A Pawn’s Passage

The Yinglong Warship soon arrived over Hikone Castle. In recent years, aside from establishing Daoist temples in every major feudal city, the Daoist Order had also excavated artificial lakes to serve as landing zones for flying ships. When not in use, they could function as reservoirs or scenic spots, so they were never a waste.

Half of Omi Province was occupied by Lake Biwa, the largest lake in the entire Fenglin. Thanks to this, there was no need to dig an artificial lake. The Yinglong Warship could land directly in Lake Biwa.

Given the Yinglong Warship's enormous size, it was impossible for its arrival to go unnoticed. The moment it appeared on the horizon, the samurai on the watchtower had already reported it to Toyotomi Hidemochi and Yagyu Sosei.

Yagyu Sosei personally escorted Toyotomi Hidemochi to the outskirts of the city. Accompanying them were his personal guards, retainers who had served the family for generations and possessed considerably high cultivation levels. Their leader was a Heavenly Being. Toyotomi Hidemochi himself was no ordinary noble either, with a Guizhen-stage cultivation. As a member of the Three Noble Houses, he lacked neither resources nor instruction, especially with Yagyu Sosei as his swordmaster. For someone his age, such cultivation was indeed impressive.

As the Yinglong Warship lowered its ramp, the newly formed five-person escort team disembarked one after another. Influenced by Central Plains culture, Toyotomi Hidemochi spoke fluent Central Plains court dialect. One could hardly tell he was from Fenglin at all.

After brief pleasantries and introductions, Li Tiangang said, "Time is of the essence, so we won't enter the city. Lord Toyotomi Hidemochi, please board the vessel."

Toyotomi Hidemochi glanced up at the Yinglong Warship, which was as towering as the main keep of his castle. He let out a soft sigh before ascending the ramp.

Yagyu Sosei remained in place, watching as Toyotomi Hidemochi boarded the Yinglong Warship. He then turned to Li Tiangang and said, "I must remain here to defend Hikone Castle and cannot accompany Lord Toyotomi Hidemochi to the capital. I entrust his safety to you all."

Li Tiangang replied, "Lord Toyotomi Hidemochi's safety is critical to the stability of Fenglin. Both the army camp and Daoist Mansion take this matter very seriously. Sage Qingwei personally arranged this escort, so we will not be careless. Rest assured, Sekishusai."

Yagyu Sosei said no more.

Li Tiangang was the last to ascend the ramp.

Spirit Guard Ding Wei, who was in charge of directing the Spirit Guards, gave the order to take off. The colossal Yinglong Warship rose from the lake's surface, carrying dense moisture that condensed into clouds and mist, wrapping around its form.

It was Toyotomi Hidemochi's first time aboard the Yinglong Warship. Gazing down upon the earth from the sky, he was overwhelmed by the indescribable magnificence of the view. The sheer awe of it slightly eased the foreboding sensation in his heart.

Li Tiangang approached him and said, "Lord Hidemochi, the deck isn't safe. Please come with me."

Toyotomi Hidemochi nodded slightly without objection.

Under Li Tiangang's guidance, Toyotomi Hidemochi was brought to a special room. In the Heavenly Preceptor or the Imperial Preceptor's flying ship, this would typically be the study reserved for their use. But the Yinglong Warship was not a private vessel; it was a warship. Thus, this room remained unoccupied.

There was no doubt that this was one of the safest locations aboard the Yinglong Warship.

Li Tiangang said, "Lord Hidemochi, I must confirm once again. Are your guards truly trustworthy?"

Toyotomi Hidemochi was no fool. He clearly understood what Li Tiangang's question implied. The Koga Ninja could infiltrate anywhere, as they were adept at disguise and impersonation. If one had infiltrated his guard unit, they could easily strike at the most critical moment.

Given that his life was at stake, Toyotomi Hidemochi answered solemnly, "I can guarantee there are no disguised ninja among my guards. Yagyu Sosei himself confirmed this. As for their loyalty, it is beyond question. They are my vassals, but so were their fathers and their sons. Should I die, they would be compelled to commit seppuku, and their fathers, sons, mothers, and wives would not be spared either."

Li Tiangang nodded. "Barbaric, cruel, and yet undeniably effective."

Toyotomi Hidemochi replied, "When the lord is disgraced, the vassal dies—that is the spirit of the Central Plains gentry. It spread to Fenglin, and we've honored it well."

Li Tiangang responded noncommittally, "Those ideals are bygones. This is now the Daoist era. The world only progresses through change. Clinging to old ways and stagnating will never bring enduring peace."

However, he did not press the topic and instead added, "From now until we reach the army camp in Xiujing, I ask that you do not leave this room under any circumstances."

Toyotomi Hidemochi nodded solemnly.

Elsewhere, Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu remained at the prow of the ship, facing the fierce winds.

Qi Xuansu said, "Qing Xiao, this is their last chance to assassinate Toyotomi Hidemochi. How do you think the Sonno-joi faction will make their move?"

Zhang Yuelu replied, "I'm not well-versed in Fenglin's methods, but the principle is the same. Once the Yinglong Warship activates its seals, they can't get in unless they are as powerful as Wu Luo's incarnation. So they'll have to launch an open and frontal direct attack."

Qi Xuansu said nothing, as certain memories resurfaced in his mind.

He had survived two flying ship crashes. Some might argue that the Yinglong Warship was in a league far above ordinary flying ships, but Qi Xuansu had witnessed firsthand the aftermath of the Yinglong Warship's fall in Cuowenbu. Apart from Sage Cihang and those onboard, he was perhaps the first true witness of the incident.

