Courtyard House: Time Traveler Not Yet a Ghost

The early morning in Taiyuan was shrouded in an eerie silence.

The gunfire had ceased, the explosions had stopped, and even the sirens had fallen silent. But this silence was more unsettling than the clamor of the previous night—it was the emptiness left behind by the sudden loss of so many lives, the deathly stillness before the storm.

On the city wall, the surviving Japanese soldiers, their faces pale, gripped their guns, their eyes bloodshot, vigilantly scanning every direction inside and outside the city. They didn't know who the enemy was, what had happened the night before, or even whether their comrades beside them were trustworthy.

Corpses were scattered throughout the streets. There were Japanese soldiers, and a few civilians hit by stray bullets. Some bodies remained in the posture of shooting at each other, not understanding why they had fired at their comrades until their last breath. Blood congealed into dark red ice on the bluestone pavement, gleaming eerily in the rising sun.

The city gates were tightly shut, and the drawbridge hung high. The Japanese strongholds outside the city tried to contact those inside, but the responses were chaotic—some said the Eighth Route Army had invaded, some said there had been a mutiny, and some simply did not respond.

Taiyuan, the heart of Shanxi province which the Japanese had been cultivating for many years, suddenly became a huge mystery overnight.

At this moment, this mystery is spreading rapidly in all directions through various channels.

---

Ji County, Kenanpo.

This was the headquarters of Yan Xishan, commander-in-chief of the Second War Zone. Kenanpo was originally named "Nancunpo," but Yan Xishan disliked the homonym "Nancun," which sounded unlucky, so he renamed it "Kenanpo," meaning "overcoming difficulties." In reality, this place is located in the Lüliang Mountains, with a strategically important and easily defensible location. It was Yan Xishan's temporary base camp after the fall of Taiyuan.

At six o'clock in the morning, Yan Xishan was woken up by his adjutant.

"Sir, urgent telegram from Taiyuan!" The adjutant's voice was visibly tense.

Yan Xishan sat up, still wearing his clothes, and took the telegram. This "local emperor," who had ruled Shanxi for nearly thirty years, was fifty-nine years old this year. His hair was gray, and his face was etched with deep wrinkles, but his eyes were still sharp. After reading the telegram, his brows furrowed deeply.

The telegram was sent by his informant in Taiyuan. Its contents were vague: "Around 10 PM last night, a large-scale armed conflict broke out in Taiyuan. The fighting is suspected to be among the Japanese. Gunfire continued until 3 AM. This morning, the city walls are still under Japanese control, but the city gates are closed, and thick smoke is rising from within the city. The Japanese troop movements are unusual, suggesting a possible command system breakdown. The specific cause is unknown."

"Infighting among the Japanese?" Yan Xishan muttered to himself, his fingers tapping the table unconsciously.

He paced back and forth in the room. Taiyuan, that was his Taiyuan! In November 1937, the Japanese invaders captured Taiyuan, and his arsenal, steel mill, textile factory, bank… all the businesses he had painstakingly built up over the years fell into Japanese hands. For the past five years, he had thought about fighting back every single moment.

Now, the opportunity has arrived?

"Sir, should we send someone into the city to investigate the situation?" Chief of Staff Zhu Shouguang suggested.

Yan Xishan pondered for a moment, then shook his head: "No rush. Let's figure out what's going on first. What if it's a trap set by the Japanese?"

He knew the Japanese too well, he knew the Eighth Route Army too well, and he knew the ulterior motives of his own men even better. The three parties had been vying for power in Shanxi for three years, and none of them could fully trust the others.

"Have the intelligence department send more people to find out three things: First, what exactly happened last night; second, the casualties and current state of the Japanese command system; and third, whether the Eighth Route Army was involved, and to what extent."

"yes!"

"Furthermore," Yan Xishan's eyes flashed with a glint of light, "have Wang Jingguo's 19th Army send a regiment towards Taiyuan. Don't get too close; wait at least 50 li away. Their mission is to observe—to see if there's an opportunity to gain some advantage, and also to see if the Japanese will send reinforcements. If there is an opportunity... have the troops quickly enter the city, grab what they can, and leave without lingering."

