Chapter Seventy-Four: Offerings

  "Qiao'er, where are you? I've been searching for you all day and haven't seen your shadow!" Ling Luo Yu slowly walked towards the foot of Wuxuan Peak, because at the foot of the mountain, there was a very special building.

  The building is square and flat, with the only special feature being its large size. The grand hall alone can accommodate at least a thousand people.

  That can be said to be the fundamental place for all Xuanxue Zong pre-heavenly boundary disciples, because that is where they are provided with food.

  There were all kinds of pastries available, and of course wine and meat were also served.

  Ling Luo Yu didn't feel like eating meat at the moment, he just wanted to drink wine, and even get drunk again.

  Gently unfasten the wine gourd at his waist, raise his head, and with a flutter of his sleeves, he drained the last mouthful of wine from the gourd.

  The liquor went down his throat, and the intoxicating effect surged up. Ling Luo's footsteps seemed to have grown larger, and her speed also seemed to have increased suddenly.

  It was just dinner time then, and the hall was bustling with people coming and going.

  "Brother Chen, in three more days it will be the Grand Ceremony of Worshiping the Gods. With your cultivation, you will definitely be selected to become an inner disciple. You should know that during each Grand Ceremony of Worshiping the Gods, twenty outer disciples with the most outstanding cultivation will be directly promoted to core disciples!"

  "Yes, Brother Chen, you have already reached the pinnacle of success every day. This time, among those twenty quotas, there must be one for you!"

  "If Chen was really selected as an inner disciple, he would definitely not forget all of you brothers!" The speaker was a one-eyed thin man, who was obviously the outer disciple known as Big Brother Chen.

  He paused, and the one-eyed man said: "Every year at the ceremony to worship the gods, in addition to selecting twenty disciples to give them the foundation-building pill, they will also select a sacrifice to offer to the gods. Alas, I don't know which poor guy it will be this time!"

  As for the sacrificial offerings, those few people couldn't help but look gloomy, because they all knew that every time a grand ceremony was held to sacrifice to the gods, the sacrificial offerings would only be chosen from among outer door disciples like themselves. As for the inner door disciples and core disciples, they were the foundation of the Xuanxiao Sect's future, and choosing them as sacrificial offerings was something the sect couldn't afford to do!

  "Hey brothers, what's the point of worrying about those annoying things? There are so many outer sect disciples in the Xuanxiao Sect, but there's only one offering. How unlucky can we be to run into each other like this? Come on, let's have a drink!" The one-eyed man picked up his bowl, filled it to the brim, and downed it in one gulp.

  …………

  "In three more days, the Grand Ceremony of Worship? How could I not know!" Ling Luoyu stepped slowly into the grand hall, seeing that all the inner disciples were gathered in groups of three or five, basically everyone discussing issues related to the Grand Ceremony of Worship. Ling Luoyu furrowed her brow.

  "Although I don't know what this ritual is all about, it should be a big deal for the Xuanxiao Sect, or else these outer sect disciples wouldn't take it so seriously! It just so happens that I've been bored lately, and now I can broaden my horizons!"

  "Brother Du, bring a few jugs of good wine!" Ling Luoyu slowly walked to the window where they were picking up wine and meat, and called out softly.

  "Hey, it's Junior Brother Ling! You just got that wine a few days ago and you've already finished it off. Do you want some roasted meat? This is freshly baked, straight from the oven. It'd be a waste if you don't have any!" A pale-faced outer sect disciple poked his head out of the window, smiling lightly at Ling Luoye.

  Ling Luo Yu has been coming here frequently to collect wine and meat, and with his purple shirt, he stands out even more. With a few trips back and forth, Ling Luo Yu's relationship with some of the outer sect disciples has become quite harmonious. And Du Leng, who is in charge of distributing wine and meat, just so happens to be one of the few outer sect disciples who gets along well with Ling Luo Yu.

  Upon hearing Du Leng's words, Ling Luoyu smiled lightly and said: "Du Shixiong, no need for meat, I just want to drink some wine, help me get more!"

  Du Leng swept his eyes over Ling Xiaoyu and smiled, "Ling Shidi, in three days' time, it will be the Xuanmie Sect's once-in-a-decade Grand Ceremony to Offer Sacrifices to the Gods. Such a grand occasion, don't get drunk and miss it!"

  "Don't worry, Brother Du. I also want to broaden my horizons at this grand ceremony for the gods. I definitely won't miss it!" Ling Luoye took the wine jug from Du Leng's hand and smiled as he walked out of the hall.

  "Ling Shidi, you're here! We've been searching all over for you!" Just as they walked out of the gate, two inner door disciples in green robes approached Ling Luoye.

  Ling Luo Yu was taken aback, these two inner disciples were also familiar to him, but usually they had an arrogant attitude and were cold towards Ling Luo Yu, so why did they suddenly become enthusiastic today?

  With a slight bow, Ling Luo said: "It's Zhang Shixiong and Zhao Shixiong, I don't know what brings the two of you to find me?"

  The one on the left, Zhang Shixiong, smiled and said: "In three days, it will be the Grand Sacrifice Ceremony. I'm sure you know that, Ling Shidi? Chen Changlao really values you highly. During the ceremony, there will be many people around, and to avoid any accidents happening to you, Chen Changlao has specifically instructed us two to take good care of you during these few days. We'll follow your orders!"

  He glanced at the wine jug in Ling Luoyu's hand, and Zhao Shixiong slightly furrowed his brow, then said: "Ling Shidi, these days you'd best not touch any strong-smelling foods or meats. Chen Changlao specially instructed us to have you undergo fragrance fumigation and bathing for three days, abstaining from pungent foods!"

  "It's not easy to become Master Chen, the old man is concerned about himself again. It's just a ceremony to worship the gods, but he still has to burn incense and bathe, abstain from meat and fish, making such a big fuss!" Ling Luoyu was slightly stunned.

  The ancients said, offering excessive affection when there is no need, is either deceitful or thieving.

  Judging from Old Man Chen's attitude towards himself recently, he absolutely wouldn't suddenly take himself so seriously. Could there be some hidden reason behind this?

  After glancing at the two brothers, Ling Luoyu always felt that there was something untrue in their words, but where it was wrong, Ling Luoyu couldn't quite put his finger on.

  Since she couldn't think of anything, Ling Luoyu simply gave up thinking altogether.

  Anyway, with this physical condition, I don't know how much longer I can hold on, and Ling Luoyu is too lazy to care about it.

  Nodding at Zhao, Ling Luoyu casually walked towards his own cave, while Zhang and Zhao followed closely behind, as if afraid that Ling Luoyu would suddenly disappear, not daring to fall a single step behind.