Zou Yuxing felt completely relieved after hearing this and nodded with satisfaction. He then said, "I asked the local herders, and they said there are two particularly important things to pay attention to. The rest is fine; they'll come and teach us themselves when they have time."
Wen Feiran and the others sat in a row, like obedient elementary school students on the sofa, looking up at Zou Yuxing. This made Zou Yuxing incredibly proud, and he continued, "The first thing is that there is a kind of Divine Flower in this area that only grows on the high mountains behind us. We must go and pick it ourselves. This is a destiny bestowed upon us by the Sacred Mountain. If you can't find it, then it proves that you are not qualified to participate in the ceremony."
"You can't pick too many flowers; each person should wear one on their collar. This is probably what we call an admission ticket. There will be someone checking them later."
Wen Feiran hadn't expected they would have to go through a test, and couldn't help but feel nervous. "Are those flowers easy to pick? Are they particularly rare and hard to find?"
Zou Yuxing's face fell; he was also worried about this matter. "That's exactly what the local herders told me. At first, they were everywhere on the mountains and fields, very easy to find. These are the Divine Flowers of the area, and they don't allow anyone to pick them casually, otherwise they will be punished by the Sacred Mountain. But even with their careful protection, these flowers are becoming increasingly rare. In recent years, during the celebrations, people often can't find the Divine Flowers and can't participate. I heard that there's an old man in the area who has participated in the celebrations for over eighty years, but last year he was turned away because he couldn't find the Divine Flowers, and he was so angry that he lay in bed for half a year."
Meng Zizheng gasped in shock. "Is the old man alright?"
"That's great." Zou Yuxing said with admiration, "The old man's stamina is much better than mine. To prepare for the ceremony, he went up the mountain last month, making three round trips a day, morning, noon, and night. His son was worried about his safety and chased after him, but he almost made the old man foam at the mouth!"
The atmosphere in the living room became strange. The local herders, who were exposed to the wind and sun and had strong physical fitness, were so exhausted that they were foaming at the mouth. Wen Feiran felt guilty for a few seconds, worried that he might just lie down on the mountain and never come down again.
Su Shangting's face stiffened as he asked, "Could we ask someone else to help us pick the Divine Flower?"
"Sure," Zou Yuxing explained. "The local herders believe that sincerity brings results, so they allow others to help. However, the person who does so will be ridiculed for a whole year, so the old man would rather go up the mountain every day than let his son do it for him."
Upon hearing the word "mockery," Su Shangting seemed to have some deep-seated program triggered, and immediately became anxious.
He would absolutely not give that idiot Zou Yuxing the chance to mock him!
"It's just a flower. What kind of precious plants haven't I seen? But you, Zou Yuxing, with such poor character, the Divine Flower definitely won't choose you. Don't you dare kneel down and beg me for a flower just to be able to participate in the celebration!"
Zou Yuxing was about to explode on the spot, "I won't do it! Besides, even if I had to kneel down and beg, it would be for Feiran!"
Wen Feiran: "..."
Having known each other for so long, he was already used to the way these two sworn enemies got along. He was just about to step in and mediate when, unexpectedly, the fight didn't start and instead fell on his head.
He took two steps forward and saw Su Shangting and Zou Yuxing turn around and look at him, waiting for his answer.
Wen Feiran's lips twitched twice, her tone helpless, "Didn't you ever consider that I might not be able to find a single flower and would need your help?"
"How could that be!" the two exclaimed in unison. They weren't offering any comfort; their tone was incredibly certain, clearly indicating that they genuinely believed it.
Gu Suian chuckled, coming to Wen Feiran's rescue, "Yuxing, didn't you just say you had two particularly important things to do? What's the other one?"
Zou Yuxing snapped out of his reverie, his expression turning serious. "There's a particularly important part of the celebration: releasing a certain local bird. Only by releasing it can the bird carry your wishes back to the embrace of the gods, ensuring you receive divine protection throughout the year and that all your desires come true."
"Definitely?" Wen Feiran had heard "maybe" and "possibly" so many times, but this was the first time she had heard such a certain statement.
Zou Yuxing nodded in agreement, "That's what I thought too, but the local herders told me very seriously that the gods really exist and love every one of their people, so their wishes will definitely come true."
At this point, Zou Yuxing seemed to realize something, his expression turning strange. He glanced at the camera's location, took two steps forward, squatted down in front of Wen Feiran, and waved to them.
Wen Feiran couldn't help but lean closer and heard Zou Yuxing whisper in his ear, "It includes bringing people back to life, but that person only has one year to live. If no one makes the same wish at the next celebration, their lifespan will be over, and they will have to be buried again, with no possibility of waking up again."
The atmosphere suddenly became strange; everyone fell silent for a few seconds, exchanging bewildered glances.
When Wen Feiran spoke again, her voice trembled slightly. "Have we switched to the wrong channel? How did it turn into a science fiction movie?"
Su Shangting looked at Zou Yuxing suspiciously, habitually questioning him, "You didn't make these things up yourself, did you?!"
"How could I lie about something so important?" Zou Yuxing said defiantly. "Why don't I take you to see the herdsmen tomorrow and have them verify it?"
"Let's forget about it." Wen Feiran was inexplicably drawn into the atmosphere, feeling as if a deity was silently watching them, afraid they might say something disrespectful and anger the gods, incurring their punishment. "Since we've decided to participate in the celebration, we should respect local customs and beliefs."
Seeing their high spirits, Gu Suian suggested, "Let's go up the mountain to look for the Divine Flower tomorrow. That way, even if we don't find it, we'll have some time to prepare, and maybe we'll have another chance later."