Below the altar, Shen Cuiyu stood quietly in the line of disciples from the Myriad Phenomena Academy, staring intently at the flamboyant figure up high with an unfathomable look in her eyes.
The previous priest who presided over the sacrificial ceremony was her father, Shen Canghai. When Shen Canghai was assessing Shen Cuiyu's studies, he once told her about the process of the grand ceremony to sacrifice to heaven.
After the priest finished reciting the sacrificial words, they would have to mobilize the spiritual energy around them, connect with the universe, and bring down the sweet rain.
This was precisely the essence of this sacrificial ceremony.
"The sweet rain descends from the sky to relieve disasters and hardships! May the heavens protect and bless our Great Xia Dynasty to last for thousands of generations!"
Finally, Liu Ruyan raised the sacrificial sword high and began to concentrate on mobilizing her spiritual energy, about to complete the last ritual -
A faint and cold arc suddenly appeared on Shen Cuiyu's lips. Her gamble had begun.
The next moment, she quickly made hand seals in her sleeve. In her spiritual sea, the originally surging spiritual energy instantly solidified!
Shen Cuiyu felt this pure spiritual energy that would make any celestial master and cultivator envious. Her vermilion lips parted slightly as she silently said a single word:
"Disperse."
There was no earth - shattering sound. In an instant, all of Shen Cuiyu's spiritual energy dissipated like a clay ox entering the sea. It was like a magnificent palace that had been carefully built for many years suddenly collapsing. In the blink of an eye, it had all disappeared without a trace, silently melting into the heavens and the earth!
If any celestial master had noticed Shen Cuiyu's actions at this moment, they would surely have been so shocked that their Dao heart would have been shattered. After all, dispersing one's spiritual energy was completely self - destructive for a cultivator!
But for Shen Cuiyu, who had a special constitution, this spiritual energy was like a鸡肋, neither useful nor useless. So she hardly hesitated at all.
In a corner where no one noticed, the black waist token on Shen Cuiyu's waist, which had once been infused with spiritual energy, emitted its last glimmer of light, and then completely dimmed and fell silent.
Almost at the same time, Liu Ruyan on the sacrificial altar suddenly froze!
She felt as if something was disappearing from her body at a speed she couldn't grasp. The expected vast spiritual energy didn't arrive as scheduled. The rain - praying technique that relied on the operation of spiritual energy became like a tree without roots and couldn't arouse the response of the heavens and the earth!
Ren Daoyuan and Shen Canghai both noticed Liu Ruyan's abnormality at this moment. They glanced at each other, both having a bad premonition!
The others obviously still didn't know what had happened and were still eagerly waiting for the sweet rain to fall!
Liu Ruyan's hand holding the sacrificial sword trembled slightly. She tried to gather her spiritual energy again, but all she got in return was emptiness!
The pride and smile on her face instantly disappeared completely. Her face was as pale as paper, without a trace of blood!
Time passed by second by second. By the time the auspicious hour had passed, the cloudless sky still had the scorching sun hanging high. There was no sign of dark clouds gathering, let alone a single drop of rain!
The whole place fell into complete silence.
The disciples who had been smiling and waiting for Liu Ruyan to show her divine power now had a hint of suspicion in their eyes.
"What's wrong with Ruyan... Why hasn't she performed the rain - praying technique yet?"
Dongfang Xiao also widened his eyes and whispered:
"Did she... fail?!"
Zhong Shengwan narrowed her eyes and slowly said, "I didn't expect her to be so bold. She dared to stand on the grand ceremony to sacrifice to heaven without even knowing how to pray for rain... How many heads does the Liu family have to allow her to act so recklessly?"
The Liu family members, who had just been immersed in glory and anticipation, also belatedly realized that something was wrong. The smiles on their faces gradually faded, and they looked at Liu Ruyan in disbelief!
Liu Jinyan's face also showed panic. He was extremely confused at this moment - his little sister was the reincarnation of the Dark Goddess and had handled all kinds of metaphysical cases. In his heart, she had always been omnipotent. But why was she now standing there motionless on the sacrificial altar?
How could this make sense?!
Could it be that those metaphysical events back then...
A strange conjecture suddenly popped into Liu Jinyan's mind, but he quickly suppressed it!
He couldn't believe it, and he didn't want to believe it!
Liu Jinyan staggered for a moment. Although there were many doubts in his heart, at this moment, their fates were tied to Liu Ruyan's. So he still gritted his teeth and tried to make an excuse for her:
"Everyone, please calm down. I'm sure the Dark Goddess is communicating with the heavens. The sweet rain will surely fall later..."
Before his words were finished, there was a loud "snap"!
Liu Ruyan's hand went limp, and the sacrificial sword, which symbolized supreme divine power, fell to the ground and broke in two. The already somewhat restless crowd completely erupted into chaos!
The civil and military officials who had been standing solemnly for a long time also began to whisper to each other. The cold wind carried their clear discussions.
"Wasn't she supposed to be the reincarnation of the Dark Goddess? Why can't she even pray for rain?"
"Could it be that she has angered the heavens..."
Finally, the emperor on the high platform frowned. His cold eyes, which had been half - closed behind the jade beads, suddenly opened when the sacrificial sword broke. His gaze was fixed on the embarrassed figure on the altar.
He slowly opened his mouth. His voice was not loud, but it carried a sense of impending storm.
"Dark Goddess, why hasn't the rain fallen yet?"
This question instantly made the eunuch from the Department of Etiquette, who had been serving beside the emperor, turn pale. He bent his waist even lower, almost burying his head in the ground!
At the same time, he cursed Liu Ruyan in his heart!
Liu Ruyan was personally selected by him! He had originally hoped that she would become a favorite of the emperor through this sacrificial ceremony and then promote him in the future. Who would have thought that she would cause such a big problem!
Reincarnation of the Dark Goddess? It turned out she was a fraud! She had really screwed him over! If he could leave the grand ceremony to sacrifice to heaven alive, he would surely not let Liu Ruyan off!
His eyes darted around quickly. He had already thrown all the benefits Liu Ruyan had given him out of his mind. He was only thinking about how to absolve himself if things went wrong later...
The whispers spread like a tide. The looks in people's eyes when they looked at Liu Ruyan began to change. The original worship and enthusiasm gradually turned into suspicion, scrutiny, and even anger at being deceived!
Liu Ruyan stood stiffly in the center of the sacrificial altar, feeling the gazes from all directions. For the first time, panic and despair that couldn't be concealed appeared on her carefully - made - up face!
She didn't understand why the spiritual energy source, which was supposed to be unique in ten thousand, had suddenly been cut off?!
Could it be... Shen Cuiyu?!
Liu Ruyan suddenly raised her eyes. Her face was deathly pale. Her gaze passed over the crowd, and she looked at Shen Cuiyu in disbelief!
"You! It was you, wasn't it?!" She pointed at Shen Cuiyu below the altar with a trembling finger, almost on the verge of collapse. "What... What did you do?!"
There were thousands of officials and disciples attending the ceremony. Naturally, no one knew who Liu Ruyan was pointing at!
And Liu Ruyan's crazy and embarrassed appearance had truly turned this grand ceremony, which was the focus of the whole country, into a complete joke!
There was an uproar below the altar!
Only Shen Cuiyu stood there as calm as ever. Her body was empty, but she felt an unprecedented sense of ease and clarity.
She met Liu Ruyan's resentful gaze and returned a look that only the other person could understand - a look filled with bone - chilling coldness.
It seemed that this time, her gamble had paid off.