đź“– Chapter 960 - The Ceremony!
It was as if an invisible giant hand had appeared in the sky, sweeping across it and causing the sea of clouds to churn. A ray of light shining in resplendent colors broke through the cloud layer and fell to the ground. The place it landed was… just outside the gate of the palace’s main hall!
This ray of light illuminated the two figures who had just walked out of the palace gate… the Starfall Emperor, and Wang Baole!
In an instant, the hundred thousand cultivators in the plaza, the million cultivators outside the palace, and the countless civilians watching from remote places… all turned their gazes to the spot where the light fell.
They saw their emperor, and they also saw… the one standing right beside their emperor, Wang Baole!
It was no exaggeration to say that Wang Baole had the attention of the whole world on him at that moment. Despite his high position in the Federation, he still couldn’t help but gasp when he was stared at by this many people. But he didn’t want to seem stiff and unnerved, so he casually placed his hands behind his back and nodded down at the crowd slightly, as if he was examining them. The corners of his mouth even curled up in a faint smile.
In reality… He actually couldn’t see anyone in the crowd clearly. It wasn’t that his cultivation base was lacking, but there were just too many people. Unless he picked someone out to look at carefully, all he was able to see was a blurry mass of people.
However, although Wang Baole didn’t look carefully at the crowd, every person in the crowd looked carefully at him.
The paper human cutouts were one thing. Those who had the qualification to enter the palace had more or less heard about Wang Baole. Although this was the first time many of them had seen him, their gazes were mostly filled with gratitude along with a bit of curiosity.
But as for the nine Outer Domain Chosen who had come to the Starfall Realm along with Wang Baole… Their expressions all changed drastically. Some of them looked like their eyeball were about to pop out of their heads, and endless explosions were set off in their minds. Their expressions were filled with disbelief and incredulity.
Even the scholarly cultivator from the top sect of the Heretical Dao, who was usually calm and serene, stared blankly at Wang Baole with a dazed expression. The masked woman beside him also looked at Wang Baole with a strange gaze. Her eyes narrowed slightly like crescent moons, and although her exact expression was hidden by the mask, it seemed like she was smiling.
If Wang Baole had been looking at the masked woman at that moment, he would have sensed that this gaze seemed… somewhat familiar. However, the masked woman’s smile disappeared in an instant, and her calmness returned a moment later.
The exact opposite of the masked woman was the bell girl from the Heretical Gate’s Nine Phoenix Sect.
At that moment, her body trembled slightly. Her breathing had become chaotic, and her eyes were full of extreme disbelief. As her mind buzzed in shock, waves of anger and indignation erupted in her heart.
“How could this be possible?! Why is that damned Xie Dalu standing there?!?!”
There was also the young man in black who exuded a baleful aura. Compared to the other three, he was the calmest of all. Although he was obviously surprised, his external expression barely changed. On the contrary, it was that Brother Expert who became extremely excited, thinking that this Xie Dalu was truly worthy of being a friend he placed great importance on. Although he didn’t know how this friend was able to stand there, it was obvious that he had exceptional means.
Then there was the little fatty… The shock he felt was no less than that of the bell girl. After all, when Wang Baole had failed to appear at the fourth ring of the bell earlier, he had been extremely smug. But however smug he was back then, was how shocked he became now. Not only did his eyes open as wide as saucers, even the fat on his body jiggled, and he couldn’t help but mutter under his breath.
“Nonsense, how could this happen… Just what did that Xie Dalu do? How did he gain the qualification to stand beside the Starfall Emperor?!”
As the little fatty gaped in disbelief, even rubbing his eyes to make sure he’d seen correctly, the little girl next to him spoke up in a sweet voice.
“Fat big bro, didn’t you say that after the fourth ring of the bell sounded, Xie Dalu would be disqualified? Why is he standing next to the Starfall Emperor right now?”
“Um…” Sweat beaded on the little fatty’s forehead, and an expression of embarrassment uncontrollably appeared on his face. He felt a burning sensation, like someone had just slapped him on the face, and quickly cleared his throat.
“According to past records, it’s not that we can’t qualify to stand next to the Starfall Emperor. However, to do so, you have to offer great benefits to the Starfall Empire. For Xie Dalu to be standing there now, he must have paid an astonishing price.” The little fatty spoke slowly at first, but grew more confident as he went on. By the time he finished speaking, he seemed to believe his own words.
“Alas, Xie Dalu, just why did you have to do this? A false reputation only brings harm.” The little fatty shook his head and sighed. But soon, he noticed the little girl’s half-smiling face, as well as strange gazes turning on him from the surroundings, and he fell silent. In the end, his skin wasn’t thick enough, and his embarrassment became even stronger. Luckily, the voice of the Starfall Emperor saved him as it echoed throughout heaven and earth.
“The ceremony of sacrificing to the heavens, the path of worshiping the Planets, the art of stilling the sky… This is our Starfall Empire’s sacrifice ceremony. Everyone… won’t you join me in bowing thrice in reverence?”
With those words, all one hundred thousand cultivators in the plaza lifted their heads to look at the sky and raised their hands toward the heavens!
The voice of the Starfall Emperor continued to echo in all directions.
“The first bow is to the heavens. I pray that my Starfall Realm shall be blessed with good weather, that we may be free of natural disasters!”
The hundred thousand paper human cutouts in the plaza bowed as one. It wasn’t just them, but also the million cultivators outside the palace, as well as the countless paper human cutouts all over the Starfall Empire. At that moment, all of them bowed to the heavens as one!
Winds raged and clouds surged as rumbling sounds came from the sky. There seemed to be a majestic force of will that came from all creation and gathered in the sky, turning into an intangible spirit which accepted the worship of all living beings.
“The second bow is to the ancestors of our Starfall Realm. May our Starfall Realm continue for thousands of years to come, and forever know the true Dao!”
The surging of the clouds became like a tempestuous sea, and the rumbling grew even louder. At the same time, five-colored light danced in the sky, creating a wondrous sight. Faint illusory shadows appeared from the void, accepting the worship of all living beings.
The dream-like apparitions remained for an incense stick’s worth of time before gradually dissipating. At that point, the Starfall Emperor’s voice rang out once again.
“The third bow is to the fallen stars. The glory of the past won’t fade away. Even if no one else remembers, the mission of our Starfall Realm is to eternally exalt the lives of all stars!”
With those words, all living beings bowed a third time, including the Starfall Emperor and Wang Baole. With that bow, Wang Baole seemed to feel a sense of solemnity spread through his body. More than that, there was a faint anticipation that was growing stronger and stronger.
That was because he learned from the three women that the Starfall Empire’s ceremonial sacrifice to the heavens wasn’t very complicated. After bowing three times, next was the beating of the Heavenspan Drum and the summoning of Planets!
This segment was really the most important part of the ceremony. The sound of the drum would shake the vault of heaven and cause Planets to descend.
Indeed, after the three bows, the Starfall Emperor raised his head. From its high vantage point outside the main hall, it swept its gaze across the crowd and finally focused in on the scholarly cultivator and the other eight.
“Now that we have bowed to the sky, next up is the summoning of Planets. Little friends from the Outer Domain, please step forward. Beat the Heavenspan Drum, and call forth countless Planets!”
With those words, the gazes of the hundred thousand people in the plaza instantly turned to the scholarly cultivator and the other eight. With so many paper human cutouts staring at them, the nine Chosen couldn’t help but become slightly short of breath. After exchanging glances, the little fatty gritted his teeth. He was the first to fly over to the Heavenspan Drum, shouting loudly as he did so.
"Senior, junior Lu Xiaohai will go first!"