As the Shrine Maiden dismissed them, the few individuals naturally couldn't linger and, after agreeing, turned to leave the darkroom.
After seeing them off, the Shrine Maiden waved away the guards by his side, leaving him alone in the room.
Of course, besides people, there was also a small bug materialized by Lin Ran's energy…
With the Black Hades' invisibility helmet concealing its presence entirely, the bug was virtually undetectable unless directly spotted by the eyes.
This happened to be the Achilles' heel of countless people.
Especially for higher-level awakened individuals, who placed immense trust in their own senses and were less inclined to believe their eyes.
Their senses had long since replaced their eyes, becoming the primary windows they relied on to perceive the outside world.
After all, under normal circumstances, nothing could be completely and thoroughly imperceptible, so maintaining such confidence wasn't entirely wrong…
It was just unfortunate that when encountering an existence like Lin Ran, who wielded power on a different dimension, one was easily caught off guard.
Like the Shrine Maiden at this moment.
Ensuring no one else was in the room, the Shrine Maiden's gaze flickered as he utilized the room's facilities and his magic to seal off the entire darkroom. Only then did he cautiously retrieve a jade pendant from his embrace.
"Master! What is it?"
The Shrine Maiden urgently called out to the jade pendant.
In response to his call, the entire jade pendant instantly shone with a dazzling white light, enveloping the entire darkroom.
Following this, a translucent, ethereal white soul body appeared in the center of the darkroom.
"Gu, your current situation is extremely perilous!"
"There are simply too many jackals around, plotting against you… Any slight slip-up could easily lead to you being devoured completely, leaving not even bones behind…"
"Their greed and brutality are beyond anything you can imagine."
The soul body that spoke had a white beard and white hair, wearing a robe embroidered with mystical runes. He stood with his hands clasped under his beard, eyes slightly narrowed, exuding an air of ancient wisdom.
The Shrine Maiden's face, having shed its recent resentment and youthful immaturity, now held only depth and seriousness:
"Master… I am naturally aware of this…"
"But the power we can currently wield is far too limited. We are utterly incapable of dealing with these stubborn ailments festering within the Land of Cherry Blossoms."
"Especially when confronting powerful clans like those represented by Tanaka Ken'ichi, we appear utterly helpless…"
"Even setting them aside, the ministers I personally promoted to the court might not be truly aligned with me…"
"Coupled with the enigmatic stance of the Shrine Priest organization, I'm at a loss as to what to do."
The white-bearded soul body chuckled:
"Gu, do you know why I instructed you to deliberately lose your temper with them just now?"
The Shrine Maiden pondered seriously for a moment before replying:
"To conceal my strength?"
"To let them continue to believe I am still that hot-headed youth who cannot control his emotions?"
The white-bearded soul body smiled without speaking and paced a few steps in the darkroom before saying:
"Well, that's only one aspect of the reason…"
"The most crucial part is to convey a message to the current leader of the Shrine Priest organization."
"The words I had you articulate verbatim contained a coded phrase that I had previously agreed upon with someone…"
"I believe with my hint, she should now understand how to choose her allegiance."
"Therefore, from this day forward, the Shrine Priest organization will stand with us with absolute loyalty… You can rest assured of this, Gu."
The Shrine Maiden's eyes immediately widened with surprise:
"What? Absolute loyalty?! That's the Shrine Priest organization!"
The white-bearded soul body nodded proudly:
"Indeed, it is precisely because they are the Shrine Priest organization that I was able to achieve this…"
"I don't fear you knowing, Gu, but when I was still corporeal, I had an old acquaintance in that Shrine Priest organization, a relationship forged in the face of death."
"I hadn't brought it up before because I felt somewhat ashamed and didn't want to rely on her power."
"But now, if I continue to stubbornly maintain my pride and pretend indifference, I fear we are doomed!"
"At this critical juncture when the Land of Cherry Blossoms is in such immense peril, how can I continue to hold back and not give my all?"
The Shrine Maiden was instantly overjoyed:
"Master! You are truly formidable!"
"If we can gain the allegiance of the Shrine Priest organization, our chances of victory will surely increase by more than tenfold!"
"At the very least, Tanaka Ken'ichi's subtle machinations will no longer pose any threat to us!"
The white-bearded soul body shook his head with pride:
"Naturally…"
"Furthermore, the unclear stance of the Shrine Priest organization will prevent others from suspecting they are on our side."
"This is quite a significant surprise, and it must be deployed at the most critical moment."
"We can even authorize the Shrine Priest organization to feign alliances with other factions, gathering more intelligence from them…"
"In terms of controlling the overall situation, we are far ahead of those people!"
The Shrine Maiden was also beaming with joy. Gazing at the smug white-bearded soul body, he suddenly seemed to recall something and quickly interjected:
"Gu will forever remember Master's wholehearted assistance!"
"Once we cleanse the court, rectify the wrongs, and bring the entire Land of Cherry Blossoms under our control, I will rebuild the Investiture of the Gods platform for you, Master!"
"With the power of faith from the Investiture of the Gods platform and the assistance of the Shrine Priest organization's divine arts, I believe it will help you rebuild your physical body…"
"At that time, I will appoint you as the National Preceptor, bestow upon you a noble title and a fiefdom, allowing you to enjoy the glorious prosperity of this era!"
The white-bearded soul body laughed and waved his hand:
"Those are matters for the future, and it's not too late to discuss them then…"
"What we need to do now is to diligently handle our current affairs."
"If it were only Tanaka Ken'ichi, with our hidden strength and the help of the Shrine Priest organization, it wouldn't be a problem."
"But this is a time of many troubles. Within just the small island of Kyushu, there are countless factions lurking…"
"Therefore, we must be cautious, cautious, and even more cautious! We must turn them all into our nourishment!"
"Especially that Dragon Countryman, Lin Ran, we absolutely must bring him under control…"
"His body is the greatest treasure I have ever seen in my life…"
"I even dare to predict! With his body, within a thousand years, I can glimpse that sliver of opportunity to become a god…"
"Therefore, these are our true top priorities!"