Horus with Broken Wings

  Horus with Broken Wings

  The two had a relationship, and at first John was the vanguard commander of the Ann-Ra Legion, and Xiao was the logistics officer, and they were also comrades-in-arms who had fought on the front lines together. John took him away, and sat in the carriage with Xiao to meet the general.

  Amun burst out laughing as soon as he saw Xiao, "Haha, you've put on weight again! You can't just indulge in luxury all day, you need to pay attention to exercise and hard work. Remember when you were a diligent merchant? If you hadn't personally traveled across the desert to collect debts from Balen, we wouldn't have met."

  Xi Xiao said, "Because of the intense war efforts day and night, I was exhausted and became dark and thin. When I returned home, my family saw me and were heartbroken, advising me to rest and nourish myself well. As a result, in these six months, I over-supplemented and ended up even fatter than before."

  John kicked him with a moderate force: "You call that working day and night?"

  Ammon asked John, "How did things go?"

  "Done," said John.

  Ammon nodded: "You go and invite Miss Themis here, I have something to say."

  Themis' daughter came to the front hall, and as soon as she entered, she knelt down to Amun: "Great General, I don't know how to express my gratitude. You and General John not only punished the evil-doers but also made public what happened back then. This is a wish that I had sworn to fulfill with my life in front of the gods. It seems that the folk legend is true, you have been blessed by the gods and possess divine glory in the mortal world!"

  Amun hastily signaled John to help her up, sighing: "Miss said that makes me very ashamed, Jules is a brave warrior who followed me into battle, he sacrificed his life on the battlefield, but we failed to protect his family, and it was too late when we knew all this... If you must thank someone, thank General John. He was the one who went to investigate at the farm and formally lodged a complaint with the city-state."

  Themis was about to kneel down to John again. John, who was supporting her elbow, hastily stopped her, looking as if he wanted to hug her, and his face turned a bit red. Ahmon saw this scene and asked: "Miss Themis, John has already redeemed your slave contract today, and your revenge is also avenged, what do you plan to do from now on?"

  Temi shed tears: "I thought my fate was to die with Sheng Yi, but the general not only avenged me, but also left me in this world. This life of mine is yours, and even if I were to be a slave for the rest of my life, it would be hard to repay you."

  Amun waved his hand: "Don't say that, you didn't do anything wrong, and shouldn't bear such a tragedy. Since that's the case, I have something to ask you alone, everyone else please leave."

  John was still standing there, stunned, when Xie Ou grabbed his arm and pulled him out. They waited outside for a while before Temis came out. Her eyes were red and her face was also red. She glanced at John with her head down and said, "The general would like to speak with you privately."

  After a while, John came out, lowering his head and stealing glances at Themis, with a silent foolish smile on the corner of his mouth. Xi'ona asked in a low voice: "General John, what are you smiling about? I've never seen you like this before, is there some good news?"

  John remained silent with a sly smile, and Amun walked out the door saying: "Of course there's good news. For so many days, everything we've encountered has been frustrating, but today we finally have something to be happy about. It just so happens that Lord Siao is also here, let's set up a banquet tonight and have a good drink, tomorrow we'll go participate in the Isisi Goddess' Blessing Ceremony."

  ……

  The annual Isis Goddess Blessing Ceremony has finally arrived, this year's ceremony is exceptionally lively, people from various city-states nearby have come to participate, and just a few days before the ceremony, the Empire's General Amun caused a stir in Dreamflight, becoming a topic of conversation for people in their spare time.

  Tens of thousands of people gathered on the vast square, but under the command of the warriors, order was maintained without crowding or pushing. When the blessing ceremony began, no matter where one stood, the sacred light descending from heaven would fall upon each person. Ah Mon held a spear and wore armor, standing like an ordinary guard at the edge of the crowd on the square, responsible for maintaining order in this area. The surrounding civilians all looked towards the high platform in front of the distant temple, unaware that the famous Ah Mon was standing beside them.

