Chapter 166: The Believers

Ethan looked at the people crawling in front of him under the city wall, and suddenly understood the meaning of “a three-foot-thick ice does not form overnight”. If he wanted to change the status quo, it was far from enough to prove to them that the right god was gone. A reform of religious beliefs was imminent.

But fortunately, standing beside him is the queen who suffered greatly. Before the new king inherits the throne, she still holds enough power. Especially after the failure of the rebellion launched by Pope Julius, the power of the royal family will reach its peak. As for the future fate of the empire, it depends on how the royal family will exercise the power in their hands.

He could only be thankful that this was not an era of rapid information development. It would take at least some time for other cities to learn about the turmoil in the imperial capital. By then, the misunderstanding should have been clarified.

Thinking of this, Ethan turned to Queen Margaret. This was his first formal meeting with Ivy’s aunt. In Ivy’s description, she was a kind and wise person.

He believed that the queen must have made a judgment in her heart.

However, before he could open his mouth, the reverence and fear in the queen’s eyes deeply hurt his eyes.

The queen was the first to speak, “God of the Sun, may you protect this country!”

Obviously, Queen Margaret was not much wiser.

……

While Higan was leading the kingdom’s army to deal with the rebels, Ethan came to the royal hall surrounded by the crowd.

“This is an expected result.”

Ivy sat opposite him and spoke, the golden hair on her head swaying back and forth, which was a proof that she was in a good mood. Winter was laughing beside her. It was difficult for her to explain this wonderful feeling. Whenever she saw Ethan’s face darkened because he was caught off guard, she found it very interesting.

After two years, she returned to this familiar place again.

“Since the reign of His Majesty Henry III, the ecclesiastical power in the empire has been growing stronger and is now deeply rooted. It will be difficult for you to change people’s minds, eh?”

Before she could finish her words, she was grabbed by her aunt.

My aunt grabbed her golden hair and grasped her weakness. “Who allowed you to sit at the table, kid?”

In fact, the queen had no experience in welcoming the Right God. After all, the Right God left this world after the First Era. According to the Sun God, they had fallen long ago. Even the story of the Chosen Ones of God happened a long time ago in the Sixth Era. But she had read the holy scriptures of the Church to some extent. Even the Pope had to kneel on the ground when he went to the Sanctuary of Life to pray.

It is extremely disrespectful to sit at the same table and talk with the upright God!
Despite Ethan’s repeated dissuasion, Ivy still couldn’t avoid the fate of sitting on the ground.

After pressing Ivy to the ground, the queen bowed reverently to Ethan. Next, she would arrange a feast for the arrival of the right god, which has always been the tradition of the empire.

When you don’t know how to celebrate, have a feast.

“Your aunt is gone, so stop sitting on the ground.”

“It’s okay. It’s quite comfortable to sit on the floor.”

Seeing that Ivy had no intention of getting up, Ethan simply pushed away his chair and sat cross-legged on the floor. Winter followed suit, and the three of them sat on the floor like they had in the cave in the north before and started a group meeting.

“It’s not their fault.” Ivy still insisted on her previous point of view, “Didn’t you say that we should use the objective world as a criterion? In the objective world, if your spells look like the rightful deity, and your behavior looks like the rightful deity, then you will become the rightful deity in people’s eyes.”

This incident was also recorded in “Imperial Truth” which she had not yet started writing.

When you create a sun in the night sky, you will be considered a sun god.

According to her observation, the only difference between Ethan and the records of the rightful gods in the scriptures was that he was willing to sit on the ground with “mortals”. Only after spending a long time with them could one sense his “human” side.

Hearing this, Winter agreed, “Yes, I think the name of the Sun God is quite nice.”

“Actually, I have always had a question.” Ivy said seriously, “Why have you always been so resistant to the identity of God? It took the Church hundreds of years to make the Goddess of Life deeply rooted in people’s hearts. Julius’s lifelong conspiracy, for you, you only need a spell to accomplish it.”

In order to prove his authority, Julius eliminated almost all opponents. Even though he implemented a high-pressure policy of “accusing evil believers”, he failed to completely change people’s minds. Only those sharp voices of opposition could be eliminated. In the hearts of many people, Julius was far from the goddess’s messenger. He was just a tyrant who was good at playing power games.

Because Julius couldn’t create a sun or a moon in the sky above the imperial capital, but Ethan could.

When the golden sun dispelled the darkness, people sincerely accepted the fact that the righteous God had arrived.

Therefore, every word Ethan said would become a proverb, and people would carry out his orders without hesitation. In Ivy’s opinion, as long as Ethan was willing, he could become the actual ruler of the empire at any time. This was a tradition that had existed since the First Age. The Righteous God guided the human beings at that time out of darkness and sowed the seeds of civilization. Human beings’ worship of the Righteous God was far greater than that of the king.

