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A Prophet - Chapter 13 (Part 2)

Chapter 2 - Modern "Paper-Transfixing Sorcery" 

"We have a master of I-Ching in Japan, a Mr. Takashima. I wonder if Master Zu has ever heard of him?" Yoshiko Nishida suddenly asked.

Master Zu replied, "Ah, his reputation precedes him."

"As early as the beginning of the Meiji Restoration, Mr. Takashima remonstrated with the Emperor, stating that there would inevitably be two major wars between China and Japan, and one major war between Japan and America, advising His Majesty the Emperor to make preparations early. The First Sino-Japanese War has already verified his words once, and next, humph..." At this point, Yoshiko Nishida trailed off.

Master Zu had paid close attention to this man Takashima and had even studied his books. He was a genius in the studies of the I-Ching, and his representative work was Takashima's Divination on the I-Ching. It was not until the late Qing dynasty scholar Mr. Wang Zhiben translated this book into Chinese that people domestically began to encounter it. Through the method of I-Ching divination, Takashima accurately predicted the global landscape and submitted his advice to the Japanese Emperor. The Emperor regarded Takashima as a national treasure and invariably consulted him in detail whenever there was a military campaign.

Yoshiko Nishida said, "Now two paths lie before Master Zu: either cooperate with us, or we will kill Master Zu."

Master Zu smiled faintly. "What kind of cooperation do you have in mind?"

Yoshiko Nishida stated, "There are currently thousands of 'sectarian societies' in China. What Master Zu needs to do is, under our assistance, unite these people under the palace religious indoctrination of the Greater Japanese Empire. We will not interfere with the daily activities of the various sects, but there are two points: first, every month you must allocate a portion of your funds to us as our guidance expenses; second, in your daily propaganda, you must gradually instill in the Chinese common people the belief in Sino-Japanese friendship and shared ancestral roots, and even more prominently publicize Mr. Takashima's theories and doctrines."

Upon hearing this, Master Zu experienced a sudden flash of enlightenment, and all the congestion and blockages of the past few months cleared away completely! Mei Xuanzi's daring to make such a grand show was because he had received Japanese support; the mysterious bigwig behind the scenes that Zuo Yongchan mentioned also referred to the Japanese; and then he recalled the recent slogan of the "Heavenly Sacred Dao": "Heaven and earth face great calamity, the end of days has arrived; blessings come from the East, with a heart full to save all living beings." Wasn't this "East" a reference to the Japanese? It seemed the Japanese were about to make another major move. Thinking of this, Master Zu said, "If I am not mistaken, Mei Xuanzi and Zuo Yongchan surrendered to you long ago."

Yoshiko Nishida said, "The Heavenly Sacred Dao, the Plum Blossom Society, Zheng the Immortal from Shandong, Abbess Ruolan from Fujian, and the Five Tigers of the Central Plains have all defected to the Greater Japanese Empire. With our technical support, their sorcery has improved to unprecedented heights, and silver dollars are being made in massive fistfuls."

Master Zu asked, "Was that Zhang Jiyao also killed by you?"

Yoshiko Nishida replied, "To be precise, he was killed by your own fellow Chinese. Zhang Jiyao was a true man like Master Zu, but his disciple Zuo Yongchan was bought off by us. The entire setup of 'transforming into an immortal and ascending' was instigated by Zuo Yongchan to trap Zhang Jiyao. After Zhang Jiyao went inside, Zuo Yongchan sealed the passage, and Zhang Jiyao was roasted alive. Still, Master Zu is formidable; the team you forged was as solid as a steel plate, impervious to everything. Yet a traitor still emerged—your fourth gang leader leaked the taboos of the Black-Hair Coffin to Mei Xuanzi. This was precisely what we wanted. Trying to recruit you directly would certainly not have worked, but if we ruined your reputation, things would become much easier. Even so, Master Zu is truly remarkable for managing to break our minor ghost general."

Master Zu's mood grew increasingly heavy. The nationwide "sectarian sects" were still fighting among themselves, yet the Japanese already held the overall situation in their hands. Poor Zhang Jiyao, wise and brilliant for his entire life, ultimately died at the hands of his disciple. Once people's hearts scatter, a country ceases to be a country!

Seeing that Master Zu remained silent, Yoshiko Nishida said, "Come with me, Master Zu."

Master Zu was startled and asked, "Where to?"

"Just follow me."

The two turned and walked out of the cell, heading forty meters south until they reached a place resembling a large factory workshop. Hanging at the entrance was a sign that read: "Military Administration Office Technical Department."

"Please enter, Master Zu."

Master Zu stepped inside. The interior was exceptionally spacious, with an aisle down the middle and tables on both sides. The tables were covered with various bottles and jars, somewhat resembling the laboratory where Zhang Zijian made props, and many people were busily and nervously at work.

Yoshiko Nishida said, "When the 'sectarian societies' perform rituals, they must bluff the common people to succeed. Those indigenous god-deceiving tricks of yours are already obsolete. Just behold the various technologies of the Greater Japanese expeditionary sorcerers."

