Chapter 260 – That's My Silver, My Money!

Mu Lin’s bloodlust was so intense, something Commander Mi had never anticipated.

But after the initial shock, he quickly said, “We can’t kill them all. There are many people in Ping’an Ancient Street, and we might not be able to suppress them. Moreover, countless casualties are inevitable during the fight…”

“Casualties are caused by Ping’an Ancient Street. What does that have to do with me?”

“Also, if you can’t kill them all, I can.”

With that, before Commander Mi could say anything more, Mu Lin waved his hand dismissively. “I know you’re afraid of taking responsibility. In that case, leave everything here to me. I will bear all the consequences of this matter.”

This was a blatant power grab by Mu Lin. In the past, Commander Mi would have done everything in his power to stop it.

Even among colleagues, there were struggles for power and interests.

But now, with Mu Lin’s explosive actions, the situation in Ping’an Ancient City had spiraled out of control. In such circumstances, Mu Lin, by seizing power, would also bear the primary responsibility. After some thought, Commander Mi nodded.

“Since you insist, I won’t try to persuade you further. But I still want to remind you: don’t underestimate the people of Ping’an Ancient Street. The younger ones might be weak, but there are a few ruthless old monsters among them, and some shops hide deep reserves of power.”

Mu Lin wasn’t worried about this. Instead, he smiled and said, “Those old-timers wouldn’t dare lay a hand on me. Our Deputy Commander-in-Chief Ji is watching from the sky. If they make a move, it’ll be the perfect opportunity for our Deputy Commander-in-Chief to assert her authority.”

“Huh?”

This statement left Commander Mi stunned once again. After a long pause, he spoke incredulously, “You’re acting so arrogantly… aggressively… because you realized the Deputy Commander-in-Chief is here?”

“That goes without saying. I’m not stupid.”

Mu Lin originally intended to establish the City God Domain in Ping’an Ancient Town and had plans to seize power—at the very least, he wanted the area to be jointly governed by the City God and the government: the government by day, the City God by night; human affairs under the government, demonic monsters under the City God.

This was Mu Lin’s initial idea.

However, after strolling through Ping’an Ancient Street and returning, Mu Lin found the situation there far beyond his expectations.

In Ping’an Ancient Town, the Yin Eight Gates had gained the upper hand by laying their groundwork early, suppressing even the government forces.

What troubled him even more was that the Yin Eight Gates in Ping’an Ancient Street had become corrupt and decadent, completely rejecting outsiders. This made it impossible for Mu Lin to integrate into their ranks.

At that point, Mu Lin’s thinking underwent a fundamental shift. Still, he remained wary of the potential old monsters lurking in the ancient street. Thus, his plan was to unite the forces of the government and the City God to jointly govern Ping’an County alongside Ping’an Ancient Street.

During this process, Mu Lin also intended to proceed as gently as possible.

But just as he was about to tread carefully, Ji Hongyu, who belonged to the same organization as him, arrived—and she came with overwhelming, awe-inspiring power.

Such formidable strength and such a solid backing caused Mu Lin’s plans to change once again.

“Caution? Restraint? Hah! If Deputy Commander-in-Chief Ji hadn’t come, I’d have to proceed with care. But now that she’s here, if I still have to be cautious, then what was the point of her coming at all?”

Realizing he now had powerful backing, Mu Lin acted with such audacity.

After understanding Mu Lin’s thoughts, Commander Mi began to grasp the reasoning behind his actions, though he still had one final question.

“Deputy Commander Ji is not guaranteed to intervene, nor is it certain he can rescue you in time. Aren’t you afraid Lord Seventh Bai might suddenly go berserk and kill you right here?”

“After all, when a person is killed, they die—and you only have one life.”

This question made Mu Lin’s smile grow even more profound.

“Who told you I only have one life?”

It is true that when a person is killed, they die, but in this supernatural world, a person’s lives are never limited to just one.

More importantly, did Mu Lin—his main body—truly come to Ping’an Ancient County?

…

After seizing power, Mu Lin did not stop his actions.

Immediately, he established his City God Domain.

—If it were a normal City God Domain, Mu Lin would first need to build a City God Temple, then have the City God officially recognized by the dynasty, and finally, under the witness of officials and the people, hold a grand City God consecration ceremony.

Only after completing these steps could Mu Lin fully bind and merge the City God Domain with a specific location.

However, the current situation was far from normal.

Mu Lin’s City God Dharma Image was not conferred by the dynasty but was self-formed by gathering Human Dao Fortune.

Thus, he was not bound by constraints—he could establish the City God Domain wherever he wished.

At this moment, with a single thought from Mu Lin, the City God became bound to Ping’an Ancient County.

