Chapter 2550 - 2549: Mission
Ling Feng scanned with his Divine Sense, only then realizing he had arrived in the enormous internal space of a mountain.
Earlier, he saw darkness all around, unable to see the edges or the sky above; he had thought it was just a place within the mountain.
It turned out that the space was too large to tell it was a giant cave inside the mountain.
This place had dozens of houses, with some people active outside—men, women, and children.
Seeing this, Ling Feng curiously asked, "Is this a village?"
"Sort of, everyone here fled early on due to oppression by the Dongying people, and later discovered this place where several generations have lived," Jin Zaihou replied.
"I see!"
Ling Feng nodded, "This is indeed a good place for refuge!"
"Indeed! Mr. Ling, please come this way!"
Jin Zaihou said, then made a gesture to invite him.
The others didn’t follow, seemingly returning home to share the good news with their families. Only Ling Feng and Li Chunxi followed, entering a wooden hut.
Inside the hut, there was lighting, but the brightness was average, making the environment feel gloomily dark, and the air was permeated with the smell of smoke and something musty.
Seeing Li Chunxi frown, Jin Zaihou quickly said, "The environment here is indeed not very good; please don’t mind, Princess."
Li Chunxi didn’t understand what he said, so Ling Feng helped translate for her.
She then quickly said, "I don’t mean anything else, just feel this is quite simple and life here is tough."
Ling Feng translated this for Jin Zaihou, reassuring him, and then smiled, "Now, tell me about the situation with the Dongying people. Time is short, and I don’t plan to delay much longer!"
"Alright!"
Jin Zaihou nodded and quickly rummaged through the cabinet, pulling out a rather worn map.
With one look, it was clear that this was a hand-drawn simple map, where mountains, rivers were marked out. Although fairly detailed, the drawings were rather crooked.
Ling Feng didn’t mind, watching as Jin Zaihou introduced the situation on the map, listening intently for a while.
Soon he understood the specific circumstances.
The Dongying people have governed this place for over a hundred years. Now, large numbers of immigrants have settled here, taking root on the Peninsula. Moreover, they have devised strategies to assimilate the local people through marriage, controlling the children’s thoughts, and imparting Dongying culture to them, teaching them from a young age to accept Dongying culture.
After a century of cultivation, the new population born on the Peninsula largely identifies as half Dongying, nearly forgetting their original heritage.
Dealing with the Dongying people is simple, but with the many Peninsula natives’ followers, it’s not easily handled.
So after listening to Jin Zaihou’s introduction, Ling Feng squinted and thought, "This matter won’t be easy to handle!"
"Don’t worry, Mr. Ling. For years we’ve not been letting them have their way all along. Actually, we have secretly cultivated many national revivalists scattered across the Peninsula, and as long as Mr. Ling strikes back, they’ll come forth to help."
Jin Zaihou continued, "We invited you to help mainly for one thing. Achieving this would make driving the Dongying people out a breeze!"
"Oh? Then tell me, what do you need me to do?" Ling Feng asked.
"It’s simple, there are five Onmyoji on the Peninsula, and as long as you eliminate them, the Dongying’s control can largely be broken, allowing national revivalists to act freely!" Jin Zaihou said.
"Onmyoji?"
Ling Feng listened, frowning, "I’ve heard of Onmyoji before, aren’t they charlatans who dabble with spirits?"
"No, Onmyoji’s abilities are terrifying; they can manipulate spirits and control people’s thoughts. Our country was originally overturned due to their emergence!" Jin Zaihou said.
Ling Feng found this intriguing, so he nodded and said, "Since you say so, I will first help eliminate these Onmyoji and see the effect!"
"Good, thank you!"
Jin Zaihou nodded, "I’ve marked the locations of the five people on the map."
"Alright, then leave this map with me."
Ling Feng said, rolling up the map and putting it away, then added, "You all get some rest early; the Princess and I will take our leave now!"
"Mr. Ling, don’t rush off; why not stay, so we can show some hospitality first?"
Jin Zaihou said.
Ling Feng looked at him, shook his head, and said, "No need, when you succeed in reviving the nation, we can celebrate properly!"
"Mr. Ling is right!" Jin Zaihou nodded.
Then Ling Feng briefly spoke with Li Chunxi, and the two of them left the place, returning to the deserted village outside.
Boarding the ship, Ling Feng commanded the vessel to conduct low-altitude reconnaissance, practically flying close to the ground, heading out of the mountains.
Li Chunxi now understood what he was going to do, sitting cross-legged on the nearby seat, pondering aloud, "So this means you’re helping them eliminate the five hardest targets, then leaving the rest, correct?"
"More or less!"
Ling Feng nodded, "This suits me, as it means I don’t have to engage in massive slaughter!"
"Yes, but with the hatred they’ve accumulated over so long, I expect there will be a large number of casualties." Li Chunxi said.
"You’re quite right!"
Ling Feng nodded, then said, "But I can’t deal with that; cause and effect permeates all things. If the Dongying get massacred, it’s the evil they sowed beforehand!"
"Oh..."
Li Chunxi mused, saying nothing further.
Eventually, the ship reached the plains, and with Ling Feng’s Divine Sense, he locked onto a small hill.
This place, located outside the wilderness, was not part of any nearby village, and was the highest point around.
At the top of the hill stood a complex of temple-like buildings, with at least twenty rooms.
With Ling Feng’s Divine Sense, he clearly saw how many people lived inside the houses; surprisingly, there were both men and women, living together.
Only in one separate room, a man slept between two young girls!
Just one look at him, Ling Feng knew this was the Onmyoji he was seeking!
Unexpectedly, as soon as he locked onto this target, the sleeping man suddenly opened his eyes!
"Hmm?"
Ling Feng raised his eyebrows, immediately sensing something was amiss, indicating this man was quite extraordinary!
Ling Feng smiled, "This is getting interesting!"