Rome Must Perish

"Very well!" Maximus's expression remained solemn: "The entire life of us humans is but a blink of the Goddess's eye. The souls of those who uphold their oaths will ascend to the Water God Country where the Goddess resides, living worry-free with the Divines! Meanwhile, those who break their vows will see their souls fall into hell, suffering various tortures, never able to rise again! ... You must remember this!"

Faced with the imposing gaze of Maximus, Siris couldn't help but shiver and quickly nodded solemnly.

The young Druids let Siris and the others retreat, then led a new group of villagers to stand before the statue...

At this moment, more young Druids arrived, instructing them to take out their land deeds, and then used oak stamps, dipped in blue ink, to imprint a temple mark on the deeds.

The mark was identical to the one on the stone gate—"a wave formed a semi-circle (designed by Maximus for the Nix Tribe, it was an artistic representation of the Chinese character 'Nix' that resembled a wave). Strangely, when sunlight shone on it, the blue temple mark would emit a starry glimmer, convincing the villagers that the Goddess was watching them through the mark, so they reverently held their deeds...

After the villagers of No. 21 Village had sworn their oaths, they were supposed to leave the temple, but most villagers were reluctant to go, dawdling in front of the stone gate, so the Druids had to drive them away like herding sheep.

Before crossing the stone gate, Siris glanced back at the statue with reluctance, convinced in his heart: it wasn't just a statue, the Goddess Danu was embodied in it!

On the way down the mountain, they, like the villagers before them, felt an emptiness, somewhat lost.

Someone couldn't help but ask, "Sage, when can we come again to worship the Goddess Danu?!"

The leading Druid smiled and said, "The Goddess Danu blesses all the Nix tribe members, the temple is open to you, you may come at any time. However, during this period, the temple is busy arranging the worship and oath ceremonies for the newly joined tribe members, leaving no time to receive you. After this period, it won't be a problem.

But I advise you not to come too often, because the Goddess also has matters to attend to in her divine realm, she does not wish to be frequently disturbed. As long as you attend to your own affairs, you will naturally gain the Goddess's attention."

Someone regretfully said, "But I really want to come here often. Once I enter the temple and see the Goddess Danu, all my worries seem to vanish..."

"Ah, I feel the same!" His words were immediately echoed by the other villagers.

The young Druid listened as everyone shared their peculiar feelings after entering the temple and fell into contemplation.

As the sun set, and the weary birds returned to the forest, the newly built Danu Temple finally regained its tranquility.

"Leader, the villagers from each village have finished their worship and each has returned with their group." The Guard Captain, wearing a robe, entered the temple and reported to Maximus.

"Here one should not call me Leader, but High Priest." Maximus reminded in a slightly hoarse voice.

"Yes, High Priest."

"Emmerich, how many villages still haven't come?" Maximus glanced at one of the two elder Druids.

"There are still eight villages, they can all worship by tomorrow." Emmerich said, "However, in a few days, dozens more village residents will likely come to the temple to make their oaths."

"Standing all day and speaking endlessly is truly tiring!" Maximus stretched and expressed a couple of frank words, then continued seriously: "But for the expansion of the followers of the Danu Goddess, all the hardship is worthwhile!"

"High Priest, today the tribesmen came to worship, and everything went smoothly! Following the Goddess's inspiration, you personally sculpted Her statue, playing a crucial role as the villagers worshiped, entirely subduing them into becoming Her faithful followers!" Another elder Druid sincerely praised.

"And you, Hemijias?" Maximus looked at him meaningfully.

Hemijias humbly replied, "Honorable High Priest, this is more than just a statue, the design of the entire temple represents a miracle! Only the inspiration from the Goddess Danu could enable your hands to create such a miracle! High Priest, you are the most beloved progeny of the Goddess, this is beyond doubt!"

Maximus gazed at the statue, smiling without speaking.

Naturally, this was not a miracle created by the Goddess Danu, but a showcase of the beauty of sculptural art far beyond this era, by him, a former art academy graduate.

When designing the appearance of the Goddess Danu, he put considerable thought into blending the facial features of Celtic and Illyrian women, rendering the image as gentle as possible, fully showcasing its maternal attributes, so that the tribesmen would feel a sense of kinship and admiration, without inciting blasphemy.

