I become a god in another world

Chapter 758 A Lawsuit

Chapter 758

As the firelight flickered, a hideous ghostly figure emerged from within the will-o'-the-wisp, and black mist rose slowly, rushing straight towards the faces of the two ghost messengers.

However, since the two ghost messengers were already at the level of wild gods, the black energy that rushed to the noses of the bull-headed and horse-faced demons was swallowed up by the two ghost messengers one by one without making a sound.

The crushing of one ghost against another created a deterrent effect, and the ghost lantern immediately became docile, only able to exert its power.

As the lamplight flickered, the two ghost messengers each took a step forward, appearing several feet away.

After losing the ghost lamp, Zhang Xiansheng, who had been terrified, looked up at the shadow of the ghost messenger with utter helplessness.

Under the shroud of a ghostly realm shrouded in a misty blue fog, the two ghost messengers, each carrying a ghostly lantern, had inhuman heads—one resembling a cow, the other a horse—a truly terrifying sight.

Wherever the ghost went, the light dissipated.

The way things have developed has exceeded Zhang Xiansheng's expectations.

In his view, this envoy from the capital was reckless and arrogant. Cao Gu had given them a task, but this Lord Zhao had not considered the overall situation and acted according to his own likes and dislikes. He was very likely to kill everyone tonight.

But he was just a lamplighter.

Cao Gu was helpless against this ghost-controlling man, let alone him.
Whether the Lamplighter will survive this year remains to be seen.

Thinking of this, he resigned himself to his fate.

He was the lantern bearer and knew all too well what was about to happen: once the lantern was lit, it would attract evil spirits.

The ghost eagles have only just awakened tonight. They haven't had their fill of meat or received any offerings, and their laws have been forcibly interrupted. They are bound to lose control.

Once the lantern attracts the ghosts, they will be trapped inside the light, and then the ghosts will turn on the lantern bearer.

……

The next moment, Zhang Xiansheng's worst fears came true.

The screams from the house stopped abruptly, and golden light flashed everywhere, as the malevolent energy revived.

At the critical moment of life and death, he gave a wink to the lantern bearers around him:
"If things get out of hand later, try to disperse the ghosts—"

The lantern bearers wore bitter expressions.

Zhang Xiansheng then pleaded with Zhao Fusheng in a low voice:
"My lord, run! The idol hasn't had enough to eat and drink, and it's gone out of control—"

"Escape?" Zhao Fusheng raised an eyebrow and turned to look at him:

"Why should I run away?"

As soon as he finished speaking, countless golden lights flashed, and amidst the rapid footsteps, a large group of ghosts rushed towards the area, closing in on the two ghost messengers in the circle of light with lightning speed.

"It's over."

Zhang Xiansheng and all the lantern bearers sighed.

Things happened too fast; the ghost's speed was extraordinary, and it was too late for everyone to try to rub the lamps to summon it.

All the ghosts surrounded the two ghost messengers in the middle, forming two ghostly clusters.

However, the scenario that Zhang Xiansheng feared—that the two ghosts would be broken up by the ghost horde—did not occur.

The moment the horde of ghosts surrounded the underworld official Ma Mian, the Ma Mian Law activated: it raised its hand.

Immediately, pressed finger marks appeared on the necks of the golden demons that surrounded it.

These golden eagle ghost statues, which are incredibly powerful to humans, are like clay figures in front of the ghost messengers, who are of the true god rank and naturally suppress evil spirits.

The ghost's fingerprint pressed an indentation into the seemingly indestructible golden statue. Then, the ghost messenger, Horse Face, twisted his hand, and the heads of more than a dozen golden ghost statues snapped off.

In the blink of an eye, the ghost image was disintegrated.

The ghost messenger handed over a long knife, the long scythe of which strung together the golden ghost head.

The golden demon head immediately melted, turning into liquid gold paint, which transformed the originally dark brown and rusty demon blade into a gleaming golden blade.

