In the morning, three ponds are shrouded in mist and surrounded by spring water.

    Chen Yun pulled Zhang Jiwén along to come here.

    Huyé didn't even glance at Zhang Jiwen, but instead showed great enthusiasm towards Chen Yun.

    One man and one tiger chatted idly for half an hour when Chen Yun finally chimed in: "Huyé, I've heard that you once joined the Sage to subdue the six Great Demons and eight Departmental Hell Generals, which is a level of Daoist attainment that is so profound and unbelievable."

    Huyé was flattered, "The mere demigods and ghost commanders are not worth mentioning."

    Chen Yun blinked and said, "You have been conquering demons for hundreds of years with the Sage. I wonder if after visiting the Qingcheng Mountain four times, there are still any evil demons and monsters left?"

    Huyé snorted and said, "You've come here today with ill intentions. What's your real reason for coming?"

    As the saying goes, an old person becomes wise. With a few hundred years of spiritual awakening, Huyé's wisdom is no less than that of a sage.

    Chen Yun decided not to beat around the bush and spoke directly: "Recently, the Sage has given me a divine general. With this divine general, my subordinates still haven't been recruiting any divine weapons. Therefore, I want to ask Huyé about where there are lonely ghosts and mountain spirits in the surrounding area so that I can capture them and add them to my divine general's army."

    Zhang Jiwen has been listening to the conversation between the man and the tiger. Since no one is paying attention to him, he looks very bored and keeps playing with the grass roots over there.

    Hmph, Zhang Jiwen is still a child at heart, despite his profound cultivation. His temperament has not yet fully stabilized.

    After thinking for a moment, Huyé said, "The demons and ghosts around Qingcheng Mountain are impossible to eradicate. Although I and the old immortal have subdued the great demons and hell generals, this Qingcheng Mountain is located at the boundary between the mortal realm and the spiritual realm. That's why there are so many divine beings here. Their purpose is to guard Qingcheng Mountain and prevent powerful demons and hell generals from causing chaos in the mortal realm."

    Chen Yun's eyes lit up, "What you mean is..."

    Huyé nodded slightly, "As long as you stay away from these sacred temples, it's easy to find demons and ghosts. As for the mountain spirits, that's a bit difficult. The Er Lang of Guanjiang has been sweeping the surroundings for years, so either the mountain spirits have been incorporated into his ranks or they have all been eliminated."

    Er Lang of Guanjiang refers to the second Lord Yalong, also known as Er Langshen.

    The Guanjiang mentioned here does not refer to the modern Gan Yang River in western Guangxi, but rather to the Gan County in Sichuan Province.

    It is said that Li Bing was the governor of Sichuan during the Qin Dynasty. During his term, he led the people to build Dujiangyan, a project that has left a lasting legacy for over a thousand years.

    In the folk tales of Sichuan, it is said that during this grand project, his son, "Er Lang," assisted his father in removing the piles, banishing water monsters, and channeling the Min River to become part of Dujiangyan. This feat has made the Chengdu Plain prosperous for thousands of years, and as a result, the people have revered him as a deity.

    This is the Er Lang deity worshipped in the folk customs.

    The Er Lang deity of Daoism is not referring to Li Erlang, but to Zhao Erlang.

    According to the book "Longcheng Lu," during the Sui Dynasty, there was a man named Zhao Yu who lived in seclusion in Qingcheng Mountain to study the Dao. He later became the governor of Jiuzhou in Sichuan during the end of the Sui Dynasty.

    At that time, an old dragon was causing trouble and became a pest to the region.

    Zhao Yu then took his knife and jumped into the river, diving deep into the water, where he engaged in a fierce battle with the old dragon. In the end, Zhao Yu emerged from the waves with the dragon's head in his left hand and his knife in his right hand.

    As a result, the people of the state revered him and worshipped him as a deity.

    Later, he abandoned his official position and disappeared into obscurity, but he was said to have appeared a few times when the Jialing River overflowed and caused chaos.

    Tang Taizong, upon learning of this from a local official's report, immediately bestowed upon him the title of General of Divine Valor and erected a temple at the mouth of Guanjiang River in his honor.

    Later, when Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty fled to Sichuan to avoid the An Lushan Rebellion, he further enshrined him as the City God of Red City.

    That's why he is revered by the people as the "Very Holy Erlang Xianheng Zhenjun."

    This Zhao Erlang is also the prototype of the Er Lang deity in works like "Journey to the West" and "Plays of Divinities and Gods."

    As for the legend of Yang Erlang, it was during the Ming Dynasty. Nowadays, the term "Er Lang Sheng" specifically refers to Zhao Erlang.

    Chen Yun blinked and said, "If I can't find mountain spirits, it's no problem, Huyé. Tell me where there are slightly more powerful ghosts and demons, and I'll go capture them and join your divine general's army."

