Did you really do it

Within the Yunmeng Marsh.

Two inexplicable trends began to sweep through.

One came from the top down. Less than a month after the God of Yunze issued the first oracle prohibiting fighting, another oppressive oracle followed.

It wasn't just the oracle that arrived; lesser demons under the direct jurisdiction of the God of Yunze were dispatched to supervise.

Harming mortals and fighting among themselves during this martial law period were both capital offenses.

Even worse, if word got out about a planned fight before any blows were exchanged, the one who initiated the challenge would disappear by the next day, never to challenge anyone again.

At this moment, any matter concerning mortals or fighting in Yunmeng Marsh went straight to the highest authorities. The intensity of this crackdown was truly appalling.

Logically speaking, such tyrannical demands would greatly displease even the God of Yunze, and it wasn't as if there were no great demons coveting the God of Yunze's position. Yet, at this very moment, not a single one of the top-tier demons in Yunmeng Marsh voiced any opposition.

Instead, they all assisted the God of Yunmeng in the suppression.

Naturally, news of such an abnormal situation began to circulate.

Rumor had it that Zheng Zhaoling, a core disciple of the current generation of the Yunmeng Pavilion, had put extreme pressure on the God of Yunze. The specific details were unknown, but it was said the pressure forced the God of Yunze to contact all the elders in the Yunmeng Pavilion who had past ties with his mother.

Such favors, of course, were depleted with each use, especially when directed against someone like Zheng Zhaoling.

Barring any accidents, she was destined to take the helm of the Yunmeng Pavilion in the future.

This showed how critical the situation was at the time, but it also yielded results.

Yunmeng Marsh remained under the autonomous rule of the demons, but until Zheng Zhaoling left the marsh, everything would be strictly enforced. At the very least, they could not give her another excuse to let the Yunmeng Pavilion completely intervene in the marsh.

Otherwise, what good days would the demons have left?

When the news spread, the indignation of the demons naturally subsided significantly. After all, the situation was highly unusual, and they could understand the reasoning behind it.

Following that, the second trend rose from the bottom up.

Some marginalized lesser demons seized this opportunity and began offering crazy subsidies, acting so frantically that they almost worked like beasts of burden for the mortals, lowering their demands again and again.

They even waived the daily worship and incense offerings, focusing solely on attracting people to the surrounding villages.

When people in many villages realized that the restricted demons truly dared not stop them, a massive migration almost began across the entire Yunmeng Marsh.

The unspoken rules of the past were completely shattered. Many demons, watching their village populations drop by half, bared their fangs in anger, cursing the instigating demons as a disgrace to their kind.

But this trend would not stop just because of anger.

Instead, as the news spread, it swept through the entire Yunmeng Marsh faster than the wind itself.

A great migration began to unfold.

Along with the start of the migration came fresh, hot rumors.

This martial law would not end with Zheng Zhaoling's departure; that would only be the beginning of the end.

The great martial law, initiated by the God of Yunze's compromise with Zheng Zhaoling, would continue even after she left.

It would last until Zheng Zhaoling forgot about it or chose to no longer pursue the matter.

But how long would that be?

What if it lasted until she became the sect master of the Yunmeng Pavilion and still held a grudge?

What if this was not just an isolated incident, but a complete revolution?

Even if it was just an incident, what if its effects lasted for a century?

A century later, they might still be alive, but what about the mortals?

Under such intense competition, the mortals under their rule would all flee.

Demons who cultivated using the power of faith would certainly drop in cultivation realms if they lost that support and had to rely solely on the spiritual energy of Yunmeng Marsh.

Relying on the power of faith for cultivation naturally meant accepting the bindings of that faith.

As for those highly competitive demons, although they were acting subservient now, who knew if the power dynamics in cultivation wouldn't completely reverse a hundred years down the line?

The most terrifying part was that Zheng Zhaoling had personally admitted she would keep a long-term eye on the situation in Yunmeng Marsh.

This news spread far faster than wildfire.

It seemed as if every demon in Yunmeng Marsh knew about it overnight.

Fear and uncertainty about the future completely overwhelmed the demons who were still waiting and watching.

No one knew what would happen in the future, but if they didn't join the fierce competition now, their mortals would truly all run away!