“Hum!”

As the two merged and bound together, instantly, the people of Ping’an Ancient County felt a tremor in the heavens and earth, their hearts tightening as if something significant concerning their safety had occurred.

And indeed, it had.

As a recognized righteous deity by the Human Dao, the moment the City God appeared, the fortune of the human race in the city was drawn by the City God Seal, converging toward Him.

Along with it came the power of the city’s Spirit Veins.

“Hum…”

The Human Dao Fortune and the city’s Spirit Vein power converged within the City God and, after being transformed by Him, turned into an extremely special force.

This force was called—Divine Power.

The emergence of Divine Power also transformed the City God’s Dharma Domain into a Divine Domain.

The Earth Veins, fortune, and Divine Path Dharma Domain—these three forces combined instantly transported the City God from the mortal world into a dim, hazy, and utterly gray world.

This world was originally empty.

However, as the Divine Domain expanded, a piece of land appeared within this dim and hazy space, supporting the City God’s form.

This was the Yin Earth, and this dim, hazy space was the gap between the underworld and the human world—the Netherworld Law Domain, the City God Domain, was situated here.

Of course, the current Yin Earth, or rather the City God Domain, was not large—this Netherworld Law Domain required Mu Lin to expend his own Divine Power and Earth Vein energy to slowly expand.

Moreover, once expanded, Mu Lin’s Netherworld Law Domain would be nothing but desolate, empty land.

Normally, what Mu Lin would need to do next was protect the human race, gather human fortune and Incense Offerings, accumulate Divine Power, and gradually develop his City God Domain.

If he had enough Divine Power, one day, his Dharma Domain would be filled with countless structures, such as the City God Hall, prisons, military camps, and more.

It would also be populated by numerous Yin Soldiers, Ghost Messengers, Civil and Military Judges, and day and night patrol deities on standby.

However, this process would inevitably be extremely lengthy.

And Mu Lin could not afford to wait that long.

Fortunately, he did not need to endure a long wait.

“In my previous life, the reason why a City God would remain in one position for hundreds, or even thousands, of years without change was because the City God had a system in place.”

Having a system was naturally a good thing. When encountering problems they couldn’t solve, City Gods could report them upward.

County City Gods reported to Province City Gods, Province City Gods reported to Prefecture City Gods, and Prefecture City Gods reported to Capital City Gods.

Even if the Capital City God couldn’t resolve the issue, it didn’t matter—above them were the Netherworld’s Yama, and even the Heavenly Soldiers and Heavenly Generals.

With such layers of backing, City Gods in the previous life faced almost no danger.

  Daring to kill a City God was akin to killing an official and rebelling—a crime punishable by the extermination of one’s entire clan. In the mythological world, the punishment was even more severe: think of the Eighteen Levels of Hell, think of eternal damnation with no chance of reincarnation.

It could be said that in his previous life, by becoming a City God, Mu Lin had secured a government position.

However, while having a position came with benefits, anyone who has worked in such a system, or even in a company, knows that although it offers stability, advancement is difficult.

The positions above were like one seat, one hole. Without exceptional skills or powerful connections, there was no way to move up; one could only endure in the same position.

At the same time, having a position also meant that Mu Lin couldn’t use all the resources from his territory for himself.

In the mythological world, the Incense Offerings collected by City Gods had to be handed over—at least half, if not more.

Without the ability to advance and having to surrender their gains, City Gods in the mythological world naturally had no choice but to endure in one place.

But in this world, for now, Mu Lin was the only City God. He could take and use all the resources from his territory as he pleased.

Moreover, there were no positions above him. Whether it was a Province City God, a Prefecture City God, or even the Netherworld’s King Yama or Emperor of the Underworld—as long as Mu Lin had the capability, he could claim those positions.

Under such circumstances, Mu Lin’s advancement naturally didn’t require endless endurance.

“However, misfortune lies where fortune resides, and fortune hides within misfortune. Being independent also means that when danger arises, I must face it alone.”

“Moreover, this world has no Netherworld. Whether it’s the City God Domain, the underworld, or Hell, I must create and build them myself.”

Given such difficulties, this was also why Mu Lin planned for the Land of Sky Burial, a forbidden land, and did not oppose joining the Demon Suppression Division.

—Building the Netherworld from scratch was too difficult and time-consuming. It was better to take control of the Land of Sky Burial, modify it, and make do for now.

As for joining the Demon Suppression Division, it was to secure backing for himself.

Once the City God Domain was established, Mu Lin would inevitably have to protect the people of the city to gather Human Dao Fortune and faith.

