In the center of the main hall of the Central Divine Temple, a huge scroll was enshrined year-round. It depicted a towering ancient tree reaching into the clouds, its leaves lush and verdant, its trunk straight and tall.
On the scroll, the veins of the leaves were clearly visible, and the ancient tree was so lifelike that it seemed to be rooted to the wall where the scroll was hung. The attendants who changed the offerings daily, if they stood beneath the painting for too long, could almost hear the rustling of leaves.
At this moment, blue smoke suddenly emerged from a corner of the scroll, followed by a tongue of flame that quickly engulfed the entire painting.
The attendant changing the offerings was stunned. After a moment of paralysis, he cried out in panic, "This is bad! The Wood God is enraged!"
At the same time, in the Enlightenment Chamber of Chongming Pavilion, the inner hall of Qing Shen Pavilion, the inner hall of Ziling Pavilion, and the inner hall of Muyue Pavilion, all the ancient tree scrolls hanging there spontaneously combusted, as if a warning from an displeased deity.
Bai Shengyi was the first to emerge from the Ten Thousand Wood Forest. Ming Shenshi and Cui Shenshi had just extinguished the fire in the inner hall of Qing Shen Pavilion. The ancient tree scroll was more than half burned, with charred marks snaking upwards along the trunk, emitting a strong burnt smell.
"Shen Nü Bai, you… you were the first one out?" Cui Shenshi was both surprised and delighted, failing to notice Ming Shenshi's veiled gaze.
He rubbed his hands together and approached Bai Shengyi, shamelessly asking, "How many Wood God Stones did you manage to get?"
He knew this woman's cultivation was not ordinary, and perhaps she didn't realize how important Wood God Stones were. Of course, driven by his own selfish desire for greater rewards, Cui Shenshi quickly added, "The person who obtains the most Wood God Stones this year will be specially cultivated by the Divine Temple."
As they spoke, three more people emerged from within.
Donglin Huang appeared disheveled, her white skirt stained with dirt, and spots of blood on her face. However, her expression remained imperious as she strode towards Ming Shenshi.
"Lord Ming Shenshi, I have not failed my mission and have retrieved the Wood God Stone." She waved her hand, and a Wood God Stone the size of a蹴鞠 (a type of ancient Chinese ball game) floated in mid-air.
Cui Shenshi looked at it and let out a sharp intake of breath.
Based on previous years, although Donglin Huang's Wood God Stone was not the purest, its quantity was already among the top.
However, Cui Shenshi still had great confidence in Bai Shengyi, as she was the first to emerge.
But clearly, Ming Shenshi did not intend to give Bai Shengyi a chance to live. He said, "Excellent. You are the first to retrieve a Wood God Stone, and you obtained so much. Truly remarkable."
"Ming Shenshi, our Shen Nü from the Eastern Divine Temple… was the first… to come out."
Before Cui Shenshi could finish speaking, Ming Shenshi fixed him with a deep gaze. "Oh? But Shen Nü Bai did not retrieve a Wood God Stone. Cui Jiu, you should know the rules of the Divine Temple, shouldn't you?"
"Exactly. If Cui Shenshi is reluctant to have your Shen Nü become a sacrifice, I can let her be my assistant in the ritual," Donglin Huang said with a hint of smugness, looking at Bai Shengyi. However, Bai Shengyi's gaze was fixed on the scroll in the hall.
It was as if the scroll attracted her more than anything else.
Donglin Huang bit her lip. "Shen Nü Bai, you're unwilling?"
Bai Shengyi moved her fingers, and a thin tendril of vine, like a jade-green bracelet, coiled around her wrist.
"It's not a matter of willingness, but of whether it's needed," Bai Shengyi said with a half-smile, taking out a Wood God Stone even larger than Donglin Huang's. "Ming Shenshi, I have retrieved a Wood God Stone."
She was the most obedient to the rules.
Ming Shenshi's mouth drooped. His smile remained gentle, yet the temperature in Qing Shen Pavilion dropped several degrees. "Then Shen Nü Bai will be the main officiant for this Winter Solstice ceremony."
Behind Bai Shengyi, Han Bei presented a Wood God Stone. "This is the Wood God Stone I obtained."
Ming Shenshi's gaze became even more terrifying.
The winning Shen Nü and Shengzi were both from the Eastern Divine Temple?
