Greece: I am Zeus!

Chapter 297 Two Offerings
At this moment, upon seeing those innocent and adorable children, almost all the goddesses felt immense affection.

The gods possessed immense divinity, and their emotions were also more abundant.

Therefore, they are prone to acting on emotion at times.

However, when it comes to the creatures they love, they are never stingy with their blessings.

Many deities who originally didn't care about humans have now become interested.

They looked down at the rigorous, solemn, yet primal beauty of the ritual below, feeling both admiration and envy.

Quite a few gods secretly resolved in their hearts: 'I'll do the same thing someday!'

'Anyway, it's just sheltering a small group of mortals, a trivial matter. To receive such a grand and interesting sacrifice in return, it's definitely worth it!'

This set of sacrificial dances and hymns lasted for quite a long time.

The entire ritual dance finally ended when the girls and warriors who were in charge of leading the dance were almost exhausted and collapsed.

Everyone, with the most natural finishing move, prostrated themselves on their knees before daring to step forward, bow, and respectfully retreat.

Zeus nodded in satisfaction.

God has His own sacredness, nobility, and majesty; man has his own humanity, warmth, and resilience.

Humans do indeed possess truly advanced intelligence.

If they can grow up well, one day even the gods might be able to learn a lot from them.

As the sacrificial dance began, Prometheus had already quietly returned to the clouds in the sky.

As one of the gods, He naturally had to be honored before the King of Gods, rather than mingling with mortals.

He was always carefully and closely watching the reactions of Zeus and the other gods.

When He saw that the faces of the gods had become gentler and that there was obvious fondness in their eyes, His heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

Yes, all the costs were worthwhile.

Human beings have gained the favor of many gods.

A truly hopeful new future has opened its doors to them!
When the dance ended, Prometheus stepped forward and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, this is a sacrificial dance that mankind has wholeheartedly offered to you."

"However, humans are still too weak, and what we have prepared is crude and simple, and there must be many shortcomings. Please forgive us, Your Majesty."

“Prometheus will surely teach them further in the future and urge them to continue to improve.”

Zeus smiled and said, "Human beings have only existed for a short time. To have achieved this much is already quite remarkable."

“Prometheus, my loyal subject, my dear friend, all of this is thanks to your diligent teaching of mankind. You have indeed put your heart into it. I am very satisfied.”

Upon hearing Zeus's words of satisfaction, Prometheus was immediately overjoyed, his face beaming with pride.

He quickly bowed again and said, "Your Majesty, everything is in accordance with your supreme will! It is because you want the universe to be more prosperous and the gods to no longer be lonely that humankind came into being."

"It is all under your wise leadership, and because of your benevolence and great achievements, that I have this precious opportunity to contribute my humble efforts to you and the gods. Prometheus would never dare to claim credit for such a trivial matter."

As He spoke, He bowed deeply, His divine body slightly bent under the golden light, perfectly embodying humility.

Zeus laughed heartily, his long laughter shaking the clouds and echoing with thunder: "You are too modest, Prometheus. Who among the gods does not know your wisdom? I will remember all the merits of the gods and never forget them."

Having said that, the God-King said with great delight, "I really enjoyed the dance performed by these children. They did their best and deserve a reward."

He pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, “Those warriors, I will grant them bodies that are free from injury and disease, and that they will live to a ripe old age. And after their deaths, they will be brought under Thanatos’s command, to help Him manage the affairs of life and death.”

"Those lovely maidens, I will grant them the quality of immortality, and I will also grant them a lifespan of twelve hundred sacred twelve cycles. As long as they have not violated my sacred and just order, after their death I will allow them to enter Olympus to live."

The words of the God-King become law. After the God-King speaks, the order of Heaven operates in accordance with his words, bestowing blessings upon all.

The humans who were blessed at the sacrificial site suddenly shone with golden and white light, displaying various differences, which aroused gasps and cheers, as well as endless hymns and songs of praise.

The God-King naturally didn't forget those lovely children either.

"As for those lovely children..."

At this point, Zeus laughed heartily and looked at the gods: "They are still young and should have different and wonderful futures, so let the gods bestow their blessings upon them."

Since the God-King has spoken thus, and the gods also love these children, they naturally bestow blessings upon them generously.

With a wave of their hands, numerous powerful beings sent dozens of strange lights flying down to the mortal realm, merging into the bodies, souls, or destinies of these children in various forms.

