in2ebook Chapter 210: Damn it, my disciple is the Demon Lord 29
Chapter 210: Damn it, my disciple is the Demon Lord 29
On his head he wore a crown made of silver metal, engraved with the changing shapes of the moon. The full moon in the center was a unique bright red color, as if a huge ruby was embedded in it.
Her hair was tied behind her with a red ribbon, with two braids on each side hanging in front of her chest, and a crystal clear gem pendant was wrapped between her hair.
She still wore a mask, but it was different from before. This time it was more delicate and beautiful. The edge was like a bird's wings, and the pattern was the texture of feathers. Her eyes were transparent and pure, a light misty blue.
The beautiful woman has a slender figure, wearing a thin silver-white long skirt with light gauze draped over her shoulders. The skirt hangs to the ground but does not drag. Her waist, hem, neck and wrists are all decorated with silver chains in the shape of stars and moons.
Ye Xuan stared at her intently. Even though he had seen her in the palace before, he still felt amazed at this moment.
After sending her to the bottom of the stairs, two other priests guided her up.
Shi Qing walked barefoot up the steps covered with thick blankets and stood in the center of the platform under everyone's gaze.
The shoulders seemed to be carved, the waist as if stretched thin, and the rings and ornaments jingled when she moved.
When the music stopped, everyone, whether they were kings, nobles or common people, waited with bated breath.
Ye Xuan stood upright on the stage, like all the people of the Hades, quietly looking up at their high priest. Lin Zhou in the crowd also did not blink. The woman was glowing, attracting everyone's burning and respectful gazes.
The heavy sound of bells and drums gradually sounded like a light breeze. Shi Qing began to dance, and with every move of her hands and feet, her jade pendants collided with each other, making clanging sounds.
"Open the gates of heaven, and let me ride on the mysterious boat. Let the pioneers of the wind cross the great river and spread my spirit..."
Accompanied by the pious and solemn tunes of prayer, under the moonlight, the woman looked like a fairy from heaven, spotless. She turned around, emitting a bright and cold light all over her body, as if it were real and illusory.
"I am surrounded by dark mountains, riding on the clear air to cross the sea. I am picking the sparse hemp and leaving it to my lonely home..."
The woman took out a branch of elegant osmanthus from somewhere, and as she waved her hands, the golden laurel flew in the wind.
A moon-like bridge appeared from this shore and gradually extended towards the center of the river.
Everyone looked at this magical and solemn scene and hardly dared to breathe, for fear of disturbing the Moon Goddess and the messenger on the stage.
Even Ye Xuan had a serious and pious look on his face.
"…I miss you more and more, I hope you will come and not lose anything."
The music gradually became gentle and melodious, like the advice and blessings from the gods.
The woman in the center of the platform was still spinning, her skirt fluttering and her jade bells shining brightly, while the bridge that appeared out of thin air had already extended to the opposite side.
In the crowd, transparent cloaked people began to appear one by one. They walked onto the bridge silently.
As if they heard something, a few of them turned back curiously to look at the woman dancing under the moon.
In the night, the full moon began to turn red little by little, but Shi Qing seemed unaware of it. She released the spiritual power in her hands and struggled to maintain the bridge.
The five musical notes were mixed, and the 竇 and 瑟 did not stop, so she had to continue dancing.
The elder in charge of the sacrifice said that the Mingshan tribe had never had sunlight, only a moon that remained unchanged for tens of millions of years.
The underworld people here are not all human. Most of them are souls who have not yet been reincarnated into the world. After a person dies, if the soul has not dispersed, it will gather in the underworld mountains and seas.
Because it is difficult to find a priest, extremely strong witchcraft power is needed to maintain the formation of the bridge. If the crossing of the river fails, the dead souls who fall into the Wu Yue River will suffer extreme torture and pain and will never be reborn.
Therefore, this sacrificial ceremony is only held once every fifty years.
At this time, the priests chosen by the underworld would perform a prayer dance, asking the Moon Goddess to open up the sky and create a path, allowing her to guide the lost souls in the underworld mountains and seas to cross the Wu Yue River and go on to the next journey.
Shi Qing spun in circles, even though her spiritual energy was rapidly being depleted, even though she felt dizzy and exhausted, she still spun.
The music didn't stop, and the souls of the dead had not yet been completely saved.
She didn't dare stop.
It’s a grand sacrificial ceremony that only takes place once every fifty years.
If Master and Senior Brothers have not yet reincarnated, then would they exist among the three thousand transparent undead souls?
Will they suddenly remember the little disciple/sister who was always disobedient halfway through their walk, and then look towards the platform as if realizing something?
If she kept jumping, they could watch her the whole time.
Even if their memories were fading, even if they might not remember her existence.
But if there was even the slightest possibility, she wanted to be seen by them.
One last look...
The girl whom you once protected with your life is now seeing you off.
There is nothing sadder than separation, and there is nothing happier than making new acquaintances.
Under the red moon, the woman in the silver dress raised her neck high, and crystal clear tears slid down her beautiful face.
The people around stared with their eyes wide open, staring intently at this shocking scene; there was dead silence and solemnity.
Lin Zhou didn't dare to blink, his dark and clear eyes reflected that beautiful and outstanding person clearly.
The moonlight turned completely red, the music gradually faded, and when the last note fell, the bridge turned into floating frost in the air and disappeared. However, everyone's expression changed from shock and emotion to horror.
The moment the heroine on the high platform stopped, she fell straight down——
Her hair was flying and her clothes were fluttering, like a goddess who had fallen from the altar to the mortal world.
Lin Zhou's pupils suddenly shrank, and regardless of his identity, he directly circulated his spiritual power and ran over there.
Ye Xuan was also startled for a moment, his eyes fixed on that figure.
Amid the panicked screams of everyone around him, Shi Qing fell directly into the surging river with a splash. Immediately afterwards, another black figure jumped in.
The crowd suddenly became noisy and chaotic.
The right guardian beside him quickly came over. Ye Xuan raised his hand and said in a deep voice: "Seal off all exits and don't let her leave."
No matter how cleverly a person disguises himself, his aura cannot be changed overnight. He already knew that Shi Qing was not a priestess, from the moment she entered the Nether Abyss Pavilion to steal the Scarlet Sky Sword.
However, the previous priest died in a court struggle, and even the fox who was later replaced was just there to support the occasion.
He deliberately trapped Song Yu, waiting for Shi Qing's arrival.
He had thought of many strategies and originally had no expectations for the task of ferrying the dead.
But she didn't expect Shi Qing to knock on the door herself and deliberately let the elders explain the origin of the sacrifice in front of her, in order to use her spiritual power to conduct the ceremony smoothly and consolidate his position among the people of the underworld.
I was indeed shocked by Shi Qing's dance to pray to the gods under the moon just now, but it was only for that moment.
He made a deal with the old devil to keep her here.
His people, Ye Xuan, cannot live forever in the dark mountains and sea without sunlight!
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【Note】
[1] The prayer song comes from Qu Yuan’s Nine Songs.
"Xiang Jun": "Crossing the great river and raising the spirit". The rest are all derived from "Da Siming". Some individual sentences were modified when writing.
[2] Shao Siming: "There is no greater sorrow than separation, and no greater joy than making new acquaintances."