Chapter 267: The Dawn of the Ancestral Rite

Entry? Entering so early?

Hearing the staff member’s voice, many visitors who had grabbed an entry ticket were taken aback.

Two days ago, the performances only began ticket checking at 2:30 PM, but today it starts at noon.

Soon after, a long queue swiftly formed at the ticket booth.

Early entry meant a chance to learn the specifics of the Mingsha City Festival well before others—a definite advantage over aimlessly wandering at the base of the hill.

Before long, the first visitor passed the security check.

“Hello. Please hold onto this! Once you enter the festival area, set your phone to vibrate or silent, and refrain from loud chatter. Also, please avoid taking photos during the festival.”

While handing over a yellow ribbon, the staff member glanced at the visitor’s ID before adding,

“All set!”

For some reason, the visitor, seeing the staff member’s earnest expression, immediately nodded in agreement.

One, two—within minutes, over a dozen visitors had passed the security checkpoint.

However, when the next visitor arrived, the staff member merely gave a quick glance without issuing a yellow ribbon, only reminding, “Once you enter the festival area, please set your phone to vibrate or silent and avoid loud chatter!”

Then, with a wave of his hand, he signaled that the visitor could ascend the mountain, not even mentioning the no-photo rule.

Simply put,

this visitor wasn’t from Long Kingdom—he was a foreigner holding a passport.

“Hmm? What’s going on? Why am I treated differently from those ahead? Why no yellow ribbon for me?”

Noticing this,

confusion spread among the waiting crowd. Even the foreign visitor, now past security, was puzzled and immediately asked:

“Sir, since our festival isn’t just a performance, does that mean I can’t participate?”

The staff member promptly explained.

“It isn’t merely a show—what I mean is, they might have to take part in the palace festival as well.”

The foreigner blinked in surprise, pointing to the visitors ahead; meanwhile, another visitor who had just stepped out halted in his tracks.

“In theory, participation isn’t mandatory, but if someone wishes to join in, we certainly won’t turn them away,” he added.

The staff member clarified further.

“Oh, I see.”

The foreigner remained silent.

To him, if participation wasn’t required, it posed no issue. Otherwise, joining in would make him stand out. From his understanding of the people of Long Kingdom, if participation was optional and offered no perks, hardly anyone would get involved.

“Not mandatory?”

After hearing this, the earlier visitors said no more. They casually pocketed their yellow ribbons and ascended the stone steps toward the gate of Langya Mountain.

However,

once inside the gate, the meticulously arranged scene brought a sudden, inexplicable heaviness to their hearts.

Every twenty steps on the stone stairs, a soldier in ancient costume stood holding a spear. Moreover, each guard had a yellow ribbon tied around his right arm, making the scene strikingly reminiscent of an ancient palace festival.

“Could this really be a full-scale Fengchan ceremony? Perhaps only a Fengchan ceremony could produce such an impressive display!”

Coming back to his senses,

the visitors, now weighed down by this thought, continued climbing, chatting less and hardly laughing at all.

Although Langya Mountain is an artificial hill, it was built upon the existing Shaji, so it was not short.

After winding along the stone steps through several twists and turns, the first batch of visitors reached the small square at the mountaintop just before 1 PM.

“Is this the venue for the palace festival?”

They stood silently.

Surveying the surroundings, one visitor, who had intended to take a photo of the altar to share with his family group, silently slid his phone back into his pocket after noticing the meticulous setup around the altar.

The altar stood at the center of the small square.

Guards clad in armor lined the square, and between them fluttered a Five Elements flag.

Looking closer, the nine large cauldrons atop the altar, arranged in a row, resembled nine ancient deities silently surveying the land, intensifying the oppressive atmosphere.

Below the altar, a red carpet was laid out, flanked on both sides by two rows of chime bells and sixteen large drums, amplifying the solemn mood.

And when a cold breeze swept by, causing the Five Elements flag to flutter vigorously, there was hardly any mood left for taking photos.

More importantly, on one side of the square stood a stone tablet inscribed with a memorial edict: “Descendants of Yan and Huang honor our valiant ancestors: A.D. 2023.”

“Phew! Descendants paying tribute to illustrious ancestors… So, was the Mingsha City performance not a Fengchan ceremony at all, but a Great Ancestor Memorial Ceremony?”

As several visitors gathered before the tablet, reading the edict in astonishment, they finally understood why, during ticket checking at the foot of the mountain, domestic and foreign visitors were treated differently.

After a moment,

a few visitors exchanged silent glances and eventually all retrieved their yellow ribbons, hanging them around their necks.

At that moment,

it no longer mattered about faith or anything else—as long as that blood coursed through them, they would make the same choice.

Meanwhile,

just as visitors ascended the altar, preparations were in full swing behind it in the great hall.

At this moment,

both Li Jue, responsible for reciting the memorial text, and Liu Shan, who presided over the ceremony, had already changed into deep-colored ceremonial ancient costumes.

