June 14th.
The violent storm was ravaging every corner of Dongdu. The pillar of rain danced and roared loudly in the wind. Dongdu was struggling in the storm, looking like endangered.
The whole East Island fell gloomy because of the weather.
Heavy rain capsized Dongdu.
The real storm had swept the whole East Island in the last couple of hours.
The chaos came as expected.
It was like an ignited lead, burning to its end. The calm world suddenly changed, blowing itself upside and down. Flames burst into the sky, flesh and blood scattered. In a short time, the scene was turned into an aestheticization of violence.
6:40 am.
Ninghu.
The head of the Yamaguchi-gumi’s intelligence section disappeared on his halfway to the headquarters.
7:15 am.
Dongdu.
Senior Senator Kiyokawa Do got on his own car. The car exploded in 200 meters. The flames swallowed everything around. The driver, the bodyguards and even Kiyokawa Do were burned into charcoal in the intense explosion.
7:30 am.
Dongdu.
Less than a day after the chaos had subsided, several mysterious experts led their teams and attacked Takes.h.i.ta Street so suddenly that the special warfare agencies had no time to react. The agencies suffered heavy losses in the event; several of their leaders had been killed, and the scene looked ghastly.
8:00 am.
In the holy mountain Fuyo Peak.
The Divine Wind Force finally reacted and dispatched the first elite group with 50 people. However, all of them died in an ambush before they could leave the mountain. Their cars rolled down along the mountain, looking like an accident.
The storm continued.
It lasted from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm, spreading across East Island, including Dongdu, Ninghu, Sendai, Mingwu, Juban, Binggang, Jingzhong, Futai…
Accidents and a.s.sa.s.sinations happened one after another in the areas. People in various fields died of accidents or disappeared. East Island fell in the chaos which they had never had in decades.
Bloodshed everywhere.
People dying everywhere.
The successive a.s.sa.s.sinations and attacks showed no intention to stop. As time went by, the b.l.o.o.d.y a.s.sa.s.sinations would surely continue.
The whole day felt like a prelude of the world war instead of the confrontation of the Dark World. The a.s.sa.s.sinations involved people from various fields including royal members, political officials, military forces, financial pract.i.tioners, underworld members, Special Warfare System members, consortiums, and those in the shrines. Those a.s.sa.s.sinators hidden in the dark seemed to have no preference when choosing their targets. Everyone who was influential in a certain field could be their target.
All the forces in East Island started to move, including the police, the army, and the underworld forces. The bloodshed and a.s.sa.s.sinations were pushing the whole East Island to a more chaotic direction.
It was June 14th that day.
The third day when the elite forces of Zhongzhou State sneaked into East Island, the Special Warfare System of Zhongzhou State showed its sharpest and coldest fangs.
The cars rushed out of the royal palace and the cabinet, going straight to Fuyo Peak.
The two top advisors, Songxia Ying and Zuohe Hengxin, on behalf of the will of the Mikoda and prime minister, went directly to the Divine Wind Force. They were here to meet the one and only master in the Invincible Realm, Shinichi Miyamoto, the Supreme Ninja.
In the meantime.
In the Azure Pool hot spring club.
An internal meeting was being held.
“It is not effective enough.”
In the meeting room, Tribulation in black was sitting on the leader’s seat. He shocked everyone with the first sentence he spoke.
Many people were absent in the meeting because they were on missions. However, Tribulation was not going to wait for them. He checked the list in his hand and frowned slightly. After a short silence, he said with a low and hoa.r.s.e voice, “Who can tell me what’s this about?”
The list in his hand was long and with countless names on it. It was more than one page. There were hundreds of names on it if one skimmed the pages. Most of the black names on the blank sheets of paper had been crossed off, which meant these people were already dead, but the names that had not been crossed off were much more than those who had. Tribulation frowned and checked it for a while and said insipidly, “Everybody, is this all we can do?”
“Something’s wrong.”
Ye Fengcheng was sitting next to Tribulation and he seemed confused. He rubbed his forehead but failed to find the exact words to express himself. He said, “Those names are collected by Director Han years after years, so it’s a very important list. East Island will end up in chaos if they are all killed. But now the question is we’ve got their names and profiles, yet most of them are missing.”
