Gentlemen, it's time to enter the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls.

Chapter 159 I only pray that the incense offerings will never cease.
After Bi Le left, Chen Ye was finally able to spend a peaceful night.

However, starting the next day, leaders from other tribes began to visit.

They probably saw that Bile came with a nervous look on his face and then left happily, so they thought that he had gained something from Chen Ye, or at least received a promise that satisfied him.

Since Chen Ye's magic yesterday had frightened everyone so much that they dared not act recklessly again, they could only try to ease the tension as soon as possible.

Being a leader requires not only ruthlessness but also a thick skin.

Chen Ye was so annoyed that he simply let Qiqi Gesang handle it.

However, judging from the attitude of these barbarian leaders, the Yellow Spring Sect's foothold in the Northern Frontier should be secure.

The second day's puzzle test arrived without any incident. Chen Ye didn't even show up; he simply had Qiqi Gesang handle the pre-arranged answers.

As expected, Chen Ye won the second round again without any surprises.

Although Chen Ye couldn't understand the riddle's meaning either, since everyone agreed, it meant that Chen Ye's "wisdom" surpassed everyone else's.

The day passed peacefully until the third day, the legendary time for the deer hunt.

Chen Ye had no choice but to leave the golden tent and return to the square where the huge white bone pillar was placed.

This time, the gazes of the crowd were no longer filled with hatred; most looked at him with a hint of flattery, leaving only a few barbarian leaders still resentful.

But none of that matters. Chen Ye doesn't care whether they respect or resent him. As long as Fengdu City can be self-sufficient, nothing else matters.

The high priest walked with a faltering gait, looking just like an old zombie who had lived for a thousand years.

After a lengthy prayer ceremony, the high priest finally had a painted bronze mirror brought out from the ancestral temple.

This bronze mirror was taller than a person and incredibly heavy; it took four strong men to move it to the center of the square.

Qiqigesang explained to Chen Ye, "The bronze mirror depicts the Nine-Colored Deer. The High Priest will light up the mirror later, and the Nine-Colored Deer will jump out and possess a wild beast in the Holy City. In most cases, it will possess a deer or a goat. Whoever can hunt the beast possessed by the Nine-Colored Deer will be the winner."

Chen Ye asked, "In the past, was it always the case that there was a round of fighting first, and then the hunting began?"

Qiqigesang nodded and said, "After all, the Holy City is too big, and there are too few prey. Searching depends entirely on luck. Those with more people have an advantage, and those with fewer people are unwilling to lose. So, they should fight each other first, and only go to look for the Nine-Colored Deer after all their opponents are dead. This is a safer approach. After all, people are easy to find, but the Nine-Colored Deer is hard to find."

No wonder, this trial was actually arranged by the high priest.

The strongest tribe can send out the most warriors, and by engaging in unrestricted combat from the start, they can naturally establish an advantage, making the outcome of the hunt a foregone conclusion.

It was precisely through these methods that the Suhe tribe was able to retain its championship title for many consecutive years. Furthermore, Suhe's territory bordered the Central Plains, which, to some extent, prevented him from recklessly attacking other tribes, allowing the northern frontier to develop peacefully for many years.

This maneuver was indeed quite skillful, and Chen Ye couldn't help but admire it.

However, now that she has become Su He, she needs to help put on a good show.

The high priest chanted incantations, and the bronze mirror slowly turned, reflecting the moonlight in the sky, making the painted nine-colored deer seem to come alive.

First, it blinked, then twisted its neck, and soon half of its head popped out of the bronze mirror.

This nine-colored deer was indeed radiant and dazzling.

Ordinary people who see it will think it is a divine object from heaven, capable of conveying the will of the gods.

But in Chen Ye's spiritual eyes, this was simply an illusion. The nine-colored deer was entirely a phantom made of spiritual energy, with no physical form. Its only function was that it could emit light and move.

Chen Ye blinked and said in confusion, "Something's not right. This thing doesn't seem to have the power to possess people?"

