A small smile spread across Cel's face - the first genuine one in longer than he could remember.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbHhdfDdCut
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2c92cKcNq8
The blessing. Finally.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQKpOAzFkCw
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrq5NFUDxe6
After everything he'd endured, every nightmare survived, every wound that should have killed him - he was about to receive what he'd earned. What he'd bled for.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2qbkm5jb7X
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7GLHe3qUSp
The moon hung full and radiant above, its pale light washing over the cracked earth of his soul's landscape.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡspCaRpgUcg
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡphusDDq8Ih
"Please follow me, Chosen One." Selina’s voice carried gentle warmth as she gestured toward the mist with graceful fingers.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3o1ac46p0k
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrtqzIkFWda
Cel's breath steadied, though his heart quickened with something that might have been anticipation. He nodded once, that small smile still tugging at his lips.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4pOBSssbL5
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyNLNGt1OSL
She turned, white robes trailing across broken ground as she moved toward the mist with unhurried elegance. Cel followed, his bare feet padding softly against fractured stone.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡux7Kb2A9a5
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8oNOzYZz6s
They walked in silence through the transformed landscape. Small flowers with bluish-white petals bloomed from the deepest cracks, reaching toward moonlight. Jagged stones jutted up at irregular intervals - ruins carved into the depths of who he'd become.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4bMNcRMOza
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ42vX92NKsV
Cel's mind drifted toward what awaited him.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTbhBNilf3
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlGZ2gU1cNt
A blessing.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWlI7PFfXHq
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡODSRvqWH9P
Soon the goddess's power would be woven into his very being.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXTUj5uTzyc
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZH7ktZHF3u
This power had always been a part of his world - expected, almost mundane among nobles. Divine gifts granted to those called by the gods, transforming the Chosen into something more than human.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaz2TSBXAXe
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGOpZaFJmpA
But he'd never truly considered what they were. What it meant to be bound to a deity.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpniHfZNb7F
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJfQZhQWUZ6
Three factors shaped every blessing - the foundation that determined what a Chosen One could become.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0zBmAZRdmC
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDBVx7T9I14
First: the nature of the god.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmmBx4oa5et
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ86OiP8zJkx
The Mountain God granted strength and endurance. The Storm Goddess gave lightning and wind.The Sun God's blessed were always strong, proud, radiant. Warriors who commanded fire and light.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIFP6tDaT3y
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzCnk8xvurr
He'd spent his entire life studying them, memorizing their achievements, listening to endless sermons about their legendary deeds.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtIUitQezMz
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKc4emhMSSd
But the Moon Goddess?148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRRsypCTO2F
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo1maNHuxHP
She was different.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8h8pgPFuBE
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdPj9jN9Pu2
Unlike other gods, each with an entire Clan devoted to them, the Moon Goddess had none. No bloodlines carried her favor. No buildings bore her name. She'd had few Chosen throughout history, and even fewer records of what they'd accomplished.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPxFUVLqGVQ
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0FJIXMNHmy
The reason was simple.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmCfT48c2z6
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO2qQgGAMBb
They had been weak.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRfGzk66Ucq
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU4z2iRVPu1
Where other Chosen reshaped the world - commanding tides, healing mortal wounds, razing plains with fire - those who served the Moon Goddess had left no mark. Their abilities - whatever they'd been - hadn't shaken the world. Hadn't carved legacies worth remembering.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJy25qM7Pe
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMvM9ya10a5
They'd lived and died as footnotes.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvdB2smY2tP
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfX7osxPxO8
The irony might have made him laugh if it didn't make him so angry. Cast out by the people who raised him. Saved instead by the only deity he knew nothing about.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ74Nh1lDcfE
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy0RfJUJeL4
Selina's figure moved steadily ahead. The mist parted for her as though bowing in deference.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXLMgoQnSoi
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8OcF08dyqr
Cel watched her for a moment before his thoughts moved to the second factor: 148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Pzw2jk2xR
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Htp8JXKo2
The rank of the priest.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjgjWjnC09o
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcoiXiX6eJl
Unlike the rigid hierarchies found in most hierarchies, priestly ranks held no special titles, no formal order. A servant of the gods could be rank 1 or rank 100 - the number itself was all that mattered.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCybfurXug9
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9vedbxp3NI
But that number meant everything.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxKYt6CLpdc
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD3Wvd6PggB
The rank indicated proximity to their deity. How close they stood to the divine.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhgf2H9yvwU
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd5dWZJRCsC
And which priest was sent to a Chosen One revealed how much the god valued them.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtcu6GIi6F3
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrDoaVwCqVl
The gods dispatched their most trusted servants only to those they deemed worthy. A newly Called receiving a high-ranked guide? That was a declaration of divine favor - a promise of investment and expectation.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyseOTIc902
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyR9ZVPyfR3
Conversely, someone of lower standing suggested... less. Not rejection, but neither was it embrace.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyp7NKze1GR
