’This is the place!’
A figure in a long robe and hood, who appeared to be a man, stood just outside Jinning Town. The faintest, almost imperceptible ripple of their aura was enough to draw the attention of Elder Wei, who had been resting with his eyes closed in the Water God Temple.
The townspeople passing by glanced at the figure with curiosity.
Seeing no Jade Certificate hanging from their clothes, they knew this wasn’t one of those Traveling Merchant Priests and paid them no further mind.
They did find it a little strange, though. Why were there so many outsiders today? It wasn’t like Jinning Town was celebrating a festival.
Elder Wei, however, wore a solemn expression. Inside the Water God Temple, he took out a piece of broken wood and held it in his hand.
’Speak of the devil. You think of them, and they appear.’
’Why would this person suddenly come here...’
’If I hadn’t managed to restore some of my foundation by a stroke of luck yesterday, I’m not sure I could suppress this one, even with Jinning Town’s garrison artifact!’
The hooded figure, now the focus of Elder Wei’s attention, seemed to have a clear objective. Following a faint, otherworldly tremor, they headed directly for Zhao Tiansheng’s little restaurant.
...
’Special local ingredients?’
Smelling the savory aroma of the fir mushrooms, the lead Traveling Merchant Priest’s expression darkened slightly. For someone like him, the smaller the price to complete a mission, the bigger the profit.
Now, some uncontrollable factors had clearly emerged.
This gave him a bad feeling, though the thought was fleeting.
He paused for only a moment before continuing down the narrow alley with his companions.
Although his Sacrificial Cultivation hadn’t broken through during his time as a traveling merchant, he was already worlds apart from his former self.
Don’t be fooled by the fact that they were both Tier Three Sacrificial Priests. In the ’Division’ stage, the ’Return’ Realm of Tier Four seemed a world away.
But the mysteries within it were vast, far beyond what someone running a small restaurant in a little town as a Tier Two or Three Sacrificial Priest could ever hope to match.
But after coming into contact with different forms of Sacrificial Cultivation, this lead Traveling Merchant Priest had gradually come to understand and master these things. Now, he could faintly glimpse the path to the fourth tier of Sacrificial Cultivation.
In terms of his regular Cultivation Realm, he had already entered Tier Five, but his Sacrificial Cultivation Realm had remained stuck at the Tier Three ’Division’ stage.
Although Tier Five Cultivation was enough to become a Garrison cultivator for a township, ensuring a comfortable life and a legacy, what Cultivator would be content with just garrisoning a single place?
After all, the Sacrificial Cultivation Realm provided a significant boost to one’s path of Cultivation.
Even if one’s aptitude was lacking, as long as their Sacrificial Cultivation could break through beyond Tier Three, there was a very real hope of reaching Tier Seven on the path of Cultivation and achieving the Realm of True Master.
It was for this distant, ethereal hope that Traveling Merchant Priests were so common. After all, reaching Tier Seven and becoming a True Master would make one a core pillar in any faction—an absolute powerhouse.
Even if they were assigned to garrison a region, they would be stationed in a capital city or a similar major hub.
In the future, they could even establish a powerful family to carry on their bloodline and name.
’This is just a minor obstacle on my path to becoming a True Master!’
This Traveling Merchant Priest didn’t give a second thought to a mission in such a small place.
He didn’t even take it seriously.
Especially after learning that his target was just an orphan.
’Then you can’t blame me for picking on a child.’
A vicious glint flashed in his eyes. The lead Sacrificial Priest quickly followed the aroma to the front of Zhao Tiansheng’s little restaurant.
...
’They’re here...’
’Be careful. This Traveling Merchant Priest’s Realm isn’t like those in small towns who just practice to make a living and break through purely by rote memorization and muscle memory.’
In Sacrificial Cultivation, one must know not only the ’how’ but also the ’why’. Only a breakthrough achieved with such understanding could be considered a true breakthrough.
Otherwise, the first three tiers were merely the Foundation Establishment stage, which could be forcibly reached through sheer experience by repeating the cooking process tens of thousands of times.
This was the point Chi Xuan was reminding Zhao Tiansheng of.
Of course, Zhao Tiansheng wasn’t like that. His problem had been getting started; as long as he could perceive Primordial Qi, his progress in the Sacrificial Master Realm was a natural and foregone conclusion.
’I understand, Sister Chi.’