At this moment, a woman completely covered up walked up to Chen Ye and said in a soft voice, "Sect Master, you have a discerning eye. In fact, this nine-colored deer is just an illusion and does not have the ability to possess wild beasts."

Chen Ye recognized the voice; it was Toya Lier again, only today she was wrapped up tightly, showing no trace of her former charm.

Chen Ye asked, "So, it's all fake?"

"It's all fake. Once the winner is decided, no matter what prey they offer, the Nine-Colored Deer will appear from it."

Chen Ye understood; this was the true illusion, and only in this way could the winner be predetermined without any surprises.

However, these people from the northern frontier were unaware of this and still believed that they had truly captured the legendary nine-colored deer.

The methods of cultivators are far too easy for them to fool mortals.

Chen Ye then asked, "So what are your plans for today?"

This deer hunt will definitely be different; Chen Ye's appearance makes it impossible for everyone to fight.

After all, no one could defeat that fiery python; even a charge of hundreds of warriors could hardly leave a single wound on the giant python with its exposed bones.

Therefore, everyone was just waiting for Chen Ye to go hunting alone. Once he found the Nine-Colored Deer, everything would be over.

Without this battle, Chen Ye couldn't just grab a random rabbit and send it up, then have the high priest declare Chen Ye the winner. That would be too sham and easily arouse suspicion.

Toya Lier said, "This time, the High Priest prepared several ferocious beasts. He asked the Sect Master to subdue them, and the Nine-Colored Deer possessed one of them."

I see. That's a good remedy.

Chen Ye gave Qiqi Gesang a look, indicating that he would let this bull-headed woman subdue the beast later, or if that failed, have her throw away the fire snake on her arm. In this way, the situation was stabilized, and everything was resolved smoothly.

But Chen Ye was more concerned about the bronze mirror. "You said that this bronze mirror was a magical artifact used by the celestial beings in their sacrifices, capable of illuminating the path to heaven. Can it still be used now?"

"It's just a guess. For thousands of years, the Nine-Colored Deer has only appeared in a flash, seemingly possessing a wild beast, but in reality, it's just that it lacks spiritual energy. If the spiritual energy were sufficient, it might be able to soar into the sky and break open that gate to heaven."

Chen Ye understood. It turned out that their cultivation level was insufficient to fully activate the bronze mirror's effects, which was why they created a fleeting effect to deceive people for thousands of years.

The spiritual energy of a Qi Sea Realm cultivator is indeed very limited, far from sufficient to control such a large magic weapon.

If that's the case, then it's quite possible to find clues about the Nirvana Sect.

Even if the Nine-Colored Deer didn't break through the Heavenly Gate, it was probably the old site of the Nirvana Sect.

Chen Ye was prepared to take the bronze mirror back to the Lord for careful study after the deer hunt ended.

As the high priest finished chanting the incantation, the nine-colored deer on the bronze mirror completely detached itself and transformed into a lifelike nine-colored divine deer.

The roars of wild beasts echoed from afar, just as the high priest had predicted.

But just before the nine-colored deer leaped into the sky and disappeared, a beam of light flew out from the Ancestral Spirit Hall and landed on the terrifying white bone pillar.

It was a blurry white shadow, like a skeleton made of mist, that grabbed the nine-colored deer and swallowed it whole.

This sudden change startled Chen Ye, who asked Tuo Yalier, "Is this... a new play?"

Toya Lier seemed to be shocked by the scene before her, and after a tremor, she hurriedly knelt down.

Chen Ye was somewhat confused, and then he saw that the High Priest had also knelt down, and everyone who had come out of the Ancestral Spirit Hall was kneeling in front of the misty skeleton.

The other barbarian leaders were also shocked and babbled incoherently, and many of them knelt down along with the people from the Ancestral Spirit Hall.

Chen Ye hurriedly asked, "What's going on now?"

Qiqi Gesang explained, "Sect Leader, this is the ancestral spirit worshipped by the High Priest lineage, the White Bone Ancestral Spirit!"

A ancestral spirit manifesting? At this time?
Chen Ye looked up and saw that the misty skull had also turned its face toward him, its empty eye sockets seemingly staring back at him.

