Bai Zhenzhen then asked, “Oh, by the way, what about the evil god’s secret stash? Was it found?”

Fu Ji replied, “It’s not that easy. Knowing he was outmatched, that guy deleted all the records and data from his mind. And even if there were, you should never touch any legacy he left behind.”

“The commotion we caused this time wasn’t small, and it surely attracted a lot of attention. The Patrol Squad might already be investigating this incident, so you all must be careful from now on.” As she spoke, a trace of chilling evil god power emanated from Fu Ji, and she proudly declared, “But after devouring that guy, I’ve now recovered to the rank of a Lower Evil God. Covering for you on Kunxu’s first layer will be more than enough.”

Through Fu Ji’s explanation, Zhang Yu learned that evil gods also have a system of ranks, and the key to these ranks is what’s called “status.” Fu Ji explained, “Evil gods have 9 ranks, from Level 1 to Level 9. Only by having a higher rank can one infiltrate higher-level divine power networks. For places like Kunxu’s 36 layers, the higher up you go, the higher the network level, and the more difficult it is to infiltrate. However, since I’ve recovered to the rank of a Level 1 Lower Evil God, infiltrating the divine power network on Kunxu’s first layer won’t be a problem.”

Zhang Yu knew that all networks in Kunxu were essentially divine power networks, channels through which righteous gods transmitted information and power, only gradually opening up for civilian use later. Listening to Fu Ji speak, Zhang Yu asked, “So, what exactly can you do?”

As if wanting Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen to recognize her usefulness, Fu Ji began to explain her powers after recovering to Level 1 Evil God status, much like a salesperson. “First and foremost, of course, I can now perform various rituals. Detection rituals can find where cameras are located. Shielding rituals can block cameras. Anti-monitoring rituals can control cameras… And also…”

Zhang Yu couldn’t help but say, “Are you seriously fixated on cameras? Why are all these about dealing with them?”

“That’s where you two don’t understand the trade,” Fu Ji pointed out. “The lower the layer of Kunxu, the less developed the divine power network. Kunxu’s first layer is the least developed of all, so the methods righteous gods use to monitor it are also the most primitive and simplest. On the first layer, surveillance cameras are the eyes of the righteous gods, their most important way of observing the world and monitoring society. If you can evade all cameras, it means you can avoid the notice of most righteous gods, making you virtually invisible on the first layer. That’s why among the rituals mastered by Level 1 evil gods, those related to cameras are the most numerous.”

Bai Zhenzhen recalled how she had monitored Song Xu and his group through cameras and asked, “It seems Song Xu and his companions didn’t use these, did they?”

Fu Ji chuckled and said, “Because even for an evil god, rituals cannot be used infinitely. The number of rituals a Level 1 evil god can maintain is limited. For example, that colleague of mine had to maintain the wish rituals for 8 believers, keep up the apartment building’s shielding ritual to block cameras, and also cast the Shadow Gu to monitor you. He was almost at his limit. How could he have any energy left for believers to freely cast rituals? And unlike him, I haven’t bought a bunch of junk shares. I only have you two as believers, so I can place detection rituals on both of you, allowing you to constantly perceive the location of cameras.

“There’s also an anti-detection ritual. Once I complete this ritual on you, as long as there isn’t a righteous god personally overseeing the detection, it will allow you to hide some of your data when your magical power or physical strength is being measured. Hehe, your recent data has been getting more and more attention. This ritual can help you lie low, right?”

Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen both nodded repeatedly upon hearing this. With no one backing them, their rapidly increasing physical data had indeed become a major source of trouble. Especially after preparing to qualify for the Foundation Establishment certification, excessively high exam scores were no longer very meaningful to them; instead, they were likely to attract unwanted covetousness. For example, Director Long’s particular interest in Zhang Yu when he was selling seeds.

Seeing Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen both appear interested, Fu Ji finally revealed her true objective: “Then, as long as you prepare the materials and location needed for the rituals, we can start anytime…”

But looking at the materials she kept listing, Zhang Yu frowned and asked, “What’s with these antiques? They must add up to over a hundred thousand, right? Do these rituals really require such expensive antiques?”

Fu Ji had long been prepared for this and explained, “The evil god status is merely the threshold for activating rituals and infiltrating the divine power network. As for each specific ritual, it consumes evil god power. Of course, I could steal divine power from the righteous gods’ network little by little every day, but it would probably take over half a year to gather enough for these rituals.”

Zhang Yu looked at the statues, incense burners, candle holders, and other items Fu Ji had selected into her shopping cart on his phone screen. He frowned and said, “So, these antiques can replenish your evil god power?”

Fu Ji replied, “Long before the divine power network was established, deities stood in Kunxu, worshipped by countless people, and received the power of incense and prayers. This power of incense and prayers is the predecessor of divine power. And among the various artifacts that have survived from ancient times, one can always find some residual power of incense and prayers. By absorbing this, I can replenish my evil god power.”

After speaking, Fu Ji continued to persuade them: “Your progress will become increasingly astonishing, so you really need to appropriately conceal your strength. And Song Xu’s matter might have alerted the Patrol Squad; they could start monitoring you with cameras at any time. What if someone sees something they shouldn’t? With so many secrets about you, you need the means to hide them the most. Spending over a hundred thousand for peace of mind is definitely not a loss. And don’t worry if you have too many ritual effects on you during the Foundation Establishment exam. I can temporarily deactivate all rituals except the wish rituals for you during the exam. With my technical depth, I can completely conceal you, and you absolutely won’t be discovered by righteous gods.”

