The person who asked this question drew the agreement of the surrounding onlookers. They all wished their own sect's experts could provide them with close protection twenty-four hours a day, and were unwilling to have these experts dispatched elsewhere.
Yamaguchi Shigeo sneered, "There's a saying in China: 'When the lips are gone, the teeth feel the cold.' If we cannot unite, the end result will be that we are defeated one by one by that divine turtle immortal! By then, even if we wanted to gather our experts to eliminate him, we might not be able to! Esteemed sirs, what time is it now, and you're still calculating such petty gains!"
At this moment, Inagawa Koji, the head of the Inagawa-kai, spoke up: "What Yamaguchi-bucho says is correct. Now, we should cast aside all conflicts and unite our strength. However, it's also unrealistic for each family to dispatch elites for an extended period. We must act swiftly. My idea is that we can lure the snake out of its hole, make this immortal human-shaped bamboo pole come out voluntarily, and enter our ambush!"
"Inagawa-kaicho is indeed resourceful. But how can we make that immortal human-shaped bamboo pole take the bait?" someone asked.
Inagawa Koji was over sixty years old. Although he could no longer fight, this old fellow was the most cunning. He said with some smugness, "From the intelligence we have, this divine swindler immortal might be a Chinese person!"
"Do I need you to tell me that? We all know that. Anyone with eyes can see it!" Daikoku Kenbei grumbled discontentedly from the side.
Inagawa Koji glanced at him, suppressing his urge to lash out. If they were outside, based on Daikoku Kenbei's remark, a fight would have been unavoidable. But in this room, only leaders like them were present. If a fight broke out now, his old arms and legs wouldn't be able to withstand Daikoku Kenbei's abuse.
"Since this person is Chinese and he wants to champion the Chinese, we can have one organization cause trouble for those Chinese people. Then, other experts can lie in wait at that organization's headquarters, waiting for him to come seeking revenge!"
Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent. They had to admit that this was indeed a viable plan, but no one spoke up voluntarily. This was because there was a very important issue: who would be the bait? What if they lured this god of death to their doorstep and couldn't eliminate him? That would be tragic!
After a long while, Yamaguchi Shigeo spoke. "This is indeed a good plan, but we need a brave soul to make some sacrifices to realize this plan... Kawabuchi-kun, my suggestion is that your Sumiyoshi-kai undertake this task!"
Kawabuchi Goro nearly jumped up when he heard this. "Why? Why should our Sumiyoshi-kai do this? Yamaguchi-bucho, you keep saying we need to unite, but I suspect you're actually seeking personal revenge! I believe that as the leading organization among Japan's yakuza, the Yamaguchi-gumi is the most suitable to carry out this task."
"That's where you're wrong! Kawabuchi-kun, think about it. If any of our organizations suddenly attacked those Chinese people, it would likely arouse suspicion. Only your Sumiyoshi-kai, having had your branches bloodied by that divine swindler immortal, suffering immense losses, would make a retaliatory strike seem normal and not arouse his suspicion..." Inagawa Koji, that old schemer, was also very cunning. By saying this, he was actually trying to weaken the Sumiyoshi-kai. Being the bait was not an easy task, and it would likely come at a great cost. Once the Sumiyoshi-kai became the bait, they might be severely weakened, giving his Inagawa-kai an opportunity to advance further!
"Whoever wants to do it can do it, but our Sumiyoshi-kai will not be the bait. We have already suffered heavy losses! Don't think I don't know what you're thinking – you want to use this matter to strike at our Sumiyoshi-kai. I won't let your schemes succeed!"
"Kawabuchi-kun, how can you think of us that way..."
"Then if you have the guts, you do it!"
And so, for a time, the entire room was filled with sharp words. In short, no one was willing to be the bait.
"Bang!" Yamaguchi Shigeo slammed the table hard, and the room immediately fell silent. "Esteemed sirs, this is not the time for mutual scheming. If we cannot join forces with one heart, we will surely be defeated one by one by that immortal human-shaped bamboo pole! If necessary, we should make appropriate sacrifices..."
"Clap clap clap..." Before Yamaguchi Shigeo could finish speaking, the sound of clapping came from behind a pillar in the hall. All eyes were drawn there. A person suddenly appeared from behind the pillar. This person wore a bizarre green fish-man mask on their head and carried two Muramasa demon blades at their waist!
"Baka!" "Nani!" The group leaders and chairmen all jumped up as if electrocuted. Before the meeting began, they had thoroughly searched this conference room, repeatedly confirming that no one else was present. But now, how had this fellow broken through layers of security to get here! What was even more critical was that everyone present recognized this person without any introduction. This was none other than the target of their current meeting, the immortal human-shaped bamboo pole!
It turned out that Ling Tian had obtained intelligence from Xuanyuan Thirteen and then requested more detailed information from Yan Yu Ge, confirming the time and place of this meeting. He then brazenly showed up. Although the entire Yamaguchi-gumi headquarters was heavily guarded, with Yamaguchi-gumi members forming layers of defense outside and members of other gangs forming an inner circle, under normal circumstances, not even a mouse could sneak through the layers of encirclement. But for Ling Tian, this was not a problem at all. With an invisibility charm applied, he could walk past these people with impunity. Even when encountering walls or railings, with a mere thought, he could pass through by spatial displacement. Although the door to the meeting room was heavily locked from the inside, Ling Tian appeared inside the room with a single thought. He had actually arrived long ago but had not revealed himself, listening with a chuckle as these people plotted how to deal with him. Only when the duration of his invisibility charm was about to expire did Ling Tian reveal his true form! However, Ling Tian's method of appearance was too bizarre, and those people were scared out of their wits. Although they had all killed people on the streets in their youth, they had now become pampered and useless individuals!