Goddess Kaleidoscope

Realizing it was a false alarm, Ludwig coughed twice to cover his embarrassment, then straightened his expression and began to talk about serious matters.

The three sisters have now been awakened and possess considerable divine power from the moment of their birth, which has made Lud's next plan much simpler. He and the dwarf will each get what they need and obtain what they both desire.

End of this chapter

Rudd had promised the dwarves that he would help them find a god who would better care for them. On the surface, he said he was still communicating with the divine realm, but in reality, he secretly created the three goddesses and then pretended to descend upon them.

So, with all the conditions ripe, Lude immediately contacted Gulig, instructing him to gather his most steadfast and like-minded followers at the height of the moon the following night and secretly come to his temple to perform the "divine intervention ceremony" he had previously mentioned.

So, late the next night, Gulig led about thirty dwarves to the temple and sneaked in through the back door that had been prepared for them.

Lude, who had been waiting for a long time, had specially changed into his flamboyant white robe for tonight's ceremony. He stepped forward to shake hands and greet the leaders of the Steel Whip Clan one by one, only to find that the entourage brought by Gulig was truly impressive. Six of the seven elders of the Steel Whip Clan were present, and the rest were all his confidants and blood relatives, including brothers, sons, nephews, and cousins, totaling more than a dozen people.

Interestingly, among the group was Winnig Copperstick, a priest of the Earth Mother Goddess cult within the clan.

According to Gulig, Priest Winnig also knew the truth, but he neither supported nor opposed Gulig's ideas.

Winnig made it very clear to Gulig that although he was a priest serving the Earth Mother Goddess, he was first and foremost a dwarf. Therefore, after learning the hidden truth in the war of the gods, he was also shocked and angry at the Mother Goddess's betrayal.

However, the power of the gods was ultimately too great for mortals to contend with. From a practical standpoint, Winnig did not believe that sacrificing his entire clan to rebel against the gods was a wise move.

Therefore, Winnig gave Gulig two pieces of advice: one was to choose to endure and let the secret rot in their hearts, so that when they died, they could take the truth with them to their graves.

In this way, although future generations are kept in the dark, sometimes continuing to live without knowing anything is not necessarily a bad thing.

Another option is to fight against the Earth Mother Goddess, but it cannot be the Steel Whip Clan alone that has to fight. They need to unite with more dwarf clans, and it would be best if they could get help from other gods.

After all, only gods can defeat gods, so they need to find a new backer.

In light of this, Gulig summoned the priest Winnig to join him in the séance of Lud.

The two had met before. Lud, who had been a policeman in his past life, could easily tell from Winnipeg's eyes and body language that the other man was not at peace; he was filled with both fear and anticipation, his hands always tightly gripping the priest's scepter. That sight resonated with Lud, reminding him of his own first time watching porn on his computer at home, terrified that his parents would suddenly burst in.

After resting briefly in the hall, the group followed Lude to the basement.

The dwarves never imagined that the seemingly unremarkable temple held such a hidden secret beneath the surface. But what surprised them most was the extraordinary craftsmanship of this underground altar.

The elders of the dwarves are chosen based on both seniority and skill; only those who are highly skilled masters will be recommended for the position.

So when these old dwarves came down, they found that the underground altar was newly built, and the construction techniques used were roughly similar to those of the dwarves, but in many details, it revealed a feeling of "unbelievable".

"Old buddy, did you figure it out?"

"I can see that this place is definitely newly built, but it's definitely not built by humans! Putting everything else aside, the black pottery floor tiles under our feet are made with exceptional craftsmanship, the firing temperature is perfectly controlled. Moreover, I've noticed that these bricks are all newly fired, probably no more than two days after they came out of the kiln, and all the surrounding floor tiles are exactly the same color, they might even have come from the same kiln!"

"Could it be that this human priest keeps dwarf craftsmen?"

“That’s possible, but the problem is that this isn’t something one or two dwarves can accomplish. I estimate that just this altar hall alone would require two or three thousand dwarves working overtime for ten to fifteen days. Have you seen that many dwarves?”

"This……"

Rudd heard the whispers of the dwarven elders behind him, but he didn't explain anything, because that was exactly the mystery he needed.

"Your Excellency, may we begin?"

"Anytime is fine."

Before descending, Rudd had already explained the basic procedures of the séance to the dwarves. There were no complicated procedures, and no need for any bloody or brutal human sacrifices.

Of course! Offerings are indeed necessary, but since they wish to summon the goddess of craftsmanship, the offerings should naturally be something that will interest the goddess.

So, as Ludd requested, the dwarves brought over a dozen treasures from their clan's collection, including incredibly sharp divine weapons and intricately crafted magical artifacts, all of which were placed around the altar. Ludd also prepared some food as offerings, following the customs of the Celestial Empire.

Once everything was ready, the thirty-odd dwarves followed Rudd and knelt before the altar, whispering the names of the three goddesses.

