Ling Yue of the Fox Zen Sect clearly was not dealing with this man for the first time; she snapped in exasperation, "I’ve told you repeatedly, our Sect Leader is in seclusion. Can’t you keep your voice down?"

Saijōji Tsuneshō’s eyes were wide as he stared back, "Seclusion? In a place like this? Do you take us for fools?"

Ling Yue flared up, "Where our Sect Leader chooses to seclude herself is none of your concern! Even if it were here, what business is it of yours?"

A flicker of anger crossed Saijōji’s eyes, but he forcefully suppressed it, stating, "If I don’t see Sect Leader Li Yundong, I absolutely will not leave!"

A man standing beside him chimed in loudly, "We demand an audience with Sect Leader Li Yundong! Please facilitate an introduction for us!"

The little foxes behind Ling Yue crowded forward, babbling all at once, "Why are you two so incredibly annoying? We told you the Sect Leader is in seclusion, yet you keep shouting! What is so urgent that it can't wait a few days?"

Saijōji Tsuneshō declared, "Lady Tachibana Masako sent me with a letter, arranging a challenge duel before the Ōin. Sect Leader Li Yundong has yet to send a reply!"

Ling Yue instantly startled, examining Saijōji Tsuneshō from head to toe. "You brought the letter?"

At this point, Cao Yi and Liu Yuehong of the Fox Zen Sect, having heard the commotion, walked out. Cao Yi frowned upon seeing the two Japanese men completely blocking the entrance. "I can relay our Sect Leader's response to you. He has received the letter, but whether he accepts the challenge is still undecided."

Saijōji Tsuneshō couldn't help but grow angry, "How can that be acceptable? Sect Leader Li Yundong absolutely must attend!"

Cao Yi’s brow furrowed, a hint of displeasure in her tone, "What? Are you planning to forcibly kidnap our Sect Leader if he refuses to go?"

Saijōji raised his voice again, "A true cultivator should never shrink from a challenge! This smacks of cowardice and weakness!"

Hearing this from inside the room, Ao Wushuang couldn't help but step out, speaking with chilling coolness, "Since you claim to be a practitioner of Shingon Mikkyō, are you a samurai or a monk? Why is your speech so saturated with killing intent? The Shingon sect I know of does not adhere to such bloodthirsty dogma."

Saijōji Tsuneshō took in Ao Wushuang’s exquisite beauty—a face like a ripe peach veiled in frost. Though stunningly beautiful, she radiated an untouchable aura of immense power. He immediately paused, his demeanor becoming slightly more courteous. "The Way we follow is not the same as the Way you follow! You Han people believe in harmony as the Way; we Yamato people believe in martial prowess as the Way! Therefore, to us, martial arts is the Way, and the Way is martial arts! Sect Leader Li Yundong’s current avoidance of battle is shameful. He should perform seppuku out of embarrassment!"

Ao Wushuang let out a cold laugh. "When I visited Kongōbu-ji over a decade ago, you people were not like this. How have you devolved? Hmph. Before leaving, Li Yundong entrusted me with acting authority in his stead; I can make decisions for him. Let me be clear: although our Sect Leader is a broad-minded practitioner who values peace, he is not someone any stray dog can climb over. Go back and tell your Tachibana Masako that when he emerges from seclusion, he will certainly pay her a visit—and then she will learn what a true powerhouse looks like!"

However, Saijōji Tsuneshō stared directly at Ao Wushuang, stubbornly insisting, "No, I must wait here for him. By rights, he should have departed immediately upon receiving the letter! He has already delayed two days, which is a tremendous sign of disrespect to Lady Tachibana Masako, and a disgrace to us all!"

Ao Wushuang regarded him coldly and shook her head. "You Japanese learn everything from others, yet you never seem to master any of it. During the zenith of our Chinese civilization, your ancestor, Kūkai, specially crossed the ocean to our continent to study Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. But sadly, more than a thousand years later, you still haven't grasped the essence of Chinese civilization. Don't you know the meaning of 'Do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you'? If someone forced you in this manner, would you gladly accept it?"

