Gacha games can't save this bizarre world.

The martial artist from the Red Gate clasped his hands in a fist salute: "You flatter me!"

The five referees, including Uncle Tie, nodded slightly, acknowledging that the Red Gate had won this round.

The Red Gate team has taken the lead and now the pressure is on the Green Gang team.

Now let's turn our attention to the scene! The "Invitation to the Ancestral Master" ceremony in the fourth ring has already begun...

Both the Green Gang and the Red Gate were initially established by extraordinary individuals during China's resistance against foreign invasions. Moreover, the two organizations are inextricably linked in their formation.

Even among the founders of both groups, there were quite a few who took sides.

To give an example, imagine two sides have ten patriarchs, four of whom are shared. These are shared patriarchs!

Organizations with a long history inevitably have the old habits of emphasizing tradition and putting on a show.

In general, when there's a conflict like this, if one side displays its seniority, the other side, a newcomer, has to automatically give way.

Especially if the patriarch is invited, that's something extraordinary. If someone is truly blind to the danger, they might just be crushed to death.

Now that there's a conflict between Qing and Hong, it's natural to see who the founding masters support.

How do you see it? It all depends on who can get the big shot to come down.

Those patriarchs have essentially established their images in the Sea of ​​Spiritual Energy; though the people are gone, their spirit remains. Not to mention the continuous worship and reinforcement of their concept by later generations. It's quite mystical!

That's why organized and sectarian superhumans look down on those who follow the unorthodox path! They have connections!

The two sides have begun the ritual!

After all, they have been separated for more than a hundred years and developed on their own, so there are still many differences in the details of the two sides' altars for inviting the ancestral masters.

Zhao Hao didn't know much about altars or ritual altars, and Uncle Tie hadn't taught him either, so he could only watch the spectacle from the sidelines.

He noticed that the monk Lin was watching with great interest, and almost clapped his hands in approval.

Finally, the skinny spirit medium from the Green Gang, who had apparently summoned some patriarch, performed a series of rituals. Afterwards, both the Green and Red Gang members bowed, offered incense, and paid their respects before sending him off.

This step didn't require Uncle Tie and his five men to make a judgment; the Red Gate conceded defeat, and the Green Gang turned the tide!

It seems that the Green Gang's attempt to test the waters with Ami was at least known to their founder, who did not object.

Now, only the final battle of wits remains!

This was also the most glorious and exciting moment!

The decisive moment for both sides hinges on this one point!

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Chapter 192 The First Battle of Magic at Lushan

In the final decisive game, everyone couldn't help but give both players more space.

The onlookers were all chased down to the bottom of the hill.

Zhao Hao and the others quickly stood behind Uncle Tie: Can't you see? We are honored guests!

And so we got a close-up look.

The contestant from the Green Gang was a thin middle-aged man in his forties with a goatee. He wore a blue Taoist robe with Bagua symbols, but instead of a Taoist crown, he had his hair disheveled and tied with a black ribbon on his forehead.

His preparations were quite elaborate and professional.

A simple table was covered with a yellow cloth, on which were placed incense, candles, incense burners, and other items, as well as some bottles and jars containing liquids of unknown origin. There were also several strange-looking ritual implements and several small triangular flags stuck in them.

In front of the altar, there were several rows of simple straw figures, each about the size of a palm.

The player from the red gate looked familiar to Zhao Hao; he must have seen him before, but they had never spoken.

This is a burly man in his forties with a thick beard; if his skin were a bit darker, he could have played Li Kui.

He was wearing a red short jacket, which didn't even have buttons; it was simply tied into a black cloth belt, revealing a patch of chest hair about the width of a hand.

Compared to the Green Gang fighter, this burly man from the red gate was incredibly poorly dressed. He stood there empty-handed, quietly waiting for his opponent to prepare.

Zhao Hao could tell from the lookout that the Red Gate side had gained the upper hand in terms of momentum. However, he wondered if the burly Red Gate man could ultimately defeat the middle-aged Green Gang member.

The fat guy was also next to Zhao Hao. This time, he was able to get close to the excitement by riding on Zhao Hao's coattails.

He muttered to himself, "This senior brother from the Red Gate who's going up is called Shang Liejun. He's a veteran Black Iron 5 transcendent. Originally from the Fire Virtue Sect, he's been diligently cultivating his Dharma Body for nearly thirty years since joining the Red Gate, and he's already achieved a great deal. He's defeated countless powerful enemies over the years, so it wouldn't be surprising if he suddenly advanced to Bronze one day. The guy opposite him is probably no match for him!"

Zhao Hao asked, "Do you know who they are?"

The fat man said, "His attire was too strange. I could tell he was a member of a folk religious sect, but I didn't know anything else."

Upon hearing this, Abbot Lin, one of the spectators, curled his lips into a smile, tinged with disdain, "Don't they recognize their own kind?"

Uncle Tie, who was standing nearby, immediately became displeased upon hearing this and snorted coldly.

Because the person involved was present, Ma Long did not tell Zhao Hao that when Master Lin first came to Amei, he was eager to make a name for himself and establish his life, so he was inevitably a bit hasty in his actions.

On one occasion, he actually tried to climb to the top by stepping on Uncle Tie, who was already quite famous in the industry. As a result, he was thoroughly beaten up by Uncle Tie, and they ended up having some kind of falling out.

Grandma Dongmei, who had been dozing off as if she were asleep, suddenly looked up and smiled, waving at Fatty: "Debiao, haven't you gotten into any trouble lately?"

The fat man quickly walked over, bent down, and whispered to the old lady, "Grandma, you know me, I'm the most honest person I can be."

Grandma Dongmei laughed again, "If you didn't cause any trouble, why is Master Lin laughing at you?"

