Yinshan Record

Chapter 51 The Old Story of the City God
Su Che put on his night clothes, covered his face with a mask, carried a long knife on each side, a short knife hidden at his waist, a sword box on his back, and the Yellow Heavenly Dao's spirit-sealing rope hidden in his sleeve.

It looks more like an arms shop moving.

The City God Temple in Shanyin County is located at the eastern end of the county seat.

Just as there are land gods on the land and mountain gods on the mountains, there are also gods in the city, namely the City God.

The river gods and mountain gods of famous rivers and mountains were nominally appointed by the imperial court, and the City God was no exception.

This is the embodiment of the imperial court's authority, a real manifestation of the saying "to the ends of the earth, none are not subjects."

Of course, this is only in theory.

A significant portion of the deities conferred titles were "water ghosts who rose to the position of city god," a result of "wanting promotion, committing murder and arson, and seeking amnesty."

The same applies to the City God of Shanyin County.

Su Che flipped through the county annals and learned that the local City God of Shanyin was originally a fierce general who died in battle hundreds of years ago. After his death, he turned into a vengeful ghost and was later enfeoffed as the City God.

Although the county annals are somewhat evasive, one can still vaguely discern clear records of this troublemaker.

The "Xuanzhong Ji" compiled by the Imperial Guards states even more clearly: "Ghosts and fierce spirits become gods, and demons and spirits become saints."

This fierce ghost, who was transformed into the City God, has received incense offerings from Shanyin County for hundreds of years. He has been quite diligent in his duties, and his miraculous appearances can often be seen in the "Shanyin County Annals".

That is, eliminating some monsters and destroying some evil spirits.

Until this man provoked the Black Mountain Monster of Xuan Mountain decades ago and ultimately perished at its hands, the county annals are vague about the details of this event.

The author likely thought this way because he was wary; the City God was gone, but the Black Mountain Monster still roamed the area.

I fear that the Black Mountain Monster might see me as a remnant of the City God and seek revenge.

After the City God was killed by the Black Mountain Monster, there was no City God in Shanyin County.

The City God Temple gradually fell into disrepair.

City God Temples in various places are generally the most prosperous places in the area, considered commercial centers. With the protection of the gods, pilgrims and temple fairs come in an endless stream throughout the year, providing a steady flow of visitors.

This treatment was clearly not available near the City God Temple in Shanyin County.

With the departure of the City God, the clay and wooden puppets in the City God Temple could no longer meet the needs of the people of Shanyin for praying for blessings and warding off disasters. Once the flow of visitors was gone, only the empty courtyard walls remained.

A few tenacious wild grasses sprouted among the broken tiles of the low building, spitting out moonlight through the cracks in the broken tiles and bricks. Starlight shone on the tightly locked door, and splinters splintered from the wood grain exposed by wind and sun.

Su Che walked through the dilapidated streets and alleys, where one could still vaguely see the former prosperity, but it was all just a fleeting dream, and what he saw was a bleak and desolate reality.

Not far away, we arrived at the main gate of the City God Temple.

The dark gate was tightly locked, with only the plaque at the top bearing the three characters "City God Temple" indicating the identity of this place.

Su Che stopped in his tracks.

There are people ahead of us.

Four burly men, dressed in black and masked, each carrying a weapon, stood at the entrance of the City God Temple with eyes like those of hawks.

Su Che sensed something was wrong.

Who are these people?
Was it Song Qi's men from the coffin shop, the secret agents who had infiltrated Shanyin County, or some江湖人 (jianghu people) who had come to try their luck after hearing the news?

Su Che wasn't entirely sure.

"Friend, we're on business up ahead. When you're out in the world, you go your separate ways."

Young Master Su didn't say anything, but some sharp-eyed people on the other side had already noticed something and spoke up.

"I am Liu Yidao, and you are Boss Song's subordinates?"

The colleague who had spoken first remained silent, while the other three exchanged glances, seemingly unsure of what to do.

What's wrong with this little fox? Why did it choose such a lively spot? Is everyone here at the City God Temple for some kind of business?
"It turns out to be Brother Liu. The brothers are here on business. Brother Yidao, please wait a moment."

"We really did run into each other," Su Che frowned, his hand touching the hilt of the sword at his waist.

These people are similar to me; none of them seem like good people.

"Your mother's Liu Yidao, and Liu Shidao too, leave them to me as well."

One of the four immediately made a move, taking a pair of short crutches from his waist and attacking Su Che directly. The crutches came flying like a whirlwind, and the other three also grabbed their weapons and leaped into the air.

These people are clearly skilled in martial arts.

A death sword, a pair of short crutches, a pair of mandarin duck axes, and a bronze hammer.

The four men, wielding weapons, arrived in an instant.

Su Che gripped the hilt of the knife with both hands and gave it a sharp shake.

I silently said "please" in my heart.

The sword box, which had already been subdued, stirred slightly.

A flash of light appeared, and the black-clad man who was rushing ahead and holding crutches had his arms severed at the elbows, blood gushing out like a fountain.

“Blade light!”

"What a powerful sword technique!"

"Seventh-rank expert, retreat quickly."

The remaining three people abruptly stopped their charge and retreated sharply.

"Fuck your mother, did you mess with Master Liu?"

Su Che stepped forward with his sword drawn, and with a flick of the blade, he created a scar on the throat of the man with crutches.

"Laojiu!"

One of them shouted in a hoarse voice.

"Scream!"

Su Che gestured with his sword in that direction, silently uttering the word "please" in his mind.

The sword case twitched slightly, and another flash of light appeared.

The masked man wielding the copper hammer had half his face sliced ​​off instantly, his blood and brain matter splattering into the night.

Under the moonlight, Young Master Su stood with his knife in hand, looking every bit the villain.

These four people looked intimidating, but upon closer inspection, they were only at the ninth level of martial arts. Against someone like me with premium equipment, they were all easy prey.

"please."

Su Che looked at the person who had spoken to him first, silently recited the command in his mind, and made a gesture of raising his knife.

The light shone again, and the man holding the Mandarin Duck Axe let out a long sigh.

He did indeed save his head.

A man dressed in black and wearing a black wooden mask stood in front of him.

As the sword flashed, a metallic clang rang out from the man's body, indicating that he had actually withstood Su Che's sword strike with his bare body.

The advantage of drawing the sword using the sacrificial method is that the sword light is drawn silently, so even a monster like the One-Eyed Demon would be caught off guard and suffer a severe blow.

However, in terms of lethality, it is far inferior to wielding a sword personally. Against a seventh-rank master like Gu Yin who is on guard, it is almost ineffective.

"My friend, my brother and I are here on business. Please forgive us if there was any conflict before."

The man who had taken Su Che's attack with his bare body said this, his voice hoarse, as if speaking from metal.

"My friend took the lives of two of my brothers, so this debt is finally settled. Like I said, let's each go our own way, shall we?"

"Your two brothers' lives are really worthless. At least make Grandpa Liu pay for their coffins."

Su Che looked at the person in front of him: "So easy to talk to, as if you're afraid I don't know you can't beat me?"

"Then I will go to see Brother Liu."

The man waved his hand behind him and said, "You all go inside first; you can't get involved."

The Mandarin Duck Axe and the Mourning Sword exchanged a glance, then leaped over the courtyard wall together.

(End of this chapter)