The dwarves soon discovered that, as they called out, the "stars" on the dome of the altar gradually brightened, and specks of light fell and converged toward the center of the altar.

At this moment, the two nuns who came down with them suddenly took out a dark, long, tubular instrument from their sleeves and began to play it. The melody was melodious and long, yet very rhythmic.

The dwarves who weren't time travelers hadn't heard "The Song of Mothra," but they felt that the melody subtly and perfectly matched the current scene.

Accompanied by the sound of a flute, the light spots pouring down from the "starry sky" gradually formed the shape of a gate, and finally solidified into a physical form.

The dwarves were astonished to find that the dark golden gate was covered with gears and transmission rods of all sizes. This complex and intricate structure perfectly appealed to the dwarves' sensibilities, exciting them.

At this moment, the two largest gears at the top of the gate suddenly started turning, which in turn activated the entire mechanism. The gate, which had been tightly sealed, slowly opened, and light filled the gaps between the doors!

It is soft yet dazzling, but not glaring.

Immediately afterwards, the sound of footsteps came from within the white light, and three slender and beautiful figures walked out of the gate. Just by standing there, they exuded an unimaginable pressure.

Sensing this astonishing power, the dwarves present all bowed their heads in worship, even the priest Winig, who had not participated in the summoning, now humbly prostrated himself on the ground. As a priest of the Earth Mother Goddess Cult, no dwarf present knew better than him whether it was true divine power!

At this moment, Atropos, the eldest sister who was standing in the center with her hands on her hips, suddenly spoke. Her voice, enhanced by divine power, had a surround Dolby sound effect and was full of a powerful and intimidating aura.

"Believers, in response to your call, we have descended here!"

"Goddess! Thank you for your mercy and compassion, thank you for spreading priceless wisdom among mankind, your believers will follow you forever!"

Under Rudd's deliberate guidance, most of the dwarves present, having witnessed the "miracle" firsthand, swore an oath to the new god without hesitation, joined the religion on the spot, and abandoned the Earth Mother Goddess.

Gulig also took the oath, then turned to look at Winnipeg, who was still somewhat dazed.

"Priest, Uncle, a miracle has occurred before our very eyes. It's time to make a choice. Tell me, what is your answer?"

"Answer? If that's the case, then there can only be one..."

As Winnig spoke, he rose from the ground and raised his hands to the sides, holding up the Staff of Roots, a symbol of the authority of the Earth Mother. This religious artifact, said to be made from the roots of the Tree of Origin at the center of the world, numbered less than a hundred and was bestowed upon high priests during the time of the Dwarf Kingdom as a symbol of divine authority.

Winnig gently stroked the scepter that had been with him for nearly a century, then gripped it tightly with both hands and slammed it against his knees. With a "crack," the scepter, which was at least an inch thick, snapped in two.

Winnig threw the broken scepter to the ground and roared at the top of his lungs in the unique, deep voice of a dwarf.

"Goddess of craftsmanship! I, Winnig Copperstick, pledge my allegiance to you!"

End of this chapter

Having won over the high-ranking members of the Steel Whip Clan, especially Winnig, a former priest of the Earth Mother Cult, his immediate conversion made many subsequent missionary tasks much easier.

And so, Winnipeg naturally switched jobs, joining the Pantheon founded by Ludwig, becoming a high-ranking priestess dedicated to serving the three goddesses of craftsmanship. His position was somewhat similar to a branch manager within a corporation, but his status was one level below Ludwig, the CEO.

It's worth mentioning that since Winnipeg's allegiance wasn't part of the original plan, Ludd hadn't expected things to turn out this way. So Ludd secretly gave Atropos a wink.

This old dwarf held a superior position in the Steelwhip Clan, and his prestige was absolutely no less than that of Gulig, the clan leader. His surrender was a pleasant surprise, and naturally, they wanted to win him over.

The wise Atropos understood immediately and granted Winnipeg the qualifications of a high priest, and created a "holy relic" on the spot for him to possess.

Using her divine magical abilities, the second sister, Krotor, erected a "God's Furnace" on the spot, instantly smelting a batch of molten iron. She then handed it to her eldest sister, who kneaded the molten metal into the desired shape like dough. The third sister then swung a huge hammer to forge it. Finally, the eldest sister gently blew on it, and it cooled down instantly.

The whole process took about a minute and a half, and the crowd of dwarves watching it shouted and reacted with excitement, much like the famous "Four Foreigners" of yesteryear.

"Oh, oh, oh! This is the god that we dwarven strongmen should worship! To hell with the Earth Mother Goddess! That scumbag woman doesn't deserve her!"

The dwarves were extremely excited, especially Winnipeg. When he learned that the "sacred relic" forged by the goddesses on the spot was specially given to him, the old dwarf was moved to tears. He knelt down with a thud and accepted the new scepter with trembling hands.

Only Ludwig remained solemn, straining to keep his facial muscles taut and avoid laughing inappropriately.

