Sunset Warrior Chant - Novelbike -

d the backyard, quickly becoming a familiar face around the place. He often spoke of registering at Yan Mountain Academy, hoping to bring Fu Qiruo along. Fu Wenjun considered the academy a decent place for his disciples. Since they had no other business in Yan Kingdom, they might as well find a place to settle down there. Going on his own, he feared, would hardly allow him any peace. Instead, he thought it wise to let his four disciples join Yan Mountain Academy for a few years to experience a new environment, look out for each other, and grow into adulthood without him having to worry too much. After discussing with everyone, it was decided that Fu Feng and the three others would go to Yan Mountain Academy together, while Lu Wei and Uncle Liu would look for a suitable place to live near the school.

Fu Feng was naturally delighted to be able to mingle with many peers of his age. Whether the students at Yan Mountain Academy were geniuses, or whether it was the best academy on the continent, mattered little to them.

One day, they heard about a severe drought in Kur City, which had not seen a drop of rain for months. Following a longstanding tradition, the residents of Kur City would pray for rain at Saier Square every Sunday. Saier Square, a well-known historical tourist attraction, houses the famous Disya Cathedral, revered as the gateway to heaven. It draws worshippers from all directions and, like Yan Mountain Academy, has stood the test of centuries, becoming a cherished site not only for Kur City residents but for all of Roland.

The rain prayer event at Saier Square was held two or three times a year, whenever the drought persisted for months, and the locals were quite familiar with it. In front of Disya Cathedral, the scene was spectacular, with many Kur City residents voluntarily bringing their families to participate. Disya Cathedral also welcomed admirers who traveled great distances to attend.

Having stayed at the Eight Directions Inn for half a month, Fu Feng and his senior brothers were eager to explore the bustling city of Kur City. On Sunday, while Fu Wenjun stayed in the guest room to meditate, Lu Wei and Uncle Liu took Fu Feng and the others out early from the inn. They joined the tide-like flow of people in the streets heading towards Saier Square.

The inn was mostly filled with travelers passing through. As Fu Qiruo looked around, many unfamiliar faces he had seen over the past half month had become familiar. Ahead, a man and a woman were walking alongside a young girl. Fu Qiruo overheard someone use the term “country bumpkin” again and gained a new insight about the young girl. The couple by her side-one a handsome and dashing man, the other a woman of stunning beauty-moved with an elegant grace and spoke in a refined manner, clearly people of significant status.

Fu Qiruo called out to her, “Hey, little girl, are you from heaven?” The young girl did not respond, prompting Fu Qiruo to jest further, “Then you must be an angel!”

The girl chuckled and said, “My name is Ye Shiqi, and I’m no angel.” Fu Qiruo replied, “Not an angel? That’s a pity; you’re just like everyone else.” Ye Shiqi retorted, “You country bumpkin! How annoying!” She then turned to her parents and said, “Let’s walk further away, so we don’t have to be near these people.”

The roadside was dotted with small stalls and vendors, some selling Kur City’s specialties, others offering purified water. Walking ahead, Fu Qiruo even came across a beggar asking for alms, holding a broken bowl. As Fu Qiruo passed by, the beggar shook the bowl in front of him and asked, “Could you spare some change?”

Fu Qiruo pulled out two silver coins and dropped them into the bowl. The beggar glanced at the coins and shook the bowl, making the coins jump around. He gave Fu Qiruo a disdainful look.

Fu Qiruo was puzzled. “I gave you two silver coins! Why that look?” The beggar glared at him and said, “What’s two silver coins? A kilogram of water costs twenty or thirty silver coins. You think you’re just brushing off a beggar?”

Fu Qiruo grumbled, “Aren’t you a beggar? Or aren’t you one of those legendary elders from the beggar’s guild?” The beggar retorted, “Nonsense, I am a messenger of the Holy Church, not some disciple of a beggar’s guild!” He spat on the ground and quickly ran off.

The towering structure of Disya Cathedral was already visible on the road, silently overlooking the entire Kur City. Its central spire, like a sharp sword, seemed to pierce the sky. Reaching the vicinity of Saier Square, it was packed with people. The group of six finally managed to squeeze into the center of the square, standing right beneath the towering Disya Cathedral.

Disya Cathedral-a place of myth where one converses with God.

