Guardian Divine General

Huang Huai couldn't help recalling how the statue of Holy Lord Emperor Guan had manifested earlier. Unfortunately, in Huang Huai's memory, the statue had shown no sign of intelligence like Yellow Turban Warrior Deng Mao's, let alone initiating a conversation with him as Deng Mao had.

Looking at the statue of Holy Lord Emperor Guan on the altar, Huang Huai's eyes took on a peculiar gleam.

But before long, Huang Huai's gaze shifted to the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva. After all, he had brought the Yellow Turban Warrior statue and the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva here this time, and it was the latter on which he had truly pinned his hopes.

If the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva could manifest like the statue of Holy Lord Emperor Guan, then Huang Huai would have another source of support in this A World.

Yet the God-Worshipping Incense before the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva had already burned down, and even the Yellow Turban Warrior statue had manifested a divine body. Still, the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva showed no change whatsoever.

His gaze swept over the Yellow Turban Warrior statue, the statue of Holy Lord Emperor Guan, and the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva. Huang Huai furrowed his brow slightly. Both the Yellow Turban Warrior statue and the statue of Holy Lord Emperor Guan had changed after absorbing incense. By all rights, the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva should have been no different.

In fact, of the three, the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva contained the greatest amount of Incense and Fire Prayer Power. It had been worshipped at Xunzhen Temple for over a hundred years and had received offerings of incense countless times. Yet, for some reason, it had undergone no change.

Rubbing his forehead, Huang Huai felt a headache coming on. For the moment, he really couldn't make sense of it. It was obvious that the statues had changed because of Incense and Fire Prayer Power, so why was the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva the only one unlike the Yellow Turban Warrior statue and the statue of Holy Lord Emperor Guan?

Yellow Turban Warrior Deng Mao possessed a degree of intelligence, while the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva had not changed. The information hidden in this left Huang Huai all the more curious about this A World.

On a distant pavilion, two figures gazed toward the dilapidated courtyard a hundred or so zhang away. They were Zhang Yan and his disciple, who had followed close behind.

"Master, that evil presence is heading for the courtyard. The demon is probably hiding inside. Should we—"

Zhang Yan shook his head slightly. "No rush. There seems to be someone in that courtyard. Let's take a look first."

Rustle, rustle. A gust of wind suddenly swept through the courtyard, coming on so fiercely that it set the tree there swaying. The commotion was loud enough to startle Huang Huai in the side room.

Huang Huai instinctively peered outside through the crack in the door. At the very first glance, his eyes widened. A chill rose from the depths of his heart, and he even took an involuntary step backward. He only stopped when he bumped into the person-high statue of the Yellow Turban Warrior.

Somehow, a hazy, eerie Demon had appeared in the dilapidated courtyard, where piles of lumber and tools for repairing the house lay scattered about.

There was no doubt that this was the evil spirit born from the resentment of the people who had died unjustly in Niujia Village, mingled with a wisp of remnant consciousness from the village's Guardian God. Following the lingering traces of He Yuan's aura, it had come to this courtyard.

The moment the evil spirit's phantom entered the courtyard, it rushed into the well beneath the little pavilion. Its terrifying mental fluctuations seemed to have been provoked and grew even more violent.

The mental fluctuations, filled with boundless hatred, swept over an area more than ten zhang across. The side room where Huang Huai stood was naturally within their reach.

Huang Huai felt a shiver in his heart, as though some terrifying presence were coming for him. But in the next instant, divine light flashed, and a burly figure appeared before him: Yellow Turban Warrior Deng Mao, fully manifested.

The faint divine light easily blocked the evil spirit's mental fluctuations. Yellow Turban Warrior Deng Mao fixed his shining eyes on the well in the courtyard and said to Huang Huai, "This minor god is willing to destroy that evil creature for you, High God!"

Huang Huai looked at Deng Mao, who cut a formidable figure, and recalled the terrifying sight he had just witnessed. The evil spirit had plunged straight into the well and then fallen silent. If it made its home down there, this residence would truly become a haunted house.

Deng Mao stood before Huang Huai, his bronze-colored body and towering stature radiating such mighty authority that no one would dare meet his eyes.

After a brief moment's thought, Huang Huai glanced at the statue of Holy Lord Emperor Guan beside him and nodded. "Very well."

At once, Yellow Turban Warrior Deng Mao seemed to have received his orders. He saluted Huang Huai and said, "This minor god shall obey the High God's command."

As his words fell, Yellow Turban Warrior Deng Mao pushed open the door and stepped outside. In the blink of an eye, he had appeared beside the well beneath the little pavilion.

In the side room, Huang Huai stood before Holy Lord Emperor Guan, his body blocking the two statues on the altar. Through the open doorway, he watched the scene by the well from afar.

The change in the courtyard had not escaped the notice of Zhang Yan and his disciple, either.

When the master and disciple saw the evil spirit plunge into the well, they were overjoyed. They could almost be certain that the demon was hiding inside it.

They were about to destroy the evil spirit and find the demon concealed within when a flash of divine light appeared in the side room, followed by the emergence of a burly man.

Seeing Deng Mao manifest from the Yellow Turban Warrior statue, Zhang Yan's eyes narrowed. "What a Guardian Divine General. Just from the clear, bright divine light around him, you can tell he is no ordinary being. He is likely a Guardian Divine General capable of matching someone in the Second Realm."

Han Song had complete faith in his master's judgment. Hearing Zhang Yan's assessment, he couldn't help looking at Deng Mao with a peculiar gleam in his eyes.

That was a Guardian Divine General powerful enough to match someone in the Second Realm! Even with the Great River Sect's many years of accumulation and its reputation for deep reserves, they had only three or five statues like this in the entire sect.

After all, although the Great River Sect controlled Great River City and the lands within a hundred li, with hundreds of thousands of people under its rule, the sect had to account for every last stick of incense. Being able to forge a few Guardian Divine Generals was already the limit of its resources.

They had never expected to encounter a Guardian Divine General here who could match someone in the Second Realm.

Huang Huai's figure naturally came into their line of sight as well. They had initially assumed he was an ordinary commoner who had been unlucky enough to have a demon occupy his home. But now that Huang Huai could command a Guardian Divine General of the Second Realm, the master and disciple couldn't help growing curious about his identity.

In the Great River Sect, aside from Yang Li, the sect leader, only a few highly esteemed elders could command the sect's Guardian Divine Generals. No one else had the authority to command one—not even a disciple of the Second Realm.

Huang Huai had no idea that Deng Mao's appearance as a Yellow Turban Warrior had made the pair of master and disciple in the distance curious about him. At that moment, he was focused entirely on the well.

Huang Huai had assumed Deng Mao would at least jump into the well and fight the evil spirit. What he never expected was that Deng Mao would simply pull the bright yellow silk sash wrapped around his waist. With a flick of his wrist, the sash shimmered with divine light and shot into the well like a blue dragon.

At the sight, Huang Huai's eyes widened. Yellow Turban Warrior Deng Mao stood by the well, his face full of solemn authority. The next moment, a piercing shriek rang out from inside the well. Its force was considerable; the whole courtyard was affected, and a cloud of dust billowed into the air.