Saijōji Tsuneshō sneered back, "We of the Yamato nation only understand the law of the jungle: the victor reigns, the vanquished is defeated! If Sect Leader Li Yundong dares not come, he should just say so. Why waste time with so much nonsense? Hiding behind the excuse of seclusion—don’t you find that shameful?"

That single sentence enraged everyone in the Fox Zen Sect simultaneously. Ling Yue and the little foxes all erupted in fury, "What did you say? Say that again if you dare! Do you think our Sect Leader is afraid of you?"

"Exactly! Our Sect Leader once scared your so-called Tachibana Chiko into a fit of tears with a single palm strike. How dare you bring that up?"

Hearing their words, Saijōji Tsuneshō gritted his teeth inwardly, deeply angered. He knew too well: if Tachibana Chiko hadn't suffered such a crushing defeat this time, Tachibana Masako wouldn't have flown into such a rage, ordering him under penalty of death to ensure Li Yundong came to Japan!

The Shingon sect, much like China's Quanzhen and Zhengyi schools, comprised numerous sub-sects. For instance, the Quanzhen school included the Longmen, Bìdòng, Yuxian, and Nánwú branches, and within those branches were further different schools of thought.

Compared to the frequently afflicted Chinese cultivation world, the Shingon sect, situated at Kongōbu-ji, had maintained its continuous line of succession for centuries. Unlike Japan's other sacred mountain, Mount Hiei, which suffered a massive catastrophe and regression when Oda Nobunaga carried out his massacre, Shingon endured.

Over 1,200 years of development, Shingon split from the original teachings established by Kūkai into the Ono school and the Kōbō school. Each of these twelve schools then spawned six more, collectively known as the Twelve Ono-Kōbō Schools. As time wore on, these twelve evolved further into the Thirty-Six Schools and over seventy different lineages.

Most of these numerous Shingon lineages could be broadly categorized as the Kogi-ha (Old Teachings) and Shinnyo-ha (New Teachings), the two factions engaged in the most intense internal struggle, mirroring the Neidan (Inner Alchemy) and Waidan (Outer Alchemy) factions in the Chinese cultivation world.

During Japan's Edo period, the Kogi-ha occupied the Shingon ancestral seat on Mount Kōya, while the Shinnyo-ha, pressured by the Kogi-ha, relocated to Mount Chisan and Mount Hōzan. After protracted open and covert conflicts, both factions were severely weakened. In the fifth year of the Meiji era, mediated by the Japanese Emperor, the two sides reached an agreement: Mount Kōya would tentatively be established as the main headquarters for the Kogi-ha, while Chisan and Hōzan would serve as the headquarters for the Shinnyo-ha. The Grand Abbot of the three mountains would take turns serving as the overall leader of Shingon, commanding all Shingon temples across the land.

However, because neither faction wanted to relinquish the position of overall leader for long, the open and covert struggles resumed. The Kogi-ha gradually gained the upper hand in the struggle, thanks to the awakening of the potent bloodline power within the Tachibana clan. Tachibana Masako, having dominated the entire Japanese cultivation world through ten continuous years of doctrinal combat, was ascendant.

But just as the quadrennial election ceremony for the overall leader was approaching—a contest for which both factions were vigorously campaigning among the populace—the scandal erupted: Tachibana Masako’s daughter, Tachibana Chiko, had been frightened into wailing hysterically by a single palm strike from a Chinese cultivator!

This was equivalent to dropping a heavy atomic bomb on the entire Japanese cultivation world!

The already hostile Shinnyo-ha immediately gloated and spread the news widely, while some factions within the Kogi-ha also angrily questioned and challenged Tachibana Masako.

Saijōji Tsuneshō clearly recalled the terrifying scene in the Ōin Hall where Tachibana Masako, her delicate frame nearly overwhelmed, was besieged and questioned by masters from numerous Kogi-ha factions. Although these factions all belonged to the Kogi-ha, Tachibana Masako’s long tenure in the supreme position had incited intense jealousy among the others, meaning the internal currents within the Kogi-ha were turbulent and fraught with danger.