“After returning to the imperial capital, I looked up some information. In the First and Second Eras, the concept corresponding to ‘king’ was the messenger of God. Before they left, they appointed their messengers to exercise their power on earth and keep the fire of mankind for them. Later, the concept of ‘divine right of kings’ was derived. Only kings who were recognized by the gods had legitimacy and legality. Every king of the empire needed the Pope to personally put the crown on them during their coronation.”

Ivy said, “However, this has contributed to the expansion of the power of the Holy See to a certain extent.”

Ethan was very pleased with these words. It seemed that Ivy had noticed the dangers of faith and realized that a religious reform was imminent. He asked, “Ivy, think about it carefully, why did you look up these materials?”

“I am looking for a theoretical basis for the Imperial Truth, which corresponds to the Codex of Life.”

?

Rotten wood cannot be carved!

“No, that’s not your real purpose!”

Ivy was a little confused, “What is my purpose then?”

“You are deeply aware of the harm caused by blind faith, so you are seeking change.”

“Yes, that’s my purpose.”…Really?

Ivy frowned.

But since Ethan had spoken, she just took it as true. She guessed that this might be part of some grand plan. After all, ever since she met Ethan, he had always said “I have a plan”. If she thought about it carefully, Ethan had actually hinted at his identity to her from the beginning, but she was not knowledgeable enough to understand it at the time.

This is still the case.

“But I still find it very strange to deny your own identity as a god in a place where gods really existed, and you haven’t answered my question yet.”

Ivy thought for a moment, “Or would it be better to say ‘you’?”

“The answer to the question is simple, because I am not God.”

As early as in Riverwood Town, Ethan answered Ivy once, this is the standard of the objective world.

He decided that he had to change Ivy’s mind first. It was not only the fire element that could create light, but also the light bulb.

This guy agreed verbally, but he didn’t think so in his heart.

The former is the elemental magic that exists in this world, but the possibility of the latter has been completely stifled by God and the Church. In Ethan’s view, if the empire can continue the prosperity of the Golden Age and continue to develop ancient technology, he will be able to find magic versions of mobile phones, televisions and air conditioners on the first day he comes to this world.

However, believers represented by the Church of Life have set standards for the use of every spell and magic power. Those who violate these standards may even be regarded as heretics.

Even the academy that trains elemental shapers is no exception.

“Ivy, do you really think that God can only bring light in the dark night?”

“Isn’t it? I remember that the Holy See’s scriptures wrote that in the first dark era, it was the Righteous God who dispelled the darkness for mankind.”

“That might just be some powerful elemental magic, and from what I’ve observed, the spell of the Goddess of Life might be able to achieve the same effect.”

Not long ago, Mary used magic to create a sword of judgment in the sky above the imperial capital, but if she tried to change the appearance of the sword and use an external object like an energy storage crystal to keep it alive for a long time, it would be a moon that illuminates the endless night. “But that’s not all the Goddess of Life is. In addition to bringing light, She also fought against the bloody plague and maintained the stability of the country. The missions completed by all believers were recorded in Her. Just imagine, if the Goddess of Life had never existed, Mary would not have become Her Chosen One. Her deeds in fighting the scarlet plague in the Second Era, plus some artistic processing, are enough to make her a new right-hand god.”

Only the righteous gods can fight against the plague brought by the evil god Bazatos.

Ethan could find the same words.

Steam was beginning to come out of Ivy’s head. She was about to be confused by Ethan again. After thinking about it, she suddenly raised a key question, “But weren’t you the one who taught her how to dispel the plague? This is still your great power. You are right. Only a right-minded deity can fight against Bazatos.”

This once-in-a-lifetime question almost gave Ethan a cerebral hemorrhage.

Winter was quick to move and let Ethan fall on her knees, then gently stroked his forehead with her hand.

She also secretly winked at Ivy when Ethan wasn’t paying attention.

Come on, make him mad again!
“What I mean is, how could the Goddess of Life, who died at the end of the First Era, accomplish so many magnificent things in the following eras! Building civilization, developing the church, and spreading ideas are the results of the efforts of countless believers whose names have not been recorded. When all the credit is attributed to one person, He has transformed from a powerful transcendent into a true God!”

When Ethan first came to this world, he also believed that gods were real, but after learning about the fall of the Righteous God, he changed his mind. “The real gods only exist in the scriptures, a concept created by countless people. Only after being interpreted and repaired at different times can they maintain their image of being omniscient and omnipotent.”

Obviously, the path of faith has long deviated from the original direction. “However, this is not the only way to ensure the image of the gods. After all, only a few people can accomplish great deeds. Believers represented by Julius have found another method – as long as they impose countless commandments and define those who question and oppose as believers of evil gods, those who are unable to resist will be forced to succumb to the authority of the gods out of fear.”

Ethan couldn’t determine when this phenomenon began, but he was sure that Julius and his teacher Turzan were the best among them.

If we continue down this path, the only outcome is that when Doomsday comes, we’ll all be doomed.

