"I wonder how the Uchiha in the human world are doing now. This time, the reincarnation of Indra came a bit late, but by now, they should have started to stand out and reached a certain level.", Arisu's low voice fell.
His figure suddenly turned into thick mist and disappeared.
———
[At the Naka River, Naka Shrine]
The Uchiha clan's grand sacrificial ceremony was being held solemnly.
Clan flags fluttered loudly in the wind, the fan-shaped clan emblem on them shining brightly under the sunlight.
Uchiha clan members dressed in uniform black ceremonial robes were densely arranged along the riverbank altar, heads lowered, holding their breath.
At the very front of the formation, a tall, cold figure stood alone. She was the first female clan leader in Uchiha history, Uchiha Yui.
She was about thirty years old, her brows and eyes sharp like cold blades. Her delicate nose and cherry lips added a touch of beauty, yet her whole presence was overbearing.
Her lowered gaze carried careless disdain, as if nothing in the world was worth her attention.
Arisu hovered above the altar, his figure hidden in the void, no one able to perceive him.
His gaze fell on Uchiha Yui. With a sweep of immortal power, he saw through her soul, and the corner of his lips moved slightly, "So this is this generation's Indra reincarnation? Full of pride, not putting anyone in her eyes at all…"
Arisu did not leave. He simply hovered quietly in the sky, watching this Uchiha sacrificial ceremony.
Uchiha Yui walked steadily, leading a group of white-haired elders as they first arrived at the merit monument on the west side of the altar.
The stone tablet was carved with countless names, Uchiha Izumichi, Uchiha Katsu, Senju Mio who was exceptionally allowed into the Uchiha sacred grounds… and further down were the clan leaders and contributors over the past hundred years who had devoted themselves to the Uchiha.
She lowered her eyes and looked at the inscriptions, her expression calm. Following clan ritual, she performed the worship rites, her movements precise, without the slightest mistake.
After worshipping the ancestors and contributors, two highly respected elders stepped aside to guide the way, accompanying Uchiha Yui as she slowly walked into the Six Paths Hall at the very center of the altar.
Inside the hall, incense smoke lingered. On the central stone wall hung a magnificent portrait!
The young man in the painting stood alone, lips red and teeth white, dressed in black and red robes, with the Six Paths sword at his side.
It was the Sage of the Six Paths worshipped by the Uchiha for generations, and also Arisu's appearance.
"Clan Leader, please kneel and bow to the Sage of the Six Paths, pray for blessings for the Uchiha clan, and protect the clan members' cultivation and stability."
The elder on the left bent slightly, his tone extremely respectful, raising his hand to indicate the prayer mat in the hall.
Arisu hovered in the void outside the hall, his brows lifting slightly.
He had thought this female clan leader would, like past Uchiha ancestors, devoutly kneel and pray.
But Uchiha Yui stood before the prayer mat, straight as a pine, completely unmoving.
The two elders exchanged a glance, confusion rising in their eyes, and asked respectfully again, "Clan Leader, since you have seen the Six Paths, why do you not bow?"
"Oh? And why should I bow?"
Uchiha Yui raised her eyes. Her cold gaze fell directly on the portrait on the stone wall. The corner of her lips curved into a mocking arc, her eyes full of disdain.
In her view, the so-called Sage of the Six Paths was nothing more than a fabricated legend passed down by word of mouth, something that never truly existed.
She was the Uchiha clan leader, holding power over the entire clan. Why should she kneel to something made up?
People said the Sage of the Six Paths protected the ninja world, yet wars raged year after year, refugees wandered without homes, and corpses lay everywhere. Never once had this so-called sage stepped in to save anything.
"Heh, this so-called Sage of the Six Paths is nothing more than an empty name, a nonexistent figure."
She parted her lips slightly. Her voice was cold, yet it spread clearly throughout the silent hall.
"Ah? This…"
The two elders behind her instantly stiffened. Cold sweat slid down from their temples, soaking the ceremonial robes on their backs.
The clan leader was actually declaring in the sacred Six Paths Hall that the Sage of the Six Paths was an illusion.
"Heh."
Seeing their drenched and terrified state, Uchiha Yui felt even more disdainful. She gave a faint smile. "The two of you are far too superstitious."
"The Great Ninja Sect has already been gone for two hundred years!"
"The idea of the Sage of the Six Paths is nothing more than a tool from ancient times to deceive people and consolidate rule."
"Clan Leader… this…"
The two elders' lips trembled. They were so frightened they didn't dare say a single word.
"You still can't see through it."
Uchiha Yui withdrew her gaze and looked back at the portrait. Her tone suddenly turned sharp.
"If there truly were an immortal who saved people from suffering, how could the ninja world have fallen into such a hell?"
"I've been an orphan since childhood. If not for the orphan relief policy left by Clan Leader Katsu over a hundred years ago, I would have already died in war."
"When I was young, I also devoutly believed in the Sage of the Six Paths, praying every day, hoping that a god would protect all living beings."
"But as I grew older, I saw all the suffering of the world. The ninja clans fought endlessly, demons caused chaos, refugees even resorted to eating their own children."
"I've seen every kind of evil in this world, yet I've never once seen this so-called Sage of the Six Paths appear."
"The people of the ninja world worship him as a god, offering incense year after year, yet he watches this hell on earth without lifting a finger. What kind of god is that? Is he blind?!"
Her harsh words crashed into the hall, even the drifting incense smoke seeming to freeze.
Uchiha Yui snorted coldly, her gaze sweeping over the portrait with contempt. "A god who enjoys offerings without doing anything, what use is it for me to bow to him?"
Bang!
As her words fell, the two elders behind her could no longer hold on. Their knees gave out, and they dropped heavily onto the cold ground, their bodies trembling, sweat soaking their clothes. They didn't even dare raise their heads.
The two elders, scared to tears, scared to the point of fainting.
———
'Cursing me, huh…'
In the void, Arisu's hovering figure paused almost imperceptibly. A trace of surprise passed through his heart.
Someone daring to curse him, this was the first.
The previous Indras would never have done this.
Indra himself didn't even need to be mentioned, he directly acknowledged him as a father.
Uchiha Izumichi, though arrogant, had always been respectful on the surface.
Uchiha Katsu even regarded him as fate itself, treating him as the standard of destiny.
Never had anyone, like Uchiha Yui, stood before his portrait and openly scolded him.
But even so, there wasn't the slightest anger in Arisu's heart.
After living so long, his state of mind had long since become calm and unmoved. A few accusations were nowhere near enough to anger him.
"Well cursed… cursed so fiercely it shook the heavens and earth, like mountains roaring and seas surging, splashing filth all over me…", Arisu murmured softly, his tone calm like still water.
Before his words even finished, inside the Six Paths Hall, Uchiha Yui suddenly raised her hand.
The blade at her waist came out with a sharp sound, its cold light cutting through the drifting incense smoke.
Her wrist moved swiftly. The sharp blade carved rapidly against the stone wall, fragments of stone falling to the ground.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
In just a few breaths, four lines of verse were carved onto the wall beside the Six Paths portrait, "In the painting, the immortal looks fine and grand, sitting high while enjoying empty offerings."
"Better to enter my embrace than remain a lonely immortal guarding an empty room."
Uchiha Yui lowered her eyes to look at the lines on the wall. The cold corner of her lips curved into a proud smile.
"This Sage of the Six Paths only has a good-looking appearance, but in reality, is completely useless!", Uchiha Yui said with contempt.
[T/N: We've reached chapter 100!! 🎉🎉]
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