Only God
Chapter 257 - 220: Please Do Not Serve

Chapter 257: Chapter 220: Please Do Not Serve

In the past, during the papacy of Prophet Disciple Xilan, those prophetic priests held us in contempt and were anxious about us. At the same time, they saw the desolation of the Kagawus Temple and witnessed the Church spread good seeds like a wheat field under God’s glory, welcoming a bountiful harvest in autumn. They envied our flock for finding immortal sustenance from faith—children producing children and grandchildren producing grandchildren.

The priests were loyal to the Prophetic God Kagawus, yet they did not engage in reverent worship, toiling in warfare instead.

They exhaustively sought flaws within our beliefs, dispatching a wise sage—Naya—with a sharp tongue as his sword, to split our Church and tarnish our reputation.

Yet in the end, the sage recognized the true nature of the priests and realized they were enslaved by devils of selfish desires and could no more divide our Church for them than be their pawn.

Over the following decades, they leveled all manner of false and evil accusations against us. Aligned with the new king’s will, they led the people to harbor ugly and blasphemous suspicions against us—keeping witches captive, harvesting livers from the living, incest within families, and various other false and malicious charges.

They tried to force us to admit guilt under duress and to confess to wrongdoing.

However,

The devil of selfish desires could not reign for long; their victory was fleeting as a mirage.

Truth has re-emerged in the world; the blood of the martyrs has flowed through the inscriptions on steles and gradually refracted God’s light.

The terrible persecutions came in waves, and yet, one by one, they were extinguished under the radiance of the Church.

The Heavenly City is descending!

After millennia, only the one true Church stands steadfast in the world, attributing all earthly glory to the divine.

This Church, blessed by God, is the eternal symbol of freedom, solemnity, and purity, the path to the Heavenly City preserved in this world.

The path walked by the Prophet is the path revealed by God.

As time passes, the blood of past persecutions has seeped into the soil, nourishing truth, and all slanders have dissipated into thin air, leaving our Church still standing tall.

The Church has not only triumphed but became the ultimate beacon, with the Pope’s Triple Crown set atop the pinnacle of spirit!

Today, no one dares to slander our faith with the venom of former enemies.

- Herodotus Viro, Persecution History.

...........

...........

The hermit has left.

The debate mentioned in the letter, ending without incident because neither party attended.

Hermit Naya released the two preachers back and no longer impeded the Church’s proselytism.

In the Great Temple, priests looked on at Hermit Naya in front of the Kagawus Divine Statue, both fearful and puzzled; they did not dare to approach or to inquire, only to stand motionless.

Ora hurried across the long corridor of the Great Temple, his Main Priest robes dragging untidily on the ground, a far cry from his usual composure, appearing utterly disheveled and hasty.

He entered the chamber of Kagawus, looked at Hermit Naya, and asked in a low voice:

"Hermit... why... weren’t you to debate with them? Do you have some other plan?"

Naya remained silent, head bowed before the Divine Statue, muttering as though in prayer.

Ora dared not say more, fearing to anger this hermit of Kagawus; he stepped back and exchanged a glance with the priests beside him, wondering what had happened.

As the High Priest, he was originally to visit Queen Isis at the Palace, but a priest came hurrying with the news that the hermit was not going to the debate.

Priests looked at each other, none able to tell High Priest Ora why the hermit would not refute those heathens.

After a prolonged silence, the blind priest slowly walked toward High Priest Ora and whispered in his ear:

"I heard...the hermit was not here last night; he only returned from outside this morning."

High Priest Ora looked at the hermit, stunned.

The hermit, who was supposed to debate with Xilan from the New Rule Garden, who was supposed to defend the faith of Prophetic God Kagawus, had unexpectedly given up on the debate overnight, abandoning the opportunity to spiritually destroy the church.

High Priest Ora could not understand.

What on earth had happened to the hermit?

Wasn’t he the one revealed by Kagawus, didn’t he see the decline of Kagawus’s temple?

The sacrificing nobles no longer came as often as before, the offerings on the altar dwindled, and even the Great Temple lost some of its past glory.

High Priest Ora couldn’t help but ask:

"Hermitt, what exactly are you hesitating about?!"

His words fell in the quiet temple of Kagawus.

The present priests all looked toward High Priest Ora, their faces showing surprise; they hadn’t expected the High Priest to break the current silence. Then, they turned their gaze toward the hermit praying in front of the divine statue, their anxious expressions beyond words, waiting for the hermit’s reply.

The hermit Naya slowly turned his head, his gaze resting on the inquiring High Priest.

Ora’s breath quickened, those eagle-like eyes seemed to penetrate his flesh, directly peering into his weak heart.

The divine statue of Kagawus stood tall in the hall, eyes slightly lowered as if, on behalf of the Prophetic God, observing everything that unfolded before it.

Dressed in a simple grey hemp robe, Naya leaned on a wooden staff with one hand, while the other was held up as if empty, his demeanor making him resemble a sage walking from the woods, holding the invisible revelations of the divine in his upheld hand.

Naya surveyed the temple’s believers, moving slowly, his face showing neither joy nor sorrow, as though he was God’s representative sent to judge each and every servant that served Him.

High Priest Ora couldn’t help but tremble, taking small steps back, while the priests beside him also breathed heavier, not daring to look directly into hermit Naya’s eyes.

They didn’t know wherein they had erred to elicit such an action from the hermit, but they knew they must have done something wrong.

The staff struck the temple’s floor tiles, the dull sound echoing, Naya approached slowly, his shadow elongated by the sunlight.

