Pivot of the Sky

Chapter 182: The goddess appears

Ten days later, in the city of Salem, over five thousand inhabitants gathered together for a celebration ceremony. The city had been established for some time already, and now it finally had a governor and an oracle. The governor was Lord Aesop whom everyone respected, and the oracle was the former High Priest of the Shrine of Isis, Lord Idu.

Lord Idu had once fought alongside God Amon, when God Amon was still the Head of the Ra Legion, while Lord Idu was the oracle of the Ra Legion. The inhabitants considered Amon to be a true god, and his conquests that shook the nations were the miracles that he performed.

Amon and Aesop had no experience in organizing celebrations, but Idu was an expert, and he was the one who presided over the ceremony to summon the gods to descend. The main statue in the shrine was that of the goddess Mourrin wearing a golden crown and holding an ivy scepter in her hand, while the statue of Amon stood beside her, holding her waist lightly with one hand.

Idu preached about God Amons miracles on the long steps outside the shrine, and after that, led by Aesop, the doors of the shrine were opened, and the important people of the city entered the shrine one after another to make sacrifices to the statue, invoking the descending of the gods amidst the proclamations and chants. The people prostrated themselves in the square and prayed fervently for the blessing of the gods.

The cold statue seemed to become warm for a moment, and gazing through the grand doors of the shrine to the crowd in the square, Idu rang the bell at the right time. Along with the melodious sounds of the bell, the clouds in the sky changed their shape and came together to form an ivy-like shape, and the breeze, with the scent of the grass, descended from the sky and brushed past everyone.

It felt so soft and comfortable, as if it was the breath of spring awakening, and people closed their eyes as if they could see the statue of the god in the shrine. At this moment, the god they had summoned had truly descended, and the goddess Mourrin was blessing the people!

Amon wasnt present at this celebration, or rather, he had to appear in a different way. After ascending to the altar, Amon felt a difference. Though it was somewhat embarrassing to be sculpted in that manner onto the altar by Lynk, he could only accept the situation with an open mind.

He could clearly feel peoples thoughts, people making offerings to the god on the altar, and he himself needed not and could not easily show up for real. If he appeared in the square, to whom exactly would people pray and bow? Was this the gods dilemma, Amon pondered.

The city of Salem was huge, it was originally built on a huge island out of the water, and there were even several hills in the city. Various buildings were still being built and were far from finalized. Within the outermost walls of the city, there were fields for farming, and sheep pens and cowsheds for raising livestock in the city.

The so-called outer wall was only a fortification, but the inner wall and various buildings were also planned, and the main body was divided into two parts, east and west. The outer ring had fields within its walls, mainly to prevent the entire city from being besieged for long periods of time, at which time the city would still be able to provide a small amount of fresh rice and meat, while the more extensive fields, farms, pastures and mines were of course still outside the city.

Salem had no problem accommodating tens of thousands of people, but today it is inhabited by only 5,000 people, and new homes are being built everywhere in the city. But in the east of the city, there was an empty space, where the former town of Duc was located. This space had been reserved by Lynk for the arrival of Moses and the Ducians.

This piece of land was very large, the former town of Duc had more than two thousand inhabitants, and now this land belonged to Moses and the other sixty people in the future. Amon had meant for them to build their homes with their own hands, but Lynk ordered materials to be piled up at the edge of the clearing to prepare it for Moses and the others. Amon didnt live in the shrine when he arrived in Salem, so he built two buildings in the clearing with his own hands.

He stood in the clearing and waved his hand, and the stones and timber flew up and were cut using magic before falling onto the ground. Amon closed his eyes and didnt look, he just followed the imprint in his soul to make this small courtyard appear in front of him.

The front yard had a short fence without a door, and through the front yard there was a house with a courtyard behind it. In this courtyard there was a separate room with a stove and an anvil in it. Some things were not built of the building materials of the place, but simply appeared from thin air with Amons gestures, such as a miners sledgehammer.

Gabriel had been standing beside Amon, and she was shocked by what she saw. She still had not known what Amon was truly capable of, but she never expected a supreme warrior to be able to perform such a miraculous feat, standing there and building a house out of thin air. Any ordinary person could build a house, but to witness the process was incredibly magical.

The first thing that was required was the mastery of supreme information magic, which was to close ones eyes and clearly show in ones soul a house that did not exist, as if every brick and tile were real. At the same time, it was also necessary to use supreme spatial magic to condense the information-virtualized house into a real spatial structure, which exists in the mind and at the same time appears in a real open space. At that point of time, the type of magic used would no longer be distinguishable, and after manipulating various materials, the building was completed quickly.

When he had finished, Amon turned and asked: Gabriel, before the Great Flood, you had visited the town of Duc and walked through this courtyard gate many times, do you still remember?

Still in shock, Gabriel took a deep breath and replied: This is where you originally lived and you rebuilt it! I have an impression of having walked through the front door, and the only difference is that this house is now brand new, whereas your original residence was much more dilapidated.

