Lord Susano had claimed supremacy over the Kyushu island for hundreds of years.
He had been the most powerful Grand Onmyoji of Japan two hundred years ago, and even the Shogun and the Emperor had to speak with him with veneration. In the last hundred years or so, he was confined to the Susano Shrine with only intermittent visits to the outside world using Divine Soul. However, he had a slew of mighty figures pinned under his thumb. The Yukishiro family, Takeda Family, Chizuru Family and the Fuji Ninja Clan all served him as his subjects.
Using an invisible web of influence, he had the entire Kyushu island held firmly in his grasp.
However, mighty as he was, he was killed by Chen Fan with ease.
How was that possible?
Chizuru Masahiro and the others simply couldn’t come to terms with reality.
The reality, however unlikely it was it was thrust in front of their eyes: the shrine was gone, statue shattered. In the void dimension, the sound of the Yin and Yang energy grinding each other subsided. As Yang Energy returned to its source inside the mountain, the Yin Energy became unbridled and went rough. It quickly swept through the entire mountain peak, devouring the vitality of trees and plants.
Seeing the crisis was averted, Chizuru Masahiro and the others heaved a sigh of relief. They looked to Chen Fan, eyes filled with veneration.
Even Lord Susano’s finally trump card, the Yin Yang Grand Array was destroyed by Chen Fan without using much effort. How powerful exactly was he? Chizuru Masahiro started to suspect that Chen Fan was not a Transcendent Grandmaster, instead, he was an Immortal State Cultivator, a legend of the present time.
“Ummm.”
Having absorbed all the dark substance that used to make up Lord Susano’s body, the bone flute flew back to Chen Fan and circled closely about his body. It let out a soft whir that sounded like the purr of a kitten.
Chen Fan reached out and grabbed it in the air. Its texture felt silky and warm on his finger
He had taken this bone flute from the Young Master of the Ghost Witch Sect and it was the Dharma Treasure of the sect. The Ghost Witch Sect elder discovered it in a tomb of an ancient sage. The elder used one section of the bone and made it into a Primordial Ghost Flute to contain the ghosts under his command. A perfected cultivator from the Ghost Witch Sect during the Qing dynasty used to use this very artifact to command a hundred thousand and defeated a thousand Manchu horse warriors.
However, those ghosts soldiers were all but perished after Chen Fan had used Li Fire Golden Eyes on it. That being said, it was a waste to use the bone of a Connate Cultivator as a container for ghosts. Chen Fan had a better plan for it.
He had been refining the bone flute ever since he got it a year ago, but had made little progress. Chen Fan knew that he needed to instill an Artifact Spirit into the artifact but couldn’t find an appropriate Divine Soul in China. It was in Japan that he finally found what he was looking for.
“I finally got you!” Chen Fan tapped the bone flute with a fingernail, making a crisp sound. “Since you have a Demon God inside, I shall call you the ‘Summoning Flute of Demon God’”
The bone flute let out a droning as if consenting to his new name.
An azure light came up in Chen Fan’s hand as he channeled his energy into the bone flute. Suddenly, a dark smoke spilled out from the bone flute, down to the floor. The smoke then formed into the shape of the Oni Demon God.
However, unlike the statue that was destroyed, this iteration of the Demon God was wearing shining golden armor and lacked the sinister quality that he used to possess. He stood firmly with a face as heavy as an anvil, looking like the celestial guardians before the gate to heaven. He looked exactly like Lord Susano, despite the unblinking, almost mechanical gaze.
“It… it…”
Chizuru Masahiro stared at the image incredulously.
Hadn’t Lord Susano been consumed by the bone flute? Why did he appear again?
“It’s not Lord Susano, he is an Immortal Guardian for my Dharma Treasure.” Chen Fan waved a hand and the image disappeared.
The Ghost Witch Sect had wasted the bone of a Connate Cultivator by using it to harness ghost soldiers. Chen Fan had used it to its full potential and gave it a powerful Golden Armor Immortal Guardian who was as powerful as Lord Susano. It could destroy a hundred Oni with a single sweep of a hand. Thus it was, the power of a Dharmic treasure heavily depended on the level of attainment of the user. In Chen Fan’s hand, this bone flute was much more powerful than when it was used by the Ghost Witch Sect.
Once Chen Fan reached the Golden Core level, he could summon the Immortal Guardian to move a mountain out of his way.
Such power was also portable. Chen Fan didn’t have to be confined in a shrine in order to summon the Immortal Guardian. The Bone Flute was the Shrine and Chen Fan could carry it with him wherever he went.
After the Summoning Flute of Demon God was completed, Chen Fan looked to Chizuru Masahiro and the others.
There were only three of them who had survived the onslaught: Chizuru Masahiro, Violet and Yukishiro Sa
Genkaza Takeda was the servant of Lord Susano, and he was killed by Chen Fan with one punch. Chen Fan had decided to spare Violet’s life since she had been protecting Yukishiro Sa amidst the chaos. However, Chizuru Masahiro, the Grand Onmyoji was the mind of the Shrine’s operation. Chen Fan wouldn’t let him getaway.
Lo and behold, Chen Fan’s gaze landed on Chizuru Masahiro.
Violet’s face changed colors while Chizuru Masahiro dropped to his knees before Chen Fan. His body shook with trepidation.
