Chapter 977: Chapter 973: Sacrifice
The only thing that worried Ye Tian was his skin color, which differed slightly from that of these Brahmin monks, so he could only lower his head, trying not to let others take a closer look at him!
It was in this manner that Ye Tian emerged from the corner, joined the monks heading towards the core area of the inner city, and blended into their group.
With his hands clasped together and head bowed, Ye Tian adopted this posture and followed the main monk group into a temple in the inner city.
Ye Tian originally thought that the monks would enter the holy city, but to his disappointment, everyone’s destination was right here.
Since he was already inside, Ye Tian found it difficult to leave because there were simply too many monks present; any action contrary to theirs would arouse suspicion and potentially an attack from all of them.
Therefore, Ye Tian could only imitate the monks, clasping his hands together and making his way step by step into the hall of the temple!
Although it was an inner city temple, the hall was quite large, about the size of a basketball court. The monks entered the hall and all stood against the wall.
Ye Tian mimicked this posture, standing against the wall with his hands clasped…
“Om mani padme hum, om mani padme hum, om mani padme hum, om mani padme hum…”
The monks began to chant, and Ye Tian realized they were reciting something in Sanskrit, probably some kind of incantation.
Although Ye Tian didn’t know the Sanskrit scriptures, he imitated them without revealing a flaw.
After a while, all the monks had gathered in the hall. Ye Tian counted at least a hundred monks standing against the wall. It was unclear to Ye Tian why so many Brahmin monks were gathered here.
With the chanting of the scriptures, the hall grew increasingly noisy. Ye Tian felt his head buzzing, as if a thousand flies were buzzing around his ears…
As Ye Tian was feeling restless, the main door of the hall suddenly opened!
When Ye Tian and the monks had entered the hall earlier, they used a side door. The main door was considerably large, even bigger than the city gate of Varanasi!
However, the other monks continued chanting their scriptures silently without glancing towards the main door, except for Ye Tian, who out of curiosity, glanced towards it…
He saw a man entering through the main door; this man appeared to be in his twenties or thirties, of medium build, and wasn’t wearing a monk robe, but a rather peculiar robe.
The robe had sharp edges and its center was adorned with numerous exquisite patterns, making Ye Tian feel as if this man was wearing a playing card!
Despite his strange attire, the atmosphere in the hall changed drastically upon his appearance, and all the monks showed expressions of reverence.
Ye Tian observed closely. Many of the expressions were rooted in fear, indicating that this man had an extraordinary identity!
“Eh!?”
Suddenly, Ye Tian noticed someone behind the man—it was Kara, the attendant of the Divine Race!
Since Ye Tian had previously fought with Kara and Kara recognized his face, Ye Tian quickly lowered his head and pretended to chant scriptures. Kara, too, didn’t notice anything unusual.
However, since the oddly-dressed man had Kara, the attendant of the God Clan, as his follower, Ye Tian could almost guess the man’s identity. He was undoubtedly a member of the Divine Race!
When the man reached the center of the hall, a Hindu monk in his seventies approached him with hands clasped, and respectfully said, “Lord Tiamimen Palace, everything is ready. The ritual can begin!”
“Good.”
The man said indifferently, and Ye Tian finally learned the man’s name—it was Tiamimen Palace of the Indian deities!
In fact, Ye Tian had heard this name several times before, but this time he saw the real person.
Ye Tian discreetly looked the man up and down. Although he was a member of the Divine Race, his appearance and demeanor were no different from those of an ordinary human.
However, when Ye Tian used his ability to perceive the man’s inner qi, he was shocked!
“So strong!”
Ye Tian could see that within Tiamimen Palace, a vast amount of power churned, seeming to almost burst forth.
This power was vastly different from that of ordinary Martial Artists. Ye Tian, having battled the servant of the Divine Race before, knew this power was divine power!
However, how could the divine power possessed by a servant compare to that of the true Divine Race?
Although Kara’s purpose here was to protect Tiamimen Palace, Ye Tian knew clearly that Tiamimen Palace was far stronger than Kara!