Amon sighed softly. The old house was also brand new when it was first completed. My familys courtyard disappeared with the town of Duc in the Great Flood, and today I have built it again in its original place, as it was newly completed.

The god Amon worshipped by Salem, lived in this courtyard that he had built himself, and slept at night in the low stone house where he had grown up. The day after building his residence, Amon built a small two-storey building in the same manner, and it was exactly the same in relative position to Amons courtyard and in the same design as the small building where Maria had lived. Gabriel recognized it as soon as the foundation appeared in the clearing.

Amon said to Gabriel: This is the place where you once lived when you came to Duc, and this is where you will live for now as well.

Gabriel looked at the small building and remarked: Are you reminiscing?

Amon replied thoughtfully: Maybe it is a memory, maybe it is a new life, maybe it is a discovery in the cycle of lives.

Gabriel asked again: I am shocked that a supreme warrior could possess such amazing skills, in my concept it is truly a miracle that can only be performed by a god, no wonder the people here worship you as the god Amon. I am also curious as to how you did it? Not only are you a ninth-level supreme warrior, you possess power that even surpasses that of a ninth-level supreme mage.

Amon smiled. Many people in the world are just as curious about you. Where does your power come from? If you think this is a miracle before you, then observe this miracle carefully.

Gabriel asked again: I am now your captive. The Adoratrice has commanded in her letter that I protect you, but you are far beyond my reach, so what is there for me to do?

Amon replied: There is only one thing you need to do here. Forget the body arts you once learned and the magic arts you learned after the second awakening of power and try not to think about their differences. See the house I have built? Thats the message Im trying to tell you.

Gabriel was stubborn, but not stupid, and now understood what Amon was trying to instruct her on. Amon was telling her to reawaken the power, to forget the distinctions she had learned and the established prejudices in her mind until she could master its use.

It is not easy to do so, and just as the flood destroyed the town of Duc, Amon rebuilt his house out of thin air, exactly as it was before, but brand new, an incredible and perfect fusion of the soul and the world.

Gabriel wasnt sure if she could do it, but the miracle was there, and Amon had done it. As she walked into the courtyard, Amon gently said: If you can comprehend this power of the origin, dont forget to tell the Adoratrice about your experience in the future when you have the chance.

Amon really did have a purpose in guiding Gabriel to comprehend the power of the origin, and it was to convey the secret to Maria through Gabriel. This was different from the way he instructed all the other disciples, only demonstrating and showing her the miracle as an ordinary person, and telling her how to awaken and realize it. Only by doing this could Gabriel indirectly convey to Mary the clarity of her own experience.

Maria was not Amons disciple, and he would not claim to be a god in front of her, not even the thought of doing so as he knew how devout the Adoratrice was in her faith, but still, he wanted to tell her the secret of becoming a god.

And so, Amon lived in this small town in Salem that had only two buildings, and spent his days working in a workshop in the backyard, building something that nobody knew about, and resting in his hut at night. On the day of the ceremony in Salem, Amon finally left the courtyard and stayed where the shrine of Goddess Mourrin used to be, sitting there quietly, his eyelashes slightly trembling as he moved his eyebrows.

It seemed quiet and silent, but it was as if Amon was in the middle of an ocean with turbulent waves as he felt the summoning power gathered from countless peoples refracted thoughts. This scene he had experienced in Schrdingers soul imprint, and now he was experiencing it personally. Right now, the crowd was summoning him, the god Amon.

It was hard to describe the feeling. Although the body was sitting in the open, the soul seemed to exist in another state, hearing the voices of the multitudes calling to him. When the bells of the shrine rang, Amons soul detached from his body and his five senses and consciousness merged into one. Suddenly, he appeared on that altar, clearly seeing the worshipping crowd.

In this instant, his mind had the consciousness of thousands of people, and an ordinary persons soul would simply be unable to contain and endure, and it was only by surviving the test of unceasing cycle could they do so. Amon was still a little uncomfortable for a moment, the sound of the shrine bells ringing in his ears caused him to go into a trance, and only in the deepest and clearest fixation could he stay awake.

He quietly experienced it all, the eyes on the altar seemed warm and cold and silent, and he finally felt the desires of the crowd uniting his soul, like creating another self standing on top of the altar. The realm of the source of divine power, so that was it!

It took Amon a long time to adjust to his inner feelings, some of which projected the desires of the people. The people had all kinds of prayers, and in the eyes of five thousand people, there might have had five thousand different God Amon, but they did not know where Amon was.

The bells were ringing, and Amon gradually became clear and began to be able to grasp this state. The so-called god could hear prayers, but it couldnt be called a power if it couldnt be controlled, and he needed to be undisturbed, unless something really happened that he deliberately wanted to focus on.

As the desires of countless people were clearly mapped, like birds flying by in a mirror reflection, Amons physical and mental senses merged with the statue, and he suddenly felt a softness and warmth in his arms. He was not holding a cold statue, but the body of Goddess Mourrin this goddess had also descended.

