The process of deification began with the discovery of hidden information in divine objects.

Chapter 118 Taking advantage of the chaos, the greedy Xu family!

Its ten-meter-tall body was like a moving hill, every inch of its skin covered with a dark purple keratin layer, like a cracked earth surface, its muscles black and purple, resembling rotting flesh!

There was a huge hole in his chest, with jagged edges, and broken ribs were faintly visible.

The most grotesque thing was his face; his head was composed of thousands upon thousands of twisted, pained human faces that were roaring and screaming, making all sorts of ferocious expressions, their mouths opening and closing like demons, terrifying the soul.

Su Ziye steadied himself in mid-air, and the wings formed from golden scales slowly flapped behind him.

"What exactly did you do?!"

"Are you stupid? Su Ziye, aren't you curious why the Temple of Lord Wu'an is in Luochuan? Aren't you curious where the ghost general Jing Que in the Five Wrathful Soldiers' Order came from?"

Aren't you curious why Luochuan City is divided into four districts: southeast, north, and south?

"Why don't you find it strange that a level-five city could unearth the Crimson Emperor's Token and the Fire Banner! Even in Hangzhou, a top-grade divine artifact like the Fire Banner is worth hundreds of millions!"

"Could it be that—"

"That's right, beneath the Luo River lies an ancient battlefield where countless heroes fought, slaughtered, and died, their spirits filled with battle intent, killing intent, resentment, unwillingness, and despair! The blood that flows on this land is more than the water of the Luo River! And on this ancient battlefield, I am the undefeated king!"

"Hahahaha! Who can kill me? Who dares to kill me? Who has the right to kill me!"

Edgar laughed wildly. The ancient battlefield of the dead beneath Luochuan was his greatest asset. As long as he could see the endless stream of souls being awakened, he would be invincible. In the end, the city would be reduced to ruins and everyone would die!

boom!

The enormous undead threw a punch at Su Ziye!

It was too fast. Su Ziye dodged it in a sorry state, but soon the giant undead roared again, and two arms suddenly stretched out from his side, four arms!

They all fell towards Su Ziye!

Boom! Boom!

With each strike, a palm print more than ten meters in diameter would be blasted into the ground!

"Su Ziye, you are merely a manifestation of a thousand undead spirits. Are you already incapable of this? If I were to awaken the hundreds of thousands of undead spirits beneath this land, wouldn't you—be about to die!"

Su Ziye landed on the ground and kept running!

"Su Ziye!"

Nie Jinghong rushed to this place!

"Immediately evacuate all residents within a five-mile radius!"

Su Ziye shouted at Nie Jinghong!

"No, the Divine Ritual Division simply can't allocate enough enforcers! And the headquarters is under immense pressure too; Xiong Chaofeng and the others are almost at their breaking point!"

Her face was somewhat gloomy.

"Get the three major families involved!"

Su Ziye shouted loudly.

"The arrival of extraordinary beings has brought so much oppression to ordinary mortals. If they are to suffer such undeserved calamities as well, what is the point of gaining power and becoming strong?!"

"If the three major families of the Southern District dare not send anyone to fight this time, I will settle accounts with them one by one after I survive this!"

Su Ziye's tone was icy. Those wealthy families, enjoying their status and privileged lives, would not stand up for themselves when they encountered difficulties in the city. They should not blame Su Ziye for settling accounts with them one by one!

"I see!"

"I will immediately issue this order in my capacity as the head of the Luochuan Division of the Divine Ritual Department!"

Nie Jinghong immediately contacted the three major families. If these idiots continued to play dead at this critical juncture, the city would truly be doomed!

"Do you need my help?"

Nie Jinghong asked.

"Could we freeze him for a while?"

"I tried my best!"

The Moon Cold Sword hummed in her hand, and the Kitchen God Seal spun beside her. Nie Jinghong was a genius who had undergone seven baptisms. Her punching power had already exceeded one hundred. The divine radiance of ordinary people was like a grain of rice, but her divine radiance was comparable to the bright moon!

