Hua Cheng helping out others (without Xie Lian) compilation because people have amnesia about this.
Some feared he would challenge them and burn their temples if they were to incur his displeasure, some were blackmailed into silence and inaction because he had them by the balls, and some even oddly respected him because of how wide his reach was in the Mortal Realm. Sometimes, they even had to ask him for help paving the way for them while they carried out their duties. This went on for a long time, and many heavenly officials developed a peculiar sort of admiration for him.
After the snake and scorpion died, their souls didn’t disperse and, dragging their destroyed bodies, they went to seek an audience with a ghost king in a faraway land. For some unknown price, the ghost king pieced their bodies together and added in an extremely toxic venom, causing them to change into a demonic creature. The newborn scorpion-tailed snake killed the king in the end and, furthermore, remained to eternally haunt this place.
At that time when the ghost pleasure boat toured the Jianjun River, Xie Lian had taken note of a few of the rare normal prayers, all children’s wishes, with the intention of helping Hua Cheng fulfill them in the future when he had the time. He hadn’t expected that Hua Cheng would remember them, too. Hua Cheng winked at him and said, “Sometimes I care."
Xie Lian said, “The prayers of high-ranking officials and nobles, you don’t care about, but you care about these little children?”
Hua Cheng replied, “There’s nothing to be done about it. Since they’re beseeching me, whether or not I respond, Emperor Laozi also depends on my mood, right?”
Hua Cheng scooted over to him; they were now sitting much closer than before. Hua Cheng pointed at a few names. “These are wrong.”
Xie Lian looked at the names closely; all of them were known to be lawless, malevolently evil tyrants. “How do you know?”
“Because I killed them,”
Twenty years ago, there was a pig spirit who went crazy and uprooted the village master’s household. The building collapsed and the whole family was killed, and the pig fled to Ghost City. I’d only just entered the trade at the time. I chased after the creature, but I was beaten to a pulp by a bunch of ghosts. What humiliation! He also sent one of his lackeys to tell me that if you eat a whole family of pigs, it’s only fair for a pig to slaughter your whole family in revenge. It’s your lucky day if the pig doesn’t seek revenge; if it does, then you deserved it. Now tell me, what is that rotten logic?!”
“What a coincidence! Our sect experienced something similar, but it was in regards to a rooster spirit"
“Hear, hear. You all know of my shixiong, right? He was talented and had an infinite future! He only had one tiny vice: he loved to dally with women. Decades ago, a prostitute ghost seduced my shixiong and sucked him dry—turned him into human jerky. That Hua…Hua…that ghost king dared shelter her.”
(...) “I think I’ve heard of your shixiong before,” Heaven’s Eye said. “Wasn’t he the guy who would force himself on married women under the pretense of conducting rituals and ceremonies? The one who got locked up for three months?” “Ahem, ahem, ahem!”
Yin Yu didn’t have enough confidence to deny it. He said weakly, “Chengzhu has shown me grace. He saved me—”
“I know,” Jun Wu said. “He even helped you pacify and send off Jian Yu’s vengeful spirit after he died during your banishment, am I correct?"
