You, a tyrannical ruler, roam the heavens; you cannot understand my joy.

We wholeheartedly recommend this book to you: "The Tyrant Ruler of the Heavens, You Don't Understand My Joy," available here.

"Wow, what amazing perception!"

In the alley, a slender woman dressed in black, wearing a straw hat and a thin veil covering her face chuckled and then turned to look at the middle-aged man behind her.

What do you think?

The middle-aged man shook his head: "Let me take another look..."

"After all, it's not yet certain whether Nightshade was killed by him."

"and……"

"Although he bears the same appearance as His Majesty, His Majesty is currently in Jiankang. How can he possibly be in Dongyang?"

"I think this person is very likely a double carefully cultivated by His Majesty."

The slender woman nodded: "It's not impossible."

"But if he was His Majesty's double, why did he cause so much trouble in Nantong instead of Jiankang?"

"unless……"

"He's not just a double, he's His Majesty's confidant!"

"Could it be..." The slender woman hesitated for a moment, then exclaimed in surprise, "He really is His Majesty's male favorite?"

Middle-aged man: "Whether it's him or not, I'll find out when I get the chance to ask him in person..."

"besides."

He glanced at the bustling crowds on the street: "Since entering Dongyang, the Underworld Emperor has vanished. Where has he disappeared to?"

"Let's go."

The slender woman turned around: "Let's go see if Night Wolf has made any gains?"

……

The main hall of the prefect's residence.

The hall is spacious, with the floor paved with polished blue bricks. On each side stand four vermilion-lacquered round pillars, with gray-white stone drums as their bases.

The main seat on the north side is set on a platform three steps higher than the ground, with a large sandalwood desk and a black lacquered chair behind it, the back of which is inlaid with marble.

On the desk were neatly arranged writing implements, a container for issuing orders, and a bronze seal.

The hall has a high ceiling with intersecting beams and rafters. On the east and west walls hang plaques inscribed with the words "Upright and Honest," the characters thick and bold.

Lu Zuo sat down at the desk, and after reviewing some documents, he looked at the Soul Reaper with some surprise.

This kid actually has governing skills?

The information in the document shows that since he came to Dongyang, he has followed the example of Nantong, confiscating the property of large and small noble families and distributing the land equally among the people.

Because all the martial artists of the Dongyang family had come out to attack Nantong with Shen Xun, only a bunch of spoiled brats who didn't know martial arts and their wives and daughters were left in the family.

This matter is simple to do, but setting up government offices such as the Agricultural Affairs Department and the Public Works Department, and recruiting local martial artists from poor families, is not as simple as just talking about it.

The process is quite complicated, and without good governance skills, it simply cannot be done well!

"Did you make all of this?"

The vengeful spirit chuckled, "My lord, how could I possibly possess such skill?"

"Oh?"

Lu Zuo asked curiously, "Who handled that?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency, I rescued a talented man in Dongyang. His surname is Zhang, and his given name is Zhongjian. He handles all matters, big and small, in Dongyang on my behalf."

Zhang Zhongjian?

Why does this name sound so familiar?

Lu Zuo lowered his head and pondered silently...

suddenly!

His eyes suddenly lit up!

It's him!

One of the Three Heroes of the Wind and Dust, the Bearded Stranger!

This man was a man of great talent and strategy, with outstanding military tactics. In the story of "The Three Heroes of the Wind and Dust," even Li Jing's military tactics were taught by him...

Unexpectedly, this world has not only Hong Fu Nu, but also this person?

but……

The Red-Robed Woman's cultivation was extremely high, so this Bearded Man's strength was probably not small either...

"How did you save him?"

"My lord, shortly after I led my troops to Dongyang, I found him unconscious in the wilderness, so I brought him back to the city and found a doctor to treat him."

"After he recovered from his injury, he said that with my methods of handling affairs in Dongyang, chaos would definitely break out within ten days."

