Dao Sin

What on earth was that incense burner!

Rising from his bed at the inn after a peaceful night, Zhu Yuanzhang recalled Faming's methods from the day before, his heart sinking.

He had a feeling.

The reason the meditation room could repair itself, and the reason Faming had survived a strike that exhausted his entire life's cultivation, was entirely due to that incense burner.

"It is said that today, taking advantage of the naval rotation, Hou Jing crossed the Heng River by force, captured Caishiji, and beheaded General Chen Xin in battle."

With three knocks at the door, Huzi entered as he did every day to clean the room and begin his daily report on the enemy situation.

"In my opinion, the imperial court's deployment is in complete chaos. The eunuchs who handle palace procurement say the court sent the Governor of Huainan, Xiao Ning, to retake Caishiji this morning, but by noon, they issued a decree for the Huainan troops to return to defense. Not even half a day later, they changed their minds again and ordered Xiao Ning to replace the Crown Prince's guards to garrison Dangtu."

"Sigh..."

When Huzi reached this point, his mood was visibly dampened.

But fortunately, as a beast of burden, he had plenty of experience in self-motivation.

"Still, this is just the panic caused by a minor defeat of the vanguard. Although Hou Jing was able to win temporarily through trickery, Zhuque Passage is guarded by thirty thousand elite imperial troops, while Hou Jing has only eight thousand men."

At this, Huzi's spirits lifted once more.

"The advantage is ours."

Watching the servant analyze the current war situation with such high spirits, Zhu Yuanzhang felt as if he were looking at an old general with flags stuck all over his back, preparing to take the stage for a performance.

Zhu Yuanzhang chatted with him casually for a while longer.

Because of his experience from his two previous lives, Huzi felt that the more he talked with Zhu Yuanzhang, the more they hit it off.

Even when it came to obscure legends passed down among the locals of Jinling, the other man could speak of them with ease.

They talked until noon, when the sun's rays were at their peak.

By the time Huzi dropped Zhu Yuanzhang off at the gate of Taicheng, he wore an expression of having met a kindred spirit too late.

"It's a pity that for the last half-month, the officials in the city seem to have heard some rumors; the prices of salt, dried vegetables, and cured meat have skyrocketed. Otherwise, buying this cart of goods wouldn't have cost even a single ingot of silver."

Stuffing the pouch containing the remaining silver into Zhu Yuanzhang's hand, Huzi turned the carriage around and quickly departed.

"?"

Zhu Yuanzhang narrowed his eyes slightly.

Something was wrong.

He led his donkey toward the nine-story Pagoda in Taicheng as usual.

In history, during the siege of Taicheng, there was no famine, but there was a shortage of salt and meat.

The explanation in the history books was that the nobles of Xiao Liang were short-sighted; when they retreated into Taicheng, they brought plenty of grain, gold, and jewelry, but failed to prepare enough salt, vegetables, and meat.

However—

Considering what Huzi had just said, the prices of supplies in the city had nearly doubled.

And this had started half a month ago.

This meant the noble officials of Xiao Liang had realized the danger of being besieged long ago and had begun hoarding supplies.

Zhu Yuanzhang had specifically instructed that salt, vegetables, and meat be purchased separately, precisely to guard against the potential shortages of salt, meat, and vegetables during the siege of Taicheng.

But...

All of this was based on the premise that the Xiao Liang nobles were truly short-sighted, to the point of not even knowing to prepare vegetables, meat, and salt.

What if the supply shortage in Taicheng wasn't due to the stupidity of the Xiao Liang nobles, but because of some other reason?

Thinking of this, Zhu Yuanzhang's heart sank once more.

"Strange, truly strange."

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed.

He pushed open the gate of the meditation courtyard.

This time, he didn't even bother unloading the goods.

Simply tethering the donkey in the courtyard, he walked toward the meditation room on the far right.

If he stayed in the courtyard and waited for the monk in the central meditation room to wake up, he would die!

Entering the left meditation room! Or the middle one! It was death either way!

