A life of idleness in the world of demons

Chapter 56. So that's where it was supposed to be.

Seeing Ning Xuan holding the plaque, Liu Shirong asked with some anticipation, "Brother Ning, how is it?"

Ning Xuan said, "This mountain spirit is extraordinary. After observing it, I felt a sense of awe and reverence."

Upon hearing his approval of the "Hunchback Mountain Lord," Liu Shirong could hardly contain his joy. His face was flushed as he said, "Then why don't you also pay respects to the Mountain Lord, Brother Ning? With you taking the lead, the entire Wangyue Prefecture should be able to meet the requirements."

Ning Xuan asked curiously, "What are the conditions?"

Liu Shirong said, "The Shanmo sect says that if a group of 100,000 devout believers gather, they can respectfully welcome a golden statue of the Mountain God to guard the area and ward off demons. Brother Ning is of noble status. If you give an order to have the people of Wangyue Prefecture worship this Mountain God, then there will be more than 100,000 people. At that time, the Shanmo sect will surely come to preach, and the people of Wangyue Prefecture will no longer suffer."

Ning Xuan said, "Is this golden statue of the Mountain God even more effective than the amulet for warding off evil spirits?"

Liu Shirong said, "Of course, the power of the Mountain God's Golden Body far exceeds that of the Amulet for warding off evil."

Ning Xuan said, "My Wangyue Prefecture has more than 100,000 people, even millions. If all these millions believe in Shan Gong, are we only going to get a golden statue?"

After saying that, he saw Liu Shirong visibly become excited.

"Brother Ning, you are truly virtuous! If you can persuade all the people of this prefecture to believe in Shan Gong, then the Shan Mo sect will surely remain here permanently."

Before he could finish speaking, Ning Xuan shoved the amulet back into Liu Shirong's hand and said, "Okay, I understand."

Liu Shirong asked expectantly, "What about faith?"

Ning Xuan said, "Let me think about it."

Liu Shirong was caught off guard and could only say, "If Brother Ning is willing, I can visit the Shanmo Sect on your behalf during this trip to the Western Regions."

Ning Xuan waved his hand.

Liu Shirong was taken aback.

Ning Xuan frowned and said, "If anyone is going to pay respects, it should be me. How can you expect me to show my sincerity by having Young Master Liu go in my place?!"

Liu Shirong smiled broadly and said, "That's right, that's right, I was too careless."

While the two were talking, the wealthy merchants' trip was already prepared on the other side.

Ning Xuan glanced at the long line of oxcarts and said, "Young Master Liu, if I remember correctly, two of the cargo boxes belong to me, right?"

Liu Shirong said, "Of course. I wonder what Brother Ning wants to pack to resell in the Western Regions? Our merchant guild does not have any perishable goods this time, so please wait for Brother Ning for two more days."

Ning Xuan waved his hand and said, "I have no goods to sell to the Western Regions. However, when Young Master Liu returns, you can bring more Shanmo scriptures, stories, and objects to persuade me."

Liu Shirong immediately became solemn and said, "Brother Ning is righteous and cares about the people. I will do my best to collect the information."

Ning Xuan bowed and said, "Young Master Liu, take care."

Liu Shirong returned the greeting in a solemn tone, saying, "I will certainly not fail Brother Ning's trust."

Two days later.
The Wealthy Merchant Guild has already left the territory of Wangyue Prefecture.

As night fell, the merchant guild's caravan set up camp as usual, with campfires burning and guards patrolling, making it a rather formidable camp.

At that moment, a figure suddenly emerged from the nearby woods, but this figure was completely transparent, casting no shadow even under the blazing campfire and bright moonlight.

The transparent figure walked past the guards, entered a tent, and quietly opened a wooden box under the noses of the guards on duty. It took out a tung oil peach wood token with its edges blackened by incense smoke, and then left.

This figure was naturally Ning Xuan.

He summoned the "Ghostly Monkey" Heavenly Demon Talisman, using the "Illusory Escape Technique" to conceal his form, and made a trip here to retrieve the Evil-Avoiding Token, ready to refine the talisman at any time.

Two more days later
Ning Xuan was having morning tea, served by two beauties from the Western Regions, when he heard the sound of weeping coming from outside the mansion.

He looked outside and saw Liu Shirong returning with tears in his eyes.

Upon meeting, Liu Shirong knelt down and cried out, "General Ning, General Ning, I am incompetent, I am incompetent! I... I lost the amulet, so this business trip will have to be delayed."

Before Ning Xuan could speak, the Western Region dancer named Ashiya behind him said, "You lost the Mountain God's amulet, which is blasphemous. The Mountain God will punish you."

Ning Xuan was lying between the dancer's red silk volcano.

The soft, rolling mountains and exotic scenery, though still uninteresting to him, still like a fragile paper beauty, ultimately evoked a certain fondness in him due to their distinct appearance, temperament, fragrance, and story.

