The temple was inherently hierarchical, and the Divine Lord was far from magnanimous. He immediately pointed at the White Divine Envoy and berated him fiercely.
In the end, the Divine Lord had to leave for an important matter, but he did not let the White Divine Envoy off the hook. He said angrily, "You will do nothing else today but serve me closely and learn the rules!"
The old man's face turned green then white. At his age, he still had to do menial work?
Yet, he dared not refuse and faithfully followed behind the Divine Lord.
Cui Divine Envoy watched all this unfold, his expression complex as he looked at Bai Sheng Yi, "Did you plan this long ago?"
Otherwise, why would he have suddenly sent a message asking him to find a way to lead the Divine Lord here?
Bai Sheng Yi smiled cryptically.
Cui Divine Envoy immediately understood, but his mood became even more complicated.
Although he was gloating over the White Divine Envoy's misfortune, the mere thought of Bai Sheng Yi's talent for causing trouble, and that this troublemaker was someone he personally brought back to the temple…
He felt a persistent unease.
"Tell me the truth, you won't… cause trouble at the Central Divine Temple, will you?" he couldn't help but cautiously inquire.
Bai Sheng Yi gave him a knowing smile, "Is that important?"
Cui Divine Envoy twitched his lips. Of course, it was important!
If she caused trouble, he would distance himself from her as soon as possible!
However, Cui Divine Envoy's wish was not to be, because before he could distance himself from Bai Sheng Yi, the Divine Lord assigned him a new task.
"You want me to escort the White Divine Maiden and the Cold Tablet Saint Son to the Central Divine Temple?"
In the empty room, wisps of white smoke curled upwards.
The aged Divine Lord, like rotten wood, took a deep, intoxicated breath of the white smoke, his solemn expression immediately relaxing, and a slight smile touched his lips.
"You are unwilling?" he asked.
Cui Divine Envoy quickly replied, "How could I be? Of course, I am willing! Thank you, Divine Lord, for giving me this opportunity." He was merely surprised, especially since the White Divine Envoy had confidently stated earlier that he would be the one going to the Central Divine Temple this time.
The Divine Lord said, "Since you are willing, then depart immediately, lest those scoundrels from the Northern Divine Temple gain any advantage."
Cui Divine Envoy repeatedly agreed. Just as he was about to leave, he heard the Divine Lord cough heavily and add, "It's the same as last year. You and the temple will split the spoils from the Winter Sacrifice in an eight-to-two ratio."
Cui Divine Envoy's lips immediately curved upwards, and he said joyfully, "Thank you, Divine Lord!"
When the news reached Bai Sheng Yi, she was studying the Samsara Brush and why the little furball in her mind had not yet woken up, even though her injuries were almost completely healed.
"Could it be that it's just sleepy?" the newly contracted Sui Xing Divine Fire, incapable of staying quiet, said solemnly, "Or perhaps it's already dead?"
"Don't you dare spout nonsense!" Qing Meng Vine huffed angrily. "Boss is not dead, and even if you die, he won't!"
Bai Sheng Yi hadn't expected Qing Meng Vine to have such deep feelings for the Samsara Brush. She had thought that since the Samsara Brush had always bullied Qing Meng Vine, Qing Meng Vine would have long wanted to turn the tables and become the boss.
"Little Sui, Little Samsara has simply fallen into slumber due to insufficient energy," she explained.
As she spoke, she walked outside the temple to meet up with Cui Divine Envoy and the others.
Unbeknownst to Bai Sheng Yi, in the one day she had spent resting in her room, her deeds had already spread throughout the Eastern Divine Temple.
Whispers of how even the Ning Saint Son could not gain an advantage against her, how she was incredibly skilled and powerful, and how the Divine Lord was her backer.
In short, all sorts of preposterous rumors were rampant.
The first glance Han Bei gave her was to take three steps back.
He was truly terrified.
Initially, he had thought Yao Er losing a leg to fire was tragic enough. He hadn't expected to see someone even more miserable after he had escaped!
Ning Chang Chao, who was the first to "roll" out of the cave, had rolled and rolled on the summit of Mount Tianhuo, grinding off his own limbs!
It was said that Cui Divine Envoy himself had rescued him, and he was currently recuperating at the Ning family's residence.
