Chapter 166 Faith (Second update please subscribe)
Neither Zuo Si nor Jaheira made any announcement about the discovery of Talona Altar in the ruins of Tessel Castle.
Because rashly announcing this information without identifying the enemy will only cause unnecessary panic and commotion.
After all, most ordinary people have awe and fear of Talona, the goddess of poison and disease.
Afraid that her priests and believers would spread the plague around them, causing large numbers of people around them to become sick, and then die in pain and despair.
However, just because there is no announcement, does not mean that nothing happened.
Jahira used the druid's ability to place a large number of birds, mice, squirrels, rabbits, snakes and other small animals around, closely monitoring everything that happened around her.
Zuo Si also ordered the Shadow Legion to use its powerful shadow hiding ability to turn the entire area centered on the caravan within a radius of five kilometers into a "forbidden zone."
As long as a humanoid creature approaches, he will know it immediately.
Not only that!
Zuo Si also personally tested the water and food sources to ensure that they were not poisoned.
After all, he himself is very good at doing this kind of thing. If he was poisoned by others, it would be a big deal in the world.
Under this operation of tightening inside and loosening outside, night fell quickly.
After dinner, the slaves who had been traveling all day lay down near the carriages they were in charge of, closed their eyes and began to rest.
Those who were not sleepy yet gathered around the campfire in twos and threes, imagining the wonderful life of freedom after arriving in Amn.
To outsiders who don't know the real situation, Amn looks like a country of miracles.
Although its name is an empire, it does not have a supreme monarch. It is more like a country ruled by a huge business alliance.
Even noble titles can be purchased with money, instead of relying on ancient bloodlines and family inheritance like other places.
Whether you were a lowly beggar or a slave, here you have the possibility to transcend class, change your destiny and become a superior person.
The most important thing is that this country is so rich, it can even be called the richest country in Faerûn.
It is often heard that a poor person came to Amn and quickly made a lot of wealth through doing business, thus becoming a member of the upper class.
However, these slaves with dreams do not know that Amn is actually the country closest to the capitalist system in the entire Faerûn continent.
It is true that it does not value family and bloodline. Anyone who can accumulate enough wealth will have the opportunity to climb up.
But similarly, there will be no mercy for those at the bottom who have no use value.
This can be glimpsed from the huge slums of Ascatella.
Zuo Si had already learned the truest situation of Amn from the businessman Bernard.
So whenever he heard someone among the slaves shouting that he must get ahead, he would look at these guys with a little pity.
Because this group of illiterate people who don't even know how to read, if they honestly obey Bernard's arrangement and work in the manor owned by the Chamber of Commerce, they may be able to spend their lives safely.
But if you are restless and work for two years to save some money, quit your job and go to Ascatra to make a living, you will probably soon be reduced to struggling to survive in the slums.
As for starting from scratch...
Sorry, they are all prepared for a very small number of geniuses and lucky people. Ordinary people should just go to sleep.
Just as Zuo Si was sipping pheasant and mushroom soup and listening with great interest to the truest thoughts of these people at the bottom of Faerunian society, Ailuolin suddenly came over from a distance and asked nervously : "What do you think of Talona, the goddess of poison and disease?"
"What do you think?"
Zuo Si was stunned for a moment, not understanding what the other party wanted to express at all. .
Seeing that the communication between the two was once again blocked, Ailuolin could only sigh helplessly and explained: "What I mean is, the teachings you preach to this goddess and the actions of her church What kind of attitude do you have?
"My attitude is that it doesn't matter."
After figuring out the paladin's intention, Zuo Si smiled and spread his hands. "It doesn't matter?"
Ailuolin obviously did not expect the other party to give such an answer, her eyes were full of doubts and confusion.
Zuo Si answered straightforwardly: "It doesn't matter, it means that it can neither be recognized nor denied. No matter what Talona and her followers preach, as long as you don't provoke me, I will pretend that I haven't seen anything. In addition, , if you are worried that I will regard her as my belief, then there is no need to do so. I have no intention of believing in any god, and I will not become a believer in any god.”
"What?! You are an unbeliever!"
Aroline opened her mouth in shock, with an expression of disbelief on her face.
“No, strictly speaking, I agree with some of the views and teachings of many gods.
For example, Ilmat, the god of suffering, advocates helping the weak and protecting children;
Another example is the idea of Ogma, the god of knowledge, respecting and protecting knowledge
But equally, I hate the parts of the former's teachings about endurance and suffering, and the irresponsibility of the latter in spreading dangerous knowledge anyway.
This kind of personality and way of thinking determine that I have faith, but it is almost impossible to become a believer in any god.
As for gods like Talona who gain influence by spreading fear and death, I don’t feel that I have any similarities or commonalities with her at all. ”
Zuo Si straightforwardly expressed his ideas on faith.
In the continent of Faerun, faith is not like some religions on earth, saying faith verbally and then secretly I have done a lot of immoral things that are against the teachings, but when the time comes, I only need to repent and donate some money to continue to call myself a devout believer.
Just the opposite!
It first requires recognizing a certain god’s teachings and ideas from the heart, and then practicing what these gods want you to do in your life.
Only in this way can one be called a believer. After death, the soul will be picked up by the god of belief.
The real unbelievers often refer to those lunatics whose thoughts, consciousness and values are extremely confused.
In Faerun, where gods are everywhere, it is actually quite difficult to be a true unbeliever.
Ailuolin was visibly relieved to hear that Zuo Si was not a faithless person.
You must know that in Faerûn, since there is no god to pick up the souls of the unbelievers after death, they will be stuck on the "Wall of the Unbelievers" by the God of Death and allowed to be plundered by devils and demons.
Just when the paladin was about to say something, Zuo Si suddenly put down the soup bowl in his hand and stood up from the ground suddenly.
At the same time, Jaheira, who was listening to the cooing of an owl not far away, also shook Khalid, who was beside him with his eyes closed and concentrating, awake.
"What happened?" Ai LuoLin asked nervously.
"Get ready to fight! A large number of strangers of unknown origin suddenly appeared in the forest on the left." Zuo Si immediately gave the answer.
Just when he was about to take the initiative, a panting little werewolf ran back from the direction near the Surdas River in front, and out of breath reported: "Master! On the other side of the river to the north A group of riders came from the direction of Zhaze Sibo. They are crossing the river and will arrive in fifteen minutes if nothing else happens. "They are two groups of people?" Yes, or..."
Jahira raised her head and stared into Zuo Si's eyes, as if asking how to handle this situation.
“We can’t control that much anymore! Let’s deal with the group of people who came out of the forest on the left first.”
Zuo Si made a decision immediately after thinking for a while.
He planned to use his own advantage in magic to create a time lag, and take advantage of the fact that before the second wave of riders arrived, he would kill the closest ones first.
However, just in case, Zuo Si still left Wilmes and Qiwu behind to guard the camp.
Just like that, before the rest of the caravan could react to what happened, he led the team as quickly as possible to the left to meet the enemy.
Only a group of mercenaries and Bernard, who had just woken up from his sleep, were left at a loss in the night wind.
(End of this chapter)