In the scene, Aya Ikegami, dressed in a traditional twelve-layered kimono, stands on a high platform in the parliament to deliver a speech. What is chilling is the expression of the dignitaries below the stage—empty eyes, yet with identical smiles on their lips, as if they were puppets controlled by the same string.
"Brainwashing?" Chen Feng frowned.
"Not only that," the female spy from the Beitang family interjected. "I infiltrated a small clan that had submitted to the Ikegami family. Their elders privately said that all the core members loyal to Ikegami Aya had either 'gone into seclusion' or 'traveled abroad.'"
Han Feng and Chen Feng exchanged a glance. This was very similar to the control methods of the Youjing Clan, but what Dongfang Wantang saw was clearly not a Youjing Clan trait.
"Do you have a sample?" Han Feng asked.
The spy from Beitang retrieved a sealed test tube containing a strand of hair glowing blue: "Taken from the head of an unconscious guard. Tests show abnormal energy residue in his brain, but not the kind from the Nether Crystal Clan."
Han Feng took the test tube, and the power of the stars automatically wrapped around it for analysis. Suddenly, his fingers trembled—there was a familiar fluctuation in the energy characteristics, originating from the stars but distorted and corrupted, like the product of light being stained black.
"Continue reporting." He suppressed the shock in his heart.
The intelligence pieces came together like a jigsaw puzzle: the Matsui family controlled more than 70% of the ancient martial arts families in Japan; the Moon God Organization's activities increased dramatically; and the Ikegami family had been supported by the Matsui family before. Even more strangely, in the past month, 27 "collective hallucination" incidents occurred along the coast of Japan—fishermen claimed to have seen huge shadows moving on the seabed.
"And this too." The last Murong family spy to arrive handed over a blood-stained strip of cloth. "I got it from a member of a small, fleeing family. His last words were 'sea' and 'awaken.'"
Han Feng unfurled the strip of cloth, on which a crude pattern was drawn in blood: a vortex with an eye in the center. It was exactly as Dongfang Wantang had described.
"In that case, the royal family also has problems." Dongfang Xun's voice rang out in the conference room.
All eyes immediately turned to the intelligence chief of the Dongfang family. Han Feng stopped tapping his fingers on the table: "Explain in detail."
Dongfang Xun pulled up a set of holographic images: "According to our ten years of tracking records, Emperor Tokugawa Hirohito of Japan is someone who rarely even goes into a swimming pool. But in the past month—" The scene switched to a set of secretly taken photos, ""He secretly went to a private beach near Yokohama every two days."
In the photos, the Emperor, dressed in casual clothes, stands in knee-deep water with his arms outstretched as if embracing the sea. The most bizarre are the last few photos—the Emperor, who should be nearly sixty years old, has an abnormal bluish-gray complexion, and the whites of his eyes have turned completely pale blue.
"What about the other members of the royal family?" Chen Feng asked, frowning.
"Equally unusual." Dongfang Xun switched the scene. "Empress Michiko, originally a well-known anti-whaling advocate, suddenly approved a bill to expand whaling last month. And Crown Prince Tokugawa Kento—" The scene showed a gloomy-faced young man, "He destroyed all his treasured marine life specimens and covered the walls of his palace with swirling patterns."
Han Feng stood up and walked to the holographic image to carefully examine the photos. When he zoomed in on the Emperor's face, his pupils contracted slightly—Tokugawa Hirohito's pupils had an almost imperceptible ring of crystalline patterns around the edge, which was seven-tenths similar to the characteristics of the Ghost Crystal Clan, yet carried a certain familiar fluctuation.
"Does the Matsui family have frequent contact with the Imperial Family?"
"Appearing distant, but actually very close." Dongfang Xun pulled up another set of data: "Over the past three months, Matsui Ryuichi has met with the Emperor monthly under the pretext of 'tea ceremony exchange.' And after each meeting, the behavior of the imperial family members becomes even more unusual."
Han Feng took over control and presented three sets of data side by side: the fishermen's eyewitness report, the Ikegami family's control methods, and the royal family's unusual activities. The three timelines almost perfectly matched—the underwater shadow sightings began 27 days ago, the Ikegami family's core members' "seclusion" was concentrated between 25 and 22 days ago, and the royal family's first secret beach trip was 21 days ago.
"Like some kind of...infection chain," Chen Feng murmured.
Han Feng did not respond immediately. He picked up the blue-glowing hair sample again and used his Star Power to probe deeper.
"It's not just control," Han Feng suddenly spoke up, "They're preparing a summoning ritual."
The meeting room was deathly silent. The Beitang family's spy unconsciously touched his weapon, while the Murong family's representative began rapidly flipping through documents.
"Something in the deep sea is about to awaken," Han Feng said, pointing to the blood-painted vortex pattern. "And the Matsui family, and the Ikegami family, or rather, the forces behind them, are using the imperial bloodline as a 'key.'"
Dongfang Xun gasped: "No wonder they're so frequently in contact with seawater... they're establishing contact!"
"Notify all aristocratic families to enter Level One alert," Han Feng ordered. "The Beitang family continues to monitor the Matsui family's movements; the Murong family is responsible for investigating the historical records of that sea area; the Dongfang family—" He looked at Dongfang Xun, "I need you to personally confirm one thing."
"Please give your instructions, Star Lord."
"Find out all the information about the Tokugawa Imperial Family." Han Feng's eyes sharpened. "Especially... whether they've ever betrayed us."
Dongfang Xun nodded solemnly. Han Feng then turned to Chen Feng: "Get ready, I'm going to that sea area myself."
"Are you alone?" Chen Feng asked anxiously, "It's too dangerous!"
Han Feng shook his head, his eyes sparkling. "Well, this time you can go openly and legitimately." He pointed to the Imperial Family's latest schedule. "Three days later is Tokugawa Kento's 25th birthday, and the Imperial Family will hold a public celebration. As representatives of a martial arts family from a 'friendly neighboring country,' we should attend and offer our congratulations. I'll be secretly keeping an eye on their movements."
The group exchanged bewildered glances. This plan was audacious to the point of madness—knowing full well that the other side had set a trap, yet willingly walking into it?
"Star Lord..." Dongfang Xun hesitated, wanting to say something but stopping himself.
Han Feng's lips curled into a cold smile: "Since they want to 'awaken' something, we might as well lend a hand."
A deathly silence fell over the conference room. On the projected map, the red area representing the Ikegami family's influence covered most of R country and was still spreading to the surrounding areas.
"Now, considering all the intelligence gathered," Chen Feng broke the silence, "we can confirm that Aya Ikegami is backed by at least two forces: the Moon Goddess Organization and some unknown entity. The latter is very likely..."
"An extraterritorial force," Han Feng replied, his eyes sharp, "but not the Youjing Clan."
He walked to the map and pointed to the southern waters of Country R: "Has anything unusual happened here recently?"
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