He lifted the dancer's chin from behind and said, "Ashya, how dare you speak to Young Master Liu like that?"

The dancer named Ashya hurriedly said, "General, although Young Master Liu has done me a favor by bringing me to your side, all beings in the Shanmo Sect are equal. If he loses the amulet, then everyone can criticize him."

Ning Xuan's expression turned serious as he asked, "If I join the Shanmo Cult in the future and accidentally make a mistake, will Ashiya also blame me?" Ashiya was taken aback, her rosy lips parted in surprise, and then she blushed and said, "If the general can join the Shanmo Cult, then naturally he will be leading many people into the embrace of the Mountain God, which is naturally a great merit. How could the general possibly make a mistake?"

Ning Xuan laughed heartily, then looked at Liu Shirong on the other side and said, "Young Master Liu, what do you think we should do?"

Liu Shirong clearly had a plan in mind. He said, "This is easy. I met with the manager of the Jixiang Chamber of Commerce in the Western Regions before. He also brought amulets to ward off evil spirits. Judging from the time, they should have just returned from the Western Regions. I will go and visit them now, and then go to the Western Regions with them. I will certainly live up to General Ning's expectations!"

Ning Xuan closed his eyes, remained silent for a few breaths, then suddenly tilted his head, letting his cheek roll across the valley, pressing down on the mountain peak, and then asked, "Ashiya, I once asked this young master Liu to go to the Western Regions to help me collect the scriptures, past events, and objects of the Shanmo Sect, in order to persuade me to educate the people of Wangyue Prefecture and have them join the Shanmo Sect. Is this matter of meritorious service?"

Ashya said, "The merit is considerable; if it succeeds, the merit will be immeasurable."

Ning Xuan said, "But he lost the amulet."

Ashya said, "That's called making amends for past mistakes."

Ning Xuan frowned.

He began to realize that not every woman was his Lady of Purity.

If it were Xiao Jie, she would have understood his meaning by now, but the stupid woman behind him was contradicting him, and his previous affection for her suddenly diminished.

He had to say it himself: "But I don't want someone with a tainted reputation to desecrate my piety. Liu Shirong, you shouldn't go. Let the steward come to see me."

Liu Shirong was stunned, then cried, "Brother Ning, please give me another chance, Brother Ning."

As he cried, he suddenly knelt down and crawled toward Ning Xuan.

He really wanted this merit, and he was truly loyal to Shan Gong, so loyal that he was no longer the shrewd and dissolute young man he used to be.

Ning Xuan frowned and shouted, "Guards, throw him out!"

Soon, two guards emerged from the outer courtyard.

The two guards' eyes were bloodshot, and they both seemed somewhat insane.

Clearly, Chou Nu had successfully trained some demon plague warriors using the jade he had previously found in Flying Eagle Tower, and that elder brother would naturally reserve the best for Ning Xuan.
Therefore, the first batch of demon plague warriors were all used as guards for the Ning family.

The demonic warrior, expressionless, carried Liu Shirong outside.

Liu Shirong kicked his legs, plowed the ground, and clung to the ground, shouting, "General Ning, please, give me another chance."

Ning Xuan said impatiently, "Someone of you go and keep an eye on him. Tell him to go and call the manager of the Jixiang Chamber of Commerce. After that, he must stay at Wangyue Mansion and is not allowed to go anywhere else."

Having said that, he pulled his head out from between the volcanoes, bent his massive body, looked at his former cronies, and said, "Fools."

Liu Shirong cried out, "I don't know what happened. I really didn't lose it on purpose. How could I have done it on purpose? I'm guilty! I'm guilty!"

The sound of crying faded into the distance.

Ning Xuan fell back down again, letting the Western Region dancers behind him massage and gently scratch him.

About ten days later.
The manager of the Jixiang Chamber of Commerce from the neighboring Shanyin Prefecture came to visit.

Ning Xuan repeated what he had asked Liu Shirong to do earlier.

The manager was overjoyed and patted his chest, saying, "I will definitely do it."

After he left, Ning Xuan summoned his elder brother and asked, "Is there a demon in our manor?"

The ugly servant replied succinctly, "Yes."

Ning Xuan asked, "How does it compare to the three demons of Manfeng Mountain?"

Ugly Slave said, "Why don't we... there's no need for the general to take action. I can handle this myself with the newly trained demon plague warriors."

Ning Xuan said, "No, this time I have to take action."

After saying that, he added, "Not only will I take action, but I will also capture it alive. Then I will throw this demon in front of the Jixiang Merchant Guild caravan. I want to see how that hunchbacked mountain man protects the caravan."

Ugly Slave:
He had already heard about what his younger brother had been doing these past few days.

Unexpectedly, the answer came here.

That's truly imaginative and unexpected.

(End of this chapter)