Gods of the Nation: You worship the God of Longevity, I worship the King of Hell!

Chapter 158, the Temple Mission, makes its grand debut!

On the other side, the Zhao family's convoy.

Inside the main vehicle, the air was so stagnant it was suffocating.

The driver gripped the steering wheel, his Adam's apple bobbing involuntarily, the sound of him swallowing clearly audible in the silence.

In the back row, Zhao Jiutang and his nephew Zhao Wan sat side by side, both with gloomy faces and not uttering a word.

a long time--

"Ten thousand taels, Second Uncle can't swallow this insult!" Zhao Jiutang said in a very low voice, "I might as well... find someone to kill him."

Even a clay figure has a touch of fire.

Moreover, after today's public humiliation, Zhao Jiutang's resentment and hatred towards Lu Chen can no longer be concealed in the slightest.

All he could think about was how to kill the other person.

Anyway, the Zhao family has done this kind of thing in private before.

The Zhao family has always kept a watch list.

Anyone on the watch list is a potential target for elimination by the Zhao family.

It is divided into three levels: A, B, and C.

Once marked as Grade A, they often disappear without a trace shortly afterward.

In Zhao Jiutang's mind, Lu Chen was already qualified to be classified as Grade A...

Even S-class is more than enough!
After all, a newly promoted nobleman dared to openly provoke the Zhao family.

If left unchecked, it will surely become a major problem.

Besides, the two families have already broken off relations, and there is no room for reconciliation.

It's better to nip it in the bud!

However, Zhao Wanliang remained silent throughout.

"Say something, what about the ten thousand taels?" Zhao Jiutang couldn't help but urge.

But Zhao Wanliang slowly shook his head, his voice low and deep: "Now is not the time."

"Of course! I didn't say we should act now. How about we wait until this storm passes... a month?" Zhao Jiutang sounded a little anxious. "We can't delay any longer. This kid is rising too fast. Even a month feels too long!"

However, Zhao Wanliang still shook his head.

Zhao Jiutang was taken aback: "What's wrong with you? In the past, I was usually the one stopping you from doing these things. Now that they're taking advantage of us, you're trying to persuade me?"

"Alright, Second Uncle," Zhao Wanliang interrupted impatiently, "Don't worry about this. I know what I'm doing."

Zhao Jiutang opened his mouth, but swallowed the words back, his face darkening as he turned to the window: "Fine, you decide! This is truly—utterly inexplicable!"

Zhao Wanliang glanced at him, offering no explanation, nor was there any need for one.

He closed his eyes slightly, suppressing his anger, and thought to himself:

"Now is not the time to make a move on this kid! But sooner or later, we'll settle all our old scores and new grudges!!!"
-
An hour later, in the north of the city, at the Ma Family Temple.

The Ma Family Temple, which used to be bustling with worshippers, is now closed with its gates tightly shut and sealed with a diagonal strip of paper.

Two yamen runners stood guard at the gate, their expressions solemn, keeping strangers away.

"boom."

The car door closed, and Lu Chen stepped forward.

"Halt!" The constable raised his hand to stop them, his tone cold and hard: "This temple has been sealed off, get out of here!"

Lu Chen remained silent, only revealing the City Lord's Token.

The two constables' expressions changed drastically, and they immediately bowed: "We were unaware of your arrival, sir! Please forgive us!"

"I want to go inside and take a look." Lu Chen put away the token.

"Yes!"

stab-

The seal was torn off, and the heavy temple door was slowly pushed open.

"My lord please."

Lu Chen nodded, and entered one after another with Sun Yourong, Zeng Rou, and Wang Zhidong.

"This city lord's token is indeed useful." Lu Chen glanced at the token in his hand and put it back into his storage ring.

“Of course,” Sun Yourong chuckled. “In the entire Jiangdu City, there are no more than ten people who possess the City Lord’s Token.”

"Really? That's an honor."

Lu Chen couldn't help but admire Yu Feng; he really had a good eye.

His investment acumen is exceptional!
Only one day has passed in the distance.

