I subdue demons and monsters, and cultivate immortality in hell to become a saint.

No sooner had Chung Kau left than the Li family mansion erupted in chaos.

"My goodness! That vengeful ghost has really been slain!"

"Heaven has eyes! This is a living god descended to earth!"

"What living deity? Didn't you hear him say he's an official from the underworld?"

"I was too nervous to hear clearly. What official was that person again?"

As everyone chattered, Li Wanqiu suddenly stood up straight, her voice clear and resonant: "Ninth-Rank Inspector!"

She raised her arm, and the pale gold talisman on her snow-white skin was still clearly visible; it was the mark of the Jifeng Hall of the City God's Mansion in Guiling City.

It took Mr. Li a while to recover his senses. He immediately shouted, "Go and invite the best jade carving master in Guiling City to carve an image of the elder from a whole piece of mutton-fat jade. This image will be enshrined in the main hall of the Li family ancestral hall. From now on, generations of Li family descendants will offer incense, ensuring the continuous flow of offerings!"

At this time, Zhong Jiu was unaware that he was about to be "enshrined" and had already led his team to the ground floor of the Huida Building.

"Sir, what should we do with these prisoners? They're too much of a hindrance in battle."

Zhou Sheng pointed at the evil spirits tied up in a string, his face full of conflict.

Zhong Jiu glanced at the group of trembling demons, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes: "Perfect for a flag-raising ceremony! Saves us from being a burden."

Without hesitation, the Demon-Slaying Sword flashed with a blue light, and a string of evil spirits instantly vanished into thin air.

Zhong Jiu glanced at the slightly bouncing progress bar on the system panel, nodded in satisfaction, and pointed directly at the building: "All troops, attack!"

Without Huang Jingwen as their leader, the evil spirits in Huida Building are just a disorganized mess.

The soul soldiers, no longer hesitant, charged in, brandishing their soul-binding chains and howling.

"What kind of wild ghost came from? How dare you trespass on the Huida Building!"

"Do you even know whose territory this is? How dare you act so presumptuously on Mr. Huang's land!"

Several evil spirits dressed as security guards rushed out, brandishing rubber batons and shouting. They mistook the soul soldiers for their own kind who were trying to seize territory.

"Are you blind?!"

Zhou Sheng, wielding his ghost-beating stick, charged to the front, shouting, "You dare to occupy the territory of the underworld? Today, I'll wipe you all out!"

The soul soldiers behind him followed closely, while the other soul officers cursed angrily, "This kid is stealing credit again!" They also quickly led their men to chase after him.

Looking at his subordinates' energetic demeanor, Zhong Jiu nodded to himself. The Underworld's power needed to grow stronger; he alone couldn't do it all. They needed these "geniuses" who were eager to get things done.

Those security guard ghosts couldn't even last half a cup of tea before they were bound into dumplings by the Soul-Binding Lock.

The Soul Soldiers were clever; knowing their leader liked to personally "clean up" things, they deliberately left some alive.

"The Huida Building has twenty-four floors. Clear each floor thoroughly; not a single evil spirit will be allowed to escape!"

Zhong Jiu gave the order in a deep voice.

"Yes, sir!"

The three soul officers, all of whom were government employees in their previous lives, possessed exceptional organizational skills. They immediately divided the team into three groups to maximize the efficiency of the search.

Zhong Jiu walked alone to the top floor. He could clearly feel that the yin energy was strongest there, and it was definitely Huang Jingwen's "President's Office".

"Who?"

Suddenly, a secretary ghost in a tight dress appeared, with a hot body but fierce eyes, pouncing on him like a wildcat.

"presumptuous!"

Zhong Jiu stood motionless, coldly uttering only two words.

The secretary ghost had barely approached within three meters when her knees buckled and she collapsed to her knees with a thud, her whole body trembling like a leaf. How could she compare to Huang Jingwen, this low-level evil spirit who couldn't even withstand the official authority of the inspector?

Zhong Jiu walked around her once, nodding to himself: She was quite beautiful. She must have been a smart woman to be able to work as a secretary in Huida Building in her previous life. It's a pity that she was ruined by Huang Jingwen and turned into a demon.

The more he looked, the funnier he found it. Huang Jingwen was such a drama queen. Not only did he occupy an office building, but he also hired security guards and a secretary. It seemed that he was incompetent to be a boss in life, so he wanted to experience the life of a CEO in the underworld after death.

