"Teacher Qin, are those crows?" Hua Xiaotian exclaimed, aghast at the scene.

"Cannibal Crows! Absolute fiends! It seems Orochi’s revival is inextricably linked to these man-eating birds!" Qin Fan said with a sardonic laugh.

Meanwhile, in the subterranean world beneath Mount Fuji.

Outside the giant cavern, several enormous crystal balls began to emit pulses of red light. Within the crimson glow, the movements of Qin Fan and Hua Xiaotian were being projected. The red light from the crystal balls was invariably a sign of danger.

"Lord Matsubara, they’re here! They’ve actually arrived!" the middle-aged man who had previously shown a cowardly streak shouted in panic at Matsubara Santai upon seeing the images in the crystal balls.

"You idiot!" Although they were both High-Level Onmyoji, Matsubara Santai couldn’t stop his face from twisting in anger at his timid colleague. He roared, "Look at you! What have you become? Useless! Remember, you are a High-Level Onmyoji! In the entire history of Japan, has there ever been such a pathetic High-Level Onmyoji? Has there?!"

"Lord Chizuru’s team was completely annihilated! The Divine Ninja, Elder Tanaka, suffered a cruel death from the Sky Lantern torture, and all the prospective Divine Ninjas within the Jingguo Society are dead! Isn’t that enough to prove the enemy’s power? Lord Matsubara, I fear death, but only because I fear my death will be utterly meaningless! What if—just what if—they break through the Divine Ninjas defending the mountain and storm this place? What do you imagine our fate will be then? Can you even fathom it!" Provoked by Matsubara Santai, the middle-aged man’s face flushed red as he howled back, his neck veins bulging.

HUFF! HUFF!

After taking a few ragged, emotional breaths, Matsubara Santai managed to regain some composure. He stared at the other man and said, "Respected Lord Takada, what do you propose we do, then? Tell me! Should we run? Should we flee with our tails between our legs to escape those two mongrels? If that’s your plan, then forget it. If you want release, it’s simple! Just face in the direction of Lord Orochi and commit seppuku! That will free you! Takada, we either go out and fight them to the death, or we pray the Elders emerge from their seclusion and Lord Orochi awakens. Tell me, what other option do we have?"

Urk!

Struck by Matsubara Santai’s words, Takada Naoto was left speechless.

Indeed. What other strategy could they possibly have?

"Enough! Stop arguing!" One of the other grim-faced middle-aged men couldn’t help but cut in. "To quote a common Huaxia saying: ’If it’s a blessing, it can’t be a disaster, and if it’s a disaster, you can’t hide from it.’ There are thirty-two Divine Ninjas out there, the absolute pinnacle of the Ninja World! If a lineup like that can’t hold them back, then it simply means the luck of Great Japan has run out! Right now, other than waiting for the Elders to emerge and for Lord Orochi to revive, there is nothing we can do. Unless, of course, we wish to seek our own deaths!"

SWISH—!

Hearing their colleague’s rebuke, Matsubara Santai and Takada Naoto exchanged a look and fell silent, their eyes glued to the images in the crystal ball.

「Outside.」

After Qin Fan’s stomp had sent a sky full of Cannibal Crows scattering, a Monk, clad in a Kasaya and adorned with Buddha Beads, slowly materialized from thin air. The traditional ordination scars were visible on his head.

When he was about ten paces from Qin Fan, he suddenly stopped. He pressed his palms together in a Buddhist salute, then raised his head and spoke in fluent, authentic Huaxia. "Benefactor, may I ask the state of Tanaka?"

"A monk? From Huaxia?" Qin Fan couldn’t help but arch an eyebrow.

"Benefactor, please answer this humble monk’s question. How is Tanaka?" the Monk repeated, his face an emotionless mask.

"Dead. I lit him as a Sky Lantern," Qin Fan replied, his hands in his pockets. He faced the crosswinds of Mount Fuji, a wicked smirk playing on his lips.

"Amitabha... So be it. So be it."

His previously expressionless face twitched almost imperceptibly as the Monk calmly uttered the Buddhist phrase.

After speaking, he slowly turned his back to them. Facing the direction of the Jingguo Society, he began to rhythmically flick the Buddha Beads in his hand, one by one, while murmuring esoteric scriptures.

