“Divine Lady!” Shen Yu’s voice echoed across the open ground in front of the temple, carrying a near-desperate devotion. “A locust plague is descending upon Xindu City, and the lives of thousands of people hang by a thread. We beg for the Divine Lady’s mercy! Please save the people of Xindu!”
The refugees behind him followed suit, kowtowing repeatedly. The sound of foreheads hitting the stone slabs was a heavy, rhythmic thud that filled the air.
Everyone was praying.
Yet, the temple remained silent, housing only the clay statue of the goddess.
The painted eyes looked down with a faint, distant expression, as if gazing at all living beings—or perhaps at nothing at all.
How could it be so easy to summon a deity?
Despair began to spread like a shadow.
Just as everyone thought the Divine Lady would not appear, a sudden flash of white light erupted from the temple’s eaves.
From within the light, a spirit fox leaped down, landing gracefully on the stone steps before the main hall.
It was significantly larger than an ordinary fox, with nine tails fanned out behind it like a massive white fan, the tips of its fur shimmering with a faint silver glow.
Its amber eyes held an intelligence and pride that did not belong to a mortal beast.
“The Divine Lady is not in the mortal realm,” it spoke. “The Queen Mother of the West is hosting the Peach Banquet, and the Divine Lady has gone to the Jade Pool to attend.”
Shen Yu’s face turned deathly pale.
The Peach Banquet, the Jade Pool, the Queen Mother of the West—these were myths he had only read about in ancient texts.
Legend had it that a single day in heaven was a year on earth.
By the time the Divine Lady returned from the banquet, Xindu City would likely be a ghost town. Humans were far too insignificant in the face of natural disasters.
His voice was thick with plea. “Lord Spirit Fox, for the sake of the thousands of lives in Xindu City, could you please intercede with the Divine Lady on our behalf?”
“The Jade Pool is the domain of the Queen Mother of the West; it is not a place I can enter at will.” The spirit fox’s tails flicked slightly. “Since you are believers of the Divine Lady, if you pray to the heavens with true sincerity, perhaps she will sense it.”
As the words faded, the spirit fox vanished, leaving the crowd looking at one another in stunned silence.
Suddenly, Shen Jue began walking toward the temple.
“Brother?!” Shen Yu cried out in shock.
Shen Jue ignored him.
Facing the temple doors, his knees bent, and he knelt heavily onto the stone slab.
Thud—
Shen Yu stared at his brother’s back, his mouth hanging open, unable to utter a single word.
Previously, when Shen Jue said he would come to worship the Divine Lady, Shen Yu thought he was merely going through the motions to investigate the miraculous porridge.
He had never seen Shen Jue kneel to anyone, nor did he believe his brother would ever bow his head.
In his memory, his brother had always been like an unyielding mountain, a pillar of strength.
Even on the battlefield, facing enemy forces that vastly outnumbered him with no reinforcements in sight, Shen Jue had fought to the death, holding the border with nothing but sheer courage.
Everyone said the Eldest Young Master had achieved fame and success at a young age because of his noble birth and the status of the Marquis’s estate.
Only Shen Yu knew the truth.
Every bit of that glory had been bought with his brother’s life.
Shen Jue performed his first kowtow.
His forehead touched the ground; the stone slab was ice-cold.
Then.
He stood up, walked three steps, and knelt again.
Kneeling every three steps and kowtowing every nine.
He knelt all the way from the edge of the clearing to the temple doors. His forehead turned a bruised red, stained with dirt and tiny shards of stone.
After a moment of silence, he pulled a short blade from his waist and, without hesitation, sliced open his palm.
Blood gushed out, dripping through his fingers and blooming like dark red flowers on the gray stone surface.
He raised his bleeding hand, his voice raspy and low, emphasizing every word.
“I, Shen Jue, swear here today: if the Divine Lady descends to save the people of Xindu City, I am willing to dedicate the rest of my life to her service. I will give my all and never betray her!”
With that, he kowtowed heavily toward the statue. His forehead struck the stone, and blood began to trickle down his brow.
The setting sun spilled through the temple windows.
It fell across Shen Jue’s back, his bleeding palm, and the downcast eyes of the Divine Lady’s statue.
From far outside the valley, Yun Shu monitored everything through the system’s surveillance.
“Host, why didn't you just show up?” the system asked, confused. “Why go through all this trouble?”