"How splendid your clothes are."

Naya looked at the group of priests and slowly said:

"How plentiful your needs are, the nobles offer gold, silver, and jewels to the divine statue, and to you as well."

The priests hardly dared to breathe, some silently dumbfounded, while High Priest Ora’s face slowly broke out in a cold sweat.

As the High Priest, Ora was certainly aware of the priests’ corruption and opulence, but even in his high position, he was constantly hampered and utterly unable to cleanse it all.

Moreover, hadn’t he and his family also benefited greatly from it?

The priests, with the hermit’s every step, held their breath in tense anticipation, not daring to meet the hermit’s gaze.

"This is how you serve Kagawus."

Surprisingly, the hermit’s face showed a pleading expression,

"I beseech you, help me with a favor."

With these words uttered, the priests looked at the hermit in disbelief, their feelings akin to witnessing the sun rising from the west.

The High Priest, Ora, swallowed hard and asked tremblingly,

"Hermit, whatever you ask of us, as long as it is within our power... we will do our best to fulfill it."

Only to hear the hermit say,

"I ask you not to serve."

The hermit of the Prophetic God was solitary and proud.

Once the favorite of the heavens among the people,

yet sent by the Prophetic God to Solitary Island.

He who had lived in content with poverty, detesting the rampant desires,

was brought back by Kagawus to the land of Ajia.

His life was one of testimony.

To witness the decline of the Great Temple,

to witness the rise of the Prophetic Son, Antion,

and to witness the growth and martyrdom of the Church.

.........

.........

As things returned to normal, it was now noon. Xilan stood in the New Rule Garden, preaching to a patient congregation of believers.

Stone Slaves, constrained by endless toil, only had a few days of leisure throughout the year, and on other days could only come to the Church in the mornings and evenings. Therefore, those listening to the sermon at the moment were mostly free citizens and three-eyed Ape-man nobles.

"Prophet Disciple, there is a verse here that I truly cannot comprehend."

A three-eyed Ape person approached with a papyrus filled with Scripture and asked,

"’The seed falls on the ground, and not one is lost.’ What does this actually mean, does the seed here refer to all seeds?"

Xilan looked carefully and said directly,

"You’ve copied it incorrectly. The original text is, ’like two grains of wheat fall to the ground, and not a single one is lost.’"

The three-eyed Ape man had a sudden realization. He looked at the stone tablets, then back at the papyrus in his hand, finally understanding it was his own mistake.

He hurried to apologize to Xilan, who waved a dismissive hand, indicating it was of no concern.

The three-eyed Ape man stepped back, slightly embarrassed, while Xilan shifted his gaze to three stone tablets engraved with Holy Scripture. He couldn’t help but ponder whether, in future developments, the original Scripture might be mistaken in repeated copies, giving birth to different interpretations due to varying manuscripts.

However, it was just a thought. Xilan felt there was no need for worry. He was an Elf with nearly four hundred years left to live. Now that the Church had stabilized, there was no rush for anything.

Footsteps came from outside the main hall of the New Rule Garden, causing Xilan to look over. Daniel was approaching.

"Teacher."

Daniel called out as he came forward.

Since his last debate with the hermit Naya, Daniel had asked Xilan to become his mentor, to guide his faith, and Xilan had readily accepted Daniel’s request.

Just as Xilan was a follower of Prophet Noen, so too had Daniel become a follower of Xilan, becoming his disciple.

"What is it, Daniel?"

Xilan asked.

Daniel began,

"I’ve just returned from the Yibia Family, and Casas asked me to tell you that, the King... seems to be more seriously ill than anyone anticipated, and Queen Isis has exhausted all her options with the famed healers."

As he listened, Xilan nodded. Casas was cautioning them that the Kingdom could face significant change at any moment, and the Church would do best not to fan the flames of disaster.

"Let us have our preachers all come back for now. For this month, let us cease preaching everywhere."

After a moment’s thought, Xilan instructed.

Daniel nodded his head, agreeing with Xilan’s decision.

During these sensitive times for the Kingdom, although Kagawus’s priests had temporarily sheathed their claws after the hermit set foot in the New Rule Garden, it did not mean the Church’s situation was completely safe.

After all... the faith in the Prophetic God Kagawus was the most orthodox religion in the entire Kingdom.

Although influenced by Elves thousands of years ago, the Great Temple still contained an altar for the Lord, but it was rarely visited and seldom had nobles offering sacrifices. Thus, the adherence to the Lord in the New Rule Garden was more like that of a foreigner, an outsider.

Xilan was a careful man, abiding by the rules, and he would not take risks that could lead to the Church’s defeat.

"Teacher, there’s one more thing."

As he spoke, Daniel drew out a rather new papyrus and presented it to Xilan.

"What’s this?"

"A messenger gave it to me; it appears to be written by that hermit."

"Let me have a look."

Xilan took the letter from Daniel’s hand and read each word attentively.

After reading from start to finish, his face involuntarily showed surprise.

"Does it say anything?"

Daniel asked.

"A person named Antion... He is the hermit’s disciple, and he will come to the land of Ajia, where he will visit with the hermit."

Xilan roughly summarized the contents of the letter.

"Antion... Isn’t that a name only Elves would take?

I’ve read about him in the Twin Kings Book; he was a companion of King Dertulian."

Daniel said confusedly.

Xilan replied,

"That’s why I find it strange. The hermit’s disciple is named Antion; could he be an Elf? But I’ve never heard of such a thing as an Elf on Solitary Island."

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