Chapter 19: Power in Both Hands

Farra issued his order a little too hastily. Consequently, the preparations were extremely rushed. However, because the territory was not particularly large, Mas and the others still managed to send runners and notify everyone within the remaining half-day.

Farra took Mas to the ritual site he had chosen. It was not far from the river and the fields, and the view was reasonably open. Although it could not hold a thousand people, there was no better place. This would have to do.

“Before sunrise tomorrow, everyone must drop whatever they are doing and gather here.”

After confirming the exact location, Farra gave Mas more detailed instructions and told him to send people to handle the errands. The entire ceremony was not especially complicated. Yet, since it was their first time, Farra had thought it through carefully and designed a complete procedure. Everyone to whom Mas assigned tasks began to work quickly. They slaughtered cattle and sheep and prepared the offerings.

“Lord, do we not need human sacrifices?” Mas asked, trying to commit Farra’s instructions to memory.

“I heard that elsewhere people use human sacrifices, saying the gods prefer them.”

“No need. The Goddess of Plenty we worship is the most benevolent deity, in charge of harvest and farming. She requires no human sacrifice.”

“Yes.” Mas nodded repeatedly. He sensed Farra’s displeasure.

At present, many parts of the Mu Continent were remote and barbaric, still uncivilized and ignorant. This was a chaotic era in which royal authority had not yet been fully established and various divine powers fought for ideological dominance. Because of their loose structure, several kingdoms on the Mu Continent had actually endured for quite a long time. But their time was up.

Farra was unfortunate enough to be born at the end of the previous age. At the same time, he was rather lucky. After all, he had the System. Although the initial activation phase was difficult, it was a snowball effect. The farther he rolled, the easier it would get.

After the notice went out, both commoners and slaves in the territory felt their spirits soar. The three core doctrines Farra decided on were so blunt and simple that everyone understood them at once. Fervor spread across their faces.

They could eat their fill!

What Farra had done before and what he was doing now served as proof of that promise.

“Oh, by the Goddess’s grace, our Lord worships such a great deity!”

“From today on, I will faithfully follow the Goddess of Plenty!”

Some even knelt on the spot, bowing over and over to the empty air.

Many were destined not to sleep that night. Tossing and turning, most got up before dawn the next day and headed for the designated site.

Here, Farra had already ordered the construction of a simple wooden platform. He had wanted to use stone. Unfortunately, there was none, nor could they haul any over. They had to substitute wood for now. The carpenters in the territory worked through the night to put one together. In front of the tall platform were several smaller ones for the sacrificial cattle and sheep.

Having been up all night, Farra watched people feel their way through the darkness. He then turned to Yanis and said, “Keep everyone quiet and check whether anyone still hasn’t arrived.”

“Yes, Lord!” Yanis accepted the order and left.

As everyone gradually quieted down, the atmosphere on site grew more solemn. The darkness on the edges helped set the mood. Soon, Yanis returned. There was not a single person left in the village… whether slave or commoner, everyone had come. Every soul was present.

Standing on the high platform, Farra looked at the sky growing brighter and said in a low voice amid the silence, “The time has come.”

The guards on either side reacted by slamming their spears on the ground three times and then facing Farra.

After pausing to compose himself, Farra finally spoke slowly, “In a dream I was granted audience by the Goddess of Plenty, Demeter. She charged me to speak for her in the mortal realm, to found her church, and to gather her believers…”

The rest of the long speech floated into the crowd’s ears, slow and grave, in Farra’s carefully controlled tone. Those farther back could not hear clearly. Still, the atmosphere descended upon them.

When the lengthy address ended, Farra faced the dawn’s faint light and entered the next Tier-1 stage.

“Kneel.”

Mas, Yanis, Axi, and the others in front dropped to their knees together. Those behind caught on immediately and knelt as well… first the territory’s high officials (though the concept of officials did not yet truly exist), then their errand-running subordinates, followed by the commoners, and finally the slaves. From front to rear, everyone knelt devoutly.

Farra turned around, stretched out his arms, and loudly recited the hymn he had improvised. After finishing, he announced the main points:

“From this day forth, I shall act in the Goddess’s stead to build her faith in the mortal world, establish the Church of the Goddess of Plenty, spread the divine teachings, proclaim the divine doctrine, and unify the divine faith. From today on, every resident of my domain must believe in the Church of the Goddess of Plenty and become a follower of the Goddess. Otherwise they shall not receive her pity or blessing, nor may they eat grain from this land. “Whoever believes in the Goddess shall receive her protection and henceforth be free from hunger and worry over food… “Whoever believes in the Goddess must show absolute loyalty to Farra Jago, forever follow the divine messenger, and obey the commands of the Divine Envoy! “Whoever disobeys shall lose the Goddess’s protection and be put to death!”

When Farra’s words fell, Mas was the first to shout, “By the Goddess above! I shall forever believe in the Goddess and follow Jago!”

Hearing him, the people behind immediately called out, “By the Goddess above! I shall forever believe in the Goddess and follow Jago!”

Layer by layer, the slogan grew shorter and simpler, yet it carried tremendous strength:

“Believe in the Goddess! Follow Jago!”

“Believe in the Goddess! Follow Jago!!”

The unified chant pleased Farra greatly. After the crowd had shouted for quite a while, he raised his hand to signal for silence.

“Mas, cook the offerings, cut them into small pieces, and eat this meat. From today on, you are all believers of the Goddess!”

“Yes!”

Mas rose at once and sent people to work. On site they cut the meat, boiled water, cooked the beef and pork, then cut them into countless tiny pieces again. The pieces were distributed. Everyone who attended received one. They could not help shouting again in excitement, “By the Goddess above! By Jago above!!”

“What kind of church is this, amazing!”

“Why didn’t I know sooner?!”

Quite a few even burst into tears.

Seeing this, Farra glanced at the fully risen sun and prepared to descend. Just then several System achievement prompts popped up before his eyes again:

「Achievement: Faith Domination!」

「Reward: 10 Resource points.」

「Achievement: Union of Church and State!」

「Reward: 50 Resource points.」

「Achievement: Power in Both Hands!」

「Reward: Papal Authority (Passive)」

Farra glanced at the two skills in his panel’s skill list and flashed a faint smile. “Interesting.”

Intimidating Presence (Passive) description: 1. When someone sees you, perform a Spirit Power check. For unfamiliar or hostile targets whose Spirit Power is lower than yours, they suffer suppression, making them more prone to fear, submission, and obedience. 2. On friendly targets, the effect turns their feelings into worship.

Papal Authority (Passive) description: 1. For unfamiliar targets, perform a Spirit Power check; those whose Spirit Power is lower than yours are more easily persuaded to join the faith. 2. The loyalty of all Church of the Goddess of Plenty believers increases by 1 point each month toward the Pope. 3. Once a believer’s loyalty exceeds 70, it will never drop below 70 again.