After stepping out of Chenghuang Street, Lu Chen immediately pulled out his phone.
Sure enough—just like last time with the Rebirth Academy.
Time had been blurred again. It hadn’t felt like long at all, but the clock on his screen showed that a full twelve hours had slipped by.
He had only two hours left until the seven-day deadline.
“Let’s move!”
They got in the car and sped off toward No. 1 Court.
The atmosphere inside the vehicle was deathly silent the entire way.
Only when they finally had a moment to look back on their trip to Chenghuang Street did both Lu Chen and the four underworld envoys feel a chill creep up their spines.
They had truly walked through the gates of hell.
If the Plague Ministry hadn’t stepped in at the very last moment, Lu Chen would have very likely been trapped and killed inside Chenghuang Street.
“Looks like I really need to steer clear of missions that seem simple on the surface, have short descriptions, but come with ridiculously high military merits,” Lu Chen let out a long breath. “Not a single one of them is normal.”
“Exactly,” Fan Rusong agreed wholeheartedly. “Rainmaking in Longhu County, treating the former prefect’s wife—they sounded simple enough, but every single one turned out to be a nightmare.”
“That’s true enough. But when you’re taking on S-rank missions, how many of them are actually easy? Honestly, at this point, diving straight into demon dungeons feels more straightforward.”
After getting burned twice in a row, Lu Chen had started to pick up on a few patterns.
From now on, he’d have to keep his eyes wide open when accepting quests.
“But General, you were absolutely awe-inspiring in Chenghuang Street today,” Xie Qingyi recalled the scene just moments ago, still feeling thrilled. “Especially that move where you scattered the money—I was completely stunned.”
Fan Rusong sighed with emotion. “If that City God had known earlier that the Plague Ministry was your backing, I’m sure he would’ve seen us out with the utmost respect.”
Lu Chen shook his head. “It’s not that he didn’t know—I didn’t even know. I’m starting to suspect that the whole Chenghuang Street affair was the Plague Emperor’s final test. And that appointment of Lady Zheng? That was a masterstroke—it basically locked Old Zheng in place.”
“I think so too, General,” Fan Rusong nodded.
Lu Chen let out a long sigh of relief. “At least the mission’s done. And this trip to Chenghuang Street taught me a lot. I used to think that when deities descended to the mortal realm, they could at most manifest as dharma projections. I never imagined Chenghuang Street was a place that bridged all three realms.”
“It exists in the living world, allows deities to come and go freely, and stays so hidden… it’s like a divine clubhouse. Too bad I don’t have an official divine seat—if I did, having a place like this would be way more convenient than burning incense and praying.”
The four underworld envoys exchanged glances.
“General, that’s… certainly an original idea.” Fan Rusong chose his words carefully. “If you had such a place, it would be convenient. How about—why don’t you try befriending the prefectural City God of Jiangdu? You could borrow his venue.”
Lu Chen thought for a moment, then shook his head. “Let’s hold off. We’ll talk about it later. I’ve got a feeling that guy’s even more cunning than I am…”
Fan Rusong, Xie Qingyi, and the Bull-Headed and Horse-Faced envoys were all momentarily speechless.
The rest of the ride was quiet. Lu Chen floored the gas pedal, overtaking several cars in a row.
Twenty minutes later—No. 1 Court.
The screech of tires tore through the silence. The villa’s gates swung open, and Zheng Changguo and Secretary Fan practically stumbled out to meet them.
“Mr. Lu!”
“It’s done. Let’s go.”
Without wasting a single word, Lu Chen headed straight upstairs.
Inside the bedroom, Lady Zheng’s body lay still on the bed. The blood at the corner of her mouth had been wiped clean, and the sheets had been changed.
Fan Rusong released Lady Zheng’s soul.
“Madam, please return to your place.” Lu Chen made an inviting gesture.
“Darling? Where’s my darling?” Zheng Changguo couldn’t see the spirit and looked around anxiously.
Lady Zheng gazed at her husband’s worried face, and tears streamed down like drops of beans.
She lay back on the bed as instructed. The four envoys exchanged a glance and simultaneously performed the soul-settling ritual.
Four beams of dim light swirled above Lady Zheng’s head, and her soul gradually merged back into her body.
