Honkai Impact

The Yaejin priest primarily presides over rituals and oversees all other affairs in the village, but his combat prowess is not particularly outstanding. Furthermore, due to physical limitations passed down through generations of priestesses, only women can typically unleash the most powerful abilities.

A shrine maiden who fully unleashes the [Falling Cherry Blossom Slash] will even have the opportunity to communicate with the spirit sword, Sakura Fubuki, enshrined in the shrine. If she gains Sakura Fubuki's approval and can wield the spirit sword, that shrine maiden's combat power will be absolutely terrifying!

This is why shrine maidens are a vital fighting force in protecting the village; generally, the current shrine maiden represents the village's pinnacle of combat power. Whether or not monsters can be defeated and the village protected depends entirely on the shrine maiden.

The prospective priestesses are all trained by the current priestesses, but when Yae Kijima's mother passed away, Sakura and Rin were just little kids. The village was suddenly plunged into a predicament without strong military protection.

Men can also practice, but their flexibility differs greatly from women's, and very few can master the first four stages. They can easily slay ferocious beasts, but if they encounter a monster...

Before Yaeji shattered the long box, he could only use the first four moves. The rest happened after he activated [Wild Flower Bloom], [Chaotic Slash], and [Dispersion] in his dream.

Although his father was surprised by his rapid progress, he did not inquire about it.

"Hi! Ha! Hi!"

Yae Sakura's petite figure danced in the courtyard, her [Falling Cherry Blossom Slash] possessing a unique beauty, though its power...

"Brother." Yae Sakura looked at Yae Ji expectantly and asked, "How did my first four moves go?"

Yae Ji laughed and said, "Very good. When I was the same age as Sakura, I was nowhere near as good as her."

"When will I be as good as my brother?"

"Almost there." Yae Ji stepped forward, assuming the stance for the first stage of the Falling Cherry Blossom Slash. "Now watch me perform it. Keep your eyes on my wrist and observe my technique."

"Uh-huh!"

Yae Sakura stared wide-eyed as she watched Yae Ji execute a complete set of Falling Cherry Blossom Slashes with fluid grace. The final flash of light from the blade made Yae Sakura's starry eyes sparkle.

Do you understand?

Sakura nodded first, then quickly shook her little head.

Yae Ji was both amused and exasperated. Standing behind Sakura, he reached over her shoulders and took her hands in Sakura's small hands.

"Now I will lead the way, and you should carefully understand the first two paragraphs."

Yae Sakura pursed her lips, remaining silent and focusing intently on the hilt of the sword.

A powerful force erupted!

Side slash with knife! Backhand sweep!

Yae Sakura narrowed her eyes slightly. With her brother behind her, she had the illusion that he could kill the legendary monsters.

After demonstrating it several times, Yaeji let Sakura try it herself. He really didn't know how to teach her, because even he had relied on "skill points" to get here.

"Hi! Ha!"

"Brother, how did I do this time?"

"Very good, at least you've got some wrist strength now."

"Yes! One day, I will surpass you and become the shrine maiden who protects the village and everyone!"

Yae Ji smiled to the side, but her gaze was fixed on the distance.

"The shrine maiden who protects everyone?"

Chapter Eight: Purity

"My Lord, it hasn't rained for two months. If this continues, the whole village will be doomed."

The villagers sitting next to the old woman echoed, "Yes, Your Excellency, the candidate has been chosen. Don't you think we should start preparing for tomorrow's sacrificial ceremony today?"

The middle-aged man sitting in the main seat lowered his eyelids slightly, as if he didn't care about anything.

"What did Liang say to her family?"

"To offer her as a sacrifice to the great Fox God is an incredible blessing!" A middle-aged woman below said with a burning passion. Judging from her appearance, she bore a striking resemblance to the girl named 'Liang'.

"Yes, Lord God, to be able to dedicate everything to the Fox God and to pray for the village, this..."

The old woman spoke again, and the surrounding villagers echoed her sentiments. In the village, apart from the Yae Shrine, which held a transcendent status, the villagers generally respected the elderly who had lived a long life.

This old woman was undoubtedly the most "respected" among them; even the head priest of the Yae Shrine had to consider her words.

Outside the council hall, Yaeji stopped Daisuke. Daisuke was glaring angrily, his chest heaving violently, his hands clenched into fists, and the veins on his arms bulging. Just standing next to him, one could feel his violent temper.

"Calm down," Yae Ji said calmly. "If you rush in and cause chaos, Liang will be completely beyond saving."

Yaeji's words were like a bucket of ice-cold water, completely extinguishing the anger in Daisuke's heart.

Daisuke looked completely deflated, utterly listless, muttering, "This won't work, that won't work, I...I..."

As he spoke, this man, who usually claimed to be a pillar of strength, began to sob softly.

Yae Ji frowned her delicate eyebrows, clearly dissatisfied with Daisuke's performance.

