1071: Chapter 655_2 1071: Chapter 655_2 The meat must be freshly slaughtered, and there are also fruits and other grains!
Even though Eryao is a glutton, he is also skilled.
Back in the day, he took care of Jiang Tang as well.
He didn’t return to a fixed residence nor visit Sir Zheng’s place!
He’s been flying in the sky all along, roasting meat inside a Magical Treasure, drinking wine while eating!
As for Sir Zheng’s place, he left a courtyard for him, allowing him to stay there anytime!
Eryao isn’t an ordinary human, so how could he possibly stay in a mortal’s house all the time?
As for the mortals’ way of thinking, they are grateful to him.
As long as there is faith, that’s enough!
Eryao also noticed that the old witch used academics to create an Evil Technique, manipulated a Heavenly Master, and even received backlash herself.
The Heavenly Master was present and was reprimanded at the time!
The mess caused by the followers of the Guandi Cult—the old witch promised that as long as all those bastard sons and bastard grandsons were eradicated, she would marry her granddaughter to ghosts.
After their deaths, those ghosts all belonged to the Heavenly Master!
The evil deeds committed by the old witch—after Eryao destroyed the Evil Ghosts with lightning, she fell ill!
When the old witch’s actions were discovered by her sons and grandsons, they were revolted and refused to visit her.
Only her daughter came to see her once, expressing words of resentment!
On her deathbed, the old witch did not regret her deeds; she simply continued cursing the man who had ruined her plans!
Eryao sensed the old witch’s ramblings but paid them no mind—a mortal about to die.
If her curses were effective, after he eradicated so many Guandi Cult followers’ cultivation, wouldn’t his curses have reached the heavens?
Cultivators believe in the Heavenly Dao, but Eryao does not fear its punishment.
He is now eradicating evil for the people.
With every major action he undertakes, he accrues Light of Merit for himself!
After finishing his work in a given city, Eryao receives the Light of Merit and even shares some with Jiang Tang!
Upon hearing what Eryao had to say about the Sect Hierarch of the Guandi Cult’s children, Jiang Tang learned that many of them lived in different kingdoms.
Although those children weren’t as extraordinary as the pair of children kept close by the Sect Hierarch, they were still formidable Demon Cultivators!
Jiang Tang began visiting Taoist Temples in every kingdom, observing whether any of them practiced Evil Techniques associated with the Guandi Cult!
He discovered that some Taoist Temples had both male and female Taoists—foreign Taoists from other nations—and many female Taoists also bore foreign features!
He also noticed mixed-race individuals mingling among them; their hair and skin might belong to different types, yet their facial features were distinctly Eastern!
Some had black hair, blue eyes, and white skin!
Others had Eastern faces but radiated a skin tone as dark as black!
Jiang Tang couldn’t help but wonder—are these people mixed-race?
Were they born from the Sect Hierarch of the Guandi Cult or simply followers?
This chaotic bloodline—no wonder they lacked the abilities of the Sect Hierarch’s pair of Eastern-featured children!
This time, Jiang Tang arrived in a nation called Pudu Country, where people of many complexions lived.
The lighter-skinned, more beautiful individuals tended to have nobler bloodlines, many of whom were aristocrats!
In this nation, if you didn’t look closely, you might even mistake them for Eastern people!
They had similar physiques and skin tones to Easterners!
They were definitely not a branch of the Ancient Xia Country, although geographically close to Ancient Xia Country.
However, they did not identify with the yellow-skinned descendants of Ancient Xia Country, whom they considered foolish!
In this country, white-skinned individuals were considered nobler, while yellow-skinned ones were mostly commoners.
The wealthy, nobler individuals naturally didn’t have to do any hard labor; instead, they lived as affluent aristocrats!
Residing in luxurious castles, sleeping on soft beds!
Yellow-skinned people did more farming and laboring!
In this country, the Guandi Cult accepted followers of both white skin tones and yellow skin tones!
Among the followers of the Guandi Cult, regardless of skin tone, higher social standing depended on one’s capabilities!
In this land, there were also cultivators who practiced Buddhism!
Buddhism and the Guandi Cult here were bitter rivals!
Their antagonistic relationship often escalated into fierce battles over resources!