These children's destinies will be forever different and extraordinary.

Prometheus was both surprised and delighted, but a moment of hesitation also arose within him.

With His Majesty the God-King and the gods being so generous, should I still proceed with the plan?
But after only a moment's hesitation, He immediately banished that thought from His mind.

The arrow is on the string and must be released; the matter has come to this point and there is no other choice.

Moreover, this is not just for the sake of today.

Prometheus became even more humble and respectfully exclaimed, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your great generosity! Your Majesty's grace is something that no living being can ever repay!" With his words, he also transmitted the content of Zeus's blessing to the human souls in the sacrificial altar, telling them of this joyous occasion.

After the initial shock and excitement, people raised their hands in cheers, prostrated themselves on their knees once more, and uttered words of praise that lingered for a long time.

Seeing that Prometheus still maintained that extremely humble and seemingly pious posture, Zeus simply smiled and waved his hand gently, his tone as gentle as a spring breeze: "Continue."

He knew very well that Prometheus's sincerity was completely different from that of the humans in the lower realms.

Prometheus said "Yes," then turned around and, in an extremely solemn and dignified voice, proclaimed to the humans below: "Offer your sacrifices to His Majesty!"

"This offering is the token of the most sacred covenant between gods and men!"

The humans in the lower realms, barely suppressing their excitement, responded with thunderous applause.

Although their voices were so faint, they could not possibly reach the highest heavens.

The sound of those rolling waves could only shake their own hearts.

Immediately, they all got busy.

The one hundred pure white bulls that had already been slaughtered were stacked layer upon layer on the altar according to a complex ritual.

Hundreds of bonfires were lit around the altar.

They were even more eager to see what blessings the gods would bestow after the offerings were presented and the ceremony was successfully concluded.
Each bull was carefully divided into two parts.

Each portion appears to be roughly the same size.

One portion is a carefully selected, layered, snow-white grease.

Illuminated by the sacred flames, they shone with a lustrous and alluring sheen, like the finest jade.

Like a dream of human rebirth.

I don't know how much effort it took to remove all the flesh and bones so cleanly, leaving only this glistening oil.

The other one was casually covered by a rough, dirty cowhide, which was originally pure white but was now completely stained with blood.

The bright red blood had congealed, and as time passed, the bloodstains had turned into an unsettling dark color, even emitting a strong, pungent odor.

Zeus gazed at the two piles of offerings and sighed softly in his heart.

What can possibly be hidden from Him?

Prometheus, in the end, still chose this path.

A god as wise as Him always likes to take chances and always likes to play some self-righteous little tricks.

They always try to find so-called "shortcuts" to take the road they want to take.

They always want to get the biggest return with the least cost.

No matter what I do, it's never pure enough or resolute enough.

So clever as to be stubborn, so persistent as to be foolish.

They always try to find loopholes in the rules and take advantage of authority.

They always thought that "as long as you are smart enough," even God can be deceived.

But this is ultimately self-deception.

Humanity had already paid a tremendous price for this sacrifice, a price that would move even the gods.

But He insisted on adding another twist at the very end, just when things were about to come to a perfect conclusion.

All this is to make ordinary people pay such a tiny, insignificant price.

But He forgot what the most fundamental purpose and the most important thing of this sacrifice was.
He has completely turned things upside down.

Zeus cursed under his breath: "Moreover, this is going too far in deceiving the gods!"

The grease was indeed white and appealing, but beneath its glossy exterior lay nothing more than a pile of white bones, cleverly stacked and thoroughly cleaned, utterly worthless.

The cowhide was indeed dirty and disgusting, but beneath its unsightly exterior lay all the truly delicious fresh meat and offal.

It appears to be equal, but in reality, the truth is reversed, and the falsehood is used to conceal the truth.

Moreover, even disregarding value, what percentage of a whole cow's weight do bones and fat actually make up? Only about 30% to 40%.

The two piles of offerings appear to be roughly the same size, but this is all because the bones beneath the fat have been cleverly piled up to create a false impression of "plumpness."

The false "equality" relies solely on a cunning and superficial piling up of appearances!
This is simply wanting everything – the best, the most, and pleasing the gods!

God no longer minds sharing offerings equally with lowly mortals, but you still dare to scheme against God's share!
This is outrageous!

This is the inequality you chose first!

(End of this chapter)