A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu and his group had only just arrived in Fenglin, but they had already experienced the might of its eight million ghosts and spirits. Yet Qi Xuansu also conceived a bold idea. Since the Daoist Order could recruit the Qingqiu lineage, it might as well absorb some of these ghosts and spirits too. Of course, some were stubborn and beyond reason, but others were adaptable and pragmatic.

One could not lump all eight million spirits together as enemies. They had to be classified carefully and treated accordingly.

For instance, the Suzuka Gozen that Qi Xuansu had mentioned earlier was renowned for her ability to work with humans. She would even aid the Fenglin Court in suppressing another mountain god, Ootakemaru, and was therefore viewed in a relatively positive light, clearly a candidate for alliance.

This was, in fact, a typical Daoist strategy. Back when the new reforms were pushed forward, the same pattern was used. Win over one faction, stabilize another, and eliminate the third, leaving just two. Then win over one again and eliminate the other until only one remained. Finally, when that lone faction had lost all strength, it too would be purged.

Back then, there were three major factions: the new elites, the submissives, and the meritorious nobles. The new elites were officials who had risen through imperial favor, the submissives were surrendered ministers, and the meritorious nobles were old warriors from Liaodong who had fought alongside the emperor.

The emperor first used the new elites to suppress the submissives. The meritorious nobles did not mourn their fall, thinking the surrendered officials deserved what they got. So the new elites were drawn in, the submissives were eliminated, and the meritorious nobles remained stable.

Through this process, all opposition among the submissives was eliminated, and those remaining posed no threat. Only the new elites and meritorious nobles remained. The new elites were the emperor’s blade—they had no merit or roots, so their only value was in serving imperial interests. In phase two, they were used to destroy the meritorious nobles. After that, the nobles believed it was now their time to shine.

Once the meritorious nobles were wiped out, only the new elites remained. But they had risen through imperial grace and held no real power. If the emperor ordered their deaths, they had no choice but to obey. Through this three-step strategy, all major opposition was dismantled, entrenched factions were broken apart, centralized authority was achieved, and the new reforms were rolled out smoothly.

The same approach could now apply to Fenglin. They could draw in the ghosts and spirits as the new elites, treat the surrendered warlords as the submissives, and see the Chancellor Toyotomi’s Office as the meritorious nobles.

This way, they could purge the filth of Fenglin and complete its transformation.

The journey that followed held little turbulence.

With the blizzard no longer blocking their path, the wounded group moved quickly thanks to their cultivation. By dawn, they had finally emerged from the mountain forest.

Not far ahead stood a stone stele boundary marker, which read “Iishi.”

Qi Xuansu said, “It seems we’ve entered Iishi District.”

Tang Yongshui remarked in surprise, “We’ve already crossed two districts in such a short distance?”

Li Mingshan explained, “You can’t equate Fenglin’s districts with our prefectures. They’re more like our smaller counties, since the Central Plains is just too vast. Fenglin’s land size isn’t the smallest. Many of those tiny western kingdoms are barely larger than our local county seat.”

Han Yongfeng sneered, “Pathetic little nations.”

Qi Xuansu said, “Let’s pass through Iishi District quickly without attracting attention.”

The group responded in unison. “Understood.”

On the other side, Sage Qingwei had already arrived in Xiujing three days prior.

To be precise, the Daoist bulletin had described it as Sage Qingwei’s advent.

Their condescending tone was unmistakable, and the Daoist Order made no attempt to hide it. In fact, their position was clear—Fenglin should assume the status of a vassal state.

However, the Fenglin Court was not shy about its own stance either. They immediately made a show of authority as well.

At the banquet held to welcome Sage Qingwei, the envoy representing the Fenglin Emperor openly declared, “The court is so impoverished now that it cannot even host a proper feast. This banquet was funded from His Majesty’s personal vault, and we should all be grateful for his benevolence.”

To be clear, this referred to Fenglin’s court and emperor, not that of the Great Xuan Empire.

Many Daoist Sages turned visibly grim upon hearing those words.

Sage Qingwei simply said, “We all practice the Fasting Technique, so we owe gratitude to no one.”

With that, Sage Qingwei flicked his sleeve and left.

The rest of the Daoist Sages fell into two lines and followed behind him in order.

That very night, Sage Qingwei summoned Fenglin’s Chancellor to his army camp and spoke with him for an hour. Also present were the Commander-in-Chief for the Donghai Navy, the Chief Deputy Tiangang Hall Master, and an elder from the Chancellor Toyotomi’s Office.

Around early morning the next day, a martial law decree was issued in the name of Chancellor Toyotomi’s Office. Over 200 officials were detained or placed under house arrest, pending investigation.

Though the orders were issued in the name of Chancellor Toyotomi’s Office, everyone knew that the real enforcers were the Spirit Guards and the Black Robes. The Spirit Guards were responsible for making the arrests, while the Black Robes maintained the lockdown.

No one had expected the situation to escalate so quickly.

The next day, Sage Qingwei left his army camp and headed toward the Chancellor’s Office in Xiujing. Along the way, anti-Dao extremists who had long infiltrated the Fenglin Capital launched an assassination attempt on Sage Qingwei.

These extremists were formidable. By Daoist standards, all of them were Heavenly Beings. Their leader was a Pseudo-Immortal, and they were utterly resolved to die in the assassination attempt.

