A Pawn’s Passage

Li Tiangang's meaning was perfectly clear. He continued, "Master Hinnyo, if you've come as an envoy for the royal family or for the Tenmon Sect, you may spare your words. Punishing war criminals and reclaiming power are Daoist Order's base conditions. Even if I were to agree, it wouldn't change anything. The headquarters and the Golden Tower Council wouldn't accept it."

The black-robed monk was none other than Hinnyo, the current abbot of Hongan-ji. Pressing his palms together, he said unhurriedly, "What if I speak for myself? What if I speak for others?"

Li Tiangang replied, "If you speak for yourself, choosing light over darkness, then on behalf of the Daoist Order, I welcome you. But if you speak for others and our paths diverge, I have nothing further to say."

Hinnyo sighed and changed the topic. "I heard that Master Sosen passed at Hisai Castle."

Li Tiangang's tone was indifferent as he said, "My condolences."

Hinnyo's robes fluttered in the sea breeze. "Daoist Li, if I recall correctly, our first meeting was 20 years ago, right?"

Li Tiangang nodded. "In the blink of an eye, it's already been 20 years since I arrived in Fenglin. I've advanced from a fourth-rank superintendent to a second-rank Deputy Mansion Master, all within the same Daoist Mansion without ever shifting elsewhere. Such continuity is rare across the Daoist Order. But given the special nature of an overseas Daoist mansion and certain networks that must be cultivated for the long term, frequent changes of personnel would indeed be unwise."

Hinnyo said, "At that time, I was also not yet the abbot of Hongan-ji. In that sense, you and I met when we were nobodies. From then until now, we have shared more than 20 years of friendship. Looking back, it truly stirs reflection."

Li Tiangang answered, "If not for our friendship, I would not have come to meet you now."

Hinnyo sighed again. "Alas, today, we each serve our own master. Private bonds must give way to state affairs."

Li Tiangang frowned faintly. "Master, if you have something to say, just state it outright. There's no need to beat around the bush."

"Very well. I shall cut to the chase." Hinnyo nodded. "I would like to ask you one thing only. You have been rooted in Fenglin for 20 years. Did you fan the flames in this Sonno-joi uprising?"

Li Tiangang's eyes turned sharp and piercing for an instant before falling back into stillness.

Hinnyo waited a moment. Seeing Li Tiangang hold his silence, Hinnyo continued, "Since you will not answer, I shall answer for you. As subjects under Daoist rule for so many years, we do have some understanding of the Daoist Order. Or rather, we can't afford not to know.

"The three Deputy Grand Masters are nearing their time of ascension. None of them is willing to risk trying a heavenly tribulation for another hundred years in this mortal world. Thus, the election of a new Grand Master has become an issue that the Deputy Grand Masters must resolve. Many of the Daoist Order's current disorders stem from this very matter.

"Of the three heirs apparent, Sage Cihang clearly has the slimmest chance. Barring the unexpected, the next Grand Master should be chosen between Sage Donghua and Sage Qingwei. From what I know, Sage Donghua has long presided in Jade Capital, managing the Golden Tower Council and leading Ziwei Hall, the foremost of the Nine Halls. He has immense prestige and support. In contrast, Sage Qingwei has remained in the local regions, ruling Qizhou Daoist Mansion. Though the Taiping Sect is the strongest of the three lineages, Sage Qingwei himself is weaker than Sage Donghua.

"For Sage Qingwei to surpass Sage Donghua, he must earn great merit, and nothing can outweigh war merit. That was how the fifth-generation Grand Master rose to power and ultimately secured the Grand Master's seat. Thus, Sage Qingwei's best path is to follow that example and secure victories in war."

Hinnyo gazed at Li Tiangang. "Daoist Li, shall I continue?"

Li Tiangang nodded. "Go on."

Hinnyo's voice grew solemn as he continued. "Borneo is a scattered mess, the Western Region war has just ended, and the Holy Court in Western Shakya is too powerful, so there are no guarantees of victory in those places. Out of all options, Fenglin is the only one in which victory is within reach. So tell me, Daoist Li—at the very outset of the Sonno-joi uprising, whose instruction was it for the Fenglin Daoist Mansion to turn a blind eye and adopt a wholly inactive stance until the situation escalated?"

Li Tiangang's gaze was indifferent. "Wasn't the Sonno-joi faction full of pride at first? You thought the Fenglin Daoist Mansion was nothing but a paper tiger, but now you blame us for inaction? Do you mean to say it was the Fenglin Daoist Mansion that ordered you lot to rebel?"

A shadow flickered in Hinnyo's eyes. "The majority were hijacked by a radical minority. You Daoists could have intervened early to cut off the threat, yet you let it fester. Is that not a dereliction of duty?"

Li Tiangang countered, "And why didn't you stop it? I'll answer that for you. You thought of using public sentiment and you didn't think it was the right timing, so you didn't want to play the villain. That's why you waited for the Fenglin Daoist Mansion to dirty our hands and crush the radicals while you planned to emerge later to gather the pieces and play the righteous savior. That way, you could recruit those disillusioned radicals under your banner, biding your strength until the Daoist Order's internal strife peaked. When the Daoist Order is distracted, you will then unleash your full force."

