Chapter 74 - 31: Purple Treasures, Feast Ceremony

Chapter 74: Chapter 31: Purple Treasures, Feast Ceremony

[Note: When used in conjunction with the Feast Ceremony, can unlock more source-tracing abilities]

[Bai Ling’s Breath: Your sense of smell and range of perception are greatly enhanced. In addition to precisely capturing the myriad aromas of the world, you can even smell the emotions and obsessions they contain.]

’Every one of them has an Extraordinary ability. Especially this Thousand-Attracting Tongue—it seems to have the power to trace things back to their source, to touch upon the threads of causality.’

’Considering that "eating" is the most fundamental need of humanity, and indeed of all living things, it’s a foundational Dao that permeates Heaven, Earth, and Reincarnation.’

’It’s only natural that a class centered on "food," one whose ultimate form is the Master of Ten Thousand Spirits who can devour all things, would possess such miraculous qualities.’

’In any case, now that my class change was successful, I have a chance of passing the Four Seasons Valley assessment.’

’No, that’s not right.’ A slight smile touched Jiang Xuan’s lips as he felt the Nine Breath Qi Ingestion Technique circulating rapidly within him, no longer restricted. ’This is the beginning of my rise. Now that I have the Feast Ceremony, I don’t need to worry about just passing the second round of the assessment. What I’m fighting for now is first place!’

The shift in his goal from barely passing to aiming for the top spot—that was the kind of earth-shattering change a Purple Treasure Level class brought to Jiang Xuan.

...

Hoo...

His Gourmet class had changed from Blue Rare to a Purple Treasure. This sudden, immense gain sent Jiang Xuan’s emotions into a turbulent spiral. It took him a long moment to suppress the surging excitement.

Then, without a moment’s hesitation, he walked toward the entrance for the Four Seasons Valley assessment.

"Tsk, here comes another one who doesn’t know when to quit."

A nearby student saw him and couldn’t help but mutter, "Hey, buddy, I’d advise you not to waste your energy. This Four Seasons Valley assessment just isn’t meant to be passed by anyone!"

As Jiang Xuan set off, the students who hadn’t left yet all shook their heads, their faces filled with dismissiveness. Clearly, none of them thought he could pass this nearly impossible assessment.

Ignoring them, Jiang Xuan walked straight to the entrance of Huangni Village.

At the village entrance stood four neatly arranged tables. A Cultivator from the Four Seasons Valley was stationed behind each one, corresponding to the four seasons: spring, summer, autumn, and winter.

The burly young man, Wu Shan, who had previously stood behind Xia He, was manning the second table, the summer table. It was laden with plump, juicy, and enticing midsummer melons and fruits.

The gentle and graceful Senior Sister Yingyue sat behind the third table, the autumn table. Before her were plump grains and heavy-hanging autumn fruits.

And the cold, aloof youth who exuded a biting chill manned the final table, the winter table. It had the fewest items: only some cold-resistant moss, roots that dug deep into frozen earth, and thorny winter leaves.

As for the very first table, the spring table, the person behind it wasn’t Xia He, as Jiang Xuan had expected. Instead, it was a particularly lively and energetic-looking youth. The food on his table consisted mainly of tender, verdant, leafy spring vegetables, radiating with vitality.

Remembering that he could only perform the Feast Ceremony three times a day, Jiang Xuan cupped his hands toward the seniors behind the tables and asked, "Excuse me, Seniors. May I gather the food from all four seasons and sample them together?"

"Of course you can." The first to reply was the youth behind the spring table, Zhou Qing. Compared to the proud and cold Cultivators of Star Sword Peak, the people of Four Seasons Valley were clearly far more amicable. He smiled and waved a hand. "Take whatever you’d like to eat."

With their approval, Jiang Xuan no longer stood on ceremony. Not wanting to waste any of his three precious daily opportunities to use the Feast Ceremony, he asked another question as he gathered the food, "I have a pretty big appetite. Is it alright if I take a bit more?"

At this, Zhou Qing was momentarily speechless, but Wu Shan and Meng Yingyue both started to laugh.

Wu Shan laughed heartily. "Take as much as you want from my table. There’s plenty to go around."

Right after him, Meng Yingyue also smiled gently, her voice soft. "It’s even okay if you want to eat your fill right here with us."

With everyone’s consent, Jiang Xuan no longer held back. He took a whole armful of the midsummer melons and fruits from Wu Shan’s table. He grabbed more than half of the autumn grains and fresh fruits from before Meng Yingyue. He even took a substantial amount of the green vegetables from the spring table and the cold-weather plants from the winter table. In a matter of moments, a small mountain of food was piled up in front of him.

At this scene, Xia He, who had already been simmering with frustration, flushed with anger. Even Wu Shan and Meng Yingyue, who had been smiling just moments before, frowned slightly.

It wasn’t that they were concerned about the ingredients. It was just that Jiang Xuan, despite his slender frame, had taken so much food at once. No matter how they looked at it, he didn’t seem to be here to participate in the assessment and comprehend the Dao Rhyme. Instead, he looked like he was deliberately trying to cause trouble.

In contrast, the students who hadn’t left—those who were still clinging to the faint hope that Four Seasons Valley might not find enough people and would take them in as an exception—all had their eyes light up at the scene.

"He’s going to waste all the food! Let’s see how they recruit anyone after this! Why didn’t I think of that?"

"Jiang Xuan! Nice one!"

From the rising and falling chorus of cheers, it was clear this group had also completely pegged Jiang Xuan as someone there to deliberately cause trouble.

And this was the last straw for the already impatient Xia He, who could no longer contain her fury.

WHOOSH!

In a flash, she moved to step forward, ready to drive away the troublemaking Jiang Xuan.

However, just as she took that first step, the anger on Xia He’s face froze, replaced by sheer astonishment.

—Jiang Xuan, having gathered all the ingredients from the four seasons, first closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, a completely different, unique aura began to emanate from him.

It was an aura of solemnity, dignity, and whole-hearted piety.

He pressed his palms together and first bowed deeply to the ingredients before him. Then, he took out a small portion of the food, offering it up to Heaven and down to Earth.

After completing the entire ritual, he brought over clear water and purified his hands, his body, and his mouth. He performed each action with meticulous, yet utterly practiced, precision.

And he was naturally adept—he had performed this ritual of honoring Heaven and Earth and purifying the self no less than a hundred times when casting the Three Purification Spell.

This also sparked a thought in Jiang Xuan’s mind. ’Come to think of it, maybe my awakening the Feast Ceremony, a Treasure Level Skill, wasn’t entirely due to luck. Perhaps the Three Purification Spell itself has deep roots in this ritual of eating, and it unknowingly lowered the threshold for me to awaken it?’

The thought was fleeting. He quickly collected himself, focusing his entire Heart Spirit on the ingredients and the ceremony before him.

The solemn rites of the Feast Ceremony, combined with his focused, meticulous movements and the ever-present Three Purification Mantra・True Communication Spirit Charm about his person—with these multiple forces interwoven, the set of seemingly ordinary actions lost any trace of the farcical air of a mortal shaman’s dance.

Even though he was alone, the entrance to Huangni Village was now imbued with a solemn, almost sacred atmosphere, created by an aura of intense earnestness.

As the Spirit Charm of the Feast Ceremony slowly spread, an indescribable and terrifying pressure suddenly descended, seizing the Heart Spirit of everyone present.

At that moment, everyone was gripped by a horrifying illusion—as if they had become food on a platter. And the figure standing before the table, part god and part Demon, was like a Celestial God who wielded the power of life and death, holding his utensils and gazing down dispassionately at them on the plate.