The ensuing battle was brutal. Four Spirit Guards and one Daoist priest were killed, with twelve others seriously wounded. Sage Qingwei himself was forced to intervene, which was something the assassins clearly had not anticipated. As the Sage Commander, Sage Qingwei carried an immortal object. He was also only a hair’s breadth away from becoming an Immortal, so in the end, 13 of the 18 assassins were slain, four escaped, and one was captured alive.

This failed assassination immediately intensified the political tensions in Xiujing. Sage Qingwei issued another decree in the name of Chancellor Toyotomi’s Office, ordering a citywide manhunt for members of the Sonno-joi faction, which pushed the “Revere the Emperor, Expel the Dao” movement. This time, there was no room for compromise. Any resistance would be met with deadly force.

Within three days, over a hundred court nobles and feudal lords were arrested. They were ordered to confess within a set time. In the end, 23 were executed, their heads displayed above the city gates. The powerful Minamoto clan, known for its royal connections, was expelled from Xiujing entirely.

While the first wave of arrests targeted lower-level officials, this time, the hammer fell on the elite. The results were immediate. Peace was swiftly restored in Xiujing.

Shortly after, Sage Qingwei issued a third edict. Compared to the first two, this one was particularly intriguing.

Using the name of Chancellor Toyotomi’s Office, Sage Qingwei granted amnesty to a number of yokai—essentially the ghost and spirit races—and dispatched Onmyoji from the prestigious Tsuchimikado clan to summon various mountain gods, with an emphasis on the Suzuka Gozen.

Onmyoji originated from the Yin-Yang School among the Hundred Schools of Thought in the Central Plains. They studied the stars and constellations, read faces, charted directions, divined omens, scouted feng shui, and performed rituals. They also used talismans to exorcise demons and formed their own study called the Onmyodo. Unlike the Tenmon Sect, they followed a separate path.

Since their rise, the Fenglin Court had established the Onmyoryo with a staff of 89 personnel, akin to the Great Xuan Court’s Directorate of Astronomy. It was led by the Onmyo-no-Kami, supported by an Onmyo Hakase, a Tenmon Hakase, a Reki Hakase, two Rokoku Hakase, and six Onmyoji. Their duties included devising calendars, interpreting omens, evaluating feng shui, and conducting state rituals.

Now that the Daoists had seized control of Chancellor Toyotomi’s Office, the de facto face of the Fenglin government, they also inherited control over the Onmyoryo.

The Daoists had a natural affinity toward the Onmyoji due to the shared origins of Onmyodo and Daoism, making them trusted and heavily relied upon.

Meanwhile, the Tenmon Sect, representing the Sonno-joi faction, labeled Onmyodo a perverse and heretical cult for political purposes. Thus, the Tenmon Sect formally broke ties with Onmyodo.

With all these developments, the Tsuchimikado clan and other mainstream Onmyoji were now firmly positioned as trusted allies and valuable assets of the Daoist Order.

Mount Suzuka was located in Suzuka District of Ise Province, whose neighboring province was home to the renowned city of Kobe. The Kameyama Castle was also located within the Suzuka District.

Both of these cities were under the authority of local feudal lords.

The power base of Chancellor Toyotomi’s Office in Ise Province was centered on Yamada Castle in Watarai District. Between Watarai District and Suzuka District lay several other districts like the Taki District, Itaka District, Ichishi District, and Anno District. While the feudal lords of these regions might not openly rebel, their loyalties were uncertain. Thus, no one knew whether the Tsuchimikado Onmyoji could safely make the journey to Mount Suzuka.

Even if they did meet the Suzuka Gozen, there was no guarantee that this mountain god would risk leaving her sacred territory to venture into the perilous capital of Xiujing just to meet a Daoist Sage who had recently bathed the streets in blood.

Aside from the Suzuka Gozen, there was another legendary demon known as the Shuten-Doji, also known as the Lord of Mount Oe.

Mount Oe was located at the intersection of the three districts of Amata District, Kasa District, and Yosano District in Heian Capital, posing a direct threat to the royal family.

The royal family resided in Heian Capital, while Chancellor Toyotomi governed from Xiujing. The former held titular authority without power, while the latter wielded power without legitimacy. Neither could truly claim orthodoxy.

This time, the “Revere the Emperor and Expel the Dao” movement had stirred long-suppressed ambitions within the imperial family, which had been sidelined for over a millennium.

In the past, Shuten-Doji rampaged unchecked, posing a grave threat to the imperial family. The imperial family eventually dispatched the Minamoto clan to slay him. His head was severed, and the blade used in the deed—Yasutsuna—was renamed Dojigiri Yasutsuna, known as one of the Five Famous Swords.

After Shuten-Doji’s death, Ibaraki-Doji succeeded him and swore to avenge his fallen lord.

There were many legends regarding Ibaraki-Doji’s relationship with Shuten-Doji. Some say he was a loyal subordinate, while others claim she was a female demon, Shuten-Doji’s consort. But one thing was certain. Ibaraki-Doji harbored deep hatred toward the imperial family and the Minamoto clan for slaying Shuten-Doji.

For the Daoist Order, that was more than enough. The enemy of an enemy could make for a convenient temporary ally.