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

The underworld established by Chung Kau is completely different from the legendary underworld in terms of both its scope of authority and its way of doing things.

Many affairs that originally belonged to the "Heavenly Court" have now been taken over by the Underworld.

If the goal is to rebuild the underworld, what's the point of simply copying the legendary model?

He wanted to reach even greater heights and break free from constraints.

The legendary underworld is constantly hampered by various forces, and he can't stand that kind of frustration!

Just as Zhong Jiu was feeling annoyed, the system notification suddenly rang out, jolting him awake.

[Congratulations, host! Mission successfully completed! Your power has dominated the underworld, expanding your territory by millions of miles. All beings in the underworld chant your name. Reward: The Investiture of the Gods!]

Investiture of the Gods?

Zhong Jiu's gaze suddenly sharpened, and all his worries were instantly forgotten.

In the void, a black scroll floated, with golden threads wrapped around it, outlining obscure and mysterious patterns, exuding an inviolable majesty.

He raised his hand to take the scroll down and slowly unrolled it. The bright yellow inner pages were completely blank. Just as the scroll was fully unrolled, a massive amount of information flooded into his mind like a tidal wave.

"So, it's the underworld version of the Investiture of the Gods."

A glint flashed in Zhong Jiu's eyes, and he suddenly realized.

The original Investiture of the Gods was created in mythology to expand the Heavenly Court's ranks. During the war between the two countries, many powerful immortals and gods were involved. After their deaths, their souls were included in the list, eventually bringing together 365 righteous gods for the Heavenly Court.

But the scroll in his hand was exclusively for the underworld.

Similarly, 365 righteous gods will be appointed, but they have nothing to do with the Heavenly Court; they are all positions of underworld gods.

"The underworld is short-staffed right now, and the system gave me the Investiture of the Gods list. Does it want me to participate in the Investiture of the Gods ceremony as well?"

Zhong Jiu's mind raced, and he sneered before casually putting away the Investiture of the Gods.

"There's no need."

The Investiture of the Gods in mythology can encompass all the great gods of heaven and earth, but in this world, where are the real great gods?

The mortal realm is still thriving, and the cultivation world is far from reaching the level of mythology. Using the Investiture of the Gods to seal those small fry is like using a cannon to kill a mosquito.

Moreover, cultivators dislike being bound by restrictions, and the more outstanding they are, the less they want to be tied down by rankings.

Which of the great gods in the myths of yesteryear wasn't tricked into being included on the list?

With Chung Kau in charge of the underworld, there's no need for him to resort to such despicable means to forcibly recruit people; it's completely unnecessary.

Let's put the matter of the Investiture of the Gods aside for now.

What truly troubled him was his grand plan to upgrade, which required fulfilling three conditions. He had already completed two, leaving only the last one: to take control of reincarnation and manipulate the reincarnation of beings in the mortal realm.

The underworld is now in a well-ordered cycle of reincarnation, with countless beings being reborn every day. Everything is in perfect order, but the conditions for upgrading have yet to materialize.

"Could it be that perfection will only be achieved when all living beings in the mortal realm have undergone one cycle of reincarnation?"

Zhong Jiu frowned, feeling somewhat helpless at this guess.

Having grown accustomed to rapid leveling up, he is now stuck in a rut, forced to deal with judge affairs while focusing on his cultivation and patiently waiting.

After destroying the kingdoms of Guyou and Hanming, the Underworld fell into silence, and the underworld seemed to have returned to its former peace. However, the deterrent power of that battle was enough to shake the world for thousands of years.

Nowadays, when the beings of the underworld speak of the underworld, they all bow their heads in awe. For the first time, the saying that "the underworld rules the underworld" has been recognized by many beings. Everyone knows that, given this trend, the underworld will eventually become the sole ruler of the underworld.

Just as the reputation of the underworld was at its zenith, there was a fool who still harbored wicked intentions.

On the desolate plains of the far north, a figure staggered forward, his triangular eyes fixed on the front, filled with resentment and hatred—it was the Dark Abyss Demon King.

He fled all the way, staying far away from the sphere of influence of the underworld, muttering to himself all the while.

"Useless! They're all useless! The Ancient Nether Kingdom and the Cold Nether Kingdom are utterly hopeless!"

"An army of eighty million! And they couldn't even handle a mere underworld? The underworld wiped them out in just seven days. Even eighty million pigs would take a month to slaughter!"

He grew angrier as he spoke, his heart filled with resentment towards the rulers of the two countries.

In his view, the 80 million-strong army suffered a crushing defeat for no other reason than the incompetence and incompetence of the two rulers, and had nothing to do with him.

"Alas, if these 80 million troops had obeyed my orders, they wouldn't have ended up like this."

The Dark Abyss Demon King sighed, looking frustrated and resentful that his talents were not being recognized. He had a high opinion of himself and always believed that he was the smartest person in the world, and that everyone else was a fool.

"I heard the King of Guyou Kingdom was eaten by Qiongqi? He deserved it! With such a top-notch advisor like me, he still lost. It just proves he's utterly rotten!"

He shook his head, his tone full of disdain, and kept rambling on and on, which was a way of entertaining himself.

In his mind, he was not at fault for the defeat; it was all because his teammates were unhelpful.

The Rakshasa Kingdom is a bunch of fools; I never imagined that the Ancient Nether and Cold Nether Kingdoms would be just as incompetent.

