The establishment of the Celestial Dynasty began with the bestowal of the title upon the River God.

Liao Qingming looked back at the menacing forest and frowned.

This god is not human; on the contrary, he is more spirited than the civil and military officials of the Great Yan Dynasty. It is truly strange and wonderful.

Thousands upon thousands of branches and thorns shot towards Liao Qingming's body like arrows, engulfing him in an instant, yet Zhu Xing showed no sign of joy.

He raised an eyebrow and mobilized Lin Hai to stab again, but Liao Qingming remained silent and there was no trace of blood.

Countless branches swirled around him, wrapping Liao Qingming into a constantly surging wooden ball, almost airtight, yet he seemed boneless, clinging to a pile of brown branches, and slipping out through the gaps.

Liao Qingming jumped to the side, a smile playing on his lips:

"My supernatural ability, 'Wood Flow Heart,' while lacking offensive power, is enough to make me invincible among fellow Qi cultivators. You and I are not irreconcilable enemies, so why don't we sit down and have a proper chat?"

"Fine," Zhu Xing sneered, "as long as you all leave my territory, we can talk as we please."

Liao Qingming shook his head helplessly, "Although our duties may have some self-interest, they are mutually beneficial if we cooperate. Why be so unapproachable?"

"The Great Zhou Dynasty sought to win over the gods in order to consolidate its power in the court."

But think about it carefully. We can't possibly take away your incense offerings; and the many local deities who want to consolidate their divine positions will naturally be considerate of the people. In any case, the Conferred Gods Bureau has no reason to frame you, fellow Daoist.”

Liao Qingming then changed the subject, "I observe that you, fellow Daoist, are benevolent towards the people; surely you are not an evil god who associates with demons?"

Zhu Xing's eyes were dark and unfathomable. Although he remained silent, the surrounding forest quieted down.

"The Great Zhou's benevolence towards its people is a matter for the people of the Great Zhou. The Great Yan dynasty has changed hands; how can we expect the Great Zhou to treat them the same way?"

There is a play!

Liao Qingming's mind raced, and he said sincerely:

"Has our army committed massacres along the way? Not to mention the ordinary people along the route, even the scouts and soldiers mainly focused on persuading them to surrender or be captured. How many people have died in the Great Yan so far?"

Zhu Xing remained silent, but Liao Qingming knew that he possessed the "Spiritual Root Treasury" and could see it clearly.

He opened his right palm, grasped a hard scroll, and snapped it open vertically.

"This item was made by the Ministry of Rites and is called the 'Golden Oath'."

As Liao Qingming spoke, words naturally appeared on the scroll.

"Once the golden oath takes effect, it is equivalent to an imperial edict—you see."

The scroll clearly states that once Zhu Xing agrees, he can become the chief official in charge of local affairs, free from the control of state and county officials.

As a cultivator specializing in liver wood, Zhu Xing naturally possessed excellent eyesight. He stared intently for a while before saying:

"In that case, wouldn't the Huai County and Hetao area become a state within a state? Can the Great Zhou really rest easy?"

Liao Qingming grew increasingly confident and smiled as he said:

"This is the courtesy that the Ministry of Rites of the Great Zhou treats the righteous gods—besides, most gods are not good at politics and are too lazy to govern, so in the end the Great Zhou still sends officials."

Not to mention that you, fellow Daoist, are not a human being; I estimate that you will only be exercising supervisory power, dismissing officials and replacing them if you are dissatisfied.

Zhu Xing's cheeks twitched twice. He touched the scroll closely and indeed felt a powerful, imposing golden energy binding him.

Liao Qingming explained, "'Golden Oath' was made by the Ministry of Rites' Heavenly Official. There are no more in stock in any prefecture. Every one used is one less available. This scroll contains both Yin and Yang of the Golden Qi. Once a contract is entered into, it will be subject to the constraints of the Golden Qi of Heaven and Earth, making it difficult to go back on one's word. Fellow Daoist, please rest assured."

