Chapter 382: Edo Rebellion

Chapter 382: The Edo Rebellion

In the 12th year of Jiashou, on the 18th day of the second month, the Honghu Kanna King led a hundred elite masters, assaulting Edo, the capital of the ten cities, at midnight.

The battle had just begun when the military officer in charge of directing the Edo city's garrison defected, and nearly three hundred garrison soldiers, under the command of the great general Huiguo of the Kanna King, turned their weapons and marched straight toward the Thousand Household of the Brocade Guard in the Wa District!

The ferocity of the Honghu, coupled with the suddenness of the attack, caught the Brocade Guard of Edo off guard; they retreated step by step, being driven by the Honghu into the streets where the Thousand Household was located. In the emergency, Vice Thousand Household Ghost King Da personally led troops to meet the enemy, and the two sides engaged in a fierce, burning‑caged melee.

At the same time, another Honghu great general, Chuke, led his men to assault the Wa District's Governor's Office, and with the aid of a traitor inside the office, the rebels advanced unimpeded, encountering almost no resistance, and headed straight for the residence of Governor Li Bu Feng of the Wa District.

In the perilous moment, a ghost named Shengzhu, a monk of the Xù series, appeared in single armor, confronting General Chuke and dozens of elite soldiers under his command; after half a shichen of ferocious combat, not a single Honghu managed to cross the threshold of the Governor's Office.

At the second watch hour, Hundred Household of the Brocade Guard, Ming Wang, together with the total flag's Peacock and others, left the city to pursue the enemy leader Kanna King, intending to behead him and turn the situation around.

On the way, they were ambushed; Ming Wang was severely wounded by the strongest general under the Kanna King, Shuicun Wudou, and the total flag's Peacock risked his life to rescue him, successfully retreating back into Edo.

At the third watch hour, the total flag's Burning Lamp, responsible for monitoring the movements of the four major company headquarters, urgently reported to the Thousand Household that the headquarters of the Black Dragon Capital had been attacked by the Honghu; the firepower was overwhelming, the troops elite, far exceeding the other two rebel factions in the city, and it was suspected that the Black Dragon Capital was the main target of this raid.

At the fourth watch hour, the master of the Black Dragon Capital behind him, the Mingzhi family, voluntarily gave up resistance and evacuated all key personnel. Their headquarters building was immediately bombed by the Honghu, the explosion reverberated throughout the city, flames obscured the sky, and the night burned like day.

Strangely, the site of the flattened Black Dragon Capital revealed an unknown underground space of indeterminate purpose.

Also discovered were the bodies of some members of the Sequence, later confirmed to be missing persons of the domestic Dao Sequence of the empire.

At the hour of the Ox, one hour after the attack began, the Honghu began a full retreat. During their withdrawal, they clashed with the reinforcements from Matsumoto Castle, and the hundred household of the Brocade Guard, Kin Shou, fell in battle.

At the first watch hour, news of the Honghu's assault on the city reached the mainland of the empire, causing immediate shock and uproar across the realm.

At the second watch hour, Dao Sequence's Baoyu Jing contacted the New East Forest Sect, hoping the two sequences could set aside their differences, allowing the Dao Sequence to dispatch a heavenly master to the Wa District to investigate the disappearance of a member of their own sequence. This proposal was firmly rejected by the New East Forest Sect on the grounds of "the new policy takes precedence".

At the third watch hour, the leader of the New East Forest Sect went to the Wenyuan Pavilion late at night, wrote a memorandum in the old-fashioned manner, named the attack the "Edo Rebellion", and ordered the Brocade Guard of the Wa District and the Governor's Office to cooperate swiftly in solving the case.

“This is the situation now facing the Wa District after that night’s turmoil. Even in the mainland of the empire, rumors are spreading that whether the new policy can be implemented depends on whether the Honghu in the Wa District agrees. This would be a great shame for the Confucian school, so the propaganda offices of the great cities will no longer remain passive; undoubtedly they will push the new policy forward with full force.”

“The white jade jing who ate a mouthful of dust will surely not let this go, and even the Buddhist sequences will insert a foot; so you, boy, should keep your eyes wide open these days, lest you be stabbed in the back and not realize what happened!”

Li Jun looked at the incessant man before him and could not help but laugh, saying, “Your vigor is impressive; the recovery is going well.”

“It’s fine, just staying in the tub for too long; my mind feels a bit sluggish.”

Ghost King Da instinctively added a remark, then immediately adopted a stern expression and said, “Don’t try to curry favor with me, you useless fellow—do you know what a huge mess you’ve gotten yourself into this time?”

Li Jun replied quietly, “I know.”

The Edo Rebellion, it seems, has little to do with Li Jun, the hundred household of the Inuyama Castle.

After all, when the incident occurred, he was in Osaka Castle.

But those with keen eyes know that if Su Ce had not left Edo, the Honghu would never have dared to launch this assault.

“Knowing is enough.”

Ghost King Da sighed, his tone softening: “However, this cannot be blamed entirely on you. From the manpower, firepower, and the number of hidden stakes mobilized by the Honghu, it is clear they have been planning for a long time. Even if you had not gone to Osaka, they would have found other ways to lure the thousand‑household lord out of Edo.”

“Fortunately, this time the thousand‑household lord pre‑emptively sent his own black‑armored Shengzhu to the Governor’s Office, blocking Chuke’s attack. Otherwise, if Governor Li Bu Feng truly fell to the Honghu, the matter would have become truly enormous.”

At this point, a deep tremor appeared in Ghost King Da’s eyes; he still dared not fully contemplate what would happen to the Wa District’s Brocade Guard if Li Bu Feng were to die, and what fury the imperial court would unleash.

“How do you, thousand‑household lord, intend to punish me?” Li Jun asked calmly.

