People in Conferred Gods: Rising from humble beginnings, I am the God of Wealth

Chapter 377 Ziya Returns to the Mortal Realm, Leaving Behind a Fee for Passage!
"May I ask Your Majesty, what is the second option?"

Jiang Ziya remained silent for a moment, then bowed to Yang Xuan again.

Although Yang Xuan said there were two options, the first option was obviously not feasible.

Now that the great calamity of the Investiture of the Gods has just begun, it is already a great disgrace that Jiang Ziya, the one who presided over the Investiture of the Gods by the Chan Sect, died in the very first battle.

If at this time we still need to trouble Yuanshi Tianzun to send the immortals of the Chan Sect to the underworld with Yuanshi Tianzun's decree to bring his soul back to the mortal world.

Then his impression in the eyes of Yuanshi Tianzun will definitely plummet, and even if he can stay in the Chan Sect in the future, he will most likely only become a marginal figure.

Therefore, unless there is absolutely no other choice, there is no need to consider this first option at all.

In fact, Yang Xuan's choice was not intended to force Jiang Ziya to make a decision, but rather to put pressure on him in order to gain more benefits.

Jiang Ziya has suffered greatly in the underworld for many years. Now that he has one less option, he naturally places all his hopes on this last choice.

Hopefully, this last choice will allow him to leave the underworld smoothly, return to the mortal realm, and continue to preside over the conferment of titles upon the gods.

Yang Xuan's expression remained unchanged, his face still calm, as he slowly said:
"Secondly, as an equivalent exchange for returning to the mortal realm and disrupting the order of Yin and Yang, you need to pay a corresponding price in order to return to the mortal realm."

"cost?"

Jiang Ziya frowned slightly, his unease growing stronger.

Even when Yang Xuan presented the two options, he had already guessed that Yang Xuan would not easily let him leave the Netherworld.

As for whether Houtu would blame him, it concerned the Sage, and he dared not speculate too much. But no matter what Houtu's attitude was, as long as she did not object, Yang Xuan had the final say in matters of the Underworld.

Upon hearing Yang Xuan's second option, Jiang Ziya immediately understood that Yang Xuan wanted him to pay a toll.

If he cannot offer Yang Xuan a toll fee that satisfies him, then he can only wait for Yuanshi Tianzun to come and redeem him, and his life will be ruined.

Yang Xuan seemed to have given him two choices, but in reality, he had no choice at all.

After a long silence, Jiang Ziya sighed.

"I wonder what price Your Majesty believes I should pay to atone for disrupting the order of Yin and Yang?"

"If I am not mistaken, you should be the Flying Bear Daoist, born in response to the times, the one destined to hold the list, appointed by the sage to preside over the conferment of gods in the Chan Sect."

Yang Xuan remained calm and spoke in a flat tone, but what he said shocked Jiang Ziya.

It was no secret within the Chan Sect that he was in charge of the conferment of gods. If he didn't have this identity, how could he convince the inner disciples and non-disciplined members of the Chan Sect?
Perhaps the Jie Sect is unaware of this matter yet, but it will likely spread within the sect soon.

Yang Xuan knew his identity, and he was not surprised. After all, Yang Xuan's current status was no less than that of a Quasi-Saint, so it was not surprising that he knew about this.

However, the revelation that Jiang Ziya was born at the right time and was destined to be the one to take charge of the list greatly surprised him.

It should be noted that Yuanshi Tianzun only told him about this matter before he went to the Nine Provinces. The other disciples of the Chan Sect did not know about it, and the Investiture of the Gods and the God-Slaying Whip were not on him.

As a result, Yang Xuan only glanced at his soul and immediately recognized his identity.

Logically speaking, the matters concerning the Investiture of the Gods, the God-Slaying Whip, and the Flying Bear Taoist should only be known to the Sage and the Jade Emperor...

Thinking of this, Jiang Ziya suddenly realized that the stories about the Investiture of the Gods, the God-Slaying Whip, and the Flying Bear Taoist were told to Yang Xuan by Haotian or Houtu.

As long as one knows about the Flying Bear Taoist, and considering that he was in charge of the Investiture of the Gods in the Chan Sect, and that his primordial spirit did not go to work after his death but returned to the underworld, one cannot guess his identity.

So, what was Yang Xuan's purpose in bringing this up...?

"Investiture of the Gods?!"

Jiang Ziya felt a chill run down his spine, his unease growing stronger. He was now almost certain that the toll Yang Xuan wanted was related to the Investiture of the Gods.

The Investiture of the Gods and the God-Slaying Whip were bestowed by the Dao Ancestor, so Yang Xuan couldn't possibly demand these two spiritual treasures. Therefore, the toll he wanted was probably related to the divine positions on the Investiture of the Gods...

Before Jiang Ziya could think further, Yang Xuan spoke again in a calm tone:
"In that case, I was indeed right. That makes things simple."

"Such a price is nothing more than a trivial matter for you."

