Chapter 151

Twenty minutes earlier.

Zhu Chu let out a loud roar, stopping Luo Hou, who was about to strike his subordinate, and also drawing Lian Cheng’s attention, who had been vigilantly watching.

When Lian Cheng heard that the chaos in the human world was caused by the Star Beasts, his first reaction was disbelief: "The last God-Demon War caused many deaths among the gods, and they gradually disappeared. The Star Beasts, even if they appeared, should be here to protect the human world, not cause chaos!"

Zhu Chu, who had likely experienced this situation firsthand in the human world, immediately pulled up a pre-saved video and screenshot from the web.

He played a video, handing the tablet to Lian Cheng, Ke Xingzhou, and even Luo Hou.

At the same time, he explained rapidly: "At first, we didn’t believe it either. But suddenly, strange weather events and landslides, tsunamis, and other disasters began to appear everywhere. The divine beasts and the underworld’s ghost messengers sent by Xiang Ting saw with their own eyes the mastermind behind the chaos—it really was the Star Beasts!"

Lian Cheng opened the video, watching the footage, which had a cinematic quality with well-timed transitions and camera angles, and hesitated for a moment.

Could this really be something Xiang Ting’s group could film?

Zhu Chu, noticing his hesitation, thought he was stunned by the filming skills and gave a reserved smile: "This video was shot by our former Ghost House staff, who had only assisted with ghost film shoots a few times. We didn’t expect he was so talented, quickly learning camera work and filming techniques. I’ve discussed it with Assistant Liu, and if we ever produce a movie, he might become the director of photography. It’s much cheaper than hiring a living person!"

Lian Cheng: "?"

Nie Chen: "…"

Ke Xingzhou coughed lightly: "Let’s focus on the matter at hand."

"Oh, oh." Zhu Chu immediately returned to the topic. "Look at this. A rare strong wind suddenly appeared in the south. Our staff from the Xiaoyao Sect went over and filmed this figure."

Ke Xingzhou and the others followed Zhu Chu’s direction and indeed saw a figure far off in the background in midair. However, it wasn’t just any person—the figure had an abnormally long neck, and the head was strangely small, not resembling a normal human head at all. Where the mouth should have been, it was sharp like a bird's beak. The hair was also bizarre, standing straight up and pointing upwards.

Lian Cheng immediately recognized the figure, frowning: "The Wind God?"

Nie Chen: "The Wind Elder?"

The sudden simultaneous exclamation made both of them pause, staring at each other for a moment before quickly looking away.

Nie Chen whispered to Ke Xingzhou, explaining: "This is the Jishui Leopard from the Twenty-Eight Star Beasts, the position where the Wind Elder resides. If he appeared on the scene, then this wind must have been caused by him."

Lian Cheng’s jaw tightened: "How can we be sure? The Wind Elder is honest and simple, maybe he was trying to stop the wind…"The scene shifted to the ground, where several young people with thin builds were being blown away by the strong winds. They could barely move against the wind, and some were even lifted off the ground, tumbling several times before crashing into a utility pole by the roadside and finally coming to a halt.

A young girl, using all four limbs, desperately clung to a nearby pole, afraid to let go, but she was still gradually losing strength and was about to be swept away by the wind.

Just as the situation seemed critical, the screen suddenly shook, followed by a blackout.

Zhu Chu spoke up in time: "The advertising sign from the shopping mall fell. Our employees managed to escape unharmed and even shielded the girl in the video from the damage, but the filming equipment was damaged—by the way, do you think the losses can be reimbursed if submitted to the Special Incident Handling Bureau and the Underworld?"

Lian Cheng: "…"

Lian Cheng did not respond. His expression darkened as though water could drip from it. He watched the video again, unable to believe what he was seeing, before switching to the next video.

This time, the video showed severe flooding in the central region. The vast floodwaters had submerged the city, with even the low houses being mostly destroyed. Amid the muddy water, the figure of the Water God Xuanming stood out clearly.

