Chapter 8 008 I don't want to sign up for a temple that someone else has already used...
The Ascension to Immortality Assembly is held every seven years and existed long before the establishment of the Yun Chi Kingdom, with a history of over a hundred years. It is a competition held by the Heavenly Realm to select new gods. Not only does the Heavenly Realm and the royal family attach great importance to it, but even the large and small pilgrimage guilds are eager to participate, preparing to burn incense and attract followers for their gods in order to achieve a good ranking in the Ascension to Immortality Assembly.
In the previous Ascension Ceremony, Qingyuan won first place thanks to Yun Tianjiao's relentless spending. He became known throughout the world overnight, and the number of worshippers increased rapidly, allowing him to successfully ascend to the rank of Immortal Venerable.
Therefore, everyone is very curious about which celestial being the eldest princess will choose to support at this year's Ascension Ceremony.
Zhiwei, who had been by Yun Tianjiao's side from beginning to end, naturally garnered a great deal of attention.
"After today, you will probably have many more worshippers, and you will no longer have to worry about your divine essence being destroyed."
As Yun Tianjiao sat on the viewing platform, she lost count of how many times people had come up to her to ask about Zhiwei's divine title, without even realizing the ambiguity in their tone.
"If Your Highness is not pleased, you may simply not tell them the title of this humble god." Zhiwei remained as respectful and gentle as ever.
Yun Tianjiao scoffed, "Cutting off someone's livelihood is like killing their parents, let alone the path of the gods? I won't settle such a grudge."
Zhiwei stopped speaking and stood quietly beside her, her long eyelashes lowered, revealing no emotion.
A disturbance began near the incense-lighting platform, and the noise from the crowd grew louder and louder.
A moment later, a vast expanse of brocade clouds rolled in from the horizon, the sky brightened, and colorful clouds filled the sky. Two rows of cranes slowly flew in from the rosy clouds, celestial music floated in the air, and golden light scattered all over the incense burner.
The tablets of all the gods on the platform lit up at the same time. The tablet of the Heavenly Venerable Lin Shen was in the next row. The three statues of the gods enshrined side by side suddenly burst out with dazzling light, so bright and dazzling that it was impossible to look directly at them.
"The Three Divine Lords have revealed their true forms!"
"The Three Divine Lords have actually come to the mortal realm in person!"
"Wow! It really is the Three Divine Lords!!!"
Yun Tianqi, who had been absent-minded, finally perked up a bit and issued an edict to offer incense and candles to the three deities. The amount of incense for each deity was exactly the same, without any difference, and the ceremony was perfectly fair.
The worshippers below the stage erupted in cheers, and the originally chaotic crowd instantly split into three distinct camps: the worshipper of the God of Ink and Sorrow wearing an iris, the worshipper of the God of Yuli holding a pink paper umbrella, and the worshipper of the God of Gongxin holding a small white porcelain jar.
The three groups surged and cheered, their numbers almost equal. In fact, to show that their own deity was more popular, they shouted at the top of their lungs in an attempt to overwhelm the other two groups.
Wow, there are so many people!
Three figures emerged from the three statues. The one standing in the middle was a boy who looked to be sixteen or seventeen years old. Upon seeing the dense crowd below the stage, he smiled and exclaimed in amazement.
His eyes were bright and playful, and he wore a bright green robe adorned with flowers. His thick, long hair was tied into six thick braids, with one braid hanging down on each shoulder and the rest tied into a bunch and hanging down his back.
The young deity wore a string of purple irises at his waist and held a spherical glass lamp in his hand. He had a smiling face, fair skin, and red lips, which made people happy at first glance.
This is the God of Joy, Mo Bei, who currently governs human happiness.
As soon as he opened his mouth, the irises below the stage immediately erupted in noise, bowing down and shouting cheers.
If the worshippers were already quite frenzied on the day the Azure Origin God of Yunji Mountain manifested, compared to the grand spectacle of the three top-tier gods today, it was nothing more than a drop in the ocean.
