From a carp to a dragon god

Chapter 174: Petition to the Temple of the God of Goods
In front of the small temple dedicated to the God of Goods in front of the Five Associations and Eight Trades, the stage has been set up, and the opera will begin as soon as the gongs and drums sound in the evening.

Right now, the famous actors from the three opera troupes are all preparing backstage. Some have their faces painted in advance, some have their heads tied and their eyebrows lifted, and they all have their own props and costumes.

The show begins with a big birthday celebration. All the actors and actresses backstage, big and small, take turns to go on stage to perform a scene and sing a few songs to wish a happy birthday, which is considered to warm up the audience and bring good luck.

This is also the method used by the opera troupe. They say auspicious words and coax the audience to give money or tips. The three opera troupes all received money from booking the entire theater.

Compared with the bustling small temple, the atmosphere in the big temple on the Huaishui Market side is completely different. The heads of the five associations and eight trades have all come.

The first one to be led by the Salt Society was Liu An, the Black Tiger Spirit of Pengxi. He was not as good as Long Po, a demon fairy. Currently, he was only at the middle stage of the sixth rank.

There are thirteen families in the Five Associations and Eight Trades, but each family has many branches and each has its own manager. Now there are more than one hundred and fifty of them.

Liu An took the lead and said to the stewards, "Everyone, be quiet and wait for my news. Now that we have reached this point, it all depends on everyone's unity."

Liu An had changed his usual Han Chinese attire from Central China and was now dressed in a formal black Yi costume, with a black cloth wrapped around his head called Etie, the right side of which looked like a bull's horn.

After Luang Pu reported the news, Liu An discussed with the managers of the other eight salt associations, but they still couldn't make up their minds. Finally, Liu An made the final decision.

There were several disciples of the Taoist Alliance living in his hometown of Pengxi. They knew some of the rules of the Taoist Alliance and were even more aware of how powerful they were, so they did not dare to set up a trap to take advantage of them.

However, this incident also reminded him that if he couldn't invite the successor of the Dao League, could he still invite the divine cultivators of the Goods Temple? Now that Jiang Dazhu's apprentice had arrived.

Regardless of whether he spoke or not, his presence showed that he did not want to stand idly by, so he joined forces with a group of managers and came to the Temple of the God of Goods to petition.

As soon as Liu An entered the temple, he saw a ten-zhang-tall statue of the god of wealth, Xuantian Duobao Zhenjun holding a treasure ship in his hand, and two golden toads carrying treasure basins under his feet.

There was no god or temple priest in the temple at that time. He walked up to the altar respectfully, took three incense sticks, lit them, and inserted them into the incense burner.

Then he knelt on his knees and made a silent wish in his heart. More than 150 managers outside also knelt down and prayed in their hearts.

At this time, in the back hall, four or five fellow disciples surrounded the God of General Merchandise and begged him desperately, but the Golden Toad, who was silent, refused to open his mouth.

This messenger of the general merchandise god was from the great sea toad clan of the East China Sea. His name was Hai Damu, and his mother’s clan was the green aphid spirit. Later, he met Jiang Dazhu who was a missionary.

He then devoted himself to the Temple of the God of Goods to practice the Qingxie method. These senior brothers now could be considered his close brothers.

However, since Jiang Dazhu left to preach, these brothers built a large temple and changed the statue of the god holding a treasure bowl to one holding a treasure boat.

This meant establishing a new branch in the Shenzong era. The statues of the gods contained truths, and the one holding a treasure bowl was called the God of General Merchandise, implying that green flies brought general merchandise from all directions.

The one holding the treasure ship is called the God of Wealth, which means that the treasure ship brings wealth from all directions. In the eyes of Emperor Shenzong, this is no less than apostasy and the establishment of a new god.

Therefore, when Hai Damu saw this situation, he wanted to leave, but he was ordered by his master to come to Shui City to resolve a matter, so he kept silent all day.

A group of managers outside made a sincere vow, and the huge power of the incense and vows instantly alarmed several Shinto monks, and several brothers were silent for a while.