Zhu Shouguang hesitated for a moment: "Sir, isn't this too risky? What if we anger the Japanese..."

"That's why we need to get in and out quickly," Yan Xishan sneered. "The Japanese are too busy taking care of themselves right now. As long as we don't occupy Taiyuan City and just take advantage of the chaos to loot some supplies, they won't make a big fuss. Besides, everything in Taiyuan City originally belonged to me, Yan Baichuan!"

He paused, then added, "Remember, the troops must move covertly. If the Eighth Route Army is also eyeing Taiyuan... let them go first, and we'll see how things go."

"Understood!"

---

Changchun, Headquarters of the Kwantung Army.

Unlike the early morning in Shanxi, it was still dark in Changchun. But General Yoshijiro Umezu, commander of the Kwantung Army, had already been urgently awakened.

The atmosphere in the meeting room was heavy.

Yoshijiro Umezu was fifty-six years old, not tall, but with a powerful presence. He was a well-known "cold-faced general" in the Japanese military, known for his tough style and ruthless methods. At this moment, he sat in the main seat, looking at the telegram in his hand expressionlessly.

"A large-scale unusual incident occurred in Taiyuan last night," Major General Junji Ikeda, Deputy Chief of Staff, reported. "According to reports from the remaining troops of the First Army, starting at 10 PM last night, armed clashes broke out simultaneously at multiple important strongholds within Taiyuan. The conflict was between the Japanese and their own forces, and it is suspected that multiple units defected at the same time. By 5 AM, the conflict had gradually subsided, but the command system was paralyzed, and a large number of high-ranking officers were killed or wounded. Commander Shinotsuka… his situation is unknown."

"How is Shinotsuka?" Yoshijiro Umezu's voice was icy.

"According to the last contact, Lieutenant General Shinotsuka may have met with misfortune, or... been captured." Ikeda lowered his head. "The core area of ​​headquarters has been completely cut off. We tried to contact all officers of the rank of colonel, but there was no response."

The conference room was deathly silent.

Taiyuan, the headquarters of the First Army, where the lieutenant general commander may have been captured or killed, a large number of high-ranking officers were killed or wounded, and the command system was paralyzed—this was an unprecedented humiliation during the Japanese invasion of China!

"Was it done by the Eighth Route Army?" someone asked.

"It doesn't seem like it." The intelligence chief shook his head. "According to the sporadic intelligence that has been transmitted back, the conflict is entirely within the Japanese ranks, and there are no signs of a large-scale attack by the Eighth Route Army. Moreover... the pattern of the conflict is very strange."

"What's so strange?"

"The report indicates that the conflict erupted simultaneously from multiple outposts. Machine gunners suddenly turned their guns on friendly forces, artillerymen destroyed their own cannons, officers hacked at their subordinates... it was like..." the intelligence chief carefully chose his words, "...like a collective madness."

"A collective madness?" Yoshijiro Umezu's eyes narrowed. "Similar to... the Changping Incident?"

This word caused the temperature in the conference room to plummet.

The Changping Incident—a bizarre event that occurred three years earlier, in the summer of 1942, at a Japanese military camp in Changping, Beiping. Overnight, a company of Japanese soldiers suddenly began killing each other, leaving only three survivors, all of whom were mentally unstable. The investigation yielded no results, and the case was hastily closed as a "mass mental breakdown," becoming a taboo subject that the Japanese high command was unwilling to discuss.

"There are similarities, but on a larger scale," the intelligence chief said with difficulty. "Changping was a company, but this time... it's the entire garrison in Taiyuan."

Yoshijiro Umezu stood up, walked to the map of North China, and stared at the location of Taiyuan.

"Whether it's the Eighth Route Army's new tactics or anything else... Taiyuan cannot be in chaos." He turned around and said decisively, "Immediately transfer a brigade from the Mongolian Army to Taiyuan! Also, transfer a regiment from the Kwantung Army's direct forces to travel south by train! Mission: First, stabilize the situation in Taiyuan; second, find out the truth of the incident; third, if Shinotsuka is dead, take over command of the First Army."

