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Praying for rain is common, but praying for wind is not.
Because rain can bring a good harvest, but long wind will only make people melancholy.
Human beings will only choose to develop in a direction that is beneficial to themselves.
Therefore, the method of praying for rain has existed since ancient times, but praying for wind is rare, at least Hu Xiuwu has never heard of it.
Gong Qing explained: "It's normal that Xiuwu has never heard of the Quanzhou Wind Prayer Festival. Before the Song Dynasty, there were few methods of praying for wind in the Central Plains. Only some military strategies involved the use of heavenly wind."
"But during the Song and Yuan dynasties, Quanzhou's maritime trade was prosperous, with thousands of ships passing through the docks and traffic flowing like forests. Even at night, it was still bustling and the lights were always on, bringing countless benefits to the court."
"But the ships at that time were extremely dependent on wind power. Without the sea breeze, the big ships were just snails on the sea and could not move a few steps."
Hu Xiuwu understood: "That's why sea merchants pray for sea breezes."
Gong Qing said: "That's right. Only when you have something to ask for and need, you will think about it and gain something."
"In order to maintain the prosperity of maritime trade, the Quanzhou government asked a foreigner to design the Quanzhou Wind Prayer Festival."
"The prefect of Quanzhou requested an imperial decree to confer the title of Sea God on the God of Leshan Mountain and to hold a sacrifice ceremony on Jiuri Mountain. The emperor agreed to the plan and bestowed the title of Tongyuan King on the God of Leshan Mountain, and gave him the name Zhaohui."
At this point, Jiuri Mountain, Zhaohui Temple, and King Tongyuan became the sea gods in charge of the sea breeze.
"With the help of [King Tongyuan], we can gather the faith of the people of Quanzhou, and then use sacrifices to turn the accumulated faith into a trend that helps businesses."
Xia Liuqing's face was covered with oil paint, her red dress fluttered in the wind, and she waved pink silk in her hands. While dancing, she also sang a southern tune.
Although they could not understand much of the opera, Hu Xiuwu, who was listening nearby, could hear every word Xia Liuqing sang, which showed how good Xia Liuqing's singing skills were.
"So Xia Liuqing is now playing the role of [King Tongyuan]?"
Hu Xiuwu didn't know much about opera. He only knew some familiar facial masks, and he didn't recognize the rest.
However, Xia Liuqing has such a graceful posture, could it be that the [King Tongyuan] is a goddess?
Gong Qing shook his head: "No, Master Xia is playing the role of Mazu. After the Yuan Dynasty, the power of Tongyuan King gradually declined, and Mazu is the new sea god."
Hu Xiuwu laughed: "Mazu? So Master Xia is singing the female role? I was wondering why she is so charming."
"Borrowing the power of the new god to perform the old rituals is indeed an obscene sacrifice. It is indeed a good idea, but can it be accomplished?"
"Li Si, like me before, has signed a military order. If we cooperate with him like this and he still can't succeed," Gong Qing said coldly, "then death will be a relief for him."
Yayayah, as Master Xia appears, the play reaches its climax.
Hu Xiuwu could already sense a mighty and boundless wave of faith surging from the void and converging on the simple stage.
Such a vast power of faith gathered here, and all kinds of miracles have been revealed. There are no musical instruments around, but they can be heard clearly.
There were loud sounding of cloud gongs, urgent beating of small drums, erhu sobbing, and suona crying.
Amid the loud and intense music, Xia Liuqing's figure became tall and plump. She wore a colorful bridal gown and a crown on her head. She looked majestic, graceful and dignified.
On the altar, Li Si picked up the tablet and bowed like a courtier meeting the Queen of Heaven, shouting:
"Alas! The county's budget has been exhausted to the extreme, and the people's strength has been exhausted! Looking south, we need it to arrive every day to relieve the urgent situation. This is the only way! God, please show your power and make the waves calm, so that the boats can sail safely, and sail with favorable winds, so that we can travel a thousand miles a day and arrive without any obstacles. This is the great wish of the officials and the people! I respectfully bow my head and ask for it."
Mazu said, "Yes."
As soon as the word was uttered, the power of faith from Mazu poured down like a river in the sky that had received an order.
The Jiuri Mountain Wind Prayer Festival was like an engine that had obtained endless energy and started at maximum power. Even the power of the Wulongtang Rain Prayer Ceremony next to it was amplified.
First, a small breeze arose and blew up the motionless talisman flag.
Then a breeze came and yellow sand filled the sky.
The black sandstorm was like a dark tsunami, or like the Great Wall moving horizontally. Wherever it passed, the sand dunes disappeared, the clouds dissipated, and all things in the desert were swallowed up by the black sandstorm.
The speed of the black sandstorm seems slow but is actually very fast. It is only visible from a distance in the last second, and the next moment the yellow sand has blocked out the sky.
It was as if the world had not yet been created in the sandstorm; it was dark and deep, with no distinction between clear and turbid, and it was just chaos.
The only sound left between heaven and earth was the roar of the wind, and it seemed as if there was no other sound at all.
Even Hu Xiuwu could only vaguely hear Gong Qing's cry:
"···Follow the plan···each one performs···the destiny···Run!!"
Faced with such a natural disaster, Hu Xiuwu did not dare to confront it head-on. He took Chen Duo in his arms and prepared to take her into Luofengtian for temporary shelter.
Everyone used various methods to avoid the black sandstorm.
Only Li Si stood in the center of the five dragons, not dodging or evading, looking up to the sky and laughing:
"I succeeded, I succeeded, I don't need anyone to confer a title on me, my sacrificial method is orthodox!"
Suddenly, a sandstorm came.
The five dragons shattered, the incense table flew up, and Li Si also disappeared in the rolling yellow sand.
