Between the vast sea of ​​clouds

114 Blood Sacrifice

The blood dripped into the yellow sand drop by drop, at first it was just a few points, but after a while, it flowed down like a stream, and the viscous blood gathered into a stream and flowed into the sand.That is when the priests bleed and slaughter the selected cattle and sheep, and then fill the basin with blood, preparing to draw spells in the sacrifice ceremony.

A golden ball the size of a human head was placed on the high platform built of stones, and the edge of the platform was covered with a circle of yellow leather, which flipped up gently in the autumn wind.The elders of all ethnic groups in Xirong came to Mingsha Lake with the selected children, new tents were set up, and many slaves followed behind the master timidly.Sometimes the number of slaves can also reflect the strength of the clan.The person in charge of the sacrifice ceremony this time is the patriarch of the Wu Siam tribe, who was also the person who led the mission to negotiate peace with Dai Guo in Yunzhou a few months ago.

Behind her were a few tall and burly slaves, their faces were painted with bright colors. According to the old rules, everyone who came in had to unload their weapons. She touched her waist subconsciously, feeling a little uncomfortable. comfortable.

The long knife that has been with her for many years is like a part of her. She endured the discomfort and inspected the tents. People saluted when they saw her.She walked to the main tent, and when she entered the tent, she saw a man, a well-dressed archmage sitting cross-legged on the carpet, the head of the Wu Siam tribe paid respectful salutes, and respectfully said, "Wang Tingmeng ordered me to send my greetings to you."

The mage said: "Qianhui has joined the council again?"

The head of the Wuxian tribe hesitated for a while, and said: "On behalf of the country, we sent envoys to ask whether the missions that visited three months ago had arrived at the royal court. He Chang, the Qianhui clan who offered advice and schemes, entered the table just like that."

The mage smiled, which made the head of the Wuxian tribe a little uneasy. She asked in a low voice: "My lord, what's wrong?"

This title is actually very special. It is usually a respectful title for the elders in the clan. Their relationship is self-evident. The mage looked at her and said leisurely: "There is nothing wrong, Awo, Qianhui has a heart of revenge. Swearing to wash away the shame of their ancestors with blood, they sharpened themselves into a sharp sword, waiting to attack the capital of Dai Kingdom at any time. Didn’t they propose the idea of ​​peace talks? Those Dai Kingdom officials who were detained in the royal court , how do you deal with it?"

While talking, someone came in, and the head of the Wuxian clan closed his mouth. She saw that it was Bi Shu.She opened the tent door, and there seemed to be people following behind.The head of the Wusiam tribe smiled and said, "The envoy of Bishu."

After Bi Shu nodded, the head of the Wuxian clan saw the person behind her clearly, opened his mouth in surprise and said: "This is not..."

The mage shook her head, and she stopped abruptly.The person who came was well-behaved and quiet, he was totally different from the calm and cheerful Master Li who was facing the royal families at the banquet.She followed behind Bi Shu, also dressed in the style of Xirong people.But later the mission went to the Golden Tent, and they never heard from them again. Even when the officials who were detained later returned to the royal court, there was no sign of this lord. For this reason, He Chang even made a big fuss. It was announced early that she would behead this person to show the public, and use her blood to sacrifice a battle flag.The head of the Wuxian clan knew that there were some things that should not be delved into. She rolled her eyes and quickly closed her mouth.

"What is it?" Bi Shu touched the man's hair, and put on a string of shiny green stone beads for her. The emerald green color looked like the teeth of a poisonous snake in the dancing firelight. She said, "This is a Come the month."

The respect of the Wuxian patriarch for the golden tent comes from the support of the archmage. She knew privately from her mother that this venerable came from her own clan. This is a secret that she can't tell.The power of the Golden Tent is still there, and she has been able to rise all the way in the Wang Ting League, thanks to the secret support of this elder.Seeing that Bi Shu dressed up that man with great care, and thinking about what was about to happen at the sacrifice ceremony, she couldn't help feeling a little chilly in her heart.

No one spoke in the tent for a while, and all kinds of noise and noise could be heard outside.She thought that the priests were making arrangements, so she asked the mage for instructions, and the mage said: "I haven't finished talking in the future, how are those people dealt with?"