Hai Damu still had to solve the problem after all. He knew that this was an opportunity, so he walked out of the back hall and into the temple.

"Divine Envoy, we, the managers of the Five Associations and Eight Sects, are all here now. We all sincerely vow to repent for the wrongs we have done in the past.

We only ask you to help us this time. You don't need to do it yourself. We only ask you to preside over and witness the fight between our Five Associations and Eight Lineages and the descendant of the Eastern Demon.

If they win, Water City will allow the Eastern Demons to come and go as they please. If we win, we will ask them to leave Water City and swear never to come back."

Liu An knelt in front of Hai Damu and spoke in a sonorous and powerful voice, without any sense of pleading. Instead, it was more courageous and he seemed ready to die.

"How do you want to fight?" Hai Damu asked.

"A bloody fight! There were 150 or 60 of us present. We all signed a life-or-death agreement with them. If they beat us to death, the Five Societies and Eight Lines would admit defeat.

If we win, we'll let them go, and this matter will cease to be a life-and-death agreement, with neither side being allowed to retaliate in the future," Liu An said.

Right now, the Five Elements and Eight Elements are being put on the spot. The descendant of the Eastern Demon Sect is lurking in the Water City and it is difficult to find his whereabouts. Moreover, it is clear that he is not leaving.

Unless they were all killed, the problem was that the Five Associations and Eight Sects were formed to prevent the disputes among the Demon Sects from spreading in the Water City, so how could they take the initiative to make enemies?

I had originally planned to make the matter bigger while asking Huoshendao to come forward and ask the descendant of Dongmo to leave. Then I would temporarily close the market to show my neutral attitude and unwillingness to interfere in the dispute between Wenxiang Sect and Dongmo.

However, the messenger of the God of Goods has arrived, and the big show on August 15th is about to begin. The descendant of the Eastern Demon can't be driven away, and it seems that he will be embarrassed.

Luang Pu's message reminded him that one should be cautious about the consequences, as they were the leaders of the five societies and eight trades, and they were willing to risk their lives, so a fight could be considered a result.

If this is made known to others in the future, it will not be labeled as a member of any of the five social circles and eight trades. Moreover, Liu An and a group of managers have other plans.

"In that case, I'll run an errand and pass on a message for you. However, this matter is not over yet. You all forced my teacher to leave back then.

This matter also needs an explanation. After all, Shui City is not under your control. This secret place of heaven and earth was opened by my master with his demon body.

Considering that you are preaching for the God of Goods and you are all believers, I will let you stay here for three hundred years. Now my master wants to build a big temple in the East China Sea.

He has specifically ordered me to retrieve his demonic body. From now on, he will no longer be in charge of this Water City. If you want to build a temple for the God of Wealth, then build one. If you want to build a temple for the Patriarch, then build one. We have nothing to do with each other anymore."

Hai Damu is a canine toad that turned into a monster. His voice is like a loud speaker, rough and hoarse, and it is extremely unpleasant to listen to.

After hearing this, all the managers were confused and didn't know what to do. They all looked at Liu An, and his scalp was numbing from the looks he received.

"God's messenger, now that this Tengxian Bridge has been taken away, how are we going to get in and out in the future?" Liu An changed his tone and said in a pleading voice.

"This water city is based on the dream of the ancient Huai River God. After millions of years of baptism, this secret place of heaven and earth was created.

My master's vine body is nothing more than a magical root in a dream. Now that a portal has been opened to the secret realm, it will never close again, regardless of whether this magical root exists or not."

Hai Damu explained a few words, but he only said half of the words, and left the other half unsaid, which is that this secret realm is between dream and reality, and Tengxian Bridge is like a pillar supporting the sky.

Without this pillar, the dream will not collapse, but will only become unstable. There will be only two choices at that time. One is to find another object to support it, which is almost impossible, after all, the Dream Dao Immortal Root is rare.

