I was just fishing, how did I become a Great Old One?

Royal Dragon Bay, Villa No. 13, basement.

"Clang!"

With a loud bang, Jiang Li placed the heavy black iron furnace heavily on the newly built cement platform.

"Phew...this thing is really heavy, is it solid?"

Jiang Li wiped away his sweat, looking at the grotesque-looking [Nine Nether Soul Refining Furnace] before him, becoming more and more satisfied.

Although the skulls carved on the stove look a bit unconventional, it's not a problem as long as the fire is strong.

"Big Yellow, go and get that 'big lump of coal' we picked up last time."

Jiang Li pointed to the corner.

Big Yellow was lying on the ground studying the furnace (it smelled the screams of hundreds of wronged souls inside), when it heard the command, it immediately ran to the corner and dug out a dark, heavy stone with its mouth.

That is a [Ten Thousand Year Lightning-Struck Petrified Wood] (A-Grade Top-Grade Spiritual Material).

This thing was formed when a thousand-year-old tree was struck by lightning 81 times during a thunderstorm and carbonized. It contains extremely terrifying pure yang lightning power, which is the nemesis of all evil things.

But in Jiang Li's eyes, this was a piece of smokeless coal that was relatively hard and looked like it could burn for a long time.

"These coal briquettes look to be of good quality; they're a shiny black."

Jiang Li put on the worn-out work gloves, picked up the lightning-struck wood, and weighed it in his hand.

"Come on, let's consecrate this new furnace."

He opened the furnace door.

Inside the furnace, the green corpse fire that had been burning eerily suddenly shrank as it sensed the approaching lightning-struck wood, and the flames shrank in fright.

This is an instinctive fear!

When Yin Fire meets Heavenly Thunder, it's like a mouse meeting a cat, or snow meeting the blazing sun!

"Waaaaah..."

A mournful wail came from the furnace, as if countless voices were pleading: "No...don't let it in...it will kill! It will truly be annihilated!"

Unfortunately, Jiang Li couldn't understand the "ghost language".

He only heard a whooshing sound, like the wind blowing through a chimney.

"Wow, this stove has really good ventilation; you can hear the wind even before it's lit."

Without saying a word, Jiang Li forcefully stuffed the piece of lightning-struck wood, which was powerful enough to flatten a mountain, into the furnace.

"boom!!!"

The moment the lightning-struck wood came into contact with the corpse fire.

It's like throwing a ton of sodium into water.

A dazzling blue-purple light burst forth from inside the furnace!

The raging power of lightning was instantly activated. The corpse energy and vengeful spirits that were originally used as fuel let out desperate screams under the bombardment of lightning, and then... were forcibly purified into the purest spiritual energy fuel.

"Crackling and popping—"

The furnace shook violently, and golden arcs of electricity appeared on the black metal surface. The originally sinister ghost face relief now looked somewhat... kind and benevolent under the light of the lightning (I was stunned by the electric shock).

"Wow! This fire!"

Jiang Li looked with delight at the flames in the furnace that had turned purple-gold.

"This is incredibly hot! And there's not a single wisp of smoke! This coal was a great buy!"

He felt the heat wave hitting him; there was no chill, only scorching, intense heat.

"At this temperature, a whole roasted lamb would probably be cooked in ten minutes!"

Jiang Li patted the top of the furnace with satisfaction.

"Sizzle—"

An arc of electricity traveled down his hand and into his body, giving him a free electrotherapy session.

"Oh dear, static electricity? Looks like it's really dry today."

Jiang Li waved his hand dismissively, not taking it seriously at all.

At this moment, the spirit of the [Nine Nether Soul Refining Furnace] has completely collapsed.

It was originally an evil magical artifact, but now it's stuffed with a heart of thunder! It feels like a vampire being forced to swallow a sun!

pain!It hurts so much!

But it dared not resist, much less extinguish. Because the man had said that if the fire went out, he would smash the furnace and sell it for scrap metal.

In order to survive, it could only endure the torment of thunder with tears in its eyes, trying its best to disguise itself as a proper oven.

This is probably what it means to be born without control over one's own destiny.

……

Having finished fixing the stove, Jiang Li was in a great mood and was about to go upstairs to sleep.

Suddenly, Big Yellow started barking wildly at the basement ventilation window.

"Woof! Woof woof!" (Someone's outside! This smells wrong! It's a big bat... no, it's a birdman!)

"Um?"

Jiang Li stopped in her tracks. "Who could it be in the middle of the night?"

He looked out through the ventilation window.

A dark figure had appeared in the courtyard of the villa at some point.

