The route to the Starry Church was crystal clear to Xu Shu.
Upon leaving the grand doors of the Dawn Church, traversing two alleys, and walking a few hundred ters past the prison, there stood the Starry Church.
Xu Shu knew the way well, having just been there to drop off Lan Xin.
It seed as if it had been a long ti ago, but upon reflection, it had only been the day before.
Xu Shu walked quietly to the entrance of the Starry Church.
Perhaps due to its location, with the unsightly prison looming nearby, the church entrance was far less lively than the Dawn Church’s, instead sparsely attended, exuding a desolate and dying air.
Two young and beautiful nuns with charming deanors were sitting with graceful posture at a long wooden table by the door, patiently explaining sothing to an elderly couple, around sixty years of age, who had co to pray.
Xu Shu approached, and very politely made his intentions known; he wanted to see their bishop.
He had been ready to reveal his identity as a High-level Prosecutor from the Judgent Departnt since seeing the bishop seed a difficult feat—and Bai Sanxiang had given him a work badge before leaving, which could prove his identity.
However, he hadn’t expected the two nuns to be so enthusiastic and approachable, with not a single sign of making things difficult for him, and they both offered to lead the way inside.
Moreover, the pair even had a disagreent over "who would lead the way," which resulted in a small duel.
They dug in with wide stances and embraced each other, engaging in a thrilling battle of strength—wrestling.
The two nuns were not lacking in skill, both embodying the standards of a First Rank Transcendent, their fight so fierce that their clothing and skirts were nearly torn.
Xu Shu found it a real eye-opener.
In the end, the nun with a rounder, more voluptuous figure, seeming to be about twenty-five years old—sister Aixia—erged victorious, earning the right to lead the way.
The other nun could only continue to sit at the entrance, engaged in the comparatively dull task of interpreting dreams and soothing the believers.
Once inside, Aixia led Xu Shu to what seed like a collection of ancient coins on one wall. She took a book of visitor nas from the cabinet and inquired, "Sir, if you wish to et Lord Bishop, you will need to leave a na and address."
"Of course."
Xu Shu didn’t mind and picked up the water pen to leave his na on the list.
As for the address, he didn’t leave his ho address but wrote ’Judgent Departnt’ instead.
After writing, he quietly observed Aixia and realized that she had no intention of showing him the way, but was instead quietly watching him.
"You’re not leading the way?" Xu Shu asked.
Aixia seed slightly puzzled, "Sir, do you not understand how it works here?"
Xu Shu was startled, "What are the rules?"
Aixia helplessly tapped the donation box beside her, painted red and shining, its intricate structure apparent, and cleared her throat:
"To seek enlightennt from Lord Bishop, we have to see how substantial your intention is! A one-’tael’ intention can only invite an ordinary nun to resolve your queries; a two-’tael’ intention can invite a senior nun! Only with a three-’tael’ intention can you have Lord Bishop personally provide answers."
"You directly asked to see our bishop, indicating your intention must be quite ’heavy,’ why even bother to ask ?"
Aixia examined Xu Shu with suspicion.
Only then did Xu Shu realize there was a secret to the donation box—it had a peculiar contraption on top, resembling a scale.
There was a gear with notches, resembling an abacus.
The coin slots were also ingeniously designed, with three different passages varying in scale and size.
Xu Shu looked to Aixia for help.
"Well, since you’re so earnest, let explain it to you," Aixia, as if enlightened about his naivety, felt obliged to educate Xu Shu on the matter.
Xu Shu now understood that different slots represented different denominations of ’intent.’
The lowest slot was for ’copper coins,’ which cost ten yuan each.
The middle slot was for ’silver coins,’ one hundred yuan each.
The topmost and largest slot was for ’gold coins,’ which were significantly more expensive, costing ten thousand yuan each.
After explaining, Aixia pointed toward the wall full of tal coins: "These are all tal soaked in Holy Water. Which kind will you choose? Rember, ’true value is unlocked with heavy gold,’ and gold, silver, and copper represent your devotion to the goddess, each corresponding to different heaviness; you must think carefully."
So, by calculation, ’one-tael’ of intention would require ten copper coins, totaling one hundred yuan per visit.
A ’two-tael’ intention would need about twenty silver coins, equating to two thousand yuan per visit.
And for that ’three-tael’ intention... judging by the size of the gold coins, they seed to weigh about fourteen or fifteen grams each, aning one would need only fifteen gold coins to make up three taels, but the price would be a whole whopping 150,000 yuan!
Xu Shu was dumbstruck, finally understanding, and thanked her with a bow: "So, that’s how it is. Thank you, sister, for enlightening ."
Good grief, no wonder the two nuns just fought over this. What ’approachable’ deanor? You’re chasing targets, aren’t you?
The customs of the Starry Church were wholly unexpected to Xu Shu.
The Dawn Church wasn’t like this at all—look at how sincere their bishop was; he only truly wanted to convert to worship their ’original creator’!
Xu Shu hadn’t brought any money but took out his work badge and spread it out on top of the donation box, asking, "Would you mind checking how heavy my intention is?"
Alice looked closely and smiled, "This is worth more than a fortune, Prosecutor Sir, please co this way, I will take you to et our bishop!"
Reviews
All reviews (0)