Hinnyo's eyes grew dark and heavy.

Li Tiangang continued, "You feared losing the trust of people and tarnishing your name. We, too, did not want to dirty our hands. After all, we Daoists always believe it better to divert the water than build a dam. To draw out the snake, one must first let it leave its burrow. Had we not allowed the radicals to stir chaos, how else would old snakes like you have surfaced?"

Hinnyo drew a long breath. "The Taiping Sect has calculated everything from the beginning, using our lives as stepping stones for Sage Qingwei."

Li Tiangang's expression did not change. "If you didn't think of toppling the Daoist Order, could we have forced you into rebellion? One who is without desire stands unyielding. As long as no thought stirs, there will be no losses."

"Do you still remember why the Daoist Order entered Fenglin in the first place? It was because of vengeance. Was it we who forced you people to invade the coastal regions of the Central Plains? Was it we who drove your Wokou to raid, kill, plunder, and burn our villages? You reap what you sow. Isn't this what you Buddhists call karma and retribution?"

Hinnyo's wide sleeves whipped in the wind, his robe flapping loudly.

The gloom faded from Hinnyo's face, leaving only calm. "In my view, all the bloodshed in Fenglin must be laid upon your heads. It is you who sowed endless slaughter, you who kindled this raging war, and you who cast Fenglin into this endless darkness. All the blame lies with the Daoist Order."

Li Tiangang stared straight at Hinnyo. "What do you intend to do then?"

Hinnyo's voice deepened. "Though you already walk the path of death, I shall not kill you. I will capture you alive and make you confess the Daoist Order's crimes before the world!"

As he finished his sentence, a figure appeared out of thin air behind Li Tiangang, slashing a ninja blade toward his neck.

It was none other than Sarutobi Shosai, the one who had escaped death time and again.

But Li Tiangang had long expected an ambush. With a phantom grip on his Daozi Sword, he turned and parried the strike, forcing Sarutobi Shosai back.

Hinnyo seized the moment, surging forward, his hands shooting out from his billowing sleeves, striking hard toward Li Tiangang's back.

Li Tiangang countered with a casual palm strike. In sheer force, his palm strike could not match Hinnyo's, yet within it lay hidden sword qi, waiting for the clash to pierce through the opponent's hand and into the body.

Hinnyo's face changed, and he was forced to withdraw, exclaiming. "The Wanhua Divine Sword Palm!"

The Wanhua Divine Sword Palm was a compulsory technique for the Li family. It was also the most famed. In the past, the Holy Xuan himself had dominated the world with this technique. Even when he battled his own father, the Great Sword Immortal Li Daoxu, it was this very palm technique that both father and son used to decide the outcome.

The key was that the palm technique had been transformed from swordsmanship. Every strike was as fierce as a blade, with various intricate and dazzling forms. The higher one's mastery of swordsmanship, the greater one's palm strike.

Li Tiangang, a Zaohua-stage Heavenly Being, wielded the Wanhua Divine Sword Palm with subtlety. What had once seemed ordinary revealed endless fine and exquisite variations in his hands. Illusion and reality entwined. Slowness turned into sudden speed. Feints could lure and confuse, yet at the critical instant, such illusions shifted into a killing strike.

From Hinnyo's point of view, palm shadows filled all directions. There were always multiple false palms and one true palm. It was like a gale sweeping through an orchard, sending peach blossoms cascading in a storm.

They traded blows for several moves when suddenly, Li Tiangang's palm surged in speed, striking late yet aiming straight at Hinnyo's chest. Though well-learned, Hinnyo was not a Martial Arts Practitioner. He did not see how the palm strike landed. Hastily, he crossed his palms before his chest, their palms meeting with a resounding clash.

Hinnyo held a slight advantage due to his higher cultivation, so he stood unmoved while Li Tiangang was forced to fly back. Yet within Hinnyo's body, he suddenly felt several streams of sword qi tearing through his meridians, crashing about violently.

Letting out a loud roar, Hinnyo summoned the Buddhist Golden Body. A layer of golden radiance coated his skin, making him seem majestic. The sword qi rampaging within him was dissolved at once.

Li Tiangang likewise ceased using palm strikes. He floated in the air, and with a snap of his two wide sleeves, clouds and mist surged all around him. Within the clouds, faint gleams of sword light flickered, accompanied by the subtle clang of metal and stone.

Wherever his sleeves swept, dazzling sword light poured down from the sky.

This was the Dragon Escape Sword Technique. Like the dragon itself, it could conjure clouds and spit mists, shrink to the size of a scale and vanish from sight, soar through the cosmos, or dive deep beneath the waves. The sword technique embodied all these mysteries, further fused with the Five Elements Escape Methods.

The sword light multiplied, each taking a different form. Some arched like rainbows; some as fine as ox-hairs; some writhed like snakes; some scurried like ants; some shot forth like arrows; some stretched long like swords; some unfurled like white silk; and some pricked sharp as needles. All cascaded down in endless profusion. Within 300 meters, nothing but sword light could be seen.