I Forged the Myth of the Ancient Overlords
Chapter 358 - 358 357. Palace Examination_1

Chapter 358: 357. Palace Examination_1 Chapter 358: 357. Palace Examination_1 “What’s up with that woman?”

Lu Ban always felt like she was particularly interested in him.

If it really was the spirit of the Divine Sakura, could it be due to the rejection of outsiders?

Lu Ban looked at the mask again, noticing that it seemed to have more scratches on it than before.

“This mask allows me to disguise myself when facing the Bandaged People and also to infiltrate certain places by utilizing the characteristics of the Bandaged People,”

Lu Ban thought.

The [Metamorphosis] level of this mask seemed to be that the one who wore it would turn into one of the Bandaged People.

As for the side effect, it was clearly hearing all kinds of mumbling from the pollutants and Bandaged People; with bad luck, one might explode on the spot.

But Lu Ban didn’t see it as a big problem.

He now thought that if he wore it again, he probably wouldn’t explode.

“Good stuff.”

Having put the mask away, Lu Ban walked around the yard again but didn’t find any trace of the woman.

“Could it be because I buried something next to her yesterday, so she came to take revenge out of spite? That’s a bit petty, this is a Shrine Maiden from your own household after all,”

Lu Ban found her to be quite small-minded.

He picked up the note Amber had left for him.

In neat writing, it read, “Please come watch this afternoon’s Palace Examination.”

Lu Ban had been briefed before that the Palace Examination held a high status among the Shrine Maiden tests, almost guaranteeing that the one who won first place would become the Chief Priestess.

So, Amber was hoping that Lu Ban would witness her surpass everyone else and become the rightful Chief Priestess.

After tidying up a bit, Lu Ban went to check on the little girl but didn’t see her. It wasn’t until he arrived at the Shrine Hall for the Palace Examination that he found many Shrine Maidens gathered here to watch the competition.

The competition hadn’t started yet, but the venue had already clued Lu Ban into the event.

Kyudo.

This was an archery dojo.

Considering Amber’s archery skills, Lu Ban thought there wouldn’t be any problem.

But then he pondered why the selection for the Chief Priestess required testing in archery?

Shouldn’t control of Pure Fire or something be part of a Technique or Word Spirit, not this common practice that anyone could take part in? There seemed to be something off about using it to select the Chief Priestess.

“Kyudo is an offering to the Divine Sakura. The very first Shrine Maiden Lord used a bow and arrows to exorcise demons, which is why kyudo is a ritual for honoring the Divine Sakura,”

that cold Priestess Sister said, appearing beside Lu Ban seemingly out of nowhere. She seemed to have noticed his confusion and offered an explanation.

“At the same time, in this kind of setting, kyudo can better reveal the level of training. If one cannot remove external distractions, they can’t have a clear view of the world. For a Shrine Maiden, the most important thing is perspective; being able to see the pollutants is the most critical part.”

“I see, so it’s about training perception abilities, right? I notice every time when the Shrine Maiden Pavilion does archery, they are very quick. It seems that the Chief Priestess has foreseen the presence of pollutants in advance, allowing for timely preparation,”

Lu Ban mused, as a new thought occurred to him.

“Speaking of which, isn’t the Shrine Maiden Lord coming to witness her successor?”

Lu Ban looked around but didn’t see anyone who looked like the Chief Priestess.

“The Shrine Maiden Lord won’t appear here; she has more important matters to attend to,”

said the Priestess Sister in her cool tone.

“Oh, then there’s probably no preordained choice.”

Lu Ban thought that wasn’t so bad.

In the midst of the noise, a Shrine Maiden stepped up to the archery position, holding a longbow with an arrow at the ready, her expression stern as she looked at the target in front of her.

In that environment, it was clear that she seemed a bit affected and wavered slightly in her stance.

Perhaps Amber’s oppressive presence played a part as well.

It was like when you just start a game and find out that the big brother you’re laning against has a full six-item build; praying not to get dived and solo killed under the tower might just be the last thing you can do.

The Shrine Maiden took a moment to compose herself and began shooting.

Thud—

The first arrow struck dead center.

Even though she showed signs of nervousness, in a situation where a direct hit was certain, that Shrine Maiden indeed performed excellently.

“This is the fundamental of fundamentals. What comes next is the true test,”

explained the Priestess Sister beside Lu Ban.

He saw that the Shrine Maiden fired another arrow.

This arrow also hit the bullseye, closely adjacent to the first one, now occupying the entire center of the target.

As such, it was certain the third arrow wouldn’t be able to hit the bullseye.

Thud—

As expected, the third arrow deviated slightly due to the previous two, failing to hit the bullseye.

The following seven arrows were nothing to write home about.

Lu Ban saw that when the last arrow was shot, the Shrine Maiden had a moment of disappointment, but more than that, it was as if she was relieved, like a mission had finally ended.

The performances of the next few Shrine Maidens were all pretty similar; even the one bearing the emblem of the Sanada Family only managed to hit the target with seven arrows.

At this moment, the whole place suddenly quieted down.

Lu Ban saw Amber make her entrance.

Compared to the other Shrine Maidens, she was even more petite, which made the bow in her hands seem a bit larger.

She held an arrow, her nervousness palpable. After taking two deep breaths, Amber’s gaze swept over the onlooking Shrine Maidens.

She spotted Lu Ban.

There was only a moment of eye contact, but Lu Ban indeed saw a light in her eyes.

Amber seemed to have made up her mind.

She had come here after discarding a life that might have been filled with freedom. If she lost here, it would all be for naught.

With this thought cradling her heart, she drew the bowstring.

Closing her eyes, all the clamor around her dissipated.

Silence descended.

At that moment, Amber saw a point of light emerging in front of her.

With that light, she could feel the existence of her own body, like a sketch in pure black with only white lines, where everything was deconstructed into its most basic elements.

“So this is what it means to ‘see the world’.”

Amber could see the lights of thousands of homes beyond the dojo, the dark molds over the vast seas.

She felt her inner self become clear and transparent, as though merging with the sky, earth, and ocean.

In such a natural state, the arrow left the bowstring.

Thud—

The arrow landed firmly in the bullseye, without any surprise.

The second arrow followed close behind.

However, the second arrow split the first one into four from the tail, piercing the entire arrow and firmly nailing itself in the center of the target.

The third arrow, the fourth arrow, ten arrows in a row, each one landed on the spot of the previous one, secure and indisputable.

All the Shrine Maidens present grew silent along with Amber’s shooting, holding their breaths in focus, until after the last arrow, after tens of seconds of hesitation, they erupted in applause and exclamations.

Lu Ban also clapped his hands in salute. He saw Amber, surrounded by a group of Shrine Maidens, looking his way. She revealed a smile, against the backdrop of cherry blossoms falling at five centimeters per second.

She would become a Shrine Maiden Lord, protect this world, and only at this moment did Lu Ban truly feel the significance of it.

*

As the month comes to an end, I once again ask for your recommendation and monthly tickets, as well as your guaranteed monthly tickets for next month!