Bai Zhenzhen pondered for a moment and said, “Yuzi, what this guy says makes sense. It seems we can’t save on this hundred thousand.”

“Alright,” Zhang Yu nodded, “Let’s prepare then.”

Fortunately, after Zhang Yu returned to Songyang, he had earned a sum of money from selling seeds and commission fees, which allowed him to make purchases on his phone at that moment.

Then Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen resumed their cultivation. Zhang Yu could be seen twisting his body, circulating his magical power, continuously performing one movement after another to temper his entire body’s flesh and blood, and accelerating the expulsion of waste and toxins from within. Since returning from Xiandu City, Zhang Yu had seized the time to continuously cultivate the Spring and Autumn Endless Zen, a top-tier body refinement technique. In the past few days, he had not only raised the level of this cultivation method but also felt his physical strength growing. Moreover, during his cultivation, he sensed that the elixir toxins and medicinal poisons that had previously lingered in his body were being expelled little by little.

After all, in the past few months, in order to pass the Foundation Establishment certification exam, Zhang Yu had completely abandoned his original natural body refinement path, furiously injecting and administering medicines, and continuously taking Hunyuan Pills. Although this process allowed his cultivation to advance rapidly and his various stats to soar repeatedly, it also left a large amount of impurities in his body that were difficult to expel, gradually affecting the metabolic functions of his internal organs. He had even felt a pain originating from his internal organs before his last Foundation Establishment exam. But now, through the practice of Spring and Autumn Endless Zen, he felt his flesh and blood becoming cleaner and cleaner, and his internal organs gradually had a light and comfortable sensation.

After completing another round of Spring and Autumn Endless Zen, Zhang Yu felt completely refreshed. He then glanced at the Feather Book.

Spring and Autumn Endless Zen Level 6 (14/60)

“Once Spring and Autumn Endless Zen reaches Level 10, I’ll go practice those basic high school cultivation methods and see what effect the high school Saint Body from that Chain Method Diagram actually has.”

Over the next few days, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen continued their cultivation while also preparing the materials and location for the rituals.

Inside Bailong High School that day.

Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen were just leaving after two hours of fighting with Yu Xinghan and Song Hailong. Zhang Yu recalled Yu Xinghan’s pale face today and secretly thought, “Is that guy okay? He shouldn’t be overworking himself to death, should he?”

Just then, several people in Patrol Squad uniforms were seen striding through the corridors of Bailong High School, and the surrounding students quickly made way for them. “The Patrol Squad…” Zhang Yu thought, recalling the information he had just gotten from Yu Xinghan and Song Hailong.

The disappearance of Song Xu, Bailong High School’s top student, had not caused much uproar, simply because the internal details seemed to have been suppressed. Students at Bailong High School only knew that Song Xu hadn’t come to school for a few days, but they were unaware that this top student had already died from the backlash of an evil god ritual.

Seeing the Patrol Squad’s appearance, Zhang Yu immediately suspected they were there to investigate Song Xu’s matter. He and Bai Zhenzhen quickly moved to the side, hoping to avoid drawing attention to themselves. However, just as they were passing by, the leading woman stopped and turned to look at Zhang Yu.

“Hmm? You’re Zhang Yu, aren’t you?” The woman smiled at Zhang Yu. “You’re Zhang Pianpian’s… hehe.”

Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen both became nervous, looking at the beautiful woman who had actively approached them to greet them. The woman then continued, “My name is Yun Ni, and I’m the captain of the Patrol Squad. We’ve spoken before, don’t you remember?”

Zhang Yu was slightly surprised, simply because the other party looked far too young, completely different from what he had imagined a Patrol Squad captain would look like. What Zhang Yu didn’t know was that Yun Ni came from a family of ten generations of patrol officers, a renowned patrol clan in Songyang. And Yun Ni, as an outstanding descendant of this generation, became a member of the Patrol Squad during high school. After graduating, following her family’s arrangements, she didn’t attend university and directly became the Patrol Squad captain.

Yun Ni seemed to want to say something to Zhang Yu, but her gaze swept over the Bailong students around them, and she frowned slightly, remarking, “Ugh, Bailong is reeking everywhere now, full of monstrous-looking creatures.”

Zhang Yu was slightly taken aback, then immediately realized that she was referring to how many Bailong students had taken on the appearance of demon descendants after undergoing the demon-mimicking muscle modification surgery. Yun Ni sighed, “These half-human, half-demon appearances… if they were running around school like this in the past, they’d have been instantly killed by a flying sword. Who would’ve thought… this high school campus would turn into such a ghastly sight now.”

A Patrol Squad member beside her quickly reminded, “Captain, if someone hears you say that, you’ll be reported again.”

Zhang Yu understood. This Yun Ni was a classic demon descendant discriminator.

“Never mind, let’s not talk about this.” Yun Ni shook her head, then looked at Zhang Yu and smiled faintly, “Zhang Yu, let’s talk somewhere else.”

Zhang Yu told Bai Zhenzhen to go first, and he followed behind Yun Ni. As they walked, Yun Ni asked, “Zhang Yu, have you been in contact with Song Xu recently?”