From the Carp that Brings Children to the Celestial Officials

Chapter 63 A Young Man Arrives at the Temple of the Goddess

Ai Ping carefully lit the incense sticks and, after worshipping the statue of the goddess in the temple, went to a side temple to offer prayers.

Then he picked up a broom and began to sweep the entire temple.

The temple complex wasn't very large, consisting of only two buildings and a plot of land less than half an acre in size. Although Bixia Yuanjun held an extremely high position, at that level, she no longer cared about worldly offerings.

Nowadays, apart from a few famous mountains where there are still temples, most places no longer have temples.

The temple on Yuanling Mountain was built to honor Bixia Yuanjun, who had some connection with the place in the past. Before You Ming came, there was no deity residing there, so the incense offerings were not very popular.

“We have a new person in our temple, and she doesn’t look very clever.”

On the roof beam of the Niangniang Temple, Menghuo Li yawned, its limbs dangling from the beam, limp and lifeless like a puddle of liquid.

Today, unusually, it didn't sleep in, but its gaze towards Aiping carried a scrutinizing meaning.

"He's a good kid, hardworking and honest."

The old woman floated in mid-air with a kind smile. She quite liked the young man; as she got older, she appreciated young people who worked diligently and steadily.

"Hmm."

The little mouse girl nodded timidly, but she still glanced at the Dreamfire Fox as she nodded.

Compared to this lazy, unproductive raccoon dog who loves to play pranks, this human boy is much better.

Barefoot Ben'er slid down the beam and pillar, walked behind the incense burner, grabbed some burnt-out ash, and put it into his pouch. It is said that temple keepers are born with spiritual power, and the ash left after they burn incense has even more miraculous effects.

"Cough cough cough."

"What are you doing? Don't you have any work to do? You're all just chatting here."

Just as everyone was craning their necks, full of curiosity about the boy, a figure with his hands behind his back looked at them with an unfriendly expression.

You Ming was their direct superior. Their power advancement came from the conferment of the divine position of [Envoy of the Womb]. After You Ming showed a slight displeasure, everyone was terrified.

"Aren't you going to get to work?"

You Ming glared at them, and the group slunk away.

……

Ai Ping quickly cleaned the entire temple, though there wasn't much to clean. Because Yuanling Mountain was currently very popular, it allocated a portion of divine power each month specifically for warding off dust.

Not to mention dust, even leaves will be automatically blown down the mountain.

But as the chief priest reminded us before we came, in the presence of the gods, the truth is not important; what matters is letting the gods see your attitude.

Only with a sufficiently devout attitude can you gain the favor of the gods sooner.

"Your Excellency, I am Ai Ping, and I have been ordered by Your Excellency, to come to Yuanling Mountain to serve as the Incense Guide."

Ai Ping bowed to the side temple in the temple complex. He had learned about the Yuanling Mountain Goddess Temple before he came.

They knew that the true owner of this temple was the envoy of the side hall who was responsible for the pregnancy.

"Why is it a man? It would be better if it were a woman."

Just as Ai Ping was about to get up and change the offerings on the altar in the side temple, he suddenly heard a faint sigh.

The voice was very soft and faint, but he reacted immediately, quickly prostrating himself in the direction from which it came. A sudden thought struck him: was the deity displeased with him?
"Keep your head up."

The sound seemed to be distorted by some force, and when it entered Ai Ping's ears, it was like an echo in an empty room, strange yet full of mystery.

When he looked up, he saw a figure standing in front of him that he couldn't make out.

In his vision, he seemed to see a figure about three feet tall, and behind this figure was a mottled fish shadow, with a power that resembled a halo or flame constantly pulsating, making him feel mysterious and unpredictable.

You Ming was also sizing up the boy named Ai Ping.

He was somewhat surprised that this person was the boy who played him in the folk opera. However, he quickly realized that the reason why this boy was chosen to play him was probably because the City God's office had long planned to have him serve as the temple keeper.

"Your qualifications are decent, so you can stay here."

Ai Ping's innate spirituality is 1 point, which is not particularly outstanding, but it is still quite good. It is precisely because of this point of spirituality that he was able to glimpse You Ming's divine body with his mortal body. However, his spirituality is not strong enough to fully sense the gods, so what he sees of You Ming is a random combination of countless pieces of information, and he cannot see the whole picture.

You Ming then pointed, and the [Fetal Light Seal] floating on the top of Yuanling Mountain instantly separated a wisp of power and entered the boy's body.

In the void, wisps of incense smoke spread, transforming into golden-red flames that coiled around his body.

This flame is invisible to ordinary people, but Ai Ping can see it, and he can easily mobilize this power with a thought.

In his mind, three pieces of information were instantly added.

Incense can be used as a weapon!

Burning Shadow Locks Body!

The Navel-Fixing Seal!

These three abilities are easy to understand. One is that it can light incense sticks and turn the rising smoke into sharp blades that are sharper than steel knives and even harder to guard against.

The second is that the power of incense can be used to create invisible chains to immobilize the enemy.

As for the "Umbilical Cord Seal," it is an auxiliary ability that can help women stabilize their pregnancy and avoid problems such as malposition of the fetus or reverse flow of fetal energy.

These three abilities are called "Blessing Techniques" in the world of gods. They are bestowed by the gods and do not require one to cultivate them diligently.

The power of a blessing depends primarily on the strength of the deity behind it and the sincerity of the recipient.

This boy was simple-minded. Although he was new to the place and might not be very devout, he had good innate spirituality. Therefore, the three incantations he used were almost comparable to the spells of a cultivator at the [Opening Acupoint] level.

"Thank you, Divine Lord, for bestowing this power."

The boy was very grateful and bowed respectfully again.

The gods are very stingy with the power bestowed upon humankind. Many temple priests may work diligently for many years before they might receive a divine blessing.

When the boy looked up again, he found that the figure had disappeared.

The boy did not relax, but simply bowed again towards the place where the god had disappeared.

In the temples of the underworld, although Youming was happy that the temple of the goddess was growing stronger, he still felt that it would be better if the temple keeper was a woman, or even a female, than a man.

After all, if any of his subordinates encounter difficulties in childbirth in the future, he can't very well send a man to deliver the baby, not even a teenager.

However, it's understandable, as there are probably very few women in the entire temple priest system of Changning County.

(End of this chapter)