Faced with Grandma Dongmei's teasing, Abbot Lin couldn't bear it any longer. He sat up straight, his face serious and expressionless.

If it were just Ma Tie alone, he wouldn't be worried.

Since Ma Tie is always upright and self-disciplined, minor incidents won't cause any problems. Let him sulk on his own.

However, Old Lady Dongmei was very protective of her own, and she wasn't as tactful as Ma Tie when it came to fighting.

He's provoked two people this time, and he can't handle it.

Grandma Dongmei glanced at the middle-aged Green Gang member who was performing rituals while holding a command flag, and said to Uncle Tie, "This person should be practicing the Jingming Dao Lushan Method, right?"

Uncle Tie nodded, taking the opportunity to explain, "The Wanshou Jingming Lushan Method is known for its fierce and powerful techniques, and is the best in combat. The Jingming Dao has the widest reach, with numerous disciples and descendants, and its lineage is complex, encompassing all sorts of practitioners. What he set up must be some kind of martial arts arena..."

Zhao Hao naturally knew about the Jingming Dao, but since he had never returned to the Song Dynasty and this was the first time he had met a fellow Daoist, he didn't recognize him.

The Jingming Dao worships Xu Xun, the Celestial Master, and the sect's "central ideology" is actually loyalty and filial piety.

They can be said to be the earliest fire-dwelling Taoist priests. Because they could marry and have children, the tradition was often passed down from father to son, and the family tradition was deeply rooted.

It's precisely because it's so convenient that it's become so widely known. Some people even charge money to teach it!

That's right, Uncle Tie's earliest origin should be Lushan, but it seems that he later entered Lingbao.

That Master Lin was mocking Uncle Tie for being born into a heretical sect, taking in a disciple who didn't even recognize his own lineage, and being single-mindedly pursuing the "righteous path."

It conveys a sense of "If you're a heretic for a day, you'll be a heretic for life; don't even think about clearing your name."

……

Speaking of Lushan magic, why is it said to be the best in magical combat?

Because Taoist priests all aspire to become immortals, or at least gods. However, the Jingming Taoist tradition is complex and not very formal, so it doesn't concern itself with becoming immortals or attaining the Tao; it only cares about the present.

Therefore, most spells are offensive, straightforward, fierce, and domineering, all about life and death!

Even in rituals like exorcising evil spirits and praying for blessings, it's common for monks from Lushan to come down from the altar with blood all over their faces...

They were roughly divided into two factions: the red-headed sorcerers and the aconite-headed sorcerers.

Climbing mountains of knives, descending into seas of fire, entering cauldrons of boiling oil, ascending ladders to heaven... these are all bizarre and dangerous spells, with incredibly exciting visual effects!

Although these two types of Lushan mages are somewhat different, both are DPS (damage per second) classes; they can't provide crowd control or heal.

Moreover, you can tell from this title that orthodox Taoism does not really recognize them as Taoist priests.

Although both are Jingming and worship Xu Xun Zhenjun, they still prioritize their respective main deities when performing rituals.

This is the difference between traditional Taoist schools and Legalist schools: one emphasizes the Tao, while the other emphasizes techniques.

The practitioners of this kind of magic often don't even read the scriptures; they only focus on practicing spells and magic. But if you ask them to subdue demons, suppress evil spirits, or exorcise ghosts, they are surprisingly effective.

Moreover, because it's simple and quick to learn, results are generally seen within three years. In fact, with the right approach, even shorter timeframes are possible.

And what about that door? It takes three years to even enter! And that's just a test!

If Zhao Hao had a legitimate Taoist master, he would still be practicing his basic skills and memorizing scriptures right now!

Upon hearing that the middle-aged man from the Green Gang was a follower of Lushan Fa, Zhao Hao began to understand the situation.

Because the sole core of most folk legal doctrines is "soldiers and horses"!

Their own "cultivation and magical power," or spiritual energy, is actually not that great; they rely on their own troops to carry out tasks and fight battles.

It's like an officer who can't fight a hundred men by himself, but has many elite soldiers under his command, so he can fight a hundred men by commanding them.

This is very similar to the spirit medium practiced by Grandma Dongmei. So, folk religions generally follow this path.

However, recruiting soldiers is not easy; there are only three ways to do so.

The first one was bestowed by the patriarch when one became an apprentice.

Those who can be called patriarchs have all established a presence in the sea of ​​spiritual energy, and naturally have their own followers. If they like you, they'll give you more, and your abilities will increase significantly.

The second is what the master gives you when you graduate.

After so many years, the master must have accumulated some savings, and he should give a small token of appreciation to his apprentice upon graduation. Of course, the amount is small, because it reflects his own abilities. Giving too much would make him feel inadequate!

If he were to take on dozens of disciples at once, he would probably lose all his own cultivation.

In the end, it was something you "collected" yourself! Isn't there something about exorcising demons and monsters?

Do you think that once you've subdued the demons and monsters, you can deal with all demons and ghosts like this?

Look at Journey to the West; even the Buddhist sects would select powerful demon kings to subdue, using them as guards or mounts. It's the same principle.

This is also one of the differences between the Fa sect and the Dao sect.

Taoist sects primarily focus on self-cultivation. Even if they can command heavenly soldiers and generals or request assistance from great gods and emperors, it is still only as a supplementary means.

Now, Zhao Hao can roughly discern some of the secrets by looking at the altar of the middle-aged man from the Green Gang.

This person must be sending troops into battle, and those straw figures are the means to carry them.

……

Uncle Tie didn't plan to give a lesson on the spot. He looked at the other four guests watching the ceremony and called out to the two of them, "You're almost ready, let's begin."