With that, she picked up a glove-like object from the table and said, "This is a military welding torch. After modification, it can be concealed in a sleeve to perform the 'Heavenly Sword Slash' miracle—when the immortal swings his sword, mountains collapse and rocks split." As she spoke, she put on the "glove," activated the switch, and slashed toward a steel plate. Where the edge of her palm passed, the steel plate was severed into two pieces.

Master Zu nodded inwardly.

Yoshiko Nishida removed the glove, picked up a bottle of chemical liquid from a nearby table, and said with a hint of triumph, "American banana oil, extremely fragrant. Treated through freezing technology, it can produce the 'Immortal's Stride' phenomenon. Master Zu, please take a look..." As she spoke, she dripped the liquid onto a glass plate, then grabbed a handful of flour-like powder and sprinkled it over the liquid. Soon, fox-paw-like prints appeared on the surface of the powder.

"Master Zu, look over here as well..." Yoshiko Nishida walked a few steps further inward to a small alcove, turned on a machine resembling a projector, opened the window, and pointed outside. "Master Zu, pay attention to that patch of clouds on the horizon..."

Following her finger, Master Zu saw a thick bank of clouds right in the western sky. Yoshiko Nishida inserted a slide-like object into the machine, a beam of light shot out, and the image of God immediately appeared on the clouds.

"A military high-intensity searchlight can create the 'Reappearance of God' phenomenon. On the battlefield with two opposing armies, if the other side's God of Faith is projected into the sky, what do you think the outcome will be? If we swapped it for the Chinese Supreme Laojun or the Jade Emperor, couldn't Master Zu summon immortals down? Mei Xuanzi lighting the ghost lanterns by the river—that was the technology we provided. Otherwise, with just his meager skills, could he have stirred up such huge waves?"

Master Zu pondered in silence, his heart chilled to the absolute core.

"Master Zu was able to break the minor ghost general, but the major ghost general will probably be hard to crack, right? Come with me, Master Zu." With that, she stepped out of the alcove, turned a corner, and led Master Zu toward the basement.

After walking a dozen meters, Master Zu looked down and saw that the place resembled hell itself: two rows of large iron cages, each holding a human being. These people were pale-faced and dull-eyed. Seeing someone approach, they all grew excited, baring their teeth, stretching out their hands, and howling wildly. Yoshiko Nishida casually picked up a piece of raw pork from the floor and threw it in, and the man lunged at the meat like a beast, chewing ravenously.

Master Zu felt a chill run straight down his spine.

"These people..."

"They are not humans; they are ghosts. These are all leaders of the Northeast Anti-Japanese Volunteer Army, exceptionally fierce by nature, just right for refining major ghost generals."

Hearing this, Master Zu felt as though his heart were being torn to shreds, and he wished he could tear the woman before him to pieces.

Yoshiko Nishida looked at Master Zu and said, "Master Zu must hate me to the bone. If you want to blame someone, blame your country for being powerless to protect you. I have already said there are two paths before Master Zu—either cooperate, or die. Master Zu can die in various ways: you can be beheaded, you can be buried alive, or you can be turned into a major ghost general..."

"Hahahahaha!" Master Zu suddenly burst into loud laughter. "In 1918, I already died once. I am a swindler who has committed every evil deed, and my death is not to be mourned!"

Yoshiko Nishida gave a cold chuckle and said, "Master Zu is a clever man. The reason we have kept Master Zu alive until today is that we believe Master Zu is material worth molding. Mei Xuanzi is fierce of visage but cowardly at heart, and Zuo Yongchan is unfaithful and unjust. In the end, we still plan to let Master Zu rule the territory south of the Yangtze River, so Master Zu should not be ungrateful. Additionally..."

At this point, Yoshiko Nishida hesitated slightly.

"Additionally... Master Zu is of striking appearance and outstanding demeanor. Two years ago, when I met Master Zu in Guangdong, I have been unable to forget it to this day. If you can perform meritorious service for the Greater Japanese Empire, the military can provide Master Zu with Japanese citizenship, and by then you will be a Japanese citizen. After the war concludes another day, we can fly back to Japan together. If Master Zu does not mind..." As she spoke, Yoshiko Nishida placed her slender hand on Master Zu's shoulder.

Master Zu slowly pushed her hand away and said, "Please allow me to think about it."

"Giggle." Yoshiko Nishida smiled. "Whether to die in this filthy land of yours or go to Japan to live out the rest of your life in peace, Master Zu can weigh it for yourself."

That night, Master Zu sat alone in his cell. Everything churned continuously in his mind: this filthy country, this incompetent government, this group of ignorant common people... His parents died at the hands of his own countrymen; his younger siblings died at the hands of his own countrymen... The warlords fought among themselves, giving no thought to the people's livelihood, and across the entire nation, not a shred of hope could be seen...

No, absolutely not! There were still patriots! There were still resistance fighters!

A traitor must not be made! Death was the only way to atone before the people of the country!

The cell door opened.

"Master Zu, have you thought it through? Will it be cooperation, or non-cooperation?"

"Cooperation."

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