"I humbly obey Lord Zhangyue's Divine Oracle!"
Li Youming knelt reverently and accepted the order with utmost respect.
A trace of killing intent also surfaced in his eyes.
Lord Zhangyue's Divine Grace—
It had sent him soaring from the upper second tier straight into the middle third tier!
This was the perfect opportunity to walk the Mortal Realm on Lord Zhangyue's behalf, slaying demons and vanquishing evil!
Even if no Divine Oracle had come,
with this newfound strength, he would have left Four Seas Village to slay Demonic Creatures and bring back more people, making Lord Zhangyue's incense offerings burn ever brighter.
He immediately summoned the village chief, Li Deyang; the deputy village chief, Chen Mazi; Liao Jinxian; and the hunting squad captains, Li Xiuwu and Li Xiuling, along with the others.
He could slay demons and vanquish evil on his own.
But bringing back more people would require plenty of hands to accompany him.
"Temple Keeper!"
Before long—
Li Deyang, Li Xiuwu, Li Xiuling, and the others arrived and clasped their fists in greeting.
Li Youming was just about to speak.
But at that moment—
Two pale-blue divine rays pierced through the wall and flashed into Li Xiuwu and Li Xiuling.
In an instant—
The power of blood and qi surged within them. Their dantian qi seas burst open, and their rolling blood and qi condensed into a wisp of true qi.
In the blink of an eye, true qi filled their dantian qi seas.
Their dantian qi seas swelled, abruptly expanding by a full circle.
In mere moments, the two advanced from the Body Refining Realm at the first-tier peak into the middle second tier, becoming martial masters of the True Qi Realm!
Seeing the changes in the two,
Li Youming and Li Deyang were overjoyed.
The village had gained two more middle-second-tier martial masters!
Chen Mazi, Liao Jinxian, Zhang Ronggui, Chen Ergou, Zhang Qi'an, and Deng Jiu'e all looked on with envy.
They understood—
Lord Zhangyue had bestowed Divine Grace!
"Thank you, Lord Zhangyue, for your gracious gift!"
Li Xiuwu and Li Xiuling knelt and fervently, devoutly kowtowed toward the Land God Temple.
The others followed suit, grateful that Lord Zhangyue had granted the village two more second-tier martial masters.
A little while later,
everyone rose to their feet.
Li Youming gazed at the nine people before him, a flicker of emotion crossing his face.
The nine senior figures of Four Seas Village: three were middle-second-tier martial masters, while the other six were all at the first-tier peak.
Four months ago, how could he ever have imagined his village would wield such formidable strength?
And all of it was a gift from Lord Zhangyue!
Four Seas Village would worship Lord Zhangyue for all eternity!
"Lord Zhangyue's Divine Oracle."
His expression turned solemn as he spoke.
The others grew solemn as well, all looking at Li Youming.
"The great Demonic Creature behind the Land of Demons has already been slain by Lord Zhangyue."
Li Youming spoke.
Everyone was startled, then broke into smiles.
No one had witnessed Li Yue kill the Spider Spirit and the Tiger Spirit earlier.
After all—
the "Jurisdiction" was vast now. The Spider Spirit and Tiger Spirit had been killed as soon as they entered it, some distance from Four Seas Village.
"Lord Zhangyue has commanded us to bring the Human Race civilians of the Land of Demons back to Four Seas Village."
Li Youming swept his gaze over them.
"But some lesser Demonic Creatures still remain in the Land of Demons. They must all be wiped out."
Everyone's eyes burned with excitement, their hearts surging.
In the past—
when had they ever heard such bold words?
The Land of Demons lay within Cangmu Town's territory. It was a place that filled countless members of the Human Race with terror.
But now—
the Temple Keeper said that the Demonic Creatures in the Land of Demons had to be wiped out!
Countless members of the Human Race had become food for Demonic Creatures.
But Four Seas Village had risen to its feet. They were no longer prey!
They could slay Demonic Creatures now!
Li Deyang clasped his fists, puzzled.
"Temple Keeper, are you going to perform the Deity Invocation Art and call upon Lord Zhangyue's Divine Might to slay those lesser Demonic Creatures?"
"Among the Demonic Creatures left in the Land of Demons, there should still be a few upper-second-tier ones."
A faint smile touched Li Youming's lips, but his voice was cold.
"Why would I need to perform the Deity Invocation Art?"
"They're nothing but petty Demonic Creatures. I, Li Youming, will slay them all myself!"
