One month later, in front of the well at Black Soil District.

It was nearing midnight, and twenty to thirty people dressed in gray-white robes were gathered around the well. There were men and women of various ages, each holding a torch. All stood silently, not uttering a word.

Around them, over a hundred onlookers of different ages and attire whispered among themselves, watching the scene unfold.

Before long, Hu Ji, dressed in a luminous white robe, emerged from the shadows. He did not carry a torch, yet his robe emitted a soft glow, illuminating the surroundings.

The gray-white robed individuals all looked up at Hu Ji in unison and instinctively made way for him, watching silently as he walked to the well, after which the path closed behind him.

The believers formed an inner circle around Hu Ji, their eyes filled with fervor and hope. The rest of the crowd also ceased their murmuring, instinctively moving closer to form a larger outer circle.

They all gazed towards the well, some faces showing confusion, others curiosity, and some even disdain.

At this moment, no one spoke, and the scene became eerily quiet.

“When the Death Moon rises, all remnants of darkness will be dispelled, all rampant diseases will be cured, and all rampant evil will be purified. The Dark Moon God has descended, bringing light to those who look up to Him, blessings to His followers, and guidance to His believers. Brothers and sisters, we gather here tonight to witness the miracle of the Dark Moon God!” Hu Ji stood in the center of the crowd, raising his arms high and looking around as he broke the silence.

The surrounding believers also raised their arms high, their eyes filled with reverence as they looked at Hu Ji.

Over the past month, Hu Ji had used the antidote elixirs provided by Yuan Ming to quickly cure many mortals afflicted by the Green Poison Disease, thus gaining many followers for the Dark Moon God.

Unlike the elixirs provided by the “Black River God’s emissary,” the elixirs bestowed by the Dark Moon God had visible effects. Even though some mortals knew that these might be gifts from a cultivator, they willingly worshipped this cultivator.

Today, Hu Ji had gathered them and many residents of the district to demonstrate the miracle of the Dark Moon God.

“The Green Poison Disease has plagued Quicksand City for two years. During this time, many false gods and evil cults have exploited the situation under the guise of helping the people, taking our money but leaving us with worsening illness.”

“We prayed to the City Lord’s Mansion but received only cold indifference. We knelt before the immortal masters but were met with disdain and scorn. Only the Dark Moon God heard our cries, saw our suffering, and extended a helping hand to save us from our misery.”

As Hu Ji spoke, his voice gradually rose.

The believers recalled their past sufferings, their emotions stirred. Even the onlookers began to nod in agreement with Hu Ji’s words.

They were not blind; they could clearly see who truly helped them and who exploited them.

“Not only does the Dark Moon God pity the people, but He also knows that evil must be eradicated. He not only bestowed elixirs but also used His divine power to find the culprit behind all this. Today is the day of judgment for that pest.”

Suddenly, Hu Ji raised his arms high. Behind him, a bright full moon rose slowly, like emerging from the sea, and finally hung above everyone’s heads.

From the full moon, a section of purple-black glowing vine suddenly grew out, accompanied by countless pale white butterflies. They circled the vine, causing it to grow rapidly into a vine ball, which then flew into the well under the guidance of the butterflies.

The moonlight was gentle and warm. Bathed in it, everyone felt an unprecedented sense of peace.

They looked up at the full moon and suddenly saw a scene appear in the moon’s glow.

It was a green insect demon clinging to a stone wall, surrounded by countless horrifying corpses, both of beasts and humans.

Dirty green pus flowed from the insect demon’s back into the river. Seeing this, everyone couldn’t help but recall the water they drank daily, and some even began to retch.

At that moment, the vine ball entered the scene, and the butterflies surrounding it flew into the ball.

The vine grew rapidly, transforming into a glowing armored vine deity, which charged at the insect demon. The demon fought fiercely with various tactics, but the vine deity countered each move. Sometimes the scene seemed dangerous, causing the crowd to gasp, but the vine deity quickly regained the upper hand.

After an unknown period, the vine deity finally broke through the demon’s defenses and pierced it with its arm, causing the crowd to cheer excitedly.

