“You little brat, who are you calling ‘godfather’?!”
King Yama’s reproachful voice rang out.
But after a momentary pause, his tone suddenly turned ice-cold: “Who’s trying to harm you? Who dares to lay a finger on you! Tell me at once—no, tell Your Majesty at once!”
Lu Chen felt a surge of joy inside, though he kept his face twisted in anguish.
“Godfather, your son has recently run into a difficult situation—one that only you can resolve!”
“Then spit it out already!”
Seeing that the time was right, Lu Chen recounted Madam Zheng’s plight in full detail, even giving an abridged version of his conversation with his “elder brother.”
“Heaven’s Killing Intent?!”
King Yama’s voice instantly dropped by several degrees. “You fool! Of all things to stir up, you had to pick that!”
“Godfather, it’s too late for all that now. I’ve already taken the task, I’ve already met the client—there’s no backing out.”
King Yama fell silent for a moment, then let out a long sigh. “Very well. Let me first take a look and see what we’re dealing with.”
“Look?”
The next instant, a streak of black light shot out from the ethereal projection of King Yama, circled Lu Chen twice, and then abruptly retracted.
King Yama’s thoughtful murmur followed: “I see… Judging by the traces of this affliction, it is indeed the work of the Plague Ministry.”
“So it really is the Plague Ministry…”
Truth be told, between the Smallpox Ministry and the Plague Ministry, Lu Chen had already been leaning toward the latter.
“Hmph. Your elder brother from the Heavenly Court does have some sense this time—he knew this was beyond his reach and specifically sent you to seek me out.”
King Yama let out a smug chuckle. “Come to think of it, you call him ‘elder brother’ and you call me ‘godfather.’ In terms of seniority…”
Lu Chen cleared his throat and cut him off: “Your Majesty, watch your words. Be careful—the Heavens have ears.”
King Yama: “…”
“Ahem. Enough, enough—back to business. Kid, if you ask me, I share the same view as Lord Wealth God. Stay out of this. Heaven’s Killing Intent carries far too much karmic weight. Why wade into this muddy water?”
“Your Majesty, saving a life accumulates boundless merit. If Madam Zheng’s allotted lifespan had already run its course, I wouldn’t force the issue. But to let a great benefactor die such an unjust death—that simply doesn’t sit right, whether by logic or by sentiment. Besides, the Netherworld has always rewarded good and punished evil, and Your Majesty’s wisdom is renowned throughout the Three Realms. I am the Netherworld’s Majestic and Righteous Virtue General—I must embody both majesty and righteousness. How could I stand by and do nothing?”
“Well said, you sharp-tongued little devil!” King Yama laughed in spite of himself. “Fine, then. Let me take a look at who this Madam Zheng really is. What’s her full name?”
“Zhang Hui.”
Lu Chen recalled the details from the records.
Before the ethereal projection of King Yama, a phantom image of the Book of Life and Death materialized, its pages rustling noisily as they flipped.
Then—silence.
“I see…” King Yama said with dawning realization. “According to the Book of Life and Death, Madam Zheng’s lifespan is far from over. She is sixty-one this year, and should have another forty years to live. She has spent her entire life doing good, accumulating virtue, and delighting in charity—truly a one-in-a-million benefactor. Wait… she actually possesses the Nine-Life Virtuous One destiny! No wonder her blessings run so deep and her merit is so vast! For someone like her to be struck by Heaven’s Killing Intent… it is indeed… heart-wrenching.”
“She’s a Nine-Life Virtuous One?” Lu Chen’s heart jolted. “Your Majesty, if we don’t save her, that’s just—there’s no justice in that!”
“Patience. Let me think…”
The phantom of King Yama froze for a moment before swaying once more.
“This matter… is not easy to handle…”
Lu Chen’s mouth twitched.
“Then what if I guarantee another ten thousand Netherworld devotees? How about that?”
After all, at the current rate, ten thousand—or even a hundred thousand, or a million—was only a matter of time.
But King Yama had anticipated his move.
“The growth of Netherworld devotees is already on a good trajectory. Ten thousand is just a matter of time.”
“You old fox!” Lu Chen cursed inwardly, then played his final card: “One million Nether-coins!”
“Hmm~ Now that’s getting interesting.”
“Five million!”
“Not bad at all.”
“Ten million!!!”
“You silly child! Why bring money between us? That only creates distance! Fine, fine, let’s settle it like this. Now, let’s make a plan~”
“…”
But then King Yama’s expression turned solemn, and he spoke in a grave tone: “To undo the knot, one must find the one who tied it. To resolve this calamity, you must seek out an immortal from the Plague Ministry—otherwise, praying to any other god will be futile. As it happens, I do have some connections with the deities of the Plague Ministry. Your elder brother wasn’t wrong about that.”
At that point, King Yama suddenly let out a cold snort. “Speaking of which, the very thought infuriates me. They sit up there in their lofty positions, carefree and at ease, while my Netherworld—though ranked alongside the Plague Ministry and the Smallpox Ministry as orthodox gods—endures endless criticism and receives vastly different treatment! Every time I think about it, it fills me with indignation!”
“Your Majesty, put your anger aside for now. Let’s focus on the matter at hand first.”
“What’s the rush? At worst, I’ll make a personal trip to the Plague Ministry and see if I can find a way out.”
Hearing that, Lu Chen’s eyes lit up immediately. He bowed deeply with clasped hands: “Your son thanks you in advance, Godfather! May I ask which righteous god of the Plague Ministry you intend to seek? Could it be… that Plague Great Emperor?”
