Chapter 367 - 214: Music Master, Shall You Play a Tune?_2

Words : 1153 Updated : Oct 13th, 2025

Chapter 367: Chapter 214: Music Master, Shall You Play a Tune?_2"But there is a way." Yun Ziliang was reluctant to recommend Zhao Wuya’s compass, thinking about a compass that carried no trace of blood but instead exuded a five-spice and rouge scent, it inexplicably made him uncomfortable. But now, with the Evil God riding on his back, with grand matters at stake, he had no choice but to endure it. He then said to Zhou Xuan, "Fetch my little disciple. That compass of his wasn’t cultivated through conventional methods; by pure accident, it carved out an entirely different path. Its sensitivity is extraordinary, and with that compass, it may quickly locate the anomaly at the Dragon Tail, saving me quite a bit of effort." "Old Li, right now Ya Zi is with Gu Ling. Inform Gu Ling to bring Ya Zi here, and also have Qing Feng come over." After Zhou Xuan gave these instructions, he turned to the painter and said, "There are two ancient divine offices, one is you, the other is the Music Master. How many incense offerings does the Music Master have?" "Two years ago, he ascended to seven incense offerings." "Bring him here." "Uh..." The painter looked a little uneasy. The Music Master was different from him. The painter had great confidence in Zhou Xuan, but the Music Master didn’t hold Zhou Xuan in high regard. If he were summoned abruptly, conflicts would likely arise, and even if the painter were to mediate, the situation could end in embarrassment. "That compass of Ya Zi’s is highly peculiar. To bolster its courage, the people coming must have the strongest incense offerings. The higher the incense, the greater their courage, and the more effective it’ll be." Incense offerings could indeed boost the courage of the "cowardly compass," as Zhou Xuan put it. The painter, unable to argue against him, conjured a flame in which a Bone Zither appeared. The title of the Music Master within the Bone Elder Association was "Lord Qin." "Ignite the fire!" "Light the lamp!" A flame, a lamp, sent to search for the Music Master, Gu Ling, Qing Feng, and Zhao Wuya. Most of the people with high incense offerings in Mingjiang Prefecture had gathered at the Yue Family Mansion, all because of Zhou Xuan. "Searching for Hunger is step one. Step two is capturing the kidnapper," Zhou Xuan explained to the painter. "Kidnapper? Does the Young Master suspect the Evil God to be backing the kidnappers?" "It’s not exactly like that," Zhou Xuan mused. "But there’s a myriad of connections between the kidnappers and the Evil God. Moreover, there’s someone behind the Evil God." The painter almost dropped his jaw in shock. He had presided over the Mingjiang Prefecture for so many years yet had never heard of the existence of an Evil God, let alone that there were masters behind them. How had Zhou Xuan uncovered all of this? "It all traces back to a tattoo I worked on—an eye," Zhou Xuan began. No matter how wide and turbulent the great river, its source is but a trickling stream. Zhou Xuan’s discovery of the Evil God was just as inconspicuous. Back then, he tattooed an image on East Market Street landlord Lao Yang to help him dominate at the gambling tables— but unexpectedly, Lao Yang not only failed to win money but also fell victim to possession. Following this small possession, Zhou Xuan uncovered the first Evil God in Mingjiang Prefecture—the Life God. He killed the Life God, which provoked retaliation from the master of the Evil Gods. "During that retaliation, I unintentionally discovered that the Evil Gods have masters behind them—at least two, one male and one female. I don’t know who they are, but there’s someone working for them, a person called Jing Deng, Jing Deng can cast the Star Covering Charm. From the Suffering Scholar, I learned that the effectiveness of the kidnappers’ human goods is so terrifyingly potent because they possess the script of the Alien Ghosts’ ’Star Covering.’ From this, I deduced that even if Jing Deng isn’t directly working with the kidnappers, there’s a deep connection between them. So, resolving the chaos of the Evil Gods in Mingjiang Prefecture hinges on finding the one managing the kidnappers and flushing out Jing Deng..." As Zhou Xuan spoke to this point, the painter’s expression grew troubled, as though something weighed heavily on his mind but was difficult to voice. "Are you in league with the kidnappers yourself?" Zhou Xuan’s words struck the painter like a thunderclap. The painter waved his hands frantically, replying, "I have no connection to the kidnappers, but if you push them too hard, the balance in Mingjiang Prefecture might be disrupted." Zhou Xuan found it hard to grasp what this so-called "balance" could mean. Were mere kidnappers, trading in human lives, entwined with the balance of the prefecture? How could a pack of gutter rats have such influence? "Oh, Young Master, you might laugh at me for saying this, but do you think I’m unaware of the kidnappers’ deeds in Mingjiang Prefecture over these years? I know. The Music Master knows. The Witch Sect knows. So why do we keep one eye open and one eye shut? Because there’s someone above, suppressing us." The painter pointed to the Heavenly Dome and said, "There are five God-level figures in Mingjiang Prefecture: the Tattooed Alien Ghost Peng Hou, the Witch Goddess Queen, the Divine Thief Alien Ghost Ghost Hand, the City God Shui Yong, and the Bone Elder God Heavenly Official. These five Gods, to varying extents, turn a blind eye to the kidnappers and their human goods." "Why?" "The power of a God-level figure depends on the incense offerings provided by their sect disciples. The daily incense offerings amassed by the disciples are partially offered up to the God-level figures. In other words, the richer the incense offerings of the disciples, the stronger the power of the God-level being. Among the twenty-four God-level beings under the Heavenly Dome, competition is relentless. If a deity’s power falls short, they’ll be slain by the human world’s New Gods. To maintain their position, they must enhance their strength. The kidnappers are instrumental in achieving that." The painter elaborated further, "The sect disciples seek the kidnappers’ human goods to rapidly accumulate incense offerings and rise through the ’incense fire levels.’ By using human goods to bolster their levels, the disciples can contribute more incense offerings to the God-level figures. The Gods grow stronger, the Gods are satisfied, the sect disciples are satisfied, but the common people of Mingjiang Prefecture suffer. And in the eyes of the Gods, what is the worth of mortal lives? Driven by greed and ambition, the sect disciples are consumed by their pursuit of higher positions in the incense hierarchy. How could they possibly concern themselves with the lives of ordinary people?

Chapter 367 - 214: Music Master, Shall You Play a Tune?_2

Comments (0)