A Pawn's Passage

Longmen Prefecture had always been a special place. Just as Jade Capital was the capital of the Daoist Order, Longmen Prefecture was once the capital of the Confucian School. Longmen Prefecture’s Ziwei City and the Hall of Enlightenment were roughly equivalent to Jade Capital’s Purple Mansion and the Golden Tower.

Although the Daoist Order defeated the Confucian School and forced the latter to give up the Wanxiang Academy, changing it to the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, the Confucian School still had a strong influence in Longmen Prefecture.

Later, the Daoist Order and the Buddhist Sect turned against each other and started a war. In order to suppress the Buddhist Sect, the Daoist Order came to an agreement with the Confucian School, easing the various restrictions and moving the Zhongzhou Daoist Mansion away from the Longmen Prefecture to Beimang Mountain in exchange for their cooperation.

Later, the truce between the Buddhist Sect and the Daoist Order was also held at Longmen Prefecture. The two parties redefined their boundaries, with the Buddhist Sect recognizing the Daoist Order’s dominance in the Western Region in exchange for the former’s reclamation of Jingchan Temple outside Longmen Prefecture.

Thus, Zhongzhou was as diverse as it could be, with four major cities: Longmen Prefectural Capital, Beimang’s Ghost City, Everbright City, and Zhongyue’s Buddhist City.

The Longmen Prefectural Capital was also the capital city of Zhongzhou. It had thousands of years of history, serving as the ancient capital of nine dynasties.

Beimang’s Ghost City referred to the Ghost Kingdom on Beimang Mountain, which was the Imperial Capital of the Netherworld.

The Everbright City was a paradise of the Daoist Order, located in the middle of the mountain. Regardless of day or night, the countless hanging lanterns and candles lit up the pavilions and corridors, so the city was always bright and brilliant as far as the eye could see, hence the name.

Zhongyue’s Buddhist City referred to Jingchan Temple, which was the Central Court of the Buddhist Sect on the Central Plains, located on Zhongyue Mountain. Jingchan Temple was massive, with three layers of city walls encompassing a thousand palaces, including three nine-story buildings. From a distance, the countless temples looked stacked on top of each other, like a city. That was why it was known as the Buddhist City.

Therefore, in addition to the Daoist and Confucian influences, Longmen Prefecture also had some Buddhist influence. Monk Yan Xiu, who was on Qi Xuansu’s kill list, was also from Jingchan Temple.

Since so many powers existed in Longmen Prefecture, there were more gaps in governance, making it easier for those with bad intentions to exploit the situation for their own gain. Therefore, people from all walks of life and secret societies were fond of the diverse Longmen Prefecture.

In other words, the Daoist Order’s control over Longmen Prefecture was far inferior to that of Xijing Prefecture.

Longmen Prefecture was surrounded by various Daoist government bodies, so the secret societies would not generally cause trouble here. However, due to the lax governance, small conflicts between all forces were inevitable.

Those who were wanted by the Daoist Order would also sneak into Longmen Prefecture to live by changing their names and keeping a low profile.

This was the reason these people dared to openly gather in this restaurant.

This gathering was led by three people: the scholar Song Luodi, the Daoist Thunder Mage, and the monk Master Deng Hua. They represented the Three Religions of Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism, respectively. However, the three of them were not orthodox disciples of the Three Religions. They were outcasts.

They had another peer who went by the name Third Master Chang, but he had gotten into trouble some time ago. Third Master Chang was seriously injured, and his group of sworn brothers were also killed, sustaining heavy losses. That was why he went into hiding and did not show up to this gathering.

Including Third Master Chang, the four of them were all outstanding Xiantian Beings. However, due to their age, they were not listed on the Ruyi Leaderboard. Even so, they should not be underestimated, as they specialized in shady dealings.

Like Qi Xuansu, they lived on the edge of their blades and weathered through countless bloody storms. Thus, they had rich combat experience, far superior to Guizhen-stage flowerbed priests like Wan Xiuwu.

Due to their shady dealings, they would inevitably violate laws and engage with various secret societies. Therefore, they were wanted by both the Daoist Order and the Imperial Court. As such, they would not stay put in one place for a long time and would move around between several states.

These people were regarded as gangsters and outlaws, different from the vigilantes who tread in the gray areas of society.

They were also different from Qi Xuansu and Wild Bodhisattva in the sense that they were not official members of any secret society. Although they had a close working relationship with The Inn, they were not official members.

“Let’s not wait for that monk.” The Daoist Thunder Mage said, “Brother Song, didn’t you send someone to keep an eye on him? How’s it going?”

The scholar, Song Luodi, called for Cripple Zhou and Xu Changwu.

Cripple Zhou stood up and reported, “Some of our friends here are already aware, but I’ll explain it again. The Bodhisattva has a habit of going to the Taiping Inn for drinks every day. Brother Xu and I squatted around to keep an eye on him and had an unexpected harvest today. The Bodhisattva engaged a helper and drank with the new guy. We thought of testing his skills, but—”

“What’s the result?” Thunder Mage asked.

Cripple Zhou smiled wryly and pointed at the sluggish Xu Changwu beside him. “We’ve had to compensate the Taiping Inn with 100 Taiping coins. Not only that, Brother Xu was defeated in less than three moves.”