He picked up the list on the table and sighed, “Check this. Something must be wrong. Many people on the list, especially some experts in the Special Warfare System, were missing. When we arrived there, we could only find some of their nameless guards instead of those people on the list. We tortured those guards but they had no idea where those people had gone to.”
“I wonder if they are real masters or cowards. Other people are quick reckless, like the deputy manager of the bank and the chairman of the board. We found them simply by asking, while others disappeared for no reason.”
Ye Fengcheng spoke and lit a cigarette. He craned around and said, “Is there anyone who shared the same case with me?”
Tribulation raised his eyebrows and glanced at other people.
Not many people were sitting at this table today. There were, to be specific, four people, including, Tribulation.
Tribulation had been stayed out of the a.s.sa.s.sinations though he was one of the top masters who was dispatched to East Island by Zhongzhou State. His eyes locked on Fuyo mountain. Other three people, Ye Fengcheng, Flaming Fire, and Gu Yunxia kept proceeding. Those who were absent here, Bai Youming, Horsewoman, and the Enchantress were also acting. Ye Fengcheng felt it odd because of what he had encountered. Tribulation looked at Flaming Fire and Gu Yunxia, then he asked, “How about you?”
“Same as you.”
Gu Yunxia frowned. She was one of the representatives who was dispatched to East Island by Zhongzhou State. She might go against Tribulation in some of their opinions, but now that they were all out of Zhongzhou State, she could tell what was crucial. She said in a low voice, “I’ve been to some places. Some of them were rewarding, while others were just empty. Especially the masters in the Special Warfare System, we could find them neither in the base nor in their houses. It looked like they had been long gone. Other people might have a large range of activities, so it was reasonable that we didn’t find them. But how could those masters in the Special Warfare System disappear for no reason?”
All of the four squinted.
“This is my hometown, so I am more familiar with this place than you. I’ve met exactly the same situation. I’ve even searched where they might go, but they weren’t there, and I was told they hadn’t been there for long.”
Flaming Fire breathed deeply, looking serious.
Ye Fengcheng’s reluctant face turned stern.
On the first day, they had missed several targets. They thought it was just bad luck, but it seemed the same situation had happened to everyone. Obviously, something was wrong.
The missed targets were all masters in the Special Warfare System. Where were they going?
Where would they go?
“Did they leave East Island?”
Ye Fengcheng took drags on the cigarette and asked suddenly.
Flaming Fire froze. She then added, “Where could they go except East Island.”
The meeting room suddenly went silent.
The four looked at each other and came up with the same idea.
…
“Those men from Zhongzhou State are nuts. They are so overdoing it. Are they trying to start another world war? Your Highness Miyamoto, you’re the only one who could teach them a lesson. We think it’s the time that the whole Divine Wind Force should be deployed to maintain the peace of the Special Warfare System of East Island.”
At the same time, in the headquarters of the Divine Wind Force.
In the meeting room, the top staff of the royal family, Songxia Ying, was pacing around and yelling.
When the gentle and calm Songxia Ying was about to lose sanity, Zuohe Hengxin was sitting aside and looking at Shinichi Miyamoto, silent.
In less than a day, nearly two hundred people had been a.s.sa.s.sinated!
The two hundred victims were all significant people with sensitive positions. One could only imagine how chaotic East Island was now. East Island had one of the most powerful Special Warfare Systems in the world. The chaotic situation was the first in decades. It was a great shame.
Divine Wind Force was the spine of the Special Warfare System of East Island. It was now the right time for it to act.
“Now we can be sure that…”
Feeling the agitation of Songxia Ying, Shinichi Miyamoto, who had his face covered in a black mask, remained steady in the tone, “A great number of the elite forces of Zhongzhou State have sneaked into East Island. What happened today was their provocation to East Island.”
“Your Highness Miyamoto…”
Zuohe Hengxin suddenly started talking. He was earnest like always, but with a little harshness in his voice, “Actually, we’re not here to listen to your a.n.a.lysis. The royal family and the cabinet need solutions, and East Island need peace. We have to eliminate all of our enemies.”
“Of course.”
