strokinit Chapter 70: Longhu Mountain's Schemes We Heard Even in the Underworld
Chapter 70: Longhu Mountain's Schemes We Heard Even in the Underworld
Red Boy stared blankly at the bill of 150,000 Yin Virtue Points on his phone, his fiery red short hair seemingly losing its luster.
"150,000? You're robbing me!" He jumped up. "I just hacked into your lousy system and registered!"
Chu Jiang shook his phone, but the cold numbers on the screen didn't change at all.
"Black systems are a technical issue, while identity forgery is a matter of integrity."
"In our underworld, what we value most now is integrity."
Chu Jiang pointed to the group of monsters outside the door who were staring blankly at the "Civil Service Examination Outline".
"Look at them, how hardworking and simple they are."
"You, a government employee, are not only competing with them for jobs, but you're also cutting in line and using cheats. This is disrupting market order."
Red Boy stomped his feet in anger, and two wisps of black smoke rose from the ground beneath his feet.
"I don't care, I have no money, I have no money, but you can take my life."
"Okay." Chu Jiang nodded and took out a yellow delivery uniform printed with "Fast Crossing of Three Paths, Mission Accomplished" from under the bar.
"This is our company's newest service: Naihe Bridge Milk Tea Delivery."
"I see you have a good pace; we just happen to need a top-notch delivery driver."
"150,000 units of merit, interest-free, deducted from your earnings based on working hours. You earn 0.1 units of merit for each cup of milk tea you deliver. If you deliver 1,000 cups a day, you'll pay it off in less than 500 years."
Chu Jiang stuffed the delivery uniform into Hong Hai'er's arms.
"Keep it up, I believe in you. Strive to become our employee of the year soon."
Red Boy held the khaki delivery uniform, smelling the faint scent of ink on it, and felt that his worldview had been shaken like never before.
How could he, the mighty Holy Infant King, the Sudhana, and the "nephew" of the Victorious Fighting Buddha, be reduced to delivering takeout to pay off his debts?
If this gets out, how will he ever be able to get along with those second-generation rich kids in Heaven?
Just as Red Boy was questioning his existence, a commotion suddenly broke out in the previously orderly queue outside the milk tea shop.
A vast and ancient pressure, heavy as a collapsing mountain, enveloped the entire pedestrian street.
All the demons and monsters in the queue suddenly felt as if they were being crushed by a mountain, making it difficult to even breathe.
Many lesser demons with weak cultivation collapsed to their knees.
Even Red Boy in the shop changed his expression; the pressure from the ancient gods made him feel a chill.
"What happened?"
Chu Jiang frowned and looked up at the door.
In the sky, auspicious clouds and auspicious clouds filled the air.
An old Taoist priest, dressed in an ancient Bagua robe, with snow-white hair and beard, and possessing an extraordinary demeanor, was slowly descending from the void.
The old Taoist priest held a whisk in his hand, his eyes half-open, revealing a cold indifference towards all living beings.
His gaze swept over the kneeling demons and monsters below, then looked at the sign at the entrance of the milk tea shop that read "The Only Designated Location for the Underworld Civil Servant Examination Registration," and his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.
"A bunch of clowns dare to set up their own court here and disrupt the order of my mortal realm?"
The old Taoist priest's voice wasn't loud, but it resonated deeply in everyone's hearts, carrying an undeniable authority.
The middle-aged Taoist priests behind him, each with a deep and imposing aura, held their magic swords and shouted sternly.
"The Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain is here! You demons, surrender at once!"
Longhu Mountain?
Chu Jiang understood.
It seems I've been making too much noise lately, attracting the attention of these prestigious sects.
He put down his cup, slowly walked to the door, and leaned against the doorframe.
"Sir, is there anything I can help you with?"
"We're busy here. If you need to inquire about services, please go over there and get a number."
Chu Jiang pointed to the end of the line.
The old Taoist priest seemed surprised that, under such pressure, someone would dare to speak to him in such a tone.
He lowered his head, looking down at Chu Jiang with a hint of contempt in his eyes.
"You are the one in charge here?"
"I guess so," Chu Jiang nodded.
"A mere underworld official, utterly ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth!" The old Taoist sneered and flicked his whisk.
"I am Zhang Jing'an, the Supreme Elder of Longhu Mountain."
"Considering the difficulty of your cultivation, I will immediately dismantle this so-called 'office,' disperse the demons, and return to the mountain with me to accept your punishment. Perhaps I can spare a wisp of your soul for reincarnation."
Chu Jiang laughed upon hearing this.
"Go back to the mountain to confess your crimes? On what grounds?"
"Just because of this."
The Supreme Elder Zhang Jing'an stopped talking nonsense. He made a hand seal with his right hand and raised his left palm upward.
A large, golden seal slowly emerged from his palm.
The moment that great seal appeared, the wind and clouds changed color, and it seemed that only that dazzling golden light remained in the world.
Countless mysterious runes swirled around the great seal, and a terrifying aura that suppressed all evil and destroyed everything spread out.
"The Celestial Master's Seal!"
Red Boy cried out in shock in the shop, his face filled with horror.
