Yukishiro family had been thriving on Kyushu island for over a hundred and fifty years. They were the descendants of an even more ancient family that presided over northern Kyushu. Being a large and blue-blooded family, it had many branches and countless offspring. Yukishiro Sa’s rise to power had rubbed against the misogynistic grain of many male heirs. Prejudice and discrimination against women were still quite prevalent in Japanese traditional society.
The status of Japanese women in society was much lower than men’s. There were only a very few females among the ranks of business tycoons and politicians. Nowadays, it wasn’t uncommon to have a woman being one of the nation’s leaders, but that was not the case in Japan.
Without the support of her grandpa and Kitaniwakawa, Yukishiro Sa wouldn’t be able to hold on to the power for more than a month. Her grandpa’s unequivocal support gave her the illusion that she was the most competent member of the family, destined to rule the clan. However, it had become clear to her that grandpa had her back simply because of the dark spell cast onto her by the Susano Shrine. Worse, her days would have been numbered if Chen Fan didn’t break the spell and the power of the family would return to one of the male members.
Not a lot of people in the family knew that Yukishiro Sa was part of the family’s darkest secret. When they heard the old man was hunting for Yukishiro Sa, they were elated. The family sent their men to wait at the airports in Fukuoka and Kitakyushu. As soon as Yukishiro Sa landed, Yukishiro Yasuo hurried to the airport with his men.
“Yasuo, what are you doing here?”
Yukishiro Sa furrowed her brows as she put on the mask of a dominating family lord.
“My dear sister, do you really think you are still the head of the Yukishiro family? Grandpa ordered us to hunt you down and take you back home.” Yukishiro Yasuo let out a cold smile. and said: “Please don’t make this more difficult than it needs to. I don’t want to be rude to a former family lord. ”
Even as he said that the group of buff men in black suits inched forward with serious faces.
“How dare you!” Yukishiro Sa flung back at him, not backing down the slightest.
She had always been the pride of the family and no one, not even her elders dared to openly flout her, much less a groveling toad such as Yukishiro Yasuo.
“Of course I do!” Yukishiro Yasuo let out a peal of laughter. “You are knee-deep in trouble, sister. You have riled up grandpa and Master Kitaniwakawa. Plus, Kawakami Gensai was not with you. Are you planning to count on that pretty boy from China? You—”
Before he could finish, he heard a cold voice come up beside him.
“Courting death!”
Everyone watched as Chen Fan’s body became a blurred shadow for a very brief moment and regained its solid form. Meanwhile, Yukishiro Yasuo was dealt a blow on the face, the force sending the man flying out.
Chen Fan slapped Yukishiro Yasuo’s face using only a fraction of his strength, yet the impact had crushed the man’s head, shattering his cheekbones. Looking from the side, Yukishiro Yasuo’s head was as flat as dough.
“Bam!”
Yukishiro Yasuo’s body thudded lifelessly on the street half a dozen meters away.
An heir of the Yukishiro family, a force to be reckoned with in the underground world was slapped to death by Chen Fan.
“What?”
Yukishiro Yasuo’s guards reached toward their burgeoning waist belts out of instinct. It was evident that they had all brought guns with them. However, they were stunned by the horrid scene. Skulls were the toughest bones in the Human body and the guards found themselves grappling with the exact strength of Chen Fan.
“Master, do you speak Japanese?”
Yukishiro Sa was shocked, albeit for an entirely different reason.
She had been conversing with Yukishiro Yasuo in Japanese and thought that she would need to translate to Chen Fan in Chinese later. To her surprise, Chen Fan seemed to have picked up the drift of the conversation and rained down his rage on Yukishiro Yasuo.
“It’s a walk in the park for an Immortal Cultivator to master a language.”
Chen Fan said slowly in Japanese.
His Japanese pronunciation sounded a little off when he spoke out the first few words, however, when he finally finished the sentence, he was speaking Japanese as if he had been living in Japan for many years.
Ever since Chen Fan reached the Foundation Establishment level, he gained photographic memory. Before he came to Japan, he read and memorized an entire Japanese dictionary. It only took him a few minutes since all he had to do was quickly scan the book with his Divine Will. He practiced Japanese in his head while he was on the plane, and mastered it in less than half a day.
Chen Fan turned around and looked at those stunned guards. “Is this what the Yukishiro family sent to deal with me? What a joke.”
He waved a hand and started an art, sending out a few dozen wind blades. These wind blades cut all guards into pieces in a blink. Ever since Chen Fan had reached the Ethereal Enlightenment, he could cast small spells like this on a whim. He infused the air with energy and turned the wind into sharp blades that could cut through steel. Human flesh didn’t stand a chance against these wind blades and those guards were reduced into a pile of chopped up body parts soaked in blood.
