Chapter 153

Liancheng: “……”

Wind Deity: “……”

For a moment, the Wind Deity thought he had misunderstood — was this human trying to recruit him as a subordinate?

Outrageous! Unthinkable!

But as an experienced HR manager, even if the applicant had a peacock’s head, Zhu Chu could still read his distrust and resistance from his body language.

He put himself in the other’s shoes and thought: if he had been unemployed for ten thousand years, with no unemployment benefits and constantly discriminated against, labeled as abandoned by Heaven — he wouldn’t easily trust someone offering a job either.

Back when the old ghost and the others had just joined the Xiaoyao Sect, hadn’t they also doubted the benefits system?

With that thought, Zhu Chu’s mindset suddenly became peaceful.

The mood of an aging, unemployed man wouldn’t be too good, after all. Zhu Chu looked at the Wind Deity on the screen with sympathy, softened his tone, and gently persuaded him: “So what if you’re unemployed? What was so great about your last job anyway? Irregular hours, work locations all over the place — one day blowing wind here, the next blowing wind there. You were even in a long-distance relationship with your partner, the Rain Deity. Isn’t that pure exploitation of labor? If you ask me, losing that job was a blessing!”

Wind Deity: “?”

To be honest, he didn’t really understand most of what this human hiding behind a magical device was saying, but he clearly caught the words “partner” and “Rain Deity.”

The Wind Deity’s eyebrows shot up: “Who told you I have that kind of relationship with the Rain Deity!?”

The gods have no romantic ties — all registered deities in Heaven officially hold posts in the Celestial Court. At most, they are coworkers. How did it become “partners”?

Besides, the Rain Deity is a male constellation!!

Zhu Chu, completely unaware of what the Wind Deity was objecting to, just assumed that deities from ancient times were a bit shy. He smoothly skipped over the topic: “Ah, that’s not important.”

Wind Deity: “……”

How is that not important!?

Then he heard Zhu Chu continue, “What matters is the future. We’ve both been unemployed for ten thousand years — wallowing in self-pity won’t help, right? In today’s society, as long as you’ve got hands and feet, how could a god starve to death? You’re so good at making wind — causing destruction like this is such a waste of your talent! If people saw this, they’d think the great Wind Deity couldn’t even find a job!”

At the mention of his wind-controlling skills being acknowledged, the Wind Deity instinctively puffed up his chest.

Well, that was true.

When it came to wind control, he was second to none in the entire Celestial Court — otherwise, why would Heaven have entrusted him with such an important responsibility back then?

Now that it’s been ten thousand years since the war between gods and demons, without him to regulate things, the winds all over have become chaotic. Sometimes even demons and spirits interfere, and many regions have ended up with extreme weather conditions.Chapter 153 (continued)

It’s said that now in the human capital, every time the seasons change, a yellow wind blows—this was all because the Heavenly Dao didn’t let him control the wind for the past ten thousand years!

This human actually had some insight, managing to recognize his importance at a glance.

The black mist surrounding the Wind Deity settled down noticeably, while he was inwardly startled. Has human awareness and understanding really evolved to this extent?

But then, he heard Zhu Chu take a deep breath and steer the topic back to his real purpose: “With skills like yours, employment is employment no matter where you go, right? Why not join our Xiaoyao Sect instead? We’re preparing to film a ghost movie this year. Costumes, makeup, and props are all manageable, but that spooky, haunted weather—that’s rare and hard to come by. Special effects are too expensive. Would you be interested in helping us out by controlling the wind and such?”

Zhu Chu figured this job wasn’t too tiring and should be just right for the recently re-employed Wind Deity.

But when he looked up, he saw the black mist around the Wind Deity suddenly surge again, even more violently than before.

The Wind Deity’s fur bristled in anger: “What did you say?! You want this Star Lord to do what?!”

Zhu Chu paused, thinking the deity was just unhappy with the job offer.

He thought, So what if he’s a Star Lord? The job market is rough. After being unemployed for ten thousand years, just getting an offer is a blessing. What’s there to be picky about?

That said, considering the other was a relatively well-known deity in myths, and wielded the critical power of wind control, Zhu Chu relented and reluctantly offered a higher position: “Alright, actually we do have a formal staff role open for competitive hiring. Although you haven’t officially joined us yet, given your previous extensive work experience, we can make an exception and let you try out for it.”

Wind Deity: “…………”

Is that what I meant?!

After being abandoned by the Heavenly Dao, the star deities lost their divine status and fell from grace. Their personalities changed drastically. The Wind Deity was no longer the simple and honest Star Lord of old—he had become volatile and easily angered.

Now insulted like this, how could he possibly endure it? He immediately drew his feathered fan, ready to tear apart the friendly ghost before him along with the camera on his shoulder.

But just as he moved, a sudden tightness gripped his scalp.

A crisis he hadn’t felt in ages flooded over him. The Wind Deity’s hair stood on end, and he instinctively became alert.

