After the Immortal Disappeared

He didn't just live in the Dream Realm, after all; the Golden Armor Copper Man Technique would be immensely valuable in the real world. As for things like Zhu Gold, he could just buy more from Songyang Prefecture. Li Fubo might even be able to get him a friend's discount.

'Mm, perfect!'

Hee Lingchuan gripped the Jade Scroll that held the Secret Scroll for the Copper Man Technique, and a vast amount of information flooded his mind, as if it were being carved directly into his memory. Refining a Copper Man was a delicate craft that allowed for no margin of error. Fortunately, while this method of learning wouldn't let him master it instantly, it at least ensured his memories of it would be flawless.

...

After leaving the Pengcheng Bureau, the two set off for the Divine Descent Platform.

The location where Zhong Shengguang had made his offering to the deity years ago wasn't inside the city. Instead, he had chosen the highlands a couple of miles to the northwest, behind Panlong City. The area was normally deserted, but now it was bustling with horses and carriages, all heading for the highlands.

Hee Lingchuan and Sun Fuling hired a spacious horse-drawn carriage.

As far as the eye could see, the travelers on the road were all commoners from Panlong City. Some couldn't afford a carriage and simply walked instead.

The dirt roads outside the city were uneven, with patches of snow in some places, and certainly not as easy to traverse as the paved city streets. What's more, the sky was already dim, with heavy clouds hanging low, threatening a blizzard at any moment.

But the citizens of Panlong City around them walked and chatted, seeming unconcerned about the weather.

"It won't snow," Sun Fuling said, noticing him glance worriedly at the sky. "The sky is always this oppressive on Celestial Sacrifice Day. Everyone's used to it by now."

Hee Lingchuan rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "I finally get to see Commander Zhong." 'By the calendar of this Dream Realm, he'd already been here for several months, yet he hadn't even laid eyes on Zhong Shengguang or the Red General.'

'I've offered a toast at Zhong Shengguang's grave and seen the Commander-in-Chief as a Black Flood Dragon, but what does the man himself even look like?'

"You're in for a disappointment," Sun Fuling said with a low laugh. "Lord Zhong won't be coming here."

"Huh?" Hee Lingchuan was baffled. "It's the memorial for his own daughter, and he doesn't even show up?!" 'What kind of heartless father is he?'

"Lord Zhong will conduct the rites at home. He says he has failed his daughter and is too ashamed and unworthy to preside over the Celestial Sacrifice, so he has Wen Daolun do it in his stead."

"If he feels so guilty, why not build a shrine for Zhong Wuhuan in the city? Panlong City has the Mitian Temple, as well as living shrines for Zhong Shengguang and the Red General."

Sun Fuling was amused. "Who builds a shrine for a sacrificial offering?"

Hee Lingchuan raised an eyebrow. "So, he still defines his daughter as a sacrifice, not as a hero who saved the city's people?"

Sun Fuling glanced at him and said softly, "Are you speaking up for her?"

"Who the hell am I?" Hee Lingchuan gave a self-deprecating grin. "My opinion doesn't matter." 'I'm still just a Patrol Guard, not even a squad leader.'

Soon, the carriage reached its destination.

Ahead lay the Divine Descent Platform. There were too many people for the carriage to pass, so everyone disembarked to proceed on foot.

Fortunately, the path wasn't rugged. For one, Panlong City had dispatched men to level this section of the mountain road. For another, the Divine Descent Platform was located on the very edge of the Chipa Plateau.

The terrain of the Chipa Plateau was unique, sitting hundreds of feet higher than the Panlong Wasteland. Looking down from the cliffs at the plateau's edge, one could see a treacherous landscape of jagged peaks below.

But for those already on the plateau, the walk over wasn't difficult.

As Hee Lingchuan followed the crowd upward, he realized that the Divine Descent Platform itself was a massive, jutting promontory, suspended at the edge of the Chipa Plateau. One jump from there would land you in the Panlong Wasteland.

'Of course, your body would make it down, but your soul would be on its way to heaven.'

When Hee Lingchuan and Sun Fuling arrived at the Divine Descent Platform, it was already encircled by dense layers of people. Every single person was kneeling on the ground with their head bowed. If a child dared to make a sound, they were met with angry glares from the crowd, and the parent had to muffle them immediately. If not, someone else would gladly discipline the child for them.

On the way there, Sun Fuling had reminded Hee Lingchuan not to be disrespectful to the Zhong Family's daughter on the Divine Descent Platform. An outsider had once spouted nonsense here and was beaten to death for it.

The Celestial Sacrifice ceremony had already begun. Only one voice echoed throughout the area: Wen Daolun, reciting the sacrificial text.

It was written in elegant parallel prose, with carefully chosen wording.

His voice was calm, his cadence measured and rhythmic.

Hee Lingchuan listened to a couple of lines. The gist was all praise for Zhong Wuhuan for sacrificing herself for her home, her sincerity moving heaven and earth. Sacrificial texts were always flowery and full of extravagant praise. Hee Lingchuan only listened until the part where the Divine Mitian sent down a Thunderbolt to claim the offering, then shifted his attention to the platform itself.

This Divine Descent Platform should have originally been the size of two football fields, but a corner was missing from the front.

The shape of this corner... how to describe it? It was as if someone had used a compass to draw an arc and sliced it right off.

Thus, the outermost edge of the Divine Descent Platform had become a neat, smooth arc that didn't look like a natural formation.

This huge gap made the altar, built of Cyan Square Stone, seem tiny in comparison.

On the altar was an obelisk, shaped like a sword pointing to the sky, but with no name inscribed.

On the offering table in front of the altar were the three sacrificial animals: a pig, an ox, and a sheep.

