kill you!"

"If the True Lord really wants to use my head to seek credit from Su Ce, you can go ahead and kill me."

Morooka put his hands in his sleeves, ignoring the sword light that was close by, and his kneeling body remained motionless.

"But you should know in your heart that this little merit probably won't save you. Oh, by the way, the Mingwang you want to attach yourself to won't be able to either."

Morooka laughed, "With Su Ce, the big Buddha, pressing down on his head, he can't move an inch. Monopolizing the evaluation together has been his most courageous attempt in many years, and now he's probably worried about his own safety."

Yu Canghai's lips were tightly closed, and his face was dark and sullen.

The red dragon hovering in his ear stopped trembling and silently retracted its tail flame.

"The true identity of the Yan Lord, the hundred-household leader of Inuyama Castle, is well-known to you, True Lord. The hatred you and he have in Chengdu Prefecture cannot possibly be resolved."

Morooka said slowly, "He hasn't attacked you all this time because he's been walking on the edge of life and death and has no spare energy. Now he can directly kill the true body of Matsuyama, and his strength is far beyond the level of order six. Since you and he will eventually have to part ways in life and death, why don't you give yourself more winning chips, True Lord?"

“With Su Ce here, he dares to kill me? Unauthorized killing of colleagues is a capital offense within the Jinwuwei!”

Yu Canghai now looked like a man who was fierce on the outside but weak on the inside.

“As long as humans hold power, there are distinctions between near and far, and between close and distant. The previous Wozu deputy captain, Lu Chengjiang, was killed by him, and there was no punishment at all, was there?”

This incident, which had shocked the entire Wozu Jinwuwei, had occurred not long ago, and Yu Canghai naturally knew about it.

At that moment, he thought without hesitation: “That’s because Lu Chengjiang eliminated dissenters and crossed the line first!”

“He made a mistake, but didn’t you make a mistake too?”

Morinaga’s eyes were dark. “What you did in Chengdu Prefecture, the reason you were expelled by Qingcheng Group—Su Ce knows all too well. These warriors have extremely violent personalities, and his accepting you into Wozu may not be without the intention of using you as bait.”

Morinaga raised his hand to point at the people outside the door who stood like wooden puppets. “Your two generals are both spies left by Captain Qian Fengting of the thousand-person unit.”

Yu Canghai’s face grew paler and paler, and the red dragon flying sword in his hand had completely lost its divine light, slumping in his grasp.

“Since you know he’s using me as bait, why do you still dare to come to me?”

“Because we believe that the True Lord is not someone who is willing to sit and wait to die, to be manipulated by others.”

Morinaga’s magnetic voice was like a demon enticing people to fall into temptation, step by step seducing Yu Canghai.

“True Lord, one’s own destiny should be in one’s own hands—that’s when one feels secure.”

Yu Canghai pressed his knee with his hand, grasping tightly and then releasing, repeating several times, until he finally clenched a fist with prominent blue veins.

“I can join you, but I demand a high price!”

Yu Canghai’s voice was extremely hoarse.

“No problem.”

Morinaga raised his hand and placed a jade disc on the table, pushing it in front of Yu Canghai.

“This Huangliang permission is enough for you to enter the Xian class and become a human immortal. With the ability to summon the Tao ancestor, you are truly a Tao order six mountains and rivers scholar.”

Yu Canghai’s face turned red, his eyes bloodshot, and he stared intently at the jade disc on the table, which emitted a faint blue light.