Chapter 1812: Chapter 1812: So This Is Where They Were Waiting for Her

At first Han Yan still felt a bit strange that the guards at the city gate were so lax, but once they entered the city she understood: aside from the outer wall, Tianyang City had four inner walls, dividing the whole city from inside to outside into five sections. Each time you entered another inner city, your identity had to be verified again, each check stricter than the last, and every wall was protected by a Defensive Array, so they weren’t worried about any danger at all.

"Where are we going now?" Shen Yuhe asked the others.

"It’s getting late, why don’t we find an inn first and settle down," Wen Gaoren said.

Anyway, they had arrived a few days early; going to the Heavenly Sun Temple tomorrow would be the same.

"We’d better go register at the Heavenly Sun Temple first and let them assign us lodgings; no need to waste money," Sikong Qinglan said.

This sacrificial ceremony was tied to the struggle over that Heaven and Earth Treasure, so they needed to register in advance. Of course that wasn’t the main point; the main point was that once they got there, the Heavenly Sun Temple would arrange their lodgings, and there’d be no need to waste money. Having lived through bitter days rattling along in an ox cart, running around hungry, Sikong Qinglan didn’t want to waste a single coin.

"That works too, let’s go to the Heavenly Sun Temple first," Mu Hanyan said. The relic Soul Orbs still hadn’t been turned into money, and the Silver Tael she had extorted from Long Wudang and Ou Mingzhi and the others the last two times had mostly been spent on some of the lowest-grade Cultivation resources. Better save where they could.

"Or, maybe forget it, let’s go find an inn," Shen Yuhe suddenly objected.

"What’s wrong?" Mu Hanyan looked at Shen Yuhe in puzzlement.

As far as she knew, Shen Yuhe wasn’t someone who spent lavishly; many times she was even more frugal than Sikong Qinglan.

"N-nothing, I just worry it’s too late and we’ll cause trouble for the Heavenly Sun Temple," Shen Yuhe hesitated, then shook her head and said.

"What does that matter? It’s their duty in the first place," Sikong Qinglan said dismissively.

"Alright then," Shen Yuhe didn’t object again.

After repeated identity checks, Mu Hanyan finally arrived at the Heavenly Sun Temple in the center of Tianyang City. Of course, this temple was far more magnificent and imposing than the Huayu Temple; standing below and looking up, she couldn’t even see the spire that symbolized the temple’s status.

"Temple grounds, unauthorized persons keep away." Though he knew Mu Hanyan and the others had gone through repeated checks and their identities shouldn’t be a problem, the Priest guarding the gate still dutifully spoke up.

"We’re Priests from the Huayu Temple." Mu Hanyan directly handed over her Lifebound Soul Token.

"Huayu Temple?" The leading Priest’s expression turned strange.

The Huayu Temple hadn’t attended any celebrations or ceremonies of the other temples for nearly twenty years. Many people had some idea of their plight, but no one had expected them to show up this time.

"So you’re the Main Priest, my apologies for earlier!" Only when he took the Lifebound Soul Token Mu Hanyan handed over did that Priest come back to his senses, and he no longer dared to slight them. No matter how down-and-out the Huayu Temple was, a dignified Main Priest wasn’t someone a Little Priest like him could offend.

As he spoke, he returned the Lifebound Soul Token to Mu Hanyan.

"We’ve come to take part in the sacrificial ceremony; please report our arrival," Mu Hanyan said as she put away the Lifebound Soul Token.

"Sacrificial ceremony?" That Priest’s expression grew even stranger.

If it were an ordinary celebratory ceremony, that’d be one thing; showing their faces to remind people they still existed was fine—after all, they had once been one of the most exalted temples on the Continent. But this sacrificial ceremony was tied to a Heaven and Earth Treasure said to appear only once in a million years; the various Master Priests would surely fight to the death over it. For the Huayu Temple to rush over specifically to join the sacrificial ceremony now—calling it looking for a sense of existence was generous, calling it courting death would be more accurate.

