Si Shuo didn’t pay any mind to the other beastmen’s fence-sitting. The emotions of ordinary beastmen were easily swayed. They tended to prioritize their own interests, making them nothing more than a masterless blade, stabbing indiscriminately.

’If Yu Jiao can use them, then so can I! To feel sad or upset over a group of people without minds of their own is just to make things difficult for myself.’

The smile on Yu Jiao’s face was almost unstoppable. She desperately tried to force down the corners of her lips, needing to project a complex expression of heartache, disappointment, and helplessness.

The two warring emotions made the muscles on her face twitch, giving her a particularly menacing look.

Si Shuo walked toward the platform step by step, her males and cubs following close behind.

The crowd silently parted for them, their eyes filled with a trace of pity.

Cui Tai and Ke Biao tried to rush forward but were held back tightly by their respective Couple Brothers. Yi Wan’s brow furrowed slightly before returning to normal.

As Zhi Le passed by, he patted their shoulders, shook his head, and smiled. "Don’t worry. Evil can never triumph over good. This is a perfect chance to see just how capable this so-called Golden Lion Beast God is. Can it really contend with the Beast God?"

Seeing his relaxed expression, free from any hint of strain, Cui Tai and Ke Biao finally relaxed and waited for the show to begin. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Si Shuo walked to the front of the platform. Just as she was about to step onto it, Yu Jiao subconsciously retreated to Dao Yuan’s side. "You, just stand there! Don’t come any closer!"

"In a moment, you’ll have to kneel and kowtow with reverence. Don’t hold back, either. You need to make a loud THUDDING sound so the Golden Lion Beast God can see your sincerity and spare you from the torture of being burned by fire."

"Don’t worry, the Golden Lion Beast God is very merciful. It won’t actually take your life, unless you are a person of great evil..."

Si Shuo smiled and ascended the platform step by step. She looked at the High Priest. "High Priest Dao Yuan, are you certain that you now believe in the Golden Lion Beast God? Think carefully before you answer."

Dao Yuan narrowed his eyes and sneered, "Of course. I am a staunch supporter of the Golden Lion Beast God! All the beastmen in our Golden Lion City will see the good of the Golden Lion Beast God and eventually become his followers."

Si Shuo nodded, closed her eyes, and clasped her hands together. An indescribable, holy light seemed to emanate from her body—something that Yu Jiao’s white fur clothes couldn’t hope to imitate.

"Respected Lord Beast God, you heard him, didn’t you? High Priest Dao Yuan says he is no longer your follower. Since that is the case, you should not grant him the status of a Divine Servant, as it is hindering his journey toward the Golden Lion Beast God..."

Hearing this, Dao Yuan shot to his feet in anger and strode forward. "What are you talking about!"

Xu Chi stepped forward to block him, his powerful aura preventing Dao Yuan from taking another step.

Si Shuo tilted her head and smiled. "What? Did I say something wrong? Your current status as the High Priest and a Divine Servant is for communicating with the Beast God on everyone’s behalf. To express your utmost devotion to the Golden Lion Beast God, you surely can’t remain the Lord Beast God’s Divine Servant. Everyone, don’t you agree?"

The crowd nodded in agreement. "Yes, one must have a firm stance. A servant cannot serve two masters..."

"So the High Priest was still serving the Beast God? I thought he was serving the Golden Lion Beast God..."

"What’s he so nervous about? Isn’t this obvious?"

No one understood why better than Dao Yuan himself. There was no Golden Lion Beast God; he had fabricated the entire thing to usurp the City Lord’s power and redirect the crowd’s blind worship of the Beast God onto himself.

But he was still the High Priest, possessing certain Divine Powers that others did not. Without the status of High Priest, he would be just an ordinary beastman—a male with an empty cultivation level and no real combat experience!

Si Shuo continued to chant, "I believe that the male Yi Wan—who is intelligent, alert, responsible, fair in his dealings, and not bound by convention—is more suited to be the High Priest who communicates between the Beast God and the people of Golden Lion City..."

As she murmured on the platform, Ali murmured from below. Soon, a faint, golden-tinged white light was drawn out of Dao Yuan’s body, drifting bit by bit toward Yi Wan.

The crowd gasped in unison. "This... My eyes aren’t deceiving me, are they? The Beast God has manifested? The High Priest can be replaced?"

"I knew the Beast God was still here! After the spring hunt, didn’t we have the imprinting for the males and the blessing for the females? How could the god we’ve worshiped for generations truly abandon us?"

"The Beast God must be angry, right? Lord Beast God, I will forever be your believer..."

"The Lord Beast God is still here. This is wonderful... I’ve long felt that High Priest Dao Yuan was too tyrannical. He could decide the life or death of other beastmen with a single sentence, but we had no choice but to submit. Otherwise, our families would have been the ones burned by fire..."

The beastmen who had always believed in the Lord Beast God were moved to tears. They fell to their knees, prostrating themselves on the ground to show their loyalty to the Beast God.

As for the beastmen who had converted to the Golden Lion Beast God, they were drenched in cold sweat, their hearts filled with terror. They kowtowed ceaselessly in repentance.

Dao Yuan, however, was in disbelief. ’How is this possible?’ The Beast God only ever manifested during the imprinting and blessing ceremonies. Normally, it wouldn’t appear even if the beastmen were on the verge of extinction.

He, too, collapsed to the ground, all his previous arrogance and ruthlessness gone. Tears and snot streamed down his face as he begged the Beast God for forgiveness, pleading not to have his position as the High Priest and Divine Servant revoked. But as the Divine Power gradually drained from his body, he fell into despair and regret. ’If it weren’t for my own greed and ambition, I wouldn’t have ended up like this. How could I have ever thought the Beast God would tolerate my fabrications?’

Once his Divine Power was completely drained, Dao Yuan was too weak to even stand. He furiously commanded the guards, "What are you standing around for? Seize Si Shuo and her entire family and burn them all!"

"They dared to use such despicable methods to harm me and oppose the Golden Lion Beast God! Once the Golden Lion Beast God becomes enraged, you will all be exiled from the city!"

The guards looked at each other, unsure for a moment whether they should obey him.

Yu Jiao suppressed the storm raging in her heart and snorted coldly. "What, you won’t even listen to the High Priest now? These outsiders have only been in Beast City for a few days. How much do you really know about them?"

"They just went to the Central Continent, learned some dirty tricks, and came back to use them against us! Today it’s us, tomorrow it will be you! Hurry up, while everyone is here, and burn their family to death to break this curse..."

Before the crowd could waver, Si Shuo let out a low laugh. "Yu Jiao, your talent for twisting right and wrong is as impressive as ever."

"Too bad for you. Black is black, and white is white. You can’t control the outcome every single time."

As she spoke, she extended a hand. Si Teng immediately shot out and wrapped itself tightly around Yu Jiao, making sure to cover her mouth as well.

Zhi Le looked at Yi Wan and said calmly, "Father Yi Wan, the Beast God has chosen you to be the High Priest. The rest is for you to handle."

Yi Wan was still in shock, his gaze vacant. Beside him, however, Ping Mei excitedly grabbed his arm. "Yi Wan, you’re the High Priest of Golden Lion City now? In charge of hundreds of thousands of beastmen?"

"What are you still standing here in a daze for? Get up on that platform, tie up that Dao Yuan, and burn him!"

"He was clearly the Beast God’s Divine Servant, yet he served other, false gods! He should be burned so everyone can see the consequences of betraying the Beast God..."