Yamafu Military Affairs

Chapter 250: The Beauty of the World

Florence, outer city area.

The pitch-black flying yaksha moved silently over the foggy city. This period of time was when the fog was thickest in the outer city of Florence at night, and the visible range was no more than ten meters.

The tornado that Qin Huai created in the embassy district blew away a lot of rain clouds, but the Papal States had used too many steam machines tonight, and thick steam clouds soon covered the night sky again. It looked like there would be another convective rain in the second half of the night.

The Flying Yaksha was holding the heavy [Black Corpse Coffin] under its body. It did not make any sound as it advanced along the residential buildings where there was not even a trace of fire, cleverly missing all the patrolling soldiers.

Thanks to the [multi-threading] brought about by the breakthrough in alchemy expertise, Qin Huai can now control his main body and the soul-hunting fragment to do two completely unrelated things at the same time without affecting efficiency.

For example, now, the main body rushed back to the Holy Seminary in Turin to recover, while the Soul Hunting Soul controlled the Flying Yaksha to fly out with Linlang.

The silver moonlight became increasingly dimmer, and finally completely disappeared. The gray fog and dark clouds that covered most of the sky drowned out the bright stars and the moon. A strong wind blew in from the Mediterranean, and drizzle came again.

A fat rainbow trout jumped out of the water, and its vertical pupils reflected a strange-looking bar.

The front half of the bar was normal, with two lemon trees planted in the mud, oak barrels piled against the wall, the narrow wooden door was blocked, and rhythmic military music and noisy and enthusiastic singing came from the gaps in the greasy and heavy curtains. There was a rusty iron sign on the door, with a ferocious shark sprayed in red and white paint, and the words "Veterans Bar" were bitten in the shark's big mouth.

The back half of the bar floats in the water. It is shaped like the stern of a ship, with lifebuoys, ropes, anchors and other decorations hanging on it. On the deck is a railing facing the river, and several tables of guests are eating barbecue and drinking beer facing the Tiber River in the night.

The predecessor of this bar was the Arno trawler, which served in the fishing company of the Medici family for twenty years. After being scrapped, it was bought and transformed into the current Veterans Bar.

Tang, the bartender at the Veteran Bar, is a mixed-race person of Chinese and Western descent. He once went to Chang'an with his father to do business. After returning to Florence, he participated in the Crescent-Star War between the Papal States and the Black Caliphate. After he was injured and retired, he used the compensation to open this Veteran Bar.

This is an underground market hidden in the outer city area by the Florence underground gang Man-eating Shark, where guns, illegal drugs, and even Kunlun slaves are traded.

The man-eating shark is one of the several spy bases that the Shenwu Tianqi has conquered in Florence during this period.

The flying yaksha traveled for half an hour and finally arrived here.

The soul hunter opened the curtain and walked into the bar, with a strong smell of sweat and alcohol blowing in his face. Qin Huai, wrapped in a black robe, shook off the water droplets on his body and went straight to the long bar with the flying yaksha carrying the [Black Corpse Coffin].

"A glass of Medusa, a glass of Seraph, and finally a glass of Fanying."

Qin Huai stood at the bar and ordered three glasses of wine. The familiar yet unfamiliar Oriental Mandarin and a few gold coins immediately caught Tang's attention.

"You are... The lobby is noisy and full of people, please come with me to the private room."

Tang looked at Yaksha wearing a special mobile armor in surprise. He had some attainments in mechanics and could tell that this was not a mobile armor produced by the Papal States.

Thinking of the Shenwu Tianqi who came to see him a few days ago, Tang immediately pulled open the partition under the wine table and led Qin Huai to the back.

After entering the small and cramped cabin of the fishing boat which had been converted into a private room, Feitian Yaksha put down the [Black Corpse Coffin] and took the initiative to stand guard outside the door.

Tang Li mixed several base liquors in the box with ice cubes to make three glasses of wine, and handed them to the small wooden table in front of Qin Huai.

"Thank you."

Qin Huai took the wine and waved his hand: "Don't let anyone in, I have something important to do."

"As you wish, my lord from Chang'an."

When the door closed, Qin Huai quickly opened the coffin lid and looked at Madam Linlang half-kneeling quietly on the wall of the coffin, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, a gap was left in advance, so the Fuso priestess was not suffocated to death.

"Has your brain returned to normal? Want to chat?"

The effect of [Shangqing Sanmao Taiyi Resurrection Talisman] is powerful. In theory, it can completely restore Linlang's missing white matter. However, Qin Huai has no idea whether the newly grown nerve fibers still store the memories from more than ten years ago.