’I know my cooking skills are nothing compared to what’s out there in the world. I’ll definitely take this seriously!’
Hearing Zhao Tiansheng’s remarkably mature and steady reply, Chi Xuan’s expression shifted beneath her black veil.
Although there was nothing wrong with what he said, when Zhao Tiansheng’s cooking skills and understanding of cuisine were converted to the Sacrificial Master Realm, he was by no means a novice.
He really wasn’t as unskilled as he thought he was.
But coming from Chi Xuan, those words didn’t seem to carry much weight.
’Oh well, it’s better for him to be cautious.’
’They’re his opponents anyway. It wouldn’t hurt if their confidence takes a heavy blow... would it?’
For some reason, as Chi Xuan looked at the imposing Traveling Merchant Priests with their hostile demeanor, she suddenly felt a sliver of pity for them.
She just hoped that after this ordeal, they would still have the confidence to continue on the path of the Sacrificial Priest. Perhaps they could even achieve great things in the future; it wasn’t impossible.
That is, if...
...they had any confidence left.
...
The Traveling Merchant Priests seemed to know they had a bad reputation and had no intention of exchanging pleasantries. The townspeople eating at Zhao Tiansheng’s restaurant all picked up their bowls of rice noodles and moved to the side.
Only Changshu remained seated, seemingly to show his support for Zhao Tiansheng.
However, the Traveling Merchant Priests completely ignored the crowd of onlookers, as well as Changshu.
Their gazes were fixed on the kitchen of the small restaurant, staring at the still-underage Zhao Tiansheng.
"You’re the Sacrificial Priest of this restaurant?"
The blunt question made the surrounding townspeople whisper amongst themselves.
"Why call him a Sacrificial Priest? Shouldn’t it be Shopkeeper, or Boss?"
"You just don’t get it. Sacrificial Priest is the formal title. Apparently, it has some special significance!"
"They look so fierce. Will that young kid Tiansheng be alright?" "Relax. You know Tiansheng’s skill. Handling a few outsiders will be a piece of cake."
The chattering, a flurry of rapid, hushed local dialect, revealed their wariness of the Traveling Merchant Priests.
When Zhao Tiansheng heard this, however, he recalled the warnings from Chi Xuan and Elder Wei. He knew these were knowledgeable Sacrificial Priests, not the ordinary kind who, after entering the path, were just trying to scrape by.
So he showed no fear. Instead, he crossed his hands slightly before his chest in a peculiar fist-and-palm salute: his left hand was in front with the middle and index fingers extended, while his right hand was clenched in a fist behind it.
"Since we walk the same Dao, what guidance do you offer?"
Just seeing Zhao Tiansheng’s composure, the Traveling Merchant Priest was already a little surprised. Noticing that the boy showed no hint of nervousness, the outsider felt a faint sense of foreboding.
’Don’t tell me I’ve run into a tough nut?’
’Am I really this unlucky?!’
This slight worry didn’t affect his plan. After all, he had come this far, and there was no turning back.
If he took the deposit and didn’t do the job, even if the local powers couldn’t touch him, he would still get a bad rating within the Traveling Merchant Priest network. After that, similar jobs wouldn’t come his way.
At that point, he might really be forced to commit major taboos just for some travel money, and that was a last resort he wanted to avoid.
"I am traveling across provinces, of course, for a Sacrificial Decree, to witness the craft of my fellow Sacrificial Priests."
"Since you understand this gesture, you should know what this is about."
"Do you need me to give you time to prepare?"
The visiting Traveling Merchant Priest steeled his resolve, casting aside his scattered thoughts. A hint of his formidable nature finally showed through, a testament to his accumulated experience as a cross-provincial merchant. He set down the book basket from his back, from which a faint, unusual aura emanated.
"There’s no need."
"It’s rare for a fellow practitioner from afar to request a Sacrificial Decree duel. Let us each offer up our sacrificial items."
"And then... let’s begin!"
Zhao Tiansheng’s presence was even more imposing than the Traveling Merchant Priest had imagined. A slight smile remained on his lips, and the interest in his eyes was beyond what any outsider could comprehend.
And this "Sacrificial Decree" they were discussing was, in fact, an unyielding duel for Sacrificial Cultivators who had been truly recognized by the Non-human World, waged at the cost of equivalent sacrifices from each participant.
It was... a Sacrificial Priest’s culinary battle!