The princes and princesses were lined up in order of age, standing in neat rows.
Prince Yu, Prince Xiao, Princess Xi, and the others were in the front, while familiar faces like Prince He and Princess Yin were in the ranks as well. Prince Chen, Prince Cheng, Princess Ying, and many others had all clashed with Wu Yu before.
Wu Yu had to feel embarra.s.sed. This generation of the Yan Huang royal family was just too numerous. Di Shatian had many siblings, and Prince Yu had hundreds of siblings.
"If I become Emperor Yu, will they demand that I also give birth to hundreds?" Thinking of so many children, Wu Yu"s hair stood on end. With regards to the future generation, Wu Yu felt that one or two were enough, and they would definitely be with his own dao companion. To do it with so many concubines, and not even know most of them, it was just like breeding....
Wu Yu would have been an insignificant character in this gathering before, but things were different now. He was definitely the center of attention. For the older generation, even those like Di Shatian treated Wu Yu with much respect. And for those of the same generation as Wu Yu, such as the princes and princesses, they were not only respectful, but also fearful.
Many of them remembered that they had conflicts with Wu Yu, especially Prince Yu and Prince Xiao. They were worried that Wu Yu would take revenge on them after becoming Emperor Yu. Therefore, they could not help trembling before him.
Actually, they were over-thinking things. To Wu Yu, they were already not his match.
"Immediately begin the ancestral offerings."
"When you enter Patron Saints" Hall, remain silent. Any who cause an unnecessary ruckus will be severely punished." The Regent had to warn them all, especially the princes and princesses, as well as the concubines. They had never been to Patron Saints" Hall before. It was the resting place of the ancestors, and definitely not to be disturbed.
"After you." The Regent bowed slightly, allowing Wu Yu to precede him.
After entering Patron Saints" Hall, there was only one path that would lead straight to the Yan Huang Heavenly Pillar.
Wu Yu simply did as the Regent had instructed him. The Regent had told him to walk, and so he walked into Patron Saints" Hall. It was said that Patron Saints" Hall was ringed by spirit designs personally fas.h.i.+oned by the many generations of emperors, and it was very difficult for outsiders to get in.
The thousands of Yan Huang royal family members respectfully followed behind Wu Yu. Amongst them were some who might be even stronger than Wu Yu. They followed in Wu Yu"s footsteps, with heads bowed in respect.
In the past, he would never even have dared to dream that such a scene would take place.
This made Wu Yu deeply feel that he would be the emperor of the Yan Huang Ancient Country after today was over. His authority could shake the entire Jambu Realm. When he thought about it, it felt like a dream. He remembered how he had been an insignificant martial cultivator, a puny mortal. How he had been bullied by everyone on the Taigu Immortal Path.
In Patron Saints" Hall, each tomb was huge, and it was said that it was even larger underground. These were the famous people of the Yan Huang Tribe throughout history. Each had their own G.o.dlike reign.
The Yan Huang Tribe members who entered were filled with rapt respect upon seeing these legendary figures.
Only Wu Yu did not have much affinity with these forebears, whereas the others felt the bloodline connection. After all, these were all their ancestors.
Therefore, Wu Yu felt that even if he were the Ancient Emperor"s son, it would be very difficult for him to acquire a sense of belonging, having entered the Yan Huang royal family halfway.
The Patron Saints" Hall was fairly huge. They walked for an hour, pa.s.sing by hundreds of opulent graves along the way. The Regent knew every single person who was buried in this tomb. It was the history of the Yan Huang Tribe since ancient days, and each was a rich piece of history.
It was not even surprising to walk past an ancestor"s tomb from 600,000 years ago. The Yan Huang Tribe"s history was far too long.
This was their depth and richness.
That was something else that the Yan Huang Tribe was proud of. The other tribes in the Yan Huang Ancient Region did not have as ill.u.s.trious a history. Many had been crushed under the gears of time. For example, the Ghostly Yan Tribe of the Infernal Inferno had been thoroughly wiped from the Jambu Realm.
Finally, they reached the most central position, the Yan Huang Heavenly Pillar.
As they neared, the enormous tombs nearby were awesome. They were people from six or seven yuan ago. A yuan was more than 120,000 years, and these were the ancestors of ancestors. Their tombs were nestled between mountains and rivers, like immortal palaces. There were even immortal cranes flying about, and the perimeter of the tomb had many spirit designs. Not even the most elite of martial cultivators might be able to enter.
Ordinarily, not even the Yan Huang royal family was allowed to disturb the ancestors, unless there was something major.
Here at Patron Saints" Hall, Wu Yu had already been enraptured by the long history and richness of the Yan Huang Tribe, and admiration stirred in him.
The Yan Huang Heavenly Pillar was a little like a stone pillar, pure white and translucent. It seemed like solidified milk, a stone pillar that rose up to the sky.
The stone pillar was divided into two parts. The one extending from above was called a stalact.i.te, while the one growing up from the ground was a stalagmite. When the two met, they became one whole pillar.
