Chapter Sixty-Five: The City God’s Final Hour

The City God could no longer concern himself with past grievances against the Wang family of the Lower Lands; he urgently withdrew his troops, rushing back with all haste to the spiritual realm of the City God. However, only half of his forces had returned when the City God suddenly clutched his chest and shouted, “That villain actually—” Before he could finish his sentence, he spat out a mouthful of blood laced with flames; it evaporated before touching the ground, vanishing into the air.

At the same time, deep within the City God’s Residence, a massive vine had already sprouted in the City God’s spiritual pool. The waters within the pool were swiftly diminishing, while the vine grew ever more lush and vibrant.

“We’ve found the Golden Dragon Bamboo!” a joyful voice called out.

The leading Daoist exclaimed with delight, “Withdraw!” With a single command, the group retreated in haste. By now, not a single drop remained in the spiritual pool. This pool had taken the City God decades to accumulate, serving as the source of his power. Now, it had been entirely drained. Small wonder, then, that the City God was so shocked and enraged he spat blood.

Almost as soon as these Daoists departed the City God’s spiritual realm, they casually set fire to the City God’s shrine. In the pitch-black night, flames soared skyward.

The following morning, Danling County was placed under strict lockdown. The atmosphere in the county court grew thick and oppressive, charged with the tension of an impending storm.

“How could such a useless fool ever become City God?” The magistrate roared in fury, no longer caring for decorum. Every official in the hall knelt, not daring to lift their heads for fear of meeting the magistrate’s gaze and becoming the target of his wrath.

News of the previous night’s events had already spread: the City God, leading five hundred ghost soldiers, had gone to threaten the Wang family of the Lower Lands. He left his stronghold defenseless, allowing the cultivators to seize the opportunity to destroy the City God’s shrine. One could well imagine the trouble this would cause the magistrate.

Wang Zhenling stood tall and declared, “I ask the county lord to uphold justice for my family and punish this City God!”

He bowed deeply to the ground. Another dozen officials followed suit, calling, “We ask the county lord to punish this City God!” Among these officials were members of the four great families of Danling: the Wang, Lu, Yang, and Xu clans. All of them now knelt, bowing low.

Last night’s events had made each of Danling’s major families keenly aware of the danger; the loss of one would imperil the others. Though the four clans had long-standing conflicts of interest, centuries of intertwined fates and intermarriage bound them together. Internal strife was one thing, but for the City God to mobilize troops and besiege the ancestral home of the Wang family was unprecedented, crossing a forbidden line. Today it was the Wang’s ancestral estate; tomorrow, could it be the Lu family’s? And the day after?

Such actions could not be tolerated. Thus, the four families’ officials now knelt, beseeching the county lord.

The magistrate’s expression shifted between gloom and uncertainty. He knew well that these officials were but a signal; behind them stood the four great clans of Danling. For him, the question of right or wrong was never paramount—what mattered was which side held the greater power.

Now, not only had the City God’s shrine been burned, but his spiritual pool was destroyed, his strength greatly diminished. Add to this the recent unauthorized release of criminal ghosts, and the magistrate had more than enough trouble on his hands. At this point, he had no reason to shield the City God any longer. Offending all four great families at once could even threaten his own position. Not to mention Chen Bushi, who was pulling strings behind the scenes.

With these thoughts, the magistrate solemnly declared, “Rest assured, I will see justice done. I have already prepared a report to submit to the prefectural office regarding the City God.”

Wang Zhenling and the others rejoiced. “Thank you, county lord!”

The magistrate lacked the authority to dismiss the City God outright; at most, he could reprimand him as before. But since he announced the matter had been reported to the prefecture, it meant the City God was in serious trouble.

Indeed, a few days later, the prefecture’s envoy arrived in Danling County, flanked by dozens of stern, armed attendants.

The magistrate led the entire county court to welcome the envoy, escorting him into the hall. There, a prefectural legal officer named Gu Min, dressed in the robes adorned with the mythical beast Xiezhi, stepped down from his carriage with a cold face and colder heart. Without a word, he barked, “Where is the City God of Danling?”

The magistrate replied, “Bring him forward!”

At his command, dark clouds gathered above the county court, blocking out the sunlight as if night had fallen suddenly. Officials quickly lit the torches along the hall’s walls, casting flickering flames throughout the chamber. This was the power the magistrate commanded.

At this, Gu Min, the legal officer from the prefecture, finally nodded, showing a hint of respect.

Soon, the City God was brought forth by a squad of ghost soldiers, his hair wild, his strength suppressed by a talisman affixed to his forehead—bearing the magistrate’s seal and sealing away all his powers.

“Danling’s City God released criminal ghosts, sowed chaos among the people, and took it upon himself to besiege the ancestral estate of the Lower Lands’ great clan, resulting in the destruction of his shrine and spiritual pool. What use is such incompetence and folly? The prefect’s orders are clear!”

With this pronouncement, all those present sat upright and listened intently.

“Depose the City God of Danling, reclaim the divine seal, and consign him to the Ghost Prison, where he shall suffer three hundred years of torment by purifying flames!”

Having been stripped of his strength, the City God was already weak. Upon hearing Gu Min’s sentence, he nearly collapsed, crying out, “Mercy, legal officer! Mercy, I beg of you!”

But Gu Min ignored him. With a gesture, the City God writhed on the ground in agony. Threads of divine light were drawn from his body, coalescing into a spinning seal in midair, which flew into Gu Min’s wide sleeve.

As the seal departed, the City God became limp as mud, dragged toward the Ghost Prison by ghost officials. He struggled desperately, cursing Wang Zhenling with venom: “Wang Zhenling, unless my soul is utterly destroyed, I will never forgive you… The Wang clan of Danling will one day see all its men dead and its women disgraced…”

These curses chilled every heart present.

Enraged, the prefectural legal officer summoned a whip of official energy, lashing the City God repeatedly. The City God wailed incessantly, and were he not restrained by ghost officials, he would have rolled across the floor in pain.

Wang Zhenling watched with a cold smile, as if savoring the City God’s downfall. Yet the shock he felt was beyond words. Though he had long grown accustomed to the overwhelming power of the imperial court and its suppression of the gods, witnessing the City God’s fate—punished by officials, now reduced to a pitiful state akin to a beaten dog—was a sight that resonated deeply.