    Huyé thought carefully and said, "I remember that about ten li to the west of the Guanjiang Er Lang Temple there is a small hill. That place happens to be at the intersection of yin and yang, with a ghost city on it. The city is guarded by three hundred fierce ghosts from hell, and Er Lang has not yet used force on them due to his love for talent and wants to recruit them as his subordinates. If you can manage to capture these fierce ghosts before Zhao Erlang does, they might be a good addition to your divine general's army."

    At this point, Huyé shook his head, "With your current cultivation, it's quite difficult to gather these fierce ghosts. Unless you perform a ritual and use spells."

    Chen Yun asked, "Can't you just use lightning magic?"

    Huyé sneered and said, "You can use lightning magic to electrocute them as much as you want. But if you want to recruit them, the only way is to perform a ritual and use spells."

    Chen Yun felt a bit clearer in his mind, "Thank you, Huyé, for not holding back your teachings."

    ...

    On the other side, the ghost city.

    This is a desolate and barren land, looking like it's just after nightfall.

    The soil around is devoid of grass, and even the soil under your feet is a dark red color, making it very terrifying.

    Ahead is a small city, with walls about thirty to fifty meters long and not more than two or three meters high.

    The walls of the city have no towers or watchtowers, only two small platforms.

    Each platform stands four soldiers, wearing black armor and with their eyes vacant.

    The main gate of the city looks almost identical, with only two soldiers on each side.

    The walls, just like the surrounding soil, are covered with a terrifying red color.

    Suddenly, a soldier on the platform flashed an ominous blood color in his pupils.

    Then, it threw the long spear it was holding towards a particular ripple in space.

    In the next second, a golden light flashed through the ripple, and the spear shattered into pieces.

    Soon, the golden light became more and more intense, revealing a large array of celestial troops.

    At the forefront was a young general.

    He had a fair and dignified appearance, his ears drooped to his shoulders and his eyes shone brightly; he wore a three-mountain flying phoenix hat, a light goose yellow robe; golden lace boots with dragon socks, jade belt with floral patterns and eight treasures adorned; a sling with a crescent moon shape hanging from his waist, holding a three-pointed double-edged gun.

    Beside the young general, followed a thin dog as big as a white elephant.

    A ferocious iron-beaked eagle stood on the young general's shoulder.

    The steed riding on his back was a snow-white dragon horse without any impurity.

    The person who arrived was indeed the Er Lang Sheng, Zhao Erlang!

    Behind Zhao Erlang, there were hundreds of silver-armored and brightly shining divine generals and soldiers, their weapons glinting coldly.

    Among them were various gods, including attendants such as Chu Jiang the Great King, Jin Ma the Devoted King, Shengzhong Shengzhu the Great King, and so on. There were also some "off-the-books" gods who have not been given a "position," such as the Seven Saints of Mei Mountain and numerous other grass-root gods.

    The attendant Chujiang Great King here is not the one from the Ten Courts of Hell, King Chujiang.

    The position of attendant was originally a low-ranking official who served the emperor, usually eunuchs or other palace officials. However, during the Song Dynasty, the attendant position gradually became a trusted close confidante who could see the emperor at any time, and people such as chancellors and ministers-counselors could also be referred to as attendants.

    Of course, it is still the term used for low-ranking officials today.

    That is to say, the title of the attendant Chujiang Great King may sound imposing, but in reality, it is just a title given by the heavens to a low-ranking attendant deity under Erlang, the God of War, and not a great deity.

    By the way, it's worth mentioning the title of "grass-root deity" for these minor deities.

    What is a grass-root deity?

    A grass-root deity generally refers to the private retainers or followers that deities or immortals themselves recruit from their own court or military camp. Their salaries, allowances, and welfare benefits are privately provided by the deity or immortal without relying on the court's expenses for wages and food. They are not official officials or immortals with formal positions within the heavenly court system.

    Alternatively, grass-root deities are not necessarily self-recruited temporary personnel or labor dispatch workers, but rather private retainers or household generals under the jurisdiction of celestial officials or lords, similar to the personal armed forces that prominent military and political figures owned during Chinese history. These grass-root deities often have a certain degree of personal dependency.

    To put it simply, you're considered a deity within the territory of the Er Lang Temple, but if you step outside the temple's boundaries, sorry, no one will recognize you as a deity.

    The Attendant Chujiang Great King rode forward first, shouted out loud towards the city, "All you ghost soldiers, today our master, Guanjiang Red City King, has come here to recruit you. I hope you all can open the city gates and forge a brotherhood with us."

    A ghostly black armor ghost general slowly stepped out from the walls, his body tall and majestic, and shouted loudly, "Guanjiang Red City King, I and my three hundred brothers are willing to submit to you. However, there is only one condition: that we request that our brothers under our command be appointed as main officials in the underworld, otherwise we will not submit."

