Chapter 209: Dragon! "No wonder." Liang Qu stood on the steps and took a glance. The river wind is roaring and the flags are fluttering. Today is a rare good day, and the entire Shangrao wharf is crowded with people. The strong young men moved around among the people, maintaining order to prevent anyone from taking the opportunity to steal. There were nearly 10,000 people in the entire Yixing Town. Including those who came from surrounding towns and villages, the total number exceeded 10,000. There was no room for anyone to stand on the bluestone street. They squeezed into the crevices between the rocks like a tide and filled every alley. With so many people, even the low voices of conversation overlapped and merged into a frenzy, scaring the surrounding water birds so much that they dared not land on the eaves and circled in the sky for a long time. Everyone stood in silence, and the crowd gradually calmed down. The wealthy families took their seats in order and spread out one after another.
There was only one chair in the front, but it was idle at the moment. The owner of the chair was standing aside, talking in a low voice with Chen Zhaoan. Long, winding strips of more fragrant white smoke curl up, and red light flickers at the junction of gray and incense, spreading backwards in wisps. The timekeeping tool used by ordinary people is usually a copper kettle clepsydra, which has an arrow-shaped vertical shaft in the middle with scales marked on it. When it is full, just pour out the water and start over. It is only used on grand occasions. The so-called more fragrant means adding scales to the incense used daily, and coiling it into various shapes. Some can even be burned continuously for several days to more than ten days. Because it is disposable, it is naturally much more expensive than a copper kettle drip kettle. The pillar in front of him, with an iron ball hanging down with a thin line under the incense scale, was indeed better than the previous sacrifice in every aspect. Liang Qu was looking forward to the final feedback more and more. The red light spread to the thin rope and burned the rope loop. "sulfuric acid!" The iron ball fell into the metal plate below, making a crisp sound, and rolled around the edge of the iron plate, leaving two clear marks on the surface. Two quarters past noon. "The time has come." Chen Zhaoan nodded and turned his head to pass on the message. "Bang the drum." Chen Tongmin ran down the stairs, shouting loudly. "Bang the drum!" The shirtless man holding the hammer suddenly pulled himself together, roared, and smashed down with both arms. Boom! The sound of drums rose to the sky, and dust floated in the column of light. Boom! Boom!Boom! Boom!Boom!Boom! Six large drums beat in unison, with each wave of sound becoming louder and louder, becoming more and more majestic. The dust on the ground swirled up and spread in all directions.
In just a moment, the shirtless man turned red all over. He roared again and hit the drum hard with the last blow. The six strong men stopped beating the drums almost at the same moment. The sound died down. The people present seemed to have just escaped from a thunderstorm. Their ears were buzzing and they could not hear any other sound for a long time. "Present the sacrifice!" The high-pitched voice of the old priest echoed throughout the pier. The drums began to beat again, gentle but powerful. Chen Jiechang took the lead, pulling the four-wheeled cart forward step by step and tying up "Lanshou" with ropes. The onlookers were shocked, but dared not say a word for fear of offending the river god. Lin Songbao and Li Libo followed one after another. Li Libo was accompanied by several sturdy men, all of whom were warriors in the town, who helped pull the special cart and slowly moved forward. The red beast's sturdy body gave people an incomparable impact and shock. The crowd could no longer bear it and a suppressed uproar broke out. The three beasts were too heavy, especially the red beast, and could no longer be hung high up like the pigs, cows, and sheep. They could only hold up the sharp knife on the cart. The red beast's pupils shrank sharply, and it tried to struggle desperately but to no avail. Not a single muscle in his body obeyed it, and he could only helplessly feel the coldness of the knife against his neck. The priest had no expression on his face and shouted again. "prick!" The three men thrust the sharp knife in with all their might, cut it with great force, and blood spurted out onto the ground. The rich smell of blood splashed in the air and spread to the entire pier along the humid river breeze. Everyone shivered under the scorching sun and held their breath involuntarily, and the atmosphere became increasingly silent. Blood gushed out in waves, filling up several wooden barrels. It was a grand sight that had never been seen before. The light in the three beasts' pupils gradually faded, and finally turned into dead silence. The villagers' faces turned red and their hearts beat violently at the smell of blood. Monster! A real big monster! died! "rise!" Li Libo and two other men lifted the wooden barrels, followed the drum sounds and came to the shore, where they lined up the barrels one by one. "fall!" Barrel after barrel was tipped over, and hot blood plasma poured out into the water, spreading against the waves and dyeing the lake red. The monster's blood attracted a large number of carnivorous fish, which jumped around non-stop, creating a spectacular sight.