"So he stayed to help me, but he also said that he could only help me for a year at most."

"I will leave in a year."

"My lord, he is at the prefect's residence. Would you like to see him?"

Lu Zuo nodded: "Go and call him over."

"Yes."

The ghost turned and left the hall. A short while later, it led in a burly man with a thick, red beard, who looked to be about thirty years old.

This person exudes a calm and composed aura, with a sharp glint in his eyes, and an imposing presence that commands respect without anger...

"Zhang Zhongjian greets Your Excellency the Prefect."

Upon entering, he stepped forward and bowed, but Lu Zuo could not detect even the slightest hint of subservience in him.

"Zhang Zhongjian, you have handled Dongyang exceptionally well; the imperial court should commend you..."

Before Lu Zuo could finish speaking, the other party interrupted him in a deep voice: "I am only here to repay a debt of gratitude, and I do not seek any reward."

He paused for a moment, then asked, "I wonder what orders you have given me, sir?"

Seeing his aloof attitude, Lu Zuo decided to get straight to the point and asked, "I'd like to know, who injured you?"

"Return to my lord."

"This person is tall, with a fair complexion and skin as pale as paper. He is also proficient in a certain technique of absorbing energy."

"My entire cultivation was absorbed by him."

Absorption power?

In the Tang Dynasty world, methods of absorbing their power were not uncommon.

For example, the Yin Gui Sect's Heavenly Demon Force Field possesses such a technique.

It can absorb the power of others, but it is not considered a high-level martial art, and few people deliberately cultivate it.

Without him...

The methods used are too rudimentary and fraught with hidden dangers!

If you are not careful, you will suffer a backlash, and the risk of going into qi deviation is extremely high!

Moreover, the martial arts of the Tang Dynasty have their own unique system. Once you reach the Three Realms, it becomes very difficult for someone to absorb your internal energy.

This isn't a joke, it's a recommendation for the treasure book "Wandering Among the Heavens as a Tyrant, You Don't Understand My Happiness":

This tactic is at best a supplementary measure, used to catch the enemy off guard in battle.

"What was your cultivation level before?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency, the inner world has just been created."

What?

Lu Zuo was greatly astonished: "At the initial stage of inner creation, when one is one with the universe, how could he absorb all your cultivation?"

"Yes, sir."

Zhang Zhongjian nodded: "I find this very strange as well."

"This person is not only mysterious in origin, but also quite unpredictable in his methods. No matter how I attack him, even if I cut off one of his hands, he can instantly regenerate!"

The Emperor of the Underworld!

Lu Zuoteng immediately stood up: "Do you have any information about this person?"

Zhang Zhongjian gave him a strange look, probably wondering why the Prefect of Dongyang would react so strongly.

He shook his head: "After he absorbed my cultivation, I fell unconscious in the wilderness and didn't see which way he went."

"But he should have already left Dongyang."

"Because he told me back then that he wouldn't have absorbed my cultivation if he hadn't been being chased."

It must be him!

Lu Zuo sat back down, pondered for a moment, and then asked, "What's been happening with the Buddhist sect lately?"

Zhang Zhongjian cupped his hands and said, "Reporting to Your Excellency."

"After receiving your letter, I sent people to secretly monitor the movements of the Dongyang Buddhist sect."

"At this moment, they are transferring assets, but secretly colluding to relocate to the Sui Kingdom on the other side of the Yangtze River in the next few days."

Lu Zuo's eyes turned cold, and he said in a deep voice, "It seems we need to hurry!"

"Pass down the order!"

"Let's start in Dongyang City. We'll move at midnight tonight and destroy those thriving temples first!"

They were severely understaffed, and Dongyang was too large a territory with too many temples, so they had no choice but to proceed in this way.

As for the small temples with few worshippers, if they escaped during the chaos, there was nothing Lu Zuo could do...

No matter how skilled he is in martial arts, he cannot be in two places at once.