The audience was in an uproar as soon as they heard this.

In their previous gathering, they had already learned from Cripple Zhou that the Bodhisattva had found a helper. Since Cripple Zhou knew the Qi Observation Technique, he could tell that the young man had an intense killing aura. But he could not see much beyond that, so he did not expect such a strong opponent.

Xu Changwu was a member of the former dynasty’s imperial clan with real abilities. He was considered the best fighter among the local gangsters in Longmen Prefecture. As a result, Xu Changwu could not even last three moves against this new helper. If Cripple Zhou were to fight against that helper, he would probably be defeated in less than two moves.

This was not something to brag about, and Xu Changwu looked listless from the defeat.

Song Luodi pondered aloud. “He is indeed a tough opponent. I’ll get a few more brothers to feel it out.”

Thunder Mage disagreed. “Even a tiger will be afraid of a pack of wolves. We have strength in numbers, so why should we go through so much trouble? I don’t believe he can get away if we fight him together.”

Song Luodi did not refute.

Thunder Mage was right. This was not a fighting competition, so there was no ethics to speak of. Winning was most important, no matter the cost.

However, it would be inevitable for a lot of lives to be lost while taking down such an opponent.

Thunder Mage knew this and suggested it on purpose. After all, their share of profit would be larger if more people died since they would not have to split the commission in so many ways.

As expected, Thunder Mage changed the subject. “Hewu, none of us here today are new to the field, so I’ll be straight with you. Our employer promised a sizable sum. This is the base price.”

Thunder Mage held out two fingers.

“2,000 Taiping coins?” Someone guessed.

“Hah! Do you think 2,000 Taiping coins is worth our effort going all in?” Thunder Mage declared, “It’s 2,000 Wuyou coins!”

Everyone gasped in unison at this figure, which was equivalent to 20,000 Taiping coins.

Even if the three leaders took a bigger share of the profit, each of them would still earn at least hundreds of Taiping coins, enough for them to squander for at least half a year.

Thunder Mage looked at Song Luodi and said, “I think it’s more important for us to discuss how we should split these 20,000 Taiping coins.”

Everyone’s eyes fell on Song Luodi.

Song Luodi thought about it seriously. There must be some hidden agenda in this...

Third Master Chang had also been offered 20,000 Taiping coins back then for the assassination of Sage Cihang’s beloved disciple. How could an unknown girl’s bounty be worth the same price as the famous Zhang Yuelu, who was a Deputy Tiangang Hall Master?

......

Qi Xuansu sent Wild Bodhisattva out of the Taiping Inn. The two of them agreed to meet the next day to formally discuss the escort job.

He walked down half the street before finally saying goodbye to Wild Bodhisattva. That was because they were both a little drunk, as none of them used their innate qi to suppress the effects of the alcohol. After all, they spent their own money on these drinks, so they wanted to feel the effects. Therefore, the two men were a bit long-winded in their goodbyes.

After finally parting ways, Qi Xuansu made his way back to the Taiping Inn alone.

“Sigh...it’s no wonder Qing Xiao likes to drink. Everything sure feels different when drunk...”

Qi Xuansu no longer held back his feelings of nostalgia. He even sang an off-key tune at the top of his lungs as he stumbled back along the street.

At this moment, a tall figure approached Qi Xuansu.

Sensing this, Qi Xuansu stopped abruptly and shouted, “Who’s there? Declare yourself!”

The tall figure stopped in his tracks, clearly startled by Qi Xuansu’s voice. After a while, the figure responded, “Amitabha.”

Qi Xuansu chuckled. “Immeasurable light and immeasurable life—the teachings of Western Heaven Buddhism. You’re a Buddhist.”

Daoists revered the Primordial Daoist Ancestor, who was from the Li family. The Primordial Daoist Ancestor transformed into Three Deities, known as the Three Pure Ones, representing the three core doctrines of Daoism. Lord of Taiqing was the god of virtue and wisdom; Lord of Shangqing was the god of spirituality; and Lord of Yuqing was the god of the universe.

The Primordial Daoist Ancestor resided in the 33 Heavens, which was the destination of ascension for Daoist disciples. Jade Capital in Kunlun was the place of worship for the Primordial Daoist Ancestor in the mortal realm.

Over the years, the Li family often claimed that they were not only the descendants of the Holy Xuan, but also the descendants of the Primordial Daoist Ancestor. The Holy Xuan revived the Daoist Order, while the Primordial Daoist Ancestor was the founder of Daoism. This made the Li family the legitimate lineage of Daoism, much like the Confucian Duke Yansheng.

Buddhists had a similar theory. The Gautama Buddha was also called the Sakyamuni. Buddhists believed that there were Three Bodies of Buddha: the Dharmakaya, the Sambhogakaya, the Nirmanakaya.

Thus, both the Primordial Daoist Ancestors and the Buddha had many titles.

A tall figure slowly walked out of the darkness. It turned out to be a fat monk, wearing a bright red kasaya. He looked solemn with his palms together, his speech cryptic. “The immeasurable light illuminates the world, filling the world with inherent brightness and permeating all life.”