In this country, the population wasn’t large, the land wasn’t expansive, and mountainous terrain dominated—resources were mostly concentrated in the mountains!
Among the nation’s resources were jade stones that seemed abundant.
Capitalists controlled the gemstone mines, leaving poor families to work arduously in the mines!
Buddhism and the Guandi Cult fought fiercely over these jade stone resources!
Competing for these stone mines allowed each side’s craftsmen to carve various gemstones to sell to their followers!
Of course, they also hoped to export them abroad to gain more food and money!
The Guandi Cult’s jade mines were used to manufacture Guandi Jade Amulets.
These jade amulets were far more valuable than their wooden counterparts, as their production costs were higher and their profits more substantial!
The advanced followers would craft portable Magical Treasures out of jade stones!
These could be carried personally or sold to others as portable items!
The two rival factions did not just compete in Taoist Temples and Buddhist monasteries but even opened shops in bustling cities!
Selling so-called consecrated Buddha Amulets!
Along with wooden talisman-based Magical Treasures!
In this country, the competition between the two factions was fierce, yet nobles did not favor one side over the other.
The nation had a just and impartial King!
The King skillfully leveraged the rivalry to ensure that the ruling officials benefited from both sides!
His methods of balance prevented outright rebellion from either faction!
In this nation, Jiang Tang found Taoist Temples where women wearing casual clothing, adorned in wealthy attire, mingled with young noble gentlemen and daughters of affluent families!
The presence of such individuals in multiple Taoist Temples seemed to be culturally accepted among the locals!
Upon interrogating a follower’s soul, Jiang Tang discovered that living in Taoist Temples wasn’t limited to followers alone.
Those wealthy individuals clearly held a status higher than ordinary followers!
They were the wives and children of the Sect Hierarch!
It often turned out that a Taoist Temple would house one of the Sect Hierarch’s wives and their children!
Whether fair-skinned or yellow-skinned!
Born children would resemble their mothers, distinctly mixed-race!
Jiang Tang, traveling aboard his Flying Treasure, didn’t personally land on the ground!
He compressed the influence of the Guandi Cult in a given nation, pausing only briefly before traveling to another!
So far, he had not encountered any cultivator capable of piloting a high-speed flying device!
And certainly, no one could stand up against him!
At first, he intervened personally; later, it became unnecessary.
With a mere Talisman or Magical Treasure, he could summon Thunder to annihilate the ordinary people’s blood-filled evil Ghosts!
Moreover, the stronger their cultivation in Evil Qi, the more severe the damage dealt!
Jiang Tang crippled their cultivation without directly killing them.
Sometimes, a fate worse than death awaited them!
Stripping them of cultivation felt like turning their once-wealthy status into that of destitute wretches—a disparity that crushed their spirits!
These individuals relied on Evil Qi, extracting vitality from others to sustain their life and youthful beauty.
When he eradicated their methods, they became disfigured monstrosities!
Once their deformities became known, former enemies or opportunists might step forward to trample over them!
Jiang Tang examined Buddhist monasteries and temples, finding that while there existed malicious Buddha Cultivators practicing Evil Techniques, such cases were rare.
He identified Evil Qi in them and dealt punishment with Buddha Light, exterminating the wicked monks!
True Buddha Cultivators, who maintained faith and practiced merit, hadn’t committed any harmful deeds.
Their bodies conveyed traces of Light of Merit; such individuals did not suffer harm under his actions!
Jiang Tang spared many monasteries, only dealing with select individuals, ensuring minimal damage and loss!
In the conflict between Taoist Temples and Buddhist monasteries, under Jiang Tang’s intervention, the monasteries emerged victorious!
The nation’s royalty and nobles believed this was merely the result of the two factions clashing—favoring the monastery’s triumph!
The adherents of Guandi Cult within the Taoist Temples were convinced that the Buddhist monasteries had hidden enemies responsible for their downfall!
Meanwhile, in Buddhist monasteries, monks exclaimed… had the Heavenly Gods been so supportive?
They understood that those practitioners relying on Evil Techniques inevitably succumbed to divine justice!
Victory was assured when righteousness triumphed over evil—especially with the Heavenly Gods lending their power!