prynovel Chapter 4170 Precious Sacrifice
Chapter 4170 Precious Sacrifice
Chapter 4170 Precious Sacrifice
What's special about it?
The high priest bent down with a puzzled look and carefully examined the little clay figure on the ground.
A moment later, his gaze suddenly paused, fixing on the little clay figure's brow.
There was an extremely thin mist swirling around his brow... The high priest had noticed this before, but at the time he thought it was just dust, since he was covered in mud and ash.
But now, looking closely, it becomes clear that the grime on his body doesn't come off at all; it's like part of his organs. And the mist swirling around his brow is actually a thin fog with special energy properties!
"Did you notice?" The mysterious woman's voice was calm and indifferent.
The high priest nodded slowly, his fingertips hovering in mid-air, as if he wanted to touch it but then silently withdrew them: "The thin mist between his brows is strange... It's like the residual power of some ritual, yet it has an indescribable oddity, as if it's concealing something."
He paused, his brow furrowing slightly: "Moreover, the mist seems to carry a kind of spiritual suggestion, causing people to subconsciously ignore its existence."
It was precisely because of this "mental suggestion" that he subconsciously overlooked the unusual features of the little clay figure when he first saw it.
Now, upon closer examination, those previously concealed oddities have surfaced like spider silk, revealing every detail.
Although the high priest noticed the unusual mist, it only deepened his suspicions. After all, rituals in Cloud Harbor City that could conceal one's senses were extremely rare.
Why would such a ritual be performed on a small clay figure? Who performed it? What were they trying to conceal?
Just as the high priest was filled with doubt, the mysterious woman beside him said calmly, "It's normal that you didn't notice, because... this is the 'Ritual of Tranquilizing the Spirit.'"
The high priest was taken aback.
This is actually the Wuwang Jingshen Ritual?
A moment later, he came to his senses. No wonder he had initially overlooked the abnormality of the little clay figure; after all, this was an exclusive secret ritual of the God-Slaying Division.
This is a powerful ritual that can even obscure the vision of the gods!
It was precisely because it was powerful enough that the high priest specially sought out a mysterious woman to set up the ritual, in order to suppress the fluctuations of the sacrificial ceremony and avoid disturbing the possible descendant of the creator.
But now, such a special covering ceremony is being performed on a little clay figure? What's this all about?
What is it about him that warrants such a high-profile ceremony to conceal it?
The high priest cast a questioning look at the mysterious woman, who shrugged: "You're asking me? I don't know either. If I didn't deal with these rituals every day in the ceremonial office, I probably wouldn't have been able to figure it out."
"Moreover, the ritual on his body is of a much higher level than the ones I can set up."
"A higher level?" The high priest's eyebrows twitched slightly.
The mysterious woman nodded: "The Wuwang Jingshen Ritual that I can set up is a conventional ritual, and it cannot exist independently of the offerings and ritual patterns."
Simply put, it only works within the range of the ritual array, essentially creating a self-imposed limitation.
"And since he had no offerings or ritual markings to support him, the effect of the ritual could still linger between his eyebrows for a long time, which means that his Wuwang Jingshen ritual was more advanced."
"If nothing unexpected happens, this should be a life-saving item made of precious materials using radiant glass as a carrier." She recalled, "This kind of thing is a one-time consumable, and it was created by an old senior in the department."
“Radiant glass is rare to begin with, and there are not many of these life-saving rituals in existence. I remember Lei Shou had one, but he claimed to have ‘lost’ it years ago.”
"And the timing of his announcement of the 'loss' was precisely when he returned to Sili and no longer recognized Kaia as his student."
The mysterious woman glanced at the unconscious Kaiya beside her, her eyes revealing a knowing look: "Although I don't know what happened, Lei Dong's so-called 'loss' is most likely a lie, and he gave it to this kid instead."
"As for why it was used on this clay figure, it must have been given to him by Kaiya."
"After all, from what I know, Kaiya is a rare hot-blooded idiot... He'll open his heart to someone if he's even slightly moved."
Although what she said was just speculation, her tone was very certain.
Clearly, she was very familiar with Lei Dong and Kaiya.
"According to you, this little clay figure seems to have a good relationship with Kaiya, as you even used your precious life-saving item on him." The high priest looked at the mysterious woman, his tone somewhat probing, "Are you really not going to take him with you?"
The mysterious woman's lips trembled slightly, and she sighed softly, "I also want to take him away, after all, it would be a great achievement. But I don't believe you'll let him go."
"I won't let him go? What do you mean by that?"
She didn't answer, but gave the answer through her actions.
