The God Tree's Sacrifice

The Land of Ancestors had changed greatly in recent times.

Because of the massive development in productivity, the number of criminals had also decreased significantly.

In the present day, the number of people committing crimes was not large, and they were generally sent to the appropriate prisons.

Yet to see so many prison carts in this particular place was undoubtedly an unexpected matter.

"So many prison carts—are they holding heavy criminals?"

Hagoromo frowned, his gaze fixed ahead as he fell into thought: "But why are they here?"

This place before them was where the God Tree stood.

This location was one of the sacred grounds of the Land of Ancestors; in theory, ordinary people could never enter.

Even those lofty nobles needed to go through layers of applications to enter here—it was no easy matter, let alone for these prisoners.

The Hagoromo Brothers exchanged a glance, both feeling that something was off.

But they had years of tacit understanding between them, and with just that one look, they silently followed along.

They moved forward all the way until they reached the core of the sacred ground.

There they discovered that within that sacred ground, there was actually a large temple.

Inside the temple were enshrined several unknown statues, along with a vast aura of Chakra.

"The prisoners have been brought."

Upon arriving at this temple, the Samurai in charge of escorting the prisoners spoke coldly: "Present these offerings."

As he spoke, the offerings before him were unloaded one by one.

Having reached this place, these prisoners now seemed to understand the fate awaiting them, and fear spread across their faces one after another.

"Help! Don't kill me!"

"Spare me! Please..."

They looked at the Samurai before them, their faces pleading.

Looking closely, these people did not seem very old; many were young men, and some were even youths.

"Elder brother..."

Hamura looked at the scene ahead, a trace of pity in his eyes, as if he could not bear to see what was about to happen.

Hagoromo shook his head: "These are all criminals."

"They are being executed—this is the punishment they deserve. There's nothing much to say."

Those transported in prison carts were basically all heavy criminals.

Since these people had violated the law, whatever treatment they received was deserved.

Even the Hagoromo Brothers only felt a slight twinge of pity in their hearts.

They said nothing more and simply watched.

But soon, the scene before them left them stunned.

Up ahead, the leading Samurai raised his hand and formed a seal.

With his movement, a surge of Chakra was drawn out, and the God Tree before them began to change.

A vine extended from the God Tree, wrapping around several of the prisoners in front.

In an instant, amidst a chorus of screams, all those prisoners turned into dried corpses, their entire bodies' vitality drained dry, reduced to husks.

"How could this be..."

At that moment, the Hagoromo Brothers, watching from the shadows, both stood up.

They stared at the scene before them, shock written all over their faces.

Before witnessing this, they had anticipated various scenarios—whether the prisoners were beheaded or executed by some other means, they would not have been too surprised.

But to have their lives forcibly drained by the God Tree, to perish in such a manner—this was far too horrifying.

It far exceeded their previous expectations and thoughts.

"How could this be?"

Hagoromo's face was stunned, disbelief in his eyes: "Isn't the God Tree a sacred object? Why would it..."

The God Tree was the sacred object of the Land of Ancestors—this was a belief instilled in them since childhood.

In the past, they had always thought so.

But now, the God Tree's actions had overturned their beliefs.

Could something that drains a person's life, that steals their very vitality, still be considered a sacred object?

This thought crossed their minds, and doubts began to arise.

Seeing that the Samurai up ahead was about to continue the sacrifice, they did not hesitate for a moment and charged straight forward.

"Who goes there?"

The lead samurai was alert, sensing the Hagoromo Brothers' approach almost the moment they struck, instinctively beginning to counterattack.

But the instant he laid eyes on the Hagoromo Brothers, shock immediately spread across his face, and all thought of resistance vanished: "Lord Hagoromo?"

A samurai capable of leading a team into the God Tree's core region was naturally one of Nanchuan You's trusted confidants, among his most reliable men.

Such a man would naturally recognize the Hagoromo Brothers, and so he promptly abandoned any notion of resistance, standing obediently in place.

"What are you doing?"

Hagoromo stepped forward first, demanding an explanation: "These people are all subjects of the Land of Ancestors. What crime have they committed to be sacrificed to the God Tree?"

"These are criminals."

The samurai spoke: "They bear great sins upon them, and so have been judged to enter this place."

"To be sacrificed to the God Tree is their immense honor."

"And what about these children?"

Hagoromo pressed further: "Are even minors who have not come of age considered criminals guilty of grave offenses?"

He pointed to a prison cart nearby.

Inside that cart were two children, clearly just over ten years old.

If the other criminals had been judged to enter this place and be sacrificed to the God Tree as a deserved punishment, then these two children clearly should not have been.

"They did not commit crimes themselves, but were implicated by others."

The samurai glanced at them, then spoke: "Their former families once committed grave offenses, so the entire clan was reduced to sacrificial offerings."

As his words fell, as if fearing the Hagoromo Brothers might not believe him, he took the initiative to pick up a scroll and handed it to Hagoromo before him.

The Hagoromo Brothers took the scroll and immediately furrowed their brows.

What the samurai before them had said was indeed true.

The unification of the Land of Ancestors had not been long in the making; truly counting, it was only the past decade or two.

In those ten or twenty years, there had been no shortage of rebellions.

It couldn't be helped.

No matter how prosperous an era, there would always be dissenters.

Moreover, the unification of the Land of Ancestors had not been peaceful but accomplished under the edge of swords.

The nobles and Daimyo families of other nations, along with the losers in power struggles—all were potential malcontents.

In the past few decades, these people had repeatedly stirred up rebellions, causing no small amount of trouble.

And Nanchuan You's punishment for these families was simple.

He would cast the entire clan into death row, reducing them all to sacrifices for the God Tree.

Thus, in theory, there was no issue with this matter.

Even if they were only minors who had not come of age, they were still descendants of rebels, likewise counted among the death row inmates.

The Hagoromo Brothers understood this.

Yet, meeting the gazes of the two children before them, they could not bear it in their hearts.