The "sacred relic" that the three sisters forged for Winnipeg on the spot was actually a "physical holy sword" that was not worth mentioning, which is what people on Earth commonly call a "crowbar".

There are no similar tools in this world, but Winnig still managed to determine by observing its appearance that it was not a simple priest's scepter, but a tool with multiple functions.

The entire scepter is made of metal and feels very heavy in the hand. It is about 80 centimeters long. The main body in the middle is fiery red and feels very hard and warm to the touch. The surface has spiral anti-slip textures for easy and secure grip. The two ends are silver-white, curved inward, and forked at the top.

To be honest, this design is too plain for a priest's scepter, not fancy at all, and doesn't reflect the dignity that a religious person should have, but it really hits the dwarves' sweet spot.

So not only Winnipeg loved it, but the other dwarves were also envious, like a group of neighbor's children who were about to cry from envy.

"Thank you again, supreme and great goddesses. I, Winnig, though old, swear here and now that I will dedicate the rest of my life to spreading the glory of the goddesses to the whole world!"

Arise, my children!

The dwarven high-ranking members collectively converted to the religion, and upon their return, they would gradually begin recruiting followers within their clans. However, out of caution, Lud reminded Gulig and Winnig not to be hasty in using their authority to force those who originally worshipped the Earth Mother to convert.

This is ostensibly done to respect believers' choices and promote freedom of religion, but in reality, it's to avoid attracting the attention of Mother Earth too early.

Luther had previously asked Hume whether gods could completely monitor the priests and believers within their own cult. The answer was that theoretically they could, but no god would do so because it would be too troublesome!

Deities can indeed freely descend upon any idol and can learn the thoughts of believers by absorbing their faith, but the information obtained is usually incomplete, and going through each one is extremely time-consuming.

Therefore, once the number of believers increases to a certain extent, most gods will choose to become hands-off managers because they are too lazy to manage them. As long as there is no significant decrease in faith in the short term, the believers below can do whatever they want.

In view of this, Lud believed that they should proceed slowly, converting the more than 30,000 dwarves little by little, to avoid alerting the Earth Mother too early.

Of course! It was only a matter of time before they found out.

When there are only a few hundred believers, they are invisible. Even if they want to seek a sense of presence, they will not be taken seriously by other gods.

When there are thousands of believers, they are minor figures. As long as they keep a low profile and do not actively cause trouble with other sects, they can hide in remote areas and quietly make a fortune.

However, if their followers grow to tens or hundreds of thousands in the future and they begin to compete head-on with other denominations and undermine their followers, then conflict will be inevitable.

In order to allow more time for preparation, the later the war begins, the better.

In the following days, following Lud's advice, the dwarves adopted a two-pronged approach. Chief Gulig first preached among the upper echelons, spreading the faith family by family. Meanwhile, Winnig converted the clan's existing priesthood. His prestige was undeniable; the priests and monks below were all his disciples, naturally following their teacher's lead.

What's more, he was carrying a crowbar while he was preaching!

Moreover, compared to the original Earth Mother Goddess, the new boss is clearly much more generous, and the clergy are treated much better.

The most obvious and immediate impact is on the number of times a priest can use divine spells. As a second-tier deity, the Earth Mother Goddess is fairly standard in this regard, with ordinary priests having three uses per day and high-ranking priests having five uses, but unlike the Holy Church of Light, she does not have "advance access."

Moreover, due to the internal divisions of the dwarves, who were scattered around the world in clans, with the largest being only a few city-states with a population of a few hundred thousand, the Earth Mother Goddess Cult lacked a unified organization and each went its own way, naturally resulting in the absence of higher-level administrators.

However, the situation is different in the Cult of the Three Goddesses. Because there are three goddesses, they grant ordinary priests 2x3 times a day for a total of 6 divine spells, while Winnig is promoted from priest to high priest and has the right to use divine spells 4x3 times a day for a total of 12 spells.

The other three sisters, as member goddesses of the Pantheon, along with dwarf priests like Winnipeg, can also receive blessings from the goddess of medicine and the goddess of love, and use divine magic with the characteristics of these two goddesses' divine positions. This mechanism also applies to Rud, who mainly serves the goddess of medicine, Evelina.

Everyone is within the same pantheon, the goddesses are all close sisters, and the believers below are all friendly brothers. Helping each other is naturally a matter of course!

End of this chapter

The Three Goddesses Cult was developing rapidly in secret. The dwarves were a very pragmatic people in this regard. The reason they chose to worship the Earth Mother Goddess was simply to ask for divine protection and to ensure their safety when they went mining. They had no other expectations.

Moreover, for more than three hundred years since the War of the Gods, the Earth Mother Goddess herself had been quietly "purifying" her image, gradually distancing herself from the dwarves. So now that a better option was available, it was natural for them to part ways.

In just five days, Winnig converted over a thousand people within the clan to believe. Meanwhile, Lud took the opportunity to start a wedding business within the Steelwhip clan, officiating at the weddings of over a dozen dwarf couples.