After that, the Fire Virtue God, the Earth Virtue God, and the Metal Virtue God all appeared in the human world, causing chaos and disaster.

Earlier footage had been from a distance, making it difficult to discern the expressions of the Star Beasts, and Lian Cheng still held onto a faint hope that this was not the Star Beasts' intention.

After all, ten thousand years ago, these Star Beasts had fought side by side with them against the Demon Race, even sacrificing their divine powers!

Because of their efforts, Lian Cheng could comfort himself that Ke Xingzhou’s sacrifice had not been in vain, and at least there were so many like-minded individuals who made the same choice as he did.

However, the next video showed the Du’e Star Lord exhaling ominous energy from the sky above an office building, laughing maniacally as he watched the humans below, who were devastated and crying after losing their jobs due to company closures, layoffs, or rejected job applications.

Lian Cheng's fingertips trembled.

Ke Xingzhou, confused, heard Nie Chen ask, "The Du’e Star Lord... didn’t he fall during the God-Demon War?"

Nie Chen suddenly felt an absurd sense of disbelief.

At that moment, the scene of Ke Xingzhou’s death came to his mind. Whether it was the memories resurfacing or the influence of Lian Cheng, he instinctively locked onto a figure falling behind Ke Xingzhou.

It was... the Du’e Star Lord.

Nie Chen couldn’t help but glance at Lian Cheng, who had a tense expression, his face unreadable, his brow furrowed even tighter, his fingertips turning white from gripping the tablet, with only the tablet's faint creak revealing the turmoil within him.

Luo Hou, on the other hand, was growing increasingly amused.

He sneered: "I told you, it’s your fault for accusing us. Look closely at these Star Beasts—they don’t have the aura of my Demon Race! You can’t just keep blaming us like you did ten thousand years ago!"

"..." For once, Lian Cheng was speechless.

Luo Hou's mention of ten thousand years ago reminded him of the strange occurrences before the God-Demon War.

— The first sect to be annihilated didn’t seem to have any remnants of the Demon Race's aura.

Back then, Ke Xingzhou had suspected someone was framing them, but only after many "ironclad proofs" and witnesses did Ke Xingzhou come to accept that it had been the Demon Race’s doing.

But if the Star Beasts who fell ten thousand years ago hadn’t perished and were still present in their star positions until now, then the cause of the God-Demon War...

Lian Cheng suddenly looked up, fixed his gaze on Luo Hou, and asked, "The war ten thousand years ago, was it really not started by the Demon Race?"

His eyes were obscured by the cloth, but his gaze gave Luo Hou the impression of being tightly watched, even a Demon Lord could feel some pressure.

Luo Hou didn’t like this feeling, but in the face of Lian Cheng, he unexpectedly thought of Ke Xingzhou from ten thousand years ago, and all his anger seemed to dissipateLuo Hou restrained the urge to mock and responded seriously for once: "No."

He still felt a bit frustrated when talking about it.

What kind of tragic fate did their Demon Race have? Not only were they inexplicably targeted, attacked, and hunted, but they had to endure and fight back. Yet, when things escalated, they were blamed for instigating the trouble.

What was even worse was that in the end, the entire Demon Race was wiped out and suppressed beneath the Seal of the Demon Formation.

What kind of situation was this?!

Luo Hou cast a resentful glance at Ke Xingzhou, thinking that the one who suppressed them was a friend Ke Xingzhou had just made before he fell asleep, which made it all the more painful.

It made him, the Lord of the Demon Realm, look naïve and foolish.

Luo Hou shook his head, pushing aside all doubts about his intelligence, then glanced at Lian Cheng.

He had originally thought this stubborn and hard-headed weapon spirit wouldn’t believe him just because of those two words, but to his surprise, Lian Cheng fell silent for a while and actually nodded.

"Alright, I’ll trust you once more."

