Ming Dynasty and New Rome and Infinite Magic Machine

Chapter 1080: Dragon Palace Yuyue
Shangluo was sitting in the passenger seat, Phaethon was driving, and the others were sitting in the back.

Looking out the window, the streets here made him feel as if he was back in Yingtian.

The streets of Ryukyu are still similar to those of Pontianak. To be more precise, they are also similar to Yingtian.

Modern cities all look similar, and are basically smaller versions of Yingtian or Shuntian. If they are well planned, they will be like Shuntian, and if they grow naturally, they will be like Yingtian. Especially when these places all use Chinese characters, they are exactly the same.

Compared with Yingtian, the difference here is that the roads are narrower. Most of the buildings facing the street are six to eight stories high, not very tall. Because the roads are narrow, the sun is blocked by these not very tall buildings, and the lighting on the street is not very good.

However, although Ryukyu cannot enjoy direct sunlight like Pontianak on the equator, what it lacks the least is sunlight.

"There are so many barbecue restaurants here." Shangluo turned around and asked Zheng Shijie, "So Ryukyu's specialty is barbecue?"

"Yes, it's pork, all kinds of pork," Zheng Shijie replied. "Pork is the soul of the Ryukyu people. Legend has it that when they set sail, they carried pigs with them."

“Is there any story behind this?”

"This is a great story. Ryukyu holds a special position among the tributary states because it is considered the 'ancestral home' of all Pacific island nations. According to legend, all these Pacific island nations, including Honolulu, Maori, etc., are descendants of the Baiyue nations along the southeast coast in ancient times. They started from Ryukyu, and Ryukyu started from the southeast coast."

“I’ve heard that before, but is it true?”

"How would I know?" Zheng Shijie shook his head. "Anyway, this is a statement used to unite them. For example, Siam likes to say that their ancestors were the Baiyue people, and they had to migrate to avoid the conquest of the First Emperor. Myanmar likes to say that their migration was more recent, and was formed by the southward migration of the Bailang Qiang during the Sui and Tang dynasties. Ryukyu is even more amazing, and they pushed the legend back to ancient times - they said that their ancestors were the ancient Fang Guofangfeng clan, and because they were killed by King Yu, their people had to leave their homeland."

"Good fellow," Shangluo blinked, "Is this credible? Is it even a little bit?"

"It's hard to say whether they are the Fangfeng clan, but the cultural systems of Maori and Honolulu - or Hawaii - can indeed be traced back to Ryukyu. Ryukyu has two belief systems, one is the belief in the Dragon Palace, and the other is the belief in the Ontake. The Dragon Palace is the god of the sky in Ryukyu. Because the Ryukyu do not worship the sky directly, they believe that the Dragon Palace dominates the natural order of heaven and earth. According to this system, the Ryukyu people do not go to the underworld after death, but to the Dragon Palace."

【Um? 】

"Huh?" Shangluo was stunned when he heard "go to Dragon Palace after death".

Judging from the previous conversation with the Dragon King, this may not be a legend, but the truth. The East China Sea Dragon Palace has shown a strong interest in the ownership of the Japanese people, and there is no reason not to want to take action against Ryukyu.

Therefore, it is possible that the Dragon Palace did not take action against the Ryukyu Islands, but had already taken action a long time ago. The souls of the Ryukyu people may have already belonged to the Dragon Palace, and they may really return to the East China Sea after death.

What Shangluo didn't know was which generation of Ryukyu king sold Ryukyu and how much they sold it for.

Zheng Shijie saw Shangluo's expression and asked in surprise: "Do you know something?"

"Maybe I do know something, but I haven't confirmed it yet. So, what is Ontake?"

"If Ryugu is the god of heaven, then Ontake is the god of earth in Ryukyu. Our ancestral temples worship the gods of heaven and earth, while Ryukyu worships Ontake of Ryugu." "Is Ontake the god of the mountain?"

"Ontake can be a mountain god, but it is not just a mountain god. Ontake can be a pile of stones, an old tree, a forest, a spring, a river, etc. Any place where a god resides is an 'Ontake'. The same thing is called 'Tabu' in Hawaii. If you travel to Hawaii, you will occasionally see some trees or stones tied up with ropes. That is the 'Ontake' in Hawaii."

"Ah," Shangluo nodded, "So, do the Ryukyu people mainly believe in the Dragon Palace or the Ontake?"

"Is this related to the answer we are going to ask now?"

Shangluo nodded. The answer to this question represents the extent of the influence of the Dragon Palace on Ryukyu.

"In fact, Ontake has a greater influence. In essence, the difference between the two in Ryukyu is the 'visiting god' and the 'guardian god'. The Ryugu God does not live in Ryukyu and only comes at specific times such as when the king ascends the throne. He has little to do with daily life. But the Ontake God lives locally and is closely related to the lives of the locals. To be specific."

Zheng Shijie thought for a moment and said, "The Ryukyu King himself is usually in charge of the Ryukyu Palace sacrifice. The chief priest of the Ontake sacrifice is not the Ryukyu King, but 'Mondeok-daejun', who is usually the Ryukyu King's aunt, sister, or daughter. The current Mondeok-daejun, as I remember, seems to be the king's granddaughter? Because this Ryukyu King was particularly long-lived and outlived his son, so now his granddaughter is in charge of the Ontake sacrifice."

Phaethon, who was driving in front, suddenly muttered, "The next thing he's going to ask is, how can we get to know this princess? Can we see her at the sacrificial site?"

“???” Shangluo was full of question marks.

Zheng Shijie suddenly burst out laughing: "I won't comment on Shangluo's behavior, but he really can't go."

"Why?" Shangluo asked.

[Look, you got anxious when you heard you couldn't go. ]

"I'm doing business."

"Because the Ryukyu Ontake worship is traditionally performed entirely by women. Men are not allowed to participate, let alone enter. Therefore, all the shrine maidens responsible for the Ontake worship in various parts of Ryukyu, from the Lord Monde to the village maidens, must be women. They can get married and have their own families, but they must be women."

"Wow." Phaethon turned around and said, "That really looks like the temples in Greece. There are a lot of temples in Greece where men are not allowed to enter."

"But it's not completely off limits." Zheng Shijie tilted his head. "In order to develop tourism in modern times and to appear more open-minded, Ryukyu's Mount Otake now allows men to enter - but there is a prerequisite."

"What is it?" Shangluo asked again.

[Look, I’m in a hurry. 】

"I told you I'm doing business. I'm doing research. I want to know how far the Ryugu has infiltrated Ryukyu. I'm trying to find out the details of the Ryugu - so what's the premise?"

(End of this chapter)