I add points to Indian martial arts.

As Li Wei lamented the vast differences between people, the light blue panel in front of him began to refresh.

[Name: Li Wei. Naguta]

[Bloodline: Giant Serpent]

[Sacrificial Deity: Three-Headed Naga]

[Ritual: Fragments of the Nagachara]

[Strength: Half-elephant strength]

[Martial Skill: Naga Eight Steps]

[Current Faith Points: 0]

"Hmm? Has my power reached the level of a half-elephant?" Li Wei looked at the newly updated power description on the panel. In this world, the power of martial artists is divided using an elephant from mythology as the standard.

Indra, the Hindu god of war, rode Eravata, a four-tusked elephant. Elephants that possess the bloodline of this mythical elephant are the standard of power in this world.

For example, a fully completed Brahma skin has the power of one elephant, while a Brahma bone has the power of ten elephants.

Previously, Li Wei's panel did not have a strength description. Li Wei guessed it was because his strength had not yet reached the standard. After all, the lowest standard for measuring strength in this world is half an elephant's strength.

"I used to have about one-tenth the power of an elephant, but this time, the three-headed Naga priest has increased my power so much. I can only say that this panel is really strong. It can even purify faith power." Li Wei looked at the blue energy bar on the panel, which said that it could be upgraded.

He just didn't know what could be used to upgrade this blue energy bar. Li Wei thought that if the blue energy bar was upgraded, then perhaps the faith power refined on the panel would be even purer, and maybe in the future it could attract five, seven, or even nine Naga...

Perhaps because he was too tired from the sacrificial ritual, Li Wei slowly fell asleep while thinking about these things.

……

Late at night, while Li Wei was asleep.

In a secluded room, an oil lamp cast a dim, yellowish light from a niche, blurring the faded mural of Lakshmi on the walls. The heavy scent of sheepskin and old spices hung in the air.

Laka sat cross-legged on a thick woolen cushion, unconsciously stroking a small copper weight used for calculating the value of goods. He looked seriously at his daughter, who knelt opposite him with her head slightly bowed, his gaze as if examining an expensive piece of Benares silk for any flaws.

At this moment, the expression on Laka's face was no longer the fawning one he had shown when he met Li Wei during the day, but rather one of authority.

"Sulesia, are you saying that Livisarma doesn't like you? You only stayed in his room for a short time, and he let you out?" Raka sat on the blanket, looking at his daughter in disbelief, admiring her beauty. Her exquisite features seemed sculpted by Shiva himself, with alluring and enchanting emerald green eyes. Raka couldn't believe any man wouldn't be captivated.

"Hmm." Suleza gave a soft "hmm," seemingly indifferent. She sat on the blanket in a meditative posture, her expression calm, even with a hint of melancholy in her eyes. She was nothing like the very sweet person she had been in front of Levi just moments before. It was as if this was Suleza's true self.

Laka was furious at his daughter Suleza's behavior. He glared at her and said, "Look at you! How could Livisalma possibly like you? I've spoiled you rotten. What's wrong with marrying a Brahmin like Guta? And you still refuse?"

He leaned forward, the lamplight illuminating the oily sweat on his forehead, and continued angrily, "Suleisa, I raised you for seventeen years, taught you from a young age the passages in the Griha that women should recite, hired the most expensive female dancers to teach you 'ras' (sexual acts), and even had the rice you ate smoked with jasmine first. Now you tell me, a Brahmin who came here carrying a bundle looks down on a daughter I raised like this?"

"You must have said something unpleasant to Livisalma!"

"I know my place in Father's heart; I am merely a commodity. I am grateful to Father for raising me, so I have always fulfilled the duties of a commodity. Just now, I obediently said some flattering words to Livisalma, trying to ingratiate myself with him, but he simply doesn't like your daughter," Suleisa said softly, her head lowered, her face unusually calm. Yet, for some reason, her alluring emerald green eyes carried an indescribable emotion, a mixture of mockery and sadness.

"You...you..." Laka was angered by her daughter's words. "I knew you were resentful that I made you marry Livi, but what's wrong with marrying a Brahmin like Guta? Do you know what will happen to the children you and Livi will have..."

Laka began to ramble on about the benefits of marrying Levi, and when she got to the point about having children, Suleisa pretended to listen respectfully but actually sneered inwardly.

Marrying Livi certainly had its advantages, but those advantages weren't for Suleza. Livi, a fallen Brahmin, even with a surname like Naguta, still came to Tuka village to build a temple. Suleza knew in her heart that the person she was going to marry was someone even less capable than the nearby Ganka.

From a young age, Suleisa had a clear understanding of her appearance, and she was unwilling to marry a good-for-nothing man like Li Wei, who only had a surname.

