Seeing that Fan Wanming didn’t wait for him, Tuluo Cheng hurriedly caught up and asked with a hint of doubt in his voice, "Cook? The commoners actually have food and firewood to cook?"
Fan Wanming glanced at him and nodded. Not wanting to let him know more than necessary, Fan Wanming remained silent.
Realizing he wouldn’t get any more information beyond what was obvious from Fan Wanming, Tuluo Cheng fell silent and observed the surroundings carefully with great interest.
After walking for more than an hour, they arrived at the temple area.
The first thing Tuluo Cheng noticed was the number of soldiers guarding the area. Not only were there more than he expected, but their weapons and armor also looked better than those used by the imperial guards in the imperial palace.
’Could this be the legendary heavenly weapons and heavenly armors? If my Tuluo Tribe could obtain these Heavenly Weapons and Heavenly Armors, it would not be a dream to dominate the Central Continent and unify the world.’
Seeing him staring at the soldiers with greed in his eyes, Fan Wanming said nothing and simply walked up the long stairs toward the temple.
Although it was already evening, the number of people visiting the temple to pray showed no sign of decreasing.
As they walked among the commoners, all Tuluo Cheng could hear were praises and words of gratitude toward Fairy Bai and Heaven.
’I never expected Fairy Bai’s status in the hearts of the common people to be so high. Shaking her position won’t be easy without carefully planning.’
While he was lost in thought, they arrived in front of the temple.
Fan Wanming stopped, turned to look at Tuluo Cheng, and said, "Military Advisor Tuluo, please."
Snapping out of his thoughts, Tuluo Cheng nodded and entered the main hall of the temple to light three sticks of incense.
Standing off to the side, Fan Wanming watched for a while but noticed that the incense wasn’t lighting at all.
A few minutes later, he asked, "Military Advisor Tuluo, do you need help?"
Tuluo Cheng looked baffled. He had held the incense over the candle for several minutes, yet it still refused to light.
Not believing in gods or immortals, he shook his head and politely refused, "No need."
With that, he continued trying to light the incense.
After more than five minutes, he still couldn’t light the incense sticks. Frowning, Tuluo Cheng thought, ’They must have tampered with these incense sticks just to embarrass me.’
Because of how strange the situation was, Tuluo Cheng failed to realize that no one knew he would visit the temple beforehand, so tampering with the incense sticks was impossible.
Everyone drew incense from the same container. Therefore, there was no way to control which sticks he would take from the bunch of incense sticks placed on the long table.
Unfortunately, Tuluo Cheng was so deep in his own paranoia that he overlooked these obvious facts.
As the sky darkened, Fan Wanming stepped forward and said, "Military Advisor Tuluo, let this general help you."
Without giving Tuluo Cheng a chance to refuse, Fan Wanming took the three incense sticks from his hands and lit them using the same candle. Within seconds, they caught fire and thin smoke began to rise.
Seeing this, Tuluo Cheng was stunned. Clenching his fists, he thought, ’Impossible! How could he light them so easily? There must be a trick behind this!’
Not wanting to waste more time with him, Fan Wanming handed the incense back. "Military Advisor Tuluo, here you go."
Tuluo Cheng forced a smile and accepted them. "Thank you, General Fan."
However, in the next second, something strange happened. As soon as Tuluo Cheng took the incense sticks from Fan Wanming, the flames dimmed and then went out entirely in less than two seconds.
At this sight, both Fan Wanming and Tuluo Cheng fell silent.
Staring at Tuluo Cheng, Fan Wanming frowned slightly, then turned to the golden body placed on the high platform behind the altar.
’Could it be that Fairy Bai refuses his offering?’
Wanting to confirm his suspicion, Fan Wanming took back the incense from Tuluo Cheng, relit them effortlessly, and handed them back again.
Watching closely, he said, "Military Advisor Tuluo, please hold them carefully this time."
Tuluo Cheng, now suspicious as well, fixed his eyes on the tips of the incense. As the smoke floated upward, he slowly reached out to the incense sticks. However, the moment his fingers touched them, the fire went out again.
Seeing this, both of them raised their heads. While Fan Wanming’s eyes remained calm, Tuluo Cheng’s were filled with shock and disbelief.
Placing the three extinguished incense sticks on the altar, Tuluo Cheng said with a slightly trembling voice, "It seems that tonight is not a good time for praying. This humble person will return tomorrow morning after fasting and purifying myself."
Noticing the slight tremble in his voice, Fan Wanming said, "Military Advisor Tuluo must be tired after taking care of General Ji. Since it’s not early anymore, this general will have my men escort you back to the inn."
Too shaken to care for the arrangement, Tuluo Cheng simply nodded and clasped his hands. "Then this humble person will take his leave."
Getting his answer, Fan Wanming turned to his soldiers and ordered, "Escort Military Advisor Tuluo back to the inn safely."
The soldiers saluted and responded in unison, "Yes, General Fan."
Accepting the command, they left with Tuluo Cheng.
After they left the temple, Fan Wanming stood silently before the golden body as he thoughtfully stared at it. When his stomach grumbled in protest, he rubbed his belly and headed back to the barracks.
Meanwhile, a chill ran down Tuluo Cheng’s spine as cold sweat drenched his clothes on this hot night.
Upon returning to the inn, he went straight to his room without checking on Ji Hui. Slamming the door shut behind him, he rushed to pour a cup of water and drank it in one gulp.