After the Ji family received their reply, they fell into a panic. The tone of the other party's envoy had been very cold—obviously irritated.
"What do we do now! I said long ago—don't provoke them! The worst that could have happened was staying behind closed doors. Now look what's happened... The Eternal Gods are completely furious over there."
A certain elder roared in anger.
"Elder, what you said is wrong. The Eternal Faith continues to expand. Even if we retreat, will that help?"
"Yes. Since the other party destroyed a holy place, it represents their determination to unify the world. Do you really think we'll be fine if we simply don't touch them?"
If escape were possible, Shaoguang would not have been destroyed. According to reliable sources, Yaoguang had contacted a major power beforehand and wanted to take refuge with them. But soon after, there was no further news. This showed that Yaoguang had tried to flee—but the Eternal Faith had taken this as proof that they did not heed the divine oracle. They had rebelled against the will of God.
Outside the conference hall, the purple-clothed girl's expression was heavy. She didn't know what the future held for her family. Her plan to strike at the descendants of the Qing Emperor had also been shelved. It was estimated her own family would soon be in a difficult situation as well.
What kind of existence was God? Could it truly be immortal?
Ziyue gazed at the sky, lost in thought.
After a long time, her brother walked out with a charcoal-dark expression, his face extremely solemn.
"Brother, how did it go?"
"Sister... I..."
The man's expression was heavy—even a little angry. His fist clenched for a while, then relaxed, as though he were struggling with something.
Seeing this, Ziyue felt a trembling rise in her heart. She asked in a shaking voice: "Brother, is there something we need to do?"
"Yes. Father discussed with the elders. Originally, it had been negotiated to cooperate with the Eternal Faith. But the other party said our family is not worthy at all.
Now I'm furious about this!"
"Isn't it the cooperation they mentioned before? Why won't the Eternal Gods agree to it!"
The girl in purple was a little angry, but also very puzzled. They had all agreed—so why couldn't it work?
The man smiled bitterly: "Sister, the other party is a tradition passed down by the gods themselves—an existence countless times greater than any so-called emperor. A truly eternal and immortal being!
For a small family like ours... to put it bluntly, it depends entirely on the other party's goodwill whether we can rely on them at all. They know our plans—we are merely descendants of the Great Emperor from ancient times. And in that forbidden area, there once lived the most ruthless empress. Now we know the news that Father has been calculated by the elders!"
"This... what shall we do?"
Ziyue felt her heart beating wildly, as though she had already sensed where this was going.
"Father said... he will offer you as a gift to the gods."
"What?!"
The girl in purple stumbled backward, and the color drained entirely from her eyes.
A gift.
She—the pride of the family—had become a gift.
"No... I don't want to!"
"Father asked me to ask you. If you don't want to go, let me take you far away. We'll flee to the Southern Territory... disappear entirely."
When the girl heard this, her heart felt suffocated. What was he really saying?
If she didn't go... wouldn't that mean her father and mother would be left to die?
In the future, when the Eternal Gods held them accountable, the entire family would perish.
Sacrifice yourself, or sacrifice your family—your parents, your brother, everyone.
Ziyue had already decided in her heart. She lowered her head and sobbed, her voice hoarse for a long time before she finally spoke: "I'm going. I must calm the other party's anger..."
"Sister... you..."
"You can't sacrifice so many people. Even if I used to amount to nothing more than a cow or a horse—as long as the family is okay!"
Ziyue smiled miserably. The man watching her was in extreme distress.
This was his sister.
A few days later, the Ji family brought treasures and, escorted by Ziyue's brother and sister, made their way to the faith's headquarters.
The sky was full of flames—watching it made people's scalps go numb.
"Brother, it's said that the gods are located in the forbidden land. I didn't expect this to actually be true!"
The forbidden area, at this moment, had already changed its appearance entirely. There was a temple every few hundred miles, and tens of thousands of people gathered at each one to worship. Even the believers milling about possessed auras of considerable strength.
The brother and sister looked at each other. Their hearts trembled.
How long had it been for the Eternal Faith to reach such a scale? It was terrifying.
Coming to the interior of the gods' domain, the nine figures kneeling on the ground completely stunned them! Every body exuded a breath of terror—tearing time and space, distorting light. This was clearly the breath of beings close to emperor-level, yet they silently bowed before the most dazzling altar.
"You two, please... Your Master is up ahead!"
"Ah... yes."
Ziyue returned to her senses and quickly lowered her head, moving forward.
In a short while, they came before Ye Laohei. She saw him floating in the air, hundreds of flames wrapped around his body, constantly tempering it. Ye Laohei was comprehending the greatness of the Law of Fire.
"Master Priest, the Ji family has arrived..."
The girl knelt on the ground and spoke piously.
"Hm. I got it."
As the voice fell, the figure in the sky opened his eyes. His gaze locked onto the purple-clothed girl.