"You were given a whole night to think about it, and you still can't come up with anything to convince them?"

"me"

Daisuke was like a child who had lost a toy, completely at a loss.

"I went to find Liang in the middle of the night, she..."

"What's wrong with her?" Yae Ji asked impatiently.

"She...she gave her body to me," a voice barely audible came from the tall man, shocking Yae Ji.

"This is blasphemy!" Yaeji said in a low voice, sounding exasperated.

Upon hearing the words "blasphemy," Daisuke, already listless, turned deathly pale. Without thinking, he blurted out, "I just thought that the offering to the Fox God must be a pure woman. If she were to break her skin, then..."

Yae Ji had a gloomy face. Although he had seen the bizarre and wonderful things of the other world at such a young age, he had no experience in dealing with this kind of thing.

"Sigh~ You go in and talk to them yourself, there's nothing I can do to help you."

Daisuke bowed his head and said, "Thank you."

Yaeji gave him a deep look, then turned and walked forward.

"Bang bang bang~"

"Father, I have something to ask of you."

"Enter!"

Yaeji pushed open the wooden door of the council hall, and the villagers, who had previously looked worried or fervent, all put on friendly smiles. They all radiated goodwill towards Yaeji.

As the next head priest of Yae Shrine, establishing good relationships beforehand is the key.

Yaeji looked around and then looked at Yaeji, who was sitting in the main seat.

"Father, there may have been some unexpected issues regarding tomorrow's sacrificial ceremony."

"Accident?"

The people around them all changed their expressions. If an ordinary little kid dared to say such a thing, they wouldn't believe it at all, but Yae Ji, the child of the God Lord...

"Daisuke, you explain this yourself."

Yae Ji called out to the outside, then bowed to Yae Shinshu, who was sitting in the main seat, before silently retreating to a corner of the council hall to remain unnoticed.

The tall and thin Daisuke walked into the hall step by step, his body trembling. With so many people looking at him, he felt immense pressure.

Among the villagers, a middle-aged couple's expression visibly changed.

"Lord God!"

Daisuke knelt down on the ground.

"Ryo and I grew up together since childhood, I..."

Daisuke rambled on and on, but to Yaeji, it was all nonsense! Sure enough, the villagers who had come to discuss the sacrificial ceremony all looked impatient, and some even glanced at him, seemingly very unhappy that he had interrupted their discussion.

"Just yesterday, Ryo gave herself to me. She is no longer a virgin. I beg Your Majesty."

"You're talking nonsense!" A middle-aged woman from the village jumped out. "My Liang Bing is pure and innocent, and has never messed around with any wild boys! She went to bed early yesterday, so how dare you, a toad, try to steal her away!"

"Liang is a sacrifice to the Fox God, how could a wild child like you defile her noble status!"

"That's it!"

"You're talking nonsense!"

"How could Lord Ji associate with such friends!"

Where are his parents?

The once quiet council hall suddenly became as noisy as a market, and even the Yae God Lord gave Yae Ji a look.

Yaeji shook his head and continued to be his invisible self.

This was all he could do for Daisuke and Ryo, and he also wanted to use this incident to test the villagers' attitudes toward worship and the gods.

He feared that if things continued like this, Rin would also meet with a terrible fate!

"quiet!"

When the head priest, seated in the main seat, spoke, the noisy council hall, which was as bustling as a marketplace, immediately fell silent.

"My Lord! My Liang is truly a pure woman! Don't listen to that wild child's nonsense! My Liang is absolutely qualified to serve the great Fox God!"

"I think we should just let the mother-in-law verify this, wouldn't that solve the problem?" someone nearby said.

Yae Ji was in low spirits. Before Daisuke was imprisoned by the patrol team, he bowed deeply to him. The wound that had just been bandaged the night before was bleeding again. However, Daisuke looked quite relaxed. Having lost her virginity, Ryo, who was not a pure girl, could not be sacrificed to the gods. It seemed that the girl named 'Ryo' had escaped death.

Hearing the villagers' discussions about him, Yae Ji remained unmoved. If he became the head priest of Yae Shrine, he would definitely change the villagers' fanatical attitude towards the gods! He would definitely make the villagers more enlightened!

Back in the room, Sakura was practicing with her training wooden sword, while Rin, sitting on the bed, looked at her dashing older sister with starry eyes, clapping her hands from time to time and praising Sakura.

"Brother! Did you bring Cherry Blossom Blizzard?"

Upon hearing Rin's voice, Sakura stopped waving her arms and turned to look at Yae. Clearly, both sisters had a strong interest in Sakura Fubuki.

"Uh, please wait a moment."

Yaeji ran quickly to the side hall where the spirit sword was enshrined. What happened to Daisuke today almost made him forget his promise to the two little ones.

Pick up the Cherry Blossom Blizzard from the wooden shelf, and the flashy cherry blossom effect reappears.

Yaeji walked toward the house, sword in hand.