With a single move, Horse-Face dealt with more than a dozen vengeful ghosts, clearing a large open space around it in an instant.

Then, without pausing, it struck again.

The moment he raised his arms, finger marks reappeared on the necks of more than a dozen golden eagle ghost statues, after which the vengeful ghosts were dismembered, their heads separated from their bodies.

……

Meanwhile, the bull's head did not stop.

Compared to the method of decapitating the horse-faced demon, it is more brutal and direct.

That murderous knife was Qiao Yue's birth companion, and the two were perfectly matched.

Faced with a horde of ghosts, it used its laws to make them enter its dreams.

The ghosts froze and remained motionless as soon as they entered the dream. Qiao Yuesheng, holding a large knife, raised it and slashed.

Its movements were ferocious; with a single slash, the vengeful spirit surrounding the light was severed, along with its shoulder.

The ghost head landed with a thud, immediately swallowed by its shadow, and transformed into one of the ghostly corpses enshrined at its feet.

The two ghost messengers are best suited to act in such circumstances.

These events cast a shadow over Tongshan County. The ghosts, who were above the people, were mostly wiped out the moment they met the two ghost messengers.

Before Zhang Xiansheng and his lantern bearers could even summon the ghost lanterns, eight or nine out of ten of the 72 golden statues of evil spirits were dismembered.

The remaining vengeful spirits did not flee; they were still lured by the ghost lamp, like moths to a flame, and continued to approach the two ghost messengers.

This scene shocked everyone.

Just then, seeing that the mess was almost cleaned up, Zhao Fusheng opened the gates of Hell and invited the ghosts back to their places.

As the Investiture of the Gods states: "Great ghosts are enfeoffed as gods, and all ghosts enter the cycle of reincarnation."

The capital city has appeared in the world.

The people carrying lanterns immediately heard a buzzing sound in their ears.

The resounding boom seemed to come from a shock to their very souls, and an indescribable terror arose in their hearts.

Then, Zhang Xiansheng saw a majestic city wall appear out of thin air before everyone's eyes.

The city wall was pitch black, with two large, black gates tightly shut inside.

Blood-red light appeared on the door, and the messy painting coalesced into two chilling ghostly figures.

Then the gates of hell opened wide, and a chilling wind blew wildly, as if it could tear apart the bodies of the vengeful ghosts.

"The vengeful ghost enters the cycle of reincarnation!"

As Zhao Fusheng shouted, the sound of rushing water suddenly rang out from inside the Ghost Gate.

Zhang Xiansheng immediately looked down and saw a muddy yellow body of water that had appeared on the street at some point, one end connecting to the Gate of Hell, and the other end connecting to the direction of the headless golden-lacquered ghost sculpture.

At the same time, Zhao Fusheng summoned the Huangquan Opera Troupe.

The opera troupe set up a stage in front of the Ghost Gate, and the ghost actress performed on stage.

As soon as the opera aria began, not only were the ghosts lured in, but even Zhang Xiansheng and the lantern bearers were significantly affected.

The villagers in the nearby houses also couldn't help but slowly get up, breaking the tranquility of the night with the sounds of getting up, opening doors, and footsteps.

Fortunately, all of this happened in the blink of an eye.

Leading the way from the underworld to the mortal realm, the golden eagle ghost statue and the two ghost messengers arrived together from Kuai Manzhou's underworld.

The moment he stepped into the gates of hell, Zhao Fusheng invited the ghost messengers and the Yellow Springs Road Guides back to their divine positions.

The ghost statues entered the Gates of Hell one by one, where they were received by Zhang Chuanshi. Then, the Laws would lead them back to Hell, where they would await Zhao Fusheng's guidance to their destined reincarnation.

The gates of hell closed, and the ghostly figures in the sealed capital vanished.