Since receiving Su Ce’s notification, Li Jun had not stopped rushing to the thousand‑household office. Yet as soon as he entered, Ghost King Da seized him in his office, and before he could even see Su Ce’s face, he still did not know how Su Ce would handle him.

Ghost King Da pondered for a moment, did not answer directly, but instead asked, “Why did you suddenly go to Osaka? Is it related to your sequence?”

“Mm.”

Li Jun did not conceal anything, revealing the entire content of his self‑inflicted ritual to Ghost King Da.

“I killed Yu Canghai, first to avenge and vent my resentment, and second, more importantly, to use him as a ‘source of calamity,’ pulling out those who stood behind him one by one, and dealing with each of them. I estimate that this should be enough to create a ‘calamity’ that satisfies the ritual’s requirements.”

Ghost King Da rolled his eyes, “You mean the Ming Wang, right?”

Li Jun chuckled, then said, “When Yu Canghai had just died, I discovered my genetic lock had opened, and I smoothly advanced in rank. At that moment I realized it was a bad omen.”

“So you are now at Sequence Five?”

Ghost King Da, looking at Li Jun’s nod, muttered a regional saying akin to “people compare people and die,” and said, “If so, then our Brocade Guard have not suffered too heavily this time.”

Ghost King Da asked, “Do you know about Yu Canghai’s collusion with the Honghu and the Peace King?”

“The Qilin Dragon has already told me, but I always feel this matter is not that simple.”

Regarding Yu Canghai’s defection, Li Jun was not surprised, yet he sensed that the circumstances surrounding it were far too coincidental.

It seemed as if someone within the Honghu had deliberately set a trap, providing Li Jun with a perfect excuse, rendering his later escape plans useless.

Having never known true good luck, Li Jun naturally doubted that there was not some hidden trick behind this affair.

“Indeed, it is not that simple, nor is it overly complex.”

Ghost King Da gave a cold smile, “It is merely someone using this as a pretext to beg for mercy from us.”

Li Jun suddenly understood, “The feigned attack on Osaka—was it the Honghu? The Peace King?”

“Who else could it be? The Wa scoundrel, Kagenaga Heishin, shows no mercy when killing his own.”

Ghost King Da mused, “I truly do not understand: why would a man so concerned with his own life become a rebel and even rise to the rank of List King in the Wa district?”

“Yu Canghai’s betrayal of the Honghu, his treasonous plot, caused the thousand‑household lord Su to send you to Osaka to slay the traitor. The entire operation was conducted in secret, aiming to minimize the negative impact on the entire Brocade Guard by removing a single rebellious hundred‑household officer.”

Ghost King Da paused, “The whole affair is logical and beyond reproach; no one can fault it. But you’d better not get ahead of yourself.”

With a swift turn of his words, “In short, this Edo Rebellion is still intimately tied to you. The higher authorities are breathing down our necks, Ming Wang is seriously wounded, and among the hundred households of the Wa district, you are the only one capable of fighting.”

“Therefore, the thousand‑household lord’s intention is for you to lead the purge of the Honghu rebels of the Kanna lineage!”

“Thousand‑household lord, please believe us: we, the other three houses, have known nothing of the Black Dragon Capital matter from start to finish, nor participated in it.”

“Since you claim ignorance, we will let it go. Just mind your own little plot of land and do not cause trouble for me at this time.”

Su Ce waved his hand, and the three projections before him vanished.

“Lord.”

Money Feng Ting, standing with his hands clasped, approached and said in a low voice, “The underground space beneath the Black Dragon Capital headquarters has been fully investigated; it appears to be a stripping ground for separating the authority of the Sequence from the Huang Liang. From the bodies left at the scene, it seems nearly two hundred Sequence members died here, the vast majority being Dao Sequence personnel.”

“So many unidentified Sequence members managed to slip into Edo unnoticed—truly a case of darkness beneath the lamp!”

Su Ce smiled coldly and said, “What on earth have the Ming Wang been eating? Who is the head of the intelligence division under his command?”

“His name is Burning Lamp. Like the Ming Wang, he is affiliated with the cold mountain temple’s Buddhist lineage.”

Money Feng Ting added, “However, this matter likely has little to do with the struggle between Buddhism and Dao; the Ming Wang probably did not have the audacity to act this way. More likely, they were misled by the Black Dragon Capital.”

Su Ce fell silent for a moment, lit a cigarette, placed it in the corner of his mouth, and asked with a half‑smile, “Old Qian, I recall your relationship with the Ming Wang has not been good; shouldn’t you take this chance to step on him?”

“At critical moments, we discuss the matter at hand. Though we are not on good terms, I would not stoop to such base tactics and abandon the cause.”

Moreover, he risked his life to lead the city‑wide beheading of the Kanna King across the border, even though he failed, and his resolute determination deserves respect.

“Among the Confucian scholars, people like you, Old Qian, who possess conscience, are exceedingly rare.”

Su Ce laughed heartily, “But there is one point you did not mention correctly.”

“What?” Money Feng Ting looked surprised.

“The Black Dragon Capital could orchestrate such a thing right under our noses; this must be linked to the internal conflict between Buddhism and Dao. Even if the Ming Wang was not involved, his subordinate Burning Lamp surely was.”

Su Ce declared confidently, “This has nothing to do with bravery; they simply cannot refuse. The Han‑transmitted Buddhist tradition is far better at restraining itself than the Buddhist sects that are filled with lust, murder, and depravity.”

The act of inscribing the scar, the implantation of the mind-machine, equates to signing a surrender of life. Repeating the reference to the high-ranking monk's yellow rice paddy, bounding oneself to their tracks, one's visage remains untouched by mere face exchanges; any further transformation evades their grasp.