False Gods Among Men, True Immortals Behind Veils

Qin Wangchuan was led into a Quiet Room and sat before Bronze Mirror, where several servants came forward to adorn him.

The head steward held up a booklet and read out the rules for the journey, one by one.

"Once the journey begins, sit comfortably in the sedan chair. Music and drums will clear the way, and Divine Guard will protect you on all sides. Just sit there peacefully..."

"The most important one."

"From the moment you put on this garment until you return tomorrow and take it off, you must not utter a single word on this journey..."

"If anyone comes to worship or beg along the way, just sit and accept their prayers; you need not respond or pay them any attention..."

The supervisor had been doing this job for many years.

Every time this last rule is read, nine out of ten of the selected people ask the same question:

If we ignore it, what kind of god are we?

Then he had to patiently explain the intricacies of the matter in detail for quite some time.

But this time...

The expected follow-up question never came.

The Quiet Room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

As he read, his voice inexplicably lowered.

I looked up, past the booklet in my hand, and gazed at the person in the mirror.

From the moment he sat down, Qin Wangchuan remained silent.

His gaze was fixed straight ahead, his back ramrod straight, and he didn't even lift his eyelids as others busied themselves around him.

Occasionally, that gaze would sweep over them indifferently, as if urging them to hurry up.

Just one glance.

The manager abruptly stopped speaking, feeling a tightness in his throat for no apparent reason, and dared not say another word.

He turned his head in surprise to look at the people around him.

They were met with several pairs of equally astonished eyes.

No one spoke.

He was clearly just an ordinary boy, yet he sat there so upright and silent.

That calm and solemnity actually had a touch of divine overture to all living beings, instilling in people a sense of awe.

There's really not much to fuss about with makeup and styling.

She straightened his hair, tied it up, and then helped him put on the moon-white divine robe, layer by layer.

Next, there were the ornaments.

A White Jade hair crown, held in both hands by a servant, was respectfully and slowly placed on top of his head.

The cool jade was pressed against my forehead.

A pair of silver rings were gently slipped onto the wrist bone.

The wide sleeves with flowing cloud patterns hung down, concealing the hands within them.

As these items were added to his body, the aura surrounding the young man gradually changed.

He's becoming less and less like a human being.

It's as if some Deity from the heavens has descended to this mortal realm by chance, taking up this physical form to sit here and receive a stick of incense from the human world.

The makeup artists became increasingly hesitant and their hands became lighter with each touch, their hearts growing increasingly uneasy.

Could this... actually be possession by something?

No one dared to say anything; they just wanted to finish the work as quickly as possible.

Once the last piece of jewelry is fastened.

The group then withdrew as if they had been granted a pardon.

Before leaving, the light gauze tied around the top of the sedan chair was untied, as was customary.

Layer upon layer, the thin gauze slowly draped down, completely enveloping the figure inside the sedan chair.

From then on, people outside could only see a blurry shadow, and could no longer make out anything clearly.

The lights in the Quiet Room were extinguished one by one.

Inside the large sedan chair, the light and shadow gradually dimmed, fading into darkness.

Only those Golden Eyes shone quietly in the deep darkness.

Outside the sedan chair, the sounds of people gradually grew louder, and incense smoke swirled around.

Qin Wangchuan listened to the commotion outside and got a general idea of what was going on.

There are rules for welcoming the gods.

Before setting off, a prayer must be read aloud, followed by the introduction and welcoming of the gods. This whole process takes at least half an hour.

For half an hour, he couldn't go anywhere or do anything.

'Then... I'll take a nap.'

As Qin Wangchuan pondered, the light in his Golden Eyes slowly faded.

When I opened my eyes again, the door was wide open, and the sunlight from outside poured in.

A team of Divine Guard filed in.

For today's welcoming of the gods, they were all dressed in smart and practical attire.

She wore a white bodice covered in soft armor, a leather belt around her waist, and her hair was tied up in a high bun, exuding a sense of both dashing elegance and solemnity.

