The two squad members followed Qingqiu's gaze. "Are you sure you're not mistaken? The disturbance was clearly over here."
Qingqiu shook his head gently. "Trust me. I'm absolutely sure."
He stood still, his gaze passing through the thick grass and two walls to the invisible courtyard on the right.
In his perception, something in the courtyard opposite seemed to be responding to him from far away—faintly, yet unmistakably.
Basement.
Several guards were panting in the darkness when they suddenly realized something had appeared in their hands. It was heavy and a little rough.
"Wh—who's playing a prank..." Before they could finish asking, a dim light, no brighter than a bean, suddenly appeared in front of them.
Lin Nan's face appeared in their line of sight alongside the light. With a concerned look, he asked, "What have you guys been fighting? You're exhausted."
The guards were all startled. Lin Nan was not only lively and well, but his face also showed no sign of injury.
Had they all hit his body and missed his face? That couldn't be right! And even if they had, how could he still be so full of energy after taking all those hits?
Before they could figure it out, a whisper came from behind them. "Way of Destruction No. 11, Tsuzuri Raiden."
A blue arc of electricity curved around from behind them and traveled into the hands holding the object. The four pairs of hands were clutching the long chain that had originally been used to restrain people.
Chaotic arcs of electricity crawled over their bodies. They convulsed all over, their hands unconsciously clenching the chain tightly. They made muffled sounds in their throats, but not a single sound came out.
Holding the oil lamp, Lin Nan let the men twitch wildly in front of him as he kept his eyes fixed on the distant stairwell, wary of anyone suddenly barging in.
Fortunately, everything went smoothly. They made no noise at all and didn't alert anyone else.
A moment later, a faint smell of something burning drifted over. The four unconscious men collapsed to the floor.
Kyoraku stepped out of the darkness behind them and into the light. Bending down to pick up the top, he gave Lin Nan a smug smile. "What do you think of my Kido?"
Lin Nan returned a nonchalant smile. "It's all right. I reckon I could learn it if I watched one more time."
"Yeah, right."
"I'm serious. I even used Byakurai before..."
Kyoraku pursed his lips. "Do you think I'd believe you, or believe that I'm the Captain-Commander of the Gotei?"
Lin Nan's eyes went blank for half a second.
Uh, that really was a hard question to answer. Strictly speaking, neither of those things was false...
Kyoraku stopped joking with Lin Nan, his expression turning serious. "You felt it too, didn't you? This basement."
Lin Nan came back to himself and nodded. "Yeah. The echo in here sounds a little too spacious, which means this place is bigger than we imagined.
"And they've never used bright lights in here. Maybe they don't want us to see something we shouldn't."
The two exchanged a knowing nod and looked toward another part of the basement, hidden in darkness.
"Way of Destruction No. 12, Fushibi." Kyoraku intoned the spell in a low voice. A stream of fire silently sprang to life, instantly weaving itself into a web of flames in midair.
By the light of the fire web, the two finally saw what lay before them.
The basement was twice as large as they had imagined. Set into the far wall was a stone doorway made of three pillars, engraved with strange characters.
The doorway wasn't very large, but it was wide enough for two people to pass through side by side. It had no door, but the opening where the door should have been was a deep, impenetrable blackness. Even the light from the fire web couldn't illuminate it.
It was as though the doorway led to an endless abyss.
"What is that thing?" Lin Nan extinguished the oil lamp in his hand and tossed it aside before asking in a low voice.
Kyoraku shook his head to show he didn't know either. "But a few of the symbols on it look familiar. I think I've seen them in my brother's study notes."
By the light of Fushibi, the two carefully examined what lay before them. The vast wall held no decorations or objects besides the doorway. No matter how they looked at it, something about it seemed sinister.
"I don't think we should touch that doorway," Kyoraku said after studying it for a while.
Without looking back, Lin Nan slowly moved forward to scout the way. "What, are you afraid of the dark?"
"Come on, my top can travel through shadows. Why would I be afraid of the dark?"
