Under One Person: The Puppet Immortal in the Tang Sect

It consists of a main hall, six passageways, and more than ten stone chambers, three of which have a strong sense of otherworldly presence.

The terrifying puppet was the first to trigger the entrance trap.

A piercing alarm echoed through the passageway as four guards from the Medicine Immortal Society rushed out from the shadows, their hands forming hand seals, and Gu worms surged forth like a black mist.

A flash of eerie blue light appeared in his terrified eyes, and the mental shock spread.

Not only did the four guards freeze in their movements, but their eyes also became unfocused.

Even the Gu worms floating in the air fell to the ground in that instant.

Night Slayer emerged from the shadows, his shadow blades flashing and sealing their meridians.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Qianmian stepped forward and bound the four people with specially made ropes.

The direct confrontation alarmed even more people.

Shouts came from the direction of the main hall, and eight disciples of the Medicine Immortal Society and two Quanxing demons rushed over.

Before they could even see the enemy clearly, the floating cannons above their heads fired several energy beams in unison.

The beam of light precisely avoided vital organs, piercing through shoulder blades and leg bones, causing eight people to fall to the ground with screams of agony.

The two Quanxing demons, with their higher cultivation levels, used their protective true qi to withstand the beam of light.

One person threw out nine poisoned darts, while another person formed hand seals, causing mud tentacles to gush from the ground.

Cui Ming emerged from underground, his Dan Shi power condensing into two dark blue chains that wrapped around the necks of the two men.

The chains tightened, and the vital energy sealed their acupoints. The two struggled for a few breaths before collapsing.

The battle ended within thirty breaths. All fourteen people inside the stronghold were subdued, with no one killed.

Cui Ming gathered the prisoners in the main hall and pried open their heads one by one.

And they scavenged even more information from these people's memories.

This outpost was responsible for transferring kidnapped children and regularly sending "experimental materials" to other outposts;

The Medicine Immortal Society's cooperation with the Japanese has lasted for two and a half years, involving child trafficking, the plunder of supernatural martial arts techniques, and the theft of intelligence from the rear.

The "psychology expert" from the north, whose real name is Ken Ishikawa, is an extraordinary person hired by the Kwantung Army's intelligence agency. He is skilled in mind control and memory extraction.

After the soul search was completed, Cui Ming used the power of Dan Shi in conjunction with the rune array to brainwash the fourteen people.

The process lasted for two hours. After it was completed, although these people retained their original memories and abilities, they had been subconsciously implanted with the absolute obedience to Cui Ming's commands.

They will work together with Night Slayer and Horror to maintain the operation of the stronghold as usual, without revealing any weaknesses to the outside world.

Cui Ming left five Shadow Spider puppets to remain in hiding and monitor the area, and took the captured ledgers and communication records with him back to the surface cave.

The sun was beginning to set in the west at this time.

There are still two days until Ken Ishikawa arrives.

Cui Ming unfolded the map.

The Medicine Immortal Society has three strongholds in southeastern Guizhou, arranged in a triangular pattern.

He has taken control of the first stronghold near Kari Town, the second in Wolf Valley, and only the last stronghold in Black Wind Pass remains.

As planned, Kenjiro Ishikawa inspected three bases before finally interrogating Li Muxuan.

To ensure absolute safety, it would be best to also bring the Black Wind Pass stronghold under control.

After a brief moment of rest, Cui Ming mounted his Fenrir wolf and rode off to Black Wind Pass that very night.

Black Wind Valley is forty miles away from Wild Wolf Valley. It is a depression surrounded by mountains on all sides, where cold winds howl all year round.

When Cui Ming arrived, it was still dark, but the area around the stronghold was quiet.

Cui Ming frowned and released a Shadow Spider to scout, but found nothing unusual.

The base entrance was open, and the lights in the passageway were still on, but there were no guards or traps triggered.

The air still smelled of blood, but there was no sign of any living person.

Cui Ming piloted three Shadow Spiders to conduct in-depth investigation.

The internal structure of the stronghold was similar to the previous two, but the stone chamber was messy and items were scattered, as if it was caused by a hasty evacuation.

There were drag marks on the floor of the main hall, and fresh bloodstains on the corner of the wall.

Inside the storage room, some medicine jars were overturned, and the corpses of Gu worms were scattered everywhere.

The innermost cell was empty, the iron gate ajar, the lock broken by a sharp weapon.

Cui Ming personally entered the stronghold and conducted a thorough search.

He found a half-burnt piece of paper in a crevice of a stone chamber.

The piece of paper had a few words written in Japanese.

"Emergency transfer", "Ishikawa ahead of schedule", "True suspected intervention".

In the corner of another stone chamber, a bronze badge was found, bearing the emblem of the Medicine Immortal Society: three snakes entwined around a cauldron. However, the edges were worn, suggesting it had been frequently rubbed.

Cui Ming gathered all the clues and retreated to the ground.