She took out a crystal ball and gently touched the thin mist between the clay figure's eyebrows.
The next second, the thin mist between the clay figure's eyebrows churned for a moment, then returned to calm.
But in the crystal ball in her palm, a picture was clearly reflected—the true appearance of the clay figure's brow after the fog had been removed.
In the center of the image, a blood-red mark is slowly flashing, like a pulsating blood mole, each flicker of light and shadow exuding an eerie allure.
The moment the priest saw the mark, his pupils contracted sharply, and he instantly understood what was happening.
This is... the Blood Mark!
Moreover, it's not an ordinary bloodline mark.
Normally, once the blood mark appears, it will stop flashing; the flashing of the mark has only one possibility: it means that the "Blood God" of the Blood Cult is constantly watching the current sacrifice.
Each flash of light is announcing the coordinates of the offering to its followers!
In other words, this is a precious offering favored by the Blood God!
The Blood God is a deity who is not picky about food, but because he is not picky, he has tasted all kinds of flesh and blood. Very few of them can stand out and be chosen by him to become "precious sacrifices", even fewer than the precious sacrifices of the Chaotic God.
Any blood god's precious sacrifice is absolutely extremely special, and may even be the only one of its kind!
In this situation, the Blood God's gluttony would drive even the followers of the Bloodlust faction to madness.
Although he was the chief priest of the God-worshipping faction, he knew his old rival very well. The reason why the Blood Sacrifice faction was so unscrupulous in carrying out blood sacrifices was because sacrificing rare races would result in receiving a reward from the Blood God, greatly enhancing their own abilities.
If the sacrifice is made to a single race, the feedback received will be enough to allow a low-ranking noble to directly leapfrog a level!
This is why the mysterious woman said it was a great achievement.
Because once she brings the little clay figure back to the God-Slaying Division, the division will definitely give her a generous reward.
But she clearly understood that once she uncovered the truth, she would never let go.
Although the Chaos God is not as obsessed with "rare souls" as the Blood God, nor does he give the Blood Faction such exaggerated feedback, if you can destroy the precious offerings that the Blood God values and make the Blood God suffer a setback, then the Chaos God will remember your merit and you may even be promoted.
In other words, this little clay figure was also a delicacy for the chief priest.
Whether you kill someone directly or offer them as a sacrifice, the Chaos God will respond.
How could he possibly give in under these circumstances?
The mysterious woman naturally understood this principle and never expected to take the little clay figure away.
As for secretly taking the mud figure without revealing the blood-stained mark under the fog, that's practically impossible.
From the moment the high priest notices the ritual of tranquility between the eyebrows, he will inevitably delve into why this ritual exists, and may even clear away the fog to investigate its details, only to find the blood mark in the end.
At that time, once the fog clears and the effects of the Wuwang Jingshen Ritual disappear, the Blood God's gaze will instantly lock onto this place, which will bring endless troubles to both her and the High Priest.
Therefore, she chose to use the crystal ball to directly reveal the truth, which not only made the value of the little clay figure clear but also avoided attracting the attention of the Blood God by directly removing the mark, while also doing the high priest a favor.
The high priest looked at the shimmering bloodstain in the crystal ball, a gleam of joy in his eyes: "I owe you this favor."
"If you really feel you owe me, then sacrifice him to the secret place," the mysterious woman suddenly said.
The high priest raised an eyebrow: "Oh? Why?"
“When Kaiya wakes up, if he asks about his friend’s whereabouts, I can at least say ‘he was chosen by the secret realm,’ which is better than telling him ‘he was swallowed by the Chaos God.’” She spoke calmly, but her eyes flashed with calculation.
In order to win over Lei Dong, he naturally couldn't let Kaiya hold a grudge against him.
Kaiya gave the clay figure his life-saving item, showing that the two had a close relationship. From Kaiya's perspective, "going to the secret realm" was certainly more acceptable than "being devoured by the Chaos God."
Moreover, many people in the world yearn for the secret realm. If Kaiya learns of this, he might even feel gratified for his friend.
The high priest scoffed: "You could easily lie and say his friend ran away."
"Lying is easy, but covering it up is hard." She sneered. "Since there's an easier way, why make yourself miserable?"
After all, for the faction that worships the gods, as long as they intercept the precious sacrifice of the Blood God, no matter what means they use—killing, sacrificing, or offering it directly to the Chaos God—it will ultimately be recorded in the book of merit.
In this situation, the outcome of the priest choosing to send the clay figure into the secret place or to offer it to the chaotic god is essentially the same.