Was he somehow ill-fated with flying ships?

That said, it was a pity that the number of Spirit Guards and Daoist priests was far from sufficient. If they had the manpower to fully activate the Yinglong Warship's additional formations, their journey would have been far more secure. Four hundred Spirit Guards were still too few.

The Yinglong Warship flew at astonishing speed. As the two spoke, they were already nearing the edge of Omi Province.

At that moment, Qi Xuansu suddenly noticed the sky brighten. Everything around him was bathed in a vivid crimson glow, including Zhang Yuelu, the railings, and the deck.

Qi Xuansu snapped his head upward.

The sky had turned a fiery red at some point, and the clouds were ablaze, far more dazzling than the flaming skies of sunset.

At the heart of the clouds, a vast rupture had formed, like an inverted volcanic crater, overflowing with intensely saturated crimson light.

A massive meteor, wreathed in blazing flames, pierced through the rift and plummeted from the heavens. Its long tail of fire scorched the sky, leaving behind lingering trails as it streaked straight toward the Yinglong Warship.

The meteor reflected clearly in Qi Xuansu's pupils, its blood-red light staining him like a man doused in gore.

"This is..." Qi Xuansu had never witnessed anything like it before.

Li Tiangang's voice came at just the right moment. "Don't panic. It's merely a trick by the Tenmon Sect's Shinkan-dan. Spirit Guard Ding Wei will handle it. The Shinkan-dan is equivalent to our Diviner Corps, using special methods to pool collective power and cast spells far beyond their individual limits."

Rituals required incense, purification, an elaborate ceremonial setup, and significant time—all for the sake of executing a single spell.

This was the typical technique of Diviners. Though practically useless in close combat, where a Martial Arts Practitioner could disband them with a few punches before their altar was even set up, on a battlefield, and with enough time and preparation, their power could be terrifying.

The Diviner Corps was like armor—just as more armor plates could enhance defense, more Diviners working in unison could boost the spell's power. The greater their numbers, the more overwhelming the force. This was something that Qi Refiners could not replicate. A Diviner's strength lay in forming grand formations, but those were typically suited for defense and entrapment, not direct offense. Thus, they lacked flexibility.

Banished Immortals could, in theory, replicate this. But how many Banished Immortals existed in the world?

Shamans could also imitate such techniques. In fact, the divine descent of secret societies bore a remarkable similarity to the Diviner Corps' collaborative spellcasting. The Daoist Order did have more Shamans than Banished Immortals, but the number was still quite limited. After all, the Daoist Order never truly prioritized Shamans. Any scarce divine power was always invested in training Spirit Guards.

This was why the Daoist Order had a Diviner Corps but no organized corps for Qi Refiners, Banished Immortals, or Shamans.

Most Martial Arts Practitioners were part of the Black Robes, which specialized in mass-scale warfare. For instance, they could merge their blood qi to create zones where spellcasting was nullified. The Black Robes Cavalry represented the pinnacle of Martial Arts Practitioners' coordination.

In Fenglin, both the shinkan and onmyoji were adept at collective spellcasting. Shinkan belonged to the Tenmon Sect and served the royal family, while the onmyoji belonged to the Onmyodo and served the Chancellor's Office.

Therefore, it could only be a group of Shinkan called the Shinkan-dan who attacked the Yinglong Warship.

At that moment, in the distant Asahi-jingu atop Mount Asahi, hundreds of shinkan were gathered under the leadership of their guji, jointly conducting the ritual.

Inside the grand hall of the jingu, countless candles were aflame, each with a 10-centimeter diameter, flickering in brilliant light. The incense sticks were a few centimeters wide, their bluish-red tips glowing and dimming as wisps of smoke curled through the air.

Chants of sacred scripture and the clatter of ritual instruments interwove, echoing like a large bell tolling through the hall.

Above the jingu, golden clouds gathered and formed the illusion of an aged face. This was the visage of the guji, gazing toward the far end of the sky.

Though dusk had not yet arrived, that corner of the heavens was already dyed a deep crimson, as if the red sunset had silently crept up and claimed the sky.

The meteor drew ever closer to the Yinglong Warship.

Just then, the Yinglong Warship's main cannon slowly angled upward, its muzzle locking onto the descending meteor.

This cannon was named Starcrusher. It had a meter-wide caliber and a barrel over 30 meters long. It could fire projectiles like the 7-tonne Grade-A Series Two Dragon Eye Bomb and the 4.8-tonne Grade-A Series Two Phoenix Eye Bomb, with a maximum range of 75 kilometers.

The 400 Spirit Guards onboard were insufficient to operate the main cannon, but Spirit Guard Ding Wei could. Back at the Ascension Platform, Madam Qi had manually fired a cannonball at True Lord Siming too.

In an instant, a vortex of elemental energy began to gather at the cannon, devouring the ambient qi of heaven and earth like a voracious maelstrom.

A fiery red glow billowed from the depths of the barrel.

Boom!

The entire Yinglong Warship seemed to quake, and a shockwave burst outward in all directions. It was more violent than even the fiercest astral wind.

A precisely calibrated Grade-A Series Three Dragon Eye Bomb blasted from the barrel, striking the falling meteor dead on.

The meteor shattered on impact, scattering blazing fragments in all directions, lighting up the sky like a meteor shower or a grand fireworks display.