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

Chapter 243 The Advance of the Horse Clerk!
(P.S.: The next two chapters have a lot of background information, which was very difficult to write, but these backgrounds are all necessary for the future of this book and are definitely not filler. The second chapter is still being polished. After these chapters are finished, the fifth chapter will officially begin!)

………………

Lu Chen's heart was filled with turmoil.

"Not inferior to the Plague Prince? The Plague Prince is the guardian deity of the Plague Department..."

The God of Wealth chuckled and said, "Now that the Seven Treasures Exquisite Pagoda is at your beck and call, and the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King is eager to make peace with you, what does the position of a mere guardian deity matter?"

He paused briefly and couldn't help but ask, "By the way, my good brother, now that you have refined the Exquisite Pagoda, can't you use the pagoda's suppressing power?"

Lu Chen shook his head: "Perhaps the soul of the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King has long been bound to the Linglong Pagoda. Although I can control the pagoda, I cannot use the other supernatural powers within it. Even when I am inside the pagoda, I cannot suppress those demons and monsters... In fact, it is somewhat of a waste."

Jun Caishen laughed heartily: "Chicken rib? My good brother, you're wrong. This pagoda has always obeyed only the orders of the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King. Now that you can control it, that alone is better than a thousand troops."

He suddenly lowered his voice: "You should know that Nezha, the third son of the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King and the Great God of the Three Altars and Seas, has always regarded the pagoda as his father."

The reason why Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, is so concerned about the Linglong Pagoda is ultimately because he is afraid that Nezha will seek revenge.
If He loses this tower, He will have to be on guard against the Third Prince's attacks day and night, which is why He took the initiative to show weakness.

In that case, can you still call it a "chicken rib" (meaning something of little value)?

Lu Chen pondered for a moment, then nodded.

“I understand. I will discuss this with Him in more detail later.”

"Well, in short, just ask for whatever benefits you want. Don't refuse them if they're free."

"understand!"

As Lu Chen spoke, he got to the point, bowing deeply:

"Brother, I am truly grateful for the Heavenly Court's assistance this time."

Now my elder brother, my master, the Water Deity Star Lord, the Twenty-Eight Constellations, and the Kitchen God are all implicated by me.

I feel really bad about it.

These are rare and precious materials that I collected in the secret realm. Please accept them, elder brother, and also convey my gratitude to the Water Deity Star Lord and the Twenty-Eight Constellations.

He took out all the rare and precious materials he had collected in his storage ring, including the eighth-grade spiritual material.

In the blink of an eye, a small mountain had been piled up on the ground.

“Oh, my dear brother, there’s no need for that. Do you think I would just stand by and watch you fall into trouble without helping you? If I did, how could I be worthy of the title of ‘elder brother’?”

Jun Caishen politely declined.

“Brother, you must have owed us a favor for being able to invite the Water Deity Star Lord and the Twenty-Eight Constellations. How can I let you suffer a loss? Let’s not stand on ceremony between brothers. You can choose these rare treasures first, otherwise I will not be able to eat or sleep in peace.”

“This…” Jun Caishen sighed, then chuckled and said, “Alright, then I’ll pick some that are suitable.”

Immediately, a beam of divine light shot out from the eyes of the statue, and a quarter of the rare and precious materials on the ground disappeared.

Apart from the two sixth-grade spiritual materials from the waterway.

The other sixth-grade, seventh-grade, and even eighth-grade rare and precious materials remained untouched by Jun Caishen.

"Brother, is that all? Take some more."

"Alright, alright, no need for further words. This is enough." Jun Caishen laughed, "Even though you now possess a secret realm, don't think that rare and precious materials are not valuable. No matter where you are, spiritual materials of grade five or above are considered good things."

The ones I obtained for my brother are enough for each of the immortals to receive twenty or thirty plants.

As for the Water Deity Star Lord, these two sixth-grade water-element spiritual plants are sufficient.

"Well... alright. What about you, brother?"

“I don’t need them. None of your spiritual objects contain what I need.”

What does my brother need?

"This... you can keep an eye out for 'money grass' in the future. This plant symbolizes wealth in the human world and will be of great benefit to you, brother."

"Moneywort? Alright, I'll remember that."

