The world is like a prison, my body is holy

At noon the next day.

Wang Wen sat in the main hall of the General's Mansion, carefully considering a document, when Xu Wu happened to arrive to report on the various matters concerning the unveiling ceremony of the Logistics Department after the Awakening of Insects the next day.

"You came just in time."

Upon seeing Xu Wu, Wang Wen simply put down his pen, rubbed his temples, and took a short rest: "Come and help me take a look at this."

"What?"

Xu Wu glanced at him suspiciously, then slowly walked to his side, tilted his head to look at the Xuan paper spread out on the table, and read in a low voice, "The Heaven and Earth Xuanhuang List? The first edition?"

On the Xuan paper, written in black and white, were the following words:

The Heavenly Ranking, soaring to the highest peak, overlooking all the mountains below.

First: Zhang Yong, the peerless sword immortal.

Second: Taihu Corpse King, Zhi Baiqing.

The Earthly Ranking is unmatched by ten thousand men and invincible.

First: Dragon Tiger Zhang Tianshi, Zhang Jizu.

Second: The leader of Maoshan Sect, Hunkun Zhenren.

Third: Master Jinping, the head of Gezao Mountain.

Fourth: Wang Wen, the Demon-Slaying General of Huainan...

Xu Wu scratched his head, puzzled, and asked, "Brother, how come you're only fourth on the Earth Ranking?"

Wang Wen, holding his teacup, casually replied, "It's just empty fame; there's no need to be so meticulous."

Xu Wu tilted his head and examined the Xuan paper: "Why does it look a bit like the Twenty-Eight Generals of Yuntai and the Twenty-Four Meritorious Officials of Lingyan Pavilion in traditional operas? Did you make this? Are you planning to distribute it to the brothers at the unveiling ceremony of the Logistics Department tomorrow as a beacon of light?"

Wang Wen took a sip of tea: "That's the idea, but what I'm considering now is whether or not to post this out to the public and spread it throughout the Great Zhou."

Xu Wu turned to look at him in surprise: "Didn't you just say that you didn't care about empty fame?"

Wang Wen: "You don't understand, this isn't about whether it's a reputation or not!"

Xu Wu: "How am I supposed to understand if you don't tell me?"

Wang Wen thought about it and agreed with what he said. He then said, "There are three benefits to sending this out."

"First, we should publish the information we have to the world, so that everyone knows about the progress of the spiritual energy revival."

"This has both advantages and disadvantages, which we will discuss later."

"Second, give honors to the strong to motivate the weak to strive for improvement."

"In the past, so many people flocked to the martial arts world. What were they after? Wasn't it just fame and fortune? Although times have changed and it's no longer an era where martial arts masters reign supreme, the essence remains the same."

"Furthermore, having this as a reference is better than martial artists and cultivators in various places closing themselves off and being narrow-minded, foolishly seeking out demons whose strength is far inferior to their own, and losing their lives."

"Third, stimulate the flow of information."

"You'll have questions when you see this. Why am I only ranked fourth on the Earth Ranking? Others will definitely have all sorts of questions when they see this."

"At that time, wouldn't we be able to know the progress of spiritual energy revival in various places without lifting a finger?"

Xu Wu scratched his head, trying to understand what he was saying: "All good and no bad?"

Wang Wen laughed and said, "Of course not. As the saying goes, 'fame and fortune move people'. Once this thing is released, it will definitely push the people on the list to the forefront and bring them countless troubles. While it will guide and stimulate cultivators all over the world to strive for excellence, it will also intensify the infighting among cultivators. Countless people will die under the swords of others for the sake of being at the top of the list."

This is also where his hesitation lies.

He thought it would be more fun and enjoyable, but he didn't have a penchant for taking other people's lives.

Xu Wu pondered silently for a long time before saying in a muffled voice, "Brother, do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"

Wang Wen: "Nonsense!"

Xu Wu glanced at him and whispered, "I think the food at the manor has been too good lately..."

Wang Wen slapped his head back, knocking it to the side: "How dare you! Who are you calling a busybody?"

Xu Wu covered his head and took a step back, feeling wronged: "Didn't you tell me to tell the truth? Tell me yourself, of all the benefits you mentioned, which one is actually going to end up in your pocket? All I hear is trouble, not a single real benefit!"

Wang Wen raised his hand again in anger.

Startled, Xu Wu ran down to the hall: "Hey, hey, hey, you said you wouldn't hit my head!"

Wang Wen pursed his lips and slowly lowered his hand, pondering to himself that what Xu Wu said was indeed reasonable.

But then he thought about it and laughed: "How could there be no real benefits? Do you know that if we don't seize the high ground of public opinion, the enemy will?"

Xu Wu looked at him in confusion; this time, he truly couldn't understand.

However, Wang Wen had already figured everything out and no longer needed him to understand.

That's the point of discussion. Even if others can't offer you useful ideas, a few casual remarks might help you clarify your thoughts.

