Chapter 269: The Sacred Rite Begins

The Bai Hu clan's Emperor Taiyi Jin Jin Xian's gaze swept over the crowd, finally lingering for a moment on Su Chen and the other few outsider cultivators temporarily conscripted.

"I am Bai Zhan, Elder of the Bai Hu Clan's Enforcement Hall."

His voice was not loud, yet each word clearly reached every ear present.

"Though this battle was won, our clan is currently short-handed due to the Sacred Rite, and we fear those with ill intent may take advantage. Hence, from today onward, the seven Emperor Taiyi Jin Jin Xian Elders of the Enforcement Hall shall each take station at key passes, until the Rite concludes."

Upon hearing this, the faces of the Bai Hu clan cultivators present relaxed with relief.

Seven Emperor Taiyi Jin Jin Xian stationed together—such a display was enough to make any malcontent think twice.

Bai Zhan turned his gaze toward Su Chen and the other conscripted outsider cultivators, his tone softening slightly.

"You, the temporarily conscripted, have performed well. The Rite will officially begin in seven days; at that time, your patrol duties will end."

He paused.

"As reward, you will be permitted to enter the Bai Hu Sacred Hall and participate in the Rite on the Hall's plaza, witnessing firsthand the Sacred Ancestor's grace."

As soon as Bai Zhan spoke, the crowd erupted.

Several of the conscripted demonic cultivators trembled with excitement.

Bai Kui punched Su Chen on the shoulder and grinned broadly.

"Red Eye brother, you're lucky. Sticking with me was the right choice, wasn't it? That's the Sacred Hall—even our own Bai Hu cultivators only get to enter during the Sacred Rite."

Su Chen's face lit up with joy as he joined the others in cheering.

But inside, he cursed.

The Sacred Hall—core of the Bai Hu clan—would be filled with the clan's greatest elders during the Rite.

There might even be Luo Jinxian or even Pretender Saint-level ancient monsters within. If any of them possessed a divine art capable of perceiving the origin of things and saw through his transformation technique…

Then Su Chen wouldn't be a temporary worker—he'd be a dying man.

Yet he could not refuse.

He had infiltrated under the guise of "pilgrimage." Now that the Bai Hu clan offered him entry into the Sacred Hall, if he said, "No thanks, I won't go," it would be no different than writing "I'm up to something" on his forehead.

"Thank you, Elder Bai Zhan! To enter the Sacred Hall and pay homage to the Sacred Ancestor is the greatest fortune of our lives!" Su Chen bowed, joining the other conscripted demonic cultivators in heartfelt thanks.

Bai Zhan nodded, said nothing more, and vanished in a streak of white-gold light toward another pass.

…

Over the next seven days, with the seven Emperor Taiyi Jin Jin Xian Elders stationed at key passes, the outer reaches of the Gengjin Ancestral Vein remained utterly calm.

The Shura's surprise attack had seemed merely a probe; the Lingshan side had made no further moves.

Su Chen used these seven days to accomplish two things.

First, under the pretext of patrol, he thoroughly familiarized himself with the terrain and forbidden array layouts of the Gengjin Ancestral Vein, committing every detail to memory.

Second, he repeatedly simulated the risks he might face during the Rite and prepared for the worst-case scenario.

He suppressed his aura to its absolute limit using the Nine Demon Tower and adjusted the flow of his Hunyuan Jin Dan's magic power, striving to make his energy signature mimic that of a demonic cultivator.

As for his transformation technique, he used the transformation art taught to him by Sun Sun Wukong—the Seventy-Two Transformations of the Heavenly Gang—combined with his near-perfect control over his aura, granted by his half-primal body; ordinary Luo Jinxian could not penetrate it.

But above Luo Jinxian, he had no confidence.

"It's a gamble now."

Su Chen sat in his tent, eyes closed, cultivating stillness, his mind already set.

During the Rite, his goal was simple: two words—stay low.

Blend into the crowd, avoid standing out, watch, then leave.