Shinichi Miyamoto’s eyes blinked and he said slightly, “Actually, I may be more worried than the Mikado and the prime minister, but I need to stay rational.”
He stood up from his seat and occupied the whole room with his powerful aura. “Zhongzhou State’s plot is big this time. They want more than the power of Night Spirit in East Island; they want to devastate our Special Warfare System and they’ve already started. Their power equals their appet.i.te. They had made the move, and that was to say the power they deployed in East Island this time will be intensive. As for us… to be honest, I’m in an awkward position now.”
Zuohe Hengxin and Songxia Ying were silenced at the same time.
Awkward position.
Of course, they knew why Shinichi Miyamoto would feel that way. It was the most chaotic day in the history of East Island in decades, and the weakest moments of its Special Warfare System.
It was not because they were incompetent.
Too many of their forces were not in East Island, because they had…
They had sneaked into Zhongzhou State!
…
“They are in Zhongzhou?!”
After a brief silence, Ye Fengcheng finally spoke, not in horror or fear, but in disbelief. “There are so many people! And they had all left East Island for Zhongzhou? Are they sick of living?”
“Craziness and abnormality are in their veins. The fight between the city governor and Samsara tomorrow had caught enough attention. I think those from East Island are just parts of the forces that have been dispatched into Zhongzhou. If either of the two dies tomorrow at the end of the fight, those foreign forces will take the opportunity and throw a deadly strike on our Special Warfare System. They might not know what’s going on behind the scene, but they will not miss a good chance to bet.”
Gu Yunxia said expressionlessly, looking at Flaming Fire sitting by her side.
“That is…”
Ye Fengcheng’s laugh was complicated. It had excitement and joy, with a little bit of disbelief.
Everyone knew that East Island would send people into Zhongzhou, but Ye Fengcheng did not expect to have so many of them. The names of the masters of the Special Warfare System were powerful enough. With Tianhai Wuji and Liusheng Cangquan who were in Zhongzhou now and had already reached the Invincible Realm, East Island had sent more than half of its elite forces in Zhongzhou State. That was nearly crazy!
That was almost insane.
But to be fair, East Island dared to bet because they were sure about the hatred between Samsara and Kunlun City. Everything remained uncertain if both the two sides were injured in the fight tomorrow, and the force from East Island took it over.
And it was foreseeable that not only East Island, the Jiang family, Knights Templars, but the elite forces from the Fantasy World would also go to Zhongzhou State. That was pretty scary power.
Zhongzhou State was now a wuthering land.
However, Ye Fengcheng was sure no big loss would be suffered from tomorrow’s fight, so he had nothing to worry about.
“So, our trip to East Island is easier now.”
Ye Fengcheng smiled and say lightly.
“Don’t be careless.”
Tribulation glanced at Ye Fengcheng and shook his head. “After all, we’re in East Island.”
…
“Integrating the resources of East Island?!”
In the headquarters of the Divine Wind Force, Zuohe Hengxin looked at Shinichi Miyamoto with disbelief.
“That’s the only way.”
Shinichi Miyamoto sounded cold and decisive. “This is our place, but I am not sure if our strength is still dominant because no one knows how many forces Zhongzhou had dispatched here. Situ Cangyue? Gu Qianchuan? They are all uncertain factors. We’ve sent a great number of masters in Thunder-shocking Realm to Zhongzhou, what do we have now to fight against the power from Zhouzhong? The elite forces of my Divine Wind Force? I need masters!”
“It’s just hours’ drive between Zhongzhou State and East Island. Maybe we can summon parts of our masters back.”
Songxia Ying hesitated and said, but before he could finish, he smiled bitterly.
“Summon them back?”
Shinichi Miyamoto nodded and said, “What a great idea! But can they go back now?”
He turned back, looking out of the window at the snow on Fuyo Peak. Then he spoke expressionlessly, “If the fight between Master of Samsara Palace and G.o.d of War is a scheme, then all our people in Zhongzhou now will be the hostages in their hand. Maybe they will be back someday, but not now.”