A moment later, her fingers twitched slightly, and her eyes slowly opened…
“Darling!”
Seeing his wife finally awake, Zheng Changguo completely lost his composure on the spot.
He laughed and cried at the same time, like a child who had just found something he’d lost.
“Changguo!”
The elderly couple, who had endured so much hardship together, held each other tightly. Everyone present was deeply moved.
“Mr. Lu!” After a moment, Zheng Changguo pulled his wife, who was just about to get out of bed, and both of them moved to kneel before Lu Chen.
“Alright, alright, you two—there’s no need for all that.” Lu Chen quickly stopped them. “I still have some important matters to discuss with you. Also…”
His stomach let out a loud growl. “Could I get something to eat? I haven’t eaten in almost a full day.”
Zheng Changguo laughed despite himself. “Yes, yes! I’ll cook for Mr. Lu myself!”
Downstairs in the living room, Lu Chen devoured the food like a storm. After polishing off three big bowls of rice, he finally set down his chopsticks and let out a satisfied burp.
On the sofa across from him, Zheng Changguo and his wife still held hands tightly, as if they never wanted to let go.
Only when they heard that burp did the two of them snap back to reality.
“Mr. Lu, would you like another bowl?”
“No, I’m full.” Lu Chen waved his hand, and seeing how deeply devoted they were to each other, he felt a tug at his own heart.
“Mr. Zheng, Madam Zheng—I’ve already explained the situation. From now on, I’m afraid I’ll have to trouble you both with the Plague Ministry’s affairs.”
Lu Chen’s expression turned serious. “Although Lady Zheng holds an honorary position, as long as she puts in her best effort, I believe the Plague Emperor will not treat her unfairly.”
Earlier, while Zheng Changguo was cooking, Lu Chen had already told him everything about his negotiation with the Plague Emperor, as well as Lady Zheng’s appointment as “Hundred-Flower Goddess” earlier that day.
Zheng Changguo was utterly shocked that his wife had been granted a divine title.
Even he himself had never received a divine post in the Heavenly Court, yet his wife had become a divine official before him.
“Mr. Lu, rest assured! Having received such great kindness, I will give it my all and dare not slack off in the slightest!”
Zheng Changguo rose and clasped his fists solemnly.
Lu Chen wanted him to use his personal prestige to clear the Plague Ministry’s name—and all of that was well within his capabilities. It wouldn’t be difficult for him to carry out.
All he really needed to do was spread the word.
Besides, in recent days, Lu Chen’s feats of sweeping through dungeons with plague abilities had already stirred up quite a stir online.
Quite a few people were already starting to waver in their ingrained perceptions of the Plague Ministry: since the power of plague could be used so ingeniously, then in some people’s eyes, it was no longer purely a force of calamity.
With that as a breakthrough, pushing forward with “de-stigmatization” would naturally yield twice the result with half the effort.
What’s more, now that his wife was an official of the Plague Ministry, both professionally and personally, Zheng Changguo wouldn’t dare to slack off.
Even if Lu Chen hadn’t brought it up, he would have given it his all.
“Great! With your word, Mr. Zheng, I can at least check that box. Now then—if you could just sign and stamp this for me.”
The next second, Lu Chen wasted no time pulling out the mission documents.
He’d been running around tirelessly, working so hard—what was it all for?
Wasn’t it for this very moment!
“Of course, I’ll sign it right away!” Zheng Changguo laughed heartily and took out his pen.
Lu Chen watched him sign and stamp the papers.
A wave of indescribable exhilaration surged through him, as if a thousand-pound weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
Done!
Another ten thousand military merits in the bag!
Adding that to the six thousand he’d saved up before, the forty-three hundred he’d racked up over the past seven days through sheer monster-slaying volume (which doubled to eighty-six hundred), plus the eighteen hundred from the Rebirth Academy mission (which doubled to thirty-six hundred)…
He hadn’t done the math before, but now that he calculated it, Lu Chen realized he’d amassed a total of twenty-eight thousand two hundred military merits!
That was a full half of the New Noble Fragment done!
“Looks like S-rank missions are still the way to go! All my scheming and effort was totally worth it!”
Lu Chen couldn’t hide his smile—couldn’t hide it at all.
Mission accomplished!
Next stop—back to Jiangdu City!