Ye Tian couldn’t help but sigh inwardly; it seemed this was why the Divine Race could run rampant in this country—their power was beyond words!
Tiamimen Palace’s strength far exceeded that of Long Di Luong Palace, who caused chaos in Tianmen by relying on his bodyguard Wang Cai, but with the power Tiamimen Palace had, sweeping through Tianmen was a breeze!
While Ye Tian was observing Tiamimen Palace, Kara suddenly glanced in Ye Tian’s direction. Ye Tian quickly avoided eye contact, thus Kara didn’t detect Ye Tian’s presence…
“Then, let the ritual begin!”
Upon receiving approval from Tiamimen Palace, the aged monk immediately announced, and then some brawny monks brought forth a giant vat.
The giant vat stood several meters tall and was made of glass. Due to its massive size, it was heavy, so several strong monks had to work together to lift it up.
Of course, what shocked Ye Tian the most was not the giant vat itself, but what was inside!
—Hundreds of snakes!
These snakes weren’t particularly large, but each was colorful. As someone with some knowledge of snake species, Ye Tian saw that they were all poisonous snakes with highly potent venom!
With so many venomous snakes, even through thick glass, it was unsettling…
Yet, around Ye Tian, the Brahmin monks seemed utterly indifferent to the venomous snakes in the vat, as if the vat contained earthworms instead.
All the monks continued to chant their scriptures, and Ye Tian found their hearts cold and devoid of emotion…
Once the giant vat was placed at the center of the hall, the aged monk then said, “Please bring the offerings forward!”
As he spoke, over a dozen Indians dressed in traditional attire were brought before the giant vat; there were men and women, old and young among them.
Since they were labeled as “offerings,” they were naturally going to be sacrificed, yet these people showed no trace of fear, remaining calm and composed with an expression of devotion.
Could it be that these people weren’t aware they were about to be killed?
Ye Tian was puzzled, but upon closer examination, he realized that the eyes of these offerings were devoid of any light, as if they were dreaming. From his rich experience, Ye Tian could deduce that these offerings, the Indian people, were under some mysterious force’s control.
What kind of force controlled them was unknown to Ye Tian…
The offerings were led to the giant vat, and the aged monk had two other monks bring a ladder and place it over the vat.
The divine Tiamimen Palace casually sat down, showing no mercy in his eyes as he looked at the offerings before the vat, while Kara remained close by his side, expressionless like a wooden sculpture.
“Let the ritual begin!”
The aged monk spoke again, and the first Indian labeled as an offering started climbing the ladder.
Since his hands and feet weren’t bound, the offering didn’t require assistance. With a devout expression, he stepped up the ladder, reaching the rim of the giant vat.
Beneath him lay hundreds of colorful venomous snakes, yet the Indian man showed no hesitation and leapt into the vat.
The snakes, seeing their prey, instantly crawled over the offering’s body, covering him in mere moments…
“Sssssssssss~~~~~~~~~”
The sound of venomous snakes biting their prey sent chills down the spine, but apart from Ye Tian, all the monks remained unfazed, continuing their chants.
The chanting voices intertwined with the snake-biting sounds, amplifying the eerie atmosphere…
The expression on Tiamimen Palace, the divine, did not change in the slightest; he only watched the sacrifice being bitten in the giant vat with indifference. Kara was the same, emotionless, like a wooden sculpture.
Even the Indians treated as offerings showed no fear, quietly awaiting their fate…
The Indian in the vat slowly lost human form under the venomous snakes’ bites…
The clothes on his body were torn into shreds by the snakes, scattered throughout the vat, yet the offering didn’t utter a sound, allowing the snakes to bite his flesh.
Head, hands, feet, abdomen, chest, back…
The offering’s entire body had no intact skin left, and the snakes not only bit him but also injected their venom into his body, causing him to convulse and shiver uncontrollably.
Originally, Ye Tian thought this offering would silently be torn into pieces by the venomous snakes, but to his surprise, in his final moments, the offering let out a scream!