Although these elite guards carried firearms, they didn’t have the chance to discharge them even once.
“Master.”
Yukishiro Sa’s face colored a little. She reckoned that Chen Fan had let go of the shackles of conscientious over his indifference toward human life as soon as he landed in Japan. If he was in China, he would think twice before killing a dozen men.
“The Yukishiro family has already sent men after you, that means the so-called Lord Susano had already noticed that he had lost his Illusion Form. Let’s go to your family first and ask your grandpa nicely about the details of Lord Susano. ”
So saying, Chen Fan summoned a few fireballs and threw them onto the pile of bodies. The fire quickly ate away the flesh but was unable to clean the blood, leaving a stomach-churning black path on the pavement.
“Let’s go, I hope you have your driver’s license.”
Chen Fan linked his hands behind his back and walked toward Yukishiro Yasuo’s car. Yukishiro Sa followed Chen Fan obediently, her heart was filled to the brim with righteous fear toward Chen Fan, leaving no room for doubts.
Chen Fan sat in the passenger seat and watched as Yukishiro Sa hurried to start the car, revved up the engine and drive on.
Chen Fan closed his eyes and started to reflect on his mission.
Although Japan’s economy was on par with China, Chen Fan felt much less restricted in his actions in Japan due to the island nation’s meager military force.
Japan was not allowed to have regular military after their defeat in WW2. They were only allowed to keep a regiment of meager two hundred thousand men and women as the Japan Self-Defense Forces. It included a hundred and fifty thousand in the army and a hundred thousand in the navy. This was only a fraction of the military force currently under service in China.
It would take at least a million-strong army to stop Chen Fan and Japan would never be able to pull that off. Although the two nations’ size of economy was very close, China had the upper hand in military preparedness. It has over two million regular soldiers, and even more in the reserves. Therefore, Chen Fan was much more wary of the Chinese forces than the Japanese. Plus, Chen Fan’s family were all in China as well, and that was a major concern for him.
The only force he had to be careful about while he was in Japan was the American troops stationed there. They represented the most powerful nation on earth and should be avoided at this stage of Chen Fan’s cultivation. That being said, the American troops were likely to leave him alone and would not care about the damage he did to Japan as long as Chen Fan stayed out of their interests.
Chen Fan tapped the armrest with a finger as he pondered on.
As time passed, Yukishiro Sa was getting more confident behind the wheel. They were soon out of Fukuoka and headed toward the base of the Yukishiro family in a small village nearby.
Meanwhile, in a quiet village on the outskirts of Fukuoka, a group of Yukishiro family leaders gathered in a small wooden house and were deliberating with each other.
“Yasuo has headed toward the airport to bring that traitor back. ”
A servant of the family reported. He knelt on the ground, bending down from the waist until his chest was flat against the floor.
At the head of the table sat a scrawny old man in his nineties. The old man was bald and toothless. Despite his shriveled form, no one dared to speak up against him. The old man’s eyes gleamed with wisdom and evoked deepest respect and reverence in the others.
He was the backbone of the Yukishiro family, Yukishiro Chio. He was Yukishiro Sa’s grandpa.
A middle-aged man wearing a plain samurai outfit sat beside the old man. He sat on his folded legs with his eyes half-closed. A cold Wakizashi laid flat on his lap sideways. Despite the ordinary look of the man, no one dared to overlook his presence. He was Kitaniwakawa, the most powerful Kendo Grandmaster in Kyushu. Because of him, Yukishiro’s family was able to claim the seat of power in Kyushu.
“Good on Yasuo. Order him to bring the traitor straight home.” Yukishiro Chio said.
“Hai!” The servant nodded.
Even as the servant was going to leave the room. Kitaniwakawa suddenly opened his eyes, and asked: “Did the message mention anyone traveling with Yukishiro Sa?”
“Er… yes. I think it mentioned a young Chinese man traveling with him.” The servant thought for a second and replied.
“What’s the matter Lord Kitaniwakawa?” Yukishiro Chio asked in confusion.
“I got news from the Susano Shrine saying the man who destroyed our Lord’s Illusion Form must be a Grand Onmyoji or Perfected Cultivator in China. So I wager that this man would be traveling with Yukishiro Sa. But… ” Kitaniwakawa furrowed his brows and said: “But you said he was a young man? It would take at least fifty years to become a Grand Onmyoji. I wonder what made this young man so powerful? Or was I wrong from the outset?”
“Lord Kitaniwakawa, we should have answers when Yasuo bring them both back. ”
Yukishiro Chio said with a confident smile.
All of Yukishiro Yasuo’s guards were equipped with guns, and not even a Kendo master could survive a dozen gunmen.
Even as he said that a loud bang came up from the entrance. A servant barged into the room and shouted: “My Lord, someone is trying to bash through our gate.”