Chapter 294: Prometheus, I!
This “shelter” does not necessarily mean shelter for “individuals.”
What is sheltered is a region, and it is enough to guard this region where they are believed in, without suffering great destructive harm.
As for the fate of individuals within the region, and whether they will be specially sheltered, that depends on the specific choice of the deity.
After all, individual mortals, or even small tribes, are simply not capable of building divine palaces that can bear the radiance of a god.
This also means that humanity, as a species, is destined to learn more “cooperation” and must form larger “collectives” in order to support a divine palace and earn the favor of a deity.
This, in turn, invisibly forces human civilization to develop faster.
Because, with their current low productivity, they are simply unable to support large collective activities that would “move” a god, and the fewer people there are, the more backward civilization becomes, and the harder it is to attract the attention of gods.
Therefore, the more they wish to receive the shelter and blessings of the gods, the more they need to gather and unite with greater effort to do greater things.
At the same time, the more they can receive the shelter and blessings of the gods, the better their development will inevitably be, their lives will be safer, and civilization will develop faster.
Thus, they will be more capable of doing bigger and more things to earn the gods’ favor.
The “threshold” for worshiping deities will become a powerful motivation for humanity to “involute.”
This can also be considered a “virtuous cycle” between gods and mortals.
It is only hoped that this path will not go astray…
All paths that appear to be shortcuts are often filled with pitfalls.
Prometheus listened quietly to this declaration, feeling a slight regret, but he also knew that this was probably the best outcome that could be achieved.
With the current “Divine-Mortal Covenant,” it is enough to ensure that human society can grow and prosper in relative stability.
At least, they no longer have to worry constantly about some deity, simply out of a whim, causing a tribe or even several tribes of humans to completely disappear.
However, there was one thing that puzzled him slightly: why was His Majesty’s declaration addressed to “all mortal spirits,” rather than specifically to “humans”?
Clearly, only humans possess this wisdom to understand and practice this covenant at present!
A vague idea flashed through his mind.
But he had no time to grasp this thought, for he had more important things to do—he had to continue to fight for humanity!
Prometheus bowed deeply, his posture even more humble than before.
He exclaimed in an extremely reverent tone, “There is no magnanimity greater than His Majesty’s! There is no greatness greater than His Majesty’s!”
“All living beings in the universe depend on Your Majesty’s benevolent radiance for their existence!”
“Prometheus’s heart holds a supreme reverence, which he wishes to offer to Your Majesty on this auspicious occasion!”
“I suggest: regardless of which venerable god any mortal spirit ultimately chooses to believe in and worship, they should also worship Your Majesty in the highest position!”
“His Majesty’s supreme divine countenance must become the main seat of worship for all deities in every divine palace!”
“Because, Your Majesty is not only the Father God of all us mortal spirits, but also the Father God of all us deities!”
“All mortal spirits have their beliefs, and all gods should also have their beliefs! And what all gods collectively believe in, there has always been, and can only ever be, one!”
“That is You!”
“Our great Father of all gods! The great Master of all spirituality! The supreme Master of all existence! The Great God King Zeus! The supreme, most excellent, most beautiful, all-knowing, and all-powerful You!”
Prometheus’s words were extremely loud and filled with immense emotion.
Because he was too deeply immersed in his role, he didn’t even notice many of the gods’ strange gazes.
Of course, no god in heaven dared to object to his words.
That would simply be a death wish.
However, Zeus, who sat on his divine seat, cursed inwardly, “Rebel! What a greedy rebel!”
“The words are so noble and grand, but inside, they are all selfish!”
“This rebel! He is too good at exploiting the rules!”
Zeus sneered inwardly.
Why would he need these humble and insignificant beliefs?
Did any creature in the universe dare to blaspheme against him?
Any amount of faith power would simply dissipate with a mere puff of his breath.
What is the faith of a god? How is it different from that of a mortal spirit?
Prometheus’s proposal clearly aimed to use the title of “Supreme Father God” to forcibly bind himself and all mortal spirits, thereby indirectly forcing him to bear the infinite responsibility of “sheltering all mortal spirits”!
While it speaks of sheltering all mortal spirits, who but humans are capable of supporting gods at present?
If every divine palace had to have his statue as the main seat, then on one hand, this would be openly competing for the faith of other gods, which would be extremely detrimental to the healthy development of each god’s lineage.
On the other hand, according to the rules that had just been established, wouldn’t that mean that he, the God King, would have to personally shelter all mortals who had established divine palaces?!
At that time, when facing mortals, the other gods would have to be restrained and constrained at every turn.
