Chương 92: To Every Land God

Fang Cheng's greatest skill was solving cases. When it came to economic matters, he left them to Qin Hao. He said no more, picked up a piece of mutton from the hotpot, and ate it with relish. Qin Hao continued, "Brother Fang, the running goats from the grassland really do taste better than farm-raised mutton." Fang Cheng rolled his eyes.

"We don't have a grassland here. You can't do anything about that." Qin Hao waved his hand.

"No, Brother Fang, that's not what I meant. I'm saying we need to open up a supply route to Shangyuan Prefecture and buy livestock directly from there, instead of going through the middlemen in Lianshan Prefecture." Fang Cheng thought for a moment.

"The shortest route from Shangyuan Prefecture to White Flower City is down along the Xijiang River, but those are muddy paths, not easy to travel. Actually, if the official road through the Everlasting Mountains opens up, Shangyuan Prefecture could go a bit east, then cut through Xiangshi City and take that route."

"Brother Fang, that's exactly what I wanted to talk about." Qin Hao replied.

"Since Old Xu hasn't come back, I got anxious. I asked Shuyan to go with me to the Everlasting Mountains to check on the road's progress." Li Shuyan chimed in, "Before we went, we wanted to let you know, but we saw you were in closed-door cultivation, so we didn't disturb you." Fang Cheng waved his hand, not minding, and motioned for them to continue. Qin Hao said, "We found the spirit beasts in charge of the road and asked about the situation. The road isn't finished yet, but it's taking shape.

It can already accommodate two carriages side by side. I'm planning to open it for use while work continues, letting caravans with urgent needs take this route to save time."

"If it can handle normal traffic, then use it." Fang Cheng didn't object, but he added a warning.

"But be careful with those spirit beasts in the Everlasting Mountains. They're scattered across different peaks. Some aren't as easy to deal with as the ones working on the road. Send a few cultivators as escorts. If any spirit beast shows hostility, don't hesitate. Kill it." Li Shuyan smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry. It seems Old Xu warned all the spirit beasts in the Everlasting Mountains. They've become very law-abiding. They wouldn't dare rob or kill. And somehow, word spread about how you killed King Tiger. Now every spirit beast in the Everlasting Mountains respects you. Some even offered us fine fruits and wine when they heard we were your people. So as long as our caravans carry your portrait on their banners, no spirit beast will dare attack us."

"Oh, so after all that, you want to use my likeness." Fang Cheng thought for a moment, then waved his hand.

"Fine. You can use my portrait however you want. But don't make me look as fierce as those wanted posters. Make me look kind and benevolent, like the Emperor's statue."

"Of course." Li Shuyan replied.

"Brother Fang, you're our face. We have to present you in a positive light. But I don't think kind and benevolent is the right approach. You should look imposing. Your eyes should carry the sharpness of someone who punishes evil and upholds justice." The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

"Haha, well said." Fang Cheng clapped and laughed. Shuyan really understood him. He patted Li Shuyan's shoulder.

"I'll leave the portrait to you, Shuyan." Li Shuyan nodded.

"Easy. I'll draw one, then have the skilled female workers in the textile factory weave it into silk banners for all the caravans." He paused, then continued, "There's something else, Brother Fang. We received a strange letter from some low-level cultivators in the city."

"What kind of strange letter?" Fang Cheng asked. Li Shuyan took a piece of paper from his storage ring and handed it over. Fang Cheng took it and read: A Letter to Every Land God Hello, brothers and sisters. I am a nameless Land God from Xijiang Prefecture. Since the upheaval in the celestial realm, I've lost contact with my immortal superior. I imagine you're in the same situation. With no one above us, what should we do? I've asked many Land Gods this question. None of them knew the answer.

I went to the City God of Jishui City. He gave me two words: "Get lost." And he was right. We can only get lost. As the weakest of cultivators, no one cares about our lives. Upper-level cultivators see us no differently than ordinary mortals. Heh. The Hall of Eternal Life was never our home. It's more like a prison, trapping us, binding us, making us work for those upper-level cultivators. We spread the faith diligently every day. What do we get in return? Inferior Immortal Crystal residue.

My brothers and sisters, think about it. Every month, you go to the branch hall to collect your residue, and those high-and-mighty established cultivators look at you with disgust. They toss the residue at us like they're throwing expired food to stray dogs. That's right! In their eyes, we're nothing but dogs wagging our tails. They treat us like livestock. Like garbage. But are we livestock? No. We're not. We're cultivators with dignity. We have souls. We long to ascend, to become immortals, to become buddhas.

But... We can't. We're too weak. We absorb Immortal Crystal residue every day. How can we possibly ascend? I've been lost. I've wandered. I've suffered. I've tried countless times, but in the end, I found I couldn't change anything. Until one day, I found a blueprint... So that's it! So that's it! Brothers and sisters, I've found it! I've found a path to immortality! Hahaha! Who says a pheasant can't become a phoenix? Who says a carp can't leap over the dragon gate?

Who says a weak little cultivator can't become an immortal? Hahahaha! Come, dear Land Gods. Come to Zhujia Village in Jishui City. Join the big family of the Land God Self-Help Association. Let's love one another, work together, and ascend to immortality! — A loving Land God waiting for love Fang Cheng finished reading, his brows furrowed, deep in thought. Li Shuyan said, "That blueprint mentioned in the letter must be the Demonic Spirit Gathering Array."

"Right." Fang Cheng nodded.

"From what I know, the City God of Jishui City is Sikong Shang. He was killed by Dark Night, but the blueprint might have been leaked before that. The Land God Self-Help Association must have found it and used it to harm people." Li Shuyan replied, "If that's the case, we just need to deal with the Land God Self-Help Association. But what worries me more is that there might be other forces in Xijiang Prefecture secretly spreading the Demonic Spirit Gathering Array." Qin Hao raised a question.

"If the Demonic Spirit Gathering Array blueprint is such a treasure, wouldn't they want to keep it hidden? Why spread it around?" Li Shuyan chuckled.

"An innocent man with a jade is a crime. But if every man in the world has a jade, who can you punish?" Qin Hao was astonished.

"I see. That makes sense. Whoever's behind the Demonic Spirit Gathering Array must be brilliant." Li Shuyan snorted.

"Not only brilliant, but bold. Otherwise, they wouldn't dare use the Demonic Spirit Gathering Array to throw the world into chaos." Fang Cheng stood up, his lips curling all the way to his ears.

"Haha. What do I do, what do I do? The sight of villains doing evil deeds sets my righteous heart ablaze! Even a flood couldn't put it out! Hahaha! Hiss, hiss, hiss..."