It was a person completely wrapped in a black robe, wearing a pointed bird-beak mask on his face, and holding a strange cane. He was sneaking around his yard, seemingly looking for an entrance.

"Thief?"

Jiang Li frowned.

Are thieves these days so eccentric? Dressed like that to steal things? Aren't they afraid of being mistaken for a pervert and arrested?

"Damn it, they dare to steal from me?"

Jiang Li grabbed a steel pipe (used to unclog the sewers) from the side and charged out aggressively.

……

yard.

The "Bird-Beak Man" (a deacon of the Cult of God, Crow) is carefully avoiding the motion-sensor lights on the ground.

He was holding a compass, the needle spinning wildly, pointing towards the villa's basement.

"Such terrifying energy fluctuations..."

The crow stared in horror at the villa shrouded in purple lightning in its spiritual vision.

"Is this the legendary, mysterious powerhouse who can 'tear apart evil spirits with his bare hands and trample demons underfoot'?"

"Even a B-rank expert would be blasted to smithereens if they tried to force their way through a lightning barrier of this level, right?"

He was ordered to "invite" (actually to kidnap or lure) that man.

The priesthood of the Abyss requires powerful offerings, and this man, who exudes a strong aura of the Abyss, is undoubtedly the best candidate.

"We need to find a way to lure him out..."

The crow was pondering whether to poison it or throw in a cursed doll.

Suddenly, the villa's front door slammed open.

A young man in pajamas, carrying a steel pipe, and looking grumpy in the morning rushed out.

"Hey! You there with the bird beak! What are you doing?!"

A loud shout startled the crow so much that it nearly dropped the compass.

He suddenly looked up and met Jiang Li's eyes, which gleamed faintly in the night (actually, they were bloodshot from sleep).

"You spotted me? Such keen senses!"

Crow felt a chill, but as an elite deacon of the Cult of Gods, he had seen his share of the world (though most of the time he was on the run).

He quickly adjusted his posture and let out a sinister laugh.

"Hehehe... As expected of the chosen one, you were able to discover my whereabouts."

The raven waved his staff (which was actually a bone staff), and the surrounding shadows instantly surged, transforming into several black raven phantoms that circled around him.

"Mortal, have you also felt the call of the abyss?"

This "Shadow Raven" is his proudest C-rank illusion technique, enough to plunge ordinary people into an abyss of fear instantly.

however.

Jiang Li rubbed his eyes as he watched the black shadows flying around.

"There aren't any mosquitoes here, so why are there so many fluttering moths?"

He waved his hand dismissively, like shooing away flies, "Go away! You're filthy!"

Then, he looked at the bird-beaked man who was still posing.

"What do you sell? Are you out in people's yards at night hawking your wares? Or handing out flyers?"

Jiang Li looked impatient. "I already said I'm not getting a gym membership or buying any investment products! Get out of here! Or I'll call the police!"

crow:"……"

Selling a gym membership?

This is the greatest insult to a noble Abyss Deacon!

"Ignorance! I have come to grant you eternal life!"

The crow was enraged, pointing its staff at Jiang Li, "Since you refuse to listen to reason, then don't blame me for being impolite! Shadow Binding!"

The shadows on the ground suddenly lengthened, like black venomous snakes, coiling around Jiang Li's legs.

Jiang Li glanced down.

"Hey? Is this ground light broken? Why is the shadow swaying so wildly?"

He raised his foot and stomped on the "venomous snake".

"Snapped!"

A soft sound.

The binding spell, formed from shadow energy, was actually shattered by this stomp!

It's like stepping on a soap bubble and popping it.

"What?!"

The crow's eyes practically popped out of their sockets.

Physical methods to break the law?!

What level of physical strength is this? Could he be the legendary S-class "physical saint"?

"The wiring of your ground light is faulty; it's making my eyes dizzy."

Jiang Li walked up to the crow with displeasure. "And you, dressed like that, are you sick? This is trespassing, don't you know that?"

He raised the steel pipe and pointed it at the crow's nose.

The crow looked at the ordinary steel pipe, but felt a terrifying pressure that could shatter its skull.

"This...this powerful individual, let's talk this out!"

The crow immediately cowered.

He realized that he and the other party were not even in the same league.

"I'm here... to deliver an invitation!"

The crow had a sudden inspiration and pulled out a black card with gold foil stamping from its pocket (originally a death notice, but now temporarily changed to something else).

"An invitation?" Jiang Li paused, looking at him suspiciously.

"Yes! Invitations!"

The crow spoke rapidly, "Tomorrow night at 'Blue Moon Bay' on the East China Sea, there will be a grand... a grand..."

He got stuck.

That's an evil god's ritual, what should we call it?

