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

Even not being able to offer incense couldn't stop my faith level from soaring!

Zhong Jiu, who was in the City God's Mansion, felt it most directly. The 100,000 faith points he had just spent were soaring like a rocket, directly breaking through the 250,000 mark, and were still rising rapidly.

He knew perfectly well that the official temple construction was an olive branch, and the promotion of the City God was a flirtatious gesture. Zhong Yingmei was determined to make connections with the underworld.

Hehe, we can team up if we have the chance, but we absolutely mustn't reveal my identity as the older brother, otherwise, with my sister's temper, she'll definitely make me get "recruited" by the authorities!

Good news kept coming, but so did some bad things.

Wu Yuanying's fans posted a video of a divine intervention online, intending to explain the phenomenon, but the comments section exploded with trolls:

"A deity descended to earth? Can you at least put some effort into making up a lie?"

"You can't edit videos, right? Well, I'll edit one up right now and show you Ultraman fighting monsters!"

"If there were truly immortals, they should be in Yuandu, not staying in a third-tier city like Guiling."

"You're spouting feudal superstitions in a world that's supposed to be the end of the world? I think you've all gone mad with fear!"

The more the viewers explained, the more excited the trolls became. After all, they were just living one day at a time in the apocalypse, and they didn't have to take responsibility for trolling others.

Wu Yuanying's live stream was also taken over by trolls, with the barrage full of comments like "making easy money" and "acting like a ghost," which made her so angry that she almost smashed her live stream microphone.

Chung Kau wasn't surprised. These days, there's more fake news than real news. In the past, there were even cults that used to use "divine intervention" to scam money. People have long been traumatized by this.

Furthermore, people are restless in the end times, and disbelief is the norm.

Unexpectedly, just two weeks later, the authorities dropped a bombshell: the new City God Temple has been completed!

As soon as the news came out, tens of thousands of pilgrims lined up at the entrance in advance, and some even came from neighboring cities, with the queue stretching for several streets.

That day, Chung Kau made an appointment with Ng Yuen-ying to go to the City God Temple.

The two mingled in the crowd. Wu Yuanying was wearing jeans and a red T-shirt, with her hair tied in a high ponytail, looking just like a little fangirl going to meet her idol.

"Wow, the official team really went all out!"

Zhong Jiu stared at the new temple, speechless with amazement.

The Yanhuang Kingdom in this world is also an "infrastructure maniac," but the fact that such a large temple was built in just over ten days still exceeded his expectations.

The old City God Temple was dilapidated and only a few dozen square meters in size. Now it has been expanded many times over and looks like a medium-sized park from a distance.

The stone-paved road was wide enough for a horse-drawn carriage to pass through, and the palaces on both sides were lined up one after another, which was incredibly magnificent.

"Why are you joining in the fun?"

Chung Kau poked Wu Yuen Ying.

"Nonsense! Who in Guiling City doesn't come to worship the City God these days?"

Wu Yuanying pumped his fist, his eyes sparkling. "You really missed out that day! The moment the Great God Gong Cao appeared, his aura was ten times cooler than any superhero in a movie!"

"A master?"

Zhong Jiu suppressed a laugh, "Gong Cao is just a minor official of the eighth rank, not a great deity."

Wu Yuanying was so frightened that she quickly covered his mouth, looking around frantically: "My ancestors! There are gods watching over us, are you out of your mind?"

Saying this at the City God Temple is like cursing in front of the gods' doorstep!

"Don't worry, he won't hold it against me."

Zhong Jiu slapped her hand away, smiling confidently. The entire City God's Mansion was his territory; who would dare to mess with him?

Wu Yuanying rolled her eyes at him and pulled him along with the crowd.

"Look at this stone-paved road, it was all donated by the Li family!"

She pointed to the ground, "They demolished all the roads on their own estate and transported the statues directly here. And Boss Zhang donated a ton of bronze statues, as if afraid the gods wouldn't see his sincerity."

Zhong Jiu nodded. It's human nature to seek profit and avoid harm. Even the gods have shown their power, so the wealthy merchants will naturally scramble to show their loyalty.

On the left side of the stone-paved road, seven halls are lined up in a row. The most conspicuous one is the Yin-Yang Hall, which houses the statue of the "Master of Yin-Yang Hall".

Without a doubt, the entire layout and design of the City God Temple was designed by Old Tian, ​​an "expert".

After offering incense, Wu Yuanying looked around and asked, "Where's the statue of the God of Merit? I want to kowtow to him three times!"

