Green Monster Epic

Chapter 728: Heated Debate

Oscar's return was rushed, his heart filled with complex emotions that he struggled to process even as he gazed upon the massive city of Mansa.

He headed straight for the Temple District in the southern part of the city, rushing into the vast, domed structures of the Oakwood Church, built from pristine white marble, without announcing himself, his destination the core area of the temple.

High Priest Feritz of the Elven Church was an aging man, gradually succumbing to decay. In recent years, he mostly stayed at the church headquarters and rarely ventured out, so it wasn't difficult for Oscar to request an audience.

However, when Oscar solemnly informed the High Priest of the purpose of his sudden return, a look of worry and seriousness appeared on Feritz's face. Deep within his eyes, regret and murderous intent flickered back and forth, indicating a troubled state of mind.

Nevertheless, Feritz didn't act unilaterally. After a moment of contemplation, he summoned the knight guards outside the door, instructing them to find the church's high-ranking members within the city. He also made sure to notify their allies, the Ranger Church and the New Sprout Church, located not far away, requesting them to send high-level representatives to participate in the meeting.

Before long, the core members of the three churches quietly arrived at the chapel in the core area of the temple, participating in this hastily convened meeting.

"…and that's the situation."

Oscar reiterated the information he had previously reported to Feritz, and also presented the carefully compiled documents containing the various clues and witness testimonies collected by Flamengo, for the six or seven attendees to review.

"It seems this Bear Goblin has great ambitions!"

Alma, the troll female and Chief Priest of the Evangelization Court from the New Sprout Church, revealed a hint of icy killing intent in her eyes, clearly shaken by the information she had just heard, and burning with anger.

"We've been timid and hesitant for so many years, and people have looked down on us. This is a good opportunity to prove to the public that the church's authority cannot be challenged!"

"You speak lightly. Don't forget that this Bear Goblin is now a demigod, and he controls the most strategically important area of the Northern Borderlands!"

The solemn expression on the face of Nording, the Dwarf Knight Commander, made him seem like a statue. The news of Allen's path to godhood had indeed shaken him, and a trace of anger had arisen in his heart, but he could still calmly point out Allen's current advantages.

"He's just a mere demigod. It's not like we haven't killed one before!"

Alma didn't take it seriously. Over the countless years of vying for control of the wilderness, the churches of the natural god system had secretly engaged in many acts of eliminating dissidents. The most recent one was the assassination of the Gnoll demigod Black Watch, in which Allen had participated, and it hadn't caused much of a stir in the wilderness.

"Killing a demigod isn't difficult for our churches, but have you considered the consequences of killing this demigod Bear Goblin?"

Nording wasn't trying to excuse Allen. It was just that he had been paying close attention to the Green Field Tribe in recent years, and therefore understood the significance of the Green Field Tribe to the Oakwood Alliance and the wilderness.

"The Church of Nature has always hoped to return to the Northern Borderlands so they can connect their territory with the dark-skinned Drow of Hothia. Unfortunately, Allen's past grudges with the Church of Nature, as well as the hatred between the Snow Minks, the Raven Claws, and the Drow, have thwarted the Church of Nature's plans."

"On the other hand, thanks to the support of this Bear Goblin, Allen, our three churches have been very successful in preaching and developing among the various tribes in the Northern Borderlands. My Oakwood Church has a considerable base of followers among the Green Fields and the Snow Minks, and your Ranger Church's preaching is also progressing well among the Raven Claws, the Uruks, and the Wild Hearts."

"I heard that your New Sprout Church's Northern Chief Priest has been in close contact with two Lizardfolk tribes in the Damu Swamp area recently. It seems that it won't be long before those two Lizardfolk tribes have many more New Sprout Church priests and churches."

"If we assassinate Allen at this time, the consequences for our three churches would be detrimental to ourselves and benefit the Church of Nature."

"According to you, are we just going to let this Bear Goblin establish a false god faith and become a new evil god?"