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4bAJdFHYxP
And this hierarchy directly influenced the quality of blessings bestowed.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbHusrFFQYm
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq60dtvJhkl
At lower ranks, the paragons and artifacts granted were functional but limited - straightforward abilities within the deity's domain. Useful, certainly. Yet unremarkable.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvokaUQse6R
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFKzP85Xfg8
Higher ranks yielded far more. Through a rank 40 priestess, a god might grant paragons that reshaped battlefields. Through a rank 10, they could forge legends whose names echoed through history.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkYqlGIda20
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Vw2t0koUl
At the pinnacle, the gods held nothing back. Paragons of devastating power. Artifacts of impossible grace. Blessings worthy of those they deemed truly exceptional.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwvEWaW9Wxn
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNLvV84bsKj
Cel studied Selina's back as they walked. What rank did she hold? Her presence carried weight - certainty that suggested she wasn't newly appointed. But beyond that, he couldn't guess.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo9drvVZ8jj
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhjAxnAlpSS
Priests only revealed such information after the first blessing - a rule dictated by the gods themselves for reasons mortals couldn't grasp.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQDq78oz9tM
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpq6v9VQqY7
His fingers curled at his sides.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡADzXplqRT1
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhK6WoVJZBP
And the third factor:148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg8BsbfIcZC
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw0IFZy9Bj2
The compatibility between the deity and their Chosen One.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3sJhSrZmu3
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAFBLkYZb1P
This was the part no one understood. Even the royal family, with their vast library and generations of recorded history, had no answer to why certain people were chosen.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY9BaaWPubR
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAV24ode0YB
Some claimed personality - that gods selected those who reflected their own nature. Others insisted on fate, predetermined and inescapable. And then there were those who believed it was arbitrary. That mortals were nothing but playthings for forces beyond comprehension.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzLaGE2EqzF
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYXMbWNEkoR
Cel wasn't sure what he believed. Maybe all those theories were wrong. Maybe they were all right.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzPjd9KNykF
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡievzwGjqRX
In the end, gods remained an enigma. Everything humanity claimed to know was guesswork dressed as certainty. Fragments stitched together over centuries.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVrD60goMD5
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkgo34FMXfb
Only the priests could claim true connection to the divine. And even they spoke in riddles, revealing only what lay within their god-given authority.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP703P9VqHI
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt3EOnBOoHV
This secrecy made divine knowledge one of the world's most valuable commodities. Kings, warlords, scholars would pay fortunes for even the faintest whisper of celestial truth.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6xsNIpHoKJ
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxVPU48UKu9
Everyone wanted answers. Few existed. And in that desperation, lies flourished.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfW8l21wPY1
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAQeTtXxwSH
His stomach churned with familiar revulsion.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjgDwwIceP2
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu9SlrMCXwz
False doctrines. Fabricated revelations. Entire faiths built on deliberate misinformation. Humanity had drowned itself in deception.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjelagGJidr
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnvfbIvXPu4
And every level of society fed the rot.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4DKGzSmjAd
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdyeO7KLYvG
The nobles controlled access to knowledge, yes - they dictated who was worthy and silenced threatening voices. Their monopoly turned belief into power, worship into currency, gods themselves into weapons.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUmlMJtdT2Q
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuaq7iGOMLD
But the common people?148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsNqIgGDZ9x
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5HieNE6Gcu
They weren't innocent victims.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHjvBtZMRmw
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqxwKMWXOuv
False prophets rose from peasant villages, claiming divine visions for coins. Sects multiplied like weeds, each convinced they alone understood divine will - demanding obedience in exchange for salvation. Merchants sold 'artifacts’ to the desperate - splinters of 'sacred' wood, water from 'blessed' springs, all fabricated for profit. 148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡal9oZS8y3U
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw9YKfZMme9
Faith twisted by greed became poison that seeped through the entire kingdom.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHHCe3CF9Nw
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡngPZDrW79O
That was why understanding had stagnated. Why humanity, despite centuries of devotion, still grasped blindly at truth's edges. Because no one wanted truth - they wanted comfort, wealth, power, whatever lie served their needs.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZhIX3PV9km
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgGc1LEXu6c
Almost laughable. People begged gods for salvation while ensuring their own downfall.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrej1ZTXzZL
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzGPlpetneP
And through it all, the gods remained silent.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFFGKb3Acy
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtxol7mgVn4
Did they care? Or were they simply indifferent?148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkHClE2JmtI
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6jT30izDxt
That question haunted him more than any other.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmhPy0AGVr
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzDyIFKAv5S
What if the gods saw exactly what he did? 148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS6Ozdn4BmD
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE82973crJA
Every lie, every corruption, every twisted doctrine - and remained silent because humanity had earned its ignorance. Not punishment. Just... consequences. 148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Pf7lYLdmf
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSym4ldQRHo
And Cel, no matter how much he wished otherwise, was part of that same corrupted race.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