The two ghost lamps had somehow returned to Zhao Fusheng's hands. The Investiture of the Gods prompted: The evil aura of the ghost lamps intends to devour your soul. Do you want to consume 100 merit points to suppress it?
Zhao Fusheng remained expressionless and made his choice: Yes!

100 merit points are nothing to her now.

After her merit points were deducted, the power of the ghost lantern was suppressed, and the flame she lit went out. She then handed the two borrowed lanterns back to Zhang Xiansheng and the other lantern bearer.

……

From the appearance of the golden eagle ghost horde to Zhao Fusheng's determination to eradicate it, the entire process took less than a quarter of an hour.

When Hozuki returned to Zhang Xiansheng's hands, he was still unable to come to his senses for a long time.

He held the lantern, staring blankly at the street in the distance—where just moments before, a horde of ghosts had surrounded two strange-looking, malevolent spirits.

But in the blink of an eye, the lights went out, the ghost messengers disappeared, and the golden eagle ghost statue vanished completely.

All of this was beyond the comprehension of Zhang Xiansheng, a member of a powerful and influential family.

It was quite a while before he belatedly began to feel afraid.

His knees buckled, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud, only then beginning to tremble uncontrollably.

"With the ghost statue resolved, there will be no more ghost statues appearing in Tongshan County, nor will there be any more village slaves offering sacrifices."

Zhao Fusheng said coldly:

"I didn't expect tonight's ghost procession to be just like this. It's really a waste of my time."

The situation in Tongshan County was worse than she had anticipated.

Although the outcome had already revealed the process, she was still incredibly disappointed when she actually saw the ghosts feeding on ordinary people and everyone taking it for granted.

She was late.

All she did tonight was to soothe her own regrets; it would not change the fate of Tongshan County.

However, Zhang Xiansheng and the others in the Ghost Realm were unaware of all this.

The moment these terrifying ghosts were dealt with, no one could believe their ears and eyes.

Everyone was in a state of utter confusion, frozen in place like stone statues.

Zhao Fusheng didn't care what these people were thinking; he only looked at Magistrate Pang:
"The matter is settled for tonight. Let's go back and rest, and go to the Hao Family Ancestral Hall tomorrow."

After saying that, she unfolded Hell, reached out and grabbed Magistrate Pang and Xu Yu. Kuai Manzhou retrieved the Yellow Springs, and a ghost thread stuck to the child's back, gently lifting her up, making her fly into the air like a nimble butterfly.

The group vanished from the sight of the lantern bearers in an instant.

Tonight was supposed to be extremely dangerous, but because of Zhao Fusheng's interference, this life-or-death crisis ended in an almost absurd way.

After the envoys from the capital left, Zhang Xiansheng, supported by the lantern bearers, shakily rose to his feet.

He immediately looked at his own ghost lantern.

Suddenly, a blurry horse head appeared on the surface of the Hozuki lantern. This was a unique rule of the Hozuki: whoever the lantern fell into would be devoured by it, making that person a candidate to become the ghost's accomplice (ghost guide) inside the lantern.

The underworld messenger, Horse-Face, carried the lamp. Despite the messenger's intimidation, the lamp still activated, projecting the messenger's image onto the lamp.

However, the difference in their ranks is too great, and Hozuki cannot affect the Oni-shiki. On the contrary, the Oni-shiki's painting of shadows restrains Hozuki.

After that, when the light shines on it, the lamp that should attract ghosts will instead cause the ghosts to flee.

But that's a story for another time.

At this moment, Zhang Xiansheng looked at the ghost lantern, filled with mixed feelings of surprise and delight.

What's alarming is the magnitude of the events that have unfolded tonight; I wonder how I'll explain this to Cao Gu when I get back.
The good news is that he was lucky to have survived.

...Zhao Fusheng was unaware of what these lantern bearers were thinking. After she returned to her room the way she came, no one from the Tongshan County government dared to disturb her.

She and the two children rested, and Magistrate Pang also dozed off at the table.

