"Thirty-six grasshead kings, so many?"

After hearing Hu Ma's words, Er Guotou also felt a bit surprised.

Originally, he had just subdued the Three-headed Jiao King and was feeling elated, but suddenly hearing that there were so many grasshead kings, the pressure mounted again.

Before becoming a Reincarnator, he really hadn't counted how many grasshead kings there were, only felt that when the senior Longjing shot those Seven Arrows from the City of the Dead, it seemed that kings sprouted overnight everywhere.

Not to mention those who had names and strong armies under them; even the bandits on the mountain, who gathered twenty or thirty people, dared to call themselves kings, rob a temple as their palace, and descend the mountain to take Liu Lao Wu's wife as an empress and his sister as a concubine.

In such a situation, it's really hard to distinguish between a grasshead king and a mountain king; who has the patience to count them?

"Being a king is not that simple."

Seeing his surprise, Hu Ma smiled, "I don't know how many people, as soon as they declare themselves kings, are crushed to death by that single word 'king.'

"Of course, the methods of death differ: some are targeted by those with true king destiny and are sent soldiers to kill them, some die from accidents, and some are killed by their own people. In short, the faster they call themselves kings, the faster they die."

"Previously, our attention was all on Shangjing, and we didn't notice. A few months ago was actually the most chaotic time in this world, with soldiers and bandits intertwined, and a lot of heads rolling.

"Those who died or were subdued by others in this strife were all false destiny. Only those who bore the word 'king' and survived until the day the ten incense clans left the capital are considered real grasshead kings."

"I only realized this after borrowing the Treasure Seal left by Lao Junmei. There are only thirty-six people in the world who declared themselves kings but were not crushed to death.

"If choosing an emperor is like a chessboard, then these thirty-six people are the pieces, and they've evenly divided the destiny among themselves."

"Of course, just now, there were already thirty-six grasshead kings, but now there's one less, and his destiny has fallen into my hands."

"As long as these thirty-six contend for the world, and ultimately one person is crowned emperor, the destiny will be complete. At that time, even Yang Gong's destiny will have to be handed over to me."

"..."

The Ghost Walking Sect, with its eclectic teachings, knows a bit here and hears a bit there. Although Er Guotou hadn't paid much attention to this before, after listening to Hu Ma, he roughly understood and nodded, "This task certainly sounds daunting."

"Do we have to protect the Food Protection Army and kill all the remaining thirty-four grasshead kings?"

"..."

"There's no need for that."

Hu Ma laughed and said, "They won't stay quiet among themselves. Although most grasshead kings are propped up by others, even if they're puppets, the ones who manage to sit in those puppet seats are not simple characters."

"They will have a mutual awareness and are destined to kill, devour, and fight for each other's territories and troops among themselves. Who knows how many will be left in the end!"

"It's like a big fish eating a small fish, a small fish eating shrimp, just to see who grows into a giant first and who first forms alliances for self-protection."

"Now, purely from the standpoint of destiny, the Food Protection Army is still relatively weak. Even after taking Huzhou and forming alliances with the Gunzhou White Armor Army and the Gua State Iron Cage Army, they are only considered medium to low strength among the grasshead kings competing for supremacy."

Saying this, he just waved his hand, put away the Heaven Suppressing Treasure Seal, and sighed, "Now that Huzhou is taken, the show has just begun to open."

"The real significance of killing those Three-headed Jiao was only to signal to everyone that the Food Protection Army is supported by us, and the Ming King is the one we've chosen and are backing."

"Of course, it's also to let these Reincarnators see if the person we've chosen can catch their eye and is worthy of their support!"

"..."

"We could actually have called for help or even allocated tasks within the Lifebound Spirit Temple."

Hearing this, Er Guotou looked up at Hu Ma and said, "But the path we're on now was formed after you sought help from the Reincarnators and then singularly supported this food-protection general to become the king and send troops, letting them make their own decisions."

"Frankly speaking, your initial words already destined that many people would help you. Why don't you reach out to Tieguanyin, and Ms. Red Wine, who are best at organizing various people, for unified coordination..."

"..."

"That would actually be ill-advised."

Hu Ma understood Er Guotou's meaning, slowly shook his head, and said, "I also know many people would be willing to help me."

"But Reincarnators are inherently free-spirited and independent; we can't find someone who would command their complete loyalty, so why force them together?"

"I've already requested assistance from the Reincarnators, and I trust they won't ignore the suffering in this world. However, what they need to see now is another issue.

"I want them to know that the people of this world are worth helping."

"..."

When their discussion ended, they saw that the Food Protection Army had already tidied up the affairs of the city. They didn't care and took Calculation with them to find a household in the city, paid some silver, and asked someone to prepare some food for them.

It was also a chance to observe the Food Protection Army's ability to handle political affairs after capturing Huzhou Prefecture. Meanwhile, Sweet Potato did not join their activities but was happily enjoying the city with her sworn sister.