"Freeze it! A hundred months of extreme cold!"

boom!

A dazzling blue light shot into the sky from the Moon Cold Sword!

Rumble!

Frost instantly filled the air as she swung her sword at the giant undead!

Click, click!

A chill permeated the air, and biting ice began to form inch by inch from the feet of the dead, creeping up their necks!

A giant ice sculpture, over ten meters tall, appeared and stood frozen on the ground!

"I tried my best, but I could only freeze him for ten minutes at most!"

Nie Jinghong leaned on his sword; this undead's strength was already infinitely close to the Divine Fire Realm!

She used all her divine power and with the help of divine objects to freeze him, but she was exhausted and almost lost all her strength!

"Haven't the three major families arrived yet?"

Su Ziye frowned. The most troublesome thing about fighting in the city is destroying buildings and harming ordinary people!

This is also why he dares not go all out in a fight!

"The Wang and Li families have replied to me; they are bringing people over. The Xu family has not yet responded. Xu Bingnian said that they need time to discuss this."

Nie Jinghong shook his head.

"The Xu family!"

A chilling killing intent flashed in Su Ziye's eyes!

What a load of rubbish about time for discussion! What time is it that you're still having a meeting? This guy just doesn't want to come!

"Xu Bingnian, you did a great job!"

Meanwhile, at the Xu family villa.

"Father, is it really true that our Xu family is producing no outstanding individuals?"

The living room was brightly lit, and outside the floor-to-ceiling windows was the direction of the burning Divine Ritual in the distance.

Xu Bingnian sat on the sofa, holding a glass of red wine, with his legs crossed, looking as relaxed as if he were on vacation.

A cell phone sat on the coffee table, its screen still lit up, displaying a missed call from Nie Jinghong.

Seven.

Xu Jingwen stood in front of him, wearing pajamas and with her hair disheveled, clearly having just woken up.

"Who came out?"

Xu Bingnian took a sip of red wine and slowly swirled the glass.

"Aren't the Divine Ritual Division supposed to be pretty good at fighting? Let them fight."

"But—Director Nie said the Divine Ritual Division can't hold on any longer!"

"If they can't hold on, what does that have to do with us?"

Xu Bingnian raised his eyelids and glanced at his daughter, a cold smile appearing on his face.

"Isn't protecting the city the responsibility of the law enforcement officers of the Divine Ritual Division? We are just ordinary citizens; we should just accept their protection."

"Dad, how can you say such a thing? Aren't we Xu family also from Luochuan? The Li family and the Wang family have already intervened, and families from other districts are also sending people over. Why is our Xu family not moving?"

"Do you know how many resources it takes to deploy divine artifacts and Divine Radiance Realm experts? Who will pay for the loss of divine artifacts, the casualties, and the cost of retraining Divine Radiance Realm experts? Will the Divine Ritual Division cover these expenses?"

Xu Jingwen bit her lip.

"But Su Ziye and the others—are fighting to protect Luo Chuan!"

"Protect Luochuan?"

Xu Bingnian sneered.

"What was Su Ziye's attitude back then? He gave me the cold shoulder, ignored you, and acted arrogantly just because he joined the Divine Ritual Division. Now that he needs the Xu family, he comes to me? Is there such a good deal in the world?"

"Father! This is a matter of life and death for Luochuan City! When the nest is overturned, no egg remains unbroken!"

Xu Jingwen's voice trembled.

"They're fighting in the Southern District. The Divine Ritual Division can't hold them off. The flames of war are spreading. Do you think our Xu family can escape unscathed?"

Xu Bingnian sneered.

"Don't worry, I'm prepared."

"In this world, everything is about self-interest. The Divine Ritual Division wants us to provide manpower, sure, let's talk. Offer what I can accept: the development of the Southern District, Tiansheng's industries, and restrictions on the Xu family. These are all negotiable bargaining chips. If they are sincere, I'm not unwilling to send people to help!"