The empty temple exuded a desolate and lonely atmosphere.

The three main halls of the Ma Family Temple enshrine the God of Wealth Zhao, the Dragon Kings of the Four Seas, and the God of Thunder and Goddess of Lightning, respectively.

Even just looking at the main hall, its composition is quite complex.

It's hard to say whether to pursue a literary path or a martial path.

"Oh, right," Lu Chen suddenly remembered something, "If I take over the Ma Clan Temple, what should I do with these old statues?"

"You don't need to worry about that. The government will have special 'God Transport Scholars' to move the statues away and handle them centrally."

"How should we handle this?"

“There will be a special person to communicate with the deity, and then the statue will be ‘invoked’, that is to say… after communicating with the deity, it will be respectfully burned to show that it has been returned to its divine position.”

"I see... Can't a few of me stay behind?"

"No, the new temple must be purchased directly and cannot be reused."

"Understood, please invite the tax god."

Lu Chen understood.

After all, this was the bulk of the imperial court's tax revenue from the temples.

The group strolled through the temple.

Compared to the grand clan temples I've seen before, such as those of the Zhao family, Wu family, and Sun family...

This new temple is noticeably smaller in size.

But this is reasonable.

After all, newly rich families can only invite sixty gods, while powerful clans can invite up to one hundred and twenty, so the temple regulations are naturally different.

"Sister Sun, what if we become a major clan in the future and the temple isn't big enough?" Lu Chen asked casually.

"You're quite carefree, already thinking about matters concerning the great clans."

Sun Yourong chuckled: "Simple, just acquire the surrounding houses and expand the temple site."

However, the location of the Ma family temple is indeed quite good.

Of the three sides, there are residential houses on the two sides and an open space behind.

"Let alone expanding it into a grand temple complex, even if it were to ascend to the 'prestigious' status in the future, it would have more than enough space to accommodate two hundred deities." "And what about 'noble families'? How many can they possibly enshrine at most?"

"Three hundred divine positions."

Lu Chen nodded, indicating that there was no need to ask about the regulations beyond that.

It must be related to the emperor.

After a general tour, Lu Chen was quite satisfied with the temple.

As Sun Qingcang said, the Ma Family Temple was not built too long ago, but the architecture still looks impressive.

In fact, the exterior styles of various temples are quite similar.

They all have upturned eaves and vermilion pillars.

However, the interior decoration needs to be specially designed according to the characteristics of the deity being worshipped.

“Excellent.” Lu Chen stopped before the temple: “Such a temple is fit for my use!”

"Do you need me to find someone to help you with some design drawings?" Sun Yourong asked.

"Sure. Also, we need to finalize the construction team as soon as possible. Zeng Rou—"

"My subordinate is here."

"When the time comes, I'll finalize the blueprints. You can arrange someone to coordinate the specific work, or you can do the coordination yourself."

"Yes, Master! Or perhaps I can handle the coordination while you set the tone, or you can tell me the requirements and I'll coordinate with the designer?"

Zeng Rou made the suggestion.

“Master, Elder Zeng previously led the affairs of the Rakshasa Sect, and she is an expert in this area,” Wang Zhidong added from the side.

“That would be perfect,” Lu Chen readily agreed, “It will save me a lot of trouble. After all, when I get busy, I can’t take care of anything else.”

"Rest assured, Master, I will do my utmost."

The group sat down in a pavilion or tower.

“By the way, what are your plans after you finish the formalities?” Sun Yourong asked.

"Anyway, repairs and renovations will take time, and making the statue will take time too. I'll just keep doing missions and earning military merits. I remember that the military merits and funds required to advance to a major clan are..."

"150,000 military merits and 3 billion in funds."

Lu Chen clicked his tongue: "Those are really two impressive numbers!"

“However, I suggest you don’t rush to complete your personal missions for now,” Sun Yourong said, then changed the subject: “Have you heard of the Temple Missions?”

Lu Chen was taken aback and shook his head.