The appearance was not bad. The talent was also alright.
Another good sacrifice!
Ye Laohei lightly descended to the ground and said indifferently: "What are you doing here?"
"See Lord Master. Last time, some of the elders in our family were ignorant, which caused your misunderstanding. Our Ji family understands God's grace and wishes to become believers. Only then..."
The purple-clothed girl forcibly suppressed the fear in her heart and spoke everything she had prepared for a long time.
"Oh? You want to become a believer of God—do you think it's that easy? But... God once said that if one is sincere, everything is easy to handle. So let's see... I think your qualifications are pretty good. You could become a consecrated person—a sacrifice offered to the gods.
I don't know if you'd be willing."
Sacrifice?
Did she still have a choice?
Ziyue nodded repeatedly and whispered softly: "Please follow the Master Priest's orders! Your words are the highest command..."
"Well, not bad. It seems I truly did misunderstand things last time. Originally, I was planning to send the minions outside to pay you a visit. It seems that won't be necessary now..."
Ziyue's brother, who had come with her, was nearly frightened out of his skin. The difference between life and death for one's own family truly came down to a single step!
Truly dangerous.
After confirming the identity of the goddess, Ye Laohei's attitude naturally improved. He said to Ziyue's brother: "Relax a little. From now on, everyone belongs to the same sect. Let the goddess go to your clan to preach..."
"We give thanks to the Lord for his grace."
"Well, no need to thank me. In fact, God is very gracious—not as terrifying as you think. Everyone is fighting over this resource. If you knew how great the Divine Realm truly is, you would understand how small this world is. Even a blade of grass in the Divine Realm can extend people's lives—live a hundred thousand more years!"
A hundred thousand years...
If medicine could prolong life by ten thousand years, that alone could make some of the greatest figures in this world sit still and think twice. And that was merely a blade of grass from the Divine Realm. The gap was simply too vast.
Although he had sacrificed his sister, if the Ji family could rise to prominence, the sacrifice would be worth it!
Just as Ziyue's brother was immersed in these thoughts, Ye Laohei asked again: "I grew up in a borderland before. I don't know the situation here very well. Brother Ji—do you know where there are women like your sister?"
"Huh? Dare I ask the Master Priest, what do you mean?"
Ziyue's brother was stunned. Was this high priest an ultimate pervert? Saying he wanted sacrifices for the gods, but actually thinking of enjoying them for himself?
Ye Laohei said solemnly: "Naturally, I have been preparing some sacrifices in order to give back to the gods. Mere magical medicines and techniques—even treasures—are not as good as goddesses. Do you know why?"
How would he know?
Haoyue couldn't help but smile wryly. Then he shook his head.
Ye Laohei smiled mysteriously: "Being a sacrificial goddess is incredibly beneficial for our world. After all, nothing compares to having someone whispering sweet nothings at your side. If our world produces more goddess sacrifices, we'll be able to open up a channel—a direct path to the Divine Realm!"
"What? A path to the Divine Realm!"
"Of course! I went to the Divine Realm myself a few days ago to participate in the martial arts tournament—though I participated with my consciousness only. If it weren't for seeing your sister, who is quite cute, do you think I would have told you all of this?"
Ye Laohei looked at Haoyue with undisguised contempt, not concealing his purpose in the slightest. Winning over the relatives of a goddess was also a viable path.
Then, Ye Laohei projected the scene of the battle between the goddesses directly into Ziyue's brother's mind—along with the image of the god sitting in the north. When the man saw that terrifying battle scene, he was completely stunned. It was far more intuitive than the last time the gods had descended into the world!
After a long time, he woke and asked with trembling lips: "Master Priest... is that truly the realm of the gods?"
"Indeed!"
"I... I think I know some women who meet your requirements. And all of them are very young."
"Oh... hurry up! Tell me!"
Ye Laohei's eyes flashed with golden light, and he was very excited!
"One of them is Yan Ruyu—a strange woman from the monster race. We've recently learned her whereabouts. The other is a descendant from the nunnery in the holy city!"
In the end, it came down to women who were beautiful and unmarried. This was not as simple as finding a few from the Ji clan.
"Okay! Let's go... Actually, forget it—I'll do it myself. You show the way and we'll walk..."
Ye Laohei couldn't wait. He tore open space directly and stepped through.
"Master Priest, are we going to smash the holy city?"
"You idiot—aren't we finding the girl of the monster race first? The faith is still developing right now. What are you in such a rush for?"
"Oh oh... that's right!"
Haoyue felt like his head was going crooked. To attack the holy city, they would definitely need a large number of people. It was a bit too much for just the two of them to handle. Although the Master Priest was very fierce...
However, before they went after Yan Ruyu, Haoyue couldn't help but secretly ask: "My Lord, are you truly not afraid of someone betraying you when you preach so aggressively?"