"Shh—be quiet, or you'll hurt your throat." Mo Bei, the God of War, put a single finger to his lips, making a shushing gesture, and winked at his worshippers.
The sea of irises seemed to have lost its silence, instantly transforming from a raging torrent into a still pool.
At this moment, two other deities also stepped forward, but both of them were clearly quiet and not as lively as the God of Ink Sorrow.
The Goddess Yu Li, who governs fertility in the human world, is the only female among the three deities. She wears a white robe with dark patterns, and apart from a pink paper umbrella in her hand, she has no other adornments. Her worshippers are mostly married women yearning for pregnancy, and they are much more composed than those of the Goddess Mo Bei. The Goddess Yu Li merely glanced at them with compassionate and loving eyes, and the worshippers below the platform fell silent.
The remaining deity, Gongxin, is in charge of all agricultural affairs in the world. His worshippers are usually not very noticeable. Just like the temple where Yun Tianjiao and Zhiwei found the fortune teller three days ago, it seemed deserted. But when it comes to a grand occasion like today, Gongxin worshippers, who are usually nowhere to be seen, will suddenly appear from all corners and gather together, creating a huge spectacle.
The pilgrims who pay homage to the gods have the widest age range and the most even gender ratio among all the deities.
After all, the god of agriculture, who is in charge of the harvest, is worshipped by everyone, and even if he never shows his face, he will not be forgotten.
Therefore, Gong Xin, who was standing on the incense-lighting platform, did not interact with his worshippers with his eyes or gestures like Mo Bei and Yu Li. Instead, he held a white porcelain jar in his hands, his eyes were slightly closed, and he looked like he was about to fall to the ground and fall asleep at any moment.
Yun Tianjiao recalled the few times he had seen Gongxin God Venerable over the years, and it seemed that he had never seen him sober.
People say that Gongxin is the god of agriculture, and the jar he holds contains all the grains of the world. However, Yun Tianjiao strongly suspects that it doesn't contain grains, but rather some kind of elixir that makes people feel like they're in heaven. The reason why the god Gongxin is out of his mind is entirely because he is addicted to drugs and cannot extricate himself.
The Divine Venerable Mo Bei proclaimed in a clear voice: "The Heavenly Venerable attaches great importance to this Ascension Ceremony and has commanded us to descend to the mortal realm. To allow more deities the opportunity to ascend and to encourage new gods to actively register, this Ascension Ceremony has specially set up a grand prize for the champion—"
At this point, he pulled something from his sleeve—a gleaming silver mirror. The back of the mirror was inlaid with multicolored gemstones, which sparkled brilliantly in the light.
"This is a magical artifact I personally crafted, the Reincarnation Mirror. With this mirror, one can observe the past lives of the wielder. Although it is not of great use, it is still a treasure that can reveal the secrets of heaven. If you are interested in this item, then come and register to compete for the title!"
After the God of Ink Sorrow finished speaking, the God of Yu Li threw out a scroll in his hand, which was suspended in mid-air by divine power and could be clearly seen within a hundred miles.
"These are the specific registration rules. Please read them carefully and do not miss this opportunity due to incorrect registration. The registration deadline is March. We await good news from the gods."
On occasions like today, not only do worshippers come to pray, but countless unknown minor deities also mingle in the crowd. Yu Li's words were directed at these minor deities who were preparing to sign up for the competition.
"Huh? The registration requirements for this year's Ascension to Immortality Conference are quite strict. They actually require a thousand temples to participate." Yun Tianqi glanced at the registration rules and couldn't help but be surprised.
Lai Shun bowed and chimed in, "Who says otherwise? Besides, only gods below the level of Immortal Venerable can participate. I don't think there were so many restrictions before."
"It's because the Ascension Ceremony is so popular. The Heavenly Venerable made this rule probably because he was afraid that some celestial deities at the level of Immortal Venerable would participate in order to attract more participants and steal the opportunity for new gods to advance," Shen Qiongzhi said excitedly from the side.
