Chapter 653: Chapter 258: Luoshen Envoy (Part 2)
He looked up at the sky,
"So, what exactly is happening ’up there’?"
He then glanced at his physique column.
There was once a "Heavenly Crippled Body," during the Heaven’s Cataclysm of the Sea of Eternal Life, when the old Heavenly Dao couldn’t handle it, and kept upgrading this physique to the "Heavenly Killing Body" and "Heavenly Absolute Body," trying to eliminate him completely. But in the end, he still survived.
It was from Pei Weiyi that he learned that the slim chance of survival was sent by Yan Hui, or rather, by the Twelve Thousand Eight Hundred Eyes. This innate supreme treasure, capable of divining auspiciousness and predicting misfortune, saved his life at a critical moment.
He had a feeling that Yan Hui hadn’t died.
This feeling was not a whim, nor an unfounded intuition, but a "feeling" influenced by the Supreme Dharma Orbiting Device and the Yin Yang Fate Divination Skill he learned from Pei Weiyi.
The Supreme Dharma Orbiting Device and the Twelve Thousand Eight Hundred Eyes are both supreme treasures that touch upon the Destiny Dao, and they naturally have a certain connection.
Moreover, the Twelve Thousand Eight Hundred Eyes once belonged to the Yin Yang School.
The Yin Yang Fate Divination Skill of the Yin Yang School largely stems from this supreme treasure.
"If I could master the Twelve Thousand Eight Hundred Eyes, it would greatly help me glimpse the whole picture of the world..."
Though he thought about it, Fan Wubing was not in a hurry to achieve it.
The acquisition of the Supreme Dharma Orbiting Device was a fortuitous coincidence. These supreme treasures often bear a certain historical mission, and actively pursuing them might lead one astray.
Putting away the panel, he didn’t linger in that place, transforming into a beam of light, disappearing in an instant and reappearing in a flash.
The "Seven Luminaries Celestial Patrol Skill" allowed him to reach Dafeng City, the largest Immortal City in He Yue Village, almost without spending any time or causing any noticeable commotion.
Dafeng City is the core area of He Yue Village, overseeing the operation of the entire He Yue Village, and even the entire farming community.
Today, Dafeng City was very lively, with red decorations and colorful adornments in the streets and alleys, and festive sceneries everywhere. A massive octagonal altar was suspended in the sky above the city, with a large black bell hanging right in the center beneath the altar, exuding the divine aura of the Dragon-Touching Immortal Bell. Above the altar, in the center, sat a massive black three-legged drum.
The bell and drum complemented each other, exuding a majestic and solemn atmosphere.
Fan Wubing recognized them immediately.
That bell was the Morning Immortal Bell, and that drum was the Dusk Immortal Drum.
Both were among the thirty-three innate supreme treasures, always the absolute treasure of the farming clan, only appearing at large sacrificial events.
"The farming clan has two festivals. The Great Prosperity Festival is still far off, so this should be the once-every-five-years Luoshen Festival," Fan Wubing thought, "I’m lucky to have caught such a grand event."
He joyfully chatted with the Immortal Farmers who had gathered from all over to participate in the Luoshen Festival.
The Immortal Farmers of the East Continent were generally quite friendly, as there wasn’t much malice in those who till the land.
Here, the deceit and defenses seen in the Jianghu of the Immortal Path did not flourish, because such scheming neither increased crop yields nor brought the joy of a good harvest to people.
The Luoshen Festival is intended to express gratitude for the nurturing of the Luo River, the mother river of the East Continent. It is a sacrificial event where the Immortal Farmers, who draw from heaven and earth, express their respect to these forces.
Fan Wubing chatted with some Immortal Farmers for a while. When they realized he was a foreigner, they enthusiastically introduced him to the origin of the Luoshen Festival.
It had been so long that it was unclear whether it was legend or true events.
During the Enlightenment Era, in the era of a hundred schools of thought contending, the disciples of the farming clan newly arrived, and perhaps their extensive cultivation of the East Continent offended heavenly authority. One day, the vast Luo River suddenly breached in a large area. As the floods decimated all sides, with life perishing untold, the Luoshen descended from the heavens, repaired the dike and built dams, saving millions of lives. Since then, the Luoshen Festival has existed.
A highly respected Elder Immortal Farmer chuckled and said,
"Little friend, you’re coming at the right time this year. I’ve heard that this Luoshen Festival will summon the Luo God Totem."
Fan Wubing curiously asked, "What is the Luo God Totem?"
The Elder Immortal Farmer said, "In the words of you cultivators, it is the will of the Luo God’s great Dao."
"The will of the great Dao!" Fan Wubing’s eyes sparkled with mystical light.
Amidst the bustling atmosphere, it had reached exactly 7:00 AM.
