A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

Then the village chief put a fish into the river water in the basin, and after a long time, he released the fish back into the river.

"We will forever be grateful to the river for its sagacity in Skahn Village, and we will forever honor you as a god."

“You have given us food, and today we humbly request that you accept the food we offer.”

"We earnestly request that you, as the embodiment of the river, enjoy this gratitude from us."

"I, Shedingwen, the thirty-eighth village chief of Sikan Village, lead all those who have been protected by you in expressing our gratitude to you."

"..."

The village chief of Skahn recited a prayer, and the villagers remained silent.

Any disrespectful behavior towards the "River God" is unacceptable.

For the people of Skahn village, this ritual was undoubtedly important and solemn.

Anyone who shows disrespect to the "River God" will not be welcomed by the people of Skahn Village.

“What a sacred ritual! It is no less than our prayers.” A voice, neither male nor female, rang out.

A person wearing a tattered burlap robe suddenly appeared beside the village chief.

"Hehehe, a sacred ritual, indeed." A treacherous voice followed.

"The next part is really something to look forward to," the butler said with a sly grin.

The villagers were extremely angry at the two people who appeared.

"Who are you people!" The village chief frowned as he glanced at the two men, his tone displeased.

"Haha, I'm so sorry to have disturbed your ritual."

"You think I would say that? Hahaha!" The butler laughed maniacally.

“Deacon.” The assistant priest glanced at the deacon.

"We have been waiting for this ceremony for seven years, just like you," the assistant priest said calmly.

The people of Skahn village all had strange expressions when they heard the words of the officiant.

"Don't be surprised, we just have some things to test." The acolyte placed his hand on his chest and bowed slightly.

"Experiment? Don't disturb our village's rituals!" The village chief was so angry that his beard trembled.

"No, no, disturbing you? We're just trying to help you." The butler chuckled wickedly.

The next moment, a silver knight's longsword fell on the butler's head.

“This is dangerous, Miss Knight,” the priestess said, her hand already raised without anyone noticing.

The deep purple magic circle blocked Nisa's attack for the deacon.

“If you leave now, I might not pursue you,” Nisha said coldly.

After realizing that things were going a bit wrong, Nisha acted decisively.

“Miss Knight, you overestimate yourself, hahaha.” The butler laughed, seemingly not taking Nisa seriously at all.

“What an annoying ‘Children of Light’ believer. Why don’t you convert to my Lord? Does the ‘Fallen Lord’ know that?” the deacon said quietly.

"I have no interest in evil gods!" The power in Nisha's knight's longsword gradually increased, and the magic circle shattered the next moment.

The officiant glanced at the deacon whose face had been slashed, but made no comment.

"Indeed, she possesses formidable power. 'Knight Princess' Nisa... she has great potential," the assistant priest remarked.

"Deacon, aren't you angry? She actually insulted my Lord by calling him an evil god!" The deacon's veins bulged, and his smile was somewhat sinister.

No believer would call their god an evil god, much less admit that they are a cult.

Anyone who calls someone an "evil god" is definitely a fake believer.

"Of course I'm angry, but let's do what we should do first," the assistant priest said calmly.

"Seal off everyone," the assistant priest ordered.

"Hahaha, a lockdown?" The deacon placed his hand on the ground, and the tattoo on his arm seemed to come alive, moving as if it had been brought to life.

Finally, the tattoo spread across the ground.

Everyone touched by the tattoo froze for a moment.

My whole body felt like it was being bitten hard by something, and I couldn't move.

“Miss Knight, you can take a good look at the greatness of my Lord.” The deacon gave Nisha a cold look.

Then Nisha was sent flying backward uncontrollably.

"Then, let's begin, Village Chief." The acolyte looked at the village chief meaningfully, sending a chill down the village chief's spine. Like the "Children of Light," the "Fallen Lord" was also a golden being worshipped.

In layman's terms, it is the true God.

In the doctrine of "Fallen Lords," falling is not a derogatory term, but rather a way to return to the root of desire itself.

In other words, for believers of the "fallen Lord," falling is the way to the truth.

Everything in the world is shrouded in falsehood; only depravity can bring everything back to its source of desire and return to its true origin.

To others, this doctrine is a complete and utter cult.

However, for believers of the "fallen Lord," aren't the doctrines of other religions also the doctrines of cults?

Everything is relative.

However, among the religions that deacons dislike, those that discuss "Children of Light" are the most disliked.

After knocking Nisha away, the assistant priest's face, hidden by his hood, was obscured, but his tone clearly conveyed pleasure.