At this moment, her eyes were practically shining. These rules were tailor-made for her Immortal Lord Zhu Jing, exempting him from the participation of Immortal Venerables. Among the gods of the Immortal Lord level, Zhu Jing was the first to do so. In this way, winning the championship was practically a foregone conclusion.
After the rules were announced and the prized treasures were displayed, the opening ceremony of the Ascension Assembly was concluded, with the Divine Lord Mo Bei completing the lamp-lighting ceremony on the incense-lighting platform.
Three beams of divine light flew into the sky, and the miraculous phenomena that filled the sky disappeared. The incense-lighting platform returned to its usual state.
The royal celebration banquet had just begun, with royalty and nobles toasting and discussing which gods were most likely to be promoted.
Yun Tianqi was in high spirits. He stood up, holding his wine cup, and exclaimed, "With the protection of the gods, my Yunchi Kingdom will surely enjoy peace, prosperity, and lasting glory!"
The officials and their families rose to their feet, raised their glasses, and echoed the call: "May the nation be prosperous and the people at peace, and may its prosperity last forever."
One of the cold laughs stood out as particularly discordant.
At a time like this, who would dare to spoil the fun?!
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw that the person who was sneering was none other than Shen Hengzhen, the son of the Prime Minister. They then quietly withdrew their gazes and pretended not to have heard anything.
Yun Tianqi wasn't going to pretend. After a moment of stunned silence, he staggered over and squatted down in front of Shen Hengzhen's seat.
Prime Minister Shen, who was standing next to Shen Hengzhen, immediately stood up and knelt on the ground.
Only Shen Hengzhen remained unmoved, his face dark.
Yun Tianqi didn't care and patted him on the shoulder with a hint of alcohol on his face. "Brother Hengzhen, I have already distributed the temporary conscription certificates you requested to the refugees in the city. I have also ordered a retrial of the case you mentioned regarding the embezzlement of disaster relief funds. Today is a happy day, so cheer up!"
“Your Majesty…” Shen Hengzhen wanted to say something, but was interrupted by a cough from the Prime Minister Shen. In the end, he could only force out a smile that was more like a grimace. “Your Majesty is wise, which is a blessing for Yunchi.”
Yun Tianqi was satisfied and returned to his seat to continue enjoying himself, completely unaware of the tense atmosphere that had gripped the court officials just moments before.
Yun Tianjiao propped his head up and watched from the side, thinking: With her brother like this, how can she die in peace?
"Your Highness," Zhiwei called softly from the side.
Yun Tianjiao raised his slightly tipsy eyes.
"Hmm?" He let out a drawn-out sound, already tinged with drunkenness.
"Your Highness, would you be willing to allow me to participate in the Ascension Ceremony and win the grand prize for you?"
The Mirror of Reincarnation, capable of revealing past and present lives, is indeed something Yun Tianjiao desperately needs, trapped in the curse of reincarnation. Yun Tianjiao is also planning to find a suitable person to obtain this item for her.
"Oh? How do you know you can win?" Yun Tianjiao asked, raising an eyebrow.
"If Your Highness desires it, we will fight to the death to obtain it for you."
Zhiwei answered earnestly, which actually gave Yun Tianjiao the illusion that he would die for her.
But an illusion is still an illusion.
“You’re not even qualified to participate. Didn’t you see what it says?” Yun Tianjiao pointed to the divine scroll hanging in the sky. “There are supposed to be a thousand temples, and you don’t even have one.”
Zhiwei paused, then lowered her eyes and said, "Your Highness built it for me, and I have it."
Yun Tianjiao blinked, then suddenly burst out laughing.
So that's where she was waiting.
"Zhiwei, you're too impatient..."
Taking advantage of his drunken state, Yun Tianjiao stretched out his finger and poked Zhiwei's handsome face.
"However, you've wasted your time. Even I can't build a thousand temples for you within three months. If you're tired of staying here, you're free to leave and find another way out. I won't stop you."
Unexpectedly, Zhiwei suddenly raised her eyes, looked at her, and said slowly, "There is one person who can build a thousand temples within three months."
A note from the author:
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