(Tiline: During Boss's entry into the Penglai Treasure Vault)
———
After a fruitless search, Song Haoran had no choice but to return to the temporary camp with his n.
"Send word to track the movents of the Suzuki father and son. Also, keep an eye on the remaining mbers of the Suzuki Association."
After quickly giving his orders, Song Haoran began to reflect on the night's events—this wasn’t his first encounter with the supernatural, and each one only deepened his fascination with these forces beyond the ordinary.
The strange setup deep within the imperial tomb still lingered vividly in his mind. Just then, a seasoned mber of the Song family rushed over with a worried look.
"What happened?" Song Haoran asked calmly.
"Young Master, we found Instructor Song Da and Instructor Song Er! But... the situation is a bit tense..."
Song Haoran was briefly stunned, then quickly asked for details.
Those who had been rescued from the crystals initially appeared frail and aged, as if they could die at any mont. But once freed, they began to recover, like dry land revived by rain.
Song Da and Song Er regained their youth and consciousness, and seeing so many familiar faces from the village, they were understandably shocked.
It wasn’t just them—others who had been rescued also began to awaken one by one.
These people, abducted because of the "Edict" incident, ca from both Daoist and Demon factions of Divine Land. Now awake and surrounded by heavily ard mortals, tensions quickly escalated.
———
In a tent, Song Haoran ward his cold hands around a cup of coffee.
With him were Song Da and Song Er, standing behind him. In front of him sat several individuals of different clothing, genders—and possibly species?
Among them were self-proclaid secretaries of the Divine Land Daoist Association, warriors from the Azure Dragon Clan, and a strikingly pretty teenage girl who claid to be the young master of the Greedy Wolf Clan.
There were also a few Daoists and self-identified Demon beings.
All of them had been rescued from the depths of the imperial tomb and now served as representatives, currently negotiating with Song Haoran.
To these beings with extraordinary powers, even though the humans before them were well-equipped, they were still not taken seriously. Without military-grade tech or high-powered weapons, Daoists and Demons generally had little to fear from mortals.
But the Greedy Wolf Clan’s Zi Xing stepped forward, stating that they were only able to escape thanks to the Song family’s rescue efforts. Without that, Divine Land might have faced a massive catastrophe.
Among those abducted by the mysterious bronze-masked figures for sacrificial purposes were many talented individuals. So, while still conscious in captivity, had managed to glean the truth from overheard conversations.
The so-called "Emperor’s Edict" was a scam—and many Daoists and Demons had fallen for it.
At this point, the secretary from the Daoist Association, nad Su Mubai—a man from the Qingcheng Mountain lineage—was the first to speak. "I never imagined we’d be saved by a group of mortals... Young Master Song, was it?"
Song Haoran, well-read and eloquent, smiled modestly. "Daoist Su, just call Little Song."
It was a polite and commonly used way of addressing soone in the country. Song Haoran felt like he’d picked up this mannerism from soone around him lately… soone courteous and respectful. But who? He couldn't quite rember.
"Alright then," Su Mubai replied, clearly appreciating Song Haoran’s humility. Then, with a serious expression, he said, "Little Song, though we rarely interact with state agencies, we do have special channels for gathering information... You aren’t with the governnt, are you?"
Song Haoran shook his head without hesitation.
Su Mubai frowned. "From what I know, the state strictly controls powerful family factions. And those outside... well, your people seem seasoned, possibly blooded in many battles. Little Song, are you not from around here?"
"My family is from across the ocean," Song Haoran replied calmly. "We ca back for two reasons: first, an elder in my family wanted to spend the New Year in his holand; second, I took on a job related to this tomb. I never imagined I’d encounter such strange things."
Su Mubai stared at him intently, trying to read him. Others in the tent also scrutinized Song Haoran’s every reaction.
These gazes made Song Da and Song Er tense up behind him—they couldn’t help but admire their young master’s nerves of steel. Was he fearless, or just insanely bold?
"Young Master Song, could you explain what happened?" Zi Xing suddenly asked.
Song Haoran nodded. "About a month ago, I began a cooperation with the Li family in the country..."
He recounted the story simply and honestly, hiding little. Song Haoran had dealt with many supernatural beings before—none more familiar than Mr. Blind, whom his family supported.
He knew well not to play gas with people like these. Be direct, speak plainly, and act humbly—it worked best.
Soon, he finished recounting the events.
After a brief pause, Su Mubai said, "Regarding the Li family you ntioned, we’ll verify that later. But about the Suzuki father and son you also ntioned—are they Onmyōji from Japan?"
Song Haoran nodded. "Suzuki Chunxin claid to be one. It was also my first ti seeing a real Onmyōji—just as it was my first ti eting all of you."
"Young Master Song, may we speak privately?" Zi Xing suddenly asked.
Song Haoran agreed and left the tent with Song Da and Song Er.
———
Inside the tent, the rescued Daoists and Demons began their own discussion.
Su Mubai took the chance to ask, "Zi Xing, I didn’t expect you too were captured by that mysterious bronze-masked person. I believe I was among the last to be taken. How did you get caught?"
Zi Xing replied calmly, "Two mbers of my clan went missing. They were investigating the person behind the Edict under my orders, but never acted rashly, so foul play wasn’t likely. I sensed sothing was wrong, so I looked into it myself. I found clues, followed the trail here, and was eventually captured."
"What clues?" a Demon asked, frowning.
Zi Xing shot him a cold look.