"Then why don't you throw your top through that doorway and see what happens?" Lin Nan replied quietly.
"Nothing will happen, because nothing can pass through it right now." Iwamoto's voice suddenly came from behind them.
Both of them jolted and whipped around.
"If someone outside hadn't happened to enter the range of my illusion, I might never have guessed you two were causing trouble down here." Iwamoto had already reached the basement with the five remaining guards, along with Kuramoto and Masaki. They stood at the foot of the stairs.
"You two put on a good act. You almost fooled me." Iwamoto's gaze fell on the several men lying together to the front left. He nodded. "You worked well together. Two injured men managed to take down five people without making a sound. Lin Nan, was this your idea?"
Lin Nan crooked his mouth into a grin. "Did we need a plan to deal with a few guys like this? The two of us have enough of a rapport."
"Oh? You're both injured. Where did you get the confidence to take down five burly men?"
Lin Nan reached up to scratch his nostril, utterly unconcerned. "We're both geniuses. We're Genryūsai's students."
Iwamoto laughed, slowly drawing the short blade from his right hand. "What a pity. With talent like yours, if you'd truly been willing to work for me, you would have gone far. But you didn't value the opportunity I gave you, so I'm afraid I'll have to kill you here."
Lin Nan glanced at his blade. "Actually, there's something I've always wanted to ask you."
"What?"
"You're the leader. Why do you have to be so stingy and use a short blade? Couldn't you afford a longer one?"
The guards behind Iwamoto immediately started cursing under their breath, but he only let out a soft, unhurried laugh.
"Interesting. You even know how to provoke me beforehand. But I won't fall for it. And I can tell you that I use a short blade because it's more convenient for intelligence work. Carrying a long sword makes it hard to show my face in public."
As he spoke, his gaunt face went expressionless. "I have a use for Kyoraku. You, on the other hand, can die first."
As soon as he finished speaking, the seven people behind him moved at once. They drew their short blades and charged toward the two of them.
Lin Nan remained calm. He raised his index and middle fingers and pointed into the air. "Way of Destruction No. 12, Fushibi."
A dense web of fire instantly appeared out of nowhere, completely blocking their path.
The seven charging men, including Masaki and Kuramoto, hastily skidded to a stop and staggered backward under the scorching heat.
Kyoraku, who had been readying himself to charge in and fight, froze in place. He turned to Lin Nan in disbelief. "You really learned it? You know Kido?"
Lin Nan's lips curled into a smug smile. "Don't just stand there. Give them a little wind to liven things up!"
Kyoraku didn't hesitate. He spun the top in his hand and sent it hurtling forward. "Bushōgoma!"
A gale swept up, transforming the fire web into a gigantic tongue of flame that lashed wildly at the men ahead. In an instant, it engulfed them.
Cries of alarm and screams rang out at the same time. Kuramoto and another guard, both quick on their feet, made it to safety first. Masaki, who could barely move, rolled and crawled out, his body charred black.
The remaining four were swallowed by the sudden blaze, turning into human torches as they struggled helplessly on the spot.
"Nicely coordinated, but don't forget: that move won't work on me." Iwamoto's voice came from behind the wall of fire.
"Who said I was using it on you?!" Lin Nan kept moving, swiftly turning around and aiming his index finger at a crossbeam high on the ceiling in the distance. "Way of Destruction No. 4, Byakurai!"
He chanted rapidly. Four thumb-thick bolts of white lightning flashed blindingly through the basement, all shooting toward the same crossbeam.
Once the beam was pierced, it would surely be unable to bear the weight above it, causing part of the basement to collapse. That would give him and Kyoraku a chance to escape.
But the expected sound of a beam cracking never came.
The instant the dazzling lightning touched the crossbeam, a ripple of light spread across the ceiling. It absorbed all of Lin Nan's Kido, leaving no effect whatsoever.
Kyoraku hadn't yet recovered from the shock of seeing Lin Nan unleash one Kido after another. Now he was stunned all over again by the bizarre sight, his mouth hanging open.
"Is this... a barrier?"
Before you continue