"Commander, it will take time to transfer troops stationed in Mongolia, and the Eighth Route Army might take advantage of the situation..."

"We can't worry about that now!" Yoshijiro Umezu interrupted. "Taiyuan is the central hub of Shanxi. If it completely falls out of control, the entire North China defense system will be compromised. The Eighth Route Army, the Jin-Sui Army, and the Central Army will pounce like wolves smelling blood!"

He paused, his voice growing colder: "As for the truth... I need a detailed investigation report. If it really is a 'supernatural event' similar to the one in Changping... then eliminate everyone who knows about it and publicly declare it an attack by Eighth Route Army special forces. Understand?"

"clear!"

---

Deep in the Taihang Mountains, the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army.

The three men—the commander-in-chief, the deputy commander-in-chief, and the chief of staff—stood in front of the map, their brows furrowed.

The intelligence they possessed was more detailed than that of Yan Xishan and the Japanese—after all, they had an underground organization in Taiyuan, and "Old Huai" and others had been risking their lives to pass on information since the conflict broke out last night.

"According to the latest report from Taiyuan Station," the chief of staff pointed to the map, "the conflict was mainly concentrated in four areas: the military camp in the north of the city, the command headquarters in the east of the city, the arsenal in the south of the city, and the warehouse area in the west of the city. The characteristics were that the conflict broke out simultaneously, the Japanese attacked each other from within, and there was no clear organization or slogans. As of 5:00 a.m. this morning, the conflict has basically subsided, but the Japanese command system is completely paralyzed, and senior officers have suffered heavy casualties."

"Where's Yoshio Shinotsuka?" the boss asked.

"His whereabouts are unknown. Intelligence suggests he is trapped at headquarters, but the specifics are unclear."

The deputy commander, puffing on his cigarette, pondered, "This doesn't seem like an uprising. If it were, it would be organized, have a program, and would try to contact us. Moreover, uprisings usually start from one point and gradually spread, not erupt all over the city at once like this."

"Could it be an internal factional struggle within the Japanese?" the chief of staff speculated.

"It's too big." The commander shook his head. "Overnight, the entire Taiyuan garrison turned on each other? How big of a conflict must there be? Moreover, according to reports, the behavior of many soldiers is completely incomprehensible—machine gunners didn't run away after mowing down friendly forces, but just stood there waiting to die; officers killed their subordinates and then committed suicide... This doesn't seem like a normal mutiny."

Silence fell over the meeting room.

Suddenly, the deputy commander spoke up: "Do you all remember... the Changping Incident?"

The general and the chief of staff exchanged a glance, both seeing the seriousness in each other's eyes.

They certainly remembered the Changping Incident. Three years earlier, the underground Communist Party in Beiping had sent back news that a strange incident had occurred at a Japanese military camp in Changping, where an entire company had been almost wiped out. At the time, they had even discussed whether they could take advantage of the situation, but the Japanese subsequently imposed a tight blockade, leaving them with no way to make a move.

"You mean... Taiyuan this time, just like Changping?" the boss asked in a deep voice.

"I don't know." The deputy commander shook his head. "But it's too similar. Both were instances of Japanese soldiers suddenly killing each other, both were without warning, both were...the cause can't be found."

The chief of staff suddenly thought of something: "Could it... be related to that person?"

"Who?"

"He Damin," the chief of staff said in a low voice, "before the Battle of Ping'an County, didn't Li Yunlong trade antiques for a large number of weapons with him? After that, in the Battle of Ping'an County, Li Yunlong dared to use more than 10,000 men to attack the city. According to intelligence, during the Battle of Ping'an County, the Japanese reinforcements were attacked by unknown forces along the way, and many units disappeared as a whole... The method is very strange."

The boss narrowed his eyes: "You mean, this He Damin has some kind of ability we don't know about, that he can... make the Japanese kill each other?"