Realizing his tone was off, the Demon added more politely, "Zi Xing, please share what you found. This concerns the safety of over two hundred Demons and Daoists outside."
Zi Xing said indifferently, "The missing clansn left a distress signal. I followed it and ended up here."
"I see," Su Mubai nodded. Then he asked, "Does anyone here know of this Li family?"
"I’ve heard of them," a Daoist said. "They’re a long-standing tomb-raiding family dating back to the Tang dynasty, maybe earlier. They still work in that field and have so secret ties with the governnt. My sect has even bought ‘discovered’ relics from them—though the Li family doesn’t know it’s us."
Many sects do this to search for lost treasures left behind by past masters.
"I think Song Haoran was quite open—he didn’t seem to hide anything," Su Mubai said. "But this Japanese Onmyōji feels more suspicious. Also, the secret map to Emperor Qin’s tomb overlaps with what we found in the Emperor’s Cave Mansion… It seems the bronze-masked figure deliberately remodeled the tomb into the Cave Mansion, laying this trap. This is serious. We need to discuss it with Daoist Baijie, Master Hanyang, and the Demon clan leaders imdiately."
Everyone agreed without objection.
"But what should we do about these mortals outside?" a Daoist couldn’t help but ask.
For so many elites of the Daoist and Demon worlds to be captured by a mysterious figure was already a great humiliation—and now they’d been saved by mortals? That was a stain that would be hard to erase. Still, the Song family had indeed rescued all of them, aning everyone present now owed the Song family a personal debt.
The Demon clans might be more free-spirited and less concerned, but the Daoists took karma and favors seriously.
"This is indeed a difficult matter..." Su Mubai frowned.
"How about we accept the Song family and let them join Divine Land's transcendents?" a Daoist suddenly suggested. "Judging by their background, the Song family is already a top-tier mortal clan. Giving them wealth would just be icing on the cake."
"There’s no precedent for this," Su Mubai shook his head. "We once made an agreent with that one person back then. As long as that agreent holds... Let’s put this matter aside for now. I’ll raise the Song family’s case at the next association eting. We'll discuss it then."
"You Daoist types really are overly cautious." The Azure Dragon warrior snorted coldly. "My clan has no such red tape! The Song family, though human, saved my clansn. If you won’t accept them, I’ll just make the Song family our vassal when I return!"
"Commander Cang, please calm down," Su Mubai replied. "The Song family matter will definitely be reviewed later… The decision will ultimately be left to the higher-ups."
"Hmph, do as you like. I’m heading back to Kunpeng Manor now—I’ve no ti to waste here!" With that, Commander Cang flicked his sleeve and left.
Su Mubai could only shake his head helplessly. Friction between the Daoist and Demon factions had always existed—and now they had all been saved by a mortal family. The situation was bound to be complicated.
"Then, I shall take my leave as well." Zi Xing stood up. "Daoist Su, once you return, please notify President Baijie as soon as possible… See you later."
"Safe travels, Young Master Zi Xing."
———
Not long after, the Daoists and Demons rescued from the imperial tomb dispersed. Under Song Haoran’s orders, the Song family warriors pretended not to notice their departure.
Though they seed to leave casually, Song Haoran was secretly pleased.
Before they left, nearly all the Daoists and Demons ca to him in small groups, each leaving behind a personal token—and saying nearly the sa thing:
"Young Master Song, this is my personal token. If you ever need my help, bring this token and find at…"
Left alone in the tent, Song Haoran looked at the tokens scattered all over the ground and chuckled.
The Demon clans might be more fickle, but Daoists took their promises seriously. If even half of these tokens could be redeed, they’d amount to an incredibly powerful set of resources.
"Tch… Ca back just to honor the ancestors and ended up hitting the jackpot. Looks like I need to co back more often." Song Haoran squinted, clearly amused.
Indeed, luck had been following the Song family lately.
At that mont, Song Da and Song Er walked in. Seeing the pile of tokens Song Haoran had casually tossed on the ground, their eyes widened in disbelief.
Song Haoran gathered them up before turning to them. "Are you not going to tell how you ended up here?"
The two looked at each other. Song Da spoke, "We followed Blind here. Later, he stayed in a place called Crouching Dragon Estate. We got bored and went out wandering… and accidentally stumbled into this dangerous place. If you want the full story, you’ll need to ask Blind himself."
"How do I get there?" Song Haoran asked directly.
"We’ll take you," Song Da replied.
Song Haoran paused, then lifted the tent flap to see daylight breaking—an entire night had passed.
"Alright then. Co back with first to see my father. You’ll need to explain all this anyway."
Song Da and Song Er nodded. Along with their brother Song San, the three of them had been raised by the Song family for nearly twenty years. Their bond with Old Master Song went far beyond a re sponsor-beneficiary relationship.
Later, Song Haoran ordered the remaining Suzuki mbers to be tied up and loaded into rented tour buses. Then, he led part of the team toward the Song family’s ancestral mansion.
The mysterious woman they found deep within the imperial tomb was now resting in the backseat of an SUV. Song Haoran personally watched over her. As he looked at her peaceful sleeping face, he gently brushed her cheek with a finger.
"What exactly are you?"
"Young Master, everything’s ready!" soone outside the car reported.
Song Haoran nodded and waved his hand. The convoy slowly pulled away from the site. As they left, Song Haoran took one last glance at the tomb entrance and muttered to himself:
"Feels like sothing’s missing…"
Soone.
It seed.
(End of Chapter)
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