"The Gongcao is just a subordinate official and probably doesn't have a deity statue."

Chung Kau symbolically lit an incense stick, secretly laughing to himself. The head of the Yin-Yang Department didn't exist at all; these people were just worshipping an empty seat.

"Who says there isn't? That hall across the street is dedicated to the Yin-Yang Master!"

An old man walked by and pointed to the other side, saying...

Zhong Jiu was stunned. How dare a lowly eighth-rank official erect a statue of a god?

He looked in the direction the old man pointed and sure enough, there was a "Gongcao Hall" with a line of people waiting to offer incense that could circle the hall three times, making it even more lively than the Yin-Yang Bureau.

He and Wu Yuanying squeezed through to take a look, and good heavens, not only did he have a statue, but all the other officials in the hall also had one, only the popularity was nowhere near as high.

The side halls on both sides are even more extravagant, with statues of the Shackled General, the Day and Night Wandering God, and even several famous soul messengers.

Chung Kau finally understood that the authorities were "acting first and reporting later." Regardless of whether such a god existed, they were putting up the statue first, aiming for "all-round, no blind spots."

"They're being so kind; if I didn't show up, I'd seem petty."

Zhong Jiu muttered to himself.

He looked up at the sky from the perspective of the underworld, and countless golden threads of faith poured into the City God's Mansion like a waterfall, with an immense surge of incense and prayer power rushing towards him.

The majority of the offerings go to the City God, since he is the chief deity; the second is to him, the "Yin-Yang Official," since he personally manifested his divine power.

Third is the Director of the Yin-Yang Department. People only benefited from his fame because he was the superior of the Chief of the Merit Clerk. They immediately followed suit and worshipped him.

Lei Yifang and his group also received incense offerings, which was an incredible opportunity for them. Given their rank, they were not originally entitled to receive incense offerings, but thanks to this brilliant move by the authorities.

The incense offerings from those with a master belong to that person, while the offerings from those without a master all went into Chung Kau's pocket, causing his faith level to surge again.

"Ding! Mission 1, 'Repair the City God Temple, establish its authority, and restore its former glory,' has been completed!"

"Reward: Ancient Elite Battle Spirit (can be drawn as a City God's Guard), draw now?"

The system notification sounded, and Zhong Jiu was overjoyed. The City God's Mansion had never had dedicated guards and relied entirely on the soul messengers. Now, this loophole could finally be plugged.

But instead of accepting the award, he pulled Wu Yuanying along to continue shopping.

The new temple exudes an air of solemnity and reverence. Most of the worshippers are devout, and even those who are somewhat skeptical offer incense respectfully, with no one daring to cause trouble.

In the rest pavilion, Old Tian was busy recruiting people. The new temple receives at least tens of thousands of worshippers every day, and he simply couldn't handle it all by himself.

The City God Temple does not accept incense money or sell blessed ornaments, yet it is never short of money.

Donations from wealthy merchants poured in like a tidal wave. Old Tian had a large sum of money in his hands, and as soon as the recruitment notice was released, the line of applicants stretched from the temple gate to the city gate.

"Grandpa, I'm signing up! I don't need a salary, just meals!"

"I can write calligraphy and help copy scriptures!"

"I...I...I used to work in a temple, I have experience!"

……

The person who was so eager to become the temple keeper was quite shrewd.

The diagram has at least two advantages:

First, it's safe! In this chaotic world, is there any place safer than the underworld?

How dare evil spirits roam freely at the doorstep of the gods?

Haven't you noticed how skyrocketing property prices have been around the City God Temple? Prices have increased tenfold, and it's still incredibly difficult to find a place to live. Residents living nearby walk around with their chins held high, exuding an air of arrogance that everyone envies.

They know perfectly well that money is something you can't take with you when you die; once you're dead, mountains of gold and silver are just worthless paper.

Secondly, there's the "sense of holiness"! On a grander scale, this is working for the gods. If you perform well, you might become a great spirit after death, just like Old Tian, ​​bringing glory to your ancestors!

So these people don't want wages at all. They get angry if Old Tian gives them a couple more coins. Once they get a high salary, it becomes a pure employment relationship. How can it be as intimate as "voluntary dedication"?

Old Tian may look simple-minded, but he's actually a seasoned veteran who can see through these little schemes at a glance. He only recruits truly devout believers, and he's not confused at all.

Zhong Jiu accompanied Wu Yuanying through the crowd for a long time before they finally finished offering incense. Looking at the frenzied state of the worshippers, he nodded to himself, realizing that this fervor of faith wouldn't cool down anytime soon.