Chapter 178: A Million-Dollar Temptation

In Huoshan’s eyes, Song Xu was… a little too enthusiastic a follower.

Studying hard, cultivating hard, working hard to earn money—those were all great.

But working just as hard to recruit followers, manage followers, and expand Huoshan’s influence—that made Huoshan uneasy.

Once again, Song Xu’s nagging voice echoed in his mind.

That had been one afternoon, not long after Huoshan converted him into an Evil God follower.

His face sincere, Song Xu had said, “Master, we can’t go on like this! The world’s moving forward, the Righteous Gods are evolving, and Kunxu’s regulation and competition will only get tougher.”

“If we don’t want to get left behind, internal reform is a must!”

“The first step is to speed up recruitment. We can’t just wait for talent to fall into our laps anymore. We need to proactively gather resumes, visit campuses, compete for talent face-to-face, and accelerate the whole hiring process.”

“I also suggest you personally observe key stages of recruitment as an auditor, even attend first-round interviews for top candidates…”

Trying to grow the number of followers meant spending more time finding the right people—from background checks, to secret surveillance, to eventually making the offer.

That process took up far more time and energy than just sifting through resumes in an office and making a few phone calls.

Especially since Evil God followers demanded high levels of secrecy. You couldn’t just hire anyone.

Huoshan’s current eight followers had each taken him hundreds of hours to vet and recruit.

That alone made Huoshan feel like running a regular company was way easier. Post a job, get hundreds of resumes, hire someone and they’ll work diligently—you didn’t even have to worry about leaks.

And if expanding the team was already a hassle, managing them felt like an even bigger chore.

Right now, Song Xu’s voice rang again in his mind.

Song Xu: “This is my analysis after three months of observation on our current team.”

“The main issue affecting efficiency is the information gap.”

“For example, the delivery-follower never submits his delivery logs or bank transactions. His worn-down shoes don’t match the mileage shown on the delivery apps. And we don’t have any financial officers auditing anything. Whether he’s making a lot or a little, it’s all just whatever he says.”

“The construction-follower is even worse—no oversight at all. We don’t know his working hours, earnings, or expenses.”

“I suggest that starting next week, every follower must submit a 300-word structured daily report by 9 PM. It should cover today’s results, tomorrow’s plans, and bank transactions.”

“Also, we’ll start holding a 30-minute weekly meeting every Sunday at 1 AM. No PowerPoints allowed. Just talk roadblocks and resource allocation.”

“We’ll also establish a fast-track issue escalation process. If a problem isn’t solved within 12 hours, it comes straight to me…”

Just listening to him talk gave Huoshan a headache.

But Song Xu’s actions did make him more money. They got him out of a basement and into a dingy apartment. They let him shop online and even top up his games more often.

So whenever Song Xu pushed, Huoshan moved. And bit by bit, here they were.

But when it came to hunting Evil Gods, Huoshan really wasn’t interested.

“Why does it always have to be about fighting and killing? Wouldn’t it be nicer to just eat, drink, and game all day?”

Right now, Huoshan had no desire to participate in any Evil God hunt. He just wanted to get back to the game he hadn’t finished.

But on the other side of the room, follower Li Quan shouted, “Master! It’s ten million!”

At the words “ten million,” Huoshan instantly snapped to attention, leaping in front of the screen and reading the intel sent via the Shadow Parasite.

His eyes skimmed rapidly through the report, taking in the gist of it.

“So it’s an Evil God who fled from Tiantai City.”

“And tomorrow, one of his followers there… is going to bring over more than ten million in cash to a location outside the city?”

“Let me check the drop-off point…”

At the mention of that ten-million stash, Huoshan’s eyes practically lit up.

Sure, he didn’t like grinding. But as a Kunxu Evil God, saying he didn’t love money would be a bald-faced lie.

He just didn’t want to work for it.

But if he had a chance to grab ten million all at once, then not only was he interested—he’d even start cracking the whip on his followers.

“Send the intel to Song Xu.”

“Have him take some people to the meeting spot tomorrow. If there’s a chance… seize that ten million.”

…

Inside the apartment.

After two hours of cultivation in the Spiritual Realm, Zhang Yu returned to reality.

Only, after removing his Spiritual Realm Mask, his expression was a little… complicated.

He recalled today’s training session in the realm.

In the illusion, he’d been a security guard at a high-end club. Under the boss’s exploitation, he rose in rebellion, battling wave after wave of thugs while searching desperately for evidence of the club’s crimes. Again and again, he fought and fought and fought!