While she was talking, her gaze was always behind Bi Shu, and the head of the Wuxian clan understood her intentions in an instant, and said: "Those Dai people are naturally going to be killed." As if hearing it, there was no wave in his eyes, just quietly looking at the blue stone on his chest.

The head of the Wuxian clan thought, if she really doesn't remember, otherwise, according to this person's personality, she would never retreat in front of He Chang. If she had a sober mind, she would never have reacted like this after hearing this.

"Take it out." The mage said to Bi Shu, "Someone send it back to the tent to stay there, and you will go to the opening ceremony with me later."

Bi Shu sent that person out, and after she left, the head of the Wuxian tribe said: "Your Majesty, this person also wants to participate in the sacrifice ceremony?"

The mage got up, stood barefoot on the blanket, and said, "Naturally."

Her entourage came in to salute, saying that the priest invited her to preside over the opening ceremony, so the head of the Wusiam clan could not ask any more questions, so he asked the mage to resign and left.

The mage looked at a piece of human skin hanging on the wall. After the skin was specially treated, it was covered with dense incantations with a gold pen. Those incantations looked like a shrunken totem, with a closed eye in the middle.But she knew that if the painting was turned upside down, the eyes would open.

A person came out of the darkness, knelt down at her feet respectfully, and said, "Everything is ready."

She asked: "For 150 years, the eye of the sky has never been opened again, so this time, can it be opened again?"

The person kneeling at her feet was dressed as a priest, and some fresh blood was smeared on his face. She said: "I don't understand this, why did you suddenly change your mind?"

The mage put on his shoes under her service, and said: "Because the royal court is about to become stronger, ever since Qianhui joined the League, I knew that there would be such a day that the balance between the Golden Tent and the royal court would be tilted. Do you really think that those elders who keep supporting the Golden Tent will continue to support it? When the royal court asked for land and wealth from the golden tent, they were also the first to pour to the royal court."

The priest said: "Then you should choose a suitable child from the clan to sit in this position, instead of being an outsider or our enemy."

The mage looked at the disciple who had practiced beside him, and smiled softly: "Don't you understand why the previous mages didn't let the eyes of the sky open. I was selected from the Wu Siam until now. The purpose of cultivating in the distant snow-capped mountains is to cut off the connection with the clan. If A Yuelai is selected from the clan, just think about it, no matter which clan he comes from, as long as the clan is there, such a person will not be so easy to control The clan Bi Shu belonged to had left the grasslands 200 years ago and went to a more distant cold desert. When I was traveling, I accidentally saw that clan and thought it was destined for her, so I took this child in."

"For 150 years, the eye of the sky has never been opened, just because the ancient mages did not want to destroy the relationship between the Golden Tent and the Royal Court, but now the Royal Court is not bound by the Golden Tent, so we need an opportunity, a suitable person, to completely break it. It." The mage put on a colorful cloak, and the bright colors on that cloak were the feathers of birds, and she said: "Didn't the king's court say that as long as the golden tent makes the gods return to their positions, then the golden tent will come to you?" Worship, admit that the golden tent is above the royal court. This is an oath written on an iron scroll, and it won't be as easy as tearing up the peace talks with Daiguo?"

The priest stood up slowly, stretched out his hand to support the mage's wooden staff, and said that she was the mage's first disciple, but no one knew it.She said: "Of course not, so Wang Ting has no excuse to take back our land."

The mage said: "Bi Shu likes this person very much. She drank the sage grass for two months, and she can't remember many things. It doesn't matter if she stays with her. Don't worry about any problems. It's just that her identity is a problem. Why don't you just let her go?" Let Awo go talk to Wang Ting, erase this person's name, and count it among the group of people who were executed."

The priest lowered his head slightly, and when the mage was ready, he left the tent by himself.

Fog suddenly appeared at dusk, and after careful inspection, it was not fog, but water vapor floating from Mingsha Lake.The delicate and soft moist mist like a veil is blown to the shore by the wind, and the light of the setting sun shines on the sand dunes, reflecting dazzling white light.As the gold fell to the west, a huge bonfire was lit in the middle of the field, and the flames greedily licked the hazy moon in the sky.The lakeside was silent, and when the night got darker, heavy drums sounded, one after another as if hitting people's hearts, the high-pitched music tore apart the tranquility of the lakeside, the sound was like the piercing screams of a man before death, The red priests stood on the high platform, holding various instruments, and performed a god-respecting dance to the beating of drums.

