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

"The Xuanjia Army of Guiling City! This is Judge!"

Whether they are officials or ordinary citizens, they have long been tired of hearing the legends of Guiling City, and they recognized it on the spot as soon as they saw this iconic combination.

The next second, the entire city of Star Sands erupted in chaos!

"Is this the grandeur of the gods? The whole city is blooming to welcome them! Amazing!"

"Am I dreaming? This scene is even more breathtaking than in the movies!"

"If writers and poets throughout history were to witness this scene, wouldn't they be able to compose hundreds of timeless masterpieces?"

"Greetings, Your Honor!"

"Please, sir, save us!"

……

Cheers, shouts of worship, and cries for help mingled together, resounding through the sky.

Some people were so excited that they danced with joy, while others knelt on the ground and kowtowed, their eyes filled with piety.

This is what a god should look like!

Compared to the official setup, the sheer grandeur of the deity was truly awe-inspiring!

Standing at the very front, Zhang Yunxiao gazed at the magnificent scene of flowers blooming throughout the city and the divine entourage descending. His heart was filled with emotion, and his eyes were filled with deep awe.

He had originally thought that he could use a grand display to intimidate ghosts and villains, but now he realized that the arrival of a deity was the most awe-inspiring display in itself!

"So this is the true majesty of God..."

Zhang Yunxiao muttered to himself, this scene was destined to be etched in his mind for a lifetime, and he would never forget it.

Zhong Jiu did not stop; the figure inside the chariot remained motionless, like a sculpture.

Four white horses clattered their hooves as they carried the chariot slowly toward the City God Temple, with seven hundred Xuanjia soldiers following closely behind, their momentum undiminished.

"Quick! Let's go to the City God Temple! I want to pray!"

"Don't push me! I'll fight anyone who pushes me again!"

"Make way! Make way! Give the gods a place to pass!"

Seeing the divine procession depart, countless citizens scrambled to their feet and frantically rushed towards the City God Temple.

Those who had previously doubted the gods were completely convinced after witnessing this miraculous scene, and were now more enthusiastic than anyone else.

This surge of popularity naturally alerted the demons and monsters hidden in Xingsha City.

In the shadowy corners, pairs of cold eyes stared at the divine chariot in the sky, filled with resentment and murderous intent.

No one noticed that the government had gone to great lengths to build this City God Temple. The most bustling commercial plaza in the city center was completely demolished, and all the surrounding land was included in the planning.

To many, this seems a bit extravagant, since the underworld doesn't care about such superficial things.

However, the authorities had their own considerations: Xingsha City is different from Guiling City. Its 20 million people are scattered across twelve districts. The City God Temple is built in the city center so that citizens from all districts can easily reach it. Moreover, once the gods descend, the incense will surely be abundant, and a small temple simply cannot accommodate so many people.

The City God Temple that has been built today looks like a small city. It could easily accommodate hundreds of thousands of people, or even a million.

The chariot landed at the entrance of the City God Temple. Chung Kau got out of the chariot and looked at the magnificent building in front of him. He was a little surprised, but after thinking about it, he understood the official's intentions.

Times have changed, and the underworld must also adapt to the needs of the human world.

He stepped into the City God Temple and instantly entered the underworld of Xingsha City.

Compared to the tiny underworld of Guiling City, the City God's Palace in Xingsha City was a colossal behemoth, with pavilions and towers densely packed together, palaces scattered like chess pieces, and black city walls resembling a crouching black dragon, exuding boundless power.

Back then, seven hundred Xuanjia soldiers could barely hold the City God's Mansion in Guiling City; but now, if you throw these seven hundred men into the City God's Mansion in Xingsha City, they won't even make a splash.

"Is this the difference between a prefectural city god and a county city god?" Zhong Jiu was shocked.

The title of the City God of a county is Earl, who governs the territory of a county; the title of the City God of a prefecture is Marquis, who governs the territory of a province!

As the economic center of the southwest of the Yanhuang Kingdom, Nanling Province covers a vast area and has 15 prefecture-level cities, 125 counties, and countless towns and subdistricts.

Taking charge of such a City God Temple instantly elevates one's status, catching Zhong Jiu somewhat off guard.

Looking at the empty palace, he suddenly felt like he had returned to the beginning, just like when he first took over the Guiling City God Temple and was still a commander without any troops.

He glanced back and saw that the seven hundred Xuanjia soldiers behind him were much calmer than he was. Each of them stood straight like statues, their eyes fixed straight ahead, and remained silent.

Zhong Jiu took a deep breath, suppressed his emotions, and strode towards the Judge's Hall.

The title of "Judge" is a prestigious and well-known name in the folk tradition!

But Zhong Jiu knew perfectly well that the judges people talked about were all the famous "Four Judges" of the underworld:

Wei Zheng, the Director of Rewards and Benevolence, is in charge of good deeds and merits in the world; Zhong Kui, the Director of Punishments and Evils, is impartial and incorruptible in apprehending evil spirits; Lu Zhidao, the Director of Investigations, understands the principles of Yin and Yang and distinguishes right from wrong; and Cui Jue, the Director of the Laws of the Underworld, is in charge of the laws of the underworld and decides life and death.

These four masters, who sit in the central government of Fengdu and hold the power of life and death in the underworld, are the true top figures in the netherworld.

