True Solution of the Sword Dao

Capital City, International Trade Skyscraper

As the tallest building in Kyoto City, the elongated skyscraper’s rooftop was now gathering some special individuals.

Wu Shihai, dressed in military uniform with hands clasped behind his back, stood in a spacious area atop the building. Beside him stood four or five other middle-aged or elderly individuals, similarly dressed in military attire. Apart from one woman, the others were all men.

"The Special Affairs Department has already been forewarned about this battle for supremacy. How does everyone view the current situation?" A white-haired old man spoke slowly.

Looking down from the rooftop, all of Kyoto City was as calm and peaceful as ever.

"We’re not very clear about the matters of the Dream World. As forces from the Inner World trying to interfere with the affairs of Dream Eaters, we’re bound to face strong backlash. It’s difficult for us to distinguish which is the true form and which is a duplicate," a middle-aged man with a small mustache said solemnly.

"Yuntao is right," the old man nodded in agreement. "The forces from Temple of the Gods have already been deployed for defense. We can’t manage, nor do we have any way to manage, other matters."

"Actually, we don’t need to worry," Wu Shihai said softly. "Each battle in the Dream World takes place within a one-on-one Dream Space, where the residual effects don’t harm the innocent like in the Inner World, and everything automatically returns to normal after the fight. This point, wasn’t it also referenced when we were initially developing barriers and protective abilities for combat zones? Besides, Divine Artifact components exert a tremendous suppressive force on special individuals who aren’t Dreamers. The Temple of the Gods’ people can only ensure that they don’t break the rules. Ordinary people, needless to say, are like ants in their presence."

"That’s enough. These are matters for the Temple of the Gods," the old man nodded. "We just need to maintain public order. The rest is not our concern."

At this moment, a respectful middle-aged man came over with a pair of sunglasses-like brown glasses.

"This is an auxiliary device recently developed. It can detect fluctuations in Dream Energy values," the man whispered.

The old man took them and carefully put them on.

The view before him was immediately covered in a layer of brown. Various large and small shock waves continuously spread across the airspace above Kyoto City. Under the night sky, the entirety of Kyoto City was like the reflection on the surface of a pool, stirring up ripples from time to time.

"Each shock wave you see represents an energy collision. When energies of different masses collide, they produce significant peaks. Because Awakeners’ energy is too weak, we can almost never detect it. Although we can’t monitor the energy itself directly, we can still vaguely detect the peak fluctuations of the Dream World," the man explained.

The old man nodded slightly.

"That’s quite remarkable. Our country started research in this field too late. To have reached this level is already quite good."

"You flatter me," the man said modestly.

Wu Shihai and the others also put on glasses provided by the staff and could see the faint shock waves through their lenses.

"How much do these glasses cost? Can they be used on a large scale?" the middle-aged woman in military uniform asked.

"Unfortunately, Director Gong, you might not know, but our Research Bureau and Hua Science Academy fiddled around for more than half a month to only produce these few pairs. Each pair costs no less than five hundred thousand," another old general said helplessly, adding with an outstretched hand, "in U.S. dollars."

"Indeed, they’re expensive and functionally limited, not suitable for widespread use. However, our subnational and municipal leaders under Shueisha should be able to afford them," Director Gong nodded.

"Forget about it, those people in Shueisha, which leader isn’t just focused on lining their own pockets? Weren’t they placed locally at the beginning to strengthen the local Inner World defenses? Now, they’ve all turned into parasites. In my opinion, we should make the Temple of the Gods strike hard once, parasite against parasite, to crack down on the local malignant forces. Using evil to control evil could quiet down both sides," another serious-faced middle-aged man spoke.

"Major General Li is actually speaking the truth. But please tell us, how do you plan to mobilize the Temple of the Gods’ forces?" Director Gong said coldly. "Even if the local leaders enrich themselves by building up their power, hasn’t the situation improved a lot compared to right after liberation? At least foreign powers are now deterred, and they don’t commit crimes in the streets so casually!"

"So, things are better now? Those foreigners still come and go as they please, kill when they wish! They just do whatever they want! This is complete lawlessness!" Major General Li spoke sharply.

"At least they know to disguise their actions now. Before they kill, making them hesitate one more time is our success. What’s wrong with letting local leaders build their own power and wealth? When foreign forces enter their territory, with so many entanglements, are we still afraid they won’t make an effort?" Director Gong sneered. "To benefit the greater good of the country, sacrificing some minor benefits is acceptable!"

"The Temple of the Gods is just a ticking time bomb anyway! I say, who knows when it might explode," Major General Li said, his face turning livid. "Such unstable factors should be dealt with as soon as possible!"

"Major General Li Qingyi’s words are a bit much," the white-haired old man in the middle spoke up.