"Since you are the one destined to bestow the titles of gods, regardless of the final outcome of the Shang-Zhou war, you will be in charge of the bestowal of the titles of gods."

"I have two things that I need your help with."

"Firstly, I need your assurance that after the Investiture of the Gods, you can restrain the listed immortals and gods, ensuring they abide by the Heavenly Laws and do not act recklessly or disrupt the Heavenly Court's order simply because they are immortals of the Chan or Jie sects."

"no problem!"

Jiang Ziya nodded, and without much thought, immediately agreed.

For him, this was indeed just a matter of course. Although he was the one who controlled the Investiture of the Gods and the God-Slaying Whip, he had a natural restraint when it came to those whose primordial spirits were on the list.

Even if his cultivation level has always been Taiyi Golden Immortal, and he holds the Investiture of the Gods and the God-Slaying Whip, even the Great Luo Golden Immortals whose primordial spirits are on the list will be subject to his control.

But whether it's Jiang Ziya himself or the gods and immortals on the Investiture of the Gods, after completing the investiture, they are all gods and immortals of the Heavenly Court and should be bound by the Heavenly Laws, which is only natural.

If it were the Heavenly Court of later legends, Jiang Ziya would not have taken the Heavenly Rules seriously at all. The immortals of the Chan Sect and the Jie Sect were personally taught by the sages and should be above the Heavenly Court. How could the Heavenly Rules restrain these immortals and gods?

Faced with the current Heavenly Court, Jiang Ziya dared not have such thoughts. Even if they were disciples of sages, they still had to abide by the Heavenly Laws once they arrived in the Heavenly Court. Otherwise, their status as disciples of sages might not be able to be preserved.

The Xuanmen's conferment of gods was merely a special opportunity for them to join the Heavenly Court directly, become righteous gods, and have a channel to obtain Heavenly Dao merit.

If they dare to violate the heavenly rules and act recklessly during their reign, they will likely be marginalized or even stripped of their celestial status before long.

After all, the real person in charge of the Heavenly Court right now is the Emperor of Fate standing before us.

Yang Xuan was able to lead the Heavenly Court, which was just an empty shell, to its current state step by step. How could he be helpless against these disciples of the sages?
From the very beginning, Jiang Ziya was determined that once he ascended to heaven, he would strictly abide by the heavenly laws and never allow Yang Xuan to find an opportunity to make a move.

Now that Yang Xuan has spoken frankly, he took the opportunity to agree to the matter, and even breathed a sigh of relief.

Yang Xuan asked him to restrain the immortals and gods on the list, which means that he has value to Yang Xuan.

As long as he can do this well, his interests in the Heavenly Court will not be harmed in the future, he can steadily gain merits, and he will not be targeted by Yang Xuan.

As for the idea of ​​using his status as the person in charge of the list to challenge Yang Xuan's position, he never even considered it.

If other immortals from the Chan and Jie sects were in charge of the Investiture of the Gods, they might think that they could use this position to make the immortals on the list work for them and seize more power in the Heavenly Court. But Jiang Ziya did not think that way. He was different from the Twelve Golden Immortals of the Chan sect. He had only joined the Chan sect one or two eons earlier than the third-generation disciples.

It's no exaggeration to say that he grew up listening to stories of Yang Xuan, so how could he dare to think of going against Yang Xuan or seizing power in the Heavenly Court?
Even after learning about the matter of being in charge of the Investiture of the Gods, Jiang Ziya was always worried that he would be targeted by Yang Xuan because of this identity after ascending to heaven.

Now that there was a business relationship, Jiang Ziya finally felt relieved.

Yang Xuan was not surprised by this. His purpose in making this condition was simply to make things easier in the future, not to gain any benefit from Jiang Ziya.

If Jiang Ziya agrees to this matter and promises to restrain the immortals and gods on the list, Yang Xuan will have a more legitimate reason to punish these immortals and gods who violate the heavenly rules in the future.

As for which immortals and gods should violate the Heavenly Laws, what Heavenly Laws they should violate, and what punishments they should receive, once they ascend to the Heavenly Court, Yang Xuan will either find an opportunity or create one.
Even Marshal Tianpeng was banished to the mortal realm and reincarnated as a pig for harassing Chang'e, so why can't these people be the same?

Now, Yang Xuan is the one who calls the shots in the Heavenly Court!

However, this condition was just something Yang Xuan did on a whim, taking the opportunity to bring it up casually. He had no intention of letting Jiang Ziya leave so easily.

Yang Xuan smiled slightly and continued:

"Secondly, since there are already immortals and gods in the Heavenly Court, no further pardons or conferments are allowed. If immortals and gods wish to establish temples, they must do so according to regulations!"

Although Yang Xuan learned from Houtu about the list of Yuanshi Tianzun, Tongtian Jiaozhu and others who signed the Investiture of the Gods.

These lists do not contain any divine positions that conflict with the existing deities in Heaven.

However, this only shows that a sage is concerned about his reputation and would not do something like stealing someone else's divine position, but it does not mean that Jiang Ziya would not do such a thing.