"It's just speculation," the chief of staff said cautiously, "but the timing is too coincidental. The battle for Ping'an County just ended, and then the incident in Taiyuan happened. Moreover, according to Chen Geng's report, when Li Yunlong delivered those 1,500 warhorses, he said that those horses were 'unbelievably intelligent, able to understand human speech'..."

The three looked at each other in bewilderment.

If this conjecture is true, then He Damin is... truly terrifying.

He can provide massive amounts of weaponry, create bizarre events, and even modify animals... This is beyond their comprehension.

"Let's ignore He Damin for now." The commander finally made the decision. "The situation in Taiyuan is an opportunity for us. The Japanese command system is paralyzed, and people are in a state of panic. It's the perfect time for us to expand our base."

He walked to the map and traced it with his finger: "Order: The Taihang, Taiyue, and Jin-Cha-Ji Military Regions, take advantage of the Japanese confusion and launch a preemptive strike! Eliminate strongholds, destroy transportation lines, and expand guerrilla zones! But remember—do not launch a direct attack on Taiyuan. That's a tough nut to crack; let Yan Xishan and the Japanese deal with it first."

"In addition," the deputy commander added, "we have the comrades of the underground party in Taiyuan continue to observe, focusing on three things: First, when the Japanese reinforcements will arrive and how large they will be; second, what moves Yan Xishan's Jin-Sui Army will make; and third... if possible, check for any signs of He Damin's appearance."

"clear!"

---

Beiping, western suburbs.

He Damin stood in front of an abandoned temple, watching the eastern sky gradually brighten.

He was, of course, unaware of the chain reaction his actions last night had triggered in Taiyuan. Even if he had known, he wouldn't have cared.

Yan Xishan wants to take advantage? Let him. The Kwantung Army sends reinforcements? The more the better—they're all nourishment for the Soul-Refining Banner. The Eighth Route Army takes the opportunity to expand its base areas? That's a good thing; the stronger the anti-Japanese forces, the more Japanese souls he can harvest.

He cared about only one thing: Beiping.

This ancient capital, with its thousand-year history, is now groaning under the iron heel of the Japanese invaders. And here, there is an even greater objective than Taiyuan—the headquarters of the Japanese North China Area Army, a larger arsenal, more supplies, more important secrets… and, the imminent arrival of an even greater soul: Okamura Yasuji.

He Damin entered the dilapidated temple and sat down cross-legged.

He needed to recuperate. Last night's continuous fighting and resource gathering in Taiyuan had depleted nearly 30% of his soul power. Although the pure soul power fed back by the Soul Refining Banner was rapidly replenishing him, it would still take time for him to reach his optimal state.

Moreover, he needed to organize the information he had gleaned from Yoshio Shinotsuka's memories.

The list of those "sleepers" in the Special Higher Police, the Japanese assassination plot against Eighth Route Army commanders, the Japanese overall strategy in North China... this information needs to be given to the right people at the right time.

To whom should we entrust it?

The Eighth Route Army? They were the most direct beneficiaries. But He Damin didn't want direct contact—he didn't want to be "bound" to either side. What he needed was the freedom to reap the rewards, not to become a "tool" for any one side.

Perhaps... we could go through Li Yunlong? That guy may be reckless, but he's not stupid, and he has enough autonomy.

Several hours later, when the sun had fully risen, He Damin opened his eyes, his soul power had recovered to 80%.

He walked out of the dilapidated temple and looked in the direction of Baoding City.

The enormous city began to take shape in the morning light, and the Japanese flag fluttered in the wind atop the city walls.

He Damin's lips curled into a cold smile.

"Baoding City... I've arrived."

A pale golden soul emerged, carrying the Soul Refining Banner, and flew towards Baoding City like a vengeful spirit.

Behind him, the chaos in Taiyuan City was just beginning to brew, and the power struggle among various forces was unfolding. A huge storm, which originated from him but had already escaped his control, was quietly taking shape in North China.

But He Damin didn't care.

He was just a reaper.