“Fool, don’t talk nonsense! The Plague Great Emperor is the supreme ruler of an entire ministry—how could I possibly presume to have such connections! The ones with whom I share a close friendship are a few Plague Envoys under His command.”
“Uh…”
Well, there goes the prestige, my old King Yama.
Just Plague Envoys, huh.
At least his “elder brother” Lord Wealth God could go straight to the Water Virtue Star Lord.
But on second thought, it made sense.
By Heavenly Court ranks, King Yama was only a Fourth-Rank official, while the Plague Great Emperor—despite his notorious reputation—was a bona fide Third-Rank orthodox god with real authority, equal in rank to the Water Virtue Star Lord, governing an entire ministry—half a rank higher than Lord Wealth God.
“In that case, I sincerely beg Your Majesty to make this trip on my behalf. It’s really quite urgent!”
“Don’t rush me. I still have some instructions to give you.”
“Please speak, Your Majesty.”
“First, since you’re asking for their help, you must offer proper sacrifices to the Plague Ministry deities. So you’ll need to figure out what you can present as offerings. Second, even with my intervention, there’s less than a twenty percent chance of success. The deities of the Plague Ministry and the Smallpox Ministry are different from those of the other six ministries—their temperaments are extremely erratic. One moment they may be gentle as a spring breeze, the next they’ll strike like thunder and lightning. Moreover, unlike the other six ministries, they don’t particularly rely on incense offerings either. Of course, if you have the ability to make their incense burn as brightly as that of the other six orthodox gods, then forget everything I just said.
So you must be cautious—do not speak recklessly or make things up.
Otherwise, if a deity from the Plague Ministry takes offense, your little life might very well be forfeit.”
“Understood!” Lu Chen nodded gravely. “Which Plague God should I offer sacrifices to?”
“Wait for my message. If I get a response, I’ll send word through the Yama Command.”
“Yes! I respectfully see you off, Godfather!”
“You little rascal—when you need something, ‘godfather’ sure rolls off the tongue easily!”
With a cold snort, the phantom of King Yama gradually faded, and the surroundings returned to normal.
Lu Chen let out a long breath.
So the title of “God of the Neglected Altar” was truly going to be welded onto him now.
He was about to worship the Plague God.
What else was there to say?
What could he possibly say?!
Not knowing when King Yama would reply, Lu Chen straightened his clothes and pushed the door open, walking toward the living room.
“He’s out!”
Zheng Changguo and the others immediately crowded around as soon as they saw Lu Chen appear.
Yu Feng stepped forward eagerly: “How did it go?”
Zheng Changguo and Secretary Fan stared at him with burning anticipation.
Lu Chen smiled faintly: “There’s progress, but we’ll need to wait for news.”
“Wait for news? Whose news? Who did you call?”
“Not a phone call. I’m waiting for news from King Yama.”
“King Yama?!”
The three of them gasped sharply.
Yu Feng suddenly understood: “You brought King Yama’s statue along too?”
“Let’s… say yes.”
“No wonder you were in there for so long… What did His Majesty King Yama have to say?”
“He told me to wait for word.” Lu Chen didn’t reveal too much. “But if things work out, my next step will be to worship another deity!”
“Who?!”
Lu Chen enunciated each word with deliberate weight: “I—Want—To—Worship—The—Plague—God!”
Whoosh!!
It was like a bolt from the blue!
The announcement struck Yu Feng and the other two like lightning, leaving them utterly dumbfounded.
“You… you seriously want to worship the Plague God?!”
Yu Feng and Secretary Fan’s mouths hung so wide open they could almost fit an egg.
“The one who tied the knot must untie it. Since Heaven’s Killing Intent was sent down by the Plague Ministry, who else should I worship but the Plague God? Besides, you’ve already worshipped every god you could think of—has it helped? So…”
Lu Chen said with resolute finality: “The gods you worship, I worship! The gods you don’t worship, I worship too! Black cat or white cat—if it catches mice, it’s a good cat!”
At those words,
Zheng Changguo and the other two were shaken to their core. They exchanged glances, struck speechless.
“Unbelievable! This kid is absolutely unbelievable!”
Yu Feng stared intently at Lu Chen, his heart churning like a stormy sea.
…
Heavenly Court, Nine-Dragon Palace.
The Daoist sanctuary of the Plague Ministry’s orthodox god, the Plague Great Emperor.
Though situated in the Heavenly Court, this place bore no trace of golden splendor.
Walls of black iron, pillars of dark wood.
The beams and columns were carved with entwined serpent-plague motifs, and poisonous miasma drifted like silk around the eaves.
Plague bells tolled low in place of celestial music. Epidemic beasts lay crouched before the steps, their dark eyes gleaming.
It was a world apart from the auspicious atmosphere of the rest of the Heavenly Court.
Suddenly, a figure flickered into view—King Yama had appeared before the main hall.
“Who dares trespass into the Nine-Dragon Palace!”
The palace guards immediately crossed their halberds to block his path.
Recognizing him as King Yama, they promptly lowered their weapons and bowed in salute:
“So it is the Netherworld’s King Yama. Forgive us for our discourtesy.”
“No matter. Is the Eastern Plague Envoy, Lord Zhou, present?”
“Your Majesty, Lord Zhou is away. The Western Plague Envoy, Lord Zhu, is currently in the hall.”
“He will do just as well.”
King Yama’s form flickered again, and he appeared before the Western Plague Envoy’s hall, pushing the door open with a hearty laugh:
“Brother Zhu!”
Inside the hall, a celestial in dark robes turned around. His long hair fell past his shoulders, his eyes tinged with a reddish-black hue, his bearing somber yet carrying a hint of a smile:
“So it’s King Yama! Forgive me for not greeting you at the door—my apologies.”