At this,
Li Deyang's eyes lit up. His face flushed with excitement.
It seemed the Temple Keeper's strength had made an astonishing leap!
Otherwise—
how could he dismiss even upper-second-tier Demonic Creatures so casually?
Perhaps—
the Temple Keeper had received Lord Zhangyue's blessing once more!
"Please give us your orders, Temple Keeper!"
He bowed deeply, his voice grave.
Though the others were a beat slower to catch on, they soon understood too. They bowed excitedly and said:
"Please give us your orders, Temple Keeper!"
Wei Wei returned to Cangmu Town and once again met with the clan chief.
"Clan Chief! There really is a Deity in Four Seas Village!"
"Not a Deity disguised as a Demonic Creature—a true Deity who slays demons and vanquishes evil!"
Wei Wei looked at the clan chief seated in the place of honor and spoke with utmost seriousness.
The day he returned to Four Seas Village, he hadn't even had a chance to take his younger brother away before the three leaders of the Land of Demons arrived to attack the village.
Then—
he saw the Bear Chief and the Black Dog Chief, two of the three great Demonic Creatures, die without a sound.
After that, he saw the White Horse Chief, the third of the three great Demonic Creatures, kneel before the Land God Temple for ten whole days and nights, repeatedly calling Lord Zhangyue the revered Deity.
That was when—
he believed.
Lord Zhangyue was a true Deity, not a Demonic Creature in disguise!
"Wei Wei, why are you so stubbornly deluded?"
"There are no Deities in this world. They're all Demonic Creatures in disguise."
"Before long, that so-called Deity in Four Seas Village will be eating people too."
The Wei Clan chief didn't believe him at all, patiently trying to talk sense into him.
The River Lord on the Shunling River didn't call himself a river Deity too?
And hadn't he eaten people every year?
Hadn't he eaten martial artists from the Wei Clan every year?
"Clan Chief! Why won't you believe me?"
"Lord Zhangyue is a true Deity. He doesn't eat people!"
Wei Wei stamped his foot in frustration.
After a pause, his expression grew grave. He looked at the clan chief and said in a low voice:
"Clan Chief, the Mountain Lord of the Land of Demons is dead. Did you know?"
The Wei Clan chief sprang to his feet, stunned.
"What did you say?!"
"The Mountain Lord is dead?"
"That's impossible!"
"Who in all of Cangmu Town could kill that Mountain Lord?!"
A storm surged through his heart.
The Mountain Lord of the Land of Demons!
He was a great Demonic Creature on the same level as the River Lord of the Shunling River, and had been his enemy for decades!
He was one of the most terrifying great Demonic Creatures in all of Cangmu Town!
How could he have suddenly died?
"The Mountain Lord of the Land of Demons was slain by Lord Zhangyue yesterday!"
Wei Wei bowed deeply toward Four Seas Village, his face full of reverence.
"This is the news the Temple Keeper specifically asked me to bring you."
"The Temple Keeper—"
"is already waiting by the Shunling River, preparing to draw out the great Demonic Creature in its waters and slay it!"
"The Temple Keeper walks the Mortal Realm on Lord Zhangyue's behalf, slaying demons and vanquishing evil!"
"Clan Chief! Our Wei Clan must prepare at once—to seize all the Demonic Creature lackeys in Cangmu Town and hand them over to the Temple Keeper!"
The Wei Clan chief stared in shock at what he had just heard.
He gaped at Wei Wei, his scalp prickling.
The Temple Keeper of Four Seas Village was going to slay the River Lord of the Shunling River?!
How could a mere Temple Keeper dare attack the River Lord of the Shunling River!
He didn't believe for a moment that the other man could slay the River Lord of the Shunling River.
His heart was full of dread and unease.
If the River Lord of the Shunling River was provoked, how many people in Cangmu Town would die?
He hurriedly rushed outside.
He had to stop him!
They absolutely could not provoke the River Lord of the Shunling River!
But right then—
A cold shout rang out from the direction of the Shunling River, rolling like thunder:
"By the Divine Oracle of the Orthodox Land God, Lord Zhangyue!"
"Li Youming, Temple Keeper of Four Seas Village, has come to slay demons!"
"Demonic Creature of the Shunling River, come out and meet your death!"
The Wei Clan chief's face turned deathly pale. He dropped heavily to the ground.
It was over.
The River Lord of the Shunling River was going to be provoked!
Before you continue