"King of the Night? Who is that?" Director Lin De was stunned for a moment. Like everyone else present, he was curious and immediately flipped through the files on his tablet.
He searched for unknown individuals recently recorded in the archives.
Figures such as the Ghost Empress Yan Zhi, the Black Mist Man, and the Black City God had all been documented by the 749 Bureau, with their files categorized by danger levels.
After a quick search, he found nothing related to the so-called King of the Night.
"There is no archival record of the King of the Night. Additionally, I asked Elder Zhang who the King of the Night is."
"Elder Zhang said he doesn't know either. When he asked the Maoshan Sect Ancestor after hearing about it, the Ancestor didn't answer him directly and only said, 'If you wish to know about the King of the Night, you are not yet qualified.'"
"Hmm?" Even Lin De and the high-ranking officials of the 749 Bureau were shocked.
Elder Zhang's strength was well recognized. Even beyond the borders of Daxia, within the history of the Maoshan Sect, he was one of the most outstanding sect leaders.
"Seriously? Even Elder Zhang isn't qualified?" Professor Chen, a woman, looked incredulous.
The assistant nodded. "These were Elder Zhang's exact words. He said the Maoshan Sect Ancestor stated it that way."
Lin De and the others found this even stranger. Professor Chen adjusted her glasses and asked, "Even Elder Zhang is deemed unworthy? Then who exactly is this King of the Night? Have you checked ancient texts? Perhaps there is a record of this figure somewhere?"
The logistics department head picked up the conversation. "And who exactly is this Maoshan Sect Ancestor? Has the Bureau investigated? For Elder Zhang to take it so seriously, rushing back immediately, which ancestor of the Maoshan Sect is it?"
"As for information on the King of the Night," the assistant swiped through the screen, "after we learned about this, we borrowed the Maoshan Sect's ancient texts from Elder Zhang and also reviewed the Bureau's collection of historical texts, folklore, and local records. We found no relevant entries on the King of the Night."
"As for the Maoshan Sect Ancestor, we have identified them." He tapped the screen and pulled up a file containing the Ancestor's details.
"The Maoshan Sect Ancestor who has emerged is none other than the Thirteenth Grandmaster of the Maoshan Sect—Li Hanguang."
At this moment, Lin De and the others could no longer sit still. Lin De's breath even came to an abrupt halt.
"The Maoshan Sect Ancestor who emerged is Li Hanguang?! Are you sure there's no mistake?"
"No mistake, it's Li Hanguang."
"…"
Silence.
The conference room was quiet for several seconds before someone finally spoke.
Lin De exhaled slowly. "No wonder Elder Zhang is taking it so seriously. It turns out to be the Maoshan Daoist from the Tang Dynasty—the Thirteenth Grandmaster of the Maoshan Sect, Li Hanguang."
The assistant nodded and read from the records, formally stating Li Hanguang's details.
"Just as Director Lin De mentioned, according to the Bureau's records, Li Hanguang was the Maoshan Sect Leader during the Tang Dynasty. His power was so great that even Emperor Xuanzong of Tang deeply revered him."
"In fact, successive Tang emperors held him in high esteem."
"In the Tianbao era, Emperor Xuanzong bestowed upon Li Hanguang the title 'Mister Xuanjing,' and in his later years, he resided at Ziyang Temple in Maoshan."
"He and his master, Sima Chengzhen—the Twelfth Grandmaster of the Maoshan Sect—had such an impact on the sect during the Tang Dynasty that Maoshan retained significant influence even into the Song Dynasty."
"It was only in the mid-Song Dynasty that its influence began to decline, leading to the sect's fall during that period. It wasn't until the late Song Dynasty that the Thirteenth Grandmaster revitalized Maoshan, restoring its glory."
"And this Thirteenth Grandmaster deeply respected Li Hanguang and was greatly influenced by him."
"According to historical records, during the Northern Song period, Maoshan, along with Longhu Mountain and Gezao Mountain, was known as one of the 'Three Great Talisman Sects' of Daoism. This reputation was partly due to Li Hanguang's legacy. Almost every Maoshan Sect Leader after him was, to some extent, influenced by him."
Lin De's expression was full of emotion. He looked at the information on his tablet.
"If we can persuade Daoist Li Hanguang to act, it would be enough to deter the ancient great demons of Changbai Mountain."
Professor Chen nodded in agreement. "With Daoist Li Hanguang's power, even the oldest and most terrifying demons would have to hesitate. They might not remain hidden forever, but at the very least, they wouldn't dare recklessly cross the Shanhai Pass."
The logistics department head agreed and sighed. "Unfortunately, Daoist Li Hanguang refused. At least for now, we can't get his help. We'll have to wait until he finishes catching up with the King of the Night. It shouldn't take too long, right?"
At this moment, Lin De thought for a moment and spoke. "Let Elder Zhang try to persuade Daoist Li Hanguang to assist us. In the meantime, have Elder Zhang go to Changbai Mountain and hold the line. Though Hu San Laotaiye is dead, the other Patriarchs of the Five Great Clans in the Northeast are still there."
"Together with Elder Zhang, they should be able to keep those ancient great demons in check for a while. For now, we'll take things one step at a time."
He massaged his temples, feeling a growing headache. So many things had happened in just two days. Each incident was severe. With all these crises piling up, manpower was critically lacking.
Even though Lin De was an expert strategist, known as the 'Zhuge Liang of the 749 Bureau,' there was little he could do without sufficient personnel.
He had no choice but to rob Peter to pay Paul.
Then, he turned to his assistant. "Continue with the other important updates."
"Yes," the assistant replied with a nod.
———
Meanwhile.
At the Maoshan Sect, in the secluded rear mountain where no ordinary person had access, inside an ancient Daoist temple…
Elder Zhang glanced at his phone.
It contained a message from the 749 Bureau, instructing him to persuade Li Hanguang to help and also asking him to station himself at Changbai Mountain.
Just then, "What are you looking at?" A voice rang out.
It came from an elderly Daoist sitting in the temple's main seat. His appearance was weathered from time, clad in an ancient, simple Daoist robe. His beard reached down to his chest. With long, snow-white hair and a whisk in hand, he looked like a Daoist Immortal from legend.
His presence alone made Elder Zhang yield the main seat and sit as a guest. After all, this was the Maoshan Sect's Ancestor—the Thirteenth Grandmaster, Daoist Li Hanguang.
At this moment, Li Hanguang had yet to leave to find Qin Ye.
As the Ancestor of the Maoshan Sect, he first needed to understand the current state of the sect, learn about this era, and figure out how to use modern tools like mobile phones.
Elder Zhang respectfully answered, "Ancestor, it's nothing. Just a message from the 749 Bureau asking me to station myself at Changbai Mountain for a while because…"
He paused, his expression turning grave. "Hu San Laotaiye of the Five Great Clans in the Northeast is dead. The Bureau fears that the ancient great demons in Changbai Mountain will stir up trouble, so they need me to assist."
Li Hanguang turned to look at him, his aged face showing some surprise. "Hu San Laotaiye is dead?"
Hu San Laotaiye had made a name for himself since ancient times—even Li Hanguang knew of him. "Who did it? A human? A demon? A ghost?"
Li Hanguang made no effort to conceal his astonishment. Then, as if realizing something, his expression grew thoughtful.
"A being capable of killing Hu San Laotaiye in this era… No wonder he chose to awaken now."
He clearly understood the gravity of Hu San Laotaiye's death. Then, noticing Elder Zhang's hesitance, he glanced at him.
"You want this old Daoist to help, don't you?"
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