After all, the level of a deity is related to their status in the Heavenly Court, the fortune they can obtain, and their future merits in the Heavenly Way.

If possible, granting higher divine positions during the conferment of titles would bring greater benefits in the future.

For example, if a mortal like Huang Feihu were granted the divine position of a first-rank emperor, then his path to becoming a quasi-saint would be smooth, without any bottlenecks.

To avoid this from happening, it's natural to take precautions in advance.

If the matter of the divine positions was to prepare for the overall situation of the Heavenly Court, then the matter of the temple was about Yang Xuan himself.

The temples built by the Heavenly Court and the Underworld in the prehistoric world are all constructed according to Yang Xuan's orders, forming a vast network of deities throughout the prehistoric world and expanding further into the surrounding areas.

As long as these temples remain, Yang Xuan's position as the master of the divine path will not change.

After the Investiture of the Gods, the righteous gods of the Zhou Tian, ​​along with countless evil stars and heavenly generals, returned to their positions as assistant gods.

Most of them were on the list of those who had reached the primordial spirit level, and were severely injured. In the coming years, they could only recuperate and would find it difficult to improve their cultivation.

To improve one's strength and better fulfill one's divine duties, cultivating the divine path becomes the best way.

To cultivate the divine path, one needs incense offerings. No matter how vast the primordial world is, it is still finite, and the amount of incense offerings obtained varies from place to place.

Places like Kyushu and the four seas have the most living beings and are the most stable, and can receive more offerings. If they are not restrained, these places will inevitably generate more competition.

These people on the list are all disciples of sages, proud and arrogant, and might very well resort to using their power to oppress others.

Although with Yang Xuan's current status, it wouldn't be too difficult for him to regulate the construction of temples and spread his faith.

But no matter what you do, it will inevitably harm the interests of these saints' disciples to some extent, and being resented by them is by no means the best option.

As the person in charge of the Investiture of the Gods, Jiang Ziya controlled all immortals, whether from the Chan Sect or the Jie Sect, as long as their primordial spirits were on the list.

Even immortals who weren't on the list had to give him some face.

If he were to step in and set boundaries to regulate the establishment of temples and the spread of faith by these immortals and gods, Yang Xuan would not be resented by these people.

As long as these people follow Yang Xuan's rules, if they violate these rules in the future, Yang Xuan will have a legitimate reason to punish them. This way, Yang Xuan can firmly hold his position as the Lord of the Divine Path, which is the best option.

For the beings of the primordial world at this stage, they simply place greater importance on the divine path than ever before.

However, they still felt that this was just a side path to achieve, and the position of a mere master of the divine path was naturally beneath the notice of the powerful beings of the prehistoric world.

Yang Xuan was different; he was very clear about how influential the Divine Path would be in the prehistoric world in the future.

Moreover, Yang Xuan's incense-burning golden body is aided by Houtu. If there is enough incense, the incense-burning golden body can continue to grow, and the Great Luo Golden Immortal will no longer be the limit.

Yang Xuan's incense-infused golden statue is even related to the future matter of dismembering corpses, so he naturally has to treat it with caution and take precautions.

But Jiang Ziya was unaware of these things. In his view, the incense and deity worship was just a heretical path, and building a temple according to Yang Xuan's requirements was not a big deal at all.

The only thing that made him hesitate was the granting of divine titles. If possible, he would naturally want to grant divine titles to the immortals of the Chan Sect that were more in line with their status and of a higher rank.

Even if this divine position has already been occupied by someone else, it doesn't matter. After all, how can ordinary beings compare to the immortals of the Chan Sect?
But now that Yang Xuan has given a direct order, if Jiang Ziya does this again, it would be going against Yang Xuan, which is hardly a wise move.

"No, if I don't agree, I'm afraid I won't be able to leave this underworld..."

Jiang Ziya remained silent for a long time before finally nodding.

"Do as Your Majesty wishes."

Ultimately, these two conditions will not have a significant impact on the interests of the Chan Sect, nor will they change the overall structure of the Investiture of the Gods. Given Jiang Ziya's status, he can make the decision himself.

Upon hearing this, Yang Xuan smiled slightly, then waved his hand and activated the Nine Netherworld Locking Immortal Array, sending his soul to the Eastern Gate of Hell.

They left a decree on him, ordering the ghosts and gods guarding the Gate of Hell to send him back to Xiqi.

After Jiang Ziya's soul disappeared, Yang Xuan's smile became meaningful.

This parting is not the end, but the beginning.
In the Investiture of the Gods, Jiang Ziya faced seven deaths and three calamities.

Even if the Chan Sect is prepared and won't let Jiang Ziya die in the underworld six times, they will at least have to do it one or two more times.

If Jiang Ziya doesn't cooperate, it would be disrupting the Yin-Yang order. In order to maintain the order of the prehistoric world, the Styx Taoist might have to go to Xiqi.

Yang Xuan withdrew his gaze, and another 'crack' sound came from his spiritual platform, as another crack appeared on the seed of evil...

(End of this chapter)