Hearing the sound of splashing water, countless people suppressed their surging excitement and excitement in their hearts. "The wizard is back!" Five gongs sounded. Several shamans walked to both sides of the altar, singing sacrificial songs and performing an unknown and bizarre dance, but this time there was no vibrato. It's your turn. Liang Qu was dressed in formal attire, holding a long wooden pole. "Master priest, go!" Clang! Clang! Clang. The nine gong sounds echoed, and the noise rolled endlessly. The musicians lifted up their brass trumpets, and the large drum with a yellow cowhide surface was struck by a large hammer. All eyes are on you. Liang Qu took a step forward. The river wind was strong, carrying with it the faint white mist that rushed over from the surface of the river. It was as thick as spilled milk, covering the bluestone slabs. Many people were at a loss and shocked. Take two steps forward. The white mist surged up, and in an instant it covered everyone's ankles and spread in all directions. Surprise turned into shock, and whispers were heard under the altar. Three steps. Four steps. One drum, one step. Liang Qu walked around with extraordinary bravery. Under the gazes of thousands of people, he slowly climbed the steps along the central axis of the altar. With every step they climbed, thicker fog rolled up and rose until it reached everyone's waists. The whole Shangrao seemed like a fairyland! This...what's going on? Chen Zhaoan was dumbfounded. The two museum owners, Tang Zutao and Lin Yao, took a step back, and the benches scraped against the stone slabs, making a harsh friction sound. Everyone lowered their heads in disbelief, their emotions surging like the white mist before their eyes. fog! It's getting foggy! At three quarters past noon, when the Yang energy is at its peak, fog actually appeared! The priest's legs trembled. He remained indifferent to the sacrifices offered by tens of thousands of people. He was a little frightened by the sacrifice to the spirit.
The fog appeared out of nowhere. I have lived for more than sixty years and have never seen or heard of anything like it! Strong emotions surged in his heart, and the priest fell to his knees with a thud, tears streaming down his face. "The river god is very happy! He appeared! He really appeared!" One stone caused a thousand ripples and instantly resonated with the villagers. This fairyland must be the manifestation of the river god! "It's happening! It's the Jianghuai River God who's showing up!" "The river god appears! The river god appears!" “River God, please bless me!” Countless people knelt down on the ground, and huge waves of sound accumulated layer by layer, converging into a terrifying torrent! Tang Zutao stared at Liang Qu on the altar, then turned his head to look at Lin Yao, his eyes shaking. Lin Yao noticed Tang Zutao's actions and shook his head slightly. As horse-riding martial artists, the two men could not be easily deceived like the ignorant villagers, but they could not figure out how the strange sight before them was caused. Could it be that the Jianghuai River God really appeared? The power of nature cannot be underestimated even by Master Zhenxiang. The two of them couldn't help but feel a sense of awe in their hearts. They looked at the villagers who were kneeling around them and bowed down as well. Liang Qu stood in front of the altar and waited for a while. He did not hear the priest shouting, so he lowered his head slightly and discovered. I don't know when the little old man fell to the ground, curled up into a ball, trembling and sobbing. Overdoing it... He looked at Li Libo and others who were also kneeling beside him. Noticing Liang Qu's gaze, Lin Songbao was the smartest one. He bent down and ran quickly to the old priest. "Master Priest, it's time to light the incense. Otherwise, it will be disrespectful if we miss the time!" A word to awaken the dreamer. "Yes, yes, yes, we must not miss the time." The priest nodded repeatedly, stood up with the help of Lin Songbao, wiped his tears and drank loudly. "Twist the incense!" Liang Qu breathed a sigh of relief, lit the incense with charcoal, bent over and inserted it into the incense burner. "Sacrifice wine!" The wine hits the wall of the glass, glittering in the sunlight. "Ode, a sacrificial oration!"
"Jianghuai is above, I borrow the land of Yixing Town, facing the water of the river, to accept the trust of the people and gather the people's hopes. I lead the people to worship before you and present this sacrificial text..." "When chaos first began, the heaven and earth were born. The sky passed through the sun and the moon, and the earth passed through rivers and streams..." The river is vast and calm, and waves are rising. The world is vast, and the sound lingers. His long sleeves fluttered and his stature was enormous. [Sacrifice to Huaijiang River, extremely pious, river favor +] The deepest part of the Jianghuai Lake. A pair of eyes as bright as the sun suddenly opened. (End of this chapter)