Diogo, the Chief Priest of the Tribunal of the Ranger Church, glared at Nording with contempt, clearly disdaining Nording's weakness.

"How do we distinguish between so-called true gods and evil gods?"

Nording's sudden remark not only stunned his colleagues in the room, but even Oscar, who was feeling worried and regretful for Allen, couldn't help but look up, gazing complexly at the short, stout Knight Commander in the distance.

"Nording, how dare you!"

Before the representatives of the other two churches could speak, Praca, the Half-Orc Druid and Head of the Tribunal of the Oakwood Church, responsible for judging and capturing traitors, slammed his hand on the armrest of his chair and roared fiercely.

"You dare to blaspheme the glory of the gods! It seems your faith is no longer pure!"

"Don't question my loyalty to the Father God, Praca!"

Nording turned his head and retorted without backing down: "You tell me, if we kill the Bear Goblin, what will you use to control those tribes in the Northern Borderlands, and what means will you use to deal with the Church of Nature and the Drow's plans?"

"We should know how to be flexible in our actions, especially under the current difficult situation of the church. Every decision is very important to us."

If it wasn't necessary, Nording didn't want to argue with Praca in front of the representatives of the other two churches, lest they notice the disunity within their church. However, for the overall benefit of the church, Nording had to stand up and say a few words for the audacious Bear Goblin.

Although Nording's faith was firm, his usual style was that of a thorough realist. He understood very well that in the current situation without a god sitting in power, if the church wanted to continue to gather the power of faith for the Father Oak and continue to spread the glory of Oakwood, it would be a thorny path, and it was very likely that their efforts would not be rewarded for a long time.

Originally, Nording had already touched the threshold of a demigod, and had a good chance of climbing higher with the blessing of the gods in his lifetime, but unexpectedly, the sudden eternal sleep of the Father Oak had dealt a heavy blow to his strength, almost dropping him to the mid-stage of Legend.

Later, it took Nording more than a hundred years to regain his past strength, but with his lifespan dwindling, his hope of taking another step forward had become slim.

And like him, and even more severely, the other powerhouses of the church had also been affected by the eternal sleep of the faith god, wasting a lot of time, which had put the church's legendary and above powerhouses in an awkward situation, and the overall strength of the church had gradually been caught up and surpassed by other churches.

In the competitions among secular tribes, the Oak Court had lost quite a bit of territory under the relentless pressure of the Church of Nature. The number of believers was constantly dwindling. If things continued this way, the possibility of the god supporting everyone's inner beliefs to awaken would likely approach zero.

It wasn't easy for a hobgoblin named Allen to emerge. With his promotion to demigod and the opportunity to expand his influence in the alliance, the Oak Court finally stopped its decline, stabilized its basic belief system, and even developed it further.

Now, because the hobgoblin suddenly created the God of Food faith, everyone would have to break their own arm and eliminate the court's biggest supporter. The subsequent impact made Nordin have to treat it cautiously.

"Alright, let's stick to the facts and listen to Nordin finish his reasons first."

Seeing that Plaka seemed about to argue again, Pope Feritz, sitting high on the Throne of Thorns, stopped Plaka's unspoken words and looked at Nordin encouragingly.

"Your Holiness, I believe that the hobgoblin Allen himself comes from the wilderness and has always been influenced by the faith of our Father God. His behavior may not be as brutal and ruthless as the Gnoll King or the Abyss Lord, and he is more likely to have something in common with our natural divine system."

"Since our wilderness can introduce foreign gods such as the Gloom Maiden and the Spider Queen Rose, allowing them to preach and develop in the wilderness, then why can't we cultivate our own local god and win him over to our camp?"

"Are we so afraid that a mere hobgoblin's immature so-called faith will pose a great threat to our three churches?"

"Even among the gnolls, there is still their native evil god Yeenoghu, but how many of the tens of millions of gnoll compatriots in the wilderness believe in him?"

"If Father God were still here, I'm afraid he would be happy to see the rise of the wilderness's native gods, so as to strengthen the strength of our natural divine system and maintain the balance of nature."