But Qin Fan understood the words. It was the Diamond Sutra, the section for guiding souls to Transcendence.

"A monk from Huaxia?" Not only did Qin Fan understand, but Hua Xiaotian also recognized the rite of Transcendence from the Diamond Sutra. He asked aloud in astonishment.

A Huaxia monk appearing on Mount Fuji, who knew the tricks of a Ninja, was an acquaintance of Tanaka Nobuo, and was now performing a rite of Transcendence for that Japanese devil—a man who made a creed out of lionizing the scum of war?

His thoughts were in chaos. Hua Xiaotian was utterly bewildered.

The Monk, however, did not answer, continuing his unbroken stream of murmured sutras.

Receiving no reply, Hua Xiaotian glanced at Qin Fan. Seeing no objection from him, Hua Xiaotian suddenly lunged forward. His Hemp Vine Whip sliced through the air, cracking in front of the Monk as he bellowed, "Damn you! That scum deserved to be cast into the eighteenth level of Hell, and yet you’re chanting for his soul?"

At that moment, Hua Xiaotian was furious. He had jumped to the conclusion that the Monk was from Huaxia. Yet, even his enraged roar failed to stir the Monk. The chant for Transcendence continued unabated.

"Shut your mouth!" Hua Xiaotian snarled, lashing his whip toward the Monk’s mouth.

A monk who appears on Mount Fuji to offer Transcendence to Tanaka Nobuo, even if from Huaxia, must be a traitorous Evil Monk! 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

SWOOSH—!

Just as the whip was about to strike the Monk’s mouth, he suddenly shot out a hand and clamped it between two fingers!

BZZZT—!

The soft whip vibrated intensely, unable to advance another inch. The Monk’s face, however, was also faintly trembling. Was the might of a Gang Realm Master something that could be so casually blocked? Still, the mere fact that the Monk had caught the whip with just two fingers was enough to shock Hua Xiaotian.

"Let him finish. We have a moment. If Transcendence actually worked, there’d be no need for an eighteenth level of Hell," Qin Fan said flippantly, shaking his head.

Seeing Qin Fan as their leader, Hua Xiaotian did not press his attack. With a cold expression and clenched teeth, he yanked his whip back.

Night fell at the foot of the mountain, accompanied by a cool breeze. An old man, a middle-aged man, and a young man stood in a triangle, enshrouded by the eerie atmosphere.

The Monk’s chanting grew faster and more intense. As his low murmurs reached their final verse, the surrounding trees began to rustle and tremble violently! A powerful gust of wind swept through, sending leaves scattering in a chaotic dance. At last, the Monk’s ceaseless chanting came to a halt.

"Amitabha!" Turning back around, the Monk said, "Thank you, benefactors, for allowing me the opportunity to guide Tanaka to Transcendence."

"You’re a monk from Huaxia?" Hua Xiaotian asked, his brow tightly furrowed, ignoring the Monk’s gratitude.

"No. The blood of Japan flows in my veins," the Monk said, shaking his head as he reminisced. "Long ago, I came to Huaxia with Tanaka. He chose to enter the world of men, while I chose a life of seclusion. In the blink of an eye, thirty years in Huaxia passed. There, I harmed no living thing. I ate a vegetarian diet and chanted scriptures, believing that Heaven is ultimately benevolent to all living beings. Thirty years later, when Tanaka returned to his country, I also left Huaxia. But I had fallen in love with its life of spiritual purity, detached from the mortal world. So after returning, I continued to face the East as I fasted and chanted. I am not from Huaxia, but I am a monk. A monk who has embraced Huaxia’s Buddhism."

"Then what is your purpose here? Just to offer Transcendence to Tanaka Nobuo?" Hua Xiaotian asked.

"Offering Tanaka Transcendence is one reason," the Monk replied. "Keeping you off this mountain is the other."

"And you think you can stop us?" Hua Xiaotian’s voice was low and dangerous.

"The abbot once divined my fate. He told me that in my life, there must come a day of killing. Perhaps... that day is today."

As the Monk finished speaking, he smiled. It was a gentle, almost simple-hearted smile of compassion.

But beneath that compassionate veneer, both Qin Fan and Hua Xiaotian saw it: a profound killing intent, now fully revealed.