Gods of the Nation: You worship the God of Longevity, I worship the King of Hell!

Chapter 140 The True Functions of the City God! Wait! This tastes wrong!
Cloud Peak Villa.

Lu Chen and his group, who had just returned from Chenghuang Street, sat down on the sofa.

In front of him, Qiu Qianluo was still unconscious on the ground, tightly bound.

"General, general!"

Xie Qingyi darted to the table, staring longingly at the snacks piled up on it, rubbing her hands together with envy.

Lu Chen chuckled, walked to the table, and recited the "Life-Giving Mantra".

The magical power rippled across the table, instantly turning all the food into Yin food.

"Bring it over here, and let your dad and Uncle Ba have a taste too."

"Yes, General!" Xie Qingyi immediately broke off a banana and began to eat it with gusto.

With the help of Ox-Head and Horse-Face, they moved all the snacks from the table to the coffee table on the sofa side.

Xie Bi'an tore open a chocolate cookie, and was immediately drawn in by its rich aroma, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"Not bad! Really good!"

Lu Chen sat down with an air of authority, surveying the assembled underworld officials: "Gentlemen, what are your thoughts on this trip to City God Street?"

Xie Bi'an put down the biscuits and said solemnly, "General, to be honest, this trip was quite unexpected. I never imagined that City God Li would be willing to sacrifice his lifespan to use his secret techniques to help you catch the culprit."

Fan Wujiu popped a segment of orange into his mouth and mumbled, "Yes, based on my understanding of these City Gods, there must be something extraordinary behind them that would make them invest so much."

As he spoke, he glanced at the direction of the statues on the altar, seemingly relieved: "Fortunately, the general invited the King of Hell and the God of Wealth, so I dared to speak frankly. Otherwise, we really wouldn't dare to discuss the City God in Jiangdu."

The other underworld officials nodded in agreement.

Lu Chen frowned: "What do you mean? You only dare to speak after you invited the statue. If you didn't invite it, are you afraid that He will hear you?"

Xie Bi'an chuckled, "I'm really afraid of hearing that! General, you don't know this, but the City God is in charge of the underworld affairs of the city and has the right to eavesdrop on all the people in the city. If someone is disrespectful to the City God, he might hear it. If he holds a grudge, the trouble will be huge, and having some bad luck would be the least of your worries."

Lu Chen's pupils contracted slightly: "The City God has such abilities? That makes sense, after all, he is the City God. Then, aren't his abilities similar to those of the Four Duty Officers?"

Xie Bi'an shook his head: "No. The Four Duty Officers are responsible for 24/7 surveillance without any blind spots, and they record words and deeds for future reference. The City God only hears things in real time, and if he doesn't pay attention, it will pass by. There is a big difference between the two."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Even if Li Chenghuang wanted to befriend him, he would find it hard to accept being constantly monitored.

"So, according to you, as long as there's a deity statue in the house, he can't hear or see anything?"

“Exactly,” Fan Wujiu explained. “There are three situations in which the local City God cannot spy on them: First, when they are in a temple, since the temple is dedicated to all the righteous gods of the Three Realms, the City God naturally cannot and dares not spy on them; second, like the general, whose home is dedicated to immortals and gods, no one can spy on them within a hundred meters; third, when there is a righteous god who is superior to the local City God present.”

Apart from these three, the City God can inspect all others at will according to his divine authority—that is why I dared to make this comment earlier.

Otherwise, Li Chenghuang is, after all, the city god of the prefecture, and I really can't afford to offend him."

“Father, with the general here, what are you afraid of?” Fan Rusong couldn’t help but say when he saw his father being so cautious.

"Yes, yes, Song'er is right." Fan Wujiu scratched his head and chuckled.

Lu Chen felt somewhat relieved.

It wasn't that he thought Li Chenghuang would spy on him, after all, the other party needed his help right now.

But knowing this rule is never a bad thing.

"General, what exactly did City God Li discuss with you just now? I noticed his attitude was exceptionally respectful," Xie Bi'an asked.

"Yes, yes, I think he almost knelt down, luckily the general stopped him in time." Xie Qingyi interrupted, her words muffled as she ate her bread.

"It's nothing." Lu Chen smiled, his expression becoming more serious: "This City God Li wants to request the position of City God of the Prefecture. He hopes that I can say a few words to the Plague Emperor and ask the Star Lord to put in a good word for him with the Emperor of Fengdu."

As soon as he finished speaking, Xie Bi'an and the others stopped eating.

Fan Rusong's beautiful eyes widened: "So that's what He was after!"

Xie Bi'an gasped: "This City God Li... is truly shrewd and far-sighted! No wonder he was willing to shorten his lifespan to investigate the case for the General. He wanted the General to be indebted to him, paving the way for today's events!"

Lu Chen nodded: "If I don't make things clear today, He will speak up sooner or later. This City God Li is much more cunning than the previous City God."