They knew full well that the Huayu Temple hadn’t received any Cultivation resources from the Life God Temple for twenty-odd years; they’d only preserved the name. With the old generation of Priests gone and a new Main Priest in place, how could she possibly have the strength to contend with the Master Priests of the other temples?

"Is it not allowed? Do we not have the right to participate?" Seeing the other’s gaze grow increasingly odd, Mu Hanyan said unhappily.

She could tell perfectly well what that look meant—wasn’t it just that they thought she had no strength compared to the other temples and that coming to take part in the sacrificial ceremony was just throwing her life away?

Had it been a few months earlier, Lady Mu would have been at least a little worried. But now she was completely assured. Before, she simply didn’t understand how strong Divine Priest Divine Techniques really were, nor how great the gap between different ranks was, so she lacked confidence. But after crossing hands with Ou Mingzhi, Xiang Qiuzhan and the rest, her confidence had shot up.

From what she’d learned, the Master Priests of the Twelve Divine Temples were all just Tenth Rank Divine Priests. Even if there were one or two who were stronger, at most they’d be Low-level Divine Heart Priests. Anyone higher than that would go to the Life God Temple to obtain richer Cultivation resources, higher-ranked Cultivation Techniques and Priest Divine Techniques—staying in the Twelve Divine Temples wasn’t worth it.

Facing opponents like that, even if she couldn’t beat them, she was confident she could protect herself. If they really pushed her, she still had Fifth Rank Swordsman cultivation. The combination of sword technique and Divine Arts wasn’t as simple as one plus one; it was just that once she struck she had to kill in one blow—either don’t act, or act to kill. The risk was a bit high, that was all.

"No, no, I’ll go report right away." Seeing Mu Hanyan’s face darken, the other didn’t dare babble on and hurriedly turned to run toward the temple.

"No need to report." Just then, a young Priest walked out to meet them.

"Greetings, Lord Long." The Priests nearby hurriedly bowed.

"I’m Long Wucuo, Prayer Priest of the Heavenly Sun Temple. You’re Mu Hanyan?" The young Priest looked at Mu Hanyan with arrogant eyes and asked.

Mu Hanyan nodded, but inwardly she was already turning the name over. Long Wucuo—sounded like someone from the Long Family too. She wondered what his relation was to Long Wudang.

She’d originally thought to exchange a few polite words, but once she realized he was from the Long Family, she couldn’t be bothered.

"You want to take part in the sacrificial ceremony?" Long Wucuo asked coldly.

"That’s right," Mu Hanyan said.

"I understand. I’ll have your names entered; just come back in three days for the sacrificial ceremony." Long Wucuo waved a hand and turned to walk inside.

"Wait." Sikong Qinglan was still thinking about lodgings. Seeing him turn to leave, she hurriedly called out.

"What else?" Long Wucuo paused and asked.

"Lord Long, I think you forgot to arrange lodgings for us," Sikong Qinglan said sheepishly. It was supposed to be done according to procedure, but bringing it up herself made her feel a bit embarrassed.

"Oh, lodgings? There aren’t any. You’ll have to figure it out yourselves," Long Wucuo said stiffly.

"How could there not be?" Sikong Qinglan asked, puzzled. The Heavenly Sun Temple was much bigger than the Huayu Temple; how could it not have even a few guest rooms?

"Originally there were, but you came late. They’re already full with Priests from the other temples," Long Wucuo said.

"Full?" Sikong Qinglan sounded a bit doubtful.

"What, you think all the temples are like your Huayu Temple, with people practically all run off? This sacrificial ceremony is a grand event that comes only once in a million years for our Twelve Divine Temples. The Priests who’ve come to observe are beyond counting. Where would we find space to leave for you?" A trace of mockery flickered in Long Wucuo’s eyes.

What did he mean, the people of the Huayu Temple had practically all run off? Both Sikong Qinglan and Shen Yuhe showed anger on their faces.

Han Yan’s eyes narrowed slightly. She suddenly felt that, oh, so this was what was waiting for her here. People of the Long Family... heh.

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