The Most Exalted and Noble Form

"How could such Corrupted Ones appear so close to the shipping lane? What are the Island Magistrate usually doing? What? All the Island Magistrate are dead? Then it's alright."

A young and promising man complained, and someone next to him whispered a few words in his ear before he waved his hand and looked at the man and woman standing in front of him.

"My lady, it was our oversight that caused you to have to work so hard."

The man immediately put on a fawning smile and spoke to the woman who had changed into a red and white shrine maiden outfit.

"Now that we've come this far, I suppose some people won't have the guts to make another move."

"Woman, "Amber said casually.

"Not at all, our Shrine Officials is to welcome you, Shrine Maiden. Rest assured, we will provide the most thorough protection. From Qiushan Island to Harmony Island, you will absolutely not encounter anything you do not wish to see."

The man said with a smile.

"I am Natsushima, a priest sent by the Wa Island Grand Shrine to welcome the Natsushima maiden. I will now arrange the shrine maiden's itinerary. As for this mercenary, thank you for escorting the shrine maiden. We will give you three times the agreed reward as a token of our gratitude."

He wanted to get rid of Lu Ban.

Although I don't know who this mercenary is, he and the priestess were alone together the whole way. Even if nothing happened, if others found out, they would gossip. To avoid trouble, it's best to get rid of him.

"My commission is to escort Amber to the Wa Island Grand Shrine."

Lu Ban replied.

"Well, sir mercenary, you must understand your position. Some people might use your journey as an excuse to cause trouble, which is unacceptable to the Wa Island Grand Shrine."

Natsushima wanted to persuade her further, but Amber had already spoken.

"He walked with me."

Since that's the case, Natsushima had no choice but to comply.

Anyway, if there really is something between them, it will be found out during the election of the Wa Island Grand Shrine.

As she watched Natsushima leave the room, Amber's previously upright and tense posture suddenly relaxed.

"I don't know when it started, but I'm no longer used to this kind of life."

Her tone was somewhat helpless.

What will happen to Changfeng Island?

Lu Ban asked.

Qiushan Island, where they were, was closest to Changfeng Island. At night, they could see flickering firelight in the distance. This firelight might become the story of how the mothers on Qiushan Island would scare their sleepless children. Eventually, everyone who came here moved away.

According to the experience of the Wa Island Grand Shrine, the purification fire of Changfeng Island will burn for about ten years before completely burning the island. After that, it will spread into the sea. Fifty years later, Qiushan Island will face the danger of being purified and burned. Before that, everyone on the island will be relocated.

The Autumn Mountain Route will therefore be renamed, the route will be extended, and it will bypass Changfeng Island and Qiushan Island.

Until one day in the future, the Corrupted Ones will once again attack some of the islands in the middle. In the long tug-of-war between people and the Corrupted Ones, this sea route will be completely cut off, and the people of Sakura Island will have to take a much longer route to reach Harmony Island.

Lu Ban also heard that some islands were even more tragic. They themselves were not eroded or attacked by the Corrupted Ones, but the islands around them were all polluted. The pure fire gradually turned the surrounding sea into a sea of fire, and the island was completely isolated from the outside world.

If the people on the island fail to evacuate in time, they will experience a true slow death, watching as the Pale, multicolored flames that were meant to save them gradually devour their land, eventually burning everything to ashes.

"The residents of Changfeng Island and its surrounding areas will be evacuated and relocated. The area will be taken over by the Shrine Officials, who will warn passing ships."

Amber said with a hint of melancholy.

"Oh, right."

When Lu Ban saw the shrine maiden like this, he remembered something.

"The mother and daughter from before, the mother was swallowed by the Corrupted Ones, the daughter survived, and her father was killed by the Corrupted Ones that fled to the sea."

The little girl is now with Laika, being looked after by the Shrine Officials.

"How about we take her to Harmony Island? The shrine there should take her in."

Lu Ban suggested.

As an orphan, the little girl's life would only become more miserable if she stayed here. Her current situation was largely caused by Lu Ban and Amber, so he should help her out of both compassion and reason.

"Yes, I will plead with the shrine. The shrine is already short-staffed, so it's normal for them to recruit some shrine maidens to see if they can train."

Amber nodded.

She suddenly laughed self-deprecatingly.

"I never thought I would still choose this path."

Lu Ban looked at the girl who was lost in melancholy, but couldn't think of any words to comfort her.

"It's alright. When I saw those Corrupted Ones killing humans and devouring the land, I knew very well that I was born for this purpose. If I have this ability, I should use it. Everything is predestined."

Amber, in turn, comforted Lu Ban.

"Besides, even if I become the Head Miko, we can still meet, right? At that time, I will be the most supreme and noble person, and no one can disobey my will. It shouldn't be difficult for you to get a sinecure at the shrine. Then you won't have to wander around anymore, and you can settle down and start a family."

That would be wonderful.

Although Lu Ban was not fortunate enough to enjoy it, upon further reflection, at least Amber's life would be spent comfortably in the safest place on the Harmony Island, which could be considered a final consolation.

The next morning, Amber and Lu Ban, along with Laika and the little girl, boarded a ship bound for Harmony Island.

Lu Ban was originally worried that those powerful and wealthy people might ambush Amber halfway, just like they did on the shipping lane before.

But he soon discovered that Amber's actions on Changfeng Island were not only not resented by the islanders, but were instead worshipped as a god by them. The image of him freely entering and exiting the pure fire and controlling the Pale flames spread.

People regard Amber as Divine Child, believing her to be the earthly representative of the gods. Whenever Amber's ship enters the port, countless islanders will greet her. Everyone believes that Amber is the strongest shrine maiden in history and is capable of inheriting the Wa Island Grand Shrine.

In this situation, all eyes turned to Amber.

The power struggle surrounding her is also unfolding rapidly.

Moreover, after the previous assassination attempt, these powerful figures were also surprised that Amber had survived unscathed even in that situation. So, was it really fate that she was destined to sit in that position?

Some wanted to curry favor with Amber's family in advance, some still felt they were a contender, and others were undecided.

Under such checks and balances, Amber safely arrived at the Harmony Island, the center of this world.

The legendary shrine was right there.

*

It's the end of the month, please vote for me!