For example, here, what could be a more powerful advantage than the dominance of public opinion?

Compared to the power to control public opinion, all the troubles caused by this list are insignificant.

In reality, these troubles are nothing to Wang Wen!
When he placed himself in the position of gatekeeper of the Earth Ranking, he was already prepared to accept challenges from the world's top experts. He even thought about using this opportunity to recruit more talents to his ranks and strengthen his Demon-Slaying General's Mansion.

His plan to integrate the Huangshan God, the Demon-Slaying General's Mansion, and the City God has only just begun, and he is in dire need of manpower. He will not mind having as many experts as possible!

"Alright, stop thinking about it. With your intelligence, you're unlikely to figure it out!"

Wang Wen grabbed the list from the table and handed it to Xu Wu: "Take it down, make a hundred copies, and spread it through all the information channels of my General's Mansion."

Seeing that Wang Wen's mind was made up, Xu Wu said no more. He stepped forward, took the list with both hands, and examined it carefully again. He whispered, "Brother, there are Taoists, martial artists, and even demons on this list, but not a single monk... I know you have a problem with those monks, and I have a problem with monks too, but since we're going to do this kind of thing, we should at least be fair on the surface to convince everyone, right?" Wang Wen thought he made sense, thought for a moment, and reached out, saying, "Give it to me!"

Xu Wu quickly handed the list back to Wang Wen.

Wang Wen used a paperweight to lay the list flat on the table, dipped his brush in ink, and wrote a line of characters on the list in a flowing style. Then he handed it to Xu Wu again: "This time it's ready!"

Xu Wu: "So fast?"

He unfolded the list and quickly scanned it, only to find that the content had not changed at all; no one had been added or removed.

Puzzled, he started looking at the list again from the beginning, reading it three times in a row. Finally, he found an extra line of small print in the lower left corner of the list: 'The final interpretation of this list belongs to the Huainan Demon-Slaying General's Mansion.'

Xu Wu looked up: "Brother, what does that mean?"

Wang Wen squinted and smiled, "What I say goes. If you're not happy, then keep it to yourself!"

Xu Wu: "Holy crap, awesome!"

You don’t even act anymore, right?
Wang Wen: "When promoting this list, all brothers on various news channels should make it clear that those on the list have demonstrated their strength in battles against demons and monsters. The reason why demons are on the list is to give all cultivators in the world a direct understanding of the combat power of demons. We welcome any additions or corrections. From now on, our Demon-Slaying General's Mansion will update the list every three months."

"Wonderful!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Wu's eyes lit up, and he gave another thumbs up: "In this way, we can guide the vast majority of cultivators who want to make it onto the list to focus their energy on slaying demons and monsters, and at the same time, we can give those monks a good dressing down. You really are amazing, brother!"

My older brother is still as petty as ever!

Wang Wen waved his hand casually, but the smile on his lips was harder to suppress than AK's: "Stop flattering me, let's get back to business..."

As witty as me!

……

The next day was the Awakening of Insects!
As dawn broke on the horizon, a series of lively firecrackers roused Yangzhou from its slumber.

Countless Yangzhou residents, yawning, got up, put on their clothes, and opened their windows to see countless Demon-Suppressing Guards clad in black armor and carrying black swords at their waists, marching in neat rows toward the Demon-Suppressing General's Mansion.

Has something big happened at the General's Mansion again?

'No, I have to go check it out…'

Before long, countless Yangzhou residents gathered outside the gates of the Demon-Slaying General's Mansion to watch the spectacle.

On the drill ground inside the General's Mansion, two thousand Demon-Suppressing Guards in black armor and black swords were already lined up in neat rows.

More than ten squads of demon-suppressing guards, each wearing a silver medal on their chest, stood proudly at the front, receiving their general's inspection.

Wang Wen, clad in black armor and with a black sword at his waist, rode astride a tall and mighty black Qilin, slowly passing in front of the ten silver-level squads. Finally, he jumped off the Qilin and walked slowly onto the command platform.

He spoke, his powerful voice echoing across the drill ground: "Good morning, brothers!"

"See the General!"

Two thousand Demon-Suppressing Guards shouted in unison, their fervent gazes fixed on him as if they wanted to set him ablaze.

Wang Wen nodded and cut straight to the point: "Today is the day of Jingzhe (Awakening of Insects). According to the calendar, today is the day of the Jade Hall God, so everything will go smoothly and bad luck will turn into good luck!"

"In the past year, our Huainan Road Demon-Slaying General's Mansion has carried out one large-scale sweeping operation, eight medium-sized joint missions, and ninety-nine small-scale targeted elimination missions. In total, we have killed 3,649 demons and monsters, rescued more than 600,000 people, lost 462 brothers in battle, and crippled 387 brothers. Almost everyone has been wounded!"