The sedan chair was enormous, with light gauze hanging all around, and it required thirty people just to carry it.

Nine sedan chairs stood in front, nine behind, and six on each side, forming a ring around the sedan chair in the center.

With such a grand display, just by looking at it, one can tell how solemn and important today's welcoming of the gods is.

The Divine Guard, according to their pre-arranged positions, each walked to their respective palanquin poles.

Qin Zhaoer walked to the spot closest to the person in the sedan chair and stood still.

Then, she secretly gave Qin Wangchuan a smug look.

See that?

No one can take this spot away.

Qin Wangchuan naturally noticed that little bit of smugness.

A hint of helpless smile flickered in his Golden Eyes.

Thirty Divine Guard took their positions, supporting the poles and awaiting orders.

They were just waiting for the order.

"Lift the sedan chair!"

With a long, drawn-out chant, the thirty Divine Guard exerted their strength simultaneously.

The magnificent sedan chair was so heavy that even the girls beside it couldn't help but purse their lips with difficulty when it was lifted.

Qin Zhaoer, however, easily and steadily shouldered the weight without changing her expression or even panting.

The sedan chair lifted off the ground, landed steadily on my shoulder, and moved slowly forward.

The dimly lit Quiet Room receded behind us, and the light from outside the door gradually brightened, rushing in.

The next moment, the sedan chair was steadily carried out of the door.

The long street was already packed with people.

Every household is decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, and incense tables are set up high, with wisps of smoke rising from them.

Amidst the deafening drums and music, and the fluttering banners, countless eyes turned towards them.

At first, the crowd could only see the large sedan chair draped in light gauze slowly appearing from afar.

The shadows were heavy, and the figures inside were hazy and indistinct.

A stir ran through the crowd as they craned their necks to look.

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew by, lifting a corner of the light veil.

In that instant, a few people who were nearby caught a glimpse of the person's profile behind the veil.

With refined features and a serene expression, he sat upright in the sedan chair, exuding an air of untainted purity that belied any ordinary person.

"God has appeared!"

"God has appeared to us!"

In an instant, a deafening roar erupted from every corner of the long street.

The people in the front row knelt down with a thud, clasped their hands together, and slammed their foreheads heavily onto the bluestone slab.

Then came the second, then the third, the kneeling and worship spreading like ripples, instantly engulfing the entire long street.

Once he knelt down, all the hopes that had been weighing on his heart could no longer be suppressed and surged forth in a rush.

"Gods, please bless my family with a big, healthy son!"

"I pray to the gods to have mercy on my wife's illness and help her get better!"

"May my child pass the imperial examination this year and return with a degree!"

"Gods, I pray for a good marriage! I kowtow to you!"

May the weather be favorable, and the harvest abundant; may the gods have mercy on us!

A cacophony of voices rose and fell.

No one comes to see God alone.

They kowtowed, clasped their hands together, and wept bitterly, praying for offspring, recovery from illness, fame and marriage—these were the most ordinary of human desires, yet each one weighed a thousand pounds.

Incense smoke swirled, and the sounds of bowing and prayers blended together, soaring into the sky.

They knew, of course, that the person sitting behind the veil was Qin Wangchuan, the blacksmith and doctor from the town.

He's just someone I see all the time.

But nobody cared about that.

The person they were worshipping wasn't even that person.

This ceremony is the elusive yet undeniable will of Heaven above us, a pretext to finally entrust the last vestige of hope in our hearts to the world.

It doesn't matter who's sitting behind the veil.

Today, he is God.

They are the true deities who can hear the prayers filling the streets and bear the weight of countless thoughts.

Inside the sedan chair.

Qin Wangchuan gazed silently at the sea of worshippers outside the veil, his expression unchanging.

The incense was burning brightly, and the sounds of worship were like a surging tide.

He sat there, and in a daze, it truly felt as if he had returned to that high and mighty position, looking down upon all living beings.