For the daughter of a Commander-in-Chief to enjoy such Sacrificial Offerings was against the etiquette of the Xiluo Kingdom. But clearly, Zhong Shengguang didn't care, and neither did the people of Panlong City.

'But why did Zhong Shengguang choose this place to make his offering all those years ago?'

'Others make offerings to deities in secret, hoping no one will find out. But he chose a site that was open and flat, easily able to hold over a thousand onlookers.'

'Besides the fact that Zhong Shengguang no longer cared about the Xiluo Kingdom's prohibitions and that he held enough power in Panlong City to make offerings openly, were there also political calculations at play?'

'For instance, to have the people of Panlong City witness with their own eyes the great sacrifice the Zhong Family had made for the city's peace and for the well-being of every single citizen?'

'The hearts of the people had to be won.'

'If that was the case, then even if Zhong Shengguang's grief at losing his beloved daughter was real, it was also a part of a meticulous calculation.'

'He truly was a ruthless man, to use even his own pain as a bargaining chip.'

For some reason, Hee Lingchuan's thoughts suddenly turned to Hee Chunhua, and he sighed.

Sun Fuling, beside him, immediately turned her head, her bright eyes glistening.

She placed a finger to her lips, not making a hushing sound, but instead pointing up at the sky.

The state of the sky at that moment could only be described as fantastically grim. It wasn't even 3:00 p.m., but the world was devoid of light. A fierce wind kicked up, and the dark clouds overhead were so thick they seemed to press down on the mountaintops. Looking up, people could see the roiling turbulence beneath the clouds, as if the ocean had been flipped upside-down and pasted onto the heavens.

The commoners prostrated themselves lower, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Just then, Wen Daolun finished reciting the sacrificial text. His hand loosened, and the golden-red paper with the text was swept into the sky by the fierce wind. It spontaneously combusted in mid-air, turning to ash in a matter of seconds.

Hee Lingchuan watched the ashes fly into the clouds and disappear.

Then, the world was filled with a brilliant light as a bolt of lightning struck down.

Before Hee Lingchuan closed his eyes, he vaguely saw its root-like shape as it struck directly below the Divine Descent Platform.

Then came a second Thunderbolt.

'That's not right. Shouldn't lightning strike the highest point? Why did it ignore the obelisk on the cliff and slam into the valley instead?'

Perhaps in response to his contrarian question, twenty seconds later, just when he thought it was all over, another Thunderbolt fell.

This time, its shape was different. It was a giant, circular pillar of light, and it struck the missing corner of the Divine Descent Platform perfectly, a seamless fit!

No living creature dared to open its eyes. Even Wen Daolun, the officiant, turned his head away.

Heaven's might was irresistible.

When Hee Lingchuan opened his eyes, he smelled a thick, burnt odor. The dark clouds in the sky gradually receded. Before long, a ray of sunlight pierced through a gap, focusing into a beam from high above and landing right on the Divine Descent Platform.

Its magnificent solemnity was beyond description.

Hee Lingchuan looked out and saw the commoners of Panlong City prostrated on the ground, murmuring prayers. Their expressions were far more devout than before.

'The Deities still favored this place. Who would dare to doubt it now?'

Wen Daolun walked down from the altar and stood to the side.

The main sacrificial ceremony was complete, and the solemn atmosphere was no longer required. The commoners then came forward one by one with their baskets to present their offerings, then bowed respectfully. Those who were more particular would press down on their children's heads, making them kowtow three times resoundingly.

When the High Incense was about to burn out, Wen Daolun would have to go up and offer new incense.

The City Guards maintained order at the side, and everything proceeded in an orderly fashion.

Hee Lingchuan saw that the commoners mostly offered fruits, vegetables, and cakes. In this season of wind and snow, fruit was not cheap, and good quality fruit was even more expensive.

The lives of Panlong City's people were still a long way from prosperous.

Some children even placed their beloved toys on the altar.

Hee Lingchuan even saw a young boy take out a bouquet from under his coat, remove the outer layer of oil paper, and carefully place it at the base of the obelisk.

The flowers weren't crushed, but a layer of white frost instantly formed on their delicate petals.

'It seems fragile things really can't survive in Panlong City.'

Only now did Hee Lingchuan truly feel the genuine emotions of the residents of Panlong City toward the Zhong Family.

It didn't even need to be expressed in words.

A person who sacrificed themselves for the lives of an entire city was, no matter what, worthy of remembrance and respect.

Sun Fuling tugged on his sleeve, gave him half of the offerings she had prepared, and the two went forward together.

Hee Lingchuan looked down and saw that besides a few large Crystal pears, she had also brought a box of meat pies.

The box was elegant, and it even had a brand name on it: Wenxiang Station.

These meat pies were actually from a time-honored brand.

There were too many commoners attending the Celestial Sacrifice, and the offering table had long since run out of space. These fruits were placed around the obelisk instead.

Hee Lingchuan put down the offerings, bowed with Sun Fuling, and then walked toward Wen Daolun.

The personal guards behind Wen Daolun immediately moved to block them.

However, Sun Fuling had already spoken up:

"Mr. Wen."

Wen Daolun turned his head to look. "Isn't this Xuu Shichu's disciple? Come over, come over."

Only then did the personal guards let them pass.

Sun Fuling knew his time was precious, so she didn't waste time with pleasantries and got straight to the point. "Mr. Wen, I've come to call in a favor."

Wen Daolun looked blank. "A favor?"

"Two months ago, you and I were playing chess at the Shumin Academy..."

Wen Daolun immediately let out an "Ah!" "Alright, alright, I remember now. Go on, tell me."

"My friend here had his fortune read, and it was said that his fate is entwined with calamity. We were hoping Mr. Wen could show him the way forward." Sun Fuling gestured to Hee Lingchuan, who immediately clasped his hands in a formal greeting. "Please enlighten me, Mr. Wen."