"Seafood buffet... no, seafood barbecue party!" The crow, quick-witted, exclaimed, "That's it! A seafood barbecue festival! Inviting all heroes! Free food and drinks! And big prizes!"

"Seafood barbecue?"

Jiang Li's ears perked up, and the steel pipe in his hand drooped down.

"Free food and drinks?"

"Yes, yes, yes! It's all top-quality deep-sea seafood! Plenty to go!" Crow, having spotted Jiang Li's weakness (greed), quickly intensified his persuasion, "I heard they also have...fish weighing hundreds of pounds, freshly killed and grilled!"

"A fish weighing several hundred pounds?"

Jiang Li thought of his oven, and then of Da Huang's perpetually insatiable belly.

"This event sounds great! Can anyone go?"

"Of course! Someone like you... uh, a gourmet, is our special guest!"

The crow presented the invitation with both hands, "Just take this, and you can enter!"

Jiang Li took the dark, musty-smelling card and looked at it.

Above it is a hideous octopus head (the emblem of an evil god), and below it is a line of twisted text (Abyss language).

"This design... is pretty avant-garde. Is this the current trend of online influencers?"

Although Jiang Li couldn't understand it, the word "free" was still very appealing.

"Okay, I got it. Tomorrow night, right? I'll be there."

Jiang Li put away the invitation, waved his hand, and said, "You can go now. Don't sneak over the wall in the middle of the night again; people will think you're a dog thief."

"Yes, yes, I'll leave right away, I'll leave right away!"

The crow, as if granted a pardon, turned and tried to flee.

"etc."

Jiang Li suddenly called out to him.

The crow froze, cold sweat pouring down its back: "B-Big Brother, is there anything else you need?"

"Your mask..." Jiang Li pointed to his bird-beak mask, "It's quite unique. Where did you buy it? I'll get one too, to protect myself from smoke when I'm grilling meat."

crow:"……"

"Taobao... Taobao, 9.9 yuan with free shipping."

After saying that, he dared not linger any longer. He turned into a wisp of black smoke and fled in a sorry state, scaling the wall.

……

the next day.

Jiang Li got up very early, feeling exceptionally cheerful.

"Big Yellow! Wake up! I'm taking you to a feast tonight!"

He shook the still-sleeping Big Yellow awake.

"Someone's treating us to seafood barbecue! It's free!"

"Woof?" (Really? Are there tentacles to eat?)

As soon as Dahuang heard about food, it perked up immediately.

"Definitely! I've heard they're all large, deep-sea catches!"

Jiang Li began packing his equipment.

"Since it's a barbecue party, I need to bring some professional equipment. I can't let our 'foodies' down."

He ran to the basement and carried out the [Nine Nether Soul Refining Furnace], which had been burning all night, was entirely purple-gold, and was scorching hot.

"This grill is great; it has its own fire source, so grilling meat will definitely be faster."

He went to the kitchen and took the butcher knife, along with a large bag of cumin, chili powder, and barbecue sauce.

"Oh right, we also need to bring a trailer, in case we can't finish it all and have to pack it up."

Jiang Li was extremely well prepared.

next door.

Su Qingge was getting ready to leave for work when she saw Jiang Li busy in the yard and asked him a question out of curiosity.

"Mr. Jiang, where are you going so early?"

"Let's go to a party!"

Jiang Li carried the grill to the trunk of the Land Rover (it barely fit with the back seats folded down), "Seafood barbecue party! Miss Su, would you like to come along? I heard it's very lively."

"A seafood barbecue party?"

Su Qingge was stunned for a moment.

How come she hadn't heard of this event in Jianghai City?

Suddenly, she remembered the intelligence the bureau had just received the night before.

"The God-Worshipping Cult...Blue Moon Bay...Secret Gathering..."

Su Qingge's expression changed.

"Mr. Jiang, is that event... taking place in Blue Moon Bay?"

"Yes! You knew that too?" Jiang Li nodded.

Su Qingge gasped.

That was the altar where the cult of gods prepared to summon evil gods!

Is this guy planning to roast the evil god?!

"Um...can I go?" Su Qingge asked cautiously.

If Jiang Li really goes, it will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to wipe out the God Worship Cult!

"Of course! It's more fun with more people!"

Jiang Li waved his hand dismissively, "Get in the car! I'll take you out for a free meal!"

Looking at Jiang Li's enthusiastic expression, and then at the black stove in the trunk that exuded terrifying heat and an ominous aura, Su Qingge silently lit a candle for the group of lunatics in the God Worship Cult.

Blue Moon Bay tonight...

It's probably really going to turn into a "barbecue party".