The night passed in the blink of an eye, and at dawn, Cao Gu personally led the servants to wait in her courtyard for her to get up.

Cao Gu placed his hands folded in front of his abdomen, his brows furrowed, and his face revealed an uncertain expression.

Zhang Xiansheng had already told him what happened last night, and had even shown Cao Gu the ghost lamp he was holding.

The moment Cao Gu received the ghost lantern, he knew that Zhang Xiansheng's words were not only not exaggerated, but that the man's strength was too weak and his knowledge too limited, which prevented him from fully explaining the intricacies of last night's events.

The reason is that Zhang Xiansheng's ghost lamp was branded by a 'ghost'.

The rank of this ghostly brand is unknown, but Cao Gu's vengeful spirit was completely suppressed.

He tried to control the ghost lantern, but found that its power was completely suppressed. The shadow of the horse-headed ghost shone through the lantern's light and spread around. Cao Gu felt that his ghost was threatened and instinctively wanted to escape.

This ghost lantern actually has the power to ward off evil spirits!
Furthermore, because the Ghost Lantern is suppressed by the Ghost Seal, anyone using it will not be suppressed by it at all.

Thinking of this, Cao Gu felt fear and jealousy.

Since the Lantern Festival was established in Tongshan County, no major ghost disasters have occurred in the county. The existence of the "divine lamp" can even be "controlled" by ordinary people, thereby exerting the power of the ghost controller, and the case of solving ghost cases has never failed.

Neither Jiang Wen nor Jiang Wu, nor the previous Ghost Masters before them, could fully control the magic lamp.

But the fact that this Lord Zhao from the capital could completely print on this ghost lantern made Cao Gu uneasy.

The ghost lantern, branded by the demon, has become an excellent item for self-defense.

Judging from the appearance, the worshipper invited by the Zhang family who possesses this lamp will likely live a very long time—which also means that his future status will be greatly different.

Thinking of this, Cao Gu had a thought that he wanted to forcibly take away the two ghost lanterns that had been branded.

But when he thought of the mysterious and unpredictable Lord Zhao, he forcibly suppressed such thoughts.

……

Before Cao Gu arrived to greet Zhao Fusheng, he personally went to check the ten halls of the Demon Suppression Division, including the Hall of Saints, and found that the 72 golden-lacquered ghost statues enshrined in the Demon Suppression Division had not returned.

Since Liang Yu founded the Lantern Festival many years ago, such a thing has never happened before.

This confirms that what Zhang Xiansheng and others said last night was true: Zhao Fusheng, by his own strength, summoned two ox-headed and horse-faced demons and swept away all 72 ghost statues.

The two twin demon-controlling warriors from Tongshan County are away on business when people from the capital arrive, disrupting the county's balance. The Lantern Festival is just around the corner...

One thing after another is about to happen, and who knows what other changes might occur in Tongshan County.

Just as Cao Gu was panicking, the door to the front of the courtyard suddenly opened, and Zhao Fusheng's voice rang out:
"Lord Cao has arrived? Please come in."

Cao Gu, who was deep in thought, suddenly became alert, put aside his distracting thoughts, and gestured to the people following behind him to carry hot water, breakfast, and other items forward, and file into the room.

"Did you sleep well last night, sir?" he asked cautiously.

Zhao Fusheng glanced at him:
"I have already taken away the gold-lacquered ghost statue from Tongshan County."

Cao Gu already knew about this, but when he heard Zhao Fusheng say it, he was still shocked.

"grown ups--"

He hesitated.

However, Zhao Fusheng had already demonstrated her extraordinary abilities, and Cao Gu dared not mention many things.

He didn't say it, but Zhao Fusheng could guess the unspoken meaning in his words, and immediately said:
"The gilded ghost statue is one of the traditional offerings in Tongshan County—"

She used the word "one of," and Cao Gu, being a clever man, immediately understood the implied meaning in her words.

