She married a dying prince and she won three babies.

Emperor Qiming came out to broaden his horizons and gladly accepted the invitation.

The three children were even more enthusiastic.

Yu Yuanzheng also wanted to see what the sacrificial ceremony here was like.

The next day.

As the sun rises, the entire city of Dorcas wakes up in the morning light.

The believers wore plain white robes, the women had cinnabar on their foreheads, and the men held the same magical instruments. They gathered outside the city to participate in the temple sacrificial ceremony held every three years.

Shangguan Ziqi stood in front of the window on the second floor of the inn, looking at the wisps of green smoke rising from the direction of the temple in the distance.

"It seems that Ajay didn't sleep all night." He turned and said to Emperor Qiming who was having breakfast.

Emperor Qiming slowly peeled a boiled egg and said, "That boy is quite capable. He was able to clean up the burned temple and prepare for the sacrifice overnight."

"Are we really going to participate in this sacrifice?" Chunshui whispered beside Yu Yuanzheng.

She still has a shadow in her heart.

But although her voice was soft, Emperor Qiming still heard it.

"Go, why not?" Emperor Qiming stuffed the egg into his mouth and mumbled, "This is a good opportunity to learn about their culture. Besides, I came out here to learn more about foreign cultures, so that I can die without regrets."

Shangguan Ziqi nodded in agreement. "Although we've dealt with last night's incident, there are undoubtedly still Cassim's allies within the temple. Our attendance at the sacrifice is the strongest support for Ajay. If anything happens, we can still help him."

"Zi Qi is right. Yuan Zheng, your four maids are indeed frightened. If they don't want to go, don't force them." Emperor Qiming understood the girls very well.

Yu Yuanzheng nodded, then looked at the four sisters.

The four sisters looked at each other, and then looked at Chunhua.

"Sisters, we must go and witness such a grand event. There will be no danger today, we just need to follow the princess closely." Chunhua made up her mind.

Yu Yuanzheng nodded with a smile.

Good, I wasn’t too scared to go out.

When the sun completely jumped out of the horizon, Emperor Qiming led a group of people to the temple square.

They were amazed by the sight before them; the courtyard that had been burned last night had been cleaned up.

A three-meter-high altar was built in the center of the square, surrounded by nine bronze sacred fire lamps, the flames swaying in the morning breeze.

"Mr. Shangguan!" Ajay, dressed in a golden priest robe, walked out quickly from the hall.

The cinnabar mark on the forehead is very bright.

He clasped his hands together in greeting, his eyes showing fatigue but not excitement, "Thank you for coming."

Shangguan Ziqi returned the greeting, gesturing and pointing at his eyes: "It seems you haven't slept all night."

Ajay gestured with a wry smile, "The high priest passed away suddenly, and the sacrifice cannot be postponed, so we have no choice but to go ahead with it."

Ajay personally led Emperor Qiming and his entourage to the best location and settled them there before leaving.

When the time came, the sacrificial ceremony officially began with the sound of a low conch horn.

Ajay, holding a jewel-encrusted scepter, slowly ascended the altar.

Thousands of believers in the square chanted scriptures in unison, the sound like a tide.

"Husband, guess what they are reading?" Yu Yuanzheng asked Shangguan Ziqi beside her curiously.

"I don't know. I don't understand. But it should be a prayer or something like that."

On the altar, Ajay's movements were as smooth as flowing water.

He first sprinkled holy water in all directions, then cut the top of a coconut with a silver knife and poured the juice into the sacrificial fire. The flames suddenly shot up, attracting a cry of surprise from the believers.

"I have an important announcement to make to the servants of the gods. Starting this year, the gods say that there is no need to sacrifice saints. As long as we are sincere enough, no natural disasters will befall us." Ajay announced loudly.

"That's great." The announcement caused the believers to cheer.

No family is willing to offer up their beautiful daughter.

Suddenly, the crowd east of the altar erupted in a commotion. A ferocious-looking monk pushed through the crowd, pointed at Ajay, and shouted, "You traitor! You colluded with the pirates to kill the high priest, and yet you still have the nerve to preside over the sacrifice."

There was an uproar in the square.

Shangguan Ziqi's eyes flashed, and his right hand pressed on the hilt of the sword.

Ajay remained calm, holding his scepter high and speaking in a deep voice, "Mahad, you are a temple monk, yet you are making a noise in public during the sacrificial ceremony. This is a great disrespect to the gods!"

The monk leaped onto the altar with a sinister grin. "Stop pretending! Last night someone saw you leading pirates to murder the high priest."

This person is also a loyal follower of Qasim, but not as close as Vikas. Because of his impulsive personality, Qasim only assigns him to do simpler tasks and never lets him participate in core matters.

The believers began to whisper to each other, and the situation was about to get out of control.

Shangguan Ziqi was about to make a move when he was suppressed by Yu Yuanzheng.

"Let's wait and see, don't be impulsive." Yu Yuanzheng advised.

But Ajay suddenly took out a notebook from his robe and waved his hand.

"Everyone," Ajay's voice resounded like thunder across the square, "you still don't know the true face of High Priest Qasim."

He unfolded his notebook, which was densely packed with names and numbers. "This is the account book for the believers he sold to pirates over the years. The pirates then sold them to other places to do hard labor. The pirates came last night seeking revenge because of the uneven distribution of the spoils."

The monk Mahad's face changed drastically, and he rushed towards Ajay: "You are talking nonsense!"

In that split second, a small stone flew through the air and hit Mahad's knee accurately. He screamed and fell to his knees, unable to get up for a short time.

Shangguan Ziqi quickly withdrew his hand. The stone was so small that no one could tell where it came from.

Ajay seized the opportunity and walked around the altar holding the account book high so that the believers in the front row could see it clearly: "Look here, a total of 147 believers have been sold overseas in the past three years."

The truth was like a spark thrown into a frying pan, instantly igniting the anger of the believers.

Several older believers took the account book with trembling hands and looked at it.

Tears streamed down their faces: "My son went fishing last year and never came back. It turns out he was... My son, where are you?"

The old man burst into tears.

No one actually cares to find out whether this is the truth or not.

This place is so close to the sea, and there are so many people going out to sea to fish every year, and far more than a hundred people never come back.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Mahad struggled to escape, but was surrounded by the angry crowd.

Several monks grabbed him and took him away.

Ajay shouted at the right moment: "Let us continue the sacrifice, may the gods cleanse us of all these sins!"

As he waved his staff, the monks in the temple chanted in unison and the heavy drums sounded again.

The believers returned to their original positions one after another, but the anger in their eyes had not subsided.

The subsequent ceremony went very smoothly.

Ajay completed all the complex processes perfectly.

From blessing the sacred fire to inviting out the statue, and finally to collective chanting.

When he tied the red rope representing the blessing of the gods around the wrists of the believers, many people even knelt down and kissed the corner of his robe.

"This kid's got some skills," commented Emperor Qiming, stroking his beard. "He stays calm in times of danger and can even leverage an opponent's force. I suspect that account book he has is fake, but it's making his followers more resentful of the pirates."

"He should be. He is a smart man." The old prince nodded in agreement.

The next activity is the parade of the statue of the deity through the streets.

It means taking one of the statues of the deity enshrined here for a ride around the city in a horse-drawn carriage.

After all, the temple is so small that many believers are not qualified to enter.

Then wait until you see the statue of the god passing by on the street before worshipping it.

As the sun sets, the sacrificial ceremony that lasted all day finally came to an end.

Ajay, exhausted, came to the inn again.