"I am innocent! I am honest and upright!"
In the last few moments of this noisy night, when the dawn glowed on the horizon, the voice of Cui Chenghuang, the local city god of Fengyang County, also rang out in Lao Jiang's study.
The City God, wearing a green robe, was sitting on a chair opposite Lao Jiang, with a sighing look on his face and a burning cigarette in his hand.
The smoke is thick.
Outline of a forgotten past.
Lao Jiang was sitting behind the desk. Ruyue, who had rushed back after hearing the news, was massaging his boss's sore shoulders, while Shi Liu was sitting cross-legged on the table, staring at the frustrated Cui Chenghuang.
Next to the City God, there was a man in white with a white beard that almost reached the ground. Huai'an Gong, who was in the same camp as City God Cui, was also leaning on a jujube wood stick, with a look of grief and fear on his face.
Outside the door, Gu Miao, who was leaning on a spirit-empowered HK rifle, was stealthily putting his ear against the closed door, trying to listen to some noises in the room.
But several people in the room were talking about important matters, and the City God had used incense and prayer power to block the flow of sound.
Naturally, Gu Miao couldn't hear anything.
This made the girl very dissatisfied, and she felt that she was excluded from the boss' circle. But when she remembered that the boss said that he would take her to fight the evil cultivators after dawn, she became excited again.
Then he sat cross-legged on the ground.
She was not very skilled in disassembling the spirit-possessed rifle in her hand and wiping the weapon with a handkerchief. This was the first piece of knowledge she had learned while following Ruyue around the county town today.
Always take care of the weapons in your hands.
In the room.
The story of Cui Chenghuang has just begun. He is a body condensed from the power of incense and vows, although he does not have flesh and blood in the traditional sense.
But he can also appreciate the enjoyment of cigarettes.
This would be like a frustrated middle-aged man who was experiencing a career crisis, completely losing his brilliance and confessing his miserable feelings over the years to a group of people.
"I was summoned by Taofuyuan to Fengyang County seventeen years ago to serve as the city god."
Cui Chenghuang said in the ethereal tone that is unique to the Yin gods:
“When I was alive, I was also an official in the court of Fengming State. The old ruler was my student. Although there were factional disputes in Fengming State at that time, it was not a major event that would shake the foundation of the country.
When I died, there was no sign of the country splitting up.
But when I was recruited by Taofuyuan to be the City God, the first thing I heard was the bad news that Fengming Country only had three counties and twelve prefectures left. At that time, I felt something was wrong. "
The City God blew out a smoke ring and said to Jiang Xia in front of him:
“In your opinion, perhaps the decline of Fengming Country is a coincidence.
But I know it’s not!
Although the rise and fall of dynasties is inevitable, the root cause of a country's decline must have been planted many years ago. I am a scholar who has studied classics and history for a long time, so how could I not understand this truth?
In my opinion, the decline of Fengming Kingdom was too sudden.
There must be internal causes behind the appearance.
Therefore, after becoming the City God, in addition to handling daily affairs, listening to the people's expectations, and protecting the people of the land, I have also been secretly investigating the internal causes of the war that caused the Fengming Kingdom to split and decline more than 20 years ago."
Having said that, Cui Chenghuang sighed.
He said:
"It was from then on that I followed some clues and soon discovered some clues. Then, I was targeted by the gang of thieves."
"You mean, they have been hiding in Fengming Country more than 20 years ago?"
Jiang Xia was playing with the Fiery Sun Seal in his hand. The metal left arm looked a little ferocious, especially when those sophisticated mechanisms moved, which always made the God of Land next to him couldn't help but stare at it.
As a native of Ku Mu Territory, he had definitely never seen such a rare thing.
But Lao Jiang didn't care. He asked back:
"You told me before that the unclear death of your predecessor, the City God, was also related to them?"
"Um."
Cui Chenghuang nodded and said:
“More than twenty years. After some investigation, I found that they were probably lurking in our country before I died.
The haunted house that Inspector Shi Liu went to investigate today was the place where a murder occurred exactly two years after my death.
Listen to what that bastard Wu Chenghuang said.
It was at that time that he developed the Taoist Yunhuo, who was still a casual cultivator, into his colleague. In other words, before I died, City God Wu was already a member of that group of evil cultivators.
As for my predecessor, why did he die?
Lord Huai'an knows it better than I do. He was a good friend of the previous City God of Fengyang County and a truly close person.
But this man is honest and timid.
No matter how I asked him over the years, he wouldn't say anything."
As he spoke, Cui Chenghuang glanced at the Earth God who was standing next to him with his head down and not saying a word, and said:
"Lord Huai'an, now that things have come to this, you should stop hiding it.
At this critical moment, you should say something. If you don't make it clear now, when the Mingli Court comes to enforce the law, both of us will be regarded as people who knew about the incident but didn't report it, and our bodies will be crushed to ashes."
"Yes, yes."