The cathedral’s immense architecture is awe-inspiring, making all who stand beneath it feel as insignificant as ants. Constructed entirely from polished megaliths, it is rumored that its initial construction and subsequent modifications spanned over two hundred years. The narthex spire rises three hundred meters high, supported by a complex interlacing framework that makes the massive domed ceiling appear both spectacular and formidable. Surrounding it are dozens of colossal columns, each tall and slender, their vertical lines echoing the narthex spire that seems to ascend towards the heavens, striving to reach the embrace of God.

At the cathedral’s front stand a pair of tall bell towers, which along with the narthex spire and numerous smaller spires around it, create a harmonious interplay. Between the twin lighthouses above the arched gateway, there lies a large rose window. On the walls adjacent to the lighthouses, mythical figures are carved into the columns, and between these columns are neatly arranged stained glass windows, with colorful mythical patterns that shimmer in the light, emanating a divine aura.

Directly in front of Disya Cathedral is a horizontal oval platform, thirty meters in length, eight meters wide, and rising five meters above the square. It is constructed from rocks intricately carved with bas-reliefs. At the center of the platform stands a hundred-meter tall square pillar, atop which sits the Holy Monument, engraved with countless ancient patterns and texts.

Tens of thousands gather in Saier Square, none daring to speak loudly. The solemnity and past grandeur of Disya Cathedral bathe the atmosphere in reverence, with everyone bowing their heads and silently making the sign of the cross in prayer. The soldiers of Kur City, stationed every three and five steps, seemingly maintain order, though it appears quite unnecessary.

As the eastern horizon shows a hint of red, the crowd at one side of Saier Square begins to surge, parting to either side. A neatly formed square of soldiers splits the crowd to create a path, slowly moving towards the square and stopping beneath the stands on one side.

Fu Qiruo notes the disciplined training of these soldiers; their light, unified steps seem capable of leveling a city, suggesting they are at least level 4 swordsmen. Whispered conversations nearby reveal that this is the personal guard unit of the Deputy City Lord of Kur City, indicating that Deputy City Lord Chen Xianlin has arrived.

Following the guard unit was Deputy City Lord Chen Xianlin, riding a tall horse. Despite being over sixty, Chen Xianlin looked radiant and vigorous, showing no signs of aging. Two middle-aged men rode behind him, accompanied by a young girl-it was Fang Xiaoman, whom I had encountered a few days ago at the restaurant. That day, when some ruffians were harassing Zhao Yuechen, Fang Xiaoman drove them away. It seemed the Fang Family was a significant force in Kur City, and one of the middle-aged men was likely her father. Fu Qiruo asked someone nearby and learned that indeed, one of them was Fang Xiaoman’s father, Fang Hanruo, and the other was Master Wang, Wang Chenghong, whom Fang Xiaoman had mentioned.

Chen Xianlin and his group dismounted at the edge of Saier Square, where several guards arranged chairs on the platform. Chen Xianlin and his companions each took their seats. Fu Qiruo noticed Wang Chenghong occasionally glancing at Fang Xiaoman, clearly smitten by her beauty. He now somewhat understood the subtle dynamics between men and women and said to Fu Feng with a smile, “Senior Brother, seeing how beautiful Lady Fang is, and her father being a prominent figure in Kur City, why not play the hero, eliminate Master Wang, and marry Lady Fang? Then we can enjoy your wedding feast.”

Fu Feng slapped Fu Qiruo on the forehead and said, “Stop your wild thoughts, you little devil. Lady Fang is already eighteen or nineteen, and I’m only fifteen-I’m not even of age to consider marriage. If you’re so eager, you go marry her!”

“I’d rather not; I’m afraid Master Wang would skin me alive with his entourage,” Fu Qiruo chuckled.

“There are many pursuing Lady Fang, and yet Master Wang, with his age, really has some nerve,” Lu Xiner added.

During their conversation, the square fell silent. The soldiers from the guard unit cleared a large space in front of the platform, and Chen Xianlin stepped up. He looked over the crowd in Saier Square-men, women, young, and old-all with respectful, devout expressions. Feeling a sense of pride as the father figure of Kur City, he cleared his throat and said, “My people of Kur City, my residents of Roland, we have experienced months of drought with no harvest. God is punishing us, and we have not expressed our hearts to God, not turned towards the light, nor confessed our sins. We have saddened and disappointed the elderly God. Therefore, we repent to Him and petition Him to grant us the water of light and bless us with the dew of happiness.”

“After me, the Cardinal,” Chen Xianlin concluded, then walked back to his seat on the platform.