"If they disagree, so be it. If this place doesn't want us, there are plenty of other places that will! Jingwen, you need to understand, it's not that we need Luochuan, it's that Luochuan needs us. With the abilities of our Xu family, we can establish ourselves in any city. Back then, your grandfather started from scratch and founded the Xu family through his own abilities, and I, your father, have inherited and developed it. Has anyone helped us? Has the Divine Ritual Division helped us? No, right? Now that something's happened, they want my help? Bullshit! They're shouting about the public good, that's their business. What do the lives of those lowly people have to do with us? The meaning of those lowly people's lives is to serve us!"

"Their greatest value is that they're placed on the table right now to be traded; they're nothing more than bargaining chips. Human rights? What human rights do lowly mortals have!"

A look of madness flashed across Xu Bingnian's face!

Xu Jingwen stared at him in disbelief, as if she were seeing her father for the first time!

"So—you're using the safety of the entire Luochuan region as a bargaining chip?"

"Don't put it so harshly, that's called business acumen."

Xu Jingwen remained silent.

"Father, when I was a child, my grandfather taught me that the Xu family is where it is today because of the support of the people of Luochuan."

He said that one should be grateful for what one has received and have a conscience.

"He also said that the most powerful force in this world is not violence, but the hearts of the people. Ancient emperors who lost the hearts of the people lost their empires. I haven't forgotten Grandpa's teachings, but—have you forgotten them?"

Xu Bingnian snorted coldly, his expression somewhat complicated.

"I'm not afraid to tell you, the Xu family's development has reached a bottleneck. Restricted by the Divine Ceremonial Bureau and oppressed by Tiansheng, we are like ants struggling to survive in the cracks. Now that Tiansheng has collapsed, this is a great opportunity. Like a whale falling, many things are born. All the major families will be vying fiercely for Tiansheng's legacy. I must ensure the Xu family's victory in this struggle!"

"So you're taking advantage of the situation? Do you think that even if Nie Jinghong agrees to your demands, the Divine Ritual Division won't hold you accountable afterward? Do you think that, given Su Ziye's personality, he won't hold you accountable?"

"So I've been prepared for this for a long time. Our Xu family will move out of Luochuan overnight. After that, I will send a representative to negotiate with Nie Jinghong. If she agrees, I will leave a force here to help her. As for the Tiansheng inheritance, I don't want much. One jin of divine source and two divine objects. The Divine Ritual Department can deliver them immediately."

"Dad, you've gone mad!"

"With Luochuan destroyed, where will the Xu family find a foothold?"

"Hangzhou? Beijing? Shanghai?"

"People in big cities will treat us as outsiders, as nouveau riche, as refugees fleeing from small towns."

"They'll take half of our assets as resettlement compensation, then look at us with condescension, just like we look at ordinary people in Luochuan. Our Xu family may be important in Luochuan, but in Hangzhou, what's the difference between you and an ant?!"

Xu Bingnian remained silent.

He turned his head, a madness flashing in his eyes!

"Fortune favors the bold, but for the sake of my family, I had no choice!"

"Someone, take the young lady to bed!"

"yes!"

As soon as he finished speaking, two bodyguards rushed up and dragged Xu Jingwen away. Xu Jingwen struggled desperately, but both of them were at the Divine Radiance Realm, and she was no match for them.

"Dad, you'll regret it, you'll definitely regret it!"

"The Xu family will be wiped out in your hands!"

"I know Su Ziye. Once he recovers, he'll definitely settle scores with us! Dad! Stop! You've been blinded by short-term gains!"

Xu Bingnian ignored her, only looking at the trembling sky in the distance, and then he took out his phone.

"Ten catties of divine essence and two divine items, to be redeemed immediately. The Xu family will provide assistance."

After sending the message, he turned around and said loudly.

"Prepare the carriages. The Divine Ceremonies are short-staffed, and the city gates are deserted. This is the perfect opportunity for us to leave. Take everything of value with us!"

Then he looked down at his phone.

"Director Nie, I hope you can make a rational judgment! After all, the disaster occurred in the Southern District, and my Xu family is the closest clan to your Divine Ritual Division. My people can get there from here in just five minutes!"