  The warriors in bright armor formed a semicircular military formation in front of the long steps of the temple, and the high platform for the ceremony was in the center of the formation. Behind the high platform was a large array of divine magic set up by the priests, and the noble people were watching from the long steps. Maria wore a golden crown and held a staff as she stepped onto the high platform, the bell in the temple rang out, and everyone knelt down towards the high platform, Amun also knelt down, placing his spear on the ground beside him.

  The general did not bow his head to kiss the ground, but instead looked up at Saint Maria. Maria slowly raised her staff, her eyes scanning the crowd in the square, as if she had seen each and every one of them, yet there was a fixed gaze, with a pair of eyes on the distant edge of the square, she revealed a faint smile, then closed her eyes slightly and began to chant.

  Amon was not clear what Maria was chanting, at this moment the Holy Maiden was in a central position of a powerful divine array, Amon's detection divine technique could not sense it, but he could feel it in his heart.

  The tears of the gods on the staff emitted a faint golden light, which grew stronger and stronger without being dazzling, spreading to the surroundings and the sky. The divine array began to operate, and the golden light converged in mid-air into a bright beam of light that shot towards the sky curtain, turning the entire sky into gold.

  The beam of light disappeared, and the sky above Dreamflight seemed to have been shining with golden splendor since ancient times. With the melodious sound of the bell, white light fell like a thin gauze, like a waterfall, like flying snow, like milk drops, like floating feathers, silently and quietly. This was the blessing magic of Isis, and tens of thousands of people on the square felt its magical comfort, including Amun.

  Everyone was praying with their heads bowed, except for Amun, who looked up at Maria. She stood in the center of the crowd, radiating a holy light. Amun didn't pray, his mind empty, he just gazed at her. The light fell on him, as if accompanied by a soft chanting voice, like Maria's response to "What is blessing" in the temple -

  "When the heart obtains the power of yearning, God will not close his eyes to his people, witnessing sin and goodness, letting love and honesty meet, justice and peace be intimate, the abundance on earth follows the tranquility in the soul, washing away the unclean spirit, it is a gift as well as an examination, this is the true blessing."

  If the so-called divine spirit is really as Maria said, then Ah Meng will dedicate his body and mind with the most sincere oath. It is Maria's divine spirit, the god she believes in! Under this comforting light, among the crowd of people, Ah Meng feels very weak, like a newborn baby, with nothing, but possessing a brand new life and future.

  This weakness is not feebleness, but the pure and vigorous sprouting of life. Ah Meng had forgotten whether he was *colorful? The city lost its power, he simply didn't think about it anymore, just like a newborn experiencing the call of this divine art, he was the only one in the square who didn't pray, and also the most focused person to experience this ritual.

  ……

  Last year's Blessing Ceremony was marred by an assassin, and last year saw a great war with two kingdoms. Will this year's ceremony be peaceful? Many people were on high alert, just as the ritual reached its climax, Wald, the 9th-level divine magician in charge of monitoring the scene from the long stairs of the temple, suddenly furrowed his brow, for he heard the rumbling thunder.

  The edge of the square was in a state of selflessness, Ah Mon suddenly "woke up" and also heard the thunder, but the dull sound like rolling thunder did not come from the sky, but from the deep underground in the east, accompanied by a slight tremor, the entire city's earth was shaking, only ordinary people were still unaware.

  What's going on? Before he could even think, Ah Mon instantly activated his spatial magic to immobilize the ground beneath his feet as much as possible. His magic spread out and soon sensed several other powerful magical forces converging - it was Wald and the other great mages also taking the same measures without prior agreement.

  The most powerful force that holds the earth still is, of course, the divine array behind the high platform. The main function of this divine array is to assist the Holy Maiden in completing the ritual and ensure that she is not disturbed by any unexpected events. The crowd on the square did not hear the muffled sound like thunder from under the ground, nor did they feel the slight tremor of the earth, still immersed in the glory of Isis's blessing.

