Devouring Evil Martial Arts, Eliminating Demons from All Heavens

Chapter 164 Setting the Mountain on Fire
"Sir, a group of men wearing official boots are coming up the mountain."

The Honglai Inn, located in a small town on the western side of the Qingyuan Mountains, was booked out.

The money was provided by a well-known silk merchant from Zhejiang, named Zhou Quan.

The monks and lay disciples of the Southern Shaolin Temple often walked around this town and inquired about any suspicious people with accents from other places in the inn. Since this merchant had visited the Southern Shaolin Temple several times in previous years, they did not suspect anything.

Zhou Quan looked to be under fifty. He had a jade hairpin inserted diagonally in his hair bun, narrow eyes, a high nose and a wide mouth, and his hair and beard were jet black and glossy.

He set up a table by the window on the second floor and leisurely ate a steamed fish, the fish meat as tender as garlic cloves.

Two strong servants stood behind him.

The person who just came to report the news looked much older than him, with gray hair, pockmarks on his face, and his mannerisms and speech resembled those of a butler.

"Everyone says that the scenery in Jiangnan is beautiful, and I think the scenery in Fujian is also quite good. It's just that the mountains of the Southern Shaolin Temple are too green and too monotonous."

Zhou Quan sighed, "I only have eleven children in total, and I heard that five of them have been assassinated recently."

"Three of them were successfully attacked, and one was seriously injured?"

The butler bowed and said, "Yes, Miss Seven is seriously injured and poisoned. The poison caused her wounds to heal rapidly, but her body has become very weak and she is unconscious."

"Judging from her complexion, which is as beautiful as peach blossoms and plum blossoms, she must have been poisoned by Xi Shi's Drunkenness from Liuyun Mansion."

"The Fifth Young Master was choked to death by a fishbone, and everyone who touched the corpse was also poisoned. Some people suspect that the Tang Clan was behind it. Although the Tang Clan has no conflict with us, some of them work for the Six Doors."

"The third and fourth young masters were killed by a single sword to the throat, and their bodies withered and turned ashes after death."

Zhou Quan asked, "Is Er Yatou alright?"

"Seven shadow warriors have already died under the Second Miss's command."

The butler looked quite wary when he mentioned this, "The most dangerous time was when even the messengers we sent thought the Second Miss was dead. Later we found out that the people who received all our messengers were just the Second Miss's doubles."

"But the swordsman who attempted the assassination has not yet been captured."

Zhou Quan smiled and said, "Er Yatou was originally a figure who carved out a territory in the chaotic world of Japan. She really brought out the best in her family's ninja training methods."

The butler said, "That swordsman has been spreading rumors lately, claiming that the master is already dead, but the young master and young lady are keeping it a secret and controlling affairs."

Zhou Quan's expression changed slightly: "Good lad, that was quite ruthless."

The butler cautiously asked, "Miss, do you wish to have Master's shadow warrior intervene?"

The Japanese often have the habit of training shadow warriors.

It is a kind of stand-in that is selected from childhood and brainwashed and trained to appear in dangerous situations in place of its owner.

However, given the strength of the Heavenly King Commander, it would be truly difficult to cultivate a double capable of impersonating him at certain times.

His only substitute was not a ninja trained from childhood, but a renowned martial arts master from Japan whom he found at sea.

He took the man back to Japan, avenged his blood feud, destroyed his enemy's country and exterminated his clan, and only then did he gain his loyalty.

"Forget it, if my double is also stabbed to death, then the rumors will be confirmed."

Zhou Quan pondered, "Although my influence is vast, it is ultimately only the result of half a generation's efforts, and the foundation is not solid enough."

"Once the banner of Southern Shaolin was raised and a few victories were won, all sorts of demons and monsters rushed to show themselves."

"The assassins are a minor matter; destroying the Southern Shaolin Temple is the most urgent task."

