I'm already a Great Luo Golden Immortal, how come you're only Martial Saints?

Seeing this, Nezha quickly stepped forward, stood in front of Ning Chen, and bowed to Marshal Tianpeng.

"Marshal, please calm your anger! This is my sworn brother, Ning Chen, a man of great power and extraordinary wisdom! I specifically brought him here to help me subdue demons and monsters! He asked these questions because he wants to share your burdens and defeat the enemy as soon as possible!"

As they spoke, Nezha subtly waved his hand behind his back, signaling Ning Chen not to ask any more questions.

Ning Chen understood, suppressing the speechless feeling surging in his heart. As expected of you, Zhu Ganglie, you really don't know anything. How did you become Marshal Tianpeng?

He remained expressionless, merely nodding slightly in acknowledgment, and said nothing more.

Marshal Tianpeng's expression softened slightly, but he still glanced at Ning Chen with a condescending look, grunted in response, and let the matter drop.

Nezha took the opportunity to leave:

"Marshal is busy with military affairs, so we will take our leave to scout the outer perimeter. If we find any good strategies, we will return to report to the Marshal!"

Marshal Tianpeng was eager for them to leave, and casually waved his hand.

"Go! Go! If you need the army's assistance, come and report!"

The two left the command camp and went far away.

Ning Chen let out a long breath, and couldn't help but sigh softly:

"That's Tianpeng! He knows nothing, a complete incompetent bum who holds a position without doing any work! How can someone like him be a marshal? Instead of guarding the navy in the Milky Way, what is he doing here causing trouble? Who sent him?"

Nezha looked around to make sure no one was watching, then leaned closer to Ning Chen, lowered his voice, and explained with a helpless expression.

"Brother Ning, you may not know this, but this Marshal Tianpeng is said to be a disciple of the Eastern Emperor, with a very powerful background!"

"He's usually... a bit unreliable. He's known for his love of drinking and women. The celestial beings in Heaven turn a blind eye to him because of his master, and they're too lazy to bother with him."

He paused, lowered his voice even further, and spoke with a hint of gossip and disdain.

"Lately, for some reason, I've become obsessed with the Moon Goddess Chang'e in the Moon Palace. I'm so devoted to her, going to the Moon Palace several times a day!"

Ning Chen nodded repeatedly as he listened; it seemed there was quite a bit of gossip going on in the Heavenly Court.

Nezha whispered.

"He volunteered to come and subdue the demon this time, mostly hoping to show off in front of the fairy, display his power, and earn the title of Divine Might Tianpeng so he could go back and please the beauty. Who would have thought that this demon would be so difficult to deal with, and that his skills were simply not enough? No wonder he was dumbfounded! That's why he hurriedly sent a request for help to the Heavenly Court!"

"The heavenly generals were unwilling to help him, so this task ultimately fell to me. That's why they begged you and me to come here, Brother Ning?"

Nezha shrugged, giving him a knowing look.

Ning Chen was speechless after hearing this, with only one thought in his mind.

In this battle, we really have to rely on ourselves!

Ning Chen frowned slightly as he gazed at the overwhelming poisonous fog before him.

He turned to Nezha and said.

"Brother Zha, the enemy's situation is unclear. Rushing in might lead to unforeseen consequences. It would be better to summon the local mountain god first, ask for a general understanding of the situation, and then make a plan."

Nezha deeply agreed.

"That's exactly right!"

The two descended from the clouds at the edge of the poisonous fog, their feet resting on scorched, desolate land, barren of any vegetation.

Nezha raised his Fire-Tipped Spear and gently paused it on the ash-covered rock.

Thud!

The butt of the gun struck the ground, emitting a crisp hum that echoed outwards with a peculiar rhythm.

Nezha then shouted loudly:

"Mountain God of this region, quickly show yourself!"

Nezha's voice echoed from the edge of the poisonous fog, carrying the majestic decree of the Heavenly Court.

However, after waiting for a while, time passed slowly, and apart from the sound of the wind and the rolling poisonous fog, there was only deathly silence all around.

The mountain god, who should have arrived immediately upon being summoned, was nowhere to be found.

Ning Chen grew impatient and his doubts deepened, so he couldn't help but ask.

"Brother Zha, could it be that the mountain god of this place has been killed by the demon in the poisonous fog?"

Upon hearing this, Nezha shook his head, showing little surprise on his face.

He put away his fire-tipped spear and explained.

"Brother Ning, you may not know this, but the gods and immortals in this world can be roughly divided into two categories. One category is immortals, like you and me, who cultivate the physical body to attain enlightenment and live a carefree life. The other category is gods, like mountain gods, earth gods, river gods, and the like."

He paused, his tone revealing his familiarity with the system.

"These gods have a bit of their true spirit entrusting to the Investiture of the Gods. As long as the Investiture of the Gods is not destroyed, they are immortal. Therefore, the mountain god may be imprisoned or sealed by demons, or even suffer some torture, but it is absolutely impossible for him to be truly killed and his soul scattered."

Ning Chen suddenly realized something, and then another key point came to mind.

"I see. So how exactly is this method of summoning the gods performed? Just now, Brother Zha only slammed his spear and shouted; is there a hidden meaning behind that?"

When he travels westward in the future, he will inevitably need to invoke the local deities, so he might as well take the opportunity to learn a method of exorcising spirits.

Nezha waved his hand.

"This method is not difficult. To put it bluntly, it is just a method of official seals."

He casually recited the incantation for the exorcism to Ning Chen. The content was indeed simple and straightforward, the core meaning of which was nothing more than announcing his own identity and official position, and ordering the local mountain gods and land gods to come and pay their respects immediately.

"The key is..."

Nezha added.

"The effectiveness of this method depends entirely on the rank of the caster. The higher the rank, the stronger the decree, and the faster and more respectful the deities will respond. With my title as the Great God of the Three Altars and Seas, summoning mountain gods and local deities is naturally no problem."

He glanced at Ning Chen and spoke frankly.

"Brother Ning, although you possess extraordinary supernatural powers and exceptional wisdom, you are ultimately a wandering immortal without any official title conferred by the Heavenly Court. If you learn this method now and use it, it will likely be like a stone sinking into the sea, and few deities will respond to your call."

Ning Chen was speechless after hearing this.

No wonder that on the journey to the West, only the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, Sun Wukong, could summon local gods and mountain spirits at any time and place, as if they were his own servants.

Pigsy and Sandy, having been banished to the mortal realm and reincarnated as demons, lost their divine duties. So, their methods of exorcising spirits would be of little use.

Only Sun Wukong, despite being imprisoned for five hundred years, still retains the title of Honorary CEO of the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.

It turns out that even in this clerical system, there's a hierarchy where higher-ranking officials can have absolute power.

"Very well, it seems the Mountain God is unable to answer the call for the time being. Let me try calling the Earth God again!"

Seeing Ning Chen's knowing yet helpless expression, Nezha knew that this method would not work.

He slammed his gun to the ground again, his voice rising a few decibels, carrying an unquestionable tone of command.

"This land, show yourself at once!"

This time, the incantation was cast only a few breaths before the ground beneath their feet bulged slightly, and the soil churned.

A short, white-haired old man wearing a brown homespun robe emerged shakily from the ground.

Upon seeing Nezha, he immediately shrank his neck, bowed deeply, and spoke with fear and respect.

"This humble god... this humble god pays respects to the Great God of the Three Altars and Seas! I was unaware of your arrival and have failed to greet you properly. Please forgive me, please forgive me!"