Songxia Ying sighed. He felt so weak inside at this moment. Few people would treat it as a scheme when the news of the fight in Zhongzhou started spreading. The fight was about the ranking on the Divine List, the rise of the Samsara Palace, the political situation of Zhongzhou, the overall situation of the Dark World and Qin Weibai’s man, Li Tianlan. All the reasons above seemed to be the evidence of the facticity and ponderance of the fight.
There might be loopholes in the scheme set up by the Samsara Palace and the government of Zhongzhou, but other people had ignored the risk when facing the great expectation and huge interests. It could be figured out now that the Master of Samsara Palace had exterminated Night Spirit for more than just a murderous weapon. It would be a smarter move to unite the Zhongzhou government to go after East Island. But they had ignored that. The mistake was so serious that East Island now had been pushed into a very awkward position.
It was of no use now to summon back Tianhai Wuji and Liusheng Cangquan. It was better for them to watch the fight in peace and then consider other things.
“Integrate the resources of each system and unite all the forces to fight against the enemies so that we wouldn’t be knocked down one by one. I propose again, that we should wake up Kusanagi Force and use all the resources we have. We don’t have much time to hesitate given the current situation.”
Shinichi Miyamoto sounded more and more indifferent.
“We don’t have much time?”
Songxia Ying asked and then smiled bitterly, “As far as I know, it will take far more than a day or two even if His Majesty and the prime minister agree to integrate resources.”
“Special cases like this should be handled with special methods.”
Shinichi Miyamoto shook his head and said, “We don’t have to integrate all the resources. It’s enough if we could eliminate our enemies. After all, it’s our place here. Please send my request to His Majesty that this is more than a war in the Dark World. We need their full support because this is crucial.”
Songxia Ying and Zuohe Hengxin stood straight and then bowed deeply, answering, “Aye!”
Shinichi Miyamoto breathed deeply. He suddenly said, “How is the Kusanagi Force in the Black Sun Inst.i.tute?”
“The two warriors suffered 35% damage. It may take a week for them to get healed and go back to the war.”
Songxia Ying said it slowly, “Your Highness Miyamoto, the Mikado may agree to wake up the whole Kusanagi Force. I think the royal family will give me a clear answer as soon as I get back.”
Shinichi Miyamoto nodded and narrowed his eyes. After consideration, he said, “How about Xitian Financial Group?”
“Xitian Yingji had already made an announcement that he and Xitian Mingzi had broken off their father-and-daughter relationship. Xitain Mingzi has been expelled from Xitian Financial Group and is now a traitor. The royal family had sent the elite team to save Dr. Dubian.”
Songxia Ying was speaking calmly, but his tone sounded colder and more murderous when he mentioned Xitian Financial Group.
Shinichi Miyamoto nodded. He smiled and said, “Dr. Dubian will just be fine. Tell the rescue team not to follow too closely. They’ll all end up here if everything goes as expected.”
He reached out and pointed to the map of East Island on the conference table, with his deep eyes.
“This is…”
The two staff of the royal family and the prime minister looked over with confusion in their eyes.
“The place to fight.”
Shinichi Miyamoto sounded calm as usual.
…
“Bang!”
The serious and depressing discussion was interrupted when the door of the meeting room was slammed open. Han Shixun came in. He had been hiding in East Island for decades and had taken control of all information. His face looked calm, but with anger and anxiety in his eyes.
Everyone could feel something bad had happened.
“What’s wrong?”
Tribulation’s eyes focused and he asked in a low voice.
“Something just happened.”
Han Shixun looked gloomy and he said, “It had been confirmed now that w.a.n.g Shengxiao, Li Tianlan, and Gu Hanshan have been in danger and we’ve lost our connection with them.”
Everyone’s expression changed before he finished.
All the masters present had their own missions, so Han Shixun was deployed to connect w.a.n.g Shengxiao, Li Tianlan, and other people. No one expected that within two days, they had lost connection with the three most promising young man in Zhongzhou State.
“What on earth had happened?
Tribulation clenched his fist, but his tone remained calm.
“I’m not sure yet. I sent someone to collect the information. The only thing we know now is that it’s highly possible that Tianlan encountered Kusanagi Force in Sensō-ji. And we haven’t heard from w.a.n.g Shengxiao or Gu Hanshan yet.”
