The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　Because he had not truly entered the temple, he was unaware of it.

　The number of "divine bodies" discovered by the investigation team deep within the temple far exceeded his expectations.

　Most importantly, some of those "divine bodies" are clearly identical in appearance to the ice statues in the hall.

　The "resurrection" of the ice statue can even have a hidden effect on the corresponding "divine body".

　Although the investigation is still ongoing, it is certain that the ice statues in the temple are strongly related to the "divine body".

　Something extremely mysterious must have happened within this temple. Although the newly discovered temple consciousness entities are fragmented and inconsistent, their auras are basically the same, suggesting that they are different fragments of the same consciousness entity.

　Furthermore, the possibility that the consciousness was the "Snow Mountain Goddess" has been largely ruled out.

　At best, it can only be the consciousness of this "Snow Mountain Goddess Temple," an existence akin to the "spirit" of a divine artifact.

　For some unknown reason, it was also shattered into pieces, and only recently has it begun to show signs of awakening. The more he learns about it, the more curious Dark becomes about this "Snow Mountain Goddess Temple".

　He quickly suppressed his curiosity and recounted what he knew about the people who had been invited by the twelve gods.

　Because there were so many people who received invitations, and their backgrounds were so diverse, the maids' nervousness gradually dissipated.

　Claire almost burst out laughing.

　I felt somewhat embarrassed about the fact that I received an invitation along with "some other people".

　She thought about it and realized that since the person who invited her was Artemis, the "Goddess of the Hunt" who issued invitations in bulk, and Professor Sylph and Professor Medea were also invited by Artemis, then it was probably none of her business.

　Then she received a reminder from Dark, and she also received an invitation from Athena, the goddess of war and wisdom.

　Being invited by the "Goddess of War and Wisdom" may not necessarily make one the center of attention.

　But if you're invited by two gods at the same time, you'll become the center of attention even if you weren't!

　If seating arrangements during a tea party are determined by who invited the guests, then things will be even more chaotic.

　Should she sit on the side of the "Goddess of the Hunt" or the side of the "Goddess of War and Wisdom"?

　“Yes, that is indeed the problem,” Arvit said thoughtfully.

　After all, she also received two invitations.

　Moreover, another one comes from Ares, the "god of war" in mythology, who is known for his bad temper.

　"I originally planned to take this opportunity to reforge all the 'Golden Armor' I had on hand. Now, not only do I have to attend some lousy tea party, but I also have to let those countless fragments of temple consciousness, which have awakened, ferment within the temple for at least three days..."

　She was clearly unhappy too.

　However, at the same time, she had another concern.

　That is, among the maids of the "Zodiac", there are just too many people who have received invitations to the tea party!

　Although receiving an invitation to the Heavenly God Tea Party is itself a kind of "recognition" of the maids' talents and abilities.

　However, this is not entirely a good thing for the faction itself.

　Even Alvitt couldn't guarantee the absolute loyalty of her maids. Under such circumstances, it was perfectly normal for someone to want to switch allegiances.

　—Don't deliberately place gold nuggets in front of a subordinate to test their loyalty.

　That makes no sense.

　If it were only one or two, Arvit would even send her her sincerest blessings with a sense of relief and anticipation.

　But as I said before, the quantity is simply too large.

　If so many maids in important positions were to be involved in an incident at the same time, it would be a severe blow to the power structure of the Duke's mansion.

Chapter 1671 Happy New Year! Tea Party Invitation! (4k)

　In addition to the maids who have already made a name for themselves, there were also some promising young maids who received invitations to the tea party this time.

　If this doesn't prove that the Duke's maids have been targeted by the gods, then what else could it prove?

　Arvit was indignant at the so-called "god" that her maid had guessed.

　However, due to the circumstances, the revenge he had envisioned could only be left for the future after he became a god.

　When they returned to their lodgings from the "Snow Mountain Goddess Temple," it was already 6:40 p.m., leaving only 20 minutes before the 7 p.m. tea party. Although there was still time, it was obvious that all the other invited guests had already arrived.

　"No rush, let's wash up and change first."

　But since we're already late, we might as well be late for good. The main character always makes their appearance last, doesn't he?

　At 7:05 PM on May 14th, Dak, along with Yarvit, Claire, Vigo, Angrey, and Aquinita, a total of six people, gathered outside the camp.