Fan Wujiu said in a deep voice, "Li Chenghuang is indeed a very steady person."

Looking across Jiang Province, if one were to promote a prefectural city god from among the prefectural city gods, he would have the best chance of winning.

This is because the two strongest cities in Jiangxi Province are the provincial capital, Qianjiang, and Jiangdu.

Looking at the whole country, Jiangxi Province is also one of the top three super-strong provinces.

Although both are prefectural city gods, the weight and significance of a prefectural city god in Jiang Province can be quite different.

"Even the City God of the Capital would probably think highly of him." "Indeed." Lu Chen nodded. "The City God of Li also said that after the City God of Jiang Province was killed, the City God of the Capital personally went to the Supreme Being to lodge a complaint, but the Supreme Being suppressed him."

"This just proves that the Plague Emperor has a lot of influence!" Xie Bi'an laughed. "No wonder City God Li asked the general to put in a good word for him. He's using a two-pronged approach, determined to get the position of City God."

The underworld officials all agreed.

Lu Chen casually asked, "Speaking of which, what exactly is the difference between the City God of the Prefecture and the City God of the State? Besides being their direct superiors, what special powers do they have?"

Given that someone as powerful as the City God Li was so enthusiastic about it, Lu Chen couldn't help but wonder just how significant this position truly was.

Xie Bi'an laughed and said, "General, the position of City God is quite prestigious."

He not only commands the city gods, underworld generals, and underworld soldiers of a province, but also holds absolute power to appoint and dismiss underworld officials in the province.

It's no exaggeration to say that whoever He wants to be the City God can become the City God.

Even if you take a fancy to a dog and want it to become a ghost messenger, a ghost general, or even a city god, it's just a matter of saying a word.

This power of the local officials, to some extent, even surpasses that of the City God in the capital.

Do you think this power is great or not?

"What!" Upon hearing this, Lu Chen's brows furrowed instantly: "The City God of the Prefecture wields such great power?!"

"Indeed. General, have you ever heard any anecdotes—such as the story of a renowned scholar who, due to an innocent and tragic death or other reasons, was posthumously appointed as the City God?"

"Yeah, I heard something."

"To put it bluntly, it's most likely that the local city god took a liking to this person and bestowed upon him a favor, ordering him to bring blessings to the region."

Although the city god of a prefecture is only one level lower, the difference between him and the city god of a county is like heaven and earth.

What is a regional governor?

Only those officials in the underworld who can determine the future of their jurisdiction and influence the fate of a region deserve this title!

Xie Bi'an's words even moved Lu Chen.

He laughed and said, "If that's the case, if I really help Him to sit on the throne, wouldn't I also be able to become the City God of a prefecture?"

Fan Rusong said urgently, "General, please don't have such thoughts. The City God is ultimately a ghost immortal, and your future is limitless, why focus on this?"

Lu Chen waved his hand and laughed, "It was just a casual remark. But if that day ever comes, and any of you want to become the City God, I can put in a good word for you."

"Thank you, General!" Upon hearing this, all the underworld officials were terrified.

Fan Wujiu pressed further: "Does the general mean he has decided to help Him?"

Lu Chen: "It wouldn't hurt to lend a hand, after all, I'm indebted to those who take my money. But I'll make this clear from the start: whether it works or not, I can't guarantee anything."

The underworld officials nodded: "That's good. If the general really helps Him ascend to the position of governor, He will have a significant advantage in the Jiang Province."

“That’s right, that’s what I think too.” Lu Chen nodded, stood up and said, “It’s getting late, I still need to invite City Lord Yu over. Thank you all for your help today. Seventh Master, Eighth Master, this is just a small token of my appreciation, please accept it.”

Lu Chen took out five million ghost money, burned it, and handed it to Xie Bi'an and Fan Wujiu.

"General, this is unacceptable!" The two men were taken aback by the generous gift.

"You two need not refuse this small token of my appreciation. I will remember your help in the Chenghuang Street incident, which was entirely due to your selfless assistance."

"This..." The two impermanent figures exchanged a glance, bowed, and clasped their hands in greeting. "If the general ever needs our services, we are willing to serve you like dogs and horses!"

"Of course. Then I won't see you off any further."

"General, please stay!"

As the blue smoke dissipated, the figures of the underworld messengers gradually disappeared, returning to the underworld.

Lu Chen glanced at Qiu Qianluo, who was unconscious on the ground, and dialed Yu Feng's number...

A moment later, a fiery red cloud streaked across the sky and pierced the earth.

"Boom boom boom!"

There was a rapid knocking at the door.

"coming."

Lu Chen opened the door, and Yu Feng, with a solemn expression, strode in with several guards.

Looking at Qiu Qianluo bound on the ground, Yu Feng raised an eyebrow, slapped Lu Chen's shoulder heavily, and laughed loudly:
"Good lad! I knew I'd come to the right person!!!"

(End of this chapter)