"And those remnants of the ancient You Kingdom, how dare they try to shift the blame onto me? Ha, utterly laughable!"

The Dark Abyss Demon King's eyes turned cold. He was furious when he thought of this. A bunch of useless trash lost the fight, yet they dared to make excuses to slander him.

When has he, the Dark Abyss Demon King, ever taken the blame for something like this?

After trekking through mountains and rivers, he finally arrived at his destination, the Northern Demon Kingdom in the far north.

The Northern Demon Kingdom, the Cold Nether Kingdom, the Burning Demon Kingdom, and the Ancient Nether Kingdom are the four ancient kingdoms of the underworld.

Compared to the obscure Hanming Kingdom and the flamboyant Guyou Kingdom, the Beiwang Kingdom is far superior. Not only is it renowned, but it is also recognized as the oldest kingdom in the underworld. The Beiwang Kingdom has been present since the very beginning of recorded history in the underworld.

"Rakshasa won't work, Guyou won't work, Hanming won't work, but the Northern Demon Kingdom definitely will!"

An excited glint instantly ignited in the Dark Abyss Demon King's eyes. "As long as I see the King of the Northern Demon Kingdom, with my silver tongue, I'm sure I can persuade him to send troops to raze the Underworld and seize Fengdu!"

He remained steadfast in his wicked intentions, traveling a great distance to persuade the Northern Demon Kingdom to raise an army to attack the Underworld and reclaim everything that belonged to him.

Upon arriving at the capital of the Northern Demon King, the Dark Abyss Demon King's eyes lit up.

This capital city was even more magnificent than the capital of the Underworld, exuding an ancient and weathered aura, far more impressive than he had imagined.

"As expected of the Northern Demon Kingdom!"

He was filled with emotion, increasingly certain that he had come to the right place. He walked straight to the palace gate and arrogantly shouted to the gatekeeper, "Quickly inform your king that a great talent has come to pledge allegiance!"

Back then, he relied on this very act of self-recommendation to join the Kingdom of Guyou.

He knew that the ruler of the Northern Demon Kingdom was always respectful to the virtuous and learned. Seeing his confidence, he would surely summon him personally. Once they met, with his abilities, he was not afraid of persuading the other side to send troops.

Upon hearing this, the gatekeeper general indeed became more polite, cupping his hands and asking, "What is your esteemed name? What are your abilities? Please inform me, so that I may convey your message to the king."

The Dark Abyss Demon King straightened his back, his face arrogant: "I am the Dark Abyss Demon King, I will never change my name or surname! As for my abilities, in this underworld, I possess unparalleled wisdom and keen insight, making me a first-rate talent for governing the country!"

He originally wanted to say that he was a talent for founding the country, since he had always had the idea of ​​establishing his own state, but when the words came out, he restrained himself and changed it to a talent for assisting the country.

Right now, the most important thing is to persuade the ruler of the Northern Demon Kingdom to send troops.

"The Dark Abyss Demon King?"

Upon hearing this, the gatekeeper general frowned, pondered for a moment, then suddenly his expression changed drastically, and he was horrified. "You're that plague god, the Dark Abyss Demon King?"

The Dark Abyss Demon King was stunned, his face full of astonishment: "What? Plague God? When did I get that title?"

"It really was you!"

The gatekeeper general abruptly retreated several steps, pointing at the Dark Abyss Demon King, his face pale. "No wonder a meteorite fell outside the capital five days ago, causing widespread panic. It turns out a plague is approaching, a warning from the heavens!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the guards around the gate immediately surrounded them, their eyes wary and their faces full of fear.

"Is he the Dark Abyss Demon King?"

"It's him! The number one plague god of the underworld! First, he wiped out the Yinshan forces, then he ravaged the Rakshasa Ghost Kingdom. The Ancient Nether Kingdom was destroyed because of him, and the Cold Nether Kingdom was also rendered a mere shell of its former self by him!"

"My God! This guy is a jinx; anyone who gets close to him is doomed! How dare he come to our Northern Demon Kingdom?"

"Whatever he's trying to do, beat him out of here with sticks! Don't let him bring bad luck to the capital!"

It turns out that, according to the remnants of the ancient Nether Kingdom and those in the know, the Dark Abyss Demon King, once a minor character, is now a notorious calamity in the underworld.

Everyone knows that wherever he goes, destruction follows. All the creatures of the underworld avoid him like the plague, preferring to believe in his existence rather than his non-existence.

"You're talking nonsense! What makes you think you can slander my innocence out of thin air?"

The Dark Abyss Demon King was so angry he jumped up and down, his face turning bright red. A plague god? A jinx? What did these have to do with him?

"clean?"

The gatekeeper general sneered and demanded sharply, "Then tell me, why did the meteorite that fell outside the capital five days ago fall right before your arrival?"

"That's none of my business!"

The Dark Abyss Demon King was trembling with rage. He was being blamed for the meteorite crash; this was simply outrageous!

"none of your business?"

The soldiers erupted in uproar, bombarding them with probing questions: "Weren't the forces on Yin Mountain wiped out by you? Didn't the Rakshasa Ghost Kingdom perish because of you? Weren't the Ancient Nether Kingdom and the Cold Nether Kingdom implicated because of you?"

The Dark Abyss Demon King was speechless, his chest tight with frustration, and he was so annoyed he almost vomited blood.