　The cold wind blew, and the snowflakes drifted in the air. The divine aura that filled the wind and snow blocked out external perception.

　The group of six simultaneously took out tea party invitations from the twelve gods, exchanged glances, and then activated them.

　The next second, all six people disappeared at the same time, leaving only a few scattered footprints in the vast white snow-covered mountains.

　heaven.

　"Twelve Movements" Sky Garden.

　When the twelve gods of Poropus rebuilt the heavens, they reconstructed the entire topography of the heavens, making the heavens resemble a miniature continent, encompassing almost all the iconic landforms of the continent.

　If one were to look down upon the Heavenly Court from the highest point, one could easily find unique terrain features such as the "Death Desert," "Dragon Island," and "Northern Snow Mountain." Of course, they wouldn't forget to replicate the "Mountain of the Gods," also known as Mount Porobos.

　Unlike the vast "Mountain of the Gods" in reality, the "Mountain of the Gods" in the "Heavenly Court" is just a mountain with twelve spiral paths.

　However, these twelve spiral paths converge from all directions. Looking down from high above, one can see twelve great paths originating from twelve "divine kingdoms," each symbolizing the divine path of a twelve "heavenly god."

　The twelve "divine kingdoms" are still under construction, and the celestial ecosystem is not yet perfect, but the complete framework can already be seen.

　The twelve "gods" envision building this "heavenly court" into a future "magical kingdom," and the "mountain of gods" located in the center of the "kingdom" will also receive a new name.

　The mages qualified to enter the "Heavenly Court" will depart from the twelve "Divine Kingdoms," undergo the challenges of twelve trials, and finally gather at the summit of the "Mountain of Gods" for the final duel.

　There can only be one winner in this duel.

　He will receive assistance from the entire Shinto ritual at the moment of his final victory, thus gaining the opportunity to challenge for the position of "God of Magic".

　Although success is not guaranteed, the probability is not small.

　Therefore, the entire structure of this "Heavenly Court" was designed to "gather the power of the world".

　Tonight's tea party will be held directly above the summit of "Mountain of the Gods" in the Heavenly Court, in a sky garden tentatively named "Twelve Movements." As expected.

　The entire rooftop garden is divided into twelve circular gathering areas by artificial hills, lakes, flowers, trees, and other elements. In the very center of this circular area is a stage that is "front-facing" no matter which direction you look at it from.

　Those invited to the tea party will be teleported to the area where their respective inviters are located after activating their invitations.

　Dark's invitation came from Apollo, the "God of Light." Therefore, he undoubtedly came to the region where Apollo resided.

　Apollo is the "god of light" and also the "god of art." Therefore, the area where the robe was located was decorated with great artistic expression, and most of the invited guests were well-known artists. They gathered at Yiqitang, playing musical instruments and singing, creating a lively atmosphere.

　So much so that even when a person suddenly appeared in the corner of the venue, no one noticed at all.

　—The situation of becoming the center of attention did not occur.

　Dark felt a little relieved, and then very discreetly walked to a row of paintings, pretending to appreciate them.

　Every painting here is displayed on an easel; some resemble masterpieces from various dynasties, while others are clearly newly painted works.

　By slightly shifting your gaze, you can see several painters nearby, all looking extremely excited. It's as if inspiration has suddenly struck, their brushes flying across the canvas, and they're in peak condition.

　This state of mind, which occurred simultaneously in almost all the artists present, was clearly not normal.

　Darke could tell at a glance that they were influenced by Apollo's divine power.

　Just as the goddess of wisdom can bestow wisdom upon mortals, the goddess of art can also bestow inspiration upon them.

　Under such circumstances, these artists who participate in the tea party may indeed create their masterpieces during the event.

　Unfortunately, Dac did not have a particularly high interest in "art," otherwise he would have felt like he was in paradise.

　After a brief pause of two minutes, Dark turned to look at another area. His eyes immediately met Ergani's.

　……

　Ergane seemed to have been watching him for a long time, but he hadn't noticed at all.

　Dark felt extremely embarrassed, but he didn't show it on his face. He smiled and nodded at Ergany, just as if they were meeting on the street normally.

　But the turmoil within him could no longer be suppressed.

　There is only one possibility for Ergane's appearance here: she was invited by Athena, the goddess of war and wisdom.

　However, within the academy, Ergan showed absolutely no signs of having had contact with Athena.