The God of Land, frightened by today's events, raised his head in embarrassment.
He gave an awkward smile to Jiang Xia and Shi Liu who were staring at him, then leaned on his jujube wood stick with both hands and said in a fearful tone:
“I did see that scene before. Fortunately, the evil cultivators who attacked me were not very powerful. As a land master, I also knew how to hide, so I was not discovered by them.
I was timid, so I kept hiding from them after that and didn't meet them.
Later, I couldn't bear the resentment in my heart any more, so I thought of reporting what I saw to the superior of Taofuyuan, and asking the Immortal Alliance to take charge of my old friend who died tragically.
As a result, I met Cui Chenghuang, who reminded me that my superiors might not be reliable..."
"Our Shangguan Ben is a bad guy!"
Pomegranate was holding a handful of spiritual stones, absorbing spiritual energy to soothe the bite marks on her skin, while she said indignantly:
"When I report something to him, he always speaks in a sarcastic tone, and he always says that I am annoying him. I suggested that we ask the inspector to inspect the area, but he brushed it off.
Before, I just thought that person was old and stupid.
Now I know that he is really bad! "
"Shut up! Listen patiently to what Lord Huai'an has to say."
Lao Jiang glared at Shi Liu.
The latter suddenly shrank his neck and showed a flattering expression to Jiang Xia.
Ugly and cute.
If Shi Liu and Lao Jiang had a close relationship before, it was more because of Mr. Crow's strange contract and the reputation of the game console.
After Lao Jiang risked his life tonight to save its life, Shi Liu was really grateful to Lao Jiang.
The relationship between the man and the monster also became closer.
It may be frightened now.
In short, he behaved very well in front of Jiang Xia.
"Lord Huai'an, don't be afraid. Keep talking. Tell me everything you saw that year."
Lao Jiang had a good impression of this cowardly and weak local god who was determined to avenge his old friend. He reached into the drawer of the desk, took out a green jade pipe, and handed it to Lord Huaian.
This pipe was something Liu Ruyi had found from somewhere before. It had a few wisps of spiritual energy, but it was not a magical weapon. It could only be said to be a weak spiritual object.
The old man was probably a little excited at this moment because he saw his old friend getting his revenge. He took the cigarette with both hands and lit it with the flame of the lighter handed to him by Ruyue.
Like an old farmer in the countryside, he took a long puff of cigarette, exhaled a wisp of smoke, calmed down, and then continued:
"That day, back then, was very ordinary."
Huai'an Gong recalled the past, smiled bitterly and said:
“It was about twenty-one years ago, when the third prince of Fengming Kingdom was just one month old. I received an invitation from my old friend, who said he had obtained a jar of spiritual wine and asked me to go and taste it.
I'm not afraid of being laughed at by you. When I was alive, I was a famous wine maker in Fengyang County. I earned my reputation because I was kind and charitable.
After death, one can be recruited by the immortals of Taofuyuan to be a land god.
My good friend and I had known each other before he died, and we were destined to be together after his death. He was the City God and I was the Land God, and it was a happy and carefree life to have my old friend by my side.
But on that day, the old man was on his way to the City God Temple to keep an appointment with the spiritual fruits he had found in the mountains, but he felt the ground cracking and the spiritual energy surging.
It was like a sudden earthquake.
The earth dragon turned over, causing panic in the city. Seeing that the people were about to suffer, my old friend stepped forward to protect the safety of the people in the city.
This is what our generation of incense gods should do.
We are usually worshipped by the people, and we must protect them in times of crisis. So far, everything is going smoothly.
With my old friend's practice, it is possible to soothe the earth's veins and protect the people during the earthquake .
The old man originally planned to go and help.
But before he showed up, I saw... I saw..."
When the God of Land got excited, his tone became sharp.
He held onto his pipe and said loudly:
"Just when my friend was rescuing the people, an evil cultivator suddenly showed up and attacked. Fengyang County is already not very prosperous, and my friend was distracted by rescuing the people, so how could he resist the attack?
In just a few breaths, my friend's spirit body was shattered by the evil cultivators. They used evil magic weapons to capture my friend's soul, and took advantage of the earthquake to destroy the golden statue in the City God Temple.
There aren't many people practicing Buddhism locally, so naturally no one knew about this.
Afterwards, in the report submitted by Taofuyuan, there was only a comment about my old friend: "died while protecting the people."
They didn't even send a supervisor!
I don't care about the original cause of my friend's death!
It's as if my friend's death was worthless, as if his years of hard work in this place, as if his efforts to protect lives, were of no benefit to Shangguan!"
The God of Land leaned on his jujube wood stick, tapped the ground several times, and said indignantly:
"Gentlemen, tell me, is this something a human would do?"
"My condolences."
Although Cui Chenghuang knew that the previous one died in unclear circumstances, it was the first time he heard of it. He pursed his lips and said something to comfort him, but Huai'an Gong shook his head.