As dawn broke, the morning mist began to spread.

He stood at the mouth of the valley, looking towards the mountain path to the north.

The traces are fresh; the evacuation must have occurred last night.

The reason could be the news that the base in Kali Town had been destroyed and the spies had disappeared, or it could be that Ken Ishikawa changed his travel plans.

But in any case, the people at the Black Wind Pass stronghold had already fled.

They took away the prisoners and important supplies, and their whereabouts are unknown.

Cui Ming returned to Fenrir and took out the map and compass.

There are three roads leading north from Heifeng'ao.

One road leads to Zunyi in northern Guizhou, another to western Hunan, and the third deep into the heart of the Miao region.

Which option will the other party choose?

Chapter 192 A Twist of Fate

Cui Ming couldn't help but recall the words "Ishikawa ahead of time" written on the half-piece of paper.

If Ken Ishikawa has arrived in Guizhou and learned of Zhenxing's involvement, he will likely order a reduction in forces, concentrating them in the most concealed and best-defended locations.

Wolf Valley Outpost?

No, that place has been taken over by Cui Ming, but the other party is unaware of it.

Perhaps Kenichi Ishikawa will go directly to the headquarters of the Medicine Immortal Society.

Cui Ming learned from the memories of the three elders of the Medicine Immortal Society that the main altar was located in Misty Ridge, at the junction of Guizhou, Hunan and Guangxi provinces.

The terrain there is treacherous, with numerous Gu formations, making it easy to defend but difficult to attack.

If Ken Ishikawa joins forces with the higher-ups of the Yakusenkai, he will be even more difficult to deal with.

Judging from the current situation, the plan to hold out in Wolf Valley and wait for Ishikawa Ken to take the bait is probably doomed.

It would be better to take the initiative and head to Misty Ridge. Even if Ishikawa Ken is not at their headquarters, Cui Ming can still uproot the Medicine Immortal Society.

In the morning breeze, Cui Ming put away the map and leaped onto the wolf's back.

The initiative must be in our own hands.

Cui Ming first gathered all the puppets scattered around and brought along the members of the Medicine Immortal Society who had been brainwashed by him.

The main force changed direction and headed straight for the main altar of the Medicine Immortal Society in the Misty Ridge to the southwest.

The mist in the forest was torn apart by the strong wind, and then slowly closed up again.

Meanwhile, on a mountain path a hundred miles away, a group of about twenty people were making their way.

The group included disciples of the Medicine Immortal Society, members of the Quanxing Demon Sect, and four other individuals dressed in Japanese military uniforms with samurai swords at their waists.

In the center of the procession, a middle-aged man wearing a Western-style trench coat and gold-rimmed glasses sat on a bamboo sedan chair, looking down and flipping through a notebook.

Beside the sedan chair, an elder of the Medicine Immortal Association reported in a low voice.

"The people from Black Wind Pass have withdrawn and, as you instructed, have all moved to the main altar."

"I just dropped some odds and ends in a hurry, I wonder if I left any clues..."

The bespectacled man closed his notebook, smiled slightly, and revealed narrow, cold eyes behind his lenses.

"It's alright. If the true person can really track him down to the main altar, it will save us the trouble of looking for him."

He looked towards the layered mountains in the southwest and murmured to himself.

“Cui Ming...an elder of the Divine Machine Alliance, the founder of True Nature. I am very interested in him.”

......

Cui Ming stopped in the forest, took out a shadow spider, and retrieved a piece of paper from its sac.

"Things have changed. You and Li Muxuan should quickly take the children back to the Earth Vein Village, with puppet guards along the way. I need to deal with the aftermath, so don't wait."

After placing the letter in the Shadow Spider's abdominal space, it was sent to deliver the message to Wei Shufen and the others.

After arranging things for Wei Shufen and Li Muxuan, Cui Ming divided the brainwashed members of the Medicine Immortal Society into three teams.

They were ordered to proceed slowly along different routes toward Misty Ridge, and to send secret reports to the headquarters of the Medicine Immortal Society periodically through their own means.

These secret reports naturally contained vague information such as "encountering small-scale resistance" or "suspicious signs of tracking."

This information was merely intended to mislead the Medicine Immortal Society, drawing their attention to the groups approaching the Misty Ridge headquarters.

After making the arrangements, Cui Ming put away all the puppets.

Fenrir Wolf switches to motorcycle mode, and Cui Ming will rely on Fenrir Wolf's speed that is ahead of its time to catch Yao Xian and Ishikawa Ken off guard!

After a half-day journey, at dusk, the outline of Misty Ridge began to appear in the distance.

It was a range of mountains shrouded in thick fog year-round, with the main peak resembling a reclining ox and several branching ridges extending from both sides.

According to the recollections of the three elders of the Medicine Immortal Society, the main altar was located in a natural karst cave complex on the mountainside of Woniu Peak. The entrance was hidden, and layers of Gu formations and traps were set up along the way.