The second is to build a temple for Wuzhiqi. When Jiang Dazhu was born in the secret realm, it was not only the creation of heaven and earth, but also the continued divine luck of Wuzhiqi.

The divine cultivation method he obtained was to prepare for the establishment of a temple for Wuzhiqi, and this method was also the last thing Wuzhiqi left in his dream.

There is only one demon named Jiang Dazhu in the secret realm. There is no incense in the temple. He is ignorant and has never understood the deep meaning. With the help of spiritual roots, he can grow into a first-grade immortal root.

However, the secret realm is based on Wuzhiqi's divine dream. The stronger the vine in the dream, the more difficult it is to escape. This is why Jiang Dazhu finally made a vow to heaven and earth. Three hundred years ago, Jiang Dazhu left due to a dispute. One reason was that he was forced by the Five Societies and Eight Lines, and the other was that he did not want to be involved in Wuzhiqi's temple establishment.

"Divine messenger, I wonder what harm will be caused by taking away the Tengxian Bridge. How should we deal with it?" Liu An always felt that this matter was not that simple, and asked again.

"The vine body belongs to my master. You can't stop him from taking it. He should have thought of this situation three hundred years ago.

Besides, we've given the Water City to you, what else do you want? Do you think that only the descendants of the Eastern Demon are powerful, and that we, the cultivators of the Divine Sect, are weak and powerless?"

Hai Damu asked sternly, saying that they, the monks of the Divine Sect, practiced to serve the gods and it was not appropriate for them to use an iron fist against their believers, but that did not mean they would be willing to be slaughtered like cattle and horses.

In an instant, one hundred and fifty or sixty managers lowered their heads and dared not threaten. Many of the managers present were later-comers and had not participated in the dispute three hundred years ago, but they also had to suffer the consequences.

As the saying goes, those who plant trees will enjoy the shade, and those who dig holes will jump into them. This is exactly the current situation.

"God's messenger, please take action."

Liu An knocked his head to the ground. He had no other choice. There was a wolf in front and a tiger behind. He had to fight one of them. Without Tengxian Bridge, the danger would come in the future. If he didn't drive away the descendant of the East Demon, disaster would happen soon.

Hai Damu pulled out a pennant. On the front, nine green flies stretched out their limbs to form a circle with black stripes on a white background. On the back, a three-legged golden toad was wrestling with a cane toad.

This is his flag as the messenger of the God of General Merchandise. When he holds it in his hand, it represents all the temples of the God of General Merchandise, and also represents the status of his master as the high priest.

The status of the temple's chief priest is similar to that of the leader of a demon sect. The chief priest is just like a boss or a leader, both of whom represent status and position.

He walked out of the temple to look for the descendant of the East Demon. The Divine Sect and the Demon Sect were all Shinto monks, and they could easily sense each other. Historically, the Demon Sect had never caused trouble in the Divine Sect Temple. This had been the rule for many years.

Those senior brothers are so useless that they can't even protect their own one-third acre of land. They have wasted a big temple. The god of wealth will never be able to stand up.

Hai Damu waved the divine flag in his hand. On the one hand, he cast a spell to sense the hiding place of the descendants of the Eastern Demon. On the other hand, it was also a reminder to his counterparts that he wanted to talk to them about something.

Using courtesy first and then force was considered to avoid damaging the relationship. Not long after, he felt a scent of incense and gods coming, and followed the direction to find him.

Just over there at the warehouse dock is the warehouse of the Susha sea salt from the north. This Susha is the old land of the ancient Susha family, the ancestor of boiling sea salt.

I didn't expect that the descendant of the Eastern Demon had been hiding in the sea salt warehouse in the North. It was true that the Eastern Demon Sect's lair was on an island overseas in the North.

"Are you the messenger of the God of Goods? When Jiang Dazhu left, he gave away this water market, and the Temple of Wealth has been ineffective ever since.

This water market is not a temple base, so you have no reason to drive us away."

The person who spoke was a middle-aged man dressed like a beggar. He was the descendant of the evil beggar and was of human race.

