Upon hearing these words, Chen Zheng's pupils constricted slightly, a dismissive, cold sneer forming on his lips.

Situ Qi furrowed her brow and inquired, "So the divine talisman is inside the brocade box? How is it used?"

"The former head priest said," Yoshioka Toshiaki hurriedly answered, "that as soon as the brocade box is opened, the blade intent within the divine talisman will be triggered. Therefore, you must never open it. Please consider this a gift representing my pledge of allegiance to you, sir."

"Sir, you mustn't underestimate the divine talisman in this brocade box," Yoshioka Toshiaki said solemnly to Chen Zheng. "Although it can only be used once, the blade intent infused into it by the former head priest who created it is powerful enough to slay any existence, including an Emperor Wu!"

Hearing this, Zhang Lingxue and Situ Qi, who were standing nearby, couldn't help but jump in shock. They naturally understood Yoshioka Toshiaki's meaning: the blade intent contained within this single divine talisman could even slay an Emperor Wu. That was simply too terrifying!

"It can slay an Emperor Wu? Takeda Masao really is arrogant for not bringing this with him!" Chen Zheng scoffed as he took the brocade box. "If those pirates had such a powerful weapon, why didn't they use it earlier instead of playing these tricks!"

As he spoke, Chen Zheng prepared to open the brocade box, clearly not taking Yoshioka Toshiaki's words seriously. His action immediately terrified Yoshioka Toshiaki, Situ Qi, and Zhang Lingxue.

"Chen Zheng, don't!" Situ Qi stepped forward and pressed down on his hand. "It's better to believe it than to doubt it. This is a grave matter and cannot be taken lightly. If you don't believe in the power of this blade intent, let me take it to be handled by specialists!"

Situ Qi truly believed Yoshioka Toshiaki. While the priests of the Dahe Nation's Shinto shrines often exaggerated their capabilities, some of the older priests—especially those who held the position of head priest—all had some impressive secret skills up their sleeves. Now that the overall situation was settled, there was no need, in her opinion, to create unnecessary complications. If a real accident occurred, it would be a huge embarrassment.

Seeing Situ Qi stop Chen Zheng, Yoshioka Toshiaki also hurried forward to remind him, "Mr. Zhao, Miss Situ is right. Please consider it carefully. I don't know if Takeda Masao placed anything else inside this brocade box, so..."

It was obvious that Yoshioka Toshiaki was genuinely worried that Chen Zheng would open the box. Beyond surrendering to Chen Zheng to save his own life, he was also afraid of being caught in the crossfire if the box were opened.

"All of you, leave the main hall," Chen Zheng's tone left no room for doubt. "Since I know there's some kind of trick hidden in this thing from the pirates, it's best that I open it myself."

"But..." Zhang Lingxue tried to persuade him further, but Chen Zheng's gaze stopped her.

The three could only retreat reluctantly from the main hall. The instant they were outside, Chen Zheng opened the brocade box.

The moment the brocade box was opened, a mighty and piercing killing intent gushed out from within, akin to opening Pandora's Box! Even though they were already more than ten meters outside the hall, Zhang Lingxue and the others could still feel the terrifying killing intent emanating from within!

"Chen Zheng!" Zhang Lingxue cried out in panic. She was about to rush forward but was held back firmly by Situ Qi.

"Not good, run!" Yoshioka Toshiaki sensed the killing intent and bellowed, grabbing both women and dragging them backward forcefully.

In an instant, the three had retreated several dozen more meters. They stood still, staring at the flagstones of the plaza before the great hall. Countless intricate, deep fissures had appeared out of thin air, each one several inches deep!

Looking at the fissures, Zhang Lingxue was too shocked to speak, and a wave of belated fear washed over Situ Qi. The blade intent contained within a single divine talisman was so terrifyingly powerful that it enveloped an area dozens of meters outside the great hall. If they had been caught inside just now, how could they possibly still be alive?

"Chen Zheng!" Zhang Lingxue came to her senses and tried to charge forward again, but Situ Qi once more held her back tightly.

"Madam, you can't go in now!" Yoshioka Toshiaki advised from the side. "Although the blade intent seems to have subsided, the inside of the hall is likely the most dangerous place right now!

"I already told you, that divine talisman contained a blade intent equivalent to the lifetime's cultivation of one of our priests. If it had been perfectly preserved, I'm afraid even beings above an Emperor Wu would be killed instantly, so..."

Before Yoshioka Toshiaki could finish, he suddenly sensed something. His voice stopped abruptly, and he looked toward the main hall in surprise. His eyes filled with astonishment and amazement. Just a moment ago, he could clearly feel the piercing blade intent within the hall. But now, it had suddenly vanished as if into thin air.

This is... Yoshioka's eyes were filled with confusion. He found it hard to believe. The blade intent, the condensation of the former head priest's entire life of cultivation, just vanished like that? Could Chen Zheng have eliminated it? How is that possible!

However, after waiting another moment, even Zhang Lingxue could feel that there was no killing intent left within the main hall's vicinity.

"Chen Zheng!" This time, when Zhang Lingxue rushed toward the main hall, Situ Qi didn't stop her, instead running alongside her.

When Yoshioka Toshiaki and the others charged back into the main hall, the scene before them left all three dumbfounded.

Inside the great hall, Chen Zheng stood tall, completely unharmed. However, a blade of qi, so tangible it was almost solid, revolved endlessly around him in the air. The strange thing was, although the qi blade contained a fierce killing intent, that killing intent diminished with each rotation it made around Chen Zheng. Eventually, it faded completely, vanishing into the void along with the qi blade itself.

Seeing the qi blade disappear, the others finally dared to approach. Zhang Lingxue asked worriedly, "Chen Zheng, are you... are you okay? That thing in the air just now was..."

"That was the blade intent from the divine talisman," Chen Zheng finished for her. "Those Japanese priests really do have some skill."

"But that's all it amounts to." Chen Zheng turned to look at Yoshioka Toshiaki. "You're not bad. From now on, you'll follow me. Whether you live to return to your Dahe Nation will depend on your performance."

Hearing this, Yoshioka Toshiaki was overjoyed. He immediately knelt and kowtowed nonstop.

Zhang Lingxue was completely bewildered by Chen Zheng's words. Only Situ Qi, who had been silent, was looking at him with a particularly solemn expression.

She wasn't swayed by the immediate scene; her mind was still replaying what had just happened.

Yoshioka Toshiaki said the blade intent in the brocade box could instantly kill even an Emperor Wu, yet it was completely useless against Chen Zheng and was ultimately worn down to nothing. And Chen Zheng himself seemed completely unaffected. Based on this... doesn't that mean his strength has long since surpassed that of an Emperor Wu, and might even be far greater?

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