In doing so, he would also inevitably come into conflict with various demons and monsters.

Although Mu Lin feared no one among his peers, if the demonic monsters bullied the weak with their strength, he would have no recourse.

Fighting above one’s level also had its limits.

But joining the Demon Suppression Division changed the situation.

By wrapping himself in the authority of the division, he could make powerful demonic monsters think twice.

…

After the Netherworld·City God Domain fully manifested in the mortal world, Mu Lin did not first build the City God Hall. Instead, his first action was to summon.

Using the Earth Veins and Human Dao Fortune of Ping’an Ancient County, along with the tattered Battle Flag of the Beiwei Army as a sacred relic, Mu Lin continuously summoned the Shadow Spirits·Beiwei Army.

“Majestic Heaven above, shining upon the earth below…”

As Mu Lin recited the prayer and manifested his Lord Altar, one after another, the spectral souls of the Beiwei Army were drawn by him from the annals of the Human Dao and descended into the present world.

It should be noted that the Lord Altar located within Mu Lin’s dantian could manifest within the underworld.

Moreover, whether it was because this place resonated with the Lord Altar or due to his surging strength, when Mu Lin’s Lord Altar manifested, it stood ninety-nine zhang tall, resembling a small palace—truly imposing in appearance.

Furthermore, the altar exuded an aura of ancient simplicity and a mysterious, awe-inspiring pressure.

At this moment, the tattered battle flag of the Beiwei Army stood erected on the altar like a soul-summoning banner. One after another, spectral imprints of the Beiwei Army projected from the flag.

“Hum…”

The projected Beiwei Army soldiers were initially mere phantom imprints.

Normally, Mu Lin would need to infuse them with the vitality of the living to allow them to “truly” manifest and possess formidable combat capabilities.

But now, all of this was accomplished by the Human Dao Fortune and the spiritual energy of the Earth Veins of Ping’an Ancient City.

It was precisely because of these that Mu Lin could continuously summon an army of spectral souls.

“Hum…”

One spectral soul after another appeared, gradually gathering beneath the altar. The Beiwei Army grew in number, and their momentum became increasingly profound.

Soon, the Beiwei Army under Mu Lin’s command exceeded five hundred in number, and they continued to increase.

Incidentally, not only did the Beiwei Army grow in numbers, but Mu Lin’s City God also experienced a surge in strength by merging with the Earth Veins and Human Dao Fortune of Ping’an Ancient City.

Now, this City God had transformed into Mu Lin’s most powerful combat force—Gang Condensation.

More crucially, when fighting within Ping’an Ancient County, Mu Lin’s City God was further empowered by the spiritual energy of the Earth Veins. While not infinite, its energy far surpassed that of others.

“The spiritual energy within an individual ultimately cannot compare to that of heaven and earth, even if the area I control is only a single county.”

“That doesn’t seem too small either.”

A county is a city, and around every major city, there are small towns or numerous villages.

Estimating this way, Ping’an Ancient County was indeed not small.

Of course, while the City God was powerful, it also had a fatal flaw—only within Ping’an Ancient County could the City God unleash the strength of Gang Condensation.

Once he left, his power would rapidly decline.

If he ventured too far, he would merely be considered a ghost cultivator with some peculiar abilities.

“The Divine Path cultivation has aspects that surpass Qi Refiners, but it also has many shortcomings…”

Mu Lin’s low spirits did not last long. Before condensing the City God, he had anticipated this.

Moreover, Mu Lin was not solely pursuing the Divine Path. Currently, he was cultivating both immortality and divinity.

Soon, he found another reason for joy—the Ping’an Ancient County where his City God resided was not a barren land.

This barrenness did not refer to human wealth but rather the density of Spirit Veins.

“The quality of the Spirit Veins here is exceptionally high, even capable of sustaining a Province City God. The only flaw is that these Spirit Veins belong to the Yin attribute, making them less suitable for use by the living.”

“But that doesn’t matter to me. The City God is inherently a deity of the underworld, and Netherworld Soldiers can also rely on Yin energy and Yin Spirit Veins to sustain themselves.”

It could be said that Yin Spirit Veins were the most compatible Spirit Veins for a City God.

However, despite the quality of the Spirit Veins, there was one aspect that displeased Mu Lin.

He could not fully control the spirit veins of this place.

Or rather, what he could control amounted to less than thirty percent, and even that consisted of scattered, minor spirit veins and spiritual springs.

The main spirit vein lay beneath Ping’an Ancient Street, firmly sealed and continuously utilized by the various shopkeepers and managers of the ancient street.

This caused Mu Lin’s expression to darken.

“That’s my spirit vein, my money!”

(End of Chapter)