He looked up sharply—sure enough, the dark clouds above had shifted from merely lingering to rapidly gathering. The silent tribulation lightning began to stir.

The Wind Deity’s expression changed drastically.

He stared at the brewing clouds in the sky in disbelief: “Heavenly Dao! You would go this far to protect a useless friendly ghost? Then what does that make us gods?! For millions of years, the divine race has upheld the order of the world—do we mean less to you than a single ghost?!”

As he shouted, his feather fan trembled, stirring up a wind that began to affect the friendly ghost nearby.

The ghostly employee of Xiaoyao Sect, carrying the heavy camera, staggered under the divine pressure and almost collapsed.

The Heavenly Dao gave no reply to the Wind Deity’s accusations. Yet the tribulation clouds grew thicker and more oppressive, as if lightning could strike at any moment.

This complete silence was more hurtful than any answer. The Wind Deity stared blankly at the unrelenting clouds above, then let out a bitter, angry laugh: “Fine. Fine! You treat us gods this way for the sake of a ghost? Then I’ll do the opposite of what you want!”

So what if it’s tribulation lightning? Back when they fell, which god hadn’t been struck by it?

What’s one more time now?

The Wind Deity glared hatefully at the flickering ghostly figure. Lian Cheng realized the danger and rushed forward to restrain him.

But he was only a spirit tool who hadn’t yet formed a physical body. Though he had trained for ten thousand years and stood among the top ranks of spirit beasts, he was still no match for an innate god.The Wind Lord ultimately still attacked the benevolent ghost.

The feather fan in his hand expanded wildly in the wind, instantly forming countless wind blades in front of him, their sharp tips aimed directly at the dazed benevolent ghost who was still standing there, too late to retreat.

The Wind Lord’s eyes were almost completely bloodshot, his entire divine form shrouded in thick black aura, his body radiating an intense killing intent.

If everyone hadn’t seen what the Wind Lord originally looked like, they might have mistaken this figure for a high-ranking demon.

On the other end of the camera, Zhu Chu was still muttering, “No! Don’t attack our Xiaoyao Sect employee!”

The Wind Lord snorted coldly, thinking this ignorant human who had insulted him earlier finally knew to beg for mercy?

But the next second, he heard Zhu Chu’s exasperated voice: “The Underworld has already developed a new system. Soon it’ll be connected with the criminal records system of the living world. If you kill a benevolent ghost now, you might not be able to get a clean criminal record in the future! If you can’t pass a background check, you won’t be able to get the job. And if you violate the agreement, our sect won’t compensate you!”

The Wind Lord: “………………”

He still didn’t understand it, but that didn’t stop a wave of inexplicable humiliation from welling up in his heart.

Furious, he shouted, “You court death!”

With that, he didn’t hesitate any longer and activated the wind blades in front of him, attacking the solitary benevolent ghost.

Thunder rumbled overhead. As he neared the ghost, the first strike of heavenly tribulation lightning began to form and shot down at him.

The Wind Lord didn’t dodge. He was determined to kill that ghost.

The divine body of the gods was second only to the demons. Taking a few hits of tribulation lightning wouldn’t kill him—just cost him some cultivation.

Since the gods had been forsaken by the Heavenly Dao and could no longer advance in cultivation, he might as well learn from the demons and live freely, for himself!

With a death wish, the Wind Lord took several strikes of lightning without a hint of retreat. Zhu Chu and the ghost finally panicked.

“Shit, he’s serious! Run, run! Even a benevolent ghost can’t take that kind of beating!”

Zhu Chu urged the ghost to flee the area, still unable to figure out what exactly he’d said wrong that triggered such an extreme reaction in the applicant.

Wasn’t this job better than being unemployed!?

The Wind Lord had no intention of answering him.

Countless wind blades chased in the direction of the benevolent ghost, about to catch up and shred him to pieces—if a ghost’s soul was damaged, even a benevolent ghost would be completely annihilated. At that point, no matter how the Heavenly Dao punished the Wind Lord, it would be meaningless.

Just a mere benevolent ghost, facing the godlike Wind Lord, was as insignificant as an ant.

As the wind blades were about to tear the ghost apart, the elation in the Wind Lord’s eyes grew stronger. Even as the thunderbolts tore at his body, the soul-rending pain didn’t make him retreat.

On the contrary, the more pain he felt, the stronger the desire to destroy everything grew in his heart—

Just then, a sharp sense of danger suddenly gripped him.

It was a sensation completely different from being targeted by the Heavenly Dao. It was even more terrifying than the thunder itself—like his life could be taken away in an instant.

How could this be possible?He was a first-generation god born from the essence of heaven and earth, second only to the deities formed at the very beginning of creation. With millions of years of cultivation, not even the Heavenly Dao could easily do anything to him in a short time.

Could there really be a power in this world greater than the Heavenly Dao?

Feng Bo turned back in disbelief, looking toward the source of the danger. In the distance, atop a low rooftop, two figures stood side by side, unmoving amid the terrifying winds.

