A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu had barely set foot on solid ground for an hour before he was hastily boarding a Yinglong Warship once again.

The Yinglong Warship took off, heading straight for Omi Province.

The situation in Omi Province was rather complicated, with intersecting factions vying for influence. To the south lay the infamous Koga Domain.

Inside the meeting room of the Yinglong Warship, Spirit Guard Ding Wei briefed them on Omi Province’s situation. “In Fenglin, aside from the Iga Ninja, there are also the Koga Ninja. The Koga Ninja has long stood alongside the Iga Ninja as one of the most formidable ninja clans of the region. In earlier times, they served lords near the Heian Capital, and later pledged allegiance to the Demon King of the Sixth Heaven.

“During Oda Nobunaga’s decade of glory, the Koga Ninja rapidly grew in power under the Oda clan’s patronage. When the Iga Ninja were nearly wiped out, the Koga Ninja even came close to dominating the ninja world. However, this ambition stalled when the Demon King fell during the Honnoji Incident and the Oda clan splintered. Still, thanks to those ten years of accumulation, the Koga Ninja are still a match for the Iga Hattori clan that remained loyal to Chancellor Toyotomi’s Office.

“The Iga Ninja emphasize individual combat skills, while the Koga Ninja are trained in group operations. The latter serve only their lord with unwavering loyalty. In contrast, the former works for the highest bidder. The Iga Hattori clan is known as the Court Ninja, not for their loyalty, but because no one pays better than the Chancellor’s Office.

“The Koga Ninja operate under a unique communal decision-making system called Gunchuso, where all major and minor matters are resolved collectively. The Koga Ninja consist of 53 samurai households, known as the 53 Houses of Koga. Of these, 21 were awarded commendations by the Rokkaku clan and are recognized as the elite 21 Houses of Koga.”

Li Changge remarked, “Sounds somewhat like our Golden Tower Council. These 21 Houses of Koga are akin to the Omniscient Sages, and the rest are ordinary Sages.”

Li Tiangang continued explaining, “After the fall of the Oda clan, the Koga Ninja reverted their allegiance to the imperial family due to their proximity to the Heian Capital. Notably, they specialize in poisons. The field command and regional authorities suspect that the late Kampaku Toyotomi Hidesugu and the previous Chief Elder Masahiro were both assassinated by the Koga Ninja. Their deaths were meant to stir chaos within the Chancellor’s Office, and indeed, the resulting strife between the Totomi and Owari branches proves they succeeded. The Chief Elder’s death further escalated the turmoil.”

Zhang Yuelu asked, “What is the stance of the field command and Daoist Mansion toward the Koga Ninja?”

Li Tiangang replied, “Defeating them is easy. Wiping them out completely is another matter. Most of the time, they live as farmers or merchants, only donning their ninja identity when necessary. This makes it hard to identify them. The best approach is to support one faction to suppress another and use loyal ninjas to deal with rebellious ones. Unfortunately, the Iga Hattori Ninja who serve the Chancellor’s Office only follow the Kampaku’s orders, and their stance toward the Daoist Order is unclear. So they won’t be helping us this time.”

Zhang Yuelu nodded.

Spirit Guard Ding Wei added, “Once we reach Omi Province, we must be wary not only of the Koga Ninja but also of the Tenmon Sect. They are revered as the national religion and are the cornerstone of the Sonno-joi faction. They are not to be underestimated. Tenmon Sect members use witchcraft and curses, and they retain many primitive traditions.

“Both the Daoist Order and the Buddhist Sect are predominantly male. But the Tenmon Sect is largely female-led, much like Ancient Wuism. The members of the Tenmon Sect are known collectively as miko, and the highest-ranking among them bears the title of Saio, a role reserved exclusively for women from the royal family.

“But miko is just a general term, much like what we call Daoist priests. There are still internal ranks among the miko that make them differ immensely in authority. Similarly, although the Tenmon Sect is female-led, it’s not an all-women sect. Plenty of men are part of it too.

“Unlike our Daoist Order’s unified hierarchy, the Tenmon Sect follows a decentralized model. Beyond shared reverence for the emperor and the Saio, power is fragmented among various jingu, or divine shrines, each governing its own domain.

“Within each jingu, the guji (High Priest) is the chief authority and often doubles as the kannushi (ritual officiant). The gon-guji (Deputy High Priest) serves as the second-in-command. Think of them as co-heads of the shrine.

“Next are the negi, who assist the guji in managing lower-ranking members, akin to a chief secretary. Below them are the gon-negi, who handle daily affairs and social duties as delegated by their superiors, much like a deputy secretary.”

Qi Xuansu understood. If the Heavenly Preceptor were equivalent to a guji, then someone like Zhang Jucheng would be the negi, and Tang Jiaohua would be the gon-negi.

Li Tiangang continued, “Below those are ranks like norito-be, who are ritual reciters; shinkan, who are shrine officials; shutsushi, who are apprentice shrine officials; and ordinary miko. The jingu are grand shrines, like our Daoist mansions, and beneath them are ordinary jinja, akin to our Daoist temples. While both may have a guji, their rank differs greatly depending on whether they are in a jingu or a jinja.