"But the men of the Demon-Slaying General's Mansion have not been defeated by these pains. All the brothers who have died or been wounded are inspiring us to fight back even more bravely and kill those demons and monsters who dare to harm our fellow villagers and elders and dare to offer their claws to the Demon-Slaying General's Mansion!"

"The demons and monsters of Huainan Road tremble with fear at the mere mention of the name of my Demon-Slaying General's Mansion; the elders and folks of Huainan Road praise my Demon-Slaying General's Mansion to the skies!"

"I, Wang Wen, am proud of you!"

After a brief silence, a fierce shout soared into the sky: "We are proud of the general! We are proud of the general!"

Wang Wen was at the center of the shouts, looking around at the pairs of passionate eyes. His mind seemed to be lifted up by their shouts and soar to the sky.

A man should be like this!
He suppressed the surging emotions in his heart, raised his hand to gesture for silence, and waited until the shouts in the training ground subsided before continuing, "Today, our Huainan Dao Demon-Slaying General's Mansion will turn a new page!"

He clapped his hands, and immediately eight demon-suppressing guards carried four plaques covered with red silk onto the command platform.

Wang Wen strode up to the first signboard and said, “Brothers, haven’t you all been fooled by goods that don’t match the description before? You thought it was just some evil spirit causing trouble, but when you got there you found out it was a vengeful ghost, and you could only grit your teeth and charge forward…”

As he said this, he unveiled the red silk, revealing three large cast iron characters, "Diwangdian," written in bold, elegant strokes.

"The Earth Net Hall is the central hub for our General's Mansion to receive and dispatch missions. They will collect intelligence on the disturbances caused by demons and monsters in various places and compile it into detailed mission reports, including but not limited to the target's location, strength, the surrounding demon and monster situation, and the best way to eliminate them. If any brothers encounter a mission report made by the Earth Net Hall that doesn't match the description, they can immediately return it, slap the mission report in the face of the Earth Net Hall Master, and loudly question him: 'What the hell are you doing? Do you even care about the lives of the brothers on the front lines?'"

As soon as he finished speaking, a low burst of laughter erupted on the training ground.

The Earth Net Palace began trial operation at the end of October last year. Under Wang Wenman's unreasonable pressure, no fatal error has occurred in any of the mission orders issued by the Earth Net Palace so far.

Wang Wen smiled and strode to the second plaque: "Weren't the talismans and magical artifacts issued by the Temple of Worship in the past extremely difficult to obtain? Every time you received a talisman or artifact, you'd rather get injured than use it easily, fearing that if you used it this time, you wouldn't know when you could get a new one next time? And sometimes the power of the talismans and artifacts varied, sometimes so strong that it was as if the Taoist priests had taken the wrong medicine, and sometimes so weak that it was as if the Taoist priests had drunk fake alcohol?"

The demon-suppressing guards in the training ground immediately became lively, each of them chattering about the bizarre situations they had encountered.

In short, it's like this: 'Holy crap, General, you understand us!'

Wang Wen smiled and lifted the red token on the second plaque, revealing the three large cast iron characters "Tiangong Hall": "Tiangong Hall will meet all the brothers' needs for slaying demons and monsters, and will guarantee stable quality and consistent power. In the future, if you encounter any troublesome demons or monsters, don't rush in with your knife to fight them. Just use talismans and magic weapons to blast them to death. Our family is not short of money. As long as you can come back unscathed from every mission, it's worth it no matter how many talismans and magic weapons you waste!"

The discussions on the training ground gradually subsided, but the gazes of the Demon Suppression Guards toward Wang Wen became even more intense.

As the saying goes, comparing people will only lead to ruin, and comparing goods will only lead to discarding them!

In an era where military pay is never fully distributed and even pensions are embezzled, how fortunate it is to encounter a general who doesn't care how many precious treasures you waste, and only hopes that you can return unscathed from every battle...
I'd give my life for him!
Wang Wen walked to the third plaque and said, "I think there are no more Ming Jin brothers in our Demon-Slaying General's Mansion, right? Are you all often anxious because martial arts are too difficult to learn and progress is too slow? Seeing other brothers make progress every month and improve every two months, while you practice your fists every day and never stop, you still can't make any progress and every day feels like a year?"

He lifted the red silk on the third plaque, revealing the three cast iron characters "Medicine King Hall," and said eloquently, "It doesn't matter. If you don't have enough talent, you can make up for it with pills. One pill will keep you from falling, two pills will make you take off, and three pills will turn you into a martial arts prodigy. Your parents will no longer have to worry about your martial arts cultivation!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the training ground erupted in chaos again. Countless demon-suppressing guards gripped their swords, sharpening them with eagerness, wishing they could go and kill ten or eight demons and monsters right now to exchange for pills.

Amidst the lively discussion, Wang Wen strode to the fourth plaque, lifted the red silk to reveal the three large cast-iron characters "Shanhe Palace". (End of Chapter)