The heavens in June, like a child's face, change in an instant.
So too does the turmoil in this world.
However, the matters within Shuntian had not been fully resolved. For the past six days, the Wanli Emperor had become a "diligent" ruler. There was no choice; the pardons and revocations of many divine positions in the Underworld required the Emperor's personal attention.
Furthermore, after being harassed and assassinated three to five times consecutively, the Wanli Emperor no longer felt at ease entrusting the cabinet with the task of revoking divine positions on his behalf. He needed to personally witness the stripping of divine authority from the gods of the Underworld's Red Pavilion to feel secure.
As for the divine generals of the Underworld, those who had died were given a grand burial. Those who remained alive were all stripped of their divine positions, regardless of whether they had participated in the Shuntian great chaos, and were imprisoned in the Imperial Prison.
"Imprisoned without guilt, we are wronged!"
"This is merely a necessary precautionary measure!"
The men of the Northern Imperial Guard showed no leniency. Many of their own had also died in battles against those Yin spirits; where could they seek justice for that?
These surviving divine generals of the Underworld had merely not been possessed by Yin spirits at the time, as Zhao Xuanlang's area of operation did not encompass the entire Shuntian region, and there were a total of seventy-two Red Pavilions in the Underworld.
To control all the divine generals of the Underworld, and to accomplish this task in a single night, was impossible even if they worked themselves to death.
In the Imperial Prison, Liu Mengyin was also confined to a solitary cell, but his treatment was far better. He had a table, a bed, and plenty of meat and fish. A man from the Northern Imperial Guard informed him:
"Official Liu, you have rendered great service this time. We have heard from our superiors that you will be released in a few days."
"Also, are you certain you have no further memories regarding that elder Lei Xuan?"
Liu Mengyin, gnawing on a chicken leg with a greasy face, mumbled:
"I truly don't know. I've told you everything I can, even about that Great Ming curse. You're not planning to kill me, are you? I've already prepared myself for death, but it's just that my book has only just begun, and dying now feels so unwilling."
The men from the Northern Imperial Guard exchanged glances.
Confirming keywords: book.
"From Liu Mengyin's description, Elder Lei Xuan also repeatedly discussed the matter of writing books with Liu Mengyin."
"The book must hold a great secret."
The Northern Imperial Guard dispatched men to the Ministry of Rites to search, and soon brought the manuscript. Then, word by word, they dissected it, having Liu Mengyin annotate and correct every character and phrase.
Liu Mengyin almost choked to death on his chicken leg. Were they conducting a reading comprehension test here?
"I'm just writing a collection of strange tales, it doesn't have that many meanings! Really!"
But the men of the Northern Imperial Guard looked at him with a calm gaze, as if saying, "Really? I don't believe you."
Liu Mengyin's face turned pale. If he could go back, that night, he would definitely not have answered the Underworld's communication bell.
At this moment, a voice echoed from the depths of the Imperial Prison.
"Books can become vessels for the wishes of all beings, and the power of wishes is immense. It can even touch the Great Dao, creating something from nothing, shaping humans from clay, deifying beings out of thin air, and bringing the dead back to life... Perhaps this is why Emperor Jiajing paid attention to you... Elder Lei Xuan, I am certain he is an avatar of Emperor Jiajing!"
"When I was in Japan, I saw a very powerful book. Those Onmyoji poured their lifelong aspirations into it, and from that book, many living people could emerge. Truly, the dead characters transformed into living deities... I was astonished at the time..."
"Have you heard of the 'Golden Crow Jade Rabbit Collection'? Or, Abe no Seimei, Ashiya Dōman, or even Hakudō Shōnin?"
This sudden addition to the conversation startled Liu Mengyin. The men of the Northern Imperial Guard identified the direction, narrowed their eyes, and one of the Imperial Guard Commanders left to find the Commander of the Northern Imperial Guard.
Soon, the high-ranking锦衣卫 (Jinyiwei) official, who had previously appeared in the Forbidden City, dressed in red and entwined with a divine python, arrived. His presence made the entire Imperial Prison seem even darker, yet within this darkness, he unexpectedly shone brightly.
This was the divine position of the Lord of the镇星 (Zhenxing), who patrolled the twenty-eight constellations of the three days. All other brilliance was suppressed. Once the Zhenxing moved and its starlight dispersed, it could ignore imperial authority and use divine power to execute a minister, a situation that only occurred with the Emperor's direct order.
..........
A secret message was sent to Shuntian via express horse.
It was about the war in Joseon.
Japan had reinforced its troops.