Indeed, after marrying Livy, she would receive a tremendous benefit: her children would not be demoted to a lower caste. In this world, high and low castes cannot easily intermarry. Children born from a high-caste woman marrying a low-caste man are considered to be born through a reverse marriage and would be classified as untouchables, even lower than Shudras.

It's better for high-caste men to marry low-caste women, but their children will also be demoted in caste.

Generally, when a high-caste Brahmin man marries a low-caste woman, the child will still be downcast. This is because the offspring with low-caste bloodlines will have their bloodline affected, and their faith power may become corrupted through their physical body, making it impossible to communicate with the gods.

However, this situation does not exist in the Astan family like Naguta. No matter what kind of child they have, they can communicate with the gods, since the bloodline will never be lost.

This is also why her father went to such lengths to arrange for her to marry Livi, so that if she had a child, his grandson would become a Brahmin. How wonderful, how prestigious!

But what does this have to do with Suleisa?

Does Suleisa intend to spend her entire life with an ordinary man?

Thinking of this, a hint of resentment flashed in Suleisa's beautiful emerald green eyes, and she clenched her hands tightly.

"Daughter, I know what you're thinking." Suddenly, Raka sighed, looking at Suleisa's clenched hand. "You have ambition, but have you ever considered that your father is just a small Vaishya merchant? Even if you become the wife of a powerful lord because of your looks, do you really think you'll live a good life?"

"Think about what happened to Li Heifei. Sometimes, without a background, even having beauty can be a sin."

"Back then, she was sought after by kings and adored by poets, who thought her beauty could buy her all 'Dana' (giving alms)," Laka said in a low voice, but her eyes were frighteningly bright. "And then? The king of Magadha simply raised his hand, and she fell from the highest branch into someone else's golden plate, with only the surname 'Gupta' supporting her. She was too fragile; beauty is as thin as the mist on a river in the dry season in the face of power."

Hearing her father's words, Suleza's long eyelashes trembled. She raised her head. The Lihefei that Laka mentioned was a very famous concubine of Napur. Three hundred years ago, Napur was not yet divided and was unified. Lihefei was born into the Vaishya caste and became the concubine of the Napur king because of her beauty.

Going from a commoner to the queen of a supreme ruler should have been a good thing, but life in the palace was not easy for Queen Lihei. The chief queen was a Brahmin who was jealous of her beauty and constantly targeted her. Without the help of her maternal family, in the fierce court struggle, Queen Lihei met a tragic end. None of her children fared well, and she even implicated her elderly parents. In the end, she committed suicide by jumping into a well.

"Daughter, you blame me for making you marry Livi for my own good, but have you ever thought about what father doesn't think of his children?" Laka continued, "You married Livi, a fallen Brahmin, which is perfect. He depends on the money I provide him, so he can't help but treat you well, plus your looks..."

"But if you marry a king and become his concubine based on your looks, what kind of help will your father give you? He will only be a burden to you. You will have to compete with women of higher castes from other Kshatriya or even Brahmin families. Do you think your looks will guarantee him exclusive favor? Think about it, how many people in this world truly cherish women?"

"What do you think those women in the harems of those kings are fighting over? Love? The Laws of Manu clearly state that women are born 'Ajana' (sacrifices)!" Laka's tone grew increasingly harsh as he spoke.

Suleza fell silent upon hearing this. From what she had seen and heard, her father, in addition to her mother, had married two other women. She had witnessed her father frequently beating and scolding her mother since she was a child, but he stopped doing so when she grew up and her appearance matured.

In this world as a whole, women have little status.

Especially for some powerful rulers, the beautiful concubines in their harems did not have a very high status, and they could even be given to each other as gifts.

After a long silence, Suleisa suddenly spoke up: "I understand, Father. I will make Livishalma fall in love with me."

Hearing this, Laka smiled with satisfaction. Suleisa stood up, bowed, and slowly withdrew.

She walked out of the secret room as it was getting dark, and Suleisa looked up at the sky.

She was indeed persuaded by her father, but she wasn't afraid of palace intrigues or not being favored; she was simply reminded of the fate of Consort Li Hei.

Princess Lihei's elderly parents were killed because of the Grand Princess.

Suleisa only thought of her mother, the woman who would hold her and sing to her when she was a little girl, the woman who would be beaten by her husband and then comfort the little girl that it was okay, the woman whose husband hadn't visited the house for years because of her fading beauty, and the woman who was happy because her daughter had grown up and her status had improved, and her husband would occasionally come over and stay overnight.

"What a pitiful woman," Suleisa thought, gazing into the darkness.

The moonlight poured in like cool water. She stood at the boundary between light and shadow, gazing at the night. Her profile was as thin as a Bodhi leaf.

Under the eaves, the night breeze carried the mixed scents of cow dung and jasmine blossoms.