Only God
Chapter 237 - 203 Preacher

Chapter 237: Chapter 203 Preacher

Beyond the Holy Land, one oar-sail ship after another crossed the sea, countless people gazing at the distant mountains, the place where God once set foot.

When the elves set foot on land, they immediately burst into tears of excitement, embracing each other, kissing the ground or the trees. Excited shouts and devout prayers erupted everywhere, people shouting Prophet Noen’s name, praising the greatness of God.

Countless elves looked up at the mountains, singing songs of praise. Priests paved the path to the Holy Land with petals and splashed clean water, welcoming wave after wave of pilgrims.

In the procession of pilgrims, at the very front and the very end were the processions of the two kings of the Kingdom, at the very front was one of the Twin Kings of the Nus Kingdom: the old King Cui’er, holding the Unihorn Staff inherited from King Yarlessto, wearing a crown on his head, yet dressed in simple hemp cloth, representing absolute humility to God.

Old King Cui’er walked step by step towards the Holy Mountain, the High Priest and Xilan at the foot of the mountain welcoming the aged king.

When Cui’er approached the High Priest and Xilan, he performed a ritual bow.

Then, he looked towards Xilan and said softly,

"Xilan, follower of the Prophet, please join me in making sacrifices on the mountain."

Xilan nodded heavily, then subconsciously walked behind old King Cui’er.

"No, please stand in front of me,

You are a follower of the Prophet, you are the person closest to the Prophet.

You are far more qualified than I to make offerings to the supreme God."

Old King Cui’er said devoutly, stepping back and handing the offerings he was holding to Xilan.

Xilan, a bit nervous, took a deep breath and without objection, went in front, stepping onto the first step of the climb.

The majestic and towering mountain captured his view, the trembling of faith burst forth at that moment, and the sense of sacredness flowed in his blood.

Xilan slowly ascended the mountain, old King Cui’er following behind, they stepped higher, the steps covered in dew-soaked petals.

They reached the ancient altar on the mountain, the mural of Prophet Al there was extremely ancient, exuding solemn greatness.

Soon, there would be a new mural, alongside Prophet Al’s mural, celebrated and revered by thousands.

Xilan arrived before the ancient altar, offered the offerings, and afterwards, old King Cui’er knelt down and quietly chanted a prayer.

It seemed as though old King Cui’er was not a king, but a servant of God.

Xilan also knelt down and prayed quietly.

Soon after, old King Cui’er stood up, holding the scepter, looking at the stone tablets standing on both sides of the altar, blessing Xilan:

"Xilan,

You are a follower of the Prophet,

Merely witnessing the Prophet’s deeds has destined your name to be immortal."

Xilan softly said,

"My King, I really haven’t done much, I... perhaps can’t bear such praise."

Old King Cui’er turned his head and looked kindly into the young man’s eyes,

"No, Xilan,

Everything you have done is enough to glorify the entire Kingdom."

"Xilan, follower of the Prophet,

Now, what reward do you wish for? Do you have any desires?"

Upon hearing this, Xilan inwardly murmured:

"What kind of reward do I want, what desires do I have..."

Bewilderingly, Xilan felt lost.

Witnessing the Prophet’s story, this great mission assigned by his people was completed, and for a moment, he could not find any rewards he wanted, nor did he have any desires in his heart.

"I... I don’t know."

............

The Nus Kingdom held a grand celebration, celebrating the covenant between God and man, celebrating the Prophet’s story.

The lights of thousands of homes shone all night, everywhere singing the Prophet’s stories, people devoutly chanting the words of the Prophet recorded by Xilan, and compiling new epics, singing new songs for him.

However, amid this grand celebration, Xilan could not immerse himself in it, he saw his own confusion.

While people were praising and celebrating the Prophet, they also cheered for Xilan, singing praises for this man from Logos, glorifying him for witnessing the Prophet’s deeds.

Xilan felt that he couldn’t bear this glory.

The shrewd old King Cui’er noticed all this.

At night, he summoned Xilan in front of the throne room, asking him why he was so troubled.

"Xilan, you are a witness of the Prophet, why are you so troubled?"

"My King, when I set off on my return journey, I thought I would be indescribably excited, but now, I cannot find traces of excitement."

Hearing this, old King Cui’er was puzzled and said:

"You deserve all this, Xilan, you should feel honored."

Xilan just shook his head.

In the heart of an elf,

There was no glory,

Only emptiness after fulfilling the mission.

"So... what will actually bring you honor? What can I do for you?"

Old King Cui’er’s voice was patient and sincere.

His tone, heard by the outside world, would certainly astonish other races.

Because this did not seem like the king seen by other races.

But the reason the people of Logos behaved this way was because, since the reforms of King Dertulian thousands of years ago, the royal authority had been greatly checked, along with living in a secluded land, the title of king, rather than noble, was more like a responsibility.

Xilan sighed, and from the palace’s open door, he gazed into the distance.

His gaze as if traversed a long distance, landing in the New Rule Garden established by the Prophet.

Xilan paused, he thought of something, that confused heart seeming to find a direction.

"My King,

I wish to return to the Land of Ajia.

People say I am a follower of the Prophet,

Maybe...

"Following the Prophet is the mission of my life."