Zhu Xing sighed softly, his face devoid of any fighting spirit. The surrounding forest naturally receded, returning to the appearance of withered trees by the roadside.

"I have one more request. If the Great Zhou army agrees, I will sign this golden oath."

"Fellow Daoist, please speak."

"In the western part of the Great Yan Dynasty, there is a group of demonic beasts who occupy the mountains and rule over the land. They like to eat living creatures such as humans."

Having said that, Liao Qingming understood the other party's meaning and replied without hesitation:

"The Great Yan will soon be part of the Great Zhou territory. How can we allow demons to act so brazenly? Fellow Daoist, rest assured, you don't need to tell me, the day of death for that group of demons is fast approaching."

Zhu Xing lowered his gaze to the scroll, then suddenly stretched out his palm and imprinted the wood energy into it.

Liao Qingming smiled and released his wood energy, forming a golden oath with the other party.

The reel rolled up on its own and drilled into Liao Qingming's spiritual cave.

He turned around, made a circle with his thumb and forefinger, looked behind him, and immediately saw the garrison army three miles away. He then said to Zhu Xing:

"Why don't we wait with you all for the soldiers? I suppose you'll be spending a lot of time together in the future, so why not take this opportunity to get to know each other?"

Zhu Xing crossed his arms and nimbly leaped onto the willow branch behind him, which was considered as his agreement with Liao Qingming's opinion.

In less than 45 minutes, the army arrived.

Liu Tianyun led three men forward. Apart from Meng Yunjie, the commander of the scouts, the other two were also military commanders and held the same position of commander of a thousand men in the garrison.

Zhu Xing's gaze swept over Meng Yunjie without lingering. He only heard Liao Qingming introduce him and then gave a perfunctory reply.

Liu Tianyun was not surprised to learn that the two sides had signed a golden oath, and then said:

"We have received a report from the Tiger Might Battalion scouts that the remaining four battalions have arrived in the capital region and will enter the city in a quarter of an hour. Give the order that after the army enters the city, it shall not harm the people of Da Yan in any way, and shall not take anything."

"only."

One thousand households were ordered to leave, and Meng Yunjie looked at the monkey spirit with a smile.

"In the battle this morning, I witnessed the divine power of the Supreme God. However, one day, I will surely surpass the Supreme God. Why don't we have another contest on the day we form our cores?"

Zhu Xing glanced at him indifferently, "Heh... commendable ambition."

Meng Yunjie was full of lofty ambitions, but as a cultivator of Yin Fire Qi, he could see the other party's sarcasm. He was displeased but could not retaliate.

……

The army received orders to rest on the spot, and the squadron flags naturally stood side by side.

Sun Xueming approached Xu Rong and said in a low voice:

"He Xiaoqi has yet to catch up with the main force, and Commander Li has deliberately sent him away, seemingly as a gesture of goodwill towards us?"

Xu Rong turned his head and saw that he looked smug, so he couldn't help but sneer.

"The squad leader won't even give you any tasks, how can you expect to earn military merit later?"

He was very attentive to Commander Meng during the day, and had long been prepared to be neglected by Commander Li.

"Instead of relying on Commander Li, we should try to get in touch with Commander Meng."

Upon hearing this, Sun Xueming's face turned deathly pale. He exchanged a glance with Chang Heng, both of them looking somewhat lost and dejected.

The scouts whispered amongst themselves, and after only a short rest, they heard a clear hoofbeat from behind. Everyone turned around and looked, their expressions varying.

"Yi-ge'er!"

Liu Zhiteng jumped up and jogged over to greet him, "You've finally arrived! It seems there's nothing unusual in the valley? Thank goodness."

"We'll talk about it later." Li Yi slowed down his horse, greeted the scouts a few times, and rode forward.

Zhu Xing was sitting idly against the tree trunk when he caught a glimpse of Li Yi out of the corner of his eye. Suddenly, he became interested and jumped down from the willow tree.

"You went to the Netherworld, did you harm those ghost cultivators?"