Following discussions between the temple’s sacred maiden, Tachibana Chiko, and the 413th Grand Abbot of Kongōbu-ji, Kasai Mitsuyoshi, they unanimously decided that since Li Yundong had brought them shame and disaster, they must defeat him publicly before the eyes of the entire Japanese cultivation community! Only then could the current crisis be averted!

But Saijōji Tsuneshō, the youngest and most promising Junior Abbot, known as the "Ever-Victorious Vajra," carried Tachibana Masako’s weighty assignment to Tiannan City. Yet, the challenge letter he delivered seemed to have vanished into the sea—no news whatsoever!

With the quadrennial Shingon leadership election imminent, and him unable to even secure a meeting with Li Yundong, how could he not be anxious?

Facing the ridicule from the entire Fox Zen Sect, Saijōji Tsuneshō was filled with both anxiety and rage. A fierce light gradually surfaced in his eyes, and his back began to hunch slightly, resembling a predator ready to pounce and devour its prey.

He thought bitterly to himself: Li Yundong, the coward, dares not show his face, so he sends a gaggle of women to act as his shield! Damn him!

Saijōji Tsuneshō clenched his fists until his whole body trembled with fury. He ground out, "Lady Tachibana Chiko was just a little child, barely over ten years old. What are you so proud of for defeating her? Only if you can defeat our Lady Tachibana Masako would that count as true strength!"

Seeing how stubborn and utterly uncommunicative he was, Ao Wushuang prepared to speak, but Ling Yue interjected impatiently, "Junior Martial Aunt, stop wasting breath on him. It’s like talking to a duck! I’ve told him countless times the Sect Leader is in seclusion, but he won't listen! If he wants to kneel, let him kneel!"

At this point, Chris, who had been observing quietly for some time, could no longer hold back. She stepped forward and said to Saijōji Tsuneshō, "Li Yundong is indeed in seclusion. Pressuring him is useless."

Saijōji snapped his head around, surprised to see a blonde, blue-eyed foreign woman addressing him in fluent Chinese. Stunned, he replied in English, "Who are you?"

Chris answered back in English, "I am Chris."

Saijōji pressed on, "I mean, how can you be so sure Li Yundong is in seclusion?"

Chris stated, "I am his registered disciple. I watched him enter deep meditation before I left."

Saijōji was shocked and began scrutinizing Chris intently. He recognized her as an American from her accent, yet this American claimed to be Li Yundong's disciple!

Saijōji exclaimed in utter astonishment, "You are actually his student?"

Chris shook her head, "No. I am only a registered disciple, not a full student yet."

Saijōji stared at Chris for a long moment, momentarily speechless.

In the eyes of many Japanese people, the United States was the power they most feared and respected, yet the culture they most scorned and looked down upon was that of China, their cultural progenitor just across the water.

And yet, in the end, this American turned out to be the disciple of a Chinese master? And it seemed the American was the one begging for tutelage, while Li Yundong hesitated to grant her even the status of a registered disciple? What kind of situation was this?

Seeing Saijōji fall silent, Chris walked over to Ling Yue and the others and told him, "If you don't believe us, you can wait here indefinitely, but please do so quietly!"

Since World War II, the Americans had acted as Japan’s de facto overlords. Decades of this national imprint were deeply ingrained in the Japanese psyche, causing them to inherently feel inferior to Americans, even among cultivators.

Saijōji stared wide-eyed as Chris and the others entered, the door closing shut with cold indifference. For a moment, he couldn't process what had happened, muttering incoherently.

A young man beside him urgently asked, "Tsuneshō-kun, what should we do now?"

Saijōji quickly composed himself. He grit his teeth. "Hmph. I don't believe he isn't inside! I clearly saw him go in and never come out since!" With that, he swiftly formed several hand seals and sneered, "I don't believe he can resist when I force him out!"

========================================== I had prior engagements this evening and returned very late, my apologies...

I will strive to write another chapter, but it might be quite late. Please don't wait up; it's possible I’ll be rushed off to bed mid-writing. If that happens... then the second chapter will have to wait until tomorrow morning. Zannen (What a pity)...