Whoever stood in the way of happiness for the beings of the Three Realms was an enemy of the Heavenly Court

Xu Jiang dropped the act.

Since Chen Wei had come with cooperation in mind, they might as well speak openly.

Besides, his disguise was still in place.

Unfortunately, Chen Wei did not take the bait that tested his limits. Instead, he asked, "Lord Xu, you keep talking about merit. I would like to hear exactly how this so-called merit of yours works."

The imperial envoy from heaven was willing to engage.

Xu Jiang's eyes rolled once. He simply abandoned his cringing, miserable expression and chuckled. "My lord, you serve in the Heavenly Court, standing high and seeing far. But if you peel back the foundations of all the gods and Buddhas filling the Three Realms, isn't merit what all their fighting ultimately comes down to?"

Chen Wei neither agreed nor disagreed, merely signaling with his eyes for him to continue.

Seeing this, Xu Jiang grew bolder and spun his words freely. "The old rules of the Heavenly Court and Spirit Mountain were that those above ate the meat while those below drank the broth. Anyone who disobeyed was subdued as a demon or vanquished as a fiend. But that's ancient history now. My lord, times have changed."

The moment those words left his mouth, Ma Muzhi's expression became quite a sight.

A mere earth god was discussing the state of the Three Realms before an imperial envoy from Tongming Hall-and even telling the Heavenly Court how to do its job?

Was that appropriate?

Or did he have backing that left him with nothing to fear?

When Chen Wei did not interrupt, Xu Jiang grew increasingly animated. "If the beings of the Three Realms can't even fill their bellies, who has the leisure to offer up merit? Only when they live happy, fulfilling lives will our Heavenly Court be secure. So