Chapter Fifty-One: The Revolutionary Party

After the two escaped, they spoke kindly to Mu Chen, never expecting both would turn on him at once. Without using spiritual energy, the pair pinned Mu Chen to the ground and gave him a thorough beating—making up for the loss they'd suffered in the formation, and only stopped when they felt compensated.

"Little priest, let me give you a piece of advice," Baozi said after finishing, "in the future, don't go around calling everyone you meet a monster. You got lucky running into us tonight. If you encounter someone truly wicked, you'd be dead by now."

As Baozi finished speaking, the distant roar of car engines echoed closer, accompanied by the synchronized footsteps of a hundred-strong unit.

"Yi, are they after us?" Baozi asked, frowning.

Zhou Yi also furrowed his brow. Military deployment at midnight meant something serious was happening. Judging by their arrival, they were likely targeting him and Baozi.

"We need to hide!" With no time for further thought, Zhou Yi said, leading both Baozi and Xunfeng toward a shadowy spot on the street.

The newcomers traveled by car, and with no other pedestrians on the midnight road, their speed was swift.

Just as Zhou Yi and Baozi found cover, the army reached the site of their earlier fight. Ashes from burned talismans still littered the ground, impossible to conceal from the military commander.

"On guard," the officer ordered. The troops halted, soldiers pulling back bolts and loading bullets, ready for action.

"Why are you here too?" Baozi sensed someone crowding him from behind and turned to see the little priest, Mu Chen.

"Just hiding," Mu Chen replied with a sly grin.

"Quiet—it's definitely us they're after," Zhou Yi said, standing at the forefront and assessing the soldiers' posture. It was clear they were targeting him and Baozi.

"We are the Chinese Revolutionary Army—come out." An officer beside the commander shouted toward the darkness, clearly aware of Zhou Yi and Baozi's presence.

The Revolutionary Army and Li Yuanhong's government were rivals; an army of over a hundred in the capital was abnormal, especially moving at midnight—something was amiss.

But information was spread only by newspapers, and Zhou Yi and Baozi had no habit of reading them. They were unfamiliar with the current party struggles; even if they knew, the Republic was a chaotic web of factions, and ordinary people rarely cared who ruled or wore the emperor's crown.

With over a hundred soldiers armed with guns, escape was not wise. Zhou Yi stepped from the shadows, hands raised above his head. "Officer, what are your orders?"

The officer, seeing Zhou Yi alone, relaxed his guard. "I saw a fight here just now—was it you?"

Zhou Yi wanted to deny it, but his clothing had been torn to shreds by the Azure Dragon, leaving him bare-chested. Blood still oozed from the wound on his chest—impossible to hide.

"It was me—just a wild cat I chased off." Unable to tell the truth, he lied, though his deceit was clumsy.

"Oh? A wild cat? Explains the stench here. Men, seize him." The officer's face changed abruptly as he spoke.

At his command, several soldiers aimed their guns at Zhou Yi's head. Zhou Yi dared not resist and let himself be bound.

Baozi and Mu Chen, hidden in the shadows, grew anxious. They stayed still, but Xunfeng moved—darting from the darkness and leaping at the officer.

Xunfeng's maneuver had saved Zhou Yi before, but this time, facing over a hundred rifles, proved overwhelming.

Xunfeng knocked the officer down, prompting the soldiers to react and fire at him. Xunfeng twisted through the hail of bullets, darting behind a car. Soldiers chased after, but his speed rendered their shots harmless.

The officer, furious, stood and drew his pistol, pressing it coldly to Zhou Yi's head. "Call that beast off, or I'll kill you."

Countless escape plans flashed through Zhou Yi's mind, all dismissed. His only hope now was Baozi, praying he had a solution.

The officer, seeing Zhou Yi silent, spoke again. "I want that beast. Give it to me, and I'll let you go unharmed."

"Sir, it's just a mongrel—why do you want it?" Zhou Yi hadn't expected the officer's true target was Xunfeng.

"That's none of your concern. Call it off, or you'll regret it." The officer threatened once more.

Baozi and Mu Chen, desperate and helpless in hiding, could only fret. "Priest Mu Chen, summon the tiger and Azure Dragon again. Help us escape, and I'll owe you my life," Baozi pleaded.

Mu Chen's face darkened.

"What's wrong? You don't want to help us? Don't forget—Yi got caught because of you," Baozi pressed, seeing Mu Chen's head bowed in silence.

Mu Chen pouted. "It's not that I won't help, but my master only gave me one set of Dragon-Tiger talismans. I already used them—they're gone."

"What? Your master gave you those talismans and you used them so easily?" Baozi lamented.

Mu Chen said nothing, head lowered, clearly distressed over using the precious talismans. His master had given them for self-defense upon descending the mountain, instructing him not to use them unless absolutely necessary.

Meant for saving his life, but after entering the capital and witnessing Zhou Yi kill the courtesan Xiao Cui, Mu Chen believed Zhou Yi was a villain. With Xunfeng—whose appearance was strange—at his side, Mu Chen thought Zhou Yi and Baozi were harmful monsters, and in panic, wasted the Dragon-Tiger talismans.

If Mu Chen's master knew his hard-earned talismans, drawn meticulously over three days, had been squandered so carelessly, he might cough up blood and ascend to the heavens in fury.

But that's beside the point. Baozi, realizing Mu Chen could offer no help, began pondering other solutions. Suddenly, a set of incantations came to mind, and his face brightened.

Forming hand seals, he recited the Soul-Seeking Incantation. As luck would have it, Baozi and Mu Chen were hiding within the mansion of a Qing official. Who knows how many innocents had met their end there? As soon as Baozi finished chanting, more than ten vengeful spirits surged from the courtyard wall—all young women, scantily clad, bearing whip marks.

It was midnight; the power of the spirits was at its peak. Their appearance brought a chilling wind, and the overcast sky lost all stars.

The spirits, heavy with resentment, saw the soldiers and rushed at them with howls.

One soldier was caught head-on; his gaze glazed over, and he began clawing at his comrades.

Mu Chen, seeing the ghosts emerge, grabbed his coin sword to exorcise them. "Your bodies are gone—why not reincarnate instead of harming others? Tonight, I shall send you on to your next life."