Acting subservient now might just be preparation to avoid being subservient in the future.

As things stood, with fighting strictly forbidden, there was only one choice left—compete!

Compete like crazy!

The rituals of bowing and worship were completely abandoned, and shrines no longer needed daily renovations.

Grain tributes and incense offerings were entirely canceled, and hundreds of acres of fertile land were cashed out overnight.

The shackles of the past were all cast off; complete freedom was offered in the present.

Wave after wave of subsidies played out across Yunmeng Marsh.

The welfare benefits from various shrines were updated daily, ranging from gifting land and building houses to curing illnesses and averting disasters.

Some were so desperate that they promised conditions regardless of whether they could fulfill them, writing them down anyway—first trick the people into staying, then figure it out later.

Amidst this sweeping wave of subsidies, the bottom line continued to plummet.

It even reached the point where the gods of the shrines personally stood at the village entrances to welcome people one by one.

They were just short of kneeling down to solicit people.

But if things continued like this, that day probably wasn't far off.

Naturally, it wasn't that no demons banded together to resist this unhealthy trend.

However, any united resistance was no match for the rumors and the loss of tangible benefits.

Under the grand scheme of things and amidst the mass exodus, such alliances seemed rather ridiculous.

In just about a month, everything in Yunmeng Marsh had completely changed.

No one had anticipated such a transformation, not even the God of Yunze.

Yet, under the oppressive presence of Zheng Zhaoling, he could not change anything.

The hearts of the people were like water; their movements were like smoke.

Drifting far away, settling into new homes.

Huaze Village.

Today, Huaze Village had undergone an earth-shattering transformation.

Cui Hao didn't just provide welfare subsidies; he also established many legal regulations tailored to the local conditions, responsible for handling conflicts between people.

Settling people down wasn't something that could be completely accomplished just by saying, "You live here, and your field is here."

Many things required careful arrangement, and Cui Hao had selected a few clever individuals to start taking charge of these matters.

After all, if one person did everything, they would truly die of exhaustion.

Cui Hao only handled the aftermath when unexpected issues arose.

Inside the shrine.

Zhu Tu looked at Cui Hao with a bitter expression:

"Envoy! Our benefits can no longer attract more people. The other demons have truly abandoned all dignity as demons; they are acting more subservient than slaves."

"Should we also add something more?"

Sitting in the main seat, Cui Hao gently shook his head:

"Biting off more than you can chew is useless. I've looked at their benefits too; they are mostly just blowing hot air and won't be able to deliver on their promises."

"And I don't believe you'd be able to fulfill any wild promises you add either."

"If we truly look to the future, keeping our word is the true path of a king. Once we build trust and people know our words hold weight, we will attract even more people in the future than we do now."

Hearing this, Zhu Tu nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Having seen with his own eyes how Cui Hao truly used these methods to turn the entire Yunmeng Marsh upside down, and how Cui Hao achieved it simply by sitting here and issuing basic orders.

This was simply more miraculous than a miracle.

Zhu Tu was completely convinced by Cui Hao. At this moment, even if Cui Hao told him that rolling in the mud a couple of times would help absorb the power of faith, he would believe it—and then roll a few extra times for good measure.

Cui Hao let out a deep breath and then spoke:

"Judging by the time, it should be about right. You can start spreading rumors about the effects of purifying the power of faith. Fan the flames a bit more to change the narrative. Turn it from a forced, desperate competition into a proactive choice that will greatly benefit their future."

"This way, the fundamental nature of the whole affair will completely change."

Cui Hao kept his true thoughts to himself—by doing this, the demons' hostility toward humans would shift into demons turning against their own kind.

Zhu Tu nodded repeatedly, accepting the order.

"I never expected... that it was actually your doing."

Outside the doors of the shrine.

Lu Lingyi stared at Cui Hao, her eyes filled with disbelief.

A mere Golden Core Perfected One had actually managed to turn the entire Yunmeng Marsh upside down.

Countless great demons were completely captivated by it, and the demonic hordes were thrown into endless chaos.

She couldn't help but recall their very first meeting.

And Cui Hao's self-introduction.

I am a genius.

At this moment, those words had truly taken on a concrete form.