A Pawn’s Passage

Qi Xuansu ignored his injury and fired another shot.

These two shots from the Dragon Painting Pistol were indeed far superior to the Divine Dragon Pistol.

Another blood stain bloomed from the miko's abdomen before she collapsed to the ground.

After all, these were two rounds of Grade-A Series Eight Dragon Eye Bullets. Aside from Heavenly-Being Martial Arts Practitioners, most would not be able to endure such an impact. Moreover, the quality of Heavenly Beings in Fenglin was not that impressive, as they were scattered, with a few prodigies here and there. Most were of a weaker caliber. In short, compared to the Daoist Order, which had completed its internal restructuring and reform, the Tenmon Sect was still in its early, chaotic stages of growth. The gap between the two sides was evident in all aspects.

Little Yin sliced off a lock of her hair with a fingernail and gave it a flick. It turned into a black rope, slithering like a snake on its own toward the miko and binding her up.

Qi Xuansu, whose wounds were healing on their own, warned Little Yin, "Don't eat her."

This time, Little Yin readily agreed.

It seemed she was not interested in eating humans and much preferred devouring powerful monsters or ghosts. That made sense—humans might be the spirit of all beings, but physically, they were not strong. Even the most robust Manly Immortals were no match for wild beasts or divine creatures. Martial Arts Practitioners who nourished themselves with blood to boost their vitality also favored exotic beasts.

In light of this, Little Yin's request to stay in Ise Province for a few days was clearly ill-intentioned. Most likely, she had her eyes on the ghost-infested state of this place and hoped for a feast. After all, in the Ghost Kingdom, the disparity was extreme, with either weak little ghosts that even Qi Xuansu could handle at the Xiantian-Being level, or overpowered ones like the Three Yin Beings. Thus, yin creatures at the Heavenly-Being level were indeed rare.

After binding the miko with her hair, Little Yin pointed a finger and shot a black thread into the miko's brow. She immediately became like a puppet, vacant-eyed and expressionless.

Qi Xuansu had seen Master Yin use this technique before. It once subdued four Heavenly Beings from the Tianchen Division in an instant. Those four later ended up in Little Yin's private school, nodding off and memorizing texts.

So it was only natural that Little Yin, his granddaughter, had inherited this technique.

At this point, Qi Xuansu had seen through it all. Little Yin would not give up until she had eaten whatever was sealed beneath the stele. Given his cultivation level, he was at best her equal, so forcibly sending her back to the Ghost Kingdom was simply unrealistic.

Qi Xuansu paused in thought, then said, "I'll help you smash the stele. But first, you have to tell me exactly what's underneath it."

Little Yin initially wanted to say she didn't know, but if she did, her earlier promise would lose all credibility. After all, how could she guarantee she could devour something when she didn't even know what it was?

So Little Yin had no choice but to answer honestly. "A head."

"A head?" Qi Xuansu was momentarily stunned.

The Ise-jingu went to such great lengths to place this seal, just to keep a head? Just what was the origin of this head?

Qi Xuansu immediately recalled that Shuten-Doji had been decapitated by the Fenglin Court, paving the way for Ibaraki-Doji to take his place. Was it really Shuten-Doji's head that was sealed here?

Since Tamamo-no-Mae and Yamata-no-Orochi could be resurrected, if Shuten-Doji's head were returned to Mount Oe, could he too be revived?

If Shuten-Doji were resurrected, he would surely seek revenge against the Fenglin Court.

If Qi Xuansu could also persuade Suzuka Gozen, who had inherited the power base of Ootakemaru, just like Ibaraki-Doji had inherited from Shuten-Doji, then two of the Three Great Yokai would have submitted. The remaining demons and wild gods of Fenglin would surely fall in line.

If he could then resolve Tamamo-no-Mae's hesitations or remove her bindings, all Three Great Yokai would submit, potentially offsetting the advantage held by the Three Great Kami of the Tenmon Sect. Though the Three Great Kami were stronger, as deities, they could not descend into the mortal realm freely and were subject to many restrictions.

From a public standpoint, this would be a huge boon to the war effort in Fenglin. It might even accelerate the entire campaign and shift the balance. In war, casualties were inevitable. This could spare the Daoist Order many needless deaths.

From a personal standpoint, it was a monumental achievement—one that could allow Qi Xuansu to shed his current administrative rank and become a true third-rank Youyi Daoist master. Even if he were no longer Deputy Hall Master, he would retain that rank and build a solid foundation for promotion to a second-rank Taiyi Daoist master.

Promotion to the second rank was by selection and ultimately decided by the Golden Tower Council. Even if someone wanted to recommend Qi Xuansu, they needed something to speak of. Without a strong resume, a willing supporter would have no case to make.