······
The sandstorm raged for a day and a night before gradually running out of power.
When the sunlight returned to the earth, the shadow of the original altar could no longer be seen in the desert.
The hills and sand sea drifted away with the storm, scattered in all directions.
The thousand-year-old ancient city buried under the yellow sand finally saw the light of day again.
“It’s changed.”
Hu Xiuwu and Chen Duo had both seen Jingjue City, which was supported by the thirty-six countries in the Western Regions, when it was at its most prosperous and flourishing.
When we see the ancient city of Jingjue again today, we see only broken walls and shattered sculptures, which is really sad.
"After spending so much money, we finally found the truth about the secret of Jiashen!!"
Gong Qing's excited voice sounded from behind Hu Xiuwu.
Hu Xiuwu sighed and said without disguising, "Good people don't deserve to die, and the evil has lasted for thousands of years, but you are still alive."
Gong Qing smiled cheerfully: "After all, I was the one who made the plan. When the sandstorm came, I hugged Brother Ding Shiman tightly. I knew that Brother Ding was kind-hearted and would never abandon me when he used the Earth Traveling Immortal Technique."
Ding Shimaan spat, "I saved your life because of Master Bi's face, so don't get too close to me."
Afterwards, Yuan Tao and Han Daner also rushed back using the Sprinting Rabbit, and their speed was only slower than Ding Shimaan who had set out earlier using the Earth Traveling Immortal Technique.
After them, everyone in Quanxing gathered towards Gong Qing from all directions. After all, this plan was designed by them, and everyone was prepared when the sandstorm came.
Except for Li Si, no one else was injured or killed.
Hu Xiuwu felt a little sorry: "It's a pity for that Ye Maoshan called Li Si. He really has some skills. The sacrificial process he put together actually worked."
Gong Qing, on the other hand, looked carefree: "If I hear the truth in the morning, I am willing to die in the evening. He has completed the greatest sacrifice in his life, so he will die without regrets."
Hu Xiuwu chuckled.
Die without regrets? If Li Si knew what the world would be like in the future, he would only regret not being able to live in a prosperous era.
Xia Liuqing put his hands behind his back and came to Hu Xiuwu: "Boy, we have already stirred up the desert. Now you should tell us which part of this city is related to the Jiashen Rebellion."
Hu Xiuwu pointed to the bare, pyramid-shaped building in the distance and said, "For supernatural things, we must look for them in temples. That is the Jingjue Temple."
The Jingjue Temple that once amazed Hu Xiuwu is now in a dilapidated state.
The once ingenious murals and reliefs on the surface of the temple have been completely eroded by wind, and the stone carvings on the top that symbolized the snake god and the eyes of the Queen of Jingjue have disappeared.
The temple is now completely unrecognizable. If Hu Xiuwu had not remembered the feng shui location of the temple, he would not have recognized that it was the former Jingjue Temple.
"But before entering the temple, I'm afraid I have to deal with the people behind me first."
Mazu Niangniang's full name:
The god who protects the country and the people, with his wonderful spirit and responsiveness, is benevolent and blesses all living beings. His sincerity is appreciated and praised by all. He shows his mercy and brings peace and prosperity to the world. He spreads his benevolence and spreads his teachings to the world, and bestows blessings on the country and the people. He protects the country, protects peace, and pacifies the borders. He is the queen of heaven.
The first time I read it, I didn’t know how to break up the sentences.
Chapter 376 Strong Support
"It's impossible. Preparing for the sacrifice took too much time. I'm not surprised that they were able to catch up."
Gong Qing's face was calm, as he had already anticipated the arrival of the temporary workers.
Six temporary workers plus Zhang Chulan walked out from behind the yellow sand and entered the city through the broken city wall of the Jingjue Ancient City.
Black Tube said with emotion: "You guys really succeeded. As expected, if all the people work together, they can be a formidable enemy of the company."
Everyone in Quanxing raised their weapons and looked at them vigilantly.
Ding Shimaan was a little happy about their arrival, but when he looked around, he didn't see anyone else, so he asked with some disappointment:
"Why are there only a few of you? Where are the group from before? Why didn't the guy named Ma Xianhong come?"
He also wants to try Ma Xianhong's methods!
Feng Baobao said frankly: "It's over."
Zhang Chulan: “…”
Gong Qingze asked doubtfully: "Then how dare you come after us?"
Wang Zhenqiu chuckled, "Of course it's because we got strong reinforcements. Xiuwu knows that there are actually eight temporary workers, not seven."
Then, staring at Hu Xiuwu, Wang Zhenqiu said playfully, "Don't you want to meet our old acquaintance again? Whenever I was on a mission before, I had to ask for his help every time, but never succeeded. It's because you have a lot of face that the company gave me the permission directly before I even applied for it this time."
Hu Xiuwu said: "I am indeed curious about His current situation, but I don't want to see Him here."
It seems that Hu Xiuwu also knows that mysterious temporary worker on the board of directors.
What kind of person is it that makes Wang Zhenqiu so confident and Hu Xiuwu so fearful?
Zhang Chulan was confused.
Two days ago, the company's board of directors wrote back to them, ordering them to continue pursuing Quan Xing.
At all costs, stop Quan Xing's people from entering the Jingjue Ancient City and bring Hu Xiuwu back to the company.
Afterwards, the company sent a picture of a mask and authorized Wang Zhenqiu to use this mask in this mission.
When the action was discussed afterwards, unlike usual, Wang Zhenqiu did not express any opinions.
It wasn't that he had changed his personality, it was more like he had gotten the toy he had been longing for. He hummed a song, compared it with the picture on his mobile phone, and made the mask overnight.
Zhang Chulan suspected that rather than completing the mission successfully, Wang Zhenqiu probably hoped that Hu Xiuwu would turn against him.