"Linlang thanks you for saving my life. My mind is now normal, but there are many things I can't remember."

Sure enough, it doesn't work.
Qin Huai sighed. Although he still had some doubts in his heart, he pulled Linlang out of the coffin and helped her sit down on the small sofa.

"You have a good son. If he hadn't made such a big noise tonight, I wouldn't have noticed you."

"Cesare is a good boy. Thanks to him, this family has been maintained over the years."

Although Linlang couldn't remember things that happened a long time ago, the little things about Xizel accompanying her over the years came to her mind immediately after she regained consciousness.

"His Red Dragon armor is too heavy. I can't take him and you out of Florence tonight. But he is qualified, so Long should come forward to protect him."

Although Linlang would most likely not make trouble, Qin Huai felt that some things should be made clear early on.

"Long maybe. If he can't do anything, please allow me to return to the city to save my son."

"What are you going to do? Feed the tiger with your own body? Don't worry about your children. I will get information for you and deal with it. But the premise of all this is that you have what I want."

Qin Huai shook his head, looked at the woman in front of him who wanted to throw a meat bun at a dog, and took the initiative to reject her plan.

"My Lord, what do you want to know? I will tell you everything I know, thanks to your great kindness."

Linlang knew that Qin Huai had gone to great lengths to rescue her and must have some ulterior motive, but she had no one else to rely on at the moment and had to grasp this life-saving straw.

"What is Tsukuyomi Teru? What is the secret of the Messiah? What is your life story? Tell me all of this."

Qin Huai picked up the cup of Medusa in one hand, pushed Fanying in front of Linlang with the other, and asked a few questions that he was more concerned about.

Listening to Qin Huai's question, Linlang frowned slightly, thought and recalled for a long time before slowly speaking.

"I am from Fuso. When I was young, I followed the Moon God's messenger Yuetu from Kyushu to Chang'an. After paying a visit to the Saint Jinglong at Tianque, the messenger took me to live in the capital to learn a hundred arts. After staying there for a few years, the messenger was restless and wanted to move, so he set off again and took me to travel around the Western Regions, and came to Florence via the White Caliphate. The messenger seemed to have some background in Florence, so we didn't encounter much trouble. We bought the abandoned Moon Temple in the mountains on the northern outskirts of Florence and converted it into a shrine dedicated to Tsukuyomi. Later, I had some romantic affairs with the upper-class nobles in Florence. As for the Tsukuyomi Zhao that the adults mentioned, the messenger also said that I was the chosen one blessed by the Moon God. I wonder if this is related to it."

Qin Huai held up the cocktail called "Medusa" and looked at Linlang with a strange look.

"But as far as I know, aren't Fuso shrine maidens not allowed to marry?" "Your Excellency is right. As a shrine maiden dedicated to the great god Tsukuyomi, I should indeed remain chaste and serve Tsukuyomi for the rest of my life."

Linlang looked at the cocktail that was as beautiful as cherry blossoms, her expression seemed a little dazed: "It's just that the Moon Rabbit God treated me very well. He said that the Moon God didn't care about these empty formalities. Instead, he encouraged the priests and priestesses to pursue their own happiness. In addition, the bishops and priests of Messiah often came to visit the shrine at that time, so I met Long. At that time, I was young and my love was stirring. Long often took me to the cocktail parties and dance halls in Florence, and the Moon Rabbit God was happy to see this, so we had a love."

"But later, due to family pressure and his desire for power, Long was unable to marry you in a formal way and could only keep you as a concubine?"

As Qin Huai listened to Linlang's story, he had already imagined a melodramatic romance drama in his mind.

"Yes, but no. Long's compromise may have been influenced by these factors, but my experience, now that I think about it, should be related to that secret."

Linlang raised her wine glass and took a sip, her expression full of reminiscence.

"Thirteen years ago, I had just given birth to Adele and was recuperating in a private residence under Long's name. But one day, I suddenly heard the bad news about the Moon Rabbit Envoy. To be honest, I didn't believe it when the mounted police told me the news. The Moon Rabbit Envoy was strong and had extraordinary skills. In my opinion, he was no less capable than you, so how could he die suddenly? When I hurried back to the Moon Temple to collect the body, I found many suspicious points. I can't remember the specific details, but I went to the Pope's Palace to discuss countermeasures with Long, who was the cardinal at the time. It was there that I heard the secret."

Qin Huai stared at Linlang intently, thinking about the information revealed in his words just now.

"I can't remember the specific content of that speech, but the general idea was that the two tools that Messianic religion used to influence the world, mechanical technology and religious spirit, were not their own things, but gifts from fate."

"Steam machinery technology comes from the old era. Could it be that religious spirit also comes from the old era?"