Jun Caishen suddenly changed the subject: "Brother, has the Plague God ever told you what the difference is between the celestial and divine positions of the 'Horse and Straw Clerk'?"

Lu Chen: "I have a general understanding of this. The Horse Cutter is a registered immortal, holding a rank or position."
The divine office was merely a private appointment by various departments and was not recorded in the register of immortals; in the end, it was just a nominal position.

Unless one attains enlightenment and attains a higher status in the future, one can inherit the divine office. Is that correct?

Jun Caishen nodded: "Your understanding is not far off, but there are still differences. Although the divine office is good, it is not fixed. Today you are the Plague Lord, but tomorrow you may not be. Let me give you an inappropriate example: even if you attain a high position, if the Plague Lord temporarily removes you from your post, you will no longer be the Plague Lord."

"The saying 'recognizing clothes but not people' applies here." "But the celestial register is different. Unless you violate the heavenly rules, no one can take away your position as the 'Horse and Straw Register.' It exists solely because of you."

"Therefore, do not underestimate this position. In fact, all your other divine positions combined are far less significant than this one."

"With it, you can escape the cycle of reincarnation. Even if it takes a hundred years, at the very least you can return to the Heavenly Court to fulfill your celestial duties."

"However, this position was not attained by you through your own cultivation, but was bestowed upon you by the Great Heavenly Venerable. Therefore, in the mortal realm, your authority is indeed inferior to those of the other divine positions."

"In short, one is a mortal with power but no official status, while the other is a celestial official of low rank but with a noble lineage; the difference in their status is immediately apparent."

Lu Chen nodded.

To put it simply, it's the difference between permanent staff and temporary workers.

However, this temporary worker had a slightly larger amount of power.

"Therefore you must attach great importance to this position of horse fodder clerk and never neglect it."

"In the future, when you accumulate good deeds and perform meritorious service for the Heavenly Court, you will have a great opportunity for promotion in this position."

"Can I still get promoted?"

"Of course. It's just like the officialdom in the human world. If you do well and make contributions, you can be promoted."

Lu Chen immediately became interested. He had originally thought that the position of Horse Stuff Clerk was a fixed one: "Brother, what rank is this position now?"

Jun Caishen poured cold water on the situation: "Not up to standard."

Lu Chen: "..."

"What rank is that Plague-Suppressing Young Master?"

"In total, it's roughly the late fourth rank or the early fifth rank."

"If I accumulate enough merit in the future, and am directly promoted to the fifth-rank immortal position, will that cover the divine position of the Plague Prince?"

"Sure! Just go to the Department of Fate to arrange it. At that time, it will become your celestial status, not just a divine position."

"What if I cultivate myself to attain enlightenment?"

"That makes it even simpler."

All the divine offices you hold, as long as they are not abolished, are manifestations of you.

This is different from being an incarnation of a deity.

The incarnation of a deity must enter the cycle of reincarnation and cultivate anew.

Ordinary people do not need this, but the only drawback is that once a priesthood is established, it cannot be changed.

The upper limit has already been determined.

While it may be called an incarnation, in my opinion, it's more like a clone.

It is far less powerful than the incarnation of a deity.

Lu Chen nodded.

The words of the God of Wealth are very similar to those of the King of Hell.

However, given his relationship with the Plague God and the King of Hell, these two divine positions should not be abolished.

"Alright, I've said everything I needed to say. If you have any further questions, please feel free to ask."

After all, you probably won't be able to contact your brother for a while.

Jun Cai's mythical voice suddenly sounded somewhat unprepared and dejected.

Lu Chen was taken aback: "Why is this, brother? Could it be... that this is also part of the Arctic Exorcism Academy's punitive decree?"

“That’s right. Even with the intervention of the old star official, this incident is far-reaching. According to the law, the Arctic Exorcism Institute will definitely forbid us from contacting you again.”

Lu Chen's heart skipped a beat: "Brother, how long will this situation last?"

The God of Wealth sighed softly: "According to the seasons in the human world, it could take as little as half a year or as long as two or three years."

Therefore, you must be careful and cautious in the days to come, and avoid causing any more trouble.

Otherwise, even we brothers can't help you..."

(End of this chapter)