The black sun hangs high

Chapter 177 Do you believe in God?

“We are the lucky ones, the despicable opportunists and survivors, and also the lowly beings who bear countless sins and live a life of ignominy under stolen power.”

Hughes was not particularly surprised by Herbert Galton's words.

There is a significant difference between the core members of the Black Sun Society and the peripheral ordinary members who merely worship and believe in traces of lost gods. As mages and scholars who truly understand and study ancient gods, they have a much deeper understanding of lost magic and the true definition of lost gods than ordinary people or even ordinary mages.

Once people gain an understanding of this, they will inevitably begin to question the very concept of the existence of human groups.

"In present-day Vaan, humanity seems to have gained an absolute advantage, but is that really the case?"

Herbert's speech was not only directed at Hughes, but also at everyone in the banquet hall: "What is the difference between human society, human nation, and us individuals? In my opinion, there is no difference."

"In that era ruled by countless real gods, everything operated around the most basic and genuine rules. Civilizations, nations, tribes—everything we could think of and understand had to constantly adapt to the rules of the world itself and continuously change!"

“Mr. Hugh has already seen the ruins left by the Earth Society in the underground of the Leland District. However, the power and influence of Mother Earth are only a microcosm of the past.”

Hugh listened attentively to Herbert's words, then asked, "So, Mr. Herbert means that once any civilization or race stagnates, it will inevitably be rejected by the god it believes in and become food and sacrifice for followers of other faiths?"

"exactly."

Herbert approvingly replied to Hughes: “The victors should be close to the gods, while those inferior beings should be eliminated by the rules and become nourishment for the advancement of other races, or sacrifices to win the favor of the gods.”

He raised his hand: "It is a tragedy to allow a race that blindly believes in false gods and lacks the motivation to move forward to become the master of the world... Development under flawed theories and structures is destined to be incomplete, and what we need to do is to bring truth and the great beings who have truly established the rules back to Vaan."

As Herbert spoke, the massive magical sculpture standing at the back of the hall began to flicker, and the black sun floating above it began to emit a cold, dark light. Under its illumination, the gods of Vaan who had been killed and punished appeared even more miserable, and the goddess Mel, who was the most important "criminal" with black chains piercing her body and limbs, appeared even more helpless and desolate.

Then Hughes raised his hand and pointed to the sculpture: “Since I came here, I have been thinking about the meaning of this sculpture… Now it seems that the Society believes that the current Vain gods have ‘stole’ the power and authority of the ancient gods you speak of and have become ‘false’ worshipped?”

Herbert nodded: "Although Mr. Hugh's conjecture is slightly off, it is generally correct."

"Deviation? What deviation?"

So Krzlov, the head of the "Society for the Discovery of Truth," stood up. As an expert in this field, he took over Herbert's words and replied to Hugh: "Because in our world, there are no so-called gods of Brahma. They are just useless images fabricated by the lowly creatures on earth based on their own ignorance, selfishness, and various needs."

If Kizlov had said these words elsewhere, he would have immediately been attacked. You see, even the highland ogres have their own gods and beliefs, but now, in Kizlov's words, the fundamental meaning of these beliefs has been negated and erased with a casual gesture.

Then, Krzlov said, "I have personally witnessed countless traces left by true gods, and I have seen the truths they revealed in those traces. The more I see, the more I realize that Vaan is now rushing down a completely wrong path..."

"Just like the war we are currently experiencing, the desires of the rulers are uncontrollable. The lies they weave make the common people fanatical and blind. They kill each other indiscriminately, but in fact, this has no way to bring about any real change or development."

The gloom on Krzlov's face deepened. He turned slightly and pointed upwards at the top of the massive sculpture: "And the one who caused all this, and led Vaan down the wrong path, was the traitor of the past!"

Hughes looked in the direction of his finger and saw that Krzlov was pointing at the goddess of magic, Mel.

At this moment, his bold guesses seemed to be confirmed. At the same time, the Ernst family wills existing in Hugh's spiritual world fell into a long silence due to anger and shock.

Any believer in the goddess of magic, Mel, would likely find it impossible to accept such words.

However, Hugh was quite different from almost everyone else in Vain.

He didn't have much affection or faith in these gods. Even though he was now a military mage in the Kingdom of Votel and a member of the council, he didn't feel much for the Highland Giant Eagle or the Goddess Mel. Therefore, no matter what Krzlov and Herbert said, his emotions were very limited.

At most, it was just that his bold guesses had been confirmed, which made his heart race a little.

"So, you all mean that the goddess Mel, who is widely worshipped by the residents of Vain, is actually a member of the ancient era you mentioned? It's just that in the end, this goddess of magic betrayed the ancient gods?"

Herbert nodded: "To be precise, she stole a portion of the power and authority of the ancient gods, destroyed the rules established by the gods, and permanently isolated Vaan from the gods' sight."

"So what the Society needs to do now is to bring Vaan back under the watchful eyes of the true gods?"

"Yes, and the black sun we are pursuing is that most important 'eye'."

After listening to Herbert and Kezlov's words, Shug stood silently in thought for a while, then asked, "So next, what I want to ask is... since the city of Seren, I have noticed that the Society seems to be acting in accordance with a series of prophecies. I want to know, what is the origin of these prophecies? And how are I described in those prophecies?"

