The Goddess statue that had been kept in the temple was moved to the square. It was still covered, but the cloth had been replaced with an artifact. A hazy mist shrouded the statue, with faint golden light showing through, lending it an even more divine air.
The bells marked only the beginning of God's Birthday. From that moment on, the Divine Envoys, who usually kept out of sight, would perform two rituals in the Goddess's name, while the Saintesses were tasked with circling the temple at the same time. But today's ritual differed from the usual one. Six altars would be raised inside the temple, and the Saintesses from Holy Land City and five other satellite cities would circle them.
They had heard all this from the believers. "Compared with the usual ritual, today's seems simpler."
Players didn't have to crowd the streets; they could watch from the rooftops and other buildings. The Sub-district players didn't stop them, but they had stationed people and equipment wherever players gathered in large numbers. That was right: today, Space Artifacts were restricted in Holy Land City. Under the interference, ordinary teleportation items and devices wouldn't work.
"I asked around. The Saintesses usually walk during the ritual, but today they're kneeling." Blondie pointed to the largest altar in the middle. "Look at that. So inhumane. They even brought pregnant women here to kneel."
There were only a little over a hundred Saintesses in Holy Land City and its satellite cities, and a small number of them were pregnant. The Saintess who had spoken with Xu Huo several times before was on the middle altar, while A Hai, a Saintess-in-training, was on the altar to the left.
They knelt around the altars in worship. The Divine Envoys sat in the center of each altar.