  But Ah Mon and the other great mages felt entirely different, the tremors of the earth were faintly weak, but the power was enormous and almost irresistible. So many people simultaneously casting spatial magic could only barely stabilize the ground in the central area of Meng Fei Si City-State around the square. They felt the impact of the magical force so intensely, although their bodies did not move, it felt like being tossed about like a small boat in a stormy sea, and the shock in their hearts can be imagined!

  The earth's trembling didn't last long, and it stopped before the blessing ceremony ended. Ahmon finally let out a sigh of relief. In the legend of the Tianxu Continent, the earthquake was the gods' anger towards human evil. But feeling the earth tremble during Isis' blessing ceremony made one think that such legends were absurd.

  Amon gently wiped away the fine beads of sweat that had formed on his forehead, but his movements suddenly froze. He realized something - his magical powers had recovered! If not for this, how could he have cast the spatial magic just now? It was as if they had been restored without him even realizing it, and Amon hadn't even thought about it when he cast the spell.

  Has he fully passed the test and achieved the eighth rank with a dual-faced power? Amun moved his body slightly, suddenly realizing another thing, that he hadn't fully recovered his strength. The magical power used for divine techniques had indeed been restored, and was far stronger than before, but the physical bloodline's power remained the same as yesterday, without any recovery or growth, his current state was roughly equivalent to an ordinary eighth-rank great magician.

  Amun closed his eyes and carefully sensed his condition, suddenly smiled again. The power of the blood vessels in his body can be said to have recovered, but also can be said not to have recovered, still needs a process of rebirth, just like an infant growing up slowly becomes strong, already can't distinguish whether it's the power of divine technique or physical technique, the two-faced power finally merged into a true unity, as if transformed.

  ……

  Maria on the high platform also felt the earthquake, but she continued to complete the ceremony calmly and composedly, even more so than when she was assassinated. After the blessing ceremony, the crowd chanted hymns in praise of the goddess Isis, Maria stepped down from the platform and led the priests and city officials into the temple to offer sacrifices to the goddess, and the grand ceremony was successfully completed.

  However, all the great mages present had an ominous premonition that something big must have happened in a distant land. That night, Maria sent messengers to various city-states to inquire about any unusual events. On the second day, she summoned all important officials from the Dreamflight City-state to the temple, and Amun did not immediately return to his territory but stayed in Dreamflight City waiting for news.

  Something big has happened, earth-shakingly big, and three things have happened at the same time!

  ……

  The earthquake occurred in the city-state of Haicheng, with its epicenter located at the Red Cliffs Defense Line where Ahmon had fought against the Uruk army. The entire Lower Egi felt the tremors, but there were no major casualties.

  According to the recollection of a soldier who was on duty at the East Gate Tower in Hongjia Town at that time, it was a sunny day, but the sky suddenly darkened. Looking up, you couldn't see any dark clouds, just a gloomy sky, and unlike at night, you couldn't see stars or moon. All residents of Hongjia Town came out of their houses, and soldiers in the barracks also came out of their tents.

  A massive, unknown fear had enveloped the minds of the people, who gathered in the town square to pray to the gods. As they gazed up at the dark sky, various lights appeared high above, like giant, rootless flames dancing and swirling in five colors, accompanied by shockwaves, rumbling sounds, and explosive thunderclaps. Then the earth began to shake, and three of the four castle towers of Red Ridge Town collapsed in intense tremors, with more than half of the houses damaged. Fortunately, everyone had gathered in the square due to the strange phenomenon in the sky.

  According to the recollection of a sailor who was on the beach tens of miles north of Hongjiang Town, he was repairing a damaged small boat when suddenly the sky darkened and the blue sea water churned without wind, reflecting the dark sky with a reddish hue. There were intense flashes of light in the sky, and far away in the high altitude, there were bursts of glowing balls like fire sparks exploding, then the ground began to shake violently, as if the rocks under the earth had turned into monsters colliding and biting each other. The seawater suddenly receded, exposing large areas of the seafloor along the shore, leaving behind many stranded fish and shrimp.