Han Bei's subconscious action seemed to further confirm the rumors. The divine attendants and female slaves along the way quickly and nervously saluted Bai Sheng Yi.
One female slave even knelt before the spirit beast carriage, gesturing for Bai Sheng Yi to step on her back to board.
Bai Sheng Yi's brows furrowed so deeply they could trap a fly. "Get up."
Where had these disgusting, old customs and practices come from in this temple?
The female slave hurriedly got up and returned to the ranks. Since the Winter Sacrifice's main rituals were hosted by the Central Divine Temple, the Four Great Divine Temples, in addition to the chosen Divine Maidens and Saint Sons, had to dispatch a certain number of female slaves and divine attendants to the Central Divine Temple.
The female slaves were for the sacrificial offerings, and the divine attendants were to guard the female slaves.
Therefore, a long line of people walking on foot followed behind Bai Sheng Yi and Han Bei's spirit beast carriage.
The wind was biting cold, yet these people dared not stop for a moment.
"White Divine Maiden, the weather is good today. I plan to have everyone continue on our journey. What do you think?" Cui Shen, who had been leading the way at the front, suddenly came to the back to ask, worried that Bai Sheng Yi might be displeased.
Bai Sheng Yi replied, "Whatever you wish."
Inside the carriage, the thick and soft fur of a Blazing Fox lined the interior, and silver charcoal was thoughtfully kept burning, making the carriage incredibly warm and its ride exceptionally smooth. Bai Sheng Yi felt drowsy and didn't care about these minor issues.
Having received her assent, Cui Shen returned to his spirit beast carriage and signaled for everyone to continue their journey.
They traveled for two days and two nights.
Suddenly, heavy snow began to fall from the sky, quickly covering the ground in white.
Cui Shen was about to order the procession to stop when he heard the sounds of arguments and commotion from ahead.
"What happened?" Cui Shen asked, displeased.
A divine attendant replied, "Divine Envoy, the eldest daughter of the Donglin City Lord's mansion has collided with one of our female slaves and is now demanding the slave's life."
Cui Shen's gaze deepened, and he lifted the curtain of his carriage to dismount.
The number of female slaves he was bringing to the Central Divine Temple was fixed. How could they be casually killed?
At the very front of the procession.
The female slave knelt on the ground, not daring to utter a sound, cautiously minimizing her presence.
However, the eldest daughter in front of her was unwilling to let her off. She kicked the slave and said impatiently, "I don't care. She stained my clothes, and she must pay with her life."
"Eldest Miss Donglin, for my sake, how about sparing this young girl's life?"
Cui Shen glanced at the eldest daughter before him and couldn't help but let out a scoff. What a coincidence, it was this one.
The Winter Sacrifice hadn't even passed yet, and this young lady dared to venture out. Did she think the temple wouldn't hold her accountable for her unauthorized escape?
Donglin Huang had been particularly frustrated lately.
As the eldest daughter of the City Lord's mansion, her life should have been one of privilege. Unexpectedly, the accursed temple had chosen her as a female slave. That was forgivable, as she had managed to escape in the end.
However, according to her dreams, she should have been brought to the temple as a Divine Maiden by Cui Shen in Anyang Village, then become a Divine Maiden for this session's Winter Sacrifice at the Central Divine Temple, and finally become the most powerful Divine Maiden in the entire Central Divine Temple. But now, she was still someone whose identity was not to be revealed.
Donglin Huang couldn't swallow her resentment. Therefore, she seized this opportunity to vent her frustrations.
"What if I refuse?"
Cui Shen's face darkened, looking extremely displeased.
Just as he was about to say something, he saw the spirit beast carriage, which had been leisurely proceeding, suddenly stop.
"White Divine Maiden, did that noise disturb you?" Cui Shen asked, his brow furrowed tightly.
Bai Sheng Yi shook her head. "I'm getting out to get some air."
However, she suddenly felt a gaze of intense jealousy fixed upon her.
Bai Sheng Yi:?
She looked back and saw a woman dressed in a luxurious golden-yellow gown pointing at her and loudly commanding, "If you want me to spare this female slave's life, you can. Have this woman come over, kneel on the ground, and help me clean my dirty shoes!"
"You!"
Cui Shen gritted his teeth.
Her clothes had just been dirtied, and now it was her shoes?
This was clearly deliberate!