Additionally, he utilized special techniques from Buddhist Avalokitesvara images, adding an element of solemnity and compassion to the image, fitting for Her identity as a Divine... To create a beautiful, majestic, kind, and compassionate perfect statue of the Goddess Danu, Maximus spent a substantial amount of time and used countless sheets of paper before finally completing it.

This painting amazed the artisans; however, during the carving, they struggled because their skills were insufficient to capture the divine essence of the Painted Goddess Danu, no matter how much guidance Maximus offered. Ultimately, he had to pick up the carving knife and personally undertake the task.

Fortunately, Maximus had specifically studied carving at an art academy in his past life, joined a studio upon entering the workforce, and spent years working on sculptural art, thus he had no shortage of experience in this area. Carving a godly statue was not difficult, but to convey a lifelike presence was challenging; the key lay in the paint, thus Maximus instructed the guards to gather various flowers, soils, and minerals from the wilderness, spending considerable time to prepare paints that met his satisfaction.

The eyes of the statue demanded the most effort, utilizing the angle of the head, the focusing of light, and the clever use of colors to make devotees feel that the Goddess's eyes were watching them from the front of the statue, creating the illusion that the eyes were moving.

As for having the Goddess Danu holding a child, apart from increasing her maternal affinity and strengthening the appeal to believers, there was also Maximus's ulterior motive. Having systematically studied anatomy in his past life's art academy, he sculpted a child in likeness to himself as a child, based on his current appearance, to affirm the rumor of his being a progeny of the Goddess Danu.

This Danu Goddess statue, into which Maximus invested much effort, would have been an average work in the past life but appeared as an actual miracle in this ignorant and backward present!

"Are you sure it won't rain in the coming days?" Maximus asked.

"It won't rain," Emmerich confidently stated, "Late autumn is usually dry with little rain, and both Hemijias and I have confirmed repeatedly, it definitely won't rain in the next few days."

Maximus trusted his words because Druids, in this era, were considered all-round scholars, understanding a little of rituals, law, medicine, astronomy, geography... virtually everything. Moreover, both Emmerich and Hemijias had lived here for decades and were certainly very familiar with the local climate.

"Once the oaths for the new tribe members are completed, it's essential to quickly construct the temple for the Goddess Danu," Maximus held back the latter part of his statement: otherwise, if it rains, the paints on the sculpture will wash away, and all my efforts will go to waste.

"Valles!"

"Present!" Valles stepped out from a group of robed young men at the back.

"I am leaving this task to you; take my command and find Capito, have him allocate a few more artisans to this place to construct the entire temple according to the Danu Temple blueprint I previously designed," Maximus ordered.

"Yes, Leader."

"How many Druids has Emmerich recruited recently?" Maximus lowered his voice to ask.

Valles earnestly replied in low tones: "A total of 12, they are all Segestica people, and have willingly joined our tribe as reserve tribe members. These past few days, they have been assisting in the construction and management of the temple, and thus far, their performance has been quite satisfactory."

Maximus nodded, quietly instructing, "Even though they are Segestica Druids, as long as they can treat followers of other races within the tribe fairly, you may use them without concern. Observe them for a few months, and report the names of those who perform best, I will appoint them as official Assistant Priests of the Danu Goddess, to encourage others."

"Yes, Leader." Valles discreetly gestured towards Hemijias: "What about him?"

Maximus did not immediately answer but stepped forward two steps, "Hemijias, I've heard from Valles and Emmerich that since you joined the Nix tribe, you've fully assisted them in recruiting Druids, building the temple, preparing the worship ceremonies... you've played no small role!"

Hemijias humbly said, "The High Priest overpraises; this is my first time participating in constructing such a temple, and the temple's worship rituals differ greatly from before, from which I've learned a lot."

Maximus earnestly stated, "Once all the preliminary tribe members successfully swear their oaths to the Goddess Danu, you will be appointed as the Deputy High Priest of the Nix Tribe and share the responsibility of managing all affairs of the temple with Emmerich!"

Hemijias responded with delight, "Thank you, High Priest!"

"Emmerich," Maximus focused on the tribe's Chief Priest, emphasizing: "Now with Hemijias assisting you, the compilation of the Danu Scripture must be expedited, and the completed parts can first be submitted to me for review. Once reviewed, it can be related to the tribe members as they come to the temple for worship."