As the massive, heavy Morning Immortal Bell was struck by a Fengxian dressed in coarse cloth, the once-every-five-years Luoshen Festival was declared to begin.
The sound of the Morning Immortal Bell reverberated in the inner world of everyone. Such a soul-stirring sound held magical power to remove the filth from the heart and cleanse the spirit. The knots brought from the Immortal Continent were significantly alleviated for Fan Wubing. He felt as though he had become an Immortal Farmer native to the East Continent, able to genuinely sense the weight of the Luoshen Festival.
On the massive octagonal altar, the chief priest, whose face was lined with wrinkles resembling the deep ravines of Jinghai Mouth, spoke with a voice like the peal of a large bell,
"The sovereign sky above, and the nurturing earth below, the years have passed without end, already ten thousand generations, the Luoshen of yore unknown, but today the Luo River guards abundance..."
Fan Wubing learned from the discussions of those around him.
This opening chief priest, respectfully titled "Taozhu Da Feng Immortal," is one of the four Great Feng Immortals currently existing in the farming clan. The layout of ditches and fields like a starry chessboard in He Yue Village was led by him; this layout increased the annual yield of crop and livestock in the entire He Yue Village by nearly double. His great achievements could warrant a corner of a cliff alone in Daiyu Immortal Mountain.
"But, strangely, why would Taozhu Da Feng Immortal serve as the chief priest? Given his status, he should be the Luoshen Envoy who receives the Luo God Totem later."
"With Taozhu Da Feng Immortal as chief priest, the only one qualified to serve as the Luoshen Envoy should be Ancestor Feng, right?"
"Ancestor Feng?! Impossible, Ancestor Feng hasn’t appeared in public for so long. He might not even attend the once-every-century Great Prosperity Festival, let alone the Luoshen Festival. In terms of both emotion and reason, Ancestor Feng shouldn’t be the Luoshen Envoy. The Luoshen Festival that invites the Luo God Totem was always presided over by the four Great Feng Immortals in turn, and this time should be the same."
"But if a Great Feng Immortal were to serve as the Luoshen Envoy, then by convention, some Fengxian should serve as the chief priest instead. After all, speaking in terms of status, the Luoshen Envoy is above the chief priest."
Several disciples of the farming clan endlessly debated this.
In previous Luoshen Festivals, there had never been a situation where a Great Feng Immortal served as the chief priest.
This led everyone to eagerly anticipate who this time’s Luoshen Envoy would be, deserving of such grandeur.
The sacrificial procession to pay tribute to heaven and earth continued from exactly 7:00 AM to exactly noon, lasting a full two hours.
Fan Wubing got to witness the lifestyle of the farming clan, different from that of worldly people.
They seemed like people from Peach Blossom Land, though each one was a cultivator proficient in Immortal Farmer Skill, they appeared no different from common farmers working in the fields. They revered heaven and earth, grateful for nature’s gifts, and in this Luoshen Festival, almost every face was lit with the joy of harvest.
At that moment, Fan Wubing felt as if this land had never been tainted by the Fallen Immortal Land or Demon Cultivators, pure and clear.
Sowing seeds, tilling and irrigating, reaping fruits.
This simple and heartfelt emotion brought Fan Wubing immense serenity within.
Even if this journey wasn’t propelled by the wheels of destiny, he was more than willing to stay here for a while.
Life needs something to look forward to, and for the Immortal Farmers, that is the harvest of their crops.
What, then, does Fan Wubing look forward to?
In his heart, he actually understood that rather than Jiang Sha’s cold violence prompting him to leave home, it was the restless desire within him yearning to find a direction to hope for.
After much anticipation,
After the grand yet relaxed festival ended, it was time to receive the Luo God Totem.
The Immortal Farmers in the streets and alleys and people who came from other places for the excitement all seemed to hold their breath, craning their necks, looking up towards the staircase behind the octagonal altar.
There, footsteps resonated.
That would be this year’s Luoshen Envoy.
Everyone wanted to know who was worth being the foreordained backdrop by Taozhu Da Feng Immortal.
The light footsteps gave a jolt to everyone’s hearts.
Because it sounded like the footsteps of a woman.
Finally, amid the anticipation of the masses, welcomed by the ascending spiritual aura, the Luoshen Envoy took the stage.
A graceful woman, full and charming, appeared in everyone’s view.
Her trademark platinum blonde hair and blue eyes immediately brought a name to their minds—
"Gu Feng Immortal."
This time, the Luoshen Festival, where Taozhu Da Feng Immortal willingly played a supporting role, featured Gu Lan as the Luoshen Envoy, an up-and-coming talent whose repute had rapidly grown over the past decade.
This answer was beyond everyone’s expectations,
except for Fan Wubing, whose lips curled into a high arc.
Seeing Gu Lan brought tranquility to his heart.