And the boss of that high-end club? Yu Xinghan. He didn’t just squeeze Zhang Yu dry, but also endlessly exploited the club’s attractive staff, fighting and fighting and fighting!

Back in reality, Zhang Yu couldn’t help but ask him in the Dao-Seeking Hall, “Is this really effective for cultivation?”

Yu Xinghan smiled and shook his head. “Zhang Yu, you’ve been neutered. You can’t possibly understand my current spiritual realm.”

Apparently, though Zhang Yu had introduced Yu Xinghan to Xiong Haohan’s side, he hadn’t told him about his physical condition.

Meanwhile, after a few days of “growth,” Yu Xinghan was feeling mentally and spiritually elevated.

In his eyes, Zhang Yu might be powerful, but spiritually, he was just a neutered child.

Whereas he, through puppets and illusions, had seen and endured the storm.

“To pass through a sea of flowers without a single petal clinging to you…”

“Only when hobbies and passions become your job can you truly sever desire and return to the self.”

“That is the true path… to overcoming lust.”

“Heh, remember these words. They’ll serve you well someday.”

Just then, in the apartment—

Bai Zhenzhen stopped mid-workout, looked at the awakened Zhang Yu, and asked, “Well, Yuzi? Did it work?”

Zhang Yu nodded. “Let’s go discuss outside.”

So he took Bai Zhenzhen back under the familiar bridge by the river.

Bai Zhenzhen asked excitedly, “So what’s the situation now?”

Fu Ji replied, “I’ve already sent the intel through, hopped it across three puppet terminals, and tracked down the rough location of my colleague.”

Bai Zhenzhen said, “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s raid them and catch them off guard!”

Fu Ji replied, “I did trace the location, but I didn’t investigate further to avoid alerting them.”

“So we don’t know how many followers they have, or how strong they are.”

“But there’s no need to rush. I already sent them false intel. Their main forces should be lured away by tomorrow.”

“Then we’ll follow the plan and gather more info…”

Zhang Yu looked a little nervous. “You sure they won’t catch on?”

Fu Ji chuckled. “Your sister said something right—information is everything.”

“Sometimes, an information gap is even deadlier than a power gap.”

“Like how we used the Shadow Parasite to trace them back—they’re in the light, we’re in the dark. With this kind of information edge, we’re basically unbeatable.”

…

The next night.

A container truck rumbled toward the outskirts.

Inside, along with Song Xu, were five other Evil God followers at peak Qi Refining Realm—all looking ferocious, exuding a fearsome aura honed in the worlds of delivery, construction, and courier work.

One thin, ghostly follower said, “When we see them, we drive the truck straight into ’em. Maybe we can squash one right off the bat.”

Another, a hulking, dark-skinned brute with a face like a thug’s, said, “Even if it’s out in the boonies with no surveillance, don’t forget to perform the shielding ritual first. We don’t want the Righteous Gods’ lackeys catching wind.”

Another chimed in, “They’re Evil God followers too, so they probably won’t go to the cops—but still, hit hard and fast. No time for hesitation.”

Meanwhile, Song Xu sat quietly in the passenger seat, eyes closed, listening to their chatter.

His mind lingered on the intel he received yesterday.

“Ten million, huh?”

When he first heard the number, his heart skipped a beat, desire flaring strong.

In Kunxu, money meant potential. Money meant opportunity. Money was the wings that let you soar up the Immortal Path.

For a moment, he’d even thought, “Should I call in Mo Tianyi’s group to help?”

But he’d quickly dismissed the idea.

The Alliance of the Resentful Poor weren’t Evil God followers—they were his own force. The money they earned went straight into his personal savings. He wasn’t about to expose them to Huoshan.

Besides, that ten million…

“Even if we grab it, Huoshan’s going to take the lion’s share.”

“With that much money, that lazy bum’ll only get lazier.”

Song Xu could already picture the guy kicking back, living off the interest, playing games all day.

Knowing him, Huoshan would absolutely do something like that.

“Then he’ll be even less likely to help me hunt Evil Gods.”

“And we still don’t know where that Evil God is.”

“If we take the ten million now, we’ll only spook them—and make hunting the Evil God way harder.”

The temptation was fierce. But after thinking it through, Song Xu reined it in.

The money wouldn’t even be his in the end. Worse, it could ruin his chances of leveling up his own plans.

Just like when he’d endured the pain and waited for the right moment to sell his grandpa’s grave.

Song Xu decided this wasn’t the right moment to grab the cash. More than money, he wanted to hunt that Evil God and unlock more power.

He gently tapped the palm-sized civilian-grade flying sword in his hand and thought, “I’ll use the sword to scout first. If there’s no opportunity… we walk.”