‘What a rebel! His mind is full of these petty tricks!’
Zeus, as if inadvertently, glanced at Clymene, who stood beside him, his gaze filled with deep meaning.
He then shifted his gaze back to Prometheus, who was still kneeling, and in his heart, he had already made up his mind: ‘Prometheus, I will…! ‘
Clymene was completely unaware of this; she would probably have to pay a heavy price to atone for her good son again. Although… with His Majesty the God King’s deep understanding of her, she probably… liked it very much…
These petty tricks, this attempt to exploit loopholes in the rules and resort to moral blackmail, were utterly insignificant to the omniscient Zeus.
Zeus’s expression remained unchanged, and he slowly said, “Prometheus, what you say is not without reason. However, I do not need to usurp the glory that rightfully belongs to all gods.”
“Do all the gods and mortals in the universe need a specific statue to understand reverence for me?”
Upon hearing this, the gods hastily spoke, praising the God King’s broad magnanimity and stating they had no such intention!
Zeus waved his hand lightly, silencing the gods, and then continued, “What I shelter is the entire universe, all gods and beings who are willing to follow my order.”
“What I defend is the Holy Justice Order that I personally established and promulgated, which ensures that all living beings can develop healthily and well under the radiance of this Holy Justice Order.”
“How could I shelter only one type of living being? How could that be called truly impartial?”
“These are the words of a child; speak no more of them.”
Prometheus’s excessive bid for more completely failed.
After hearing the last sentence, his heart trembled, and he no longer dared to say another word.
He could only respectfully reply, “There is no magnanimity greater than His Majesty’s! It is Prometheus’s narrow vision that he failed to fully comprehend His Majesty’s great heart that embraces the universe. Prometheus admits his mistake.”
Zeus nodded gently and continued in his majestic voice, “Mortal spirits are ignorant and unaware of the greatness of the gods, do not know the sacred names of the gods, do not understand the divine visages of the gods, and certainly do not comprehend the divine authority of the gods. Therefore, it is difficult for them to properly revere the gods. This is indeed problematic.”
“My dear Themis.”
The flawless Goddess of Justice, hearing her beloved God King call her name, immediately stepped forward.
Her face was like cold jade, her demeanor solemn and majestic, and she bowed her head, replying, “Your Themis is here, revered Majesty.”
Zeus smiled gently, “My flawless Themis, my dear Justice, please preside over and determine the genealogy, authority, and honor of all the gods of Olympus, referred to as the Divine Genealogy.”
“And select a most suitable location in the mortal world to establish a ‘Pantheon,’ where all the gods of Olympus will set up their statues within the hall.”
“This is to let mortal spirits know the divine visages of the gods, clarify their honors and authorities, so that they may properly revere and believe in the gods. This is the correct way.”
“My statue will also only be preserved within this sole divine palace. The location of this hall shall be a place where all disputes, impurities, disrespect, and blasphemy are forbidden.”
“This ‘Pantheon’ shall be my only official divine palace in the mortal world.”
The flawless Goddess of Order, with a serious expression, bowed and accepted the command, “Themis obeys.”
She hesitated for a moment, then softly added, “Revered Majesty, your heart embraces all living beings and shelters all living beings. You love all sentient beings, and your heart is indeed most impartial and just.”
“All your great honor and radiance, naturally, do not need any redundancy to prove it.”
“However, you are, after all, the father of all sentient beings. If living beings wish to express their adoration and reverence for you individually, how should they make sacrifices? This single divine palace alone is by no means appropriate.”
“Furthermore, Prometheus and humanity have designated the first and last days of the Divine Twelve Cycle as your exclusive days of sacrifice. If there are no divine palaces for sacrifice, what then should be done?”
Zeus pondered for a moment upon hearing this and nodded, “What you say does have merit. In that case, if mortal spirits wish to offer individual sacrifices to me, they do not necessarily need a divine palace. They only need to erect a temporary altar in a clean place, offer sacrifices, perform the corresponding rituals, and chant my divine name. I will sense what the mortal spirits intend.”
Themis then returned to her original position, satisfied.
She could not bear for her most beloved, most revered, most magnanimous, and most merciful husband to have no exclusive sacrifices from mortal spirits.
Her husband naturally did not care, but his glory was essential!
Zeus then looked at the gods and issued his final pronouncement.
A smile played on his lips as he said slowly, “Gods, all matters are settled. Now then, let us together partake in this first sacrifice of mortal spirits.”
He then turned his gaze to Prometheus, a smile of deep meaning in his eyes, and said softly, “Prometheus, those sacrificial bulls below are all to be slaughtered, aren’t they?”