Han Shixun sounded heavy because he was struggling inside.
He knew clearly what the three young men meant to Zhongzhou State, and should anything happened to the three…
Han Shixun’s lips curled. He dared not to think further.
“The Kusanagi Force?”
Tribulation, Ye Fengcheng, Gu Yunxia, and Flaming Fire stood up at the same time. “Why would Kusanagi Force appear in the Black Sun Inst.i.tute?”
“It’s my fault. I didn’t collect enough information. It was out of my expectation that the precious force was in the Black Sun Inst.i.tute. We underestimated the Black Sun Inst.i.tute, and that was why the accident happened… f*ck!”
Han Shixun said. He was so angry that he swore finally.
“Swish!”
Soon after he said that, Flaming Fire rushed out of the meeting room with electric arcs all over her body.
The Kusanagi Force!
The people in the room were in positions high enough to know clearly about the name “Kusanagi Force”, but they didn’t have the full picture of it. Super forces like this had combined biotechnology and high-tech. They were much harder to deal with than most masters. They were real killing machines. Now that Li Tianlan had run into the Kusanagi Force…
The meeting room was plunged into dead silence.
“How about w.a.n.g Shengxiao and Gu Hanshan?”
Ye Fengcheng asked after a short moment of silence.
Han Shixun shook his head and his expression was sullen. “I’m still checking, but there’s no news from them.”
Ye Fengcheng’s look changed, and he looked at Tribulation.
Gu Yunxia was going to say something but she didn’t say it out.
Tribulation stood before the desk for five minutes, silent. Then he said in a low voice, “Let all of our people move and try to find them. Confirm their situation once they connect them. Anyone who wants to look for them can leave Dongdu. Let’s find them first.”
“Leaving Dongdu…”
Ye Fengcheng frowned and muttered. No one knew what he was thinking.
“The government of East Island may be planning for the same thing. Obviously, they’ve known that we’re here. And they’ve taken the three young talents as the breaking point. They’re holding them as the hostages and force us to leave Dongdu.”
Han Shixun said fast, “It seems that the East Island government has realized it and they are even choosing the battlefield!”
…
“The battlefield?”
Seeing Shinichi Miyamoto’s eyes, Zuohe Hengxin looked at the map with confusion, “Why here?”
“Any place except Dongdu.”
Shinichi Miyamoto shook his head. “It’s the best choice at this moment according to the situation. Xitian Mingzi went to Li Tianlan with Dr. Dubian, she will definitely meet Li Tianlan in the end. Li Tianlan, w.a.n.g Shengxiao, and Gu Hanshan, the three most promising young talents in Zhongzhou, are supported by their own backgrounds. All the forces of Zhongzhou will also gather here if we push the three here, because they will never abandon the three talents. So all we need to do is trace them and dispatch our integrated forces into the final battlefield. We had the best opportunity, best place, and best men, and we’ll surely be the winner.”
“In this case…”
Songxia Ying muttered and then said with sincerity, “Pardon me, Your Highness. Why won’t you do it on your own if things are really so easy? Only if you can…”
He stopped before he could finish.
Because Shinichi Miyamoto was obviously annoyed and shaking his head. He answered coldly, “Because I can’t go down the mountain now.”
“Eh?”
The two hesitated at the same time.
“Someone’s going after me.”
Shinichi Miyamoto said, “I don’t know who he is, but I am sure that he’s going after me and it’s dangerous. I may die if I act rashly.”
…
“That’s it.”
Tribulation looked at Han Shixun and nodded. Then he said, “So we have to find them as soon as possible and bring them back. I don’t mind fighting with East Island. But the choice has to be made by us. We’ll be too pa.s.sive if we let them set it up. The time and situation will be too risky for us then.”
He paused and then continued, “So, everybody, bring them back before East Island captures all of them.”
Ye Fengcheng looked at Tribulation who was standing straight. Suddenly, he opened his mouth and asked in confusion, “So you’re not going?”
“I can’t go.”
Tribulation shook his head and said, “I am tailing someone, and I can’t move if he doesn’t.”
He remained silent for a moment and then continued, “If the battlefield is finalized, I may go with him together, or… I’ll take an opportunity and kill him before that.”