“Thank you, Lady. I won’t do that again.” The maids took a deep breath after Bai Yao went away.
Bai Yao herself was still wondering about the truth that the Second Prince also went to Mt. Wushan. But why didn’t she have any memory of meeting with him? Such an outstanding man wouldn’t be overlooked even there.
When everybody went back, Mo Xi also woke up from being drunk. He came back only to find that Bai Yao was staring at Mo Kai, thinking about something. The scene looked a little uncomfortable to him.
He tried to make some noise as he went near. Bai Yao turned her head and found him. At first, she didn’t want to take care of him, but someone knocked into her and she was pushed closer to Mo Xi.
Mo Xi fixed his half-drunken eyes on her, and asked softly, “Are you worrying about me?”
Bai Yao was choked by this question. But she knew she should answer him, so she made another question instead, asking, “Prince, do you feel sick from drinking?”
Mo Xi was comforted in return, so he was better, and waved. “Never mind; just some wine.”
“Well, that is good.” Bai Yao turned back to Mo Kai again. But she found her movement too obvious, so she turned to Bai Yu and chatted for a while to cover this.
The maid only mentioned that he had learned witchcraft, but she didn’t say where he went. Her parents once told her that she had been staying on Mt. Wushan for three years. And the mountain was the only place one could study witchcraft on the land. Did she totally forget him?
She couldn’t help but glance at him once again, and this time, Mo Kai also looked back. Their eyes met in the air, but Mo Kai turned cold again, not like he was when they two were alone.
Bai Yao always frowned when she began to use her head. Mo Xi asked her twice, until she came back to her senses. She saluted him and left. She really needed some time to be alone, since there was a ceremony to be held. She went to another corner to rest.
Though Mo Kai was talking and laughing with others, his eyes never moved away from Bai Yao. Seeing her close her eyes to have a nap, his eyes also turned soft. His eyes were deep with affection.
Mo Kai took his cup and drank, trying to digest all his feelings alone.
The Emperor, however, was a little worried about the weather. The sky turned dark and depressing. There would be a sacrificing ceremony later. It was an old sacred ritual the previous emperors held in hopes of peace and riches. Usually, they will use a witch girl to hold the ceremony. The Tiandou Kingdom believed in the heavenly beings and they used precious sacrifices to present their honesty. Some places even sacrificed lives.
When Bai Yao thought of this kind of ceremony, she felt like she was a liar. But she indeed was a witch girl with genes and real techniques.
They set a big tripod on the platform among the long staircase for the sacrifices.
After a long time, the big drum was beaten. The lucky hour finally came. The Emperor stood up and asked Bai Yao, “Witch, our lucky time is coming. Let’s go.”
Bai Yao opened her eyes and nodded. She stepped out of the banquet, and then the Emperor and all in attendance.
She stepped up the stairs alone. The incenses in the tripod were fired. There were six huge porcelains holding blood around the tripod. Seeing the weather was still bad, Bai Yao felt a bad sense, so she went to the tripod to speak some spells.
When she finished those spells, she waved her sleeves toward the sacrifices. Suddenly, a big wind blew toward them. The Emperor and the other officers were standing at the gate to watch this ceremony. All of them felt tense.
The Emperor really panicked, and he pulled the dress of the Empress. The Empress comforted him with her hands, though she was also nervous.
They put all the burdens on Bai Yao"s shoulder. Bai Yao already understood that this weather meant something. She put her palms together. All of a sudden, she began to shake, as if some spirit had drilled into her body. She rebuked the soul slightly, forcing it out, and then pointed at the roof of the palace. Then, a black dragon of air appeared on the roof.
Bai Yao stared at the dragon, feeling something bad might happen. She poured out a bowl of blood into her palm and tried to direct the dragon into the tripod. However, the dragon would not leave her. Bai Yao would not give up, so she continued to speak spells.
Suddenly, she waved her hands toward the dragon with a cold, killing air. The dragon was irritated and it turned to rotate quicker. Bai Yao poured two bowls of blood into the tripod, and the dragon roared at her.
Bai Yao made the gesture of a cross with both hands and then continued to another spell. The dragon was boxed up by this gesture and floated above the tripod. Bai Yao took a mouthful of blood and then spit it out at the dragon. A line of characters appeared: The throne is in the wrong position, bringing chaos to the world.
She looked up to find the sky was still dark, feeling a little difficult to tell the Emperor about this issue. How could she speak these words to the Emperor?
She tried to calm down, and then poured the remaining blood left into the air and made a whirlpool of it. The dragon appeared again, and it dove into the hole and absorbed all the blood.
After some time, Bai Yao let the dragon out. The dragon flew to the sky with a deafening roar, but n.o.body saw it or heard it. Despite this, everybody felt something bad had already happened.
When the dragon left, the sky turned brighter, with still not a shadow in the sun.
Bai Yao stepped down from the sacrificing platform. Seeing the Emperor was anxious, she smiled and bowed. “No need to worry, Your Majesty. I just read from the tripod that the world will enjoy a peaceful and happy time. Congratulations, Emperor!”
Bai Yao bowed down first, then all of the others bowed down to follow her kowtow. “Congratulations, Emperor!”