It seems this isn't an act.

A giant flaming python appeared beneath Chen Ye's feet. Chen Ye then stepped on the snake's head and rose into the air, standing opposite the ancestral spirit of white bones.

The ancestral spirit of white bones opened its mouth and exhaled a cloud of mist, enveloping the entire plaza.

The surroundings suddenly became pitch black, leaving only Chen Ye and the white bone ancestral spirit able to see each other clearly.

Seeing this, Chen Ye asked curiously, "Ancestral spirit of the Northern Frontier, if you truly have a spirit, is there something you want to say to me?"

The ancestral spirit of white bones opened its mouth and uttered a deep, ancient voice: "Outsider, do you intend to annihilate all the ancestral spirits of my Northern Frontier?"

Chen Ye shook his head and said, "I am unwilling to compete with you all, but my Yellow Springs Sect has its own lineage."

The ancestral spirit of white bones inquired, "But I have heard the wailing of the ancestral spirits as they perish. In your city, some people no longer believe in us."

Chen Ye recalled that he had made the Black Feather Tribe change their faith. Ancestral spirits need to absorb incense and the power of wishes to maintain themselves. The various ancestral spirits, large and small, each have their own unique abilities, but most of them are in a state of confusion and ignorance because of the mixed power of wishes. They have little rationality and can only react according to their instincts.

Some ancestral spirits have few followers to begin with, and once the clansmen change their beliefs, the ancestral spirits will quickly dissipate.

Chen Ye countered, "Over the past thousand years, many of the ancestral spirits of the Northern Frontier must have dissipated. Whether I am here or not, it should be the same."

"Birth and death are the cycle of the grasslands. But they want to crown you king. From this day forward, your will will be the will of all living beings. If you do not worship your ancestral spirits, they will also give up. If this continues, we will all perish. Are you going to kill us, outsider?"

Chen Ye did not answer immediately, but asked, "How many ancestral spirits are left in the Northern Frontier?"

The ancestral spirit of the white bones replied, "Less than two hundred."

"How many people can possess a sanity like yours?"

The ancestral spirit of the white bones remained silent for a moment, then replied, "Only I. The sacrifices have continued for a thousand years, and I have only just learned to think."

Chen Ye listened with some emotion.

As expected, it is an incomplete lineage. The Buddhist path to Buddhahood would not produce a bunch of "wild gods" who are incapable of even thinking.

This White Bone God is considered lucky. The high priests of all generations were cultivators, and their wisdom was higher than that of ordinary people. The ancestral spirits they worshipped had been worshipped for a long time and were more intelligent than other ancestral spirits. However, judging from the appearance of the White Bone Ancestral Spirit, it was not much better than a child.

Chen Ye shook his head and said, "I have no intention of becoming the King of the Northern Frontier. If you are unwilling to perish here, you might as well join my Yellow Springs Sect. I will reserve a divine position for you so that you can continue to absorb incense and prayer power. As for the other ancestral spirits, life, death, and extinction are the laws of nature. If they are unwilling to change, the extinction of their faith is also their fate."

The White Bone Ancestral Spirit asked, "Where is your Yellow Springs Sect taking people?"

Chen Ye shook his head and said, “Everyone has their own understanding, and there is no need for me to guide them. The Yellow Springs Sect only gives mortals a chance to start over, and the same goes for ancestral spirits. If you do not want to perish, then protect the Yellow Springs Sect. As long as you abide by the rules of the Yellow Springs Sect, I can promise that as long as the sect is not destroyed, the incense will never be extinguished.”

The White Bone Ancestral Spirit sighed, and the surrounding mist dissipated.

When everyone looked up, they saw the white bone ancestral spirit holding the nine-colored divine deer high in both hands, kneeling in front of Chen Ye.

"We are willing to submit to the Yellow Springs."

A desolate echo resounded through the night sky. Many ancestral spirits from the northern frontier wished to submit to the Yellow Springs Sect, asking only that their incense offerings continue uninterrupted.

(End of this chapter)