At this moment, Amon, who was sitting on the clearing, suddenly opened his eyes. Gabriel, who was on the far side of the small building, was standing in front of the window watching Amon. The Edge of Order already in her hand as there was a man was walking across the clearing towards Amon. It was not a good time for Amon to be disturbed, and Gabriel was about to jump out and stop the man.

Just then, Gabriel heard Amons voice in her ears: No need to block him, let him come to me. I know this man, he should be looking for me for something.

While secretly instructing Gabriel, Amon had already stood up and greeted him: Ninos, how did you end up here, are you here to find me? Where are the others with you?

The visitor was of medium stature, his round face slightly chubby and always smiling. His head was shaved when Amon last saw him, and now he had grown a finger length of short hair. Amon immediately recognized that this person was Ninos who had appeared with Amitabha, Vimalakirti, Maitreya, Manjushri, and Ksitigarbha back in the desert.

The man gave a strange salute, and clasped his hands together in front of his chest. Nodding slightly, he said: I have listened to the wonderful teachings of the Revered One, and have traveled around the continent to increase my knowledge. The city of Salem is a miracle that has appeared in the wilderness, and I have come to visit this miracle.

Amon smiled. There is a celebration ceremony in the city today, and if you have come for the sake of insight, you should be watching the excitement in the shrine square. Why have you come to this uninhabited clearing instead?

Ninos replied: I saw the statue on the altar, the same one I met in the desert, and you yourself did not appear in the square, so I thought it must be somewhere in the city, most likely somewhere secluded, like here. So I came, and indeed I saw you. Shall I call you Sir Amon or God Amon?

Amon: Call me whichever way you want, just dont get my name wrong. Is there something that you want from me?

Ninos: Just a few questions. I saw God Amon at the altar and now I meet you here, which one is Amon? The people kneeling in the square saw the statue, can they really see you? When they see you, are you the god they think of?

Instead of answering, Amon asked rhetorically, What insights do you have regarding this?

Ninos bowed again with a clasped hands. Cant really call it insight, just wanted to say thank you. From the wonderful teachings passed down by the Revered One, I was enlightened from what I saw today.

Amon: Oh, what is your thought?

Ninos: Before the altar, every believer sees what they believe, your image is what they wish; here and now I see you, walking on the earth as you are, like a normal person. If I did not witness it with my own eyes, it would be difficult to understand after all.

Amon chuckled. Interesting, very interesting! Your words are also very enlightening to me.

Ninos added: There is both enlightenment and doubt, and the Revered One once said, The real Body of Truth of the Buddha is not to be observed, not in the present, not to be touched, not arising, not ceasing. It has also been said, If one claims he saw me in real presence, or requested me over real conversation, he must have been in the wrong path, what he met with was not the Buddha and he will not. The people who are praying in the square at this moment are making offerings to you with their voices; is it you they see? If so and if not so, where are you?

Amons brow furrowed and replied with a wink: I am not the Amitabha that you follow, so you may be asking the wrong person, but the people in the square are receiving guidance from their inner beliefs. I am not sure where you have come from, let alone where Amitabha has gone, but he must have experienced this as well to say something like that. I have not yet become a free and eternal god, and you are not asking me for an answer, but just to get me to think about that as well?

Ninos nodded. Yes, I just wanted to ask you to think about what people want with their voices and what you want, and to think about why the Giant Lion went after Manjushri.

Amon suddenly realized. So youre trying to guide and persuade me to make the same choice as Ugallu! Can I ask you a question, have you passed the test of unceasing cycle?

Ninos was startled before replying: Unfortunately, I have yet to pass the sea of suffering.

Amon smiled a bitter smile. So you were just having an empty conversation with me?

Ninos replied squarely: Cant really say that, its just a matter of comprehending first and then proving it, seeing the path on the mountain before arriving at the peak.

Amon stretched out his hand and patted him on the shoulder. Since you see the path, you can go ahead. I have my own quest. I know you want to guide me. Even your Revered One has not yet spoken, but you have this idea and specifically found me in Salem to say this.

Ninos: The Infinite Light shines in every direction. I am only carrying out my wish.

Amon smiled and said: Anyway, I must thank you. I have gained something from listening to you, and I am sure you have gained something as well. It is a pity that I cannot entertain you now, as I have business to attend to at the moment. But I invite you to walk around in this city and see more. One last thing I will tell you, you have come over from the square before the new shrine. In fact, where we are standing at this moment is where the shrine of Mourrin in the original town of Duc is located. Can you tell me exactly where this goddess is?

With a wave of his hand, Amon sends Ninos far away with spatial magic. The lights and shadows shift, and Ninos appears again at the edge of the new square where everyone is gathered. Amon didnt mind talking with him for a while, but he really had something to attend to. Because his goddess indeed arrived, and Ninos hadnt seen her.