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

"In the end, the underworld is meant to govern the dregs that wreak havoc on the world. As for the survival of the fittest in the world, that is governed by its own laws, and I have no reason to interfere."

Zhong Jiu gazed outside the hall and muttered to himself, "If I want to be promoted to the position of City God, I must make all the people, demons, ghosts, and cultivators in Nanling Province abide by the rules of the Underworld."

This statement seems simple, but in reality, it is much more difficult.

There are quite a few demons among the demon race. They only respect the strong and do not understand any laws. The only way to make them obey is to beat them until they submit.

The nature of ghosts is complex, with vengeful ghosts, fierce ghosts, and benevolent ghosts all mixed together;

Cultivators are easier to manage, and Zhong Jiu had already come up with a solution in mind.

Just as he was pondering this, a Soul Messenger from the Gale Hall rushed into the main hall, knelt on one knee, and reported: "My lord! Something terrible has happened! Three hundred thousand demon soldiers and a million ghost troops are marching towards Star Sand City with overwhelming force!"

"Oh?"

Zhong Jiu raised an eyebrow, showing no fear whatsoever, but instead gave a cold smile. "A mix of demons and ghosts? That's rather interesting."

"It's the Giant Evil Demon King of Baisen Mountain and the Thousand-Eyed Demon! We don't know when they formed an alliance, but this time they've come out in full force, clearly seeking revenge on you, sir!" The leader of the Gale Hall quickly added.

"What a small world!"

Zhong Jiu stood up, his spiritual energy surging around him. "I was already planning to settle accounts with these two bastards, but they've delivered themselves right to my doorstep. I'll use their heads to set some rules for the creatures of Nanling Province!"

He immediately commanded: "Black and White Impermanence, General in Shackles, lead all the generals and commanders of the Ministry of War, the Black Armor Army, and the Imperial Guards to accompany me on this expedition!"

Looking at troop strength alone, the underworld only has 100,000 underworld soldiers, which is indeed a bit weak against a combined force of 1.3 million demons and ghosts.

But Zhong Jiu still has a trump card: the chance to randomly draw one of the 400,000 soul soldiers he received as a reward for completing a previous mission.

"Perfect timing! With a great battle imminent, we can draw upon these 400,000 soul soldiers to gather a total of 500,000 Netherworld soldiers!"

Zhong Jiu rubbed his hands together, his eyes full of anticipation, and said, "System, draw it now!"

[Drawing... Congratulations, host, you have obtained 400,000 Zhao Kingdom Soul Soldiers!]

"The State of Zhao?"

Zhong Jiu was taken aback. He had chosen the planet Blue Star from his previous life as the scope of his selection. This Zhao Kingdom was most likely the vassal state from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods.

But the next second, a chilling thought surged into his mind, and he gasped: "Could it be... those 400,000 Zhao soldiers who surrendered and were massacred by Bai Qi?"

【What the host says is true.】

The system's response confirmed his conjecture.

Zhong Jiu's face instantly darkened: "Seriously? This is incredibly unlucky! Surrendered soldiers are bad enough, but they were even tricked and killed! Their resentment must be insane!"

He subconsciously felt this was the worst possible omen, but the moment he stepped out of the City God Temple and saw the 400,000 soul soldiers, his thoughts completely reversed.

"Wow! This concentration of resentment is incredible!" Zhong Jiu couldn't help but exclaim.

Ordinary soul soldiers are either transformed from soul-suppressing banners or exchanged for incense points; they are all as wooden as statues, with no emotion on their bodies.

But these 400,000 Zhao soldiers were surrounded by surging black energy, their eyes gleaming with bloodlust, and their overwhelming resentment was almost tangible.

Just by standing there, they exuded a suffocating aura of killing intent.

There are countless types of armies. Some are disciplined, some are fierce, and some are warlike. This group of surrendered soldiers belongs to the most aggressive type.

They were originally the wronged souls who died in battle. Their resentment lingered for thousands of years after they were massacred. If they hadn't been summoned by the system and transformed into soul soldiers, they would have long since become vengeful ghosts that wreaked havoc on the world.

If it were anyone else, leading such a resentful army, they would probably be constantly worried about a backlash.

But Zhong Jiu had no worries. With the system backing him up, this army had no chance of rebelling. The only problem was finding a general who could quell the resentment.

"What a resentful army!"

Wen Tianxiang strode forward, his eyes fixed intently on the ranks of the soul soldiers, his tone full of amazement.

"Mr. Wen has a good eye. These are the 400,000 Zhao soldiers who were massacred by Lord Wu'an, Bai Qi," Zhong Jiu explained with a smile.

Wen Tianxiang suddenly realized, and sighed softly: "No wonder there is such overwhelming resentment. Four hundred thousand men fought for the country but ended up being buried alive. A thousand years of accumulated resentment is enough to shake the heavens and the earth."

[Ding! Mission: Annihilate the invading demon-ghost alliance and uphold the might of the Underworld! Mission Reward: Randomly select one of the top commanders from the Ministry of War!]

The system notification sound exploded in Zhong Jiu's mind, every word hitting his urgent needs.