"I heard that your nephew was recently in trouble, his legs broken by the Temple of the Gods’ Earth Team because he tried to molest a young girl, and he was righteously stopped, wasn’t he?" Director Gong ruthlessly revealed the sore point.

"You!!" Li Qingyi’s eyebrows shot up. "I, Li Qingyi, stand upright and sit straight, don’t you splash dirty water on me!"

"Gong Xinlan, that’s enough. Behave like a cadre," the old man frowned.

"My apologies, I spoke out of turn," Gong Xinlan’s expression returned to calm.

"Our problem now is that the Temple of the Gods and our leadership layer are completely out of sync. Their direct superiors, the Five Stars, have complete contempt for our leaders," Li Qingyi took a breath, speaking in a grave tone. "As a top-level organization of Shueisha, the discipline of the Temple of the Gods must be put on the agenda."

"I believe in the Five Stars’ respect for us," the old man said softly.

"That’s just because you have a good relationship with Bai Mingye. To them, we’re just ordinary people, like ants that could be squashed without a second thought...."

"Enough!" the old man’s voice suddenly rose. "Li Qingyi, you should go back first."

Li Qingyi’s expression cooled, he snorted, and turned to leave. His footsteps quickly faded away from the rooftop.

"Li Qingyi doesn’t know certain things, so his agitation is understandable," another elder said in a low voice.

"I know," the leading old man nodded. "Our mission is to maintain national stability. These are the supreme leader’s instructions and are not to be altered. As for the Temple of the Gods, we will discuss it and make a decision at a later meeting."

"We still need to restrain Li Qingyi to prevent him from clashing with the Temple of the Gods prematurely," Gong Xinlan reminded.

"Hmm, in fact, our country’s problem is not unique—every country faces it. When individual might reaches a terrifying level, the resulting imbalance is inevitable," Wu Shihai spoke solemnly. "If not for the Temple of the Gods’ restraint, the Temple of the Gods would not have been established."

"The Temple of the Gods stands aloof, with the Supernatural Faction, the Religious Faction, and the Magic Faction—three powers in a delicate balance. In such a chaotic situation, every step requires caution," the elder sighed deeply.

***************

Wu Haiyi stepped out of the alley and glanced around.

Noticing nothing unusual, he hurriedly crossed the street and headed toward another alley. His steps were steady, disguising himself as an ordinary passerby, clad in a black windbreaker that blended into the night crowd, just like someone going to a night market.

The laughter of girls shopping around, the sound of talking on mobile phones, and the noise of car engines filled the air. His nose picked up the faint scent of grilled skewers, mixed with other street food aromas.

A cool breeze came, and Wu Haiyi slightly tugged at his collar. He wore a high-necked windbreaker, which he could zip up to cover his neck. But just as he was zipping up his collar...

Suddenly, everything around him began to change rapidly, all sounds vanished in an instant, the environment grew silent, the scents slowly faded away, and the dense crowd around him slowly turned illusory, vanishing as if there had been no one there to begin with. In the blink of an eye, the entire street was empty and eerily quiet.

Wu Haiyi’s expression changed slightly, his gaze quickly falling on a snack stand to one side.

There, a figure slowly stood up and turned around.

In their hand was a Black Longsword. Their face was expressionless as if incapable of emotion, their skin sallow and sickly. Yet, their figure was exceedingly tall, with a calm gaze.

"Friend, are you also here for what’s in my hand?" Wu Haiyi regained his composure.

"If possible, I would prefer not to fight," the person spoke with a somewhat clear voice, seeming not as young as they looked.

Wu Haiyi knew he had been caught in a Dream Space that had been ambushed in advance, yet he was not panicked.

"The piece of the Divine Artifact is in my hands. Whether you’re worthy of it is another matter." He might feel some apprehension facing the Red Hand, but the person before him was unknown; Wu Haiyi had no records of any famous powerhouses after cross-referencing his memory.

Obviously, this person was not a known Top Level powerhouse. As long as it wasn’t a Top Level powerhouse, Wu Haiyi was confident he could get away safely from anyone.

"But before that, I have a few questions I’d like to clear up. How exactly did you know that I hadn’t really handed over the item to them?"

"Give me the item, and then leave," the person said straightforwardly, completely ignoring his question.

"Hehe..." Wu Haiyi was about to speak when suddenly his vision blurred. His face changed instantly, and countless yellow strips of light appeared behind him, quickly wrapping him into a cocoon.

Clang!

Sparks erupted from the cocoon, making a sound like metal colliding.

Wu Haiyi’s cocoon began to ripple with numerous orange-yellow halos, spreading out like ripples and tinting everything in the vicinity with orange-yellow hues.

"Fireworks!"

Whoosh! It was as if something had been ignited, and one-person-tall orange flames sprang up around Wu Haiyi, covering the entire street. The flames burned fiercely without heat or smoke, simply blazing as if they were an illusion. (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation vote and Monthly Ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation.)