This is also the reason why the Vatican is afraid of true believers of evil gods.

Lao Ba’s followers don’t care about you. If you meet them, they will sacrifice your soul to their heavenly father.

Only when facing true believers of the evil god will faith return to its essence – that is, a battle of pure strength and numbers, and only the stronger ones can survive.

“If we simply replace the old god with a new one, the status quo will never change. In a few years, the new church will return to its old ways and follow Julius’ path in order to fight for power and voice.”

Ethan said, “If I want to forge a holy sword, in addition to the knowledge of elemental shaping, I also need Sister Bi’an’s knowledge of forging, Rowena’s understanding of the energy storage crystal process, and the teacher’s research on the material of the Giant God Soldier. And all of this must be based on sufficient funds. Otherwise, Lao Sen’s Magic Technology Store will go bankrupt as soon as we forge a hilt.

“If we want more people to develop their talents, we must break the monopoly of the Vatican and other institutions on extraordinary knowledge.”

Ivy seemed to finally understand. She trotted out and retrieved a parchment book a moment later.

She wanted to write down everything Ethan had just said.

“So you never intended to deny the existence of the Goddess of Life or the Lord Knight…”

She muttered to herself while writing furiously, “But you want them to step out of their inherent framework of extraordinary knowledge?”

“There is a theoretical basis for this.”

Ethan emphasized, “The ‘Fireball and Ice Arrow Magic Mechanics’ written by the teacher is a product that breaks away from the existing framework of elemental magic.”

“But, she failed.”

After writing down all the text, Ivy suddenly said, “She only taught you a student.”

This time it’s Lindong’s turn to have cerebral congestion.

Her teaching career in the college was one of the few failures in her life, and it was a past that she found difficult to look back on.

And Ivy, this irritating person, always brings up things that are not relevant to the topic!
It seems like he wants to eat the Frost Arrow.

The golden hair on Ivy’s head slapped her forehead frantically to remind her. Noticing the cold aura of winter, he explained, “Although your theory sounds reasonable, it will be difficult to implement. Not everyone in this world has talent and is willing to delve into and open up an unknown field. Maybe they go to the academy just to learn specific elemental magic spells.”

She could imagine that if she followed Ethan’s method, there would be countless people lingering at the stage before entry. Once she mentioned a specific example, her mind became active. “So, we should combine the two theories in parallel. While imparting knowledge of the Tao, we should leave another path for those who are talented and willing to study.”

During the time when Julius was Pope, most of these people were defined as heretics and killed.

While the three were talking, Queen Margaret knocked on the door again.

The feast was ready, and she wanted to tell the three of them the news.

After getting the reply “Come in”, she unfortunately became the third person to faint from Ivy’s anger.

Looking at the three people sitting on the ground, the queen’s eyes suddenly went dark.

This Ivy told her not to talk while sitting on the table, but she actually dragged the Sun God to the ground. How outrageous!
“Aunt, you came at the right time. We just talked a lot.”

“What are you talking about? Go change your clothes. How long are you going to wear this armor?”

If Ethan and Winter hadn’t been there, she would have twisted Ivy’s ears.

This kid has been at the border of the empire for two years. How come he is so unkempt that he’s almost turning into a savage.

The golden hair on Ivy’s head suddenly trembled.

The aristocratic clothing left an indelible psychological trauma on it. When it attended the banquet hosted by the Second Prince Damian, it was tied up and unable to move for a whole night, which was the request of Queen Margaret.

In the Queen’s opinion, the golden hair on Ivy’s head was too lively and impolite for a court dinner.

After teaching Ivy a lesson, the queen smiled gently and said, “I have prepared a feast, please be sure to attend.”

“Not today. I still have some important things to deal with.”

Ethan spoke up.

During their conversation, the rebels led by Julius should have been taken to the dungeon by the other side, so there was one more thing left to do in his journey to the imperial capital, and it was also the most important thing.

He had to meet the former Pope in person.

Julius himself is a criminal ledger of the empire spanning decades. If you look through it carefully, you will definitely find a lot of information. It would be a waste to let him die so easily in the royal court.

Another thing that puzzled Ethan was that there was such a big turmoil in the imperial capital this time, but there was no sign of the Lophik Foundation. The other three members of the seven-member council seemed to have heard the news a long time ago and left this troubled place before Julius launched the rebellion.

Ivy, who was lifted up from the floor by Queen Margaret, gave Ethan a “reassuring” look.

She knew very well that after witnessing what Ethan had done, his explanation would probably be hard to believe. Everyone believed that a rightful god had descended upon the imperial capital, and had even begun to imagine the arrival of a golden age.

They have a real and upright God who guides and protects them.

If she wanted to convince the nobles, she would need to adopt some conversational skills.

“Aunt, I also have something important to discuss with you.”

She closed the parchment book, took a deep breath, and said, “This is a grand plan that concerns the coming of Doomsday.”

(End of this chapter)