A huge weight was immediately lifted from his heart:
"My lord, the golden-lacquered ghost image is indeed one of the unique offerings in Tongshan County. Thanks to the ghost image, Tongshan County has been peaceful all these years."

Cao Gu said:
"Zhang Xiansheng said that Your Excellency is merciful and cannot bear to see the ghosts harm people. But, but now only a small number of villagers have died. Once the balance is broken, a large number of people will die. I hope Your Excellency will think twice."

"Don't worry." Zhao Fusheng smiled slightly.
"Now that I'm here, I'm going to investigate the situation in Tongshan County thoroughly."

The fact that the evil spirits here have reached a balance proves that something restrains another.

"My lord," Cao Gu began, "I suspect that the lamp ceremony and the idol might be connected—" Before he could finish speaking, Zhao Fusheng immediately rebuked him:
"Confused!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Cao Gu trembled.

Zhao Fusheng said:

"This trouble in Tongshan County is no small matter." She gave Cao Gu a meaningful look.
"There might be a crisis of annihilation, Lord Cao."

Cao Gu forced himself to bow:

"I am foolish and ignorant, please enlighten me, sir."

Zhao Fusheng didn't care whether he was pretending to be confused or trying to get stuck on a futile idea; he didn't realize it for a moment.

She said, "Lord Cao, the gilded ghost statue comes from the lamp ritual."

Cao Gu nodded:

"These golden statues of ghosts were once among the lamp makers."

They participated in the lamp-making process during their lives, but ultimately failed to complete the lamp-making ritual. After their deaths, their evil spirits revived and transformed into vengeful ghosts.

"You are also a ghost tamer, so you should know that the two are considered to originate from the same source."

Zhao Fusheng's words froze Cao Gu's smile, and he forced a smile and said:

"What do you mean by that, sir?"

"Being of the same origin, they cannot be mutually reinforcing or restraining. The Golden-lacquered Ghost itself may be one of the Ghost Lantern's accomplices, which is why it was drawn to the Ghost Lantern's clone," Zhao Fusheng said coldly.
"The lantern bearers are not carrying the ghost lanterns or the real ghosts themselves. That is why these lantern bearers, through their involvement in making the lanterns, can come into contact with such ominous things without being harmed."

Otherwise, the evil spirits are so fierce that even those who control them are walking a tightrope, let alone a mere lantern bearer.

The golden-lacquered ghost statue revives every July, wanders around Tongshan County to enjoy offerings, but is eventually led back to the Demon Suppression Bureau by the lantern bearer, which in itself speaks volumes.

In addition to their identities in life, Zhao Fusheng became even more convinced that they belonged to one of the laws of the Ghost Lantern.

"The two complement each other, originate from the same source, and are not mutually restrictive," Zhao Fusheng said.
"There is something else that can restrain Hozuki, and there is also a major crisis in Toyama Prefecture."

Her words greatly frightened Cao Gu.

Zhao Fusheng glanced coldly at his shifty eyes and chuckled softly.

The ghost tamer from Tongshan County is exceptionally powerful. Jiang Wen and Jiang Wu may not be unaware of what she said, but everyone is pretending not to know. Since the trouble hasn't erupted yet, they're just letting things slide and no one wants to stir up trouble.

Even Cao Gu, who is standing right in front of us, probably knows this, but he's just pretending to be stupid.

"Alright, stop pretending."

Zhao Fusheng did not want to discuss this issue further.

Cao Gu chuckled twice, tacitly changing the subject, and then asked:

"If that's what you say, what should we do next?"

Zhao Fusheng said:

"As originally planned, I intend to go to the Hao Family Ancestral Hall today."

Cao Gu breathed a sigh of relief:

"If that's the case, then please wash up and have your meal, and the carriage is ready. We'll set off immediately once you've finished."

Zhao Fusheng shook his head:
"Let's go out first to take care of some business."

She implied that she did not intend to dine inside the Demon Suppression Division.