After tormenting Nisa, the assistant priest was very happy.

"Start!? Start what?!" The village chief moved back a little.

“Begin the actual ritual,” the assistant priest said, then slowly approached the village chief.

The assistant priest helped the village chief brush the dust off his clothes.

"Don't be afraid," the officiant said in an exceptionally gentle voice.

"Isn't the purpose of your sacrifices to pray for the blessings of your faith?"

"Now, we are here to help you truly come into contact with the god you believe in." The words of the deacon were the temptation of the devil.

"You saw... the River God?" The village chief's eyes revealed surprise.

“That’s right, no devout believer doesn’t wish to see the god in their heart.” The officiant was pleased to see the village chief’s expression.

"No! That won't do!" The village chief suddenly shivered.

For a fleeting moment, the village chief was actually tempted!?

This terrified the village chief.

"It's a shame he's awake." The officiant's voice turned cold again.

“Then we’ll have to be a bit tougher.” The assistant priest placed his hand on the village chief’s head.

"Divine Arts" and "Mind Erosion"

Divine magic, distinct from spells, is an ability that only believers in a deity can master after receiving divine favor.

Among spells, divine spells are even more unique.

"This is a divine spell that I can only use once every few years, so be grateful," the acolyte said calmly.

The village chief's eyes rolled upwards, his mind a complete blank.

"I want to see God! Yes! I want to ask God for the gospel!" the village chief murmured, somewhat incoherently.

"Sacrifice, recite the new prayer from your heart," the deacon said softly, opening his arms.

The village chief scrambled across the ground to reach the statue of the "River God".

The assistant priest stood silently in the center of the altar, his hands pressed to the ground.

The red tattoos, just like the butler's, spread out and took root in the earth.

"Hahaha, deacon, as expected, you're angry." The deacon laughed loudly.

"Deacon, mind your own business," said the acolyte's voice, which was neither clearly male nor female.

After saying that, the officiant did not continue speaking.

Before the statue, the village chief trembled all over as he began to recite a new prayer.

"We will forever be grateful to the river for its sagacity in Skahn Village, and we will forever honor you as a god."

“You have given us life and soul, and today we implore you to accept the life and soul we offer.”

“We, the villagers of Skane, implore you to take these offerings with our own will.”

"We earnestly request that you, as the embodiment of the river, enjoy this gratitude from us."

"I, Shedingwen, the thirty-eighth village chief of Sikan Village, lead all those who have been protected by you in expressing our gratitude to you."

"Life is the bell, the soul is the stage, we serve you and awaken you."

"O wise sage who opened the river, O embodiment of the river, awaken, let us witness your magnificent figure!"

"..."

The village chief's expression turned fanatical as he uttered a prayer that sounded terrible.

At this moment, the assistant priest walked into the river and suddenly clasped his hands together.

A deep blue light shone from the bottom of the river, originating from a magic circle.

This was a magic array that had been set up long ago, just waiting for this moment.

"Come out," the officiant whispered.

The magic circle then expanded, and light rose from the entire river all day long.

The earth was trembling slightly.

A gigantic body rises from the river.

The figure was three stories tall and quite muscular.

Her light blue skin didn't look out of place at all; instead, it added a touch of elegance.

A huge, long tail slapped across the river, splashing up countless droplets of water.

“The River God!! Ahhh!!! It’s the River God!” the village chief cried out in a frenzy.

However, his tone suddenly softened very quickly.

A sense of weakness enveloped the village chief.

The same applies to all the villagers of Skahn except for the village chief.

"So sleepy... What's going on..." Marus tried hard not to close his eyes.

"Marus!" Naruko tensed up, but couldn't move.

But Bray's face was gloomy.

Isn't this the summoning circle? Just like when we summoned that great demon.

The only difference is that the materials used for summoning have changed.

The enormous being, referred to by the village chief as the "River God," is a gigantic creature with a humanoid upper body and a snake-like lower body.

"Who has dared to summon Sledar, a great sea creature?" the summoned sea creature roared.

Sled by the call of life and soul, Sledar came from the deep sea to this river.

"Hmm? A familiar place," Sledar mused.

This river appears to have been opened up by him in ancient times.

"So this is the sea race the bishop spoke of?! They are truly extraordinary beings! Hahaha!" the deacon laughed.

"It is an honor to meet you, esteemed sea creature," the acolyte said politely, bowing deeply.

The village chief was already lying on the ground, convulsing.

The other villagers, if not for being chained up by the deacons, would probably have collapsed by now. "No one allows you to speak to me in such a tone, human," the sea creature said coldly.