My wife is the stand-in.

Saeko Busujima's personality originates from "Highschool of the Dead." She is a complete young lady from a noble family. Her father is the owner of a dojo, and she received a proper education as a samurai girl from a young age. She is a Yamato Nadeshiko.

Saeko Busujima in the anime is an independent woman who appears elegant and aloof on the surface, but harbors violent impulses and has witnessed much of the darkness in the world.

In zombie-infested anime, she is the pinnacle of melee weaponry.

She is capable of holding her own in negotiations and remains calm even when facing death, yet she finds it difficult to open up to outsiders.

Aping was able to befriend her entirely because of the pure friendship they had built up when she was still Kanna.

This is precious, both for Saeko Busujima and for her "ideal type".

Amanosaki patted the person next to him. Saeko Busujima looked around to make sure no one was there, then smiled helplessly and walked over to sit down next to Amanosaki.

However, Amanosaki did not make any physical advances or flirtations. Instead, he hugged Saeko Busujima, and the two snuggled together, feeling each other's warmth.

There was no pornography, no lust; it was like pure support between family members.

"Ah Ping's family is in the fishing industry, right?"

"Ah."

“The Yushan River Fresh Market is very large. After the four-clawed scale fish disaster is over, wild fishing will definitely be stopped. This will give the fish time to recover naturally. By then, her family’s economic situation will definitely be much better.”

"Ah."

“I was thinking, with so many people at the branch headquarters, the daily demand for fish and meat must be considerable. What do you think… if A-Ping’s family were to take the lead in contracting the branch headquarters’ fish and meat supply, wouldn’t A-Ping no longer have to live on the boat like she does now, and could she be allocated a house rented by the branch headquarters?”

Saeko Busujima rubbed her head against Amanosaki's shoulder for a moment, then remained silent.

Amanosaki knew the girl was interested, so he tightened his embrace and continued, "The branch also provides schools for the families of its employees, so you can get together more often."

Saeko Busujima remained silent for a while, then snuggled into Amanosaki's arms. Once her entire head was buried in his chest, she finally uttered a muffled "Okay."

Amanosaki then smiled broadly, embracing Saeko Busujima, who was half-buried in his arms, and gently patting the girl's back, enjoying a rare moment of tranquility.

Not long after the three of them had a simple lunch together around noon, a shadow fell over the once clear sky in the far east.

"We're only 8 kilometers from the blockade line set up by the Hongdu branch on the Yangtze River. Our ship needs to get in quickly, otherwise it will prevent the warships from forming a battle formation," Lin Shuyu explained to Amano Saki in a low voice.

Amanosaki frowned: "The situation is so tense up ahead, why aren't these heavily armed warships going to help?"

"Their main task is to lay mines to deal with the worst-case scenario, which may involve sinking ships to hinder the Kingfish," Lin Shuyu explained. "Surface firepower is also used to quickly eliminate the Four-Clawed Scale Fish and to open up the field of vision. The task of blocking them is still left to the frontline heroes and the artillery that has been deployed in advance."

Underwater is different from land. No matter how many soldiers there are or how powerful their light weapons are, they can't penetrate more than a few meters underwater. The best way for ordinary humans to deal with the evil forces underwater is with explosives.

Regardless of its depth, just bombard it with random explosions.

Those that can be killed by blasting are ordinary goods, but those like Gui Shui Yin that cannot be killed by blasting must be dealt with by the knights.

Moreover, the Yangtze River is unlike other rivers; it is the largest water system in China. Its upstream flow is vast and powerful, and even several dams cannot stop it. Even a capable person like [Yahuo Bhikkhuni] can only boil the river water, not evaporate a section of it.

To reiterate, if this were on land, creatures like the Kingfish, which rely on sheer numbers and physical strength, and whose only evil method is making rain, would have been wiped out by artillery, missiles, planes, tanks, and even the mountains and land along with them long ago.

The main concern now is that the tropical cyclone, once it reaches this area, will be amplified by the rainy weather created by the kingfish, potentially causing major disasters inland.

The government's biggest fear is floods, followed by the loss of previous efforts due to the kingfish crossing the defense line, and then its reputation.

After hearing the explanation, Amanosaki roughly understood the situation.

Even the military has to prepare for the worst, so it seems there are quite a few kingfish ahead.

"I wonder what methods the Hongdu branch has to suppress such heavy rain?"