“My lord, please spare my life. I control all the wealth that Susano Shrine had accumulated over hundreds of years. With all the other assets I own, there are over trillions of Yen that I can offer to you. I also controlled the entire Underground World of Kyushu. I can make them work for you if you let me live.”
Chizuru Masahiro was the Grand Onmyoji of the Susano Shrine and the most influential man in Kyushu. However, there and then, he kowtowed to Chen Fan and begged for his life like a pathetic worm. The sight somehow gave Violet a sense of pleasure.
She relished the fact that she had hedged her position by protecting Yukishiro Sa so that Chen Fan didn’t have to be distracted. However, a fear quickly rose inside of her as she saw the mighty Chizuru Masahiro kneel before Chen Fan, begging for his life.
“My lord, the Susano Shrine is extremely wealthy, they even have stakes in the Mitsui Group. ”
Yukishiro Sa put in quietly.
The shrine had controlled the third-largest island of Japan, the Kyushu island for hundreds of years since the Edo period. They had accumulated unimaginable wealth during that time. Cash and other liquid assets were only the tip of the glacial wealth the shrine owned. Most other assets were hidden beneath the surface, such as hoards of antiques, real estate property, and shares in the Mitsui Group.
Mitsui Group managed over trillions of US dollar investments. Even if the Shrine owned just a small portion of the shares, it would have more money than the combined wealth of the Zheng family, Tang Family and Su Family.
Such unimaginable wealth took hundreds of years to accumulate and would be tempting to even a Transcendent Level Grandmaster.
Chizuru Masahiro had thought that his offer should have an effect on Chen Fan, however, Chen Fan’s face was stoic as usual. He fiddled with the bone flute, twirling it between his fingers, and asked: “In Japan, are there any other Shrines that have Demon Gods other than the Susano Shrine?”
Chizuru Masahiro didn’t expect the reply. Yukishiro Sa and Violet were both confused.
“What does he mean?”
Chen Fan didn’t seem to care about Susano Shrine’s wealth, instead, his focus was on Demon God. Why?
Chizuru Masahiro was a seasoned Grand Onmyoji and was well versed in the topic of Dharma Artifact. Once he noticed the Summoning Flute of Demon God, realization finally dawned upon him. He answered in a fearful voice: “My lord, are you gonna catch ’em all?”
Before Yukishiro Sa had realized what Chizuru Masahiro was talking about, Violet’s face turned dark. She shot Chen Fan an incredulous glare.
He was still not satisfied after capturing Lord Susano and he wanted more?
Thousands had lost their lives today and the entire elite forces of Kyushu’s underground world were gone. Two Grandmasters, over a hundred Internal Force users, and a dozen Onmyoji were all dead because Chen Fan wanted to capture a “pokemon”. Yet, he was not satisfied, and wanted more bloodshed: gotta catch ’em all.
Despite his resentment, Chizuru Masahiro managed to pull himself together and answered respectfully:
“My lord, we have six shrines of similar nature in Japan. Three were the Kurome Shrine, Yamamizuki Shrine… and the Ise Grand Shrine. All these six shrines held the souls of an ancient Grand Onmyoji. The Ise Grand Shrine was the most powerful one out of the six. The Demon God in that shrine is able to leave the shrine for a long period of time.”
Chizuru Masahiro paused a second and continued hesitantly: “Rumor had it that the Ise Grand Shrine held a real deity who was in slumber. However, that rumor itself was ancient, and no one seemed to bring it up anymore. ”
“Six, you said?” Chen Fan flicked a finger and narrowed his eyes.
Although Chen Fan wanted to feed the Summoning Flute of Demon God with only the most powerful Divine Souls, it was the more the merrier nonetheless. With the addition of every single Immortal Guardian, the power of the flute would be doubled. With six powerful Divine Souls, the bone flute alone should be able to deal with any Immortal State cultivator.
Chen Fan’s thoughtful expression scared Chizuru Masahiro.
“My Lord, are you going to do the same to all those shrines? They are backed by the real top dogs of Japan. You will be an enemy of the entire nation and have to face the deadly force of the Japan Self-Defense Units. Even if you are an Immortal State Cultivator, you—”
“You talk too much.”
Chen Fan cut the old man short and lifted a finger. A beam of Azure light pierced through the old man’s skull, killing him in an instant.
Even in his death, Chizuru Masahiro’s eyes were wide open with disbelief. He was shocked that Chen Fan would ignore the huge financial gain and chose instead to kill him.
Violet trembled in fear after seeing Chen Fan end the old man’s life. When Chen Fan’s gaze found her, she dropped to her knees and started begging for her life.
Chen Fan said lightly: “You are smart, I like that.”
“You are the leader of the Ninjas, so I wager that you have full access to the Susano Shrine’s assets. Bring them to me along with information about the other five shrines.” Chen Fan ordered. He then shot out a golden flame into Violet’s body: “Don’t worry your pretty head about double-crossing me. You are under my surveillance no matter where you are.”
“Yes.. my lord,” Violet answered in a shaky voice.
Yukishiro Sa stood beside Chen Fan quietly and meekly. Her heart was filled with admiration and respect.
Just as he had promised, he had quashed the Susano Shrine all by himself. Once the news got out, his name would instill fear in everyone in Japan.