The butler sighed in admiration, “Master had been wary of the Southern Shaolin Temple for ten years and asked us to send someone to manage Zhou Quan’s identity properly.”

"At the time, we thought he was just a useless piece of work, but who knew he would actually be needed today!"

The "Zhou Quan" sitting here today is actually Chen Zuqi in disguise.

The steward, attendants, and caravan guards were mostly capable men that Chen Zuqi had brought from the sea.

"People in the imperial court may not be willing to do their best for the southeast, but the foundation of the Southern Shaolin Temple is here, and it will inevitably clash with it sooner or later."

Chen Zuqi picked up a piece of fish cheek meat and chewed it carefully.

"Ten years ago, I wasn't confident. Later, I fought against government troops and visited the Western Regions, and now the Southern Shaolin has made the first move." He was certain that a single fire-based secret technique wouldn't have caused such a change in the Southern Shaolin; there must be other reasons behind it.

Therefore, after arriving in the town, he waited for a while, gathering information while anticipating the gathering of various forces and the resulting chaos.

Unexpectedly, half a year ago, the martial arts world was thrown into turmoil by the Fire Mystic Technique, and the smell of blood could even be smelled overseas.

Surprisingly, not many powerful forces came to the Southern Shaolin Temple to observe this matter.

After waiting and waiting, they only received imperial envoys from the court.

Chen Zuqi thought to himself: That's it.

The situation was already chaotic back then, and the Japanese pirates only sent out a few groups of spies. But now, the situation created by the Southern Shaolin Temple is very likely to bring him, the pirate king, to the scene in person.

He, the big fish, was waiting for an opportunity to take advantage of the chaos.

But the other smaller fish also have eyes. Seeing that he and the two big fish from the Southern Shaolin Temple were there, they were not so willing to come and become cannon fodder.

"Then do it."

Chen Zuqi put down his chopsticks, stared at the half-eaten fish, and his eyes deepened for a moment.

At the same time, the surrounding environment seemed to alternate between light and dark.

In that brief moment of darkness, the stark white skeletons of everyone standing in the room were revealed.

When the light returned to normal, they were still standing there, completely unharmed.

But the fish on the table had been reduced to a skeleton and a few bits of dried powder.

All the essence seemed to be plundered in that light and darkness.

The butler remained calm, as if he were already used to such eerie sights.

He simply said, "It's still daytime, are we going to make a move now?"

"It's perfect during the day, and the weather has been dry lately. But at night, when the dew is heavy, it's not as convenient to get things done."

Chen Zuqi smiled, stood up and said, "By the way, what is the punishment for arson according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty?"

The steward said with shame, "I have not read the Great Ming Code."

He thought for a moment, "We burned too many houses when we were young. Even if we don't burn down the mountain today, it would probably be a capital offense under the Ming Dynasty law."

"Hahaha, thank goodness we won't get caught."

Chen Zuqi led the group downstairs. "Let's go. Today we'll give the people of Quanzhou a grand show and let them see the smoke and flames of Qingyuan Mountain."

Dozens of caravan workers and guards stood up at the same time, all with excited expressions.

They left in batches, dispersed from the town, and hardly attracted the attention of any townspeople.

When they were active in the mountains and forests, they only traveled in groups of two or three, and did not gather together.

Because their destinations are all different.

Hillsides, secluded valleys, cliff edges...

The oil refined from the Westerners, combined with the martial arts masters' fire, quickly ignited these places with a strong, scorching red light.

When the flames grew larger, they burned on the damp trees, causing the smoke to thicken dramatically.

Black smoke billowed upwards, shooting straight into the sky.

Can the Southern Shaolin Temple not put out fires?
Perhaps we can let only the young monks and lay disciples dig ditches and draw water; the older monks don't need to rush.

However, the weapon workshops most strictly controlled by the Southern Shaolin Temple are hidden in this vast mountain forest.

Recently, there has been a significant amount of gunpowder in those workshops.

(End of this chapter)