Showing His Hand

"Praise be to you... the sublime Mother Earth..."

"You are the all-encompassing one... Mother Earth... the master of life... the mysterious creator..."

"You have blessed us with a bountiful harvest... you have given us food..."

A group of devout believers are worshipping the ' Mother Earth '!

One of the Seven True Gods of the Main World!

A true god!

Sulu's pupils suddenly contracted. "Not only are the prayers the same, but even the altar layout and mysterious symbols are identical... This cannot be explained by mere coincidence; it signifies that this world also shares the belief in the Mother Earth!"

"There are two possibilities. The first is that I am still in the Main World, but very small... because the differences between Twilight of the Gods and the Spirit World have already explained everything."

"And the second possibility... is my previous vague theory: the gods are not in the Main World, but reside deep within the Spirit World! Their Divine Kingdom are the highest stars in the Spirit World, their light illuminating countless worlds... spreading faith in different otherworldly realms!"

The gods... exist independently of this world! To them, the believers of a world are nothing but ants!

Even the Main World might just be a remote and impoverished place in the eyes of the gods!

If this speculation gets out, countless believers in the Main World will be devastated!

However, reality is reality! It won't change because of pride, confidence, or anything else.

"Are you a follower of the Mother Earth?"

When Arik saw Sulu stop, he couldn't help but ask a question.

Knowing full well the dangers of matters of faith, and the ease with which one could err, Sulu responded with a smile, letting Arik figure out the answer himself, "Let's go, I'm tired and want to rest."

In fact, he was very curious about the beliefs of these indigenous peoples, but he was unable to continue exploring.

'To be practical... if this were in the Main World, and a group of people were praying in Gulam Language, something unusual would most likely happen!'

'After all, it uses a language that can communicate with the mysterious to invoke the name of a great being!'

'But in this world, during Twilight of the Gods, even the ancient Gulam Language is too weak to wield the mysterious forces of nature, and therefore cannot truly establish a connection with the Mother Earth...'

While pondering the problem, Sulu gestured to Arik that they could continue walking.

Arik's face darkened, and he led the way to a wooden hut.

He opened the wooden door. The inside was dimly lit, but with the light filtering through the cracks, he could barely make out some miscellaneous items and a wooden barrel.

A slightly elevated area was covered with straw and animal hides.

"This is your room! Bread, salt, and bean soup will be brought to you soon."

Arik said.

"That's already very good, thank you!"

Sulu nodded.

Although the environment here is almost like a pigsty, it's not much different from the surrounding houses, and it should be the normal standard for the lower-middle class in this world.

Besides, it's much better than sleeping in the wilderness, no matter what.

The main dish, or rather the staple food, for dinner was a loaf of black bread, which must have contained a lot of bran and was very hard.

In addition, there was a small dish of coarse salt, which could be used to dip bread, but seeing its dark yellow color and the sand mixed in, Sulu felt a bit nauseous. In the end, he only managed to drink a little pea soup, which was enough to satisfy his appetite.

"Although I knew this world had low productivity, I never expected it to be this hopeless... Look at the cook's surprised and delighted expression as she cleans up; perhaps in her eyes, this is still a sumptuous feast?"

Seeing that it wasn't completely dark outside, Sulu got up and prepared to take a walk around the village.

It's impossible not to feel curious when you arrive in a completely new world.

Furthermore, this is not a world completely devoid of magic. During Twilight of the Gods, supernatural powers were merely at a low point, but not entirely absent!

The roads in Ward Village were dilapidated and narrow, and the villagers were very wary of outsiders. When the children were called into the house, Sulu could feel many eyes peeking at him through the cracks.

After walking around for only half a circle, he felt a bit bored and instead of going to the altar of the Mother Earth, he came to the only large, flat area in the village, which should be the threshing ground.

Here, the militia team I'd seen during the day, along with some teenagers, were all training.

Arik, holding a wooden stick and adopting the demeanor of a stern instructor, said, "The hardship and toil you're experiencing now are not for me, but for yourselves!"

"If you want to go to Wolf Castle and earn a wealthy life, you have to train hard... This is your only chance!"

Even if it's not to change one's fate, but simply to protect oneself in the face of danger, one must strive with all one's might!

"When the call to war arrives, our village has a duty to fight for the Duke. Do you want to die on the battlefield? Tell me, you bunch of cowards, do you want to die on the battlefield?"

In the end, Arik practically yelled it out.

"In no mood!"

A dozen or so sweaty teenagers, still exercising, roared in response.

"Very good, now let's continue reviewing yesterday's power generation techniques..."

Arik nodded in satisfaction. "Remember, it's a triangle shape. Start by inflating your lower abdomen! Engage your calves during the movement, feel the power of the earth!"

"Now... draw your sword!"

"Drink!"

A group of people were gesturing with wooden swords, displaying a certain imposing manner.

Sulu's eyelids twitched.

Although this technique of generating power is rudimentary, it already falls into the category of martial arts, and it's unexpected to see it in this small village.

"Continue, swing your swords one hundred times!"

Arik looked around, corrected the posture of the boys, and then looked up and saw Sulu.

He issued an order and went to the edge of the threshing ground, "Outsider, what are you doing here?"

"Just bored, taking a walk..."

Sulu casually remarked, "This kind of training... is quite good."

"This is a skill I learned in the army... It came from a noble knight, and I once had the opportunity to be his squire, but alas..."

Arik shook his head dejectedly, then suddenly asked, "Would you be interested in giving it a try?"

"Test what? Swordsmanship?"

Sulu chuckled to himself.

"As a homeless person, you must have a good ability to protect yourself!" Arik said earnestly.

"Perhaps... but I don't have a sword."

Sulu shrugged.

"I can lend you mine." Arik handed over his sword.

This is a two-handed Cross Sword design, with a long hilt and blade, suitable for two-handed grip, and it is also quite heavy.

"Good!"

Sulu drew his sword with one hand and flicked the blade.

Upon seeing this, Arik's brow twitched, and then he saw Sulu walk up to a wooden stake he usually trained on, inhale, and perform a beautiful spin.

Puff!

With a flash of sword light, the wooden stake was shortened.

"Such astonishing power... This is already at the level of a knight's squire, isn't it?"

Arik seemed stunned, and after a long while, he finally uttered a sentence.

Such power and speed are terrifying; they can cut through wooden stakes and split open human bodies!

"Thank you for your sword."

Sulu returned the Cross Sword to Arik, and smiled as he looked at the awe-inspiring gazes around him.

Actively showcasing your strength can avoid a lot of trouble.