Hu Ji then raised his hand, and the vine deity flew out of the well, holding the insect demon’s corpse.

“Today, the Dark Moon God sent His divine general to slay the insect demon. From now on, the people of Quicksand City will no longer suffer from the Green Poison Disease!”

Hearing this, the crowd couldn’t help but shout the name of the Dark Moon God, even those who initially didn’t believe joined in.

At that moment, a cold snort came from the outermost part of the crowd.

“Hmph, what a joke. Catching some insect demon and claiming it’s the cause of the Green Poison Disease, what a farce.”

The believers turned to see a fat man, who called himself the “Black River God’s emissary,” standing with a tall man in a black robe, looking at Hu Ji with disdain.

For the past month, Hu Ji had been wary of the Black River God’s cult disrupting his efforts to recruit followers. Surprisingly, they hadn’t acted, allowing Hu Ji to take their followers. He thought they had given up, but they showed up today.

“Tucha, I have reported your exploitation under the Black River God’s name to the Dark Moon God. The great god is merciful and willing to give you a chance to repent. If you kneel and confess now, you can still live!” Hu Ji shouted at the fat man.

Unexpectedly, Tucha didn’t look at him but instead smiled at the man beside him.

“Master, this is Hu Ji. He brought out some so-called Dark Moon God and offended the Black River God’s divine authority.”

The man ignored Tucha and instead looked at Hua Zhi, then shouted to the surroundings.

“I am Li Xia, an emissary under the Black River God. All the believers here are under my jurisdiction. You, uninvited, stole my followers and destroyed my cult. You are quite audacious. Since I am here today, if you reveal yourself, apologize, and leave, I might let it go. If you persist, don’t blame me for being ruthless and killing your spirit pet on the spot.”

Hidden among the crowd, Yuan Ming frowned. He had thought the Black River God was just a fabrication to exploit money, but Li Xia turned out to be a genuine late Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Yuan Ming became cautious, releasing his spiritual consciousness and finding no other cultivators in Black Soil District besides Li Xia. He decided to extract the truth from him.

He immediately commanded Hua Zhi to attack Li Xia while he began to activate the Death Moon method, casting an illusion.

Hua Zhi, following the order, extended her limbs, growing numerous vines that bypassed the crowd and lunged at Li Xia.

The onlookers, including the fat man, scattered in fear, leaving Li Xia alone.

“Hmph, seeking death! I’ll grant it!” Li Xia’s face showed a hint of cruelty.

He immediately formed a seal with his hands, chanting incantations. A pitch-black orb flew out of his sleeve, spraying countless black streams like a fountain, enveloping him and spreading in all directions.

The black streams sizzled upon hitting the ground, emitting white smoke.

Seeing this terrifying scene, the mortals, including the believers, screamed in fear and tried to flee. Many were splashed by the black streams, their bodies melting like ice, turning into pools of blood.

Many of Hua Zhi’s vines also corroded upon contact with the black streams.

Hua Zhi was shocked and quickly tried to retract the remaining vines.

At that moment, Li Xia raised his hand, and several black streams intertwined, forming a giant black claw that grabbed Hua Zhi, swallowing her whole.

“Daring to offend the Black River God, this is your fate! If you don’t reveal yourself, I’ll drag you out myself!” Li Xia shouted, his eyes filled with bloodlust.

As he finished, his gaze shifted, piercing through the fleeing crowd to lock onto Yuan Ming.

Yuan Ming instinctively looked back, his face full of panic, seemingly trying to escape under the cover of the mortals, only to meet Li Xia’s gaze.

Li Xia sneered, forming another seal. The orb above his head wobbled, stopped spraying black streams, and after a moment, shot a black water arrow that pierced Yuan Ming.

Seeing this, Li Xia smiled triumphantly, ready to recall the orb, but suddenly felt a pain in his neck. The scenery around him changed rapidly; the supposedly dead mortals were suspended in the air by purple-black vines, not consumed by the black streams.

And Yuan Ming stood not far away, calmly watching him.

Li Xia was horrified, trying to activate the orb again, but felt dizzy. The mortals were upside down, completely inverted.

What is this—

Before he could understand, he lost consciousness completely.