Chapter 37: Sacred Tree Grand Festival
No matter if it was the Dark Gold Beast in the Body Tempering Realm or the Spirit-Tailed Chicken, the increase in Qi and Blood was significantly less compared to the beasts in the Blood Condensation Realm. It often took two or three Body Tempering Realm beasts to equal one Blood Condensation Realm beast.
This showed that the higher the realm of the beast, the more Qi and Blood and Spiritual Power one could absorb.
However, given the current situation of the Chen Clan, it would be difficult to sacrifice higher-realm beasts for himself.
Encountering an Innate Realm beast could potentially lead to the clan’s annihilation if they were not careful.
Noah Ji silently calculated the difference in Qi and Blood among the beasts and then discarded the thought from his mind.
Quality wasn’t important; quantity could also suffice.
Besides, wasn’t there a grand seven-day festival coming up?
He was already looking forward to it.
As for the Qi and Blood he had just obtained, Noah Ji directly converted most of it into Vitality to enhance himself.
His Vitality was too low, making him feel fragile and unsafe.He reserved the remaining ten points of Qi and Blood for deduction purposes.
After the conversion, Noah Ji’s Vitality quickly rose from 2.5 (previously 2, plus 0.5 from absorbing moonlight last night) to 16 points.
Seeing his Vitality back in double digits, Noah Ji instantly felt much safer, and even his Sophora Leaf regained its luster from a few days ago.
Looking at the remaining ten points of Qi and Blood, Noah Ji hesitated.
Should he start deducing now or wait until after the sacrifices to deduce all at once?
Recalling the disastrous second deduction, Noah Ji pondered for a moment and decided to wait a few more days.
A single deduction was too risky; with two more attempts, he could buffer the risk and increase his chances of obtaining a Supernatural Power or Technique.
With the concerted efforts of the Chen Clan members, the buildings damaged in the great battle were quickly rebuilt, even more solid than before.
Meanwhile, Oliver Chen led several of the clan’s stronger warriors to the Disordered Burial Mountain to prepare offerings for the upcoming Sacred Tree festival.
This time, they did not use the secret passage but hunted around the outskirts of the Disordered Burial Mountain.
After the great battle, Ethan Chen immediately closed the clan’s secret passage, mainly due to the Innate Realm beast deep within the Disordered Burial Mountain.
Given the current strength of the Chen Clan, they were no match for an Innate Realm beast, not even the strongest Oliver Chen.
Although the offerings determined the grandeur and sincerity of the festival, Ethan Chen had no choice but to do his best given the clan’s current strength.
In the future, when the clan prospers, they would surely provide better offerings for the Sacred Tree.
This was the grand vision Ethan Chen silently painted for Noah Ji.
With Oliver Chen’s current strength, capturing Body Tempering Realm beasts was a piece of cake, and he occasionally encountered early-stage Blood Condensation Realm beasts on the outskirts of the Disordered Burial Mountain.
Despite the tight schedule, without the interference of the Li Clan, the clan had already prepared the necessary items for the festival by the second day after the great battle.
However, the number of sacrificial beasts was still insufficient, requiring Oliver Chen to visit the Disordered Burial Mountain daily.
After all, the Sacred Tree festival was to last for seven days.
But this time, Oliver Chen had no complaints and was quite proactive.
By noon the next day, the Ancestral Hall was filled with members of the Chen Clan.
Under the Sacred Tree, an offering table was set up, holding several porcelain bowls filled with cooked meat and various fruits from around the Disordered Burial Mountain.
Though simple, it represented the Chen Clan’s reverence.
In front of the offering table stood Ethan Chen, looking solemn in new coarse cloth garments, holding incense sticks, and muttering something respectfully.
Behind him were Elijah Chen and several other Blood Condensation Realm warriors of the clan.
Further back were the ‘Tian’ generation and ‘Qing’ generation members, arranged by age, regardless of gender.
At the very back, a few children looked curiously at the scene, their faces full of wonder, but their eyes were mostly focused on the porcelain bowls under the Sacred Tree.
To be precise, on the meat in the bowls.
Above, Noah Ji’s gaze swept over all the members of the Chen Clan, feeling somewhat speechless.
In his previous life, he had seen grand occasions, but never one like this.
The key was that the target of this grand festival was himself, giving Noah Ji a strange feeling.
The sense of ceremony didn’t matter; what mattered was the offerings.
Unfortunately, Noah Ji couldn’t speak and had to pretend not to see, but his eyes were fixed on the few beasts outside the Ancestral Hall.
Those were the beasts Oliver Chen had hunted in the Disordered Burial Mountain the previous day, including two Blood Condensation Realm beasts.
After some tedious procedures, Ethan Chen loudly proclaimed:
“Our Chen Clan has been established in the Disordered Burial Mountain for twenty years. Today, I, Ethan Chen, Clan Chief of the Chen Clan, on the eighth day of the ninth month of the Wanlong Calendar, offer sacrifices to the Sacred Tree in the Disordered Burial Mountain!”
“May the Sacred Tree bless our Chen Clan with prosperity and eternal flourishing…”
As Ethan Chen finished speaking, the many clan members below echoed in unison:
“May the Sacred Tree bless the Chen Clan with prosperity and eternal flourishing…”
“Sacrifice!”
With that, several clan members carried the prepared beasts into the Ancestral Hall to begin the sacrifice.
Above, Noah Ji looked at the serious and sincere faces of the Chen Clan members, feeling a touch of emotion.
Indeed, their purpose was simple: they hoped the Sacred Tree would bless the clan with peace and prosperity for generations.
But did he have that ability? Noah Ji doubted it.
After a while, Noah Ji stopped dwelling on it. As long as he was the Sacred Tree for a day, he would fulfill his duty.
Today, he was the Sacred Tree, enjoying the sacrifices, so he should offer protection in return, ensuring the clan’s safety.
As the sacrifice began, Noah Ji’s branches and leaves started to glow.
In the next moment, countless green specks floated from the branches and leaves of the Sacred Tree.
These green specks were dense and numerous, quickly dyeing the entire Ancestral Hall a dark green.
The green specks merged into the bodies of every clan member present, healing their injuries.
Even those who were not injured felt their Qi and Blood surge, invigorating their spirits.
A few children tried to catch the green specks above their heads, but the specks disappeared into their arms.
The children, unable to perceive much, simply found it novel, unaware that this Vitality would aid their future Body Tempering Realm progress.
In the crowd, Lucas Chen lifted his head, inhaling deeply, trying to absorb the green specks above, while urging Alexander Chen beside him:
“Alexander, quickly absorb them! These specks are treasures!”
As the green specks gradually disappeared, the crowd’s gaze towards the Sacred Tree grew more respectful.
Some clan members who had never seen the Sacred Tree’s manifestation murmured:
“So this is the Sacred Tree of our clan!”
Ethan Chen was overjoyed.
The Sacred Tree had sensed their sacrifices and bestowed its divine power, signifying its recognition of the clan.
With the Sacred Tree’s blessing, the clan would surely prosper!
In Ethan Chen’s grateful gaze, Noah Ji above was cursing:
“Damn! Ten points of Vitality just gone like that!”
“Why show off for nothing? Does showing off cost nothing?”
Despite his words, Noah Ji didn’t feel much regret.
Even if he didn’t want to be the Sacred Tree, he had no choice. Besides, in such a situation, if he didn’t show some means to win over the clan members, how could he ensure their wholehearted sacrifices in the future?