His true target was the three-year opportunity to cultivate within the Ancestral Vein after the Rite ended.

Only deep within the Vein could he possibly encounter the post-heavenly Geng-Xin spiritual light that had leaked from the primordial Geng-Xin indestructible spiritual radiance.

…

Seven days passed in the blink of an eye.

The day of the Rite.

Outside the Gengjin Ancestral Vein, crowds surged like an ocean.

Countless beast-type demonic cultivators poured in from all directions, densely gathering beneath the foothills of the Ancestral Vein.

Some had taken human form, others retained their beast bodies—a dark, endless sea stretching to the horizon.

Tigers, leopards, wolves, bears, deer, antelopes… a hundred beast clans gathered here, all to witness the legendary Sacred Beast Bai Hu descend.

Su Chen followed the Enforcement Hall's contingent, led by Bai Ling, passing through layer upon layer of checkpoints, advancing deep into the core of the Bai Hu clan.

The scenery along the way filled him with quiet awe.

The deeper they went, the denser the Gengjin energy became; eventually, the golden qi in the air condensed into visible pale-gold mist.

Each breath sent a sharp, piercing sensation straight through his lungs.

A common cultivator staying here half a day would have his skin sliced open by the Gengjin energy.

Finally, the Bai Hu Sacred Hall appeared before all eyes.

It was a grand hall built entirely of white-gold divine stone, its roof carved with a lifelike ancient Bai Hu, its eyes wide open, gazing down upon all life.

The plaza before the hall spanned dozens of li, its ground engraved with countless ancient patterns, each glowing with the radiance of Gengjin law.

The plaza was already packed with Bai Hu clan members.

Su Chen and the other temporary enforcers were stationed at the outer edge of the plaza—though far back, they could still clearly see everything before the Sacred Hall.

"Wuuuu—"

A long, resonant horn blast echoed across the heavens.

All noise on the plaza ceased instantly.

The great doors of the Bai Hu Sacred Hall slowly opened.

An old man, clad in white-gold sacrificial robes and wielding a tiger-bone staff, stepped forward.

His silver hair was tied back, his face gaunt, yet his eyes blazed with startling brilliance.

"That is the Grand Sacrificer, Bai Bai Xuanli," whispered Bai Kui beside him, voice thick with reverence. "The Grand Sacrificer is a Luo Jinxian, who has overseen the Bai Hu clan's sacrificial lineage for over ten eons."

Luo Jinxian—Su Chen's heart sank, his expression unmoved.

Behind Bai Bai Xuanli stepped another.

He was towering in stature, draped in white-gold battle robes, radiating authority without even speaking.

With each step he took, the Gengjin law of the entire plaza spontaneously converged toward him, like countless rivers returning to the sea.

"That is the Clan Lord, Bai Bai Diyuan," Bai Kui whispered even lower, his reverence deepening. "A Pretender Saint—the strongest cultivator in our Bai Hu clan."

Su Chen watched the two figures emerge from the Sacred Hall, etching their auras firmly into his memory.

One Luo Jinxian. One Pretender Saint.

Add the other elders Bai Kui had mentioned, and the Bai Hu clan had at least a dozen Luo Jinxian alone.

Such depth of power, across the Three Realms, was a force no one could ignore.

Bai Bai Diyuan stood firm at the center of the altar, his gaze sweeping over the tens of thousands of clan members and outsider pilgrims, then spoke in a deep voice.

"Today, the Bai Hu Clan's Sacred Rite officially begins."

Grand Sacrificer Bai Bai Xuanli stepped forward, slamming his staff to the ground.

"Dong—"

The instant the staff touched earth, every ancient pattern on the plaza ignited at once; the radiance of Gengjin law surged skyward, coalescing above the Sacred Hall into a colossal phantom Bai Hu.

The phantom stretched across hundreds of li of sky, majestic and awe-inspiring.

Bai Bai Xuanli gazed upward at the phantom, his aged voice beginning to chant an ancient sacrificial text.

With each syllable, the Gengjin energy of heaven and earth trembled violently.