Big Beardy just emerged from the high-level monk conference, but he was still in his humble rags and canvas shoes. Like an old man just getting out of a refugee camp, he looked nothing like a senior ascetic who was equally ranked as the bishop. In fact, Hao Ren had no clue about the ascetics’ ranking in the church at first. He only learned later that these ascetics were highly regarded in the church. Not only did report directly to the pope, they were also qualified for top decision-making in matters pertaining to the church if necessary. It was all due to their unquestionable loyalty to the goddess. They were also the best adapted to the goddess’ decree, and had strongest spiritual resonance with the goddess. The devout ascetics were considered to be the guards of the goddess, so Big Beardy was allowed to participate in bishop-level meetings.
However Becky did not have much grasp of this concept. Her impression of Big Beardy consisted of him being an approachable gentleman and her former housemate. She got up to her feet and greeted him, “Hi Uncle, just after the meeting? Do you want to eat something?”
Bug Beardy smiled and nodded to Becky, thanked her and gently declined her invitation. He then looked at Hao Ren and Ophra. “Have you guys talked over it?”
“You mean the Branding Ritual?” Hao Ren’s brows knit together. “Why would the church want to do that?”
“Of course there are some religious considerations,” Big Beardy nodded, he was emotionless. “Whether it’s the handwritten order left by the pope or your actions in several incidents, it’s hard not to associate you people with the will of the goddess. The high-ranking bishops think that there’s a meaning for the coming of foreigners to this world. Although you are not believer, the goddess’ guidance has brought you here… so the bishops hope that some of you could accept the Branding Ritual.”
Hao Ren looked into Big Beardy’s eyes. “What do you think?”
“You can try. Establishing a connection with the goddess is definitely the way if you want to find out things about her. But to tell the truth, I don’t know how effective it is… The connection between the goddess and us is not just in the blood, it also calls for piety and faith. Only people who really worship the goddess in the heart can hear her teachings. And you…” Big Beardy looked at Hao Ren with a forced smile. “I always feel that you don’t even believe in your own god.”
Hao Ren must be out of his mind if he were to worship the lunatic Goddess. He kept a stiff upper lip while smiling and waving his hand. “I understand that. To be honest, I’m also very interested in your Branding Ritual. In fact, when I last came, I had wanted to try it but was thinking that this was a formal cleric ritual, it would probably not open to outsider. So I didn’t ask.”
Ophra was surprised. “You mean you agree?”
“Wait a minute. I need to get consent from the top,” Hao Ren waved his hand. “I’m still attached to other organisation… you know?”
Though at this crucial moment, he still remembered he was a ‘Pope’ albeit appellatively, he obviously was unaware that what he was going to partake was a solemn ceremony for the believers. A spokesperson of a god was going to establish a connection with another god through a religious ritual was enough to freak the ordinary believers out. Yet, he was naive enough to want to discuss with his God…
Ophra was constrained by her knowledge of her own world. She did not anticipate Hao Ren to have agreed so quickly. She looked at Hao Ren, wide-eyed, as if he was some kind of rare creature. Then she asked Big Beardy, “…Is it really possible to discuss this thing with his own god?”
Big Beardy did not really know how to answer that question. But he tried to make it sounding serious. “…it’s acceptable to his god.”
At this time, Hao Ren had let the MDT contact Raven 12345. Her groggy voice sounded in his head. “Hao Ren? What the heck are you doing?”
“Haven’t you woke up yet at this hour?”
“You’re kidding me! You must have gone to overseas, aren’t you? Do you know there is something called Time Zone?” Raven 12345’s voice still sounded so cordial. “Get straight to the point. Why are you calling?”
Hao Ren looked nervous on his face. “I am planning to experience the conversion ritual to some other god.”
“Flop—”
Hao Ren heard an indiscernible voice at the other end, before Raven 12345’s shouting voice reverberated in his mind. “What the heck? Did I not treat you well so that you want to job-hop so quickly? Are you competing with your own daughter?”