He did not like this outcome.
Ming Shenshi turned to the young man beside Han Bei. "Shengzi of the Western Divine Temple, you came out first. Where is your Wood God Stone?"
Wu Qun looked up hazily and mumbled, "It was snatched away."
Although he hadn't stayed in the Wood God Stone mine for long, he had managed to grab some Wood God Stones. However, during his panicked escape, the Wood God Stones were stolen.
Who stole them?
Naturally, it was Yue Jun.
However, although Yue Jun had snatched Wu Qun's Wood God Stones, he was blocked in the Ten Thousand Wood Forest by rampaging earth dragons and spirit beasts.
Wu Qun instinctively wanted to help Yue Jun, but listening to the clear, youthful voice exclaiming "What the fuck" and "Go to hell" with every other breath, he was completely stunned.
"Useless waste," Ming Shenshi said coldly, slapping Wu Qun away with a palm strike.
However, at that moment, a brilliant jade light suddenly erupted within Qing Shen Pavilion, causing it to sway violently. Yue Jun appeared before everyone, enveloped in a chilling blade wind. The crowd heard a loud "crack," and the inner hall of Qing Shen Pavilion collapsed!
The Ten Thousand Wood Forest, which had been part of the Central Divine Temple's legacy for countless years, was gone.
"Ming Yao, what are you doing?"
From the third level of the main hall, a question was asked, seemingly casual yet carrying the force of thunder.
The previously imposing Ming Shenshi coughed up a mouthful of blood and knelt on the ground, "Great Divine Master, I beg for forgiveness!"
He was extremely shocked.
The folded space of the Ten Thousand Wood Forest required meticulous maintenance by array masters, and he was currently in charge of it. He had not detected any problems with the array earlier, but now he could sense that the entire Ten Thousand Wood Forest had completely vanished into the chaotic vortex of time and space.
Without the Ten Thousand Wood Forest, it meant no Wood God Stones. Then the Wood God…
Ming Shenshi was agitated. He bowed his head to the ground, humbly saying, "Great Divine Master, the Wood God is enraged today. It is likely that the Ten Thousand Wood Forest is a warning from the Wood God to the Divine Temple. In my subordinate's opinion, it would be best to start the sacrifice early."
He didn't know if the Great Divine Master would believe him, but as things stood, his only option was to blame everything on the Wood God.
After a long pause, the voice echoed, "Agreed."
Ming Shenshi let out a sigh of relief, stood up, pointed at Yue Jun, and instructed the attendants, "Seize this person who disrespects the Wood God. I order that the sacrifice begin tomorrow morning."
Yue Jun intended to struggle, but upon hearing Ming Shenshi's second sentence, he paused. He feigned weakness and was dragged away by the attendants, not forgetting to frame Bai Shengyi before he left.
"The Divine Envoy might not know yet? The Ten Thousand Wood Forest was destroyed by Shen Nü Bai!"
Ming Shenshi immediately turned his terrifying, almost murderous gaze towards Bai Shengyi.
Bai Shengyi smiled playfully. "I believe that with your upright and impartial character, Divine Envoy Ming, you wouldn't allow such a defeated opponent to slander a victor, would you?"
"Yes, yes," Cui Shenshi quickly chimed in. "My Lord, our Shen Nü is the most obedient and well-behaved. And she was the first to emerge. How could she have had the chance to destroy the Ten Thousand Wood Forest? Shen Nü Yue is the most suspicious."
Ming Shenshi, with a dark expression, flicked his sleeves and left.
...
Because the sacrifice was moved up, the entire Central Divine Temple seemed to come alive in an instant. Attendants bustled about, setting up the sacrificial altar, offerings, scrolls, and so on. No one privately discussed the so-called Wood God's warning, nor did they care about the Shen Nü and Shengzi from the Northern and Southern Divine Temples who had not emerged from the Ten Thousand Wood Forest, except for the Divine Masters of the North and South.
The two Divine Masters, with a shared understanding, went to confront the Divine Master of the West.
Bai Shengyi, however, had a rare moment of leisure and intended to examine the Wood God Stones, which the Divine Temple valued so highly. But soon, she couldn't remain idle.
"You say you and Little Reincarnation saw someone in Chongming Pavilion?" Bai Shengyi couldn't help but raise her voice, filled with disbelief.