The square of the First Tribe, where the succession ceremony was being held, had been covered by an anti-rain barrier in the air, preventing the poisonous rain from invading.
The tribesmen who came to watch the succession ceremony knelt in circles around him, silently praying with pious expressions.
Smoked river fish, wild animal meat and other offerings were placed on the altar, and the bonfire was burning.
The young patriarch, wearing a blood-red sacrificial crown and a black sacrificial robe, has been kneeling before the statue of the Hundred God Larsas and has begun to communicate with the gods.
Although the official statement of Qiongdi is that Baishen is dead, some elders and tribesmen still firmly believe that Baishen is just sleeping. On such an important occasion, as the "Son of Baishen" who is most in line with the aura of Baishen's relics, Feng Chang, he still has to try to communicate with Baishen according to past oracles.
"Boom, boom, boom—"
Accompanied by the dull sound of Qatar drums, girls wearing silver bracelets and women wearing black veils walked out of the tribesmen's ranks and began to sing and dance emotionally. They sang soft words and danced along with the heavy drum beats that thumped like heartbeats. Colorful silk cloth and silver accessories were mixed together. The soft and beautiful melody combined with the steady and dull beat formed a tribal sacrificial ceremony.
The saint in a plain dress walked towards the platform, while the young patriarch on the platform was muttering to the statue.
"Lord Larsas..." Feng Chang bowed his head and whispered the name of Baishen.
As the "Son of a Hundred Gods", he should have chanted praises, longings and devotion to the Hundred Gods on such occasions, and then smoothly took over the position of patriarch, unleashed the full power of the Black Python's authority, became an unrivaled existence in the Dome Land, killed other competitors, and won the War of a Hundred People.
However, at this moment, he only felt confused.
It was only yesterday that he learned the truth about the Dome Land. The ideals he had held for more than a decade were shattered in an instant.
"...Lord Baishen, you are a fiction created by people from the outside world, so...is my belief wrong?" he said.
His voice was so low that no one could hear what he said except the saint who was very close to him.
This was not something one should say when praying to the gods. It was completely different from the sacrificial language he had learned over the past decade.
He was just asking himself, who had believed for more than ten years,
——Is all this really worth it?
His beliefs... his ideals... his vision of passing on the tribe's legacy and spreading the glory of the Hundred Gods to every corner of the world... were all just things guided by humans.
So, what is he living for in this life?
The saint in a plain dress walked up the steps and came to his side.
"You have betrayed the most ancient god, the Nine Gods, Elya." The Saint said, "He is your true faith, but you have been deceived by outsiders and betrayed your true faith. You regard the gods made up by outsiders as righteous gods, but regard your ancient true gods as evil gods..."
"How do you know all this?" Feng Chang looked at the Saint.
It stands to reason that this most loyal tribal saint who only wanted to sacrifice her life to the gods could not possibly know these long-buried truths.
"Answer my question first." The Saint said, "Now that you know the truth, what are you going to do? Will you announce the truth and guide people to return to the faith of the Nine Gods?"
Her pair of sea-blue eyes were fixed on Feng Chang.
At this moment, the tribesmen's low chanting of sacrificial words and the women's loud and high-pitched singing poured into his ears like a cold wind.
His gaze swept across the golden statue, across the candle flames with floating green smoke, across the brightly dressed women, the shirtless drummers, the elders praying with their eyes closed... across every scene that he could see with his naked eyes.
The sacrificial crown on his head made it difficult for him to breathe. At this critical moment, he suddenly learned the truth and was unable to remain calm.
The truth is concealed, fools exist in every corner of the world, and the only orthodox Christian, Siber, is exiled as a pagan...
After a moment, he spoke.
“…That’s it,” he said.
"What?"
"Truths that are not worth revealing should be buried." He said, "The past of the Nine Gods has been forgotten by everyone. Announcing the truth rashly will only cause everyone to collapse and rebound. The concentration of curses in the Dome is getting higher and higher, and they can no longer withstand a turbulent upheaval in their faith. Maintaining the current situation is the best way."
The saint's eyes moved slightly.
"Whether the God we believe in is the real God or a god invented by outsiders... that is also our God, and I will not... arbitrarily change the beliefs of my people," said Feng Chang.
"You want to hide this truth? Even though you already know that the Hundred Gods you believe in are just fictions and lies? Do you want to continue the status quo and continue to hide everything about the true God Jiu Shen?" said the saint.
Feng Chang stood up. His legs were numb from kneeling for so long. He stood firmly before speaking to the saint.
“——A god who cannot save his people is not a god at all.” He said this again.
Although Baishen was just a fictional image created by outsiders, he gathered enough faith five years ago and truly descended, turning into the sky to protect the people. So he really existed.
The Jiu Shen, who had already lost the hearts of the people, was destined to perish in the dust of the past. The tribesmen would not accept the truth that the Jiu Shen was the true God, and they would not immediately turn around and believe in the "evil god" that they had despised for generations.
The best way to make the Dome more stable is to continue the status quo, maintain the lie, and let him bear the cruel truth alone.
...Even if he continues to lie like this, his behavior will be no different from those outsiders.
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