This is the treasure of Longhu Mountain, passed down for thousands of years. It is said to be a supreme treasure left behind by the first Celestial Master when he ascended to heaven. It contains the laws of heaven and has absolute power to restrain all demons and monsters.
"You wretched child, kneel down."
Zhang Jing'an, his beard and hair bristling, pointed at Chu Jiang from afar. The Heavenly Master Seal in his palm shone with golden light, transforming into the size of a small mountain. With the force of thunder, it crashed down on the milk tea shop.
If this stamp lands solidly, not only will a small milk tea shop be reduced to dust, but the entire pedestrian street will probably be reduced to ashes.
However, Chu Jiang didn't even lift an eyelid.
He simply took out his phone and said something to the air.
"Little V, activate the 'Three Paths Station' Level 1 defense mode."
"Customer experience optimization protocol, activated."
Just as that large golden seal was about to smash into the milk tea shop's signboard.
An invisible ripple spread silently from the center of the milk tea shop.
The massive golden seal, as large as a mountain, collided with this ripple, like a clay ox sinking into the sea, instantly losing all its power.
The expected earth-shattering roar did not occur.
The golden light faded, and the runes disappeared.
The once-arrogant Celestial Master's Seal paused in mid-air for a second before falling to the ground with a "thud".
It rolled twice on the smooth marble floor tiles, making a crisp sound, and finally stopped at Chu Jiang's feet.
It looked like a... ordinary brass lump with a bit of patina.
Because of the fall, a small piece of the corner was even chipped off.
The entire room fell silent.
Everyone stared in disbelief at the lump of copper on the ground, then looked at Elder Zhang Jing'an, whose expression had completely frozen in mid-air.
Zhang Jing'an's mouth was slightly open, her eyes filled with disbelief.
He was mentally connected to the Celestial Master's Seal. Just a moment ago, he felt that all connections between him and the Celestial Master's Seal had been forcibly severed by an incomprehensible force of rules.
In his perception, the Celestial Master's Seal is now just a piece of scrap copper.
"My...my Celestial Master Seal..." he murmured to himself, his voice trembling.
Chu Jiang bent down, picked up the "scrap copper" from the ground, and weighed it in his hand.
"Tsk."
He looked up at Zhang Jing'an, his face filled with heartache and indignation.
"Sir, throwing objects from high-rise buildings is wrong."
"What if you damage the flowers and plants? Even if you don't damage the flowers and plants, you'll still have to pay for the floor tiles in our store."
As he spoke, Chu Jiang took out his black "Order Inspector's Order" and waved it in front of Zhang Jing'an.
"I suspect that your Longhu Mountain is illegally possessing a large-scale destructive magical artifact, intending to engage in unfair market competition, and causing serious damage to the brand image of our 'Three Paths Crossing' earthly business division."
Zhang Jing'an was stunned.
What is a weapon of mass destruction?
What is unfair market competition?
Chu Jiang didn't give him time to react and continued speaking.
"V, collect evidence at the scene and record it."
"In accordance with the 'Regulations on the Management of Religious Implements by the Underworld Office in the Mortal Realm' and relevant provisions of the 'Anti-Unfair Competition Law,' I hereby announce that the Supreme Court of the Underworld will launch an anti-monopoly investigation against Longhu Mountain."
Chu Jiang raised the Celestial Master's Seal in his hand.
"This item, as evidence, will be temporarily confiscated by us in accordance with the law."
He stroked the ancient patterns on the Celestial Master's Seal with his thumb and nodded in satisfaction.
"It looks pretty sturdy. I'll try using it to crack walnuts later and see how it goes."
"puff--"
Elder Zhang Jing'an could no longer hold on. He spat out a mouthful of blood, swayed, and almost fell from mid-air.
His disciples behind him quickly supported him, pointing at Chu Jiang with a mixture of shock and anger.
"You...you dare!"
"Outrageous! How dare you confiscate our sect's most prized possession!"
Chu Jiang ignored them and continued to deliver his "judgment" to Zhang Jing'an.
"Furthermore, given Longhushan's ignorance and contempt for the laws and regulations of the underworld, it is hereby ordered that all current employees of Longhushan complete real-name registration on the 'Three Paths Fast Crossing' software within 24 hours."
"And they are forced to attend a one-month online course on 'Core Values and Laws and Regulations of the Underworld'."
"There will be a quiz at the end of the course, and the results will be linked to Longhushan's credit rating in the local government."
Chu Jiang put away the inspector's order and added one last sentence.
"By the way, the learning is free, but the textbooks need to be purchased at your own expense, 998 Yin Virtue Points per book. They are available in the app store and installment payments are supported."
After doing all this, Chu Jiang turned around and went back into the shop, as if he had only dealt with a trivial matter.
The Longhu Mountain group, left trembling with anger and wondering if they were still half asleep, were left hanging in mid-air.
Chu Jiang returned to the bar and placed the heavy Celestial Master's Seal on the table with a dull thud.
He was just about to have the system analyze the material of this thing when V's holographic projection popped up on its own, and for the first time, the sound had a slightly fluctuating frequency.
"Boss, an unknown encrypted communication protocol has been detected inside the Celestial Master Seal."
"It was forcibly activated just now."