The Sacrifice

A month passed.

Time had come to February 18th, a misty, drizzly Qingming Festival.

Today, the City Guard Prefecture, led by the City Guards, organized a memorial ceremony to commemorate the founding emperor of the Da'an Dynasty. All members of every martial arts school in the city were required to attend.

Cui Hao and Lin Da arrived at their martial arts school early.

While changing, they overheard their fellow disciples discussing the 'preliminary examination' and the 'Martial Xiucai'.

And the paths available after becoming a Martial Xiucai.

The 'preliminary examination' was an event organized by the Prefecture, intended to provide martial artists with cultivation resources. It was difficult to pass, and the competition was fierce.

After becoming a Martial Xiucai, there were two paths to choose from: one was to enter a sect for advanced studies and continue to take the martial arts imperial examination.

The other was to venture into the prefectural city, find a more powerful martial arts master, or join a certain faction.

In either case, they wouldn't stay in Qingyuan City.

Martial artists who failed to become Martial Xiucai would remain in Qingyuan City, joining wealthy merchants or powerful clans.

Listening to his fellow disciples' conversation, a thought sprouted in Cui Hao's heart: he wanted to join a sect and master true skills!

Only by doing so could he carve out a stable life for himself and Su Yun, a life no one would dare to bully in this tumultuous world.

"Are you all ready!" Third Senior Brother Gao Feng walked in and shouted, "Let's go!"

Nearly a hundred people set off from the martial arts school in a grand procession, led, naturally, by their master and a group of Clear Force disciples.

In the middle were the Mortal Martial.

The ordinary disciples were at the rear.

The procession was quite imposing, attracting the attention of many passersby and merchants.

Midway, they encountered people from Guangchang Martial Arts Hall. Their contingent was even larger, numbering over two hundred.

For some unknown reason, there was a subtle tension, like sparks flying, between the Clear Force disciples of the two groups.

There was no animosity between the Mortal Martial and the ordinary disciples; instead, they found it amusing and interesting.

Before Si Shi (9 AM - 11 AM), the twenty-four martial arts schools of varying sizes in the city exited the east gate and arrived at the pier by the East Watch River.

The area had been decorated in advance, with banners flying everywhere and colorful pennants like a forest. Coincidentally, the rain had stopped, and the sun emerged, as if heaven itself favored the occasion.

"Stand up straight! Gather your spirits!" Second Senior Brother Halan Sheng exhorted from the periphery of the formation, "Don't shame Zhanhong Martial Arts Academy!"

Everyone responded in unison.

The other martial arts schools did the same, as if competing, their shouts growing louder than the last.

At this point, someone in the formation spoke, "Up ahead, I see Senior Brother Xiao Li."

Everyone was arranged in separate formations. Xiao Li and his group were distinct, positioned at the very front of all the formations, alongside the City Guard Prefecture.

Time reached precisely Si Shi. After a round of drums, the memorial ceremony for the founding emperor of the Da'an Dynasty officially began.

The event was presided over by an official in charge of rites and music.

Much like in ancient times before his transmigration, the Da'an Dynasty also had the concept of 'decay of rites and music'.

There was a complex and complete system of social, political, and behavioral norms.

It stipulated the political order, the hierarchical relationships and obligations between ruler and subject, father and son, husband and wife, elder and younger brother, and friends.

Matters such as sacrifices, court audiences, alliances, weddings and funerals, marriages, clothing, food, housing, and transportation all had standard procedural flows.

However, due to the unrest on the western frontier, some behaviors deviating from the established rites and music had emerged within the dynasty, and many things were not as they used to be.

When it came to the 'slaughter' and 'sacrifice' segment, the City Guard—Pang Gaoshan—ascended the high platform.

He was over six feet tall, his body like a pine and cypress tree. Standing at the forefront, he was exceptionally imposing, appearing like a divine being descending to the mortal realm.

"Amazing!" Lin Da couldn't help but exclaim, "The City Guard Lord looks a whole lot taller than a door frame, like a Vajra statue in a temple!"

Cui Hao gently reminded Lin Da, "Don't talk nonsense!"

Lin Da fell silent. Simultaneously, a group of City Guard Prefecture soldiers escorted a group of over thirty prisoners, shackled and manacled, onto the scene. They were brought to the pier and made to kneel in a line.

At Pang Gaoshan's command, the guards drew their standard steel swords and swung them down.

Instantly, heads rolled on the riverside pier, and the strong scent of blood wafted with the wind.

The martial arts formations, which had been subtly competing moments before, were now silent. Many disciples' faces turned pale, and they subconsciously held their breath. Only the rushing river and the flags rustling in the wind could be heard.

The atmosphere only slightly eased when Pang Gaoshan continued speaking.