Upon hearing this question, the believer with curly hair and dark skin, known as the "Messenger of a Thousand Faces," stood up from his seat.

His name was "Murnabi," which seems to be a name from some Eastern region, matching his physical characteristics.

“The followers of the Messenger of a Thousand Faces are prophets within the Society. We have received the Messenger’s favor, and thus are able to obtain the messages conveyed by the Messenger through rituals… Sometimes it is a sound, sometimes a picture, and sometimes unfathomable verses.” Mullab’s Common Tongue accent was slightly strange, but Hugh could still hear him clearly. The prophet said, “Mr. Hugh Ernst, your first appearance in the prophecy was twenty years ago, at a Society gathering, where everyone saw the verses conveyed by the Messenger.”

The prophet Murnabi's face turned solemn. He placed his hands in front of him, and at that moment, a magical light and shadow similar to that of the Messenger in the Mirror appeared on his face.

Then, he softly recited the prophecy.

"Born in the cold winter are humble outcasts."

"The blood of rebellion is born from this."

"The black sun is thus stirred, and the music of the abyss is played because of it."

"He will be the destroyer of the crown, he will be the trampler of the nobility."

"He will also become the banisher of the gods."

Mullabbi's voice seemed to possess a special magic; when he recited these words, even the usually gloomy-faced Kezlov showed deep piety and respect.

Hugh Ernst quietly absorbed these prophecies into his mind, but as he pondered their specific meanings, Mullaby suddenly said, "Here, I hope Mr. Hugh Ernst can answer one of my questions directly: Do you... believe in the gods of Brahman?"

Hugh stared at Mullaby and retorted, "Does that matter?"

So Mullabbi replied: “For thousands of years, the ‘Messenger with a Thousand Faces’ has been the only ancient being with whom the society has truly made contact. He responds to our prayers, accepts our sacrifices, and is able to help the society to deliver messages to the ancient gods in a limited way.”

“Murnabi’s teacher, who was also the Society’s previous prophet, offered his own life as a sacrifice to the ‘Messenger of a Thousand Faces’ and offered his prayers.”

Herbert added at this moment: "He prayed to the 'messenger' that the ancient gods could bring the society a truly important messenger, unaffected by the gods of Vaan and different from everyone else in the world, and that this messenger would become the key to Vaan's change."

As Herbert uttered those words, Hugh felt his metal disc begin to spin noticeably faster—danger seemed to be approaching.

Hugh saw the second-in-command of the Black Sun Society take a step toward him, and then a terrifying sense of oppression far exceeding that of ordinary lake-level and valley-level mages emanated from him.

As if receiving an important signal, all the members of the Black Sun Society in the banquet hall stood up from their seats at the same time. As the mage members raised their hands, all the chairs placed in the hall were magically moved to both sides.

Immediately following, with the construction of intricate magical runes, the blasphemous magical sculpture that had been standing at the back of the hall was forcibly moved to the very center of the banquet hall. At this moment, the mountain-like statue became even taller, more detailed, and clearer.

Under some kind of magical ritual and the infusion of a large amount of magic power, the remains of the Vaan gods that piled up into this small mountain actually had vivid colors. Hugh could see the wrinkles on the face of the sea god who was pressed at the bottom, the veins that bulged on the god of money who had suffered the pain of having his limbs severed, and the blood that flowed from the other gods who had suffered different degrees of torture.

At the top of these remains, the goddess Mel, who was pierced and bound by chains as a traitor to the ancient gods, also revealed her true form.

This was indeed a very beautiful goddess with a face full of compassion and love. She lowered her head, and tears, representing helplessness or pain, dripped from her eyes. The pale blue veil draped over her was now heavy with blood.

Herbert stood beside the colossal sculpture, and as he opened his palm, magic immediately formed an extremely complex model in his hand. Based on his recent studies, Hughes deduced that this model seemed to share striking similarities with the infamous "Spiritual Interrogation."

“Mr. Hugh Ernst, please come here.”

Herbert pointed to the front of the sculpture, and under the watchful eyes of the twenty or so important members of the Black Sun Society, Hugh slowly walked to the designated spot.

At this moment, he was fully prepared to deal with the attack.

If he were an ordinary Stream-level mage, he would have absolutely no chance of escaping from the encirclement of so many powerful enemies. However, judging from the rotation speed of the metal disc and the excited reactions of the Mirror Messenger, the Running Rat, and other disc residents, Hughes believed that he was not without a chance in the face of his current predicament.

Seeing that Hugh was in place, Herbert said, "Don't worry, Mr. Hugh... Although the principle of this ritual is similar to Merlinler's spiritual interrogation, it will not offend your mind or harm your body... We just want to know your true thoughts and answers to certain questions."

Hughes nodded: "Then please ask your questions."

The entire banquet hall fell silent instantly. Everyone held their breath and waited quietly for Herbert's question and Hugh's answer.

“Mr. Hugh Ernst, we would like to know if you have faith in the current gods of Vaan?”

As Herbert asked his question, the black sun above the giant sculpture gradually brightened, its cold light shining down on Hugh, completely enveloping his body, and at the same time connecting with the magical model in Herbert's hand.

The rotational speed of the metal disk was further increased.

Hugh steadied his breathing, then replied in his usual calm tone, "I can assure you that I have never believed in any god, neither now nor in the past... I don't even believe in the existence of gods."

(End of this chapter)