His hands slowly clenched,

"I hope

that more people will follow the Prophet, becoming followers of the Prophet,

I want them to know that the Kingdom of God will descend, and our story, along with God’s grace, will be eternally remembered."

Xilan slowly turned around,

"Until one day, I will bear that glory without any shame.

When people mention my name, they will remember that I once followed the Prophet."

Old King Cui’er looked at the young man, the fog of confusion slowly clearing from his gaze.

Thus, the King spoke:

"Go forth, Xilan,

you are a follower of the Prophet,

you will always be a follower of the Prophet."

............

Several days later, Xilan left the Nus Kingdom.

This departure, except for the Stone Slave and the Twin Kings of Nus who had originally accompanied him to the Ancient Kingdom, was unknown to anyone.

He did not wish to disturb anyone, he left by night.

Xilan was to return to the New Rule Garden, to follow in the Prophet’s footsteps.

Compared to the Prophet who walked the earth embodying God’s will, achieving the mission God had bestowed, Xilan felt, he could not compare himself to the Prophet.

But what of it?

He might not create a pathway to God like the Prophet, but he could lead more people onto this path, regardless of their wealth or status.

"I am a Preacher."

In the desert, Xilan lay on the ground, looking up at the stars filled with longing,

"I am the lamp that guides the way."

Then, he clasped his hands together, silently praying in his heart.

God, look upon me.

Lend me your helping hand, lead me to guide more people.

......

About forty days and nights later, Xilan and his companions crossed the desert and returned to Ajia Royal City.

Casas, influenced by Noen, had come to regard Xilan as his friend and welcomed him.

Xilan did not indulge in the celebrations prepared by Casas; on the second day of his return to Ajia Royal City, he hurried to the New Rule Garden.

Over the past month, the New Rule Garden had been leaderless due to the loss of Noen, and people always needed a leader. Xilan, who followed the Prophet day and night, naturally became the object of the followers’ veneration.

Xilan stood in the New Rule Garden, touching the three stone pillars, two of which were named "Book of Kings and Prophets" and "Twin Kings Book." The newly erected one, named after discussion by the Twin Kings and the priests of the New Rule Garden, was called "Second Prophet Book."

Xilan gazed at the inscriptions, as though drawing spiritual support from them.

The descriptions on them were all from the words he had written night after night on papyrus.

Originally simple texts had become a Holy Scripture guiding people to the Heavenly City because they recorded the deeds of Prophet Noen.

What a miracle!

Xilan slowly turned around, his hand resting on the stone pillar, proclaiming to the crowd:

"We are followers of the Prophet, we are the ones headed for the Heavenly City,"

"Any person willing to recite these three scriptures, anyone wishing for salvation through this place,

we cannot refuse, we cannot evade."

"Because that is what the Prophet did, because the Prophet acted according to God’s will!"

As the proclamation ended, believers who were kneeling and praying showed an expectant gleam in their eyes—they all believed in the Prophet’s story and even witnessed the Prophet’s deeds.

They yearned to spread the Prophet’s story, along with other myths from the two historical books, throughout the land of Ajia.

............

Under Xilan’s leadership, the New Rule Garden began to focus all its efforts on helping those in need, leading those who were poor or in misery to the three stone pillars.

Before, except for the initial few days when the first Prophet spread the Ancient Language, the increase in believers was slow and steady, not suddenly flooding in many people.

But now it was different; with the widespread dissemination of the Prophet’s story, the number of believers increased rapidly, much to Xilan’s surprise.

Following the "Second Prophet Book," Xilan began to preach to the believers. To avoid errors, in most instances, Xilan adhered strictly to using the exact words of the Prophet, not daring to add a single word.

Compared to Prophet Noen, Xilan was a man who adhered to traditions.

And as a preacher who followed the Prophet, adhering to traditions was not a mistake.

Xilan believed that the very essence of the Prophet’s story already carried sufficient weight, and any arbitrary modification would be merely a manipulation of cleverness.

And everything developed very smoothly.

The Ancient Language, assistance, the Prophet’s story — these three elements, as the sharp tools of preaching in the New Rule Garden, brought unimaginable impact through their spread from one to ten, ten to a hundred.

Initially, the converts were mainly struggling Stone Slaves.

Prophet Noen himself was a lowly Stone Slave, yet he was so revered. In that great story, a new idea was proclaimed.

This idea became the core of the entire New Rule Garden. Its allure led group after group of Stone Slaves, like moths to a flame, to converge beneath the three stone pillars.

That idea was:

To embark on the path of Prophet Noen, to follow the trails of the Prophet, everyone, irrespective of origin, gender, or wealth, could walk the path towards the Divine Kingdom.

In the temples worshiping Kagawus, Stone Slaves were treated as filthy Three-eyed Ape People and discriminated against, not allowed to enter the temples alone, nor touch the Divine Statues, even those who had become freedmen.

But in the New Rule Garden, such restrictions did not exist.

More and more Stone Slaves, during their free time from work, came to the New Rule Garden to pray, and those few nobles converted to the faith, influenced by the long-standing atmosphere of the New Rule Garden, began to treat the lowly Stone Slaves more equally.

But beneath this flourishing facade.

Xilan, as the head of the New Rule Garden, sensed an emerging threat.

It was a threat unknown in the time of the Prophet, and if not addressed, it could destroy this place of unified faith.