Towards the end of Si Shi, the memorial ceremony for the founding emperor of the Da'an Dynasty concluded. The twenty-four martial arts school masters were invited by Pang Gaoshan for drinks, while the rest dispersed.

"They're not even providing lunch," Lin Da complained with dissatisfaction, "I'm starving after watching all morning."

"Lin Da!" Cui Hao punched his shoulder heavily, "Careless words bring disaster!"

Lin Da was somewhat sensible and apologized promptly, "Brother Hao, I won't do it again."

"Junior Brother Cui," Liu Yan, with a youthful face and muscular physique, walked over and asked, "Why did you hit Junior Brother Lin?"

"Senior Sister Liu, I said the wrong thing," Lin Da lowered his head, "Brother Hao was right to hit me. I won't dare to do it again."

"It's good that it can be changed. Junior Brother Cui will look after you; others wouldn't."

Lin Da wasn't a newcomer and nodded heavily.

It was a rare opportunity and a perfect coincidence. Cui Hao took the initiative to invite, "Senior Sister Liu, I'll treat you to noodles."

"Don't be so polite," Liu Yan smiled shyly, "I have a big appetite."

"I'll definitely make sure Senior Sister eats her fill." Spotting Sun Cheng, Cui Hao called out, "Senior Brother Sun, I'm treating you to noodles."

"That sounds great," Sun Cheng agreed immediately, "Thanks, Junior Brother Cui."

Leaving the dock, many stalls lined the road. The four of them sat down at one of the noodle stands. Cui Hao called out to the vendor, "Brother, please bring eight bowls of soft lamb noodles!"

"Coming right up! Please have a seat, esteemed guests, it'll be ready in a moment!"

"Eight bowls to start," Cui Hao said generously, "We can order more if it's not enough."

"Junior Brother is so generous," Liu Yan regretted, "If I had known, I wouldn't have bargained when buying your chicks."

"That's a different matter, Senior Sister, don't worry."

"Oh, Sister Liu, Junior Brother Cui, Junior Brother Lin."

The four turned their heads upon hearing the voices. Xu Liqing and Xu Ren were passing by, followed by another female disciple, Zhou Hua.

Unlike the male disciples who all wore training uniforms, female disciples were allowed to wear casual clothing.

Xu Liqing wore an elegant, light blue ruqun. A simple wooden hairpin was tucked into her cascading black hair, which only enhanced her clear and beautiful features.

She was indeed the goddess in the hearts of all the male disciples at the martial arts school.

Zhou Hua was exquisitely made up and quite pretty, but next to Xu Liqing, she was merely a foil.

Having achieved Mortal Martial completion, she was usually on good terms with Xu Liqing. Cui Hao had no prior dealings with her.

As for Xu Ren, he was the young master of Xu's Pharmacy. Cui Hao knew him from selling Golden Python. He had met him once on the first day he went to the martial arts school and this was the second meeting, with over five months in between.

After a moment of stunned silence, Cui Hao smiled and called out, "Senior Sister Xu, Senior Brother Xu, Senior Sister Zhou? Please, have a seat, I'm treating."

Xu Liqing's lips curved into a gentle smile, "Thank you for the treat, Junior Brother Cui."

Zhou Hua also nodded demurely, her gaze lingering on Cui Hao's simple cloth shoes for a moment.

Xu Ren moved a small stool over and sat down, "Thank you, Junior Brother Cui."

Cui Hao signaled the vendor again, ordering six more bowls of noodles.

There was no fear of not finishing them; even women who practiced martial arts had hearty appetites.

There were many stalls nearby, and many people were eating. Their corner was relatively quiet. Zhou Hua asked with a hint of casual inquiry, "Where are you currently working part-time as a guard, Junior Brother? You must have a position, right?"

Cui Hao replied calmly, "The Hu Family's flower shop is sponsoring my martial arts training."

"The Hu Family? Which Hu Family?" Zhou Hua was taken aback for a moment, then it was as if she heard the biggest joke. "You don't mean the one on Zhongwazi Street, the old miser Hu who even makes his employees bring their own dry rations for lunch? He's sponsoring you?!"

Her voice involuntarily rose, drawing glances from the neighboring tables. "Junior Brother Cui, you're not being deceived, are you? Everyone in the city knows that getting three taels of silver out of him is harder than plucking feathers from a steel rooster!"

Xu Liqing and Xu Ren also widened their eyes, finding it equally unbelievable.

"It's the Hu Family," Cui Hao only knew of the three major families and didn't know the Hu Family's situation. He asked curiously, "Is there a problem?"

Zhou Hua paused, then stated with certainty, "Steward Hu is known as the stingiest person in Qingyuan City. It's said he eats steamed buns and pickles every day at home. You couldn't possibly get sponsorship from him."

Cui Hao looked towards his fourth senior brother, Sun Cheng.

Sun Cheng lowered his head, counting chopsticks.