… …

Nordin had obviously thought a lot. His analysis from a realistic level did not win the approval of his other colleagues. Everyone was more disdainful and resentful, and didn't even want to look Nordin in the eye.

"Your Holiness, I firmly support punishing the hobgoblin to avoid future troubles! !"

"No matter how well-behaved this hobgoblin is now, we can't be sure of his true thoughts and intentions. If he is allowed to grow and then show his fangs, it may not be good for our three churches…"

After Nordin's voice fell, and there was no other speech, other church power figures such as Plaka and Ovar expressed their attitudes, most of which were inclined to be unfavorable to Allen.

"Then, do you two also think so?"

The Pope had a calm expression. After digesting the information about Allen establishing a faith, and listening to the opinions of these legendary powerhouses under his command, he also had some direction and ideas in his mind.

However, as the helmsman, it was not yet time for him to express his attitude, so he continued to turn his attention to the representatives of the other two allied churches below, asking for their attitudes.

"Your Holiness, from my personal point of view, I also believe that thunderous means should be used to deter the hobgoblin, killing him in his infancy, and not letting him continue to develop. However, this matter has a far-reaching impact after all, and the content analyzed by Commander Nordin is not unreasonable, so I have to report back to my church's saint before I can formally express my church's attitude."

"… … I also have to report this matter to the church and ask the high priest and other chief priests and court leaders to decide."

Alma and Diogo, who had initially expressed a strong attitude, said very cautiously when they heard Feritz's inquiry.

"That's fine too. You first tell Mona and the others about the situation we discussed today, and see what their attitude is. I also hope that everyone can treat this matter carefully. After all, the strength of our Oak camp is currently in a period of decline. If it is not a last resort, I don't want to see any major turmoil again."

"We will also continue to discuss and discuss. In a few days, our three families will meet again to discuss a definite result."

"As Your Holiness wishes."

… … … …

Allen didn't know that because of his affairs, the core power controllers of the Mansa Wilderness had already broken their brains. He was still tirelessly exploring the unknown changes in his body caused by the existence of the power of faith.

The once very weak light in the vortex of anger has now undergone considerable changes. After incorporating an unknown amount of the power of faith, the seed of faith at the core of the vortex is now like a star in the sky, constantly flickering at the core.

Each time the light flickered, the vortex of anger would involuntarily shrink and expand, just like an unconscious breathing cocoon, nurturing a new unknown life.

"… … The controller of the most beautiful taste in the world, your humble believer sends sincere blessings, may your glory shine on the world, may your prestige spread throughout the entire Fayman world…"

A strand of mental power passed through the seed of faith, randomly passing through a faint spot of light that rotated around the seed of faith. Then, a hobgoblin believer wearing an off-white chef's apron and a chef's hat to cover his hair was kneeling piously on a bed in a bedroom to pray.

Allen overlooked the space where this believer was located. The mental power thread could also constantly change the angle of the picture. Zooming in, the mottled hair and rough pores on the believer's head were clearly visible. Stretching out, the furnishings in the entire room were unobstructed, and even the faint sounds coming from outside the room could be heard.

As the seed of faith continued to grow, the tiny light spots surrounding the seed of faith, like stars, were no longer so difficult to detect. In addition to the brightest faith light spot belonging to Zerlang, Allen can now project a wisp of his mental power into the remaining flickering light spots that he can perceive through the mysterious seed of faith, and then he can see the scenes of believers praying.

The difference between the two is that Allen can connect with the gradually unique sacrificial Zerlang's sea of consciousness and convey some of his consciousness information; when descending into the prayer scenes of other believers, Allen can only observe the prayers of the believers and cannot have any room for manipulation.

Allen was not discouraged by this. After all, this path to becoming a god is full of mystery and unknown, and everything needs to be explored by himself. Now that he can see some progress, this is already a very good thing.

In time, as he advances little by little, the fog in front will one day be lifted by him, and he will be able to see the scenery on this road.