For example, during the deliberations on his promotion, someone might object that Qi Xuansu was too young and his credentials too shallow, so he should train for a few more years. Instead, this promotion round should be given to a senior elder. After all, someone as young as Qi Xuansu still had time.

Thus, the best way was to have concrete merit for what Qi Xuansu had accomplished on the battlefield of Fenglin. Military exploits spoke for themselves. Demoralizing soldiers was unacceptable. Otherwise, no one would want to fight for the nation anymore.

At this point, Qi Xuansu had made up his mind. He had to secure that head, even if it meant risking being hunted down by the Tenmon Sect.

Fortune favored the bold.

Still, he needed to negotiate with his little ancestor. "Little Yin, how many of those 'tree hearts' is this head worth?"

Little Yin tilted her head in thought for a moment. "About ten, I guess."

Qi Xuansu thought that made sense. The Jumenji was just a Heavenly Being, and Shuten-Doji had to be on par with Yamata-no-Orochi at the very least.

Qi Xuansu said, "How about this—let me have the head. I have an important use for it. Once the Daoist Order takes Ise Province, I'll give you 15 similar ones. Even if I can't gather that many, I'll personally ask Sage Cihang for some elixir to make it up to you. She's the former Huasheng Hall Master, so getting the elixir won't be difficult."

Little Yin looked at Qi Xuansu and smiled. "I'd rather have one rabbit in hand than a thousand sheep in the distance."

Qi Xuansu replied, "This concerns the entire strategy landscape of Fenglin. Strictly speaking, you're part of the Daoist Order too, alive or dead. Do you not believe in the Daoist Order's strength? Do you think we can't conquer Ise Province?"

Little Yin reasoned confidently, "Of course, I believe in the Daoist Order. It's invincible! They can win Fenglin even without this head. If that's the case, how can this head be so important to the overall war?"

Qi Xuansu threatened. "You've got a comeback for everything. Fine, there's no point talking to you. I'll speak to Master Yin instead. He's a reasonable man."

Mentioning her grandfather still made Little Yin cautious. She grumbled reluctantly, "Fine, we'll do it your way. But you need to put it in writing."

Qi Xuansu immediately pulled out paper and brush from his magical receptacle and wrote, "February 10th, 43rd year of the Jiushi Era, within the borders of Anno County, Ise Province, Fenglin. Qi Xuansu owes Yin Wanmiao 15 Heavenly-Being-level demon hearts. The debt shall be fully repaid once the Daoist Order takes Ise Province. If repayment cannot be made in full, medicinal pills or elixirs of equal value shall be provided as compensation."

Then he took out his seal and stamped it with the four characters, "Seal of Qi Xuansu."

As a Deputy Hall Master, Qi Xuansu had earned the right to his own seal, though it was rather basic. It was said that the Holy Xuan had no less than 20 seals.

Qi Xuansu could not help but envy that. Seals were mainly divided into name seals and leisure seals. Anything other than the name seal was considered leisure. Among them were studio seals, named after one's abode or study, as well as seals used to mark calligraphy and painting. In a way, they were a series of subtle honorifics, quietly conveying status and refinement. At this point, Qi Xuansu had nothing beyond his name and courtesy name. He did not even have a sobriquet, let alone a named studio, and certainly no artwork to put seals on.

He wondered whether he would ever reach the level of the Holy Xuan in this lifetime.

Qi Xuansu gathered his thoughts and handed the slip of paper to Little Yin.

Little Yin took it, read it carefully, and then stored it away with care. "Now there's another issue. How are you going to carry that head away? Don't tell me you plan to put it in your magical receptacle? Let me warn you, that thing could burst your magical receptacle open. If you carry it on you, its overwhelming demonic aura and yin energy will make it impossible to hide even if it's unconscious and not interfering with you. The locals of Fenglin will detect you from miles away, and you might not even make it out of Ise Province."

That truly was a problem.

Qi Xuansu humbly asked, "So, what would you suggest?"

Little Yin said, "I can store it for you."

"How?" Qi Xuansu raised an eyebrow.

Little Yin patted her own belly. "Right in here!"

Qi Xuansu looked skeptical.

Little Yin snorted. "I knew you wouldn't trust me. But even if I wanted to sneak a bite of it, I'd still need time to digest. It's just like how you'll need time to absorb and refine an elixir after consuming it. While digesting, I'll fall asleep for at least a month. So, you'll be able to tell the difference if I'm really eating it or storing it for you."

Qi Xuansu gave it some thought. It made sense, so he agreed.

Little Yin urged, "Hurry up and get to it, then! If we wait any longer, we'll be trapped like flies in a jar."