Chapter 180: Longhu Mountain and Jingdezhen Pottery

The Wudang branch of the sect locked the river themselves, using only a copper talisman with the words "Wudang" printed on it to create an illusion, and then hanging it on the iron lock, which was quite dashing.

The Hongdu branch is different; it has five chains made of tungsten alloy, each ring as thick as a person's fist, suspended half a meter above the river surface.

Each link of the chain is threaded through a thin, high-strength fiberglass rope.

The ropes intertwined, weaving into a fine fishing net structure, which shimmered with a dreamlike light and shadow under the beam of the searchlight.

Amanosaki stared at the blockade line swallowed by the twilight; even with his keen eyesight, he could only make out the third tungsten alloy cable.

"How much space should be between each alloy cable?" Amanosaki asked, frowning.

Lin Shuyu replied, "500 meters."

Li Junzi, who had been avoiding Amanosaki and the others in her daily life, suddenly appeared beside them, a slit growing from her eyeball as she measured the cordon line:

"It is indeed 500 meters, and between each blockade there are small boats anchored in the middle of the river, and the boats are full of knights-errant."

Amanosaki pinched his chin, his expression somewhat serious: "This is too cautious."

Li Junzi observed the behavior of the knights on the small boat, trying to guess what mission they were carrying out.

Amanosaki, however, focused his attention on the chains themselves.

He noticed that smooth spheres were tied to the holes in the high-strength fiber mesh hanging from the chains.

"What is that?" he asked again.

"What?" Lin Shuyu's [Celestial Being Appearance] has a very limited effect on the five senses, and she herself is already a little nearsighted, so she is the one who can't see clearly among everyone.

Before Amanosaki could explain, a fishing boat weighing several tens of tons approached with a signal, guiding the fleet.

The Yangtze River has been sealed off, and it looks like it won't be unsealed for several days.

A dozen minutes later, the fleet stopped at a small, clearly newly opened port.

Stepping on the fresh mud on the concrete, Amanosaki and Li Junzi sat in the security booth, drinking tea in a sullen mood.

Everyone was busy. Lin Shuyu was busy directing the loading and unloading of supplies, the heroes were busy changing their weapons and equipment, and even Saeko Busujima was excitedly heading to the weapons depot.

Amanosaki and Li Junzi were left with nothing to do.

One of them comes with his own weapon, the Lance of Longchinus, while the other possesses the ability to transform flesh and blood, so they don't need to acquire familiar weapons.

So Amanosaki asked the person in charge for a document about the Hongdu branch and the current situation, which he read while eating.

I don’t know, I’m scared.

Amanosaki's "whoosh" attracted the attention of the idle Li Junzi.

The document first introduces the three main branches of the Hongdu branch: Qingcheng Mountain Branch, Longhu Mountain Branch, and Jingdezhen Branch.

These three gangs are not particularly skilled in pure killing, but each has its own unique techniques.

The Taoist priests of Qingcheng Mountain uphold the spirit of health preservation and self-cultivation, and practice alchemy in pursuit of longevity. In today's China, where chivalrous culture is prevalent and worldly spirit is strong, few pursue a life of detachment from the world.

Unfortunately, they failed to refine the elixir of immortality, but they had plenty of deadly poisons and life-saving ointments and pills. Therefore, the Qingcheng Mountain sect and the medical team took charge of the medical work during this war.

The Taoist priests of Longhu Mountain are generally not skilled in hand-eye coordination, but their talismans are unpredictable. They can summon spirits, warriors, fire, and arrays. It is said that if they cultivate the talismans of the Zhengyi sect of Longhu Mountain to the peak, they can open altars and perform rituals, bringing rain during the dry season and summoning the sun during heavy rain.

The Taoist priests of Longhu Mountain relied on these talismans to slay demons and monsters, which had long been the envy of the Wudang branch's chivalrous warriors who focused on sword energy and agility.

Of course, Wudang's cultivation methods have always been the subject of ridicule from Longhu Mountain; these things are intertwined.

As for Jingdezhen, it is a place that possesses special porcelain-firing techniques, capable of using the flesh and bones of evil spirits as a catalyst to fire porcelain with magical effects.

Amanosaki bit his nails, inwardly exclaiming that his eyes had been opened.

Li Junzi exclaimed in admiration, "Ah! Brother, the meatballs you mentioned are just like porcelain from Jingdezhen!"