Lian Cheng turned around, paused for a moment when facing Ke Xingzhou, then quickly turned his face away.

For some reason, Ke Xingzhou felt that Lian Cheng's attitude had subtly changed. That feeling of being constantly watched disappeared the moment Lian Cheng turned his face away.

He was a bit lost in thought when suddenly his fingers were grasped. Turning his head, he saw Nie Chen's jealous expression.

"…"

Ke Xingzhou scratched Nie Chen’s palm, finding it somewhat amusing, when he heard Lian Cheng's deep voice ordering the Ghost Gate, "Let the Demon Race pass."

His tone had returned to normal.

Human world.

The sudden natural disasters continued to ravage the land. Netizens were still commenting on how extreme the weather had arrived too early this year, and at the same time, calling for environmental protection. Meanwhile, many tall, uniquely dressed rescuers had quietly appeared among the rescue teams in various regions.

In the strong winds, residents living on lower floors cautiously peered out through their windows. When they saw heavily armored tanks passing by on the streets, they couldn’t help but feel somewhat reassured.

They took a photo to post online, expressing how much the country had sacrificed for its people, only to find that similar messages had already flooded the internet.

[Location: Central region, site of the massive flood. It feels like if there weren’t site restrictions, the country would have sent a ship over. By the way, the helicopter flying overhead looks unfamiliar. Is it a new model developed for rescue operations?]

[There have been many random issues in the southwest lately. Just in the past two days, the flu has spread, and the hospitals are packed. Fortunately, additional doctors and supplies were sent for support; otherwise, it would have been terrifying.]

[It feels like everywhere has been unstable lately. First, there were strange occurrences in various places, then the evil cults in the southwest, and now... Even in our country, and elsewhere, I can't sleep.]

[As long as the country is here, the difficulties will eventually pass. On a lighter note—did you see the rescuers at the front of the rescue teams? My gosh, each one of them is almost two meters tall! Their fire suits can't hide their muscular builds, they look so cool!]

[Right?! I’m with the logistics team for this earthquake rescue and just came from the frontlines. The rescuers who just arrived are nearly two meters tall! And they're all muscular, handsome guys with all kinds of styles! It's amazing! Who would have thought there’d be so many handsome guys supporting the rescue effort!]

[How many handsome guys is the country hiding? Can we get one of each?]Thanks to the strong public trust accumulated over the years, netizens remained relatively calm when faced with many phenomena they couldn’t understand, always thinking first to wait for the country to step in and provide assistance.

Some posts spreading panic were urgently deleted by various social platforms, as if an invisible hand was soothing people’s hearts.

In contrast, rescue operations were in full swing across the country, with local leaders’ hearts in their throats.

Ke Xingzhou and the others transferred through various routes and finally arrived in the southernmost city, Nan Cheng.

Just before stepping onto the southern island, Ke Xingzhou’s phone rang with Ke Zhengye’s furious questioning: “Everything’s a mess right now, why are you running around? Huh? Do you really think you’re a superhero who can save the world? Hurry up and come back, do you hear me? Your mother can’t even eat or sleep because of you...”

Nearby, Jiang Wanru’s voice could be heard: “Can you stop speaking like that? If you can’t, give me the phone, I’ll talk to Xingzhou… Xingzhou, listen to me, when can’t a fortune teller be right? It’s too dangerous lately, just go home. Afterward, I’ll introduce you to my friends, they’re all superstitious and will love spending money on you. You $#%@#...”

Before she could finish, the phone signal was lost, and the call automatically ended.

Ke Xingzhou paused in his steps.

Behind him, Zhu Chu chuckled and gave him a safe gesture: “The island’s communication signal was cut off a long time ago, it might take a few days to repair it. Mr. Ke, you won’t be disturbed by Master anymore!”

After saying this happily, he noticed Ke Xingzhou’s expression seemed off, unlike the usual speechless reaction when being scolded.

Zhu Chu couldn’t quite figure it out: “Master, what’s wrong? Still motion-sick?”