The high priest gave her a deep look and slowly nodded: "It's fine. He has earth elemental talent, which fits the secret realm's recruitment criteria perfectly."
In fact, even if she hadn't mentioned it, he would have eventually sent the clay figure to the chocolate factory anyway.
The reason is quite straightforward: the gods have no shortage of souls, but the chocolate factory does.
Since the final result is the same whether the sacrifice is given to the god of chaos or to the factory, the factory should definitely be given priority.
"What do you plan to do with his physical body after sacrificing his soul?" the mysterious woman asked again.
"You want it?" the high priest asked in return.
“No. Bringing back an empty shell would be a meritorious act, but the lack of a soul would likely cause some trouble. If they find out about our private deal, it will be a problem.” She paused, then added, “What I mean is, it’s best to clean up the physical body completely, so that the Blood God doesn’t have any lingering thoughts.”
The high priest smiled slightly: "Don't worry, I'll handle it well."
"Isn't it rumored that there's a blood prison here? Well then, I'll do as they wish and cultivate myself here."
“The blood of what appears to be a ‘unique species’ would be very appealing to leeches.”
The mysterious woman raised an eyebrow and sneered, "Didn't you say before that the leeches wouldn't even look at the 'blood packs' in the Blood Prison?"
"That's because it wasn't properly 'nurtured'." The high priest didn't care at all: "Spend a little money and take good care of his body, and the leeches will like it."
The mysterious woman frowned, somewhat displeased, but said nothing.
"Alright, I've been out long enough, and I still have things to take care of at the department. Hurry up and give me the offerings; I'll leave as soon as I've finished setting up the ceremony."
She carefully placed the unconscious Kaiya on the side of the room and then performed a final slumber ritual.
Then, she began to pick up the offerings and, in the cramped room, began to inscribe the remaining ritual patterns.
The chief priest looked at the mud figure on the ground with satisfaction in his eyes.
He was lifted up and placed next to the head of the cup, so that the two offerings could keep each other company.
In the time that followed, one of them inscribed the ritual of Wuwang Jingshen, while the other arranged the sacrificial ceremony, and the two did not disturb each other.
About fifteen minutes later, they finished carving.
The mysterious woman dusted off her hands and prepared to leave with Kaiya.
"and many more."
She stopped and turned her head to look: "What now?"
The high priest pointed to the cup lying in the center of the ceremony: "Has her condition been checked just now? Is her soul missing?"
She glanced at the cup, a hint of interest flashing in her eyes: "Don't worry, she's fine. Her coma wasn't caused by external factors, but rather..."
She paused for a long time, seemingly thinking about how to express herself.
“You can interpret her coma as stemming from her ethnic group characteristics.” She paused. “Although I don’t know what ethnic group she belongs to, according to the feedback from the crystal ball ritual, her coma stemmed from a lack of alcohol.”
"Not enough alcohol? You mean, as long as you give her alcohol, she'll wake up?"
The mysterious woman shook her head: "No, the wine wasn't for her to drink, but rather poured into the head of her glass."
High Priest: "???"
This answer is like saying: you don't need to give her medicine to wake her up, you just need to put the medicine on her head.
"That's why I said it might be a racial characteristic of their tribe; they need to have liquid in their heads to function properly." The mysterious woman spread her hands: "Although this is the first time I've heard of this characteristic, the world is full of wonders. Just like a thousand years ago, who would have thought that dream beasts could materialize and even become a means of transportation?"
"In short, her coma is not due to a physical problem, but rather a lack of alcohol. So, there's no need to worry about her soul; there's nothing wrong with her soul."
With that, she casually waved her hand, and Kaiya's body seemed to be pulled by an invisible thread, floating lightly behind her. The two figures quickly disappeared around the corner of the corridor, leaving not even a sound.
The high priest watched her leave until her presence and that of Kaiya completely faded from his senses, then turned and walked toward the west wall of the room.
He tapped his knuckles on the mottled wall, three light taps followed by one heavy one, with a specific rhythm.
A moment later, a faint rustling of paper came from inside the wall, and then a palm-sized origami crane emerged from the crack in the wall.
This paper crane was delivered ten minutes ago; it must be because my subordinates have something to report.
He had been busy dealing with the mysterious woman and was wary of her reluctance to contact other members of the Divine Faction, so he hadn't touched the paper crane. Now, unfolding it, he found no words inside, but rather a picture: a slender scepter with a snake coiled around it, its head raised and tongue flicking.
Upon seeing the pattern, a thoughtful look flashed in the high priest's eyes.
"The Silent Priest?"