Chapter 41: Moment of Investiture!
Soren’s return did not alarm too many people.
Now, Modo had attracted the attention of many outsiders, who either disguised themselves as merchants or sailors, secretly observing the place and speculating about Soren. The emergence of a new god was certainly no small matter; if it weren’t for the chaotic state of affairs on the continent, Modo would have become the center of the world at this moment, drawing all powers’ gaze. However, even as chaos began to spread, the number of watchers peering at Modo increased, though no one dared to step forward first.
After all, gods are still gods!
Upon returning to Modo, Soren’s first task was to visit his temple. Gazing at the statue resembling himself in the center of the temple, Soren felt a peculiar sensation. Transitioning from a mortal to a divine being, this extraordinary state made him feel as though he were standing on a cloud, looking down at the myriad of living beings. If he could safely survive the Saint’s Cataclysm, in the future, as long as he did not seek his own destruction, he would be able to stand in the river of history and witness the rise and fall of flowers and the rolling clouds, the gods’ nearly immortal nature allowing him to protect those important to him and let them enjoy the long span of life.
No one would feel impatient to live!
No creature desires complete annihilation, and a god’s existence would not be a boring tool; otherwise, the Lord of Radiance would not have brought forth the current Agricultural Goddess with Mother Earth. In fact, if it weren’t for the outbreak of the Saint’s Cataclysm, many hedonistic deities, such as the Goddess of Love, the Goddess of Joy, and the Goddess of Dance, would usually respond to their believers’ prayers and then engage in new rounds of pleasure, or send an avatar to search for novel experiences and explore the mysteries of the multiverse.
Of course.
Most of these deities possess patrons, being subdeities of a particular pantheon, lacking great ambition to expand their divine professions. Thus, the joy of life lies in pursuing things that make them happy. Unless involved in a divine war with another god or there are significant movements within their pantheon, their real lives are quite leisurely and relaxed, indulging their endless time. Naturally, there are also some quirky gods among them, who are so lazy that they find it bothersome to respond to their believers’ prayers. As for the fate of such oddities, there’s no need to elaborate.
The Goddess of Dance had her share of downfall.
Lost in forbidden pleasures, she rarely responded to her believers; had she not been forcibly straightened out by other benevolent deities, she would have been completely ruined by the Lady of the Night.
The world of the gods is like this.
There are diligent deities such as the Lord of Radiance, the God of Justice, the God of Observation, and there are also leisurely deities like the Goddess of Love, the Goddess of Dance, and the Goddess of Joy. Alongside them are the bored explorers like the God of Exploration and the Wanderer, the Knowledge God who immerses in the ocean of knowledge and preserves various civilizations, not to mention the evil gods busy with various intrigues. The chaotic alignment deities possess a comedic attribute, along with the Goddess of Luck who spends her days carefree and the Goddess of Misfortune.
The last two twins of fate are typical examples of deities who occasionally respond to their believers’ prayers in a casual manner!
They stroll through the river of time, sometimes causing each other trouble, and occasionally manifest in front of mortals. But they only care about things that interest them.
When deities reach the level of the Fate Twins, they seem to become very free.
It seems no one would dare to provoke them, even gods of strong divine power would show them respect.
………………
Soren still needed to complete the final step of the temple.
That is to infuse a part of his divine consciousness into the statue before him. If the god is not on the mortal plane, it requires a grand prayer ritual, ultimately leading to the projection of a deity. Only then would the entire process of opening the temple be complete. Since Soren was still in the material plane, he could only do it himself, merging a portion of his divine consciousness into the temple. From this moment on, whenever he wished, he could know everything within the temple, though this would consume divine power.
A faint glow of divine power appeared on the statue, ultimately seeming to come to life, the sculpted eyes swirling with a godly power.
This is the deity’s ‘palace’ on the mortal plane.
In the future, if Soren returns to the divine kingdom and does not worry about consuming divine power, he can appear in the temple at any time.
The investiture ceremony was almost ready.
The last remaining task was the church’s holy emblem, which also represented Soren’s emblem. The High Priest did not dare to make decisions on his own, so in the end, it had to be Soren himself who decided.
The emblem of a deity holds special meaning!
However, it cannot be too complex to the point where it cannot be recognized, as that would inconvenience believers in the mortal realm. Yet, it also cannot be obscure; it would be best if it could be recognized at a glance while still appearing somewhat imposing and exuding a sense of sophistication.
“The holy emblem, huh?”
Soren fell into contemplation, pondering what kind of holy emblem should represent him.
Abyss. Shadows. Slaughter.
Half-Elf, Wanderer, Pirate.
Soren had seen many emblems, but when it came to creating one for himself, he found himself somewhat at a loss.
However, he was not a person who liked to dwell on problems, so soon, he had a conception.
A black land mixed with dark red tones, representing the breath of the abyss, gray shadows moving forward through slaughter, he walked in the chaotic and tumultuous years.
Soren looked up at the statue before him and quickly found inspiration.
Under the influence of divine power, he directly altered matter to rapidly create the form of an emblem.
On the black desolate land stained with mottled blood, surrounded by a gray mist, the silhouette of a Wanderer cloaked in a hood calmly gazed into the distance, as if watching the future or guarding something.
A very simple emblem.
At a glance, it left a deep impression and was easily recognizable, exuding a kind of enigmatic sophistication.
The only drawback was that it did not seem to show a clear connection with the Half-Elf divine profession, but Soren did not appear to care much about that since he created an emblem representing himself. To him, being a Half-Elf was only his divine profession, but it could not represent his entirety. Moreover, judging from the silhouette, Soren himself could easily identify the characteristics of a Half-Elf.
If keen observers scrutinized this emblem, they would easily perceive that Soren’s ambitions were not limited to being a Half-Elf.
Shadows, slaughter, the breath of death.
The entire holy emblem gave an oppressive feeling, as if gazing into the future and seeing some terrifying visions, like a watcher walking amidst shadows and slaughter.
Soren completed the emblem with divine power, finally infusing his own strength into it. After carefully examining the emblem, he nodded in satisfaction.
The expression of the High Priest beside him appeared somewhat strange, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.
Deities who directly use themselves as emblems are rare; the last one was the ‘Underd’, whose emblem depicted a naked Drow girl dancing with a silver sword under a full moon. She had already fallen long ago, and the emblem created by Soren caused the High Priest to think of this deity, prompting her to involuntarily twitch her lips.
The Underd is a kind-hearted yet tragic deity.
However, the master is a lawful evil being, and his choice of emblem may have a special meaning.
………………
A week passed in the blink of an eye.
When the Half-Elf temple was finally completed, Soren’s moment of investiture was also at hand!
The entire city of Modo was in a tense preparation, countless gazes turned toward this overseas island, a large number of believers began to gather, holding prayer ceremonies every day, letting the divine power of faith coalesce above the temple. The priests donned new robes, quietly bathing and changing, waiting for the moment of their Lord Soren’s investiture!
They would be re-baptized.
After Soren officially became a god, he would grant them divine techniques, at that time the traces left on them by the previous ‘God of Half-Elves and Wanderers’ would be completely erased!
They would serve only one master, a god of faith.
That is Soren!
………………
The brilliance of dawn fell.
The synchronized sounds of prayers echoed in the skies above Modo, tens of thousands of Half-Elves gathered near the square, surrounding the temple, waiting for the sacred moment to arrive!
On this day.
Our Lord Soren will officially raise the divine seat and become a god!!! (To be continued ~^~)