“…” Ke Xingzhou shook his head.

Looking up, the vehicle had already brought them to their destination.

The inland government had already contacted the local leadership and reached a certain consensus. Cars from the mainland were driving into the municipal building, and Ke Xingzhou’s arrival was like a shot of adrenaline for the local leaders.

Ke Xingzhou, still a bit dazed, heard someone greeting him. When he looked up, he saw Director Wen from earlier.

Ke Xingzhou was a bit surprised: “The Beijing Bureau of Culture and Tourism is coming to the south to build a tourism experience base?”

“…” Director Wen awkwardly smiled, “Daoist Ke, don’t joke with me. This time, with multiple areas affected, the communications in Nan Cheng were cut off by the strong winds, and there’s simply not enough manpower. I was only appointed in a crisis.”

Ke Xingzhou nodded, thinking there indeed wasn’t enough manpower.

The Demon Race’s 100,000 subordinates were spread out, but the number of people in each disaster area was insufficient. Xiang Ting and the others still had to work overnight to deploy members from the Demon Clan and the Underworld for support, and even the employees from the Xiaoyao Sect were temporarily assigned.

The Wanli Group had sent supplies, and Director Wen quickly shifted the conversation to the distribution of these supplies, which was up to Nie Chen.

Ke Xingzhou didn’t understand those details, so he continued looking at the surveillance footage inside the room.

With their arrival, the strong winds seemed to worsen. The streets were completely devoid of intact billboards and banners, with many high-rise windows blown out, trees uprooted, and leaves mixed with various trash swirling in the raging wind.

The soldiers coming from the mainland drove tanks, delivering supplies to each building’s entrance and distributing them to the ordinary people.Aside from sharing the direct blood relation with Gu Xicheng in appearance, the other person also resembled a figure from Ke Xingzhou’s memories, causing Ke Xingzhou to freeze for a moment: “It’s you.”

Old Mr. Gu nodded, his attitude warm: “Seventeen years ago, thanks to your reminder, I was able to return the national treasure I’d recovered to the museum. It’s a pity I never had the chance to thank you in person after that.”

Ke Xingzhou, who wasn’t great at conversation, responded bluntly: “You’ve already thanked the Ke family.”

Old Mr. Gu: “…”

The old man immediately broke into a sweat. After living for so many years, he had never met such a straightforward person.

He had already learned about Ke Xingzhou’s experiences over the years and thought Ke Xingzhou was criticizing him for not thanking him in person, but instead giving the benefits to the Ke family, which had no real blood relation. He couldn’t help but cough a couple of times.

The Ke family had indeed risen to the ranks of prominent families so quickly thanks to his help. He initially thought helping the Ke family was a way of repaying a favor.

But now it seemed that the Ke family had no blood relation to Ke Xingzhou at all. Over the past decade, Ke Xingzhou hadn’t received any of the advantages the Ke family’s wealth had brought, so the favor he had repaid seemed to have been of no use at all.

Old Mr. Gu, feeling awkward, became even more polite: “I heard that my useless son caused you quite a bit of trouble a while ago. I apologize on his behalf.”

Ke Xingzhou waved his hand: “He paid for it.”

Old Mr. Gu: “…………”

Luckily, at this moment, Director Wen finished greeting Nie Chen, and Assistant Liu took over the detailed rescue process. Nie Chen then walked over and handed Ke Xingzhou a piece of dried tangerine peel candy, before nodding to Old Mr. Gu.

Old Mr. Gu was surprised by the intimate manner between the two of them. After a moment of stunned silence, he changed the topic back to serious matters: “Are you sure the ones causing trouble everywhere are the former constellations?”

Ke Xingzhou didn’t like to explain things, so Nie Chen calmly took over the conversation: “Yes. The god-devil war from ten thousand years ago was likely their doing as well. They disrupted the world in the name of the Demon Race and were no longer recognized by the Dao of Heaven, which is why the imagery of their fall appeared.”