“The Tenmon Sect uses a Five Rank System, excluding the unranked common shinkan and miko. The lowest official tier is the jikikai. To be appointed even a gon-negi at a regular jinja, one must at least be a jikikai.

“Above the jikikai is the gon-shokai. One must be at this level to become a guji at a local, village-level shrine called a gosha. However, someone of gon-shokai rank cannot preside over a county-level shrine called a kensha.

“One level above the gon-shokai is the shokai. To be a guji at a kensha, or a negi at a gunsha (district-level shrine) or a beppyo jinja (special shrine), one must possess this rank or higher.

“Above that is the meikai, which is required to become a guji at a beppyo jinja or gunsha. Anyone of this level can serve as the guji at any jinja, regardless of the shrine’s classification.

“The highest rank is the jokai, who are the senior officials at the Ise-jingu and other top-tier shrines. They are comparable to the Confucian School’s Grand Libationer.

“It’s no surprise that the Tenmon Sect escaped the Buddhist Sect’s shadow in Fenglin, as it adopted Confucian principles, rallying under the banner of revering the emperor, hence earning imperial favor. Its structure mirrors that of the Confucian School.”

Qi Xuansu smiled. “The Tenmon Sect reminds me of the unity of the Three Religions. But unlike our Daoist fusion, Tenmon Sect seems to take a path similar to the Heavenly Court.”

Li Tiangang’s expression turned a little odd.

The Heavenly Court had been propped up single-handedly by the Taiping Sect. This was no secret among the Li family’s upper echelons.

Li Changge remained unbothered and simply said, “If Tenmon Sect is only as strong as the Heavenly Court, then that would be perfect.”

Li Tiangang let out a small cough. “Toyotomi Hidemochi resides in Hikone Castle. To the north lies the Asahi-jingu in Azai District, controlled by the Tenmon Sect. To the south is the Buddhist Sect’s Jinsho-ji in Gamo District, and southwest of there is the Koga District, the stronghold of the Koga Ninja. The Omi branch of the Toyotomi clan is essentially like a frontier daimyo, distant in bloodline and far from the political center. That’s one of the reasons Ii Nasaoda, who hailed from Hikone, didn’t nominate Toyotomi Hidemochi as successor.”

Qi Xuansu studied the map and sighed. “It really is a den of wolves.”

Spirit Guard Ding Wei said, “The good news is that as a frontier lord, his strength is formidable. Currently, a swordmaster of the Shinkage-ryu School guards Hikone Castle, so Toyotomi Hidemochi’s safety is relatively secure for now. He is granted the prestigious title of Kengo. Anyone who earns it is extraordinarily talented, comparable to our Pseudo-Immortals.

“In fact, the leader of the assassins who previously attacked the Sage Commander was a kengo. He killed three Spirit Guards and one Daoist priest, took a blow from the Sage Commander’s sword, and still escaped from Xiujing alive. He’s still on the run. If not for Toyotomi Hidemochi’s upcoming journey to Xiujing, I’d be hunting that kengo myself. His name is Katsura Yoshiyuki.”

Spirit Guard Ding Wei paused before saying, “Now, the bad news is that the kengo’s duty is to protect Hikone Castle. He won’t accompany Toyotomi Hidemochi on the journey. So as soon as the future Kampaku leaves the castle, we are solely responsible for his safety.”

Qi Xuansu, Zhang Yuelu, and Li Changge all wore grim expressions.

There was no doubt that the three of them would one day grow strong enough to rival a kengo at the Pseudo-Immortal level. But at present, not even the three combined could match one. Sage Qingwei had clearly anticipated this and sent both Li Tiangang and Spirit Guard Ding Wei as reinforcements.

That said, where cultivation fell short, artifacts filled the gap. Discounting immortal objects, the three of them combined had more semi-immortal objects than Sage Qingwei himself. Moreover, if Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu fought side by side with their Twin Swords, it would be considered an immortal object.

Currently, one of them was an innate Banished Immortal at the Wuliang stage, while the other two were manmade Banished Immortals at the Xiaoyao stage. Including their arsenal of semi-immortal objects, they could take on a Zaohua-stage Heavenly Being with ease and possibly even gain an advantage. If they added in Spirit Guard Ding Wei and Li Tiangang, they could surely hold their own against a Pseudo-Immortal.

But that did not mean they could relax.

Hikone Castle had been fortified by the Omi Toyotomi clan for years. A kengo stood guard, alongside a host of retainers, guards, onmyoji, and samurai. Thus, an assassination inside the castle would be nearly impossible. But outside its walls, all that protection ceased, and the danger increased exponentially.

Although the Daoist Order had dispatched 400 Spirit Guards, their primary task was operating and maintaining the Yinglong Warship. They were not meant for combat. Even if Toyotomi Hidemochi brought some guards of his own, it would not compare to the layers of defense within the Hikone Castle. That was the challenge they faced and the very reason the Yinglong Warship had been deployed.

The Yinglong Warship was like a flying fortress. Once its doors were sealed, infiltrating it was nearly impossible. Any assassination attempt would be forced into a head-on assault.