He hasn't finished yet.
“I am incompetent and my magic power is weak. Although I remember the faces of those evil cultivators, I cannot take revenge on them. I can only quietly follow them all the way until I see them cross the border of the East and enter the Southern Wilderness.
The old man is a local, and once he enters another place's earth veins his magic power will weaken and he will be unable to hide. He can only watch the murderer leave, unable to do anything, and hear them talking to each other.
It is said to be from some 'ghost cult'..."
"Ah! The Cult of the Ghosts!"
The pomegranate suddenly stood up and said:
"I have heard of this. It is on the edge of the Southern Wilderness Swamp, in a ravine near the Star Valley. The mountain guardian lady once went to expel them, saying that they were heretics who specialized in practicing evil ghost magic!
No wonder there was no news after the mountain-guarding grandmother drove them away. I thought they had dispersed, but I didn’t expect that they had moved to the East.”
"But why are they making such a big fuss in Fengming Country, interfering in the rise and fall of mortal countries, and secretly starting wars? Why?"
Jiang Xia frowned and asked:
"Could it be that they just want to cause trouble? And they've made it so big that they've even dragged the City God into the group. This is stirring up trouble for the Tao Fu Yuan."
"They are after souls."
Cui Chenghuang said in a bleak tone:
"Our country has been cultivating in peace for more than 20 years, but why is the incense still not prosperous? It is because that group of evil practitioners have established yin gathering places like the capital in the major cities of our country.
When a mortal dies, his soul cannot be reborn and is captured in the underworld, where he becomes a vengeful spirit and suffers endless pain.
If this continues, there will be no more babies being reborn, and the human population will naturally become increasingly sparse. As for those evil cultivators who have captured souls, where will they send them and what will they do with them?
I have investigated till now but still haven't found out the truth.
But think about it, they are nothing more than using innocent souls as evil weapons and practicing evil skills. Since they are evil practitioners, they are capable of doing all kinds of crazy and insane things.
In fact, I have also been sought after by that evil man.
Their words were full of inducements and recruitment, saying that if I turned a blind eye, I would get benefits, and they also promised that they had the secret book of ghost cultivation.
It can free me from the constraints of incense and help me become a Yang God, thus achieving great freedom.
But I have been pretending to be nice to them and dragging my feet to prevent them from setting up a gathering place in Fengyang County. But to be honest, I really can't hold on any longer.
Two of the city gods of the three counties of Fengming State have surrendered to the enemy. Except for the Duke of Huai'an, the other local officials of the twelve prefectures cannot be , and they are suppressed by their superiors.
Just like layers of darkness.
Even if I want to fight to the death, I can't get any hope.
I was already exhausted.
That day, I ran into that adult by chance..."
Having said this, Cui Chenghuang suddenly stood up, bowed to Jiang Xia, and said:
“Fellow Daoist Jiang, and Supervisor Shi Liu, I did have some thoughts. I used this method that I shouldn’t have used in order to protect myself, but also for the sake of the people of Fengyang County.
Drag the two of them into the water.
This is because that adult said that Fellow Daoist Jiang is an anomaly in the world, with an extremely strong destiny. The law of Si Jiutian is like a fierce dragon crossing the river. It cannot bear to see evil things happening in front of it, so it has to use Vajra methods and show the heart of a bodhisattva.
This situation can be broken by others, but you can break it.
A situation that others cannot break, a fellow Taoist can also break.
Looking at what you have done so far, you have defeated Liu Ruyi and made a name for yourself in Mo Shuang Mountain, which has given me confidence. "
Talking.
Amid the exclamations of Shi Liu and Ru Yue, the City God lifted up his official robe and knelt down towards Jiang Xia.
He said in a deep voice:
"I dare not ask for your forgiveness, but I only ask you to help me out of the innocence of the people here and the pity of our country."
"My old friend's body is still warm, and I have no place to complain about my grievances. I also ask Brother Daoist Jiang to help me."
Duke Huaian also knelt all the way down.
In this mortal legend, the city god and the land god of a very prestigious place asked for help in this way, which made Ruyue behind Lao Jiang open her eyes wide.
Jiang Xia did not answer.
He leaned back in his chair, casually flicked out a cigarette, held it between the corners of his mouth, and used his ferocious mechanical arm to light a spark. As the smoke rose, Lao Jiang's face remained calm.
He glanced at the pomegranate and said:
"You always boasted to me that you wanted to do something big, didn't you? Now that something big has come, do you dare to do it?"
"If you dare, I dare!"
Pomegranate answered this question cunningly.
"hehe."
Old Jiang laughed, then he stood up and said to the City God and the Land God:
“Get up.
Fengming Country is where my Kunlun Fang made its fortune. I have made a lot of investments here. If Fengming Country is gone, my investment will be wasted.
I am a businessman, and the price of bloodshed is too high for me, but I don't like doing business at a loss even more.
This job.
Ben Xiu, got it! "