Myth: The Ruler of Spirituality

Although Egypt lacked a systematic military treatise, Ramses II, with a lifetime of experience, still knew the principles of "a desperate army will win" and "besiege three sides, leaving one open".

To strike down an enemy, one must not corner them, for a desperate retaliation would cause great injury, and might even allow them to find a way out of a hopeless situation. Only by giving them a glimmer of hope, then sowing discord within their ranks, and finally employing the hilt of the sword, can problems be resolved without bloodshed.

Directly deploying a large army to annihilate them is the most foolish act. Not only would it cause substantial losses, but it also makes it easy for people to notice and escape into the wilderness. It is not so easy to trap hundreds of thousands of people, especially with a leader who can perform witchcraft, but now it was different.

The merciful Pharaoh did not forget to bring relief to these Sin People even amidst the natural disaster, and he provided "sufficient" resources. As for why only one-third... Who knows, maybe it was embezzled by the leaders of the Hebrews, like the one just seen, Messe is a likely possibility.

In any case, this has nothing to do with Pharaoh. You will have to choose whether to face the swords of the army with your lives or to snatch the resources needed for survival from your own people. Most of the Sin People would surely make the right choice.

······

Pharaoh's command was smoothly transmitted, and the brief chaos in the City of Memphis under the natural disaster was easily contained.

Now, Egypt had plentiful food stores, and although the water level of the Nile River had dropped, this mother river that runs through the world was not dried up.

So when Pharaoh came forward to comfort the people, and the ministers quickly organized manpower to transport water sources, the turmoil was quickly appeased.

The disaster that Shu's Divine Power brought to the Mortal Realm was terrifying, but after all, it was a macro disturbance of the world's Meteorology from a place far from the Mortal Realm, and such a pure natural disaster, while effective, was not enough to instantly destroy a dynasty.

However, just because the Egyptians had no problems, it did not mean that the Hebrews outside the city were not troubled.

Before, Messe had fled from the city, and let Aaron quickly gather his people. He told them that Pharaoh had refused his request and might even resort to force against them.

But they did not wait for the force; an increase in hard labor and natural disasters came one after another.

As a result, resentment arose among the people, some of it directed at Pharaoh, but more of it was aimed at Messe.

Previously, as slaves, most of them had been forced to get used to this life. If someone could lead them out of their plight at this time, they would naturally be grateful.

But if the newcomer not only failed to bring immediate relief but in fact intensified their suffering, compared to the cruel oppressors, most people would probably prefer to blame the good person who did not do well enough.

And this resentment only grew in the following days, as well after well started drying up, panic began to spread among the Hebrews.

At this time, Pharaoh unexpectedly extended a helping hand to them, but the people who had just breathed a sigh of relief soon found that their water was still not enough.

Gradually, doubts began to spread among the people... On that day, standing on a hillside outside the city, Messe gazed at the distant Nile River and sighed in his heart.

"Aaron, how did the negotiation turn out?"

Without turning around, Messe knew the person who had come behind him, and the only response was another sigh.

"The guards rejected my request. They think allowing the Hebrews to draw water from the Nile River is not only a desecration of the Egyptian gods but also delays the work schedule. There's also the chance that some people might take the opportunity to escape. They claim to have already transported enough resources for our survival."

"I tried to tell them it's not enough, I also tried to explain to the people, but you know, most can only see thousands and thousands of water jars being brought into the camp, yet their ability to calculate hasn't the faintest idea whether this seemingly large number is enough for hundreds of thousands of people."

"... I understand, Aaron, it's not their fault. Even I cannot possibly calculate by myself the exact amount of resources needed by hundreds of thousands of people."

With a heavy expression, Messe's biggest worry was not about this: "There's still a lot of our water reserves left, but Aaron, I've heard that there are some unfavorable, discontented Speeches among the people against the Lord recently."

"... Yes."

Nodding, Aaron affirmed Messe's words.

"That is what must be stopped, Aaron, it's a disaster!"

Turning around, Messe looked directly into his brother's eyes, "The revelation God has granted me tells me that if the Hebrews wish to escape eternal bondage, they must first endure suffering. Even devout believers may die, and the non-devout—"

"I know, Messe, but you have been here too short a time. Neither you nor God have established sufficient authority. There are even many who feel... that before you and your 'Faith', they were better off."

"..."

Lost for words, Messe knew he could explain a lot.

For example, how could one be content with a bone thrown by the master, and ignore his own status as a slave? Or how the current suffering is only temporary, and if the devout unite, they will surely find relief in the future... But Messe said nothing.

Because he knew that some words had meaning to those who had learned knowledge, who had seen the world, but they were meaningless to the vast majority of commoners.

"...It isn't blasphemy, it's mere ignorance, and it's human nature. They need to listen to God's teachings to do good, to wash away the sins brought by ignorance, but we don't have that much time..."

"So this is the future that God has seen? He doesn't necessarily want us to suffer before we can be delivered, He just sees through the years, knowing all will eventually come to such an end."

Taking out the staff gifted by God, Messe felt its power.

Although it had grown much stronger, it was still far from capable of birthing true greatness.

He could not summon heavy rain or draw in tributaries of the Nile River. He could strike stones to bring forth the hidden water beneath the earth, but at this moment the divine power of the staff was far from enough to create a water source for hundreds of thousands.

At this moment, it seemed Messe once again understood God's profound intentions.

The divine power of the staff rose with tribulation; likewise, those who were non-devout, those with weak minds, would also die in hardship.
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God had granted him great strength, but in the end, he could only use it to save the most devout of his people.

"Let's think of something," he said, "We will find a way, at least, not so many should die at the start."

Shaking his head slightly, Aaron didn't know what else they could think of.

The arid wind blew in The Sky, and in the distance of the land, yellow sand began to rise. If this continued, perhaps a third of the most fertile land along the Nile River would turn to dust...

"Hmm? What's that?"

With a tone of surprise and suspicion, Aaron suddenly pointed at a small tree nearby.

As the natural calamities raged, the vegetation had long turned yellow and shed its leaves, but for some reason, there stood a vibrant green tree amidst the ruin.

Clearly, they hadn't seen it when they climbed the hill earlier—and beneath that tree, there was a figure.

A figure, too beautiful for the Mortal Realm.

"Come, in... um, under the 'Lord's' summons, I shall guide you through this catastrophe."

Seemingly sensing the gaze from afar, a smile touched the girl's face.

She spoke softly, extending an invitation to Messe and his companion.

When she said she had been summoned, it certainly wasn't false. For just a few days ago, when she had witnessed with her own eyes nine pillars arising in The Sky, and the great chessboard encompassing the Mortal Realm, she indeed had been 'summoned.'

As for the specific process... that was because as a former deity, she felt that gaze from beyond the firmament and the world, descending upon the Mortal Realm.