She turned to Horace Valerius, her expression exceedingly solemn: "Uncle Hawthorne, it is not that Willow is disrespectful. But abolishing the ritual sacrifice shakes the very foundations of our clans—should there be any doubt about this envoy’s identity, would the whole of Aetheria not become a laughingstock? The Dragon Clan’s ancestral Sacred Land is the place closest to the divine. Why not seize this opportunity, and ask this so-called ’envoy’ to commune with the Beast God before all, asking for a proclamation from the god? That would silence all doubts and prove her words are not false."

Diane Snow also nodded slightly, her voice clear and cold as a mountain spring: "You are right, Sister Willow. The identity of the Divine Envoy is of great significance, touching the core of our faiths. If she could commune with the Beast God outside the Sacred Ground and manifest a miracle, none would dare doubt her again. Otherwise..."

She left her words unfinished, but the meaning was evident.

Then Luna Sutton would be no more than a charlatan, a brazen fraud.

Horace Valerius furrowed his brows tightly; he had not wanted trouble right after the ancestral rites had concluded.

Yet the words of Willow and Diane spoke for a great many among Aetheria’s major clans.

Though the Dragon Clan had no rule of sacrificial offerings, the rest all did—how could Luna’s mere words abolish them?

To abolish the ritual sacrifice, at least the approval of the people was required, their true belief that she was the Beast God Envoy.

If Luna Sutton truly could commune with the Beast God here, all doubt would vanish like mist, which would benefit both the Dragon Clan and herself.

If she could not... He shot a complicated glance at his son, cradling the dragon hatchling.

"Father."

Mael Valerius looked to Horace Valerius, voice burning with anger, "Why should Luna’s identity need to be proven to others?"

"Young Master, that is not so."

An aged yet vigorous voice rang out.

It was none other than the Grand Priest Verus of the Celestian Clan, who had somehow brought people with him, appearing silently.

No one could tell if he was here for spectacle, or for some other reason.

High Priest Verus stroked his white beard, his gaze scrutinizing as it fell upon Luna Sutton, cold laughs escaping his lips, "The identity of the Divine Envoy touches not only on the authority of the gods, but on the very orthodoxy of we who serve them. If any female with some minor tricks could claim to be an envoy, then what of all the years we priests have spent cultivating divine arts? A joke, is it? I, too, beseech this ’envoy’ to publicly commune with the Beast God. Should the deity respond, I will be the first to bow my head and obey. But if not..."

He gave a cold laugh, his unfinished sentence laced with threat.

To dare impersonate the Beast God Envoy, naturally meant death without mercy.

"Yes, let the Beast God Envoy commune with divinity before all."

"True or false, we’ll settle it at once."

"Let the envoy manifest the holy power."

...

With Willow, Diane Snow, and High Priest Verus leading the cry, guests from every clan—bored onlookers, as well as the beastman females already disgruntled with Luna Sutton—began clamoring, the uproar growing ever louder.

The scene became uncontrollable in an instant.

The smile faded from Luna Sutton’s face, her heart pounding wildly beyond control.

Commune with the Beast God?

With what, exactly, was she supposed to commune?

This talk about dreams sent by the Beast God—all of it was an excuse she had fabricated to cover her transmigration and those inexplicable acts.

She didn’t even know if the Beast God was round or flat.

How was she supposed to commune?

She had thought the beastmen’s deep veneration for the Beast God would keep anyone from doubting or questioning her.

She hadn’t expected that, before these ancient and wise clans and priests of Aetheria, her facade would be torn away so soon.

It’s over, it’s over, it’s over.

This time she’d really blown it.

Luna Sutton’s heart was in turmoil, cold sweat breaking out down her back in an instant.

She could feel the anxious gazes of Corbin Crowley, Rhys Blackwood, and the others upon her.

Yet none of that could chase away her inner panic.

She thought, perhaps she could just put on a display of Wood Element Magic to fool them all.

But then she remembered—the priests of this beastworld were, in essence, cultivators.

Take that Celestian Clan Grand Priest Verus standing before her: his cultivation was no less than hers.

In fact, it was much higher—he had already reached late-stage Foundation Establishment.

Her petty tricks would never deceive him.

She instinctively called out to the system in her head, desperate: "System, System, hurry up and give me an idea—does the Beast God even exist in this world? What am I supposed to do now? Fake a faint? Pretend divine punishment has descended? Or what..."

But no matter how long she called inside, that damned system didn’t answer—a convenient dead silence at this crucial moment.

Luna Sutton’s heart raced with panic, though her face remained composed.

She looked at the crowd—faces full of skepticism, mockery, or hunger for spectacle.

Especially the eyes of Willow and High Priest Verus—utterly confident, pressing her down with a wave of pressure and humiliation.

Was she really to be exposed here, dragging Mael Valerius and Soren Phoenix into public disgrace?

"Luna, pay them no mind."

Mael Valerius’s voice was icy cold as he pulled her to leave.

Corbin Crowley, Rhys Blackwood, Kian Sterling and the others felt helpless in their hearts.

No one knew better—Luna was no true Beast God Envoy, and had no power to commune with the divine.

Leaving now was clearly the best choice.

"Stop."

Willow’s shrill voice rang out, her gaze toward Luna Sutton full of ridicule: "Feeling guilty? Trying to run away? Uncle Hawthorne, see? She doesn’t even dare try. If that doesn’t mark her as a fraud, what does? Does the Dragon Clan intend to shelter a blaspheming liar?"

High Priest Verus also stepped forward, voice booming: "Chief Hawthorne, this touches on the dignity of the gods, the very roots of our faith. How can it be treated as a farce? If you let her leave today, what face is left for the priests of Aetheria? What will become of our ancestral tradition? I beseech you, Chief, to uphold justice—let her attempt it here and now."

Horace Valerius’s face was dark as thunder, flanked on one side by the pressing representatives and Grand Priest of the Celestian Clan, and on the other by his son’s loyal companion and the mother of his two grandchildren.

For a moment, he truly didn’t know what to do.

His gaze fixed on Luna Sutton, his voice pressing with subtle menace: "Luna Sutton, things have come to this—for the sake of your innocence, and to calm public debate... you will here and now attempt to commune with the Beast God. Should a proclamation descend, I myself will proclaim your innocence."

These words were a final ultimatum, cutting Luna Sutton off from every retreat.

Countless pairs of eyes, sharp as arrows, pinned her in place.

Luna Sutton’s mouth turned dry, her hands and feet cold as ice.

She forced herself to regain her composure.

If it’s death, so be it.

She gritted her teeth, shook off Mael Valerius’s hand, and walked a few paces forward, arriving at an open patch of grass.

Since she could not avoid it, she could only steel herself and face it head-on.

Treat it as a performance—use Wood Element Magic to create a few anomalies, conjure a few lights... With any luck, maybe she could muddle through.

She closed her eyes, swiftly mobilizing the Wood Spiritual Power in her body. Her hands moved in a showy pattern before her chest, her mouth murmuring incantations.

In truth, she was reciting multiplication tables as quickly as she could, trying to conjure an air of mystical communion with heaven and earth.

Green light shimmered faintly around her, and beneath her feet the grasses began to grow and sway with visible speed; a few wildflowers bloomed quietly at her feet.

"Hmph, tricks and theatrics."

Willow scoffed with disdain.

"Stimulating grass and flowers with Wood Spiritual Power? Petty tricks—every priest knows these simple spells. What we want is for you to truly commune with the Beast God, and compel the divine to reveal itself."

Quillon Phoenix exposed her directly, his face openly sneering.