They were naked|bare to the upper body, and their skin was honey-colored in the firelight. After circling the golden sphere for an unknown number of times, the leader broke off the magic weapon in his hand, took out clotted blood of cattle and sheep, and put it on the ground. What to describe.

In the end, they used blood to draw a huge magic circle on the high platform. The blood quickly dried on the stone platform and re-entered the cracks in the stone, covering the old pattern.The head of the Wu Siam clan held a staff and recited the ceremony's congratulations in an ancient language. As soon as she finished speaking, the crowd burst into cheers. The moonlight became brighter and brighter, leaped over the sand dunes, and cast crystal clear frost on the calm lake.I saw the moonlight refracted on the lake like a mirror. This strange scene was even more holy and solemn in the blurred night. Everyone focused their eyes on the altar. The gods prayed, and everyone in the audience closed their eyes and meditated silently. No one noticed that a sandy land on the east side collapsed slightly, and a figure rolled around a few times before disappearing silently by the altar under the shadow of the tent.

The selected children were taken to a small tent near the altar, each with a simple tent, surrounded by the altar, completely separated.Before the ceremony was over, none of them could leave, and no one outside could enter except the wizards.

The priest in red walked slowly onto the stone platform holding the golden ball. She put the things away, bowed to the ground, and then stepped back from the platform.

The golden ball on the high platform moved slightly, turned very slowly, and finally pointed in one direction.

The elders in the seats looked at the archmage, and the mage said: "Go and see, who is there."

The wizards entered the circle surrounded by white tents, and after a long time, one of them ran out in a hurry, shouting: "Man, man is gone!"

It was as if a drop of water had been poured into boiling oil. The expressions of the guests and elders watching the ceremony changed in an uproar. Some even turned out of their seats and hurried to the white tent.The archmage faintly felt that something was wrong, but before he could stop them, he hurriedly asked the head of the Wuxian clan to send someone to stop those people. She came down from the seat and said to Bi Shu: "Go and see, this is a sacrifice to the gods of the Golden Tent. It must not be done until it is over." Let those people break the rules and anger the gods, that's no joke!"

Bi Shu agreed, and walked towards the group of white tents.Those wizards tried their best to stop those who tried to break in, and the head of the Wuxian clan rushed over and scolded: "You are not allowed to see people until the end of the ritual. You haven't seen anyone break into this place for so many years. Don't you understand the rules?"

The leader of the middle-aged woman glanced at her, and the head of the Wuxian tribe recognized that she was the acting elder of the Qianhui tribe. He paused in his heart, and the woman said coldly: "What are the rules? You mean the rules of the royal court. It's still the rule of the golden account."

Bi Shu was introduced by a wizard from a place where there were few people. She asked, "Who is lost? Didn't I tell you to keep an eye on him, why did he disappear?"

The wizard was almost kneeling on the ground, Bi Shu kicked her away impatiently, suddenly had a bad feeling, before she had time to think about it, when the wizard opened a tent, she suddenly froze.

There was only a long rope left in the tent, which was tied by her own hands for that person two hours ago, but the incision was so sharp that it was obviously cut by someone with a sharp weapon, she suddenly said: "Go back! Find a mage! Go!"

The archmage felt very headache looking at the chaotic ritual. She was blown by the night wind for a long time. With the support of the wizard, she walked to the altar built of stones. Master account."

The mage looked at the moon, it was so similar every year, but it seemed to be different.She understands that it is people who change, people are constantly aging, and they are irresistibly sliding into the abyss of death.This is the ending that no one can avoid. To the gods, human beings are so insignificant, let alone eternal.She rejected the wizard and said: "You go back first, I am here alone."

The moonlight was like daylight, shining brightly around her, suddenly a cold light flashed in front of her eyes, and the cold sharp weapon was pressed against her neck, she sighed in her heart, she was really old.

"Master Li." The mage stared at the Mingsha Lake in front of him, not surprised, as if he had expected it a long time ago, "How can you remember that ordinary people can forget everyone even after taking Yuejiancao for a month?" , it's really rare."

There was no answer behind her, and after a long time, a deep and hoarse voice came, as if her throat had been worn away by the sand in the wind and sand: "I am not talented, but I dare not forget the name given by my parents."

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