In early June of the twenty-sixth year of Wanli's reign, thousands of Japanese warships were anchored at Busan, gradually approaching Yangsan and Ungcheon.
Now, as July approached, Japanese forces were gathering. However, the problem arose when a group of unidentified Japanese soldiers, leading a horde of gods and monsters, suddenly attacked Namwon Castle in Joseon on June 19th, resulting in heavy casualties!
This attack was inconsistent with the intelligence predictions from the front lines. It was initially predicted that the Japanese army would not begin operations until around August or September, and with the arrival of reinforcements, they could be swiftly defeated.
Three thousand Ming soldiers were annihilated, and Deputy General Yang Yuan died in Namwon Castle.
The Japanese army massacred the city for a day.
Meanwhile, Chen Yuzhong, the general stationed in Jeonju, panicked by the fall of Namwon, chose to retreat immediately.
Now, Jeonju in Joseon had also fallen into the hands of the Japanese general Kato Kiyomasa!
Special note: Some of the gods and monsters that appeared were immune to the attack of the Five Thunder Curse! And Onmyoji holding books appeared on the battlefield. The Ming court now requires a new magical combat unit to be dispatched to Joseon for reinforcements as soon as possible!
Signed, [Quan Xiudao Ren Shi Shiyong].
This master from the锦衣卫 (Jinyiwei) had previously participated in espionage operations in Japan and was now serving as an intelligence gatherer on the Joseon front lines.
The Wanli Emperor pondered.
June 19th, wasn't that the day he was almost made into "Ming-style barbecue" by the Fire Lord?
"More gods and monsters!"
The Wanli Emperor had now become a victim of PTSD from gods and monsters. Hearing these two words, he couldn't help but draw his sword again!
The troublesome matters had not yet ended. The Wanli Emperor immediately summoned the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War. Since the Minister of War was at the front lines overseeing the troops, the highest-ranking official in the Ministry of War was the Vice Minister. The Wanli Emperor told him to immediately gather a batch of cannons and await Old Zhang's enchantment!
I, shall immediately import a batch of newly enchanted equipment from Old Zhang!
However, what was going on with Japan? The sudden appearance of a large number of gods and monsters also made the Wanli Emperor suspicious. When things are abnormal, there must be a demon... There was no need to even mention this common saying; the monsters on the other side were already hacking at them with their swords!
Of course, intelligence inaccuracies were normal. After all, the weather is unpredictable, and people have misfortunes, and there are also some big mouths who like to stir up trouble and babble everywhere...
There was an old锦衣卫 (Jinyiwei) named Shen Bingyi back then. He would send overseas emails to the Great Ming for no reason. The content of these letters would either be that Toyotomi Hideyoshi died from drinking, or from eating, or from being poisoned. Yet, Toyotomi Hideyoshi remained alive and kicking.
At that time, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, Song Yingchang, almost dislocated his jaw from laughter after reading that overseas email. His envoy had just met Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and here you were saying Hideyoshi was dead, and had been dead for almost a year?
So, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was doing sit-ups in his coffin every day for health?
Like a cat, with nine lives to play with?
Such low-quality intelligence would greatly affect the judgment of the rear personnel regarding the front-line situation.
Of course, it was not impossible that the other party used illusionary techniques to feign death, but Old Shen sent letters saying Toyotomi Hideyoshi was dead far too frequently.
At this moment, the Wanli Emperor thought of someone. This person was still imprisoned in the Imperial Prison. He had met with the Japanese Kanpaku Toyotomi Hideyoshi five times, and their conversations were harmonious. He had even given... elixirs.
"I am going to the Imperial Prison! Tian Yi, go and invite Daoist Master Ji to accompany me for protection!"
.......
At the same time, Nurhaci arrived at Shuntian City. However, the officials from the Ministry of Rites received them but merely asked them to wait, as the Emperor had no time to summon them.
But this suited Nurhaci's intentions.
If there was nothing else, why not take a closer look at this dilapidated Shuntian City?
The city walls of Shuntian were already in a terrible state of disrepair, and a somber atmosphere pervaded everywhere. This greatly puzzled Shurhaci, who had accompanied Nurhaci.
"Did Shuntian experience an earthquake recently?"
A bold idea arose in Nurhaci's mind, but he shook his head.
If there were thirty thousand troops here at this moment, they could... conquer Shuntian! Unfortunately, he had only brought a few hundred men, not enough to even fill the gaps in the teeth of Shuntian Prefecture's divine generals. Therefore, to break the divine power of the Great Ming, the first thing to break was the imperial authority.