Chapter 655: 654. Always have to leave some people to do the work.
"Wind Demon Kotaro" is not the name of a person, but the codename for the leader of the ninja group "Village of Wind Demon".
This title gets passed down through generations, and each holder is a grandmaster of exceptional ninjutsu, always at least in the Golden Body Realm.
At this moment, the current "Wind Demon Kotaro" was hiding in the dark, intently watching Er Ya and preparing to strike at any moment.
The Izumo side had long been planning to abduct this junior, who was much favored by the Celestial Lord, to coerce the Yi Dynasty to withdraw its army.
That the girl had walked right into their hands was more than they could have hoped for.
Meanwhile, Er Ya and her companions were completely unaware, focusing solely on dealing with the Spirit Refining expert from Izumo.
The white-robed priest had reached the Innate + Out-of-Body Completion stage.
As soon as the three Spiritual Sparrowhawks located him inside the Meiji Shrine, they instantly spat out Roaring Bombardments, comparable to the firepower of 406MM naval artillery, totally flipping the shrine upside down in a violent explosion.
Pieces of colored tiles and fragments of the "torii" gate scattered across the sky and in an instant, the intricately carved and meticulously adorned place was reduced to nothing.
Sitting on Ru Yi's back, Er Ya witnessed this scene and nodded with satisfaction, "This place was also one of the targets; saves us another trip."
But at that very moment, a Flying Sword, using the dust as cover, ruthlessly charged toward Er Ya!
Facing the supersonic attack of the Flying Sword, Ru Yi shrank its neck backward and pecked with the speed of lightning! Only to hear a "clang" as the sword was repelled with a loud metallic clash.
However, the Magical Treasure was of good quality, unscathed in the slightest. The sword blade was fully adorned with diamond-shaped patterns, distinctly in the style of a "Cast Gold Ancient Bronze Sword" from the Spring and Autumn period.
At that time, there were only monkeys on Izumo Island, so this sword must have come from the Divine Land, perhaps even forcibly taken by Izumo's "Cultural Relic Collector".
Er Ya's expression darkened, but she wasn't worried, for she had the "Shadow Trailing Sword" given to her by her martial uncle.
At that time, Ping An and Ji Xiang's Roaring Bombardment entered cooldown, so they dropped two of the "Gem Road" aerial bombs.
The 500-kilogram bombs left the already ruined Meiji Shrine in even greater disarray, ensuring that the Spirit Refining expert inside met a graveless death.
But the old priest had long been prepared, unconcerned about his physical well-being, and was still able to maneuver the Flying Sword to attack Er Ya once again!
Ru Yi focused its spirit, ready to repeat the old trick.
"Wind Demon Kotaro's" expression became stern as he adjusted himself to the optimal state!
Amidst the booms, the Cast Gold Ancient Bronze Sword arrived in a flash!
The speed of the sword had just reached the speed of sound, about the same as the Spiritual Sparrowhawk, and while it was slightly more agile, it wasn't much harder to deal with.
Ru Yi, with another precise "Phoenix Nod", pecked and sent the attacker flying once more.
At that moment, the priest's divine soul suddenly burst forth from the sword, shooting straight toward Er Ya's forehead, intent on possessing her!
Once inside, he would be able to control the life and death of the young girl!
Almost at the same moment, "Wind Demon Kotaro" also flashed into action, stepping through the air to reach a height of 2,000 meters instantly and swiftly reaching out to grab Er Ya!
This was not something that could be achieved with the Martial Path alone; this person surely possessed a considerable level of Spirit Refining Stage.
Izumo had a clever plan, a "double insurance" tactic.
Whichever of the two succeeded would capture Lord Lu Tian's most cherished niece, and thus would secure a bargaining chip for negotiation.
Whether it was drinking poison to quench thirst, or a frantic final struggle, this was the last resort at the end of a dead-end road.
~~~~~~~~~~
Facing the siege of two experts far beyond her realm, Er Ya felt a bit of tension, yet her spirit remained calm.
This was the very purpose of her coming out to train; without hardships, there's no growth.
She was about to bring out the Shadow Trailing Sword, planning to first slay the divine soul, then the approaching ninja grandmaster.
But at this moment, both sides overlooked one person – that was Ali.
This delicate cat-woman, curled up in Er Ya's arms, was small and seemingly inconspicuous, and the words "Demon Race Revival" across her chest appeared somewhat comical.
Suddenly attacked, the little cat bravely stood in front of Er Ya! Her fluffy ears pinned low, her tail swishing rapidly, clearly displaying extreme nervousness.