Although he currently commands 100,000 soul soldiers, he lacks a top-tier commander who can oversee the overall situation and maintain order. This matter is driving him crazy. Ordinary military officers can only manage a few thousand people at most, and they are simply not capable of controlling this nearly 500,000 elite Netherworld troops.

The reward for this mission ignited a fierce light in Zhong Jiu's eyes, and even the murderous aura of the judge surrounding him intensified.

"All troops, attack!"

Zhong Jiu strode up to the drum platform atop the city wall, using his judge's pen as a drumstick, and slammed it down hard on the bronze war drum. "In this battle today, no demon or ghost will be spared! Slay them all and display the might of the underworld!"

Boom, boom, boom!

The thunderous roar of the bronze war drums shook the heavens and earth. The deep drumbeats rolled across Star Sand City like thunder. Five hundred thousand soul soldiers marched out in formation. The sound of armor plates clashing together formed a metallic frenzy. The black and red army surged out of the city gate like a tide, and the baleful aura soared into the sky, dyeing half the sky dark purple.

"Th-what is that?"

The onlookers on the city wall were so shocked that their mouths were agape and their voices trembled.

"My God! This chilling aura is freezing me to the bone! It's chilling me to the bone!"

"That's a massive army from the underworld! Who are they going to fight to the death with?"

The city's residents crowded the streets and alleys, watching helplessly as that terrifying army passed through.

Especially when the 400,000 soul soldiers revealed their true forms, everyone was so frightened that their legs went weak and they trembled, and many people collapsed to the ground.

Each soul soldier was enveloped in an overwhelming aura of malevolence, their blood-red eyes devoid of any consciousness, only filled with bloodlust—a veritable army of Asuras crawling out of the eighteenth level of hell.

This appearance is even ten times more terrifying than the vengeful ghosts in folk tales!

"When did the underworld have such a ferocious army? Are they going to crush the human world?" someone muttered in a trembling voice, their voice filled with despair.

Even the most fussy and crying children were now so frightened that they covered their mouths tightly, not daring to utter a single sound.

The entire city was deathly silent, save for the heavy footsteps of the soul soldiers marching, a sound that sent chills down one's spine and terrified one's heart.

Fortunately, the soul soldiers passed through at an extremely fast speed. A moment later, a thick fog surged in, completely obscuring the hundreds of thousands of troops like a curtain. When the fog dissipated, the place was already empty, leaving only the terrifying aura still lingering in the air.

Only the cultivators of the Special Operations Department, relying on specially made magical artifacts, were able to barely track the army's movements. They were all suspended in mid-air, not daring to breathe.

"They're the City God's Soul Soldiers! They're going to intercept and kill the allied forces of demons and ghosts!"

A monk lowered his voice, his tone filled with shock.

"Goodness, that's at least hundreds of thousands of troops! It seems the Underworld is really planning to take serious action in the mortal realm!"

"After all this time, the demons and monsters have been causing trouble. Finally, someone can put them to rest!"

The Special Operations Department dared not delay and immediately dispatched elite troops to follow, but only dared to maintain a distance of three to five kilometers. The murderous aura emanating from the legion was too terrifying. Getting too close would at least damage one's soul, or at worst, one would be directly engulfed by the murderous aura. No one dared to joke with their lives.

Jiangling Plain.

A chilling wind howled, and eerie mist churned. The air was thick with the nauseating stench of blood and decay. An epic battle, one that could shake the entire Nanling Province, was about to begin.

"The City God's Palace of Star Sand City actually hides so many soul soldiers?"

The Thousand-Eyed Demon hovered in mid-air, its countless eyes flashing simultaneously, displaying both vigilance and hidden resentment. Each eye reflected the formation of the underworld army.

"What? Is the Ghost King afraid?"

The giant evil demon king beside him grinned and spoke. This guy was a giant skeleton seven or eight meters tall, with black patterns all over his bones. Two clusters of eerie green ghost fire flickered in his eye sockets. When he spoke, his teeth collided, making a piercing "crunch crunch" sound that made people's eardrums hurt.

"Afraid?"

The Thousand-Eyed Demon seemed to have heard the funniest joke, bursting into wild laughter filled with violence and resentment. "It's just the underworld's petty tricks! They took advantage of my absence to raid and launch a sneak attack on my Silent City! If their stronghold hadn't been destroyed, with their pathetic army, I alone could have turned the Underworld upside down!"

"Heh heh, anyone can talk big."

The Giant Demon King sneered sarcastically, scratching his skull with his bone claws, "In the end, isn't it because your lair was raided that you came to ally with me?"

"Stop being sarcastic!"

The Thousand-Eyed Demon glared at him, its ghostly aura surging. "If you have the guts, go and lead the charge! I want to see if your skeleton can really withstand the blades of the underworld!"

One was a ghost king, and the other was a demon king. They had never crossed paths before, and had even fought over territory. They had no relationship whatsoever.

The reason they came together this time was simply because they were all driven to desperation by the underworld, so they hastily formed an alliance, hoping to rely on their numbers to fight back.

Alliances are one thing, but to get them to work together effectively is another.

That's pure fantasy.