"Judging from your attire, I believe you are the descendant of the demon of decline. I have come here to retrieve my demon body on behalf of my master. I don't care whether you stay in Shui City or not.

However, the Five Societies and Eight Trades asked me to preside over this matter and ask you to sign a life and death agreement. One hundred and fifty or sixty managers are willing to fight you to the death.

If you win, they'll give you the water market. If you lose, you'll be asked to leave immediately. Do you agree or not?"

Hai Damu stated his purpose straight away. He had brought the message home, and he didn't care whether the descendant of the Eastern Demon agreed or not.

A man dressed as a doctor stepped forward and said, "I heard that Jiang Dazhu went to the East China Sea. Could it be that he wants to build a temple in Haishi?

It was rumored in the early years that the Dragon Palace in the East China Sea wanted to ask for a position of God of Wealth for the Dragon Mother, so the God of Wealth sent his spirit down to the Three Immortals Island.

Do you, the God of Goods Temple, really want to build a temple of wealth?"

Hai Damu glanced at the doctor. This was an old man from the Eastern Demon Sect, named the Sick Demon Doctor, who was in charge of a magic weapon - the Five Plagues and Six Diseases Banner.

"Ghost Doctor, I respect you and call you Senior. We in the Divine Sect and the Demon Sect still have some friendship, so please don't make things difficult for each other.

I took the master's vine body and left. As for whether you fight with the Five Associations and Eight Lineages or not, I have no right to control it, and I don't want to get involved in this trivial matter.

However, I advise you all, a catastrophe is about to begin, don't think that hiding in the ancient god's dream will make everything go well, and also, watch your mouth."

Hai Damu had nothing good to say about the devil doctor. He had lived to such an old age, no wonder he had become a stray dog. Just for his stinky mouth, he should have been beaten to death long ago.

"Wa Wa, you are quite arrogant. I wonder if your master Jiang Dazhu has the courage like you?
I think he probably didn't, otherwise why would he let you, a little kid, take advantage of the situation to take the vine in your dream? Why wouldn't he dare to come back?

Go back and tell the Five Societies and Eight Trades that we accept the gambling and we are not competing with them for this water market. We are just borrowing a place to rest our feet."

The person who spoke was pale and had no flesh on his body. He was so thin that it seemed as if a layer of skin was wrapped around his skeleton.

Hai Damu didn't recognize who he was. According to the Eastern Demon Sect's inheritance, he should be from the lineage of the Dead Demon, and he sounded quite arrogant.

"Since you agreed, I'll go back and pass on the message. I wonder if you should go there, or they should come over?"

"The date is set for three days from now, at the gate of the Great Temple. We will have three gambling matches, and we don't want this water market.

If we lose, we'll leave immediately. If we win, we'll have to choose thirty-six disciples from the Water Market. You can go back and discuss this with them."

The one who spoke was still the descendant of the Zombie Demon. After he finished speaking, the other two demons remained silent, obviously agreeing.

"In that case, I will go back and tell them. I'm sure they will agree to this result." Hai Damu said and he was done.

After he left, the evil beggar spoke first, "Master, isn't it a bad idea to accept a disciple in such a high-profile manner?"

The zombie sighed and said, "I originally wanted to seize this ancient god's dreamland and escape this catastrophe, but I'm afraid this plan will be in vain.

This Jiang Dazhu wants to reclaim his demonic body. Without the Dream Vine to suppress Shui City, Wuzhiqi will surely build a temple and regenerate. Then, we will have to wait here for a long time."

The sick devil doctor said unconvincedly, "Master, just don't let him take the vine from the dream. That Jiang Dazhu is hiding in the East China Sea and dare not come back. He can't cause any trouble with just a sea toad."

"Even without him, we still have the Five Societies and Eight Trades. Now they're actually trying to fight to the death. If we take over the Water Market, the Dream Vine will be gone in the next moment."

After saying that, the zombie looked up at the sky without saying a word.

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(End of this chapter)