She glared at the murky divine soul of the old priest, utterly unwilling to let this ghastly thing harm her best friend and owner.
And then, Ali suddenly felt time slow down considerably.
The divine soul, which had been moving incredibly fast, now dawdled like a dandelion seed.
She had clearly entered the Spirit Refining State!
The next instant, the young cat girl's eyes turned into two magnificent whirlpools.
The priest's Divine Soul suddenly went out of control, screaming as it got sucked in, and then it just vanished without a trace, never to stir again!?
The Shadow Trailing Sword had already flown out. The divine sword moved without command, immediately changing targets on its own, turning to kill Wind Demon Kotaro!
The ninja master was just one step away from capturing Er Ya, but with a flash of white, the person's head was gone.
But the person, fatally injured, turned into a puff of white smoke and disappeared, actually an illusion!
Immediately after, three more Wind Demon Kotaros flew towards them from mid-air, each of their arms flashing as they simultaneously threw "shuriken."
With a "whoosh," the Shadow Trailing Sword flew out, cutting apart the three figures and their thrown shuriken almost at the same time, leaving no chance of escape.
The Spiritual Sparrowhawk had already widened its eyes, beginning to search for where this person's real body was.
In such a scene, Wind Demon Kotaro could only sigh deeply, taking advantage of being undiscovered, and his entire being turned into a dark shadow as he quickly retreated from the Cherry Capital.
Once he was far away, he took out a straw man and said,
"Prime Minister Ito, our mission has failed. The enemy's strength is beyond imagination, further resistance is meaningless, we should go to the Menes Federation to establish a government in exile."
From beginning to end, Lord Lu Tian had not made a move. They couldn't even overcome his disciple-nephew and pet; it was simply one-sided torture.
~~~~~~~~~~~
At this moment, the Cherry Capital was already in the midst of a large-scale fire.
The battle between the two sides stirred up countless air currents in the sky. Wind aided the fire's fury, causing the flames to reach for the heavens, engulfing the entire city in a sea of fire!
The flames, interacting with the cold air, created a spectacular fire tornado sweeping across the land. During the extreme heat, even the metal light poles and the monorail tracks melted.
This was no longer a fire that could be extinguished by human efforts; countless people screamed as they fled. Some were trapped by the flames and had to jump into the river to escape.
But the river water quickly boiled due to the intense heat, and for a moment, the sight was terrifying, the city turned into a living hell.
The fire raged for three days before slowly subsiding, also burning through Izumo's stubborn resistance and avoiding a siege battle.
The Yi Dynasty's great army occupied the city without a fight, and with them came reporters from all over.
They ferociously snapped photos of the city's tragic state, some even using the most advanced cameras of the time.
The legion's soldiers intended to intervene, but Left Minister ordered indifferently,
"Let the reporters broadcast the situation here without reserve, and send a letter warning those regions still stubbornly resisting, that this will be their fate if they do not surrender!"
Hearing these words, a host of high-ranking generals and strong individuals praised, "The Supervisor Marshal is wise!"
"The Supervisor Marshal's actions save numerous lives, truly striking like thunder and kind-hearted like a Buddha."
"The Izumo people got off easy. But this is for the best; we need to leave some people to do the work, so we don't need to immigrate from within the country."
At this moment, these people were already considering how to maximize the profits from their territories.
They played out their calculating little tunes, utilizing the native Izumo people however they wished, with nobody to intervene.
But a migration from within the country was closely watched by the Imperial Court, and they did not dare to exploit those people recklessly.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Er Ya's mission was successfully completed, and now, holding Ali, she looked left and right, exclaiming in surprise, "You actually devoured that Divine Soul?"
Ali herself was also somewhat bewildered, touching her eyes and saying, "Suddenly my Innate Divine Ability awakened... It shattered that old man's Divine Soul, nourishing my own self."
Although she was weak, she was still a Transformative Form Demon King.
With emotions running high, she followed the guidance of her bloodline and used a remarkable Innate Divine Ability.
Now, the cat girl raised her hand, and the "Cast Gold Ancient Bronze Sword" obeyed the call and flew in front of her face.
"I can control this Flying Sword now. It's quite powerful, I'll give it to you."
"That's your spoils of war, I don't want it, you keep it for yourself. By the way, when we get back, let uncle-master check it for you; you clearly used a Spirit Refining technique."
Er Ya hugged Ali, brimming with joy and said, "A Spirit Refining master, huh, we can't underestimate you in the future~"
The cat girl was also invigorated, looking at the "Demon Race Revival" written on her chest, suddenly feeling that it was no longer an unattainable dream.