A Pawn's Passage

Chapter 444: Inferno

chapter 444: inferno

after the fire broke out, billowing black smoke surged into the sky, transforming into a black dragon that spiraled above the flames.

the fire rose incessantly. occasionally, loud cracks and explosions echoed through the air.

this was the current state of zhenwu temple.

some of the surviving spirit guards were retreating from zhenwu temple, all of them battered and bruised, with nearly everyone injured.

such a commotion naturally alarmed others.

the first to arrive was the warden's office, a military unit responsible for police patrols, maintaining streets and waterways, managing prisoners, and enforcing fire bans. thus, firefighting was a part of their duties.

however, faced with such a massive blaze, the initial responders were too few in number, and the handful of water carts was no more than a drop in the bucket.

after withdrawing, the spirit guards regrouped in one place.

the jiangnan region had enjoyed long-standing peace. the spirit guards from the jiangnan daoist mansion that were responsible for guarding the perimeter were inexperienced in dealing with such upheavals, so they were understandably flustered.

in contrast, the spirit guards of the tiangang hall had been transferred from the battlefield in the western region. thus, as battle-hardened frontier troops, they remained composed despite suffering heavy casualties during the heavenly court’s sudden invasion. they had already begun organizing aid for the severely injured and setting up defenses to prevent a secondary attack.

according to the rules of the tiangang hall, if the command system was disrupted, the highest-ranking spirit guard or daoist priest present would take command. at this moment, a third-rank spirit guard was in charge.

this was one of the purposes of the daoist ranking system. it enabled scattered daoist disciples to swiftly regroup and restore their organizational and combat capabilities.

this system was also a key factor in the daoist order’s victory over the buddhist sect during their historic conflict. an unplanned and critical encounter between the two sides escalated into a chaotic maelstrom due to terrain constraints, scattering all units.

generals could not locate their soldiers, and vice versa, plunging everyone on the battlefield into utter confusion. however, the daoists, leveraging their ranking system, rapidly regrouped and used their numerical advantage to isolate and eliminate scattered buddhist forces, ultimately securing victory.

during this process, the buddhists attempted to reorganize but failed due to internal discord. one would boast about their esteemed lineage, another about their superior cultivation level, so how could a group as such be organized? the endless disputes alone threw away any opportunity for a comeback.

in contrast, the daoist order adhered strictly to the rules set by the holy xuan, where background and cultivation level were irrelevant. rank was the most practical measure of authority.

naturally, there were instances where higher-ranked daoists were less capable than lower-ranked ones, such as lacking experience or skills to command. however, without restoring order, reorganization became impossible, and command became meaningless.

thus, the most effective solution was to quickly restructure under the highest-ranking individual. the lesser of two evils must be chosen, making the rigid enforcement of this rule essential.

after gathering the remaining forces, the higher-ranked daoists could delegate command to lower-ranked daoists skilled in leadership, thereby completing the temporary reorganization.

once the initial restructuring was complete, the process would snowball, with many scattered mid- and high-ranking daoists quickly assuming responsibilities according to their ranks.

in such circumstances, the disorganized buddhist forces were inevitably doomed.

this battle directly prompted the buddhist sect to imitate the daoist ranking system, introducing a nine-rank, twelve-level hierarchy within their organization.

this inferno alarmed all local government offices. following the soldiers, the green phoenix guard also arrived shortly after. however, they were equally helpless against the blaze and could only disperse some of the onlookers who had gathered to watch the commotion.

the next thing bai yingqiong noticed was the decapitated head zhang yuelu was holding, its eyes still wide open with terror.

for a moment, bai yingqiong did not know what to say.

perhaps because of her complicated emotions, she did not even bother to ask the superficial question of whether zhang yuelu was injured. instead, she asked, “junior sister, who is this?”

zhang yuelu raised the head in her hand and stated, “this is marshal thunder of the heavenly court. i killed him.”

bai yingqiong was taken aback.

the wind and thunder marshals of the heavenly court were no insignificant figures. bai yingqiong had heard of them, but she never expected marshal thunder to die here, let alone at zhang yuelu’s hands.

she quickly realized something. “junior sister, are you a heavenly being?”

zhang yuelu nodded.

bai yingqiong opened her mouth, but in the end, she could only say, “junior sister, you truly are a genius above all your peers.”

zhang yuelu, however, showed no joy for the praise. “the heavenly court dispatched two heavenly beings. the other one, marshal tianpeng, is currently unaccounted for. i only managed to kill marshal thunder due to sheer luck.”

at this moment, more people emerged from zhenwu temple, carrying a gravely injured man.

qi xuansu was the first to look, his gaze froze.

the man appeared to be in his forties, his face weathered and marked by a prominent scar. his abdomen was covered in blood, and even his intestines were exposed. he was clearly at death’s door.

qi xuansu recognized him as a former colleague from tiangang hall.

when zhang yuelu first assumed her position, she appointed six deacons. this man, named zhou bai, was the eldest among the deacons and a sixth-rank daoist priest.

he had also followed zhang yuelu to jinling prefecture this time, only to meet his end at zhenwu temple.

zhou bai could barely keep his eyes open, his pupils shifting slightly as he weakly turned to look at zhang yuelu, his lips moving with difficulty.

zhang yuelu recognized zhou bai as well. she stepped forward, leaned down, and asked softly, “deacon zhou, do you have any unfulfilled wishes?”

after a long pause, a feeble voice finally emerged from the injured man. “i—i have only one daughter...still a child. she lost her mother long ago, and now...she’s about to lose her father. please, deputy hall master...look after her...”

zhang yuelu closed her eyes briefly, then reopened them. she said in a calm and reassuring voice, “i promise.”

zhou bai slowly closed his eyes. before long, his breathing ceased completely.

zhang yuelu stood up and bowed to the deacon’s limp body. her tiangang hall subordinates also followed suit and bowed in respect.

mu jin knelt down, took out a handkerchief, and gently wiped the soot from zhou bai’s face.