The document then describes the structure of the blockade: an upper layer of alloy, a middle layer of woven fiberglass mesh, and fiberglass mesh supporting anchors weighing over ten tons on the riverbed.

The tiny, pigeon-egg-sized balls hanging on the fibers are ceramic talismans specially developed by Jingdezhen for the Longhushan talismans. They can be used freely underwater, breaking through the limitations of paper and ink being afraid of water!

The Crane-Controlling and Dragon-Capturing Talisman has the effect of sealing off supernatural abilities and binding enemies. If it is a Crane-Controlling and Dragon-Capturing Talisman made by the Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain, it can even seal off a small building with a single sheet. No matter how many evil spirits or heretics are inside, they are no different from ordinary people, and the supernatural abilities of evil spirits and heretics at the branch level will be greatly suppressed.

At the Hongdu branch, when faced with troublesome beings with supernatural abilities, the heroes would always lure the evil spirits into the emptied villages, trick them into the buildings, and then use this talisman to seal their supernatural abilities.

Next came the artillery barrage.

Meanwhile, the blockade network along the five major rivers was densely covered with tens of thousands of ceramic talismans for controlling cranes and capturing dragons! They were all made over the years by experienced Taoist priests from Longhu Mountain!

The Hongdu branch has pulled out all the stops, determined to hold the line!

"Ah~!"

A faint, piercing scream pierced the rain and reached the security booth. Amanosaki and Li Junzi's ears twitched, and they looked up to listen.

The voice sounded weak, unlike the reaction of someone who had been attacked.

Amanosaki immediately pushed open the door and went out, following the sound as he walked along the seemingly chaotic but actually orderly dock. Li Junzi craned his neck to look, wanting to follow and join in the fun, but then he remembered that the guards at the security booth had all gone out to help carry supplies, and there was no one on guard at the dock, so he had no choice but to sit back down dejectedly.

He and Amanosaki were the strongest fighters on the Subiyu, just like the other four ships with the strongest fighters. They sat in the guard booths around the dock to keep watch and conserve their energy.

Amanosaki turned around and around before stopping in front of a makeshift warehouse.

The warehouse has been emptied of supplies and converted into a first aid station.

The wounded at the aid station all bore signs of water damage, and most of their uniforms bore markings that Amanosaki did not recognize. Only a few wore blood-stained white robes with the Wudang branch's emblem embroidered on their chests.

Out of consideration for the patient's feelings, these Wudang heroes were all arranged to be together.

Amanosaki was quite famous throughout the branch of the Ooe River region because of his previous performance, so when the knight guarding the rescue station saw Amanosaki's face, he asked him a few simple questions and let him in.

Amanosaki didn't mince words and went straight to the Wudang branch to inquire about the situation.

"The heroes from the Wudang branch are positioned closest to the first blockade line because of their overall high strength."

The swordsman, whose stomach was wrapped in bandages, had pale lips, but spoke with confidence.

"We were responsible for intercepting the King Fish that broke through the blockade ahead, but there were too many ordinary monster fish. They were even more ferocious than the monster fish before when they attacked the defense line. When I was crossing the river on a reed, I was knocked into the water by a monster fish and was swept to this area by the school of fish. I was also bitten on the leg and stomach."

After some questioning, it was learned that most of the Wudang heroes had been knocked into the water by the chaotic fish. There was only one unlucky guy with a concussion who was hit by the tail of the king fish. Fortunately, before the accident, he instinctively used his Wudang sword to block the attack with sword energy wrapped around it. The Wudang sword was shattered by the king fish, and his nose was broken, but he was still alive.

"What about the rest?"

"They are all from the Hongdu branch, and most of them are ordinary people."

Amanosaki frowned. "An ordinary person?"

Another swordsman, missing half a tooth and with his mouth full of ointment, said dejectedly, "A half-eaten kingfish crossed the first blockade line and rushed ashore. Its corpse smashed an automatic turret. Some of these people were from the engineering team, and the other part were scientists."

Automatic turret...

Amanosaki stroked his chin, looking at the desolate scene at the shelter, his heart sinking.

Chapter 181: Government Military Strength

The ceramic talisman beads for controlling cranes and capturing dragons are strung together on the blockade net, like a string of stars, swaying in the dense raindrops, seeping into the river water and then shaking out again.