　"Could it have been during the two days after I left school?" Dark narrowed his eyes slightly, not seeing anything resembling "Athena" in the next area.

　Holding firm to Ergane's side, he did not want to have much contact with Athena, to the point that even Alvitt and Claire chose to accept invitations from two other gods who were not Athena.

　Alvitt chose Ares, the "God of War." Claire chose Artemis, the "Goddess of the Hunt."

　Unexpectedly, Ergane appeared directly at Athena's tea party!

　Although the situation between Ergane and Athena is still unclear, Dark instinctively senses that Alvit and Claire have made the wrong choice.

　"I should have chosen the goddess of war and wisdom!"

　His gaze swept quickly across the room, and then he saw Saraswati sitting at the crystal table, pretending to read a book, looking extremely reserved.

　Very few guests were invited by Athena.

　Including Ergani and Sara, there were fewer than ten in total. Among them, Dark was relatively familiar with two others: Professor Armstrong of the Academy and the "Silent Sage" Bucknacerus.

　Professor Armstrong, one of the inventors of the goblin airship, was highly accomplished academically, so it was no surprise that he was invited by the "Goddess of Wisdom".

　"Silent Sage" Bucknacerus is the developer of the "Silence Card". He is over eighty-five years old and very old. He was once invited by Dark to serve as a teacher of magical elves in the Duke's mansion.

　The remaining five invitees were all elderly people.

　Among them is Cecilia Doyle's grandfather, "The Sage of Reason" Gorogen Doyle, who is said to be a stubborn old man with a very sharp personality, also known as "Dog-Rejected."

　He is now sitting alone at another crystal table, like a lone wolf.

　In addition, Dak also saw that [Lu Tingmo Shou Xiao u, the "Court Magister" who unfortunately lost to Mephis Gram in the World Cup main qualifiers, seems to be out of the game yet.]

　In short, besides the nonchalant Ergane, Sara was the only young person in Athena's camp, so it's no wonder she was so reserved.

　Dark felt increasingly regretful that he hadn't let Alvitt and Claire choose the "Goddess of Wisdom" side.

　He couldn't help but look up into the distance and finally caught a glimpse of Alvitt.

　As soon as the Duke appeared, he was surrounded by the crowd and became the center of attention.

　The number of people invited by Ares, the "God of War," was surprisingly large.

　Besides Jenna, the "Battlefield Saintess" chosen by God as a "Chosen One"

　In addition to Audrey, Ares also invited contemporary Joan of Arc, "The Holy Son" Evan Pearson, "The Twin Paladins" Emily and Albert... as well as several Holy Knights that Dark did not recognize.

　Judging from the list of invitees, Ares, the "God of War," seems determined to stand on the side of the Holy Church.

　This was truly an unexpected surprise, completely unimaginable.

　The Holy Church was utterly rejected by Apollo, the "God of Light," but ultimately found refuge with Ares, the "God of War."

　It remains to be seen whether the situation of the Holy Church will improve as a result.

　However, among the guests invited by Ares, members of the Holy Church actually only made up a small portion.

　In Dak's view, the majority of the members were actually the old guys from the "Hall of Heroes"!

　The "Hall of Heroes" is a mutual aid organization created by a group of war heroes who are independent of the major powers. The representative figure among them is Professor Ryan Harks, the "Hero of the Gun".

　Furthermore, after Ryan Hax became a full professor at St. Marian Academy, many war heroes were invited by the academy to become professors of elective courses.

　Now, within Ares's camp, Dark saw Professor Ryan Hax.

　This can be seen.

　Ares, the "God of War," primarily invites war heroes.

　The reason why Xiu did not invite "Sun Warrior" Suna Montelfali is probably because the blood of giants flows in Montelfali's veins.

　The relationship between Poropus, the twelve gods, and the giants was not good.

　Even if they wouldn't target the existing giants because of this, it wouldn't be out of place for Alvitt, a true war hero, to appear in the camp of Ares, the "God of War."

　In fact, it fits much better than appearing in the camp of the "Goddess of Wisdom".

　Therefore, she became the center of attention the moment she appeared. Even [the utilitarian Janna Jeanne] stood up, holding a wine glass. Wang Dong asked her about Zheng Liu. Because she had been at the snow mountain camp before coming, Aylvit was not dressed in luxurious attire.