Sun Yourong: "A temple is essentially a business... Since it's a business, it needs to be managed. Otherwise, why would worshippers come to your temple to make offerings?"

“But the deities that my Lu Clan Temple needs to worship are probably not found in other temples either.”

—The God of Wealth.

--Yama.

—The Plague Emperor Haotian.

Each one is unique and distinctive.

"This is something I've been wanting to talk to you about. The deities you've invited are indeed... a bit obscure. Although your worship of the Plague Emperor did cause quite a stir when you slew the demon in seven days, and it sparked a wave of 'Plague God fever,' that kind of popularity doesn't last long. Do you see any similar news online now?"

Sun Yourong explained in detail: "So, if you want worshippers to come to your Lu family temple to worship these deities, you must first promote them and let more people know which deities your family worships and whether they are effective."

Otherwise, why would people make offerings to us?

Ultimately, the reason why worshippers are willing to spend real money to make offerings is simply to seek blessings and benefit themselves.

This brings us to the temple quest.

Lu Chen leaned forward slightly: "Explain in detail! Where do you get this temple quest?"

“It’s not ‘receiving’ but ‘accepting’,” Sun Yourong corrected. “These kinds of tasks are basically issued to the temple by the worshippers themselves.”

For example, I go to your Lu Clan Temple to post a quest: to pray for good fortune, with a reward of money and military merit as payment.

If you accept this, you must send someone to my home to help me resolve it, or you can resolve it directly at the temple.

Once the mission is complete, the bounty and military merits will be automatically credited to the temple's account.

"This is why military merit is so highly restricted, yet it is still so sought after."

Even though it cannot be used for buying and selling, it can be exchanged for some supplies.

Secondly, its main function is to issue temple quests in an individual's name.

Let the temple help you achieve what you need.

Otherwise, you can't rely on yourself to promote the entire family's advancement.

Not only is it difficult, but the results are also not guaranteed.

Think about it, an S-level mission only yields a few thousand military merits.

An SS-level mission only costs over 10,000.

However, such tasks are usually difficult for an individual to complete, and the success rate is often influenced by luck.

"Except for you, of course."

Lu Chen: "..."

Why did I start praising myself again while I was talking...?

"Even someone like you, with your current abilities, would find it difficult to complete an SS-level mission alone. Take the Rakshasa Cult for example... I might as well be frank, you got a great deal."

Lu Chen nodded in agreement.

The Rakshasa Sect's victory was purely a windfall.

Otherwise, letting him challenge the Rakshasa Cult instance alone would be nothing short of a pipe dream.

"Therefore, temple missions have become the main source of family advancement and military merit. Although the reward for a single mission is not much, the quantity is large, and little by little, it adds up. Moreover, this is the best way to manage a temple, without exception."

"Yes, it brought us positive word-of-mouth and wider reach," Lu Chen concluded.

“That’s right.” Sun Yourong nodded. “Therefore, I suggest that since you have already started building the temple, the management of the temple is a key point that you absolutely cannot ignore, otherwise you will be picking up sesame seeds and losing watermelons.”

"I've learned a lot." Lu Chen solemnly cupped his hands in greeting: "Sister Sun's words have enlightened me greatly."

"Wait, I'm not finished yet." Sun Yourong paused, then continued, "What I've said so far is just about temple missions for a specific deity. We usually call them: [Deity Missions]."

But in fact, if your Lu Clan Temple itself is famous enough and has a wide enough influence!
It can also be a business card!

Lu Chen asked suspiciously, "You mean... to promote the entire temple as a whole, using the temple's influence to overshadow the gods?"

Sun Yourong nodded emphatically: "Yes! That's exactly what I mean! This is what we call the real [Temple Quest]."

Furthermore, most temple quests can be directly linked to you personally.

In a way, it's the same principle as accepting a mission in the mission hall or at the school!

Lu Chen was taken aback, his interest suddenly piqued: "Sister Sun, tell me in detail!..."

　This chapter has over three thousand words; seven thousand words have been delivered today.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)