“Dean, everything is ready!”

Watching Li Jue quietly recite the memorial text, Xu Hao remarked,

“This isn’t a trivial matter!”

Glancing instinctively toward the entrance, Li Jue added,

for some reason, as the moment approached, his mindset grew increasingly delicate. He no longer considered this grand event merely a performance—it was a genuine ancestral rite.

“Exactly, Xiao Xu. This isn’t a small matter—there must be no mistakes!”

Beside him, Liu Shan agreed,

“Alright, I’ll go check on the others!”

Xu Hao hesitated, then fell silent.

Though he now appeared idle, in reality, he had been so busy over the past two days with the palace festival that he scarcely had time to catch his breath.

Fortunately, fortune favored the diligent—everything was conclusively arranged by this morning.

“Daoist Master, if this ceremony successfully rekindles the incense of Wuzhuang Temple, I’ll take full responsibility!”

Muttering to himself, Xu Hao headed toward a side hall where several staff members were already donning ceremonial attire, with some finer details still needing his reminder.

At 1 PM, then 2 PM—right as the grand ceremony in Mingsha City’s festival hall was about to commence—in H Country, Park Qi Ye and Cui Xiaozhong had also finalized their arrangements and activated the monitors!

“Everything secure?”

Taking a deep breath, Park Qi Ye asked Cui Xiaozhong while glancing at him.

“President, we’re all set. Once the ceremony begins, all the equipment will kick in, and the atmosphere will captivate overseas tourists, leaving them convinced that our grand ceremony defies scientific explanation!”

Cui Xiaozhong nodded emphatically.

“By the way, President, what’s happening over on the Long Kingdom side right now?”

Pausing briefly, Cui Xiaozhong continued,

“Overall, it’s average. Over there, they’re staging an ancestral ceremony—even though the Long Kingdom visitors wear ribbons around their necks to signify ceremony, it pales in comparison to what we have here!”

Park Qi Ye casually switched to another monitor, and soon the screen displayed a feed from Long Kingdom TV’s international channel.

On screen, a host stood before an altar, explaining the details of the palace festival performance to the viewers at home.

“Ladies and gentlemen, at our branch venue the featured performance is the Nine Cauldrons Ancestral Rite! The main ceremony will commence in just a few minutes.”

Unlike previous broadcasts, the host was now also sporting a yellow ribbon about a palm’s width around his neck.

A gust of wind swept by, making the host’s ribbon flutter in the breeze with a chilling, almost wintry feel.

“It truly isn’t a Fengchan ceremony!”

Seeing this, Cui Xiaozhong furrowed his brow.

“This is how we secure our victory! An ancestral ceremony, even at a mid-level, can never be compared to a Fengchan ceremony! If they were to stage a grand ritual like a sky or earth worship, then perhaps they could dare to surpass us.”

A hint of disdain crossed Park Qi Ye’s face.

He had been worried last night, but his concerns eased completely about half an hour ago when he saw some edict content posted by foreign tourists.

“Indeed! By the way, President, the weather over there doesn’t look too promising, does it?”

At that, Cui Xiaozhong nodded.

During a palace festival, the biggest worry is always the weather. If it’s poor, even the memorial text can be drowned out by the wind—let alone other ceremonies.

“Right. This time, with timing and conditions completely in our favor, how dare they act so arrogantly?”

As Park Qi Ye spoke, he checked his watch.

“It’s 2:45 PM now. In just over ten minutes, we can start! Now, go and notify all departments.”

Thump, thump, thump! Just as Park Qi Ye was about to send Cui Xiaozhong off to work, a noticeable noise suddenly emanated from a nearby computer.

“Huh?”

Almost instinctively,

both Park Qi Ye and Cui Xiaozhong turned to look at the screen—right then, the palace ceremony in Long Kingdom had officially begun. A dozen burly men in plain clothes started beating ceremonial drums, their resounding beats powerful and enduring.

And if that weren’t enough, after 81 drumbeats, a long, resonant horn blew—a sound that seemed to summon the ancestral spirits of Long Kingdom.

“Just that display? Nothing special at all!”

Seeing the prelude to Mingsha City’s palace festival, Park Qi Ye and Cui Xiaozhong exchanged glances and couldn’t help but smile.

After all, their own setup was far more elaborate than mere drumbeats and horn blasts!

“Alright. Get ready—next, it’s time for the international tourists to witness the true splendour of our palace festival.”

After a pause, Park Qi Ye waved his hand.

“Yes!”

Cui Xiaozhong nodded before turning to leave the backstage area.

But as Cui Xiaozhong turned, his eyes caught a glimpse of the screen. His expression suddenly shifted, and he quickly spun around, fixating his gaze on the monitor.

When he carefully examined the situation at the Long Kingdom altar,

he froze, murmuring, “Wait, this… this… this.”