    The attendant Chujiang Great King continued to communicate with the ghost general, "General Ji, if the Battle of Shenzhen approaches, Guanjiang Red City King will certainly secure positions for your brothers. However, many of the brothers in Guanjiang Red City King's army have not yet been appointed, and I'm afraid I can't promise you for now."

    General Ji was unmoved, "If you cannot agree to our appointment as main officials in the underworld, even if we are defeated, we will never submit to Guanjiang Red City King!"

    Erlang Xianheng then loudly spoke, "General Ji, I have promised each and every one of my brothers under my command that if the Battle of Shenzhen approaches, the rewards gained in the battle will be shared among you. My request is for each of you to become a god, not an official in the underworld. Perhaps it is difficult for each of you to become a god, but wouldn't it be better than serving as an official in the underworld? You may have to wait for many dynasties, but as long as you are willing to submit to me and have enough patience, I will definitely make sure that each of you becomes a god!"

    General Ji still refused, "How can we know if your promise is empty or sincere? If you cannot grant us main officials in the underworld, there is no point in discussing recruitment."

    Erlang Xianheng and his subordinates were about to say something more to persuade General Ji to surrender.

    Suddenly, a ripple of space appeared in the area where the ghost city was located.

    Erlang Sheng, General Ji, and others all looked towards the ripple to know that there were cultivators who had entered.

    After a moment, a ghost deity and a divine general who was radiant like glass and shining with halos of light entered.

    The ghost deity was a young man of about sixteen or seventeen years old.

    He seemed to not recognize Erlang Sheng upon entering and merely bowed and saluted towards the ghost city, saying, "May I ask if General Ji Xin is present?"

    The General Ji on the cityhead returned a boxing salute and said, "I am Ji Xin. May I ask who you are?"

    The ghost deity said, "I am Chen Chongyong, a disciple of the True Yang Master in the Zongnanshan Jingyang Cave Daoist Temple. Today I came to the ghost city to persuade you and your troops to submit to me and become the troops under my divine general."

    Erlang Sheng, along with the attendant Chujiang Great King, the Seven Saints of Meishan, and other Guanjiang deities, looked at each other in confusion. For a moment, they were at a loss for words, feeling both amused and bewildered.

    They never expected that recruiting General Ji and his troops would be interrupted by an unexpected newcomer.

    The attendant Chujiang Great King frowned slightly and whispered to Erlang Sheng, "My Lord, should I negotiate with them?"

    Erlang Sheng glanced at Chen Yun and Qin Liang, then shook his hand, "No need. He is a disciple of the True Yang Master, and it would not be appropriate to offend him."

    The attendant Chujiang Great King looked worried, "However, General Ji Xin and those ghost soldiers are all fierce and excellent in battle. If they were to join us, the Guanjiang Temple would definitely shine brightly. If they take the initiative instead, how will we fare?"

    Erlang Sheng smiled slightly, "He is just an inferior mage, and his strength as a divine general is equivalent to that of a mid-level mage. If we only want to capture General Ji Xin, it might not be a big problem. However, there are three hundred ghost soldiers here. He has no power to subdue them. Moreover, even if he could subdue them, could I and my followers recruit General Ji Xin and his three hundred troops? Is the Daoist Master Chen Chongyong sufficient?"

    The attendant Chujiang Great King thought for a moment and agreed, "That makes sense."

    The Seven Immortals of Meishan, along with other Guanjiang deities and grass-root deities, nodded in agreement.

    Indeed, today Erlang Sheng personally came to recruit, but General Ji Xin showed no intention of conceding at all.

    Chen Chongyong is merely an inferior mage, and his divine general strength is not particularly strong. How could he possibly recruit General Ji Xin?

    The attendant Chujiang Great King still looked worried and said, "What if he really has the ability to subdue them?"

    Erlang Sheng blinked and said, "If that's the case, General Ji Xin will certainly not submit. At that critical moment, I will intervene to save them, so the disciple of the True Yang Master may also be willing to let me owe this favor. Once Ji Xin General and his three hundred troops see that I saved them, they might feel grateful and submit to me."

    Upon hearing this, the attendant Chujiang Great King and the Seven Immortals of Meishan, among others, all brightened up.

    Yes, that's right.

    It's better to let General Ji Xin and the three hundred ghost soldiers face danger to life before making a move to save them. This way, they will be grateful and easier to recruit.

    As for whether Chen Yun can subdue General Ji Xin and the three hundred ghost soldiers, they believe the chances are slim, but there is still a possibility. However, even if he succeeds in subduing them, given the "iron will" of General Ji Xin and his three hundred soldiers, it would still be difficult to recruit them.

    Therefore, Erlang Sheng and the other divine generals, attendants, and grass-root deities did not fear Chen Yun claiming the talent as a general. They wanted to sit on the sidelines and act as heroes, reaping the benefits of others.

    (End of this chapter)