"I'm asking you a question, answer it! If you dare to lie or remain silent, you'll immediately follow in Huang Jingwen's footsteps."

Zhong Jiu's tone was calm, yet it carried an undeniable air of authority.

"Mr. Huang... you killed him?"

The secretary's face turned pale. When she heard the shouts of killing coming from downstairs, she trembled even more violently. Her boss was gone, and her stronghold had been destroyed. Her skills were no match for them.

Where does Huang Jingwen usually work?

Zhong Jiu was too lazy to waste words with her.

"In that office, Mr. Huang never allows anyone else to enter, not even me."

The secretary pointed to the door at the end of the corridor.

Mr. Huang?

Zhong Jiu almost burst out laughing. He had guessed right; this guy was indeed indulging in his CEO fantasies.

Unfortunately, he hadn't even warmed his seat as president before he was taken down by this "underworld disciplinary committee," which was quite frustrating.

Zhong Jiu strode towards the office, his black official robe sweeping across the floor, the gust of wind he stirred up exuding an aura of power.

The secretary ghost followed behind, her neck hunched, her soul trembling like a leaf in the autumn wind. She didn't even dare to breathe. This man was a ruthless character who could even kill Huang Jingwen in an instant. If she dared to run away, she would be asking for trouble.

With a creak, the door was pushed open, and a thick, almost tangible mist of blood rushed out, the stench so strong it made one's brow bones ache and almost choked one's soul.

Zhong Jiu raised an eyebrow and his gaze instantly locked onto the metal box behind the desk.

"This evil thing is well hidden."

The box was made of old, heavy black iron, its surface rusted and engraved with crooked ghost patterns. A thick, bloody smell was emanating from the cracks, as if countless wronged souls were wailing inside.

With a flick of his finger, Zhong Jiu sent the box lid flying open with a bang. The blood mist instantly surged tenfold, turning the entire office into an eerie dark red.

His eyes narrowed. Inside the box lay a blood-red bead the size of a pigeon's egg, its surface still slightly wriggling, as if something alive was churning inside.

This seems to be... the stench of blood and souls piled up from hundreds or thousands of lives, so strong it hurts your eyes.

Golden light emanated from Zhong Jiu's fingertips, and a system notification popped up instantly.

[Blood Coagulation Bead: Forged using the souls and essence of living beings as fuel and blood as a catalyst, it gains one point of evil power for every hundred souls it devours. Ghosts that consume it can leapfrog their ranks. It is a forbidden item that the underworld has explicitly ordered to be destroyed.]

"Good heavens, this bead must have swallowed at least a thousand innocent souls!"

Zhong Jiu clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white, and reached out to pinch the blood bead.

Huang Jingwen, that bastard, used the lives of thousands to refine evil objects. He deserves to die ten thousand times over!

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that the secretary ghost looked on with a greedy expression: the female ghost's eyes were almost glued to the beads, her tongue was unconsciously licking the corners of her mouth, and her soul was trembling with excitement, looking like a cat that had seen dried fish.

"What's wrong? Are you eyeing these beads?"

Zhong Jiu toyed with the Blood Coagulation Bead, his tone laced with sarcasm.

"I wouldn't dare!"

The secretary ghost suddenly lowered his head, his soul trembling even more violently, but the hand hidden behind his sleeve was clenched tightly. This was an incredible opportunity!

She was just a level one ghost, but after swallowing this bead, she could jump directly to a level three fierce ghost and never have to be at the mercy of others again!

"Huang Jingwen doesn't swallow it himself; he keeps the bead like a treasure. Do you know why?"

Zhong Jiu tightened his fingertips, and the blood-coagulated bead made a crisp "crunch" sound, scaring half of the secretary's ghost away.

"I...I don't know..."

The secretary had just shaken her head when she met Zhong Jiu's icy gaze, and her soul trembled violently.

If this man thinks she's useless, he'll crush her like an ant!

She knelt down with a thud, speaking rapidly like popping beans: "But I overheard Boss Huang on the phone! He said he works for Lord Soul General! If Lord Soul General hadn't bestowed upon him a cultivation method, he'd still be eating mud in a gutter! This bead... this bead is most likely a tribute reserved for Lord Soul General!"

"Lord Soul General? Your name is Yan Xiao, right?"

Zhong Jiu's eyes flashed with a sharp light; this was the name Huang Jingwen had called out before he died.

"Yes, yes, yes! It's Lord Yan Xiao!"

The secretary nodded frantically, as if afraid of being even a second too slow.