Aside from simply leaving the courtyard or pushing open the right meditation room to try his luck, Zhu Yuanzhang had no other choice.

"I shoulder the hope of continuing Tongtai Temple."

"Fahui has no reason to harm me."

"If this were a death trap, he would never have used the Blood Sutra—a work that takes most monks a lifetime to complete—to guide me in seeking the help of his three senior brothers."

"In other words, at least one high monk of Tongtai Temple bears me goodwill."

"And the reason Fahui did not speak plainly is that these meditation rooms isolate his prying eyes."

"Perhaps even he does not know which position that well-intentioned senior brother is in, what his state is, or if he is even conscious."

Thinking of this, Zhu Yuanzhang hesitated no longer.

He knocked on the door of the meditation room to the right.

"Disciple Minghe, acting on the orders of Master Fahui, has come to Taicheng to seek refuge. I beg my martial uncle to take me in."

Suddenly, a river of blood surged up from the ground.

Inside the central meditation room, black shadows swarmed across the bright yellow curtains.

It was as if something were trying to awaken ahead of time.

However, when the blood water spread to within ten feet of the right-hand meditation room.

"Why must you be so relentless... my two junior brothers."

A sigh echoed within the right-hand meditation room.

Following this, the door in front of Zhu Yuanzhang opened without a gust of wind.

The voice seemed to resonate directly inside Zhu Yuanzhang's ears.

Only two words were spoken.

"Come in quickly."

Looking at the room before him, where an oil lamp burned but could only cast a faint light for half a foot, Zhu Yuanzhang thought of the things inside the previous two meditation rooms and hesitated.

But he steeled his resolve.

At worst, he would simply [Start Over].

"Many thanks, Martial Uncle."

Zhu Yuanzhang cupped his fists and strode into the meditation room.

As he stepped over the pitch-black threshold, Zhu Yuanzhang glanced back at the tide of blood behind him.

Within the blood tide, those things that looked like hair, or perhaps silk threads, withered rapidly as they approached within ten feet of the meditation room.

"Faci—"

The voice coming from the central meditation room grew increasingly angry.

But as the blood tide receded, the voice gradually died out.

It was as if it had been sealed by some kind of power.

As the door of the meditation room slammed shut with a thud.

Seeming to sense Zhu Yuanzhang's wariness toward the blood tide, the voice explained.

"The three meditation rooms support one another, yet also keep each other in check, suppressing the Daoist Sin within their bodies so it does not revive too quickly."

"The Xiao Liang Royal Aura is nearing its end, and those two have suffered a backlash; only by relying on this formation to devour luck and blood-flesh every day can they continue to linger on in their wretched existence."

"As long as you are within my meditation room, they will not dare to act recklessly."

"However, your luck is truly good; you came here without the slightest hesitation."

"Had you chosen wrongly even once, or hesitated in the courtyard until Fajue revived, you would have surely died."

In reality, he had already died many times.

It was only through his own courage and wisdom that he had found the sole path to survival in this desperate situation.

"Thank you, Martial Uncle, for saving me."

Zhu Yuanzhang bowed toward the darkness.

"But I have a question: what is Daoist Sin? Since my two martial uncles are on the verge of passing away, why do they not return to Tongtai Temple instead of remaining in Taicheng?"

Zhu Yuanzhang was in a hurry.

Because this was a time-limited mission.

Although the system had not stated when it would end.

It was clearly not going to let Zhu Yuanzhang do as he pleased like an ordinary secret history.

Upon hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's question.

The voice did not show any sign of annoyance.

Instead, answered with considerable patience.

"A collateral branch or a child of a concubine is referred to as a 'bastard'."

"Since they are called 'bastards of the Dao', it is naturally because the paths of my two senior brothers have gone somewhat astray..."

"And remaining in Taicheng is, naturally, because they are unwilling to let a lifetime of cultivation perish just like that."

"They wish to make the earth flow with rivers of blood, to gamble for a sliver of survival for themselves."