……

On the day Shen Xun raised his army, the masters of the Dongyang Buddhist sect also provided strong assistance, most of whom died under the walls of Nantong.

Today, the Dongyang Buddhist sect, apart from its large number of members, has little real strength.

The destruction of Buddhism was very easy to carry out. In just one night, Lu Zuo, the three Ghost Kings, Zhu Yuyan, Madam Cai, and the martial artists from humble backgrounds led by the Soul-Reaping Ghost, along with thousands of elite soldiers, wiped out hundreds of temples!

The amount of silver obtained was a staggering seven million!

And the gold alone amounted to nearly 100,000!

This made him exclaim once again, "Buddhism is really damn rich!"

No wonder Tuoba Tao and Yuwen Yong carried out a large-scale suppression of Buddhism; the country must have been short of money!

The anti-Buddhist movement began in earnest on the very day Lu Zuo arrived in Dongyang.

After dealing with the temples near Dongyang, he led his men on a non-stop journey to Yunshan County, while Madam Cai and the three Ghost Kings went to other counties.

……

The following day, late at night, in Yunshan County, Dongyang.

Moonlight, like water, spilled onto the city wall, casting a cold, metallic bluish-gray hue, while the crenellations on the wall resembled the jagged teeth of a giant beast.

The moat flowed silently, reflecting the scattered lights of a few scattered lamps.

Shops on both sides of the street had their doors tightly shut.

The bluestone pavement gleamed darkly in the dim light of the lanterns, a few fallen leaves clung to the cracks between the stones, and occasionally an unextinguished lantern swayed gently under the eaves, casting shimmering spots of light on the wall.

Deeper into the alley, darkness was thick, and high walls on both sides created a narrow strip of night sky, with wisps of night mist drifting over the withered vines hanging from the walls.

Boom!

A figure crashed violently into the wall, shattering the silence of the night with a thunderous explosion.

Rumble...

Immediately afterwards, the wall collapsed, rubble flew everywhere, and dust billowed.

"Cough, cough..."

An old monk lay paralyzed in the ruins, coughing up blood incessantly, his eyes sharp as knives, staring intently at the man in blue robes walking towards him.

"Lu Zuo!"

"Today you destroy Buddhism, demolish temples, and slaughter monks; how are you any different from those evil demons of hell!"

He struggled to sit up, but the broken bones pierced his internal organs with excruciating pain. He could only prop himself up on his elbows, and he hissed, "Which of the fields and money belonging to my Buddhist sect wasn't a voluntary offering from believers?"

"How are you any different from those bandits who plunder and destroy statues today, by killing monks and destroying their images?"

"How are they any different from the tyrannical and incompetent rulers and officials throughout history who used the pretext of suppressing Buddhism to carry out plunder and pillage!"

"The boundless evil karma you have sown today will surely bring you karmic retribution in the future, causing you to fall into Avici Hell and never be able to escape..."

Tsk!

Before the old monk could finish speaking, Lu Zuo had already lunged forward, slashed the man's throat with a knife, and then turned and left.

"Don't run!"

"stop!"

"You wicked creatures, how dare you slaughter Buddhist disciples like this?"

"They will surely suffer the consequences one day!"

The entire Yunshan County City was in chaos at this moment.

Fires raged everywhere, accompanied by shouts and the sounds of battle.

The monks and nuns in the city's temples either fled in all directions or fought with the soldiers brought by Lu Zuo.

"Um?"

Lu Zuo, who was about to rush to the aid of others, suddenly stopped and looked at the woman who was walking unsteadily in front of him, and frowned slightly.

"Zhu Yuyan?"

He quickly stepped forward and asked, puzzled, "Who hurt you?"

"have no idea……"

Zhu Yuyan's face was pale, blood seeping from the corner of her mouth. She gently shook her head: "I don't know him..."

Before he could finish speaking, a chilling aura suddenly swept in from all directions.