The leaders from the mainland gathered around to watch the surveillance footage. Upon hearing this, they paused for two seconds and couldn’t help but take a sharp breath: “So that’s how it is.”

“So where have they been hiding for the past ten thousand years?”

Nie Chen paused and shook his head: “No one knows.”

In reality, if it weren’t for the obvious disaster characteristics in various regions, coupled with the ghost employees from the Xiaoyao Sect capturing the true culprit, even the ghosts, demons, and even the Demon Race had completely forgotten about the existence of the gods.

Since the god-devil war ten thousand years ago, the gods had been silent for a long time. Everyone thought they had fallen in the battle, and the few remaining ones were likely severely injured and had never shown up.

Who would have thought that the gods would return to the world in such a manner?

Not only the leaders, who were mere mortals, but even the divine beasts of the Special Event Handling Bureau, as well as the big shots from the Demon Race and the Underworld, were stunned when they learned the truth.

These were gods.

The only perfect race that could be compared to the Demon Race in the Three Realms. After the ancient cultivators ascended to the Immortal realm, they became the lowest level of small immortals, needing to spend thousands or even tens of thousands of years to rise through the ranks.

Not to mention, the gods could absorb faith.

Immortals recognized by the Dao of Heaven possessed divine power, which allowed them to absorb faith from their followers and turn it into their own strength.

Even in the modern era, when religious faith had significantly weakened, there were still temples and Taoist temples devoted to these star constellation gods, and even some leaders were followers of the gods.

Was it really possible to win this battle?The leaders of South City fell silent upon hearing their words, exchanging glances. They thought to themselves, how is it that these mainland leaders are even more superstitious than they are?

The locals of South City only prayed to the gods before heading out to sea to fish, hoping for calm seas and a bountiful catch, but this terrifying level 8 typhoon had already been thoroughly studied by scientists. Even the eye of the storm was clearly displayed on the weather map.

The typhoon came suddenly, and although the locals had occasionally resorted to superstitions to pray for the wind to stop, they had never been effective. As a result, they had even cracked down on several so-called masters who were known for their deceit.

They had thought that the mainland leaders had come to help them fight the disaster, but instead, they were leading the way in superstition?

The expectations of the South City leaders dropped to rock bottom. Facing people who seemed seriously intent on studying where the Wind King might be hiding, they felt that South City was probably doomed this time.

Someone learned of the Xiaoyao Sect members' identities and frowned: "What Xiaoyao Sect? Turns out it's that internet-famous Taoist temple from the capital."

Another person shook his head: "This is really desperate. They're just messing around."

The local meteorologists, who had made the difficult journey to get here, were also speechless: "This strong wind is clearly a seasonal shift, caused by solar radiation and air flow. How did it become a breeding ground for superstition? Ridiculous!"

Just as he finished speaking, before the members of the Xiaoyao Sect could react, the sky outside the window suddenly darkened.

An ominous atmosphere immediately enveloped the entire building. As the unease among the crowd rose, they saw the surveillance footage suddenly go black. Then, a figure with the body of a deer, the coat of a leopard, and a peacock head appeared on the screen.

The Wind King’s eyes were nearly pressed against the camera, his mad and sharp gaze seemed as though it could pierce through the screen and see what was happening here.

He stared fixedly at Ke Xingzhou in the crowd: "Hahahaha... Hahahaha! Ke Xingzhou... Ke Xingzhou! I knew it, you didn’t die! You really didn’t die—"

Ke Xingzhou: "?"

The Wind King suddenly seemed to remember something. He abruptly looked up and pointed at the darkened sky, screaming hoarsely, "Dao of Heaven! You lost! You were wrong about this!! Hahahahahaha!!"

Ke Xingzhou slowly took a step back, hesitatingly asking Nie Chen: "Has he been overworking? Is he going crazy from overtime?"

The leaders: "..."