However, Zhong Jiu, as a judge, is not in the same system as these four big shots at all. To put it bluntly, he is not the "Grand Judge" of the entire Underworld, but the exclusive judge of the City God's Mansion of Xingsha City, a local official.

But don't underestimate this local government position; it's far more prestigious than a county-level city government post!

The City God of Guiling City is only a minor official of the sixth rank, while the City God of Xingsha City is a high-ranking official of the fourth rank. This is the world of difference between a prefectural City God and a county City God.

With the elevation of its status, the specifications of the City God's Palace in Xingsha City naturally rose accordingly.

Putting aside everything else, Xingsha City has far more subordinate agencies than Guiling City. Guiling City's City God Palace only has seven departments, while Xingsha City has expanded to thirteen departments.

In addition to the seven permanent agencies—the Yin-Yang Division, the Inspectorate, the Gale Division, the Rewards and Punishments Division, the Prosperity Division, and the Sushi Division—six additional departments were added: the Treasury Division, the Population Division, the Military Division, the Prison Division, the Agriculture Division, and the Documents Division.

The functions of the first seven departments need no further explanation, and the role of the latter six departments is also obvious; they are all designed to match the scale of jurisdiction of the City God.

The treasury official was the "chief steward" of the City God's mansion, in charge of all the mansion's wealth and treasury.

The Department of Population and Family Planning is in charge of the population registration within its jurisdiction, including both the living and the dead.

The Ministry of War is even more powerful, holding real military power. The prefectural city god has at least 100,000 guards under his command, plus a regular Soul Army that can rush to the aid of the entire province at any time. The Ministry of War has complete control over these elite troops.

The Prison Department is the exclusive prison of the City God's Mansion, specifically for imprisoning demons and monsters who have violated the laws of the underworld.

The Agricultural Affairs Department is in charge of agricultural affairs within its jurisdiction, ensuring abundant harvests of grains in the mortal realm.

The Documents Office is the "central information station" of the City God's Palace. It is responsible for all documents, records, and archives, and must also maintain constant contact with the headquarters of the Underworld to transmit messages.

……

The thirteen departments each performed their respective duties, clearly defining the functions of the City God's Palace, with a wide and detailed coverage.

Correspondingly, the number of assistants and soul guards needed for each division is more than ten times that of Guiling City!

There's no way around it; with a larger jurisdiction comes more miscellaneous tasks, so manpower naturally needs to keep up.

With more people, greater power, and a wider scope of jurisdiction, the City God and the Yin-Yang Bureau alone simply couldn't handle the workload or coordinate everything.

Therefore, at the level of the City God, two special temples were specially added to assist in management: one is the Judge's Temple, which has two judges, one civil and one military; the other is the Impermanence Temple, which is equipped with two underworld gods, Black Impermanence and White Impermanence.

The judge's position is second only to the city god, equivalent to the second-in-command of the underworld in a province.

According to the rules, civil and military judges each perform their own duties and do not interfere with each other, but Zhong Jiu is a special case and directly holds both positions as civil and military judges!

Squeak!

Zhong Jiu pushed open the heavy doors of the Judge's Hall and strode inside.

As soon as he entered the room, his eyes were drawn to the heavy official seal on the table, which was his judge's seal.

The moment his palm touched the official seal, a massive flow of information flooded his mind, instantly revealing all the duties, powers, and authority of the judge.

At the same time, his official robes also changed. The originally plain black official robes instantly transformed into purple ribbons with auspicious cloud patterns. The robes fluttered, exuding a sense of majesty and splendor, and his aura instantly soared several levels.

The civil judge is equipped with the judge's pen, a top-level magical artifact that can determine life and death; the military judge has the mirror of karmic retribution, which reveals all the bad deeds committed by people or ghosts in their lives.

Zhong Jiu didn't pay much attention to the two magical artifacts; his gaze fell directly on the pitch-black book on the table.

Life and death book!

He reached for the Book of Life and Death, slowly turned the pages, his fingertips tracing the cold pages, a playful smile playing on his lips: "This is the legendary Book of Life and Death, which can determine life and death? Interesting."

It's true that the Book of Life and Death can determine a person's life or death, but the one in Zhong Jiu's hand is just a copy with limited access.

As a judge in Nanling Province, he only recorded information about all living beings in Nanling Province in this Book of Life and Death.

Moreover, his authority has been weakened. He can no longer simply mark whose name he wants; he must have a legitimate reason that complies with the laws of the underworld, otherwise he cannot even put pen to paper.

Even so, Chung Kau was quite satisfied.

Holding this Book of Life and Death, he finally felt the aura of a powerful figure who held the power of life and death over countless lives in Nanling Province.

"It's a pity that the City God's Palace has just been established, and this Book of Life and Death is not yet complete."

Chung Kau turned to the last page and found that new ink marks would appear on it from time to time.

Clearly, this Book of Life and Death is being gradually improved over time.

However, it should be noted that the information being improved is not that of living people. The information of all living people in Nanling Province has long been fully recorded in the Book of Life and Death. What is being improved now is mainly the information of livestock such as cattle, horses, pigs, and sheep.

To Zhong Jiu's slight disappointment, the names of those demons and monsters did not appear in the Book of Life and Death.

Otherwise, wouldn't it have been better for him to simply cross out the names of those wicked demons and ghosts with a stroke of his pen, thus solving the problem once and for all?

Why bother clearing out something!