Shrine Maiden (Seeking Collection)

The villagers worked quickly.

Dozens of them labored through the night, using branches, mud bricks, and thatch collected earlier as materials.

By the next morning, as sunlight spilled over the lake, shrouded in a thin mist, the basic form of a simple shrine had already been erected.

Inside the shrine stood a clay statue of the Snake God.

The statue was just over two meters tall. Although it was made from ordinary mud, for some reason, after it was completed, the villagers felt a palpable, awe-inspiring majesty emanating from it.

Witnessing such an unusual phenomenon, the villagers' belief in what Monk Ren Guang had told them deepened.

Next, the women picked fresh flowers by the lake and wove them into garlands with branches, placing them around the statue's long neck.

The hunters slaughtered livestock such as cattle, sheep, and pigs in front of the statue as offerings.

After doing all this, the village chief still felt it wasn't enough.

After all, this was an existence far more mysterious and powerful than any yokai. If they could obtain the Snake God's protection, the entire mountain village would no longer be harassed by yokai.

So, he personally went to Rinzi's home.

Opening the simple wooden door, he found a slender girl with fair skin meticulously sewing clothes with needle and thread in the cramped room.

"Village Chief, is there something you need?"

Seeing the elder leaning on his cane standing at the doorway, Rinzi quickly stood up, asking with a hint of surprise.

"My sister and father aren't home. If there's anything, you can tell me, and I'll pass it on to them."

The highly respected village chief was a very busy man in the village. He wouldn't come here personally unless it was absolutely necessary.

"No, child..."

The village chief shook his head and slowly said, "I'm not here to see your father or your sister. I have something I need to discuss with you."

"With me?"

"Yes."

The village chief nodded. "We've built a shrine in the village according to Master Ren Guang's instructions."

"But the shrine needs a shrine maiden to communicate specifically with the deity. That day, many people saw your interaction with the divine being, so..."

A shrine maiden was a profession that required dedicating one's entire heart and soul to the deity.

If necessary in the future, the shrine maiden would also be responsible for communicating with the deity on behalf of the village.

That golden boa, though not appearing particularly ferocious, was an inhuman being whose thoughts were difficult to fathom by ordinary means.

Regardless of what had happened in the past, interacting with such a terrifying giant beast was still an extremely dangerous undertaking.

"Of course, if you're unwilling, no one would dare force you."

The village chief's tone was gentle, and a smile was always on his face.

Despite holding the highest status in the village, this elder never forced anyone. He always discussed matters with others in a conversational manner.

Perhaps it was for this reason that the elder enjoyed such high prestige in the village.

"Can I really become the Snake God's shrine maiden?"

A smile of pure delight bloomed on the girl's face. She even dropped the haori she had been clutching in her hand, which she had been sewing for her sister.

"I'm willing!"

Her voice was soft, yet it carried a moving determination.

"You should think carefully."

The girl's attitude made the village chief hesitate slightly. "Once you become the deity's shrine maiden, even if you are devoured, you cannot regret it, nor can you harbor any complaints."

The village chief's face tightened, and his tone became serious.

"Yes, I understand!"

Rinzi nodded heavily, saying without hesitation.

"Then, alright..."

And so, without Su Heng or the little snake knowing anything about it.

The boa, which had only recently stepped into the realm of extraordinary life, now had its own shrine, a group of believers whose faith was not particularly firm, and a shrine maiden who vowed to dedicate her everything.

The next day.

Su Heng's consciousness descended upon the little snake's body.

It was the same valley where he had found it during its advancement. The valley had a pleasant scenery, with a steaming hot spring in the central area.

Due to the immense commotion caused by its advancement, the boa had forcefully expanded the entire hot spring by a full circle.

Even with the boa's significantly increased size, the hot spring could easily accommodate it.

"So, you stayed here all day without moving?"

Su Heng reprimanded his little snake with a hint of disappointment, his tone as strong as a father discovering his young daughter secretly watching TV instead of studying.

"But... don't you also think that coasting through life, sleeping, and eating is the highest form of enjoyment?"

The little snake coiled its body into a large ball, immersing its entire form in the warm spring water, as if preparing to simmer a large pot of snake soup.

"While I have thought that, I don't recall ever saying such things to you!"

Su Heng was stunned by the retort.

He quickly and sternly corrected the little boa's unhealthy thoughts of decadent pleasure.

"You totally did! We don't communicate through words, but through the resonance of souls. Words can lie, but souls don't."

The Golden Boa, with its head buried in the snake soup, spat out a string of bubbles, arguing with a hint of defiance.

"Is that so!"

Hearing the boa say this, Su Heng's old face flushed red, and he nervously asked, "Then you didn't resonate with anything unhealthy, did you?"

"Unhealthy things? What are those?"

The little boa's tone was filled with childlike innocence. Then again, she was indeed just a child, not even three months old.

"Mhm, mhm, children shouldn't ask too many questions about adult matters."

Hearing the little boa's answer, Su Heng breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

He had taken over the little boa's body, and during this process, the little boa had not shown the slightest resistance; in fact, she seemed almost eager and happy.

"Is it because she's lazy that she hopes for a more disciplined personality to help her exercise or hunt?"

The Golden Boa's unreserved thoughts were easy to read.

Su Heng could only silently lament in his heart, So I'm the one who's actually working.

However, he dutifully opened his status panel and checked the little boa's growth progress over the past two days.

It was only when he checked that Su Heng discovered a great surprise.

"Damn it, where did this 0.01 point of True Points come from?"

Another day asking for recommendation votes.