Hao Ren quickly realized there was a problem with his statement. He quickly cleared up the misunderstanding.
“I was thinking ‘What?'” said Raven 12345, letting out a sigh of relief. “You’re not jumping ship, are you? It’s nothing more than goddamn radio test. All right, go ahead.”
The Goddess was still babbling, not knowing she was still on the line. “That almost scared me. I’ve never seen any popes quit in the hundreds of millions of years of history of the three great celestials. This one called up and told me he wanted to quit? I almost thought that I would I would be hung out to dry again… Oh, f**k, it’s still online?”
Then the spiritual connection ended abruptly.
Lily looked curiously at Hao Ren, whose face changed colours every other second. “Did the Goddess give you her blessing, Mr. Landlord?”
Hao Ren turned his head, forcing a smile. “I tell you what, I could never believe in her in my life…”
Lily: “?”
After a short preparation, Hao Ren and Big Beardy arrived at a monastery in the floating city. The design of this aerial fortress was entirely in accordance with military arrangement. It had not only military barracks and academy but also church facilities such as monasteries. Although they were small, they were sufficient for most daily usage.
Hao Ren had no particular excitement about the Branding Ritual—perhaps it was a sacred and glorious blessing ceremony to the Hollettans and a performance of the Goddess to bring her own grace to the mortal. But to Hao Ren, it was just another experiment indistinguishable from what he had conducted in the spacecraft’s laboratory. In fact, even without the help of Big Beardy, he had also intended to try ‘inoculating’ the lifeblood on board the spacecraft to see what he could hear.
He had the lifeblood sample, professional books of the Disciples of Glory, and comprehensive medical equipment. Even if there was a slight rejection, he was not worried.
But of course, now it was even better. There were professional religious figures; the success rate should be much higher.
“Why you seem not nervous at all?” Ophra came up, puzzled by how calm Hao Ren was. “As if there is no hesitation and conflict… I mean, aren’t you following another God? I heard about your world from the Master.”
Watching Big Beardy preparing the incense and lifeblood container not far away, Hao Ren said, “It’s no big deal. In our world, every child receives no less than a dozen jabs of vaccination since born.”
Ophra was wide-eyed. “Your world has such a passion for religion?”
Speaking about cultural difference.
Hao Ren looked around. Other than his friends, the only followers of the Disciples of Glory were Big Beardy and Cardinal Orben, which was somewhat weird to him. He asked, “Isn’t this ritual involving many people and scripture chanting and all that… why it looks so casual here?”
“Do you want to convert?” said Big Beardy, smiling. “Things like scripture chanting are on the one hand to subconsciously strengthen the spiritual connection between believers and the Goddess, and on the other hand, they are admonitions for the new converts. But since you just want to test the lifeblood connection, those parts are unnecessary. And to be honest… I don’t think by just reading you some prayers will make you change your belief.”
Y’lisabet said, “This sounds like words not coming from a fanatic.”
“We are devout believers, but the Goddess forbids us from becoming fanatics,” said Cardinal Orben with a deadpan face. It was not required of the interim pope to come to such a ceremony, but this time is was a special case; it was the first time a pagan receiving Branding Ritual since the founding of the Disciples of Glory. Because of many considerations, including that he was the person giving the approval for the ritual, he felt he had to supervise the event himself. “The Goddess teaches us to be alert to extremist ideology, which must be rejected. God’s love should be spread to the world, not bluntly but in a gentle manner.
“Well, I like what you say,” Y’lisabet hugged herself, and nodded like an adult. “Humans in our world believe in a myriad of bright gods, and gods of creations and all that. One is more fanatic than the other as if they are afraid that people don’t know their god is the most powerful… that’s diffident.”
Big Beardy ignited the incense, which had a mental-strengthening effect. He held the strange vessel containing lifeblood and came up to Hao Ren. “Are you ready to listen to the voice of the Goddess?”
“Let it come. I wish she could tell me something.”