Qin Huai compared the development history of the Tianrui Division of the Tang Dynasty and asked uncertainly.

"I don't know about this, but the cardinals of Messiah are very respectful to the Moon Rabbit Envoy. It seems that the Moon God also has a high status in their doctrine."

"Oh? You said before that the Moon Rabbit Envoy died in a strange way. Is there a possibility that he was killed by the Cardinal?"

"That's what I thought, too."

Qin Huai's eyes flickered, and with a thought, he called the Flying Yaksha in.

"Well, you have a good rest tonight, and I will go check on your son. Tomorrow you will accompany me to the Moon Temple. I have a feeling that the Moon Rabbit Envoy may have left something behind before he died."

"Thank you, sir."

"He will stay here to guard you. As long as no Seraph comes, he can guarantee your life."
-
Florence, headquarters of the Crusader Guards.

The deepest part of the Iron Cross Fort is a military prison where serious criminals are held, and César, who was called the "Dragon of Traitor" tonight, is imprisoned here.

Late at night, a middle-aged man in a black windbreaker and hood walked quickly across the square, ignoring dozens of checks and guards, and came to a certain iron door. He took out a brass key, inserted it into the lock, and slowly turned it. There was a sound of gears meshing and turning from inside the door, and several lock tongues were retracted at the same time, and the iron door opened with a bang.

The guard with a stern face looked at the throne in front of him and was about to raise his hand to salute, but was stopped by the attendant Director Spencer.

Behind the iron gate is a grand hall, yet very simple. The black and white checkered floor seems to extend endlessly, making people's eyes dazzled, as if they have entered a dream.

In the center of the black and white "dream", there was a chair. César was sitting on the chair facing the door, his body tightly tied up with tough leather belts and steel cables.

The door was closed, and a dark blue light filled the huge space. All sounds were blocked out. The man walked through the door and came to his son's side.

"Who was the last person to appear on the long bridge tonight?"

The Pope's voice was flat, and the first question he asked had nothing to do with his wife and children.

"Seeing me like this, I guess you already have the answer, right?"

Seeing his son who did not need any treatment from a medical officer and had no scars on his body, Long's guess came to an end.

"But that man had an alibi for the entire night. In the time it took you to fight your way from the Sistine Chapel to the Tiber River, he nearly dismantled the Dragon Slayer into a pile of scrap metal."

"How sad! Mom just escaped from a place that was like hell to her, and her beloved lover is caring about an Oriental man!"

Listening to César's sarcastic words, Long turned around and looked into César's eyes. A few seconds later, he slapped César in the face without mercy.

Xizel was wearing a straitjacket, so he couldn't resist, but even without the straitjacket he would not be a match for his father. He knew better than anyone that his father was barely a saint, but as a swordsman he was a top-notch swordsman and could even fight with a sword dancer.

The slap was so heavy that blood started flowing from Xizel's nose and ears, and his vision was blurred. But he actually laughed and looked at Long with a mocking look.

Although Long provided all the support for his operation to rescue his mother tonight except for the executor, he still had a lot of resentment in his heart.

"If you had learned to compromise and be tolerant, tonight's incident wouldn't have become such a big deal, and Torres wouldn't have died in vain."

Another sharp slap landed on his already bruised face, but Long's voice remained flat.

"Franco has confirmed that the Oriental talismans can heal white matter damage. If you just delay a little longer and wait for the Vatican to complete the exchange of interests with the Orientals, you will get a completely healthy mother. But you are too impulsive."

"And then what? Will she be discovered by the Cardinal and his gang of old immortals, and then be subjected to endless reincarnation punishment?! When I arrived at the Sistine Chapel, the brain surgeon's scalpel was right next to Mom's cell!"

Xizel raised his head and looked at the white roof with a mocking tone.

Long was silent. What César said made sense. As the Holy See of the Messiah, he knew very well how terrifying the agents of the Inquisition were. They could track down anyone in the world. If César wanted Linlang to be undisturbed, there were only a few places he could choose.

"I will mobilize resources to try to reduce your guilt during the trial, but you can avoid the death penalty, but you can't escape the punishment of life. The Red Dragon's combat power core will not give up, and you will most likely be sent to the front line to fight. Choose a path, and I will arrange it for you."

Long pulled out a letter and held it in front of Cesar.

"Either go to the frozen sea to feed the fish and then freeze to death in the Far North; or go to West America to mine and deal with the savages; or..."

"I want to go to Nero. Only there can I gain stronger power!"

Blood flowed from the corners of the boy's eyes, and a blazing purple fire burned wildly in his pupils.

(End of this chapter)