The first thing he saw was the overwhelming merit radiating from one of them.

Feng Bo's pupils shrank. "That merit... how is it possible!"

As a god, long regarded as the spokesperson of the Heavenly Dao for millions of years, Feng Bo understood the origins and accumulation of merit even better than the underworld did.

The depth of this person’s merit—if placed among the gods before they were abandoned by the Heavenly Dao—none in the entire Celestial Court could compare. One might even say the combined merit of all the gods in the Celestial Court barely amounted to this.

How could such vast merit appear on a mere mortal?

But before he could dwell on that thought, his attention was pulled away from the figure bathed in merit.

Feng Bo's gaze quickly shifted to what was in the other person’s hand.

A familiar and terrifying bow had appeared in that man’s grip—the Liancheng Bow!

Feng Bo was stunned. He abruptly looked ahead—Liancheng was still standing before him, the bow he had conjured flickering and unstable, clearly reaching its limit.

Even with the former master of the bow appearing, Liancheng had no particular reaction.

His eyes were covered with white cloth, and apart from his tense jawline, no emotion could be seen on his face.

What was going on?

Feng Bo's eyes darted between Liancheng and Ke Xingzhou, unable to determine what these two were planning.

What confused him most was that Ke Xingzhou, even in his previous life, had only barely entered the divine realm as a cultivator. In this life, his aura was so faint it was hard to tell he was cultivating at all.

How could a mere mortal like him cause Feng Bo to feel such a fatal sense of danger?

Feng Bo was completely baffled.

At that moment, down below, Nie Chen sliced open his palm and smeared the bow with his merit-filled blood. Ke Xingzhou slowly drew the bow, aiming it at Feng Bo’s head across the raging winds.

The sense of threat Feng Bo felt became increasingly clear.

He sharply sensed something strange within the aura—he froze slightly. “So that’s it? No wonder... no wonder ten thousand years ago, only you could seal off those demon clans…”

Zhu Chu, ever the opportunist, saw Feng Bo’s reaction through the camera. Though he couldn’t hear the murmuring, Feng Bo’s expression made it obvious—he was afraid.

Zhu Chu seized the moment: “Um, Mr. Feng. Our Xiaoyao Sect came with sincerity. You clearly have great enthusiasm for the job, and recruiters and applicants aren’t enemies, right? How about we sit down and talk?”

Feng Bo: “…”

Feng Bo still felt deeply humiliated. “You’ve got some nerve, daring to offend me like this!”

Zhu Chu was completely confused. How was that considered offensive?

Recruiters at other company job fairs were way colder than he was.Ke Xingzhou, seeing how stubborn and unyielding Feng Bo was, pulled the bowstring even tighter. The bow radiated an increasingly brilliant light—so dazzling that it was almost blinding, even in the raging wind.

His eyes were fierce, and his voice came through the microphone clipped to his collar, reaching Feng Bo’s ears: “You’ve got all that power, yet you neither work to support a family nor serve your country. Might as well just kill you right here!”

Feng Bo: “……”

Feng Bo could no longer hold it in. With a long howl, he prepared to charge at Ke Xingzhou and fight to the death.

A warrior can be killed, but not humiliated!

Even if it cost him all his cultivation, he was determined to cut Ke Xingzhou down beneath his fan today—to show everyone that the dignity of the god race is not to be offended!!

His momentum was immense. The human officials watching below were nearly scared out of their wits. The local leaders of South City were especially frantic, glancing nervously between Ke Xingzhou and Feng Bo on the screen.

Why did you have to provoke him?!

After all, the other party was a god. Even if abandoned by the Heavenly Dao, to humans he was still a terrifying being beyond resistance. To them, the actions of Ke Xingzhou and his fellow Xiaoyao Sect members looked no different from a death wish.

The more pessimistic among them were already seeing black—sure that South City was doomed this time.

But just as the atmosphere was filled with doom and despair, Feng Bo’s movements suddenly froze.

In his line of sight, that towering golden light of merit suddenly shrank. At the same time, the bowstring in Ke Xingzhou’s hand had been pulled to its limit—one loosened finger, and it would take his life.

Even Liancheng, who had been stopping him from getting near the benevolent ghost earlier, was now nowhere nearby—he’d retreated a full hundred meters away.

Seeing Feng Bo looking at him, Liancheng withdrew his slight smile and, expression calm, gestured with a hand for him to proceed.

With such vast merit condensed into an arrow—even if Feng Bo weren’t the target, even if the Heavenly Dao itself showed up today, it would still be shot full of holes. How else did the demon clan fall ten thousand years ago?

Liancheng helpfully reminded, “The arrow from ten thousand years ago didn’t consume nearly as much merit as today’s.”

Feng Bo: “……”

Feng Bo was silent for a moment. Then, the feathered fan in his hand suddenly shrank down and nestled obediently into his arms.

His face was ashen. “…Where are we talking?”

The officials: “…………???????”