Chapter 155: Chapter 10 Sacred Stone
“Very well,”
In the center of the great hall, Zeus nodded. He did not know the thoughts of the God of West Wind, but he felt that his current expression was truly one of heartfelt gratitude.
However, there were still many matters to attend to, so Zeus suppressed the desire to engage in further conversation and signaled for him to step down, then turned to his foster mother.
He was well aware of what he had done, so he had to find another way to appease his powerful foster parents. And after fulfilling his promise to Poseidon, this seemed all the more straightforward.
After all, the ocean was not something that could be lost twice. It would be up to them to decide who would ultimately gain it.
“Noble Ancient Titan God, emblem of the primeval waters, Mother of the Sea, you stood by my side in the most perilous times. Though my Mother Goddess did not come, I still thank you on her behalf for your assistance,” he said.
Though in his heart the status of the deities of the ocean was not yet as great as that of a once-dead goat, Zeus still expressed his utmost gratitude.
“Therefore, to repay your kindness, I, as Divine King, promise that in the future, I will never, like my father before me, take up arms against the sea,” he declared.
“What?”
Thaesis was somewhat surprised, and the gods were all astir. They were unaware that Zeus had already sworn an oath to the Styx River to persuade Poseidon.
In their eyes, the so-called ‘Sea Emperor’ and ‘Hades’ were just semantics, like Cronus had once tacitly allowed his brothers to rule their own domains. But now, Zeus, in his capacity as Divine King, was making a promise that truly amazed them.
“Yes, as Divine King, my word is my bond,” Zeus affirmed.
Nodding, he seized the opportunity to look towards the Goddess of Justice standing beside him.
“My aunt, the revered Lawgiver, overseer of fairness and justice, I also invite you in the name of the Divine King,” he continued.
“I hope you will delineate order for the new Divine Court and make impartial judgments when conflicts arise among the gods.”
Zeus would naturally resolve any contradictions that the Divine King could settle. But when truly vexing issues arose, the presence of the Goddess of Law was equally necessary.
Besides, Zeus had two other reasons in mind. Setting a new order for the Divine Court, although not quite the same as ‘legislation,’ was beneficial to his authority, an emulation of his Heavenly Father’s past actions. And even if Themis did not truly heed his commands, her presence alone was sufficient to enhance the majesty of the Divine Court.
Though she had never truly acted, Zeus could sense that this Goddess, who had seen an immense increase in her origin after ‘legislation,’ possessed a power far from trivial, nearly at the pinnacle of divine might.
“I can agree to this, but on the condition that you do not interfere with my reasonable determination of laws,” Themis said.
Finally, Zeus looked around and took out a stone.
The gaze of all the gods was drawn to it. This was a special stone; it exuded an aura similar to that of the new Divine King. Apart from this, the force of Life was covertly lurking within, flowing like blood.
“A sacred, noble rock, and also the most critical contributor to our cause.”
“It once endured the smelting of the great Sun, the strikes of thunder, and received Mother Earth’s blessing. In the end, it took my place and was swallowed by the former Divine King.”
“Its contributions are beyond doubt, and I am grateful for its kindness, thankful for everything it has done for me.”
This part of history was actually little known; many deities were unclear about how Zeus had managed to escape when Cronus was still in power. But now, with the narration from Zeus himself, they could not help but admire the reclusive former Queen of Gods.
To come up with such a method to deceive the Divine King and have the courage to implement it, she was indeed extraordinary.
“I will place it at Delphi, the sacred place of Mother Earth in the Mortal Realm. It contains the power of the Golden Apple and rightly deserves to be preserved there.”
Standing before the deities, Zeus slowly spoke. His reason for bringing up this matter at this particular time was not truly to commemorate some stone, for Delphi didn’t even have any occupants at the moment; for whom would he place it there?
He was merely using the recounting of the past as a way to hint that Mother Earth not only had blocked the former Divine King for him but had also assisted him on his path to escape.
Of course, at this moment, Zeus was unaware that Gaia had fallen into a brief slumber. He simply wished to eliminate as much as possible the influence of this active Ancient God on current affairs.
Beyond that, before his journey to the Oracle, he intended to remove the statues of the second-generation Divine King and the old gods from that temple, replacing them with his and the new gods of Olympus.
He did not know what significance this held, but it did not prevent him from trying.
“However, Your Majesty, as I understand it, the Oracle of Delphi simultaneously honours three deities.”
At that moment, a deity who had just been rewarded suddenly spoke up.
“The whereabouts of the former Divine King are unknown, and Mother Earth would probably be willing to accept the offering of your sacred artifact, but the creator of the Spirit Realm might not feel the same.”
“Placing your Sacred Stone at Delphi, is it something that should be reconsidered?”
“I know,” nodded Zeus, already having planned for this: “That’s why I intend to go there myself.”
“Some of you might have already felt the world that suddenly connected with the Mortal Realm. Perhaps some have explored it, perhaps not, but I have been there.”
“On this trip to the Oracle of Delphi, I also plan to meet this Ancient God and understand matters related to his domain.”