  The sailor ran towards the higher ground on the shore, stumbling and falling many times along the way. He felt the earth moving and turned around in terror, then was so frightened that his whole body went soft and he sat down on the slope, unable to run another step. The receding seawater roared back in a high wall of waves, sweeping away the boats on the beach. Not far away, the coastline was torn open by an unimaginable force, creating a rift from which the seawater poured into the land.

  ……

  It was as if a giant blade had been thrust into the earth, cleaving out a gap. The land along the Red Cliff defense line set by Amun moved sideways in both directions, and seawater poured in from the north to form a bay-like fissure, shaped like a dagger inserted into the land. The sea engulfed the battlefield where Amun and the Uruk army had fought fiercely, passing through the east gate of Red Cliff Town and cutting through nearly four-fifths of the land, leaving only a narrow passage at the southernmost tip.

  A long and narrow inland sea was newly formed within the territory of Cape City, and after the sky cleared up again, the seawater under the sunlight had a faint red color, like a faint blood light. Therefore, this long and narrow inland sea was later also called the Red Sea by people. The main city of Cape City is 160 miles away from the source of the great earthquake, which is the closest large city, and the shock is also the strongest. Many deep cracks appeared on the solid city wall, and many houses in the city were damaged to varying degrees, with hundreds of casualties.

  But the most serious accident occurred in the temple, the solid temple building was not damaged, but the statue of Horus in the middle of the hall broke off its right wing. The giant stone carving fell from a high place and shattered into many pieces, causing panic among the priests.

  If the earthquake was too violent, the entire temple along with the surrounding buildings would have collapsed, and the statue of Horus would also have been damaged. However, the solid buildings around the temple and the square were intact, but only the most important statue of Horus had a broken wing, which is an ominous sign of disaster, and the consequences may be severe.

  The statue of the main god in the city-state temple is not an ordinary thing. From quarrying stone to carving, transporting and decorating the statue, the entire process was strictly supervised, and all craftsmen involved were recorded. This giant statue has a history of hundreds of years, majestic and solid without even a crack, how could it suddenly break its wing?

  According to the rules, the responsible craftsmen will receive the most severe punishment, but the craftsmen from a hundred years ago can no longer be held accountable. Lord Rodick is organizing manpower to investigate the disaster while sending urgent reports to Mufei Si and Aiju Wang, anxiously waiting with a sense of unease in his heart.

  News from all over the place came back quickly, making Roddick both terrified and slightly relieved. In every city-state of Egu, the temple of Horus had suffered the same thing: the statue of Horus with a human body, an eagle's head, and wings like huge mantles had been damaged, all with their right wing broken off at the root and smashed to the altar.

  This can only mean one thing, the destruction of the idol has nothing to do with the craftsmen who built it, nor is it just a mistake of the city-state of Cape. However, the same thing happened to the idols in the temples of Horus all over the country, and only some small private temples still had intact statues of the imperial gods, what does this mean? It makes one dare not think deeply, making all the residents of Egypt tremble with fear!

  ……

  The earthquake created a long, narrow inland sea within the borders of Cape City-State. The goddess Mut had told Amun that this was the boundary of the divine domain of the Ennead. Statues of Horus in temples across the city-states were all wingless and damaged, even in the distant, quake-free capital city of Dis.

  According to ancient legend, this probably symbolizes not only the wrath of the gods but also their downfall or injury. The Pharaoh who claimed to be the incarnation of Horus among humans should have been the most terrified and uneasy, yet he had to come forward to calm the people in order to maintain his divine status. But Ramses II no longer needed to worry, as the third major event that occurred at the same time was the sudden death of Pharaoh Akhenaten.

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