Cao Gu was taken aback. Remembering that she had also refused to eat last night, he finally moved his lips but did not say anything. He simply nodded and got up.

The vehicle is ready.

Cao Gu also planned to accompany them personally. Also traveling with them were the two lantern bearers who had benefited from the accident last night: Zhang Xianyan and another lantern bearer, Qin Yongchun.

After everyone got into the car, Zhao Fusheng finally looked at Qin Yongchun.

He was about forty years old, with a square face, thick eyebrows and big eyes, but because he was a lantern bearer, his eyes and brows were filled with a fierce aura.

Seeing Zhao Fusheng looking at him, he was very afraid, but he tried to remain calm.

In the presence of a demon tamer, ordinary people are like ants.

Last night he witnessed Zhao Fusheng's skill, killing ghosts as easily as killing chickens, and wiping out a group of fierce ghosts that terrified the Lanternman.

"Your name is Qin Yongchun?"

Zhao Fusheng asked.

Qin Yongchun immediately became hesitant and stammered in response:
"Yes."

Cao Gu gave him a cold stare, his eyes conveying a message: "He's hopeless."

After glaring at Qin Yongchun, he looked at Zhao Fusheng:
"My lord, this lad is one of the lantern bearers who had the honor of having their lanterns borrowed and printed by you last night."

Zhao Fusheng remembered that he had lent his lamp to the underworld messenger, Ox-Head Qiao Yuesheng.

"Your surname is Qin, are you a member of the Qin family?" Zhao Fusheng asked.

Cao Gu lowered his eyelids and remained silent.

Qin Yongchun secretly glanced at Cao Gu, and finally said helplessly:
"Reporting to Your Excellency, I am a member of the Qin family."

Although the Qin family has fallen on hard times, even a starved camel is bigger than a horse—they can only not replicate the glory they had when they possessed a Ghost Tamer, but they are still far superior to ordinary people.

“The current clan elder of the Qin family is my own cousin,” Qin Yongchun said.

He was actually a core member of the Qin family.

After a moment's thought, Zhao Fusheng understood.

The Qin family is not what it used to be; they can no longer have multiple "lamp bearers" like the Zhang family, nor can they choose a candidate pawn from among them.

However, Qin Yongchun's lineage was actually beneficial to Zhao Fusheng's understanding of the case.

She smiled:
"I heard from Lord Cao that Yijiang Town used to be your Qin family's territory?"

Upon hearing this, Qin Yongchun forced a smile onto her face.

Although he tried his best to control himself, it was still clear that he was somewhat angry.
"My lord, Yijiang Town was originally the ancestral home of our Qin family. Our ancestors were fortunate enough to control ghosts and enter the government. Later, they spent money to buy the place and it was properly registered in the government's tax register."

Zhao Fusheng did not comment on the matter, but simply kept his words in mind and listened as he continued:
"Who would have thought that after his ancestors passed away, Hao Jiangmin—"

Before he could finish speaking, Cao Gu gave a soft "hmm".

"Hao Jiangmin ultimately twisted the truth, claiming that Yijiang Town belonged to them, which led to a lawsuit between the two parties." Upon hearing Cao Gu's reminder, Qin Yongchun shuddered, immediately suppressing his anger, and reluctantly replied.

Even without his detailed explanation, Zhao Fusheng could guess that neither family had any clean methods.

She was not interested in the process of the dispute between the two landlords, nor did she have the mind to uphold justice or distinguish right from wrong. She only cared about the lawsuit in Yijiang Town.

"I heard from Cao Gu yesterday that your two families are in court?" she asked.

Upon hearing the mention of a lawsuit, Qin Yongchun's expression immediately turned serious. A hint of regret and fear flashed in his eyes, and his voice softened.

"Yes."

　Thank you to the reader "Dog Doesn't Speak, Dog Doesn't Whisper" for the generous donation! I'm adding an extra chapter for you today!
　　A major update of 6 words.

　　(End of this chapter)