The Yan Huang Heavenly Pillar was the stalagmite, extending from the ground up to the skies. Perhaps somewhere far up in the sky, perhaps on the base of the sky palaces, there was a corresponding stalact.i.te dripping water down?
Wu Yu did not know what material the Yan Huang Heavenly Pillar was made of, but Ming Long said that it was probably some ultimate immortal essences and precious treasures. Wu Yu could sense it as well. These were no common things. Such things felt like they only belonged in the sky palaces.
The Yan Huang Heavenly Pillar was ringed by a large courtyard, and the ground was studded with nine-spiritual mark white jade called Roasted Bamboo Jade.
The ancestral ceremony would be held here.
The Regent had already prepared everything, and the group of them hurried to set up. In no time, they had laid out the platform, wooden sword, offerings, flags, and many other things.
Beneath their feet were many praying mats.
The steps of ancestral wors.h.i.+p were rather complicated, and Wu Yu could not be bothered with it. He just followed whatever the Regent said. It was just some procedure to inform the ancestors that the Yan Huang Ancient Country had a new emperor.
"First bow!"
When the Regent called out, all the Yan Huang Tribe members knelt on the mats, murmuring verses.
Wu Yu followed suit, bowing to the skies. It didn"t mean much to him. And then holding the joss stick up high, he repeated the words that the Regent had prepared for him to the Yan Huang Heavenly Pillar. It was like taking an oath. After he finished, he again bowed, placing the joss stick in the brazier.
"Second bow!
"Third bow!"
The entire affair took an hour. Wu Yu was like a puppet, complying with the Regent"s direction. The Regent clearly knew that Wu Yu had no interest in such formalities, and so had arranged everything for him. Of course, this ceremony was fairly important for them. After all, it was informing the ancestors about a new coronation.
After all, countless generations of Yan Huang ancestors had preserved the stability of the Jambu Realm. It played an important role. Perhaps without them, Wu Yu would not exist. Therefore, showing basic courtesy was not a problem for him.
"We crown a new king. I humbly plead for the ancestors to watch over the young lord. Let the Yan Huang Tribe flourish for a thousand autumns, for ten thousand generations! If the new emperor is dull and wicked, may the ancestors correct him. If the new emperor is wise and foresighted, may the ancestors bless him. Show him the way, watch over Yan Huang, rule the world, and never fade!
"Kowtow!
"Light the joss sticks!"
In the end, Wu Yu"s brazier held 45 joss sticks. They were divided into groups of nine sticks, and there had been five iterations. The nine sticks had been further divided into three different prayers. [1]
This ancestral ceremony was solemn indeed. If one was too caught up in it, one would find it hard to breathe. This ceremony would also help the Yan Huang royal family come to accept Wu Yu, because the ancestors did not stop Wu Yu from making his offerings. This showed that even the ancestors accepted Wu Yu. In that case, once the ceremony successfully ended, Wu Yu would without doubt become the omnipotent Emperor Yu!
Prince Yu and the others would not have the slightest shred of hope left.
Perhaps if Prince Le had been the one to become the emperor, they might still be unconvinced. This was because Prince Le was not strong, and looked like he had simply been chosen by the Ancient Emperor. He would not have been able to win them over. But Wu Yu was different.
Besides his initial status, everything subsequently had been his own G.o.dly strength, that no one could compete with.
The ancestral ceremony came to an end.
"I am deeply sorry that I have disturbed the ancestors. The new emperor is established, and we descendants will take our leave. May the ancestors rest well."
With this said, the great ancestral ceremony was officially over. Allowing Wu Yu to precede the Regent, Wu Yu now seemed even more n.o.ble than ever. He had the air of Emperor Yu, and Wu Yu led the thousands of Yan Huang royal family members out of Patron Saints" Hall, with their respectful gazes on him.
They had begun the proceedings at daybreak, and now it was almost noon. They composed themselves at the entrance of Patron Saints" Hall, and the Regent said to Wu Yu, "The Amba.s.sadors of 10,000 Kingdoms, ministers, and aristocrats are all waiting at Qian Kun Palace. After the ancestral ceremony ends, we have to rush over to Qian Kun Palace to hold the coronation ceremony."
Wu Yu nodded. He knew that this was the second step, and also the crux of the ascension. Announcing Emperor Yu"s coronation at Qian Kun Palace was the moment when the Yan Huang Ancient Country would truly celebrate.
Yan Huang Royal City had three great places. Patron Saints" Hall, with its many graves, was one. Qian Kun Palace was the second, where the Yan Huang emperor conducted business and received guests. The Ancient Emperor had not shown himself for a long time, and so Qian Kun Palace had stood empty for a long time. The Regent handled national business, but was not authorized to enter Qian Kun Palace. It was the most carefully guarded place of the Yan Huang Tribe!
Right now, Wu Yu led the Yan Huang Tribe towards Qian Kun Palace. He would formally be crowned emperor before the world!
1. TN: 9 represents the highest number, while 5 represents the middle number. 9-5 has a symbolic meaning for the authority of emperors.