Yun Shu rubbed her chin. “System, things obtained too easily are rarely cherished.”
She watched the crowd praying fervently. “Mm, that’s about enough. It’s time for my grand entrance.”
She opened the system wardrobe, thought for a moment, and equipped the enhanced Goddess of Harvest Set.
At the temple, the people remained on their knees. Even though their legs were numb, no one stood up.
Suddenly, the statue of the Divine Lady erupted in a brilliant golden light.
A figure stepped slowly out of the radiance.
Her pale gold magnificent robes trailed three feet behind her, the layered fabric embroidered with intricate golden wheat ears and cloud patterns that shimmered with a delicate, masterful luster.
A deep red gold-woven sash cinched her slender waist, and the edges of her garments were trimmed with vermillion gold. Wide decorative ribbons hung to her knees, a breathtaking blend of gold and red.
A pure gold crown held her hair high, with fine gold chains dangling from the sides, each adorned with tiny, lustrous pearls.
“The Divine Lady has manifested...”
“This is wonderful...”
“The Divine Lady heard our prayers...”
The crowd wept and laughed as they kowtowed toward her.
After the initial shock, Shen Jue’s gaze shifted to the hem of the Divine Lady’s skirt, and he suddenly found it familiar.
The color and patterns of these robes...
He seemed to have seen them before.
On the day he was ambushed in the forest, when he was gravely injured and his consciousness was fading, he had seen a figure descend from the sky. That girl had been wearing a dress similar to the one the Divine Lady wore now. Though it wasn't as ornate or complex, the style and patterns were identical. Even the scent was the same.
The faint, clean scent of grain—he could not have mistaken it.
Could it be that the person who saved him that day was the Divine Lady?
At this thought, his heart skipped a beat. The look he cast toward her became tinged with a flicker of intensity, no different from the fanatical believers surrounding him.
The Divine Lady held a stalk of Nine-Ear Grain in her hand—its stem was pure gold, its leaves green jade, and its fruit sparkling rubies.
Her gaze slowly swept over the kneeling crowd, her eyes filled with both compassion and majesty.
Once the chaotic voices of the people subsided, she spoke. Her voice wasn't loud, yet it rang out like striking metal, clearly reaching the ears of everyone present.
“I have heard your prayers.”
That single sentence caused everyone to burst into tears once more.
The Divine Lady had truly heard them; she had come from the Jade Pool to the mortal realm to save them.
After a long moment, her gaze moved from the crowd toward Xindu City in the southeast.
“The descent of a natural disaster is part of the cycle of heaven and earth. Deities are not permitted to interfere with the order of the Heavenly Dao at will.”
She lowered her eyes slightly. “However, this locust plague is no natural disaster. It is the work of evil spirits.”
Everyone’s eyes widened in an instant. Even Shen Jue and Shen Yu were so stunned by the statement that it took them a long time to react.
“Evil spirits?”
“No wonder this plague is so terrifying.”
“So it was evil spirits all along!”
“Please, Divine Lady, save us...”
The refugees whispered among themselves, their eyes filled with terror.
“When demons bring chaos to the world, all living beings suffer.”
The Divine Lady’s tone was steady, solemn, and holy. “As a deity, I cannot sit idly by.”
“I shall personally go to Xindu City to suppress the evil.”
Her words carried immense weight.
“Long live the Divine Lady!”
“The Divine Lady saves us from suffering!”
“The Divine Lady is most merciful!”
The shouts rose in waves, one after another, like the tide crashing against the rocks.
Yun Shu watched this scene with great satisfaction.
Now.
She could officially enter Xindu City with a legitimate reason, and better yet, she was being begged by the people to help them.
Who would doubt her?
As for where the disaster came from...
That was none of their business.
“You two shall accompany me.”
Hearing this, Shen Jue and Shen Yu were both startled. They had not expected the Divine Lady to call upon them specifically.
The brothers exchanged a look, seeing the same shock, confusion, and nervousness in each other's eyes.
Before they could respond.
The Divine Lady raised her fair hand and gave her wide sleeve a gentle flick.
A carriage appeared out of thin air.
Its body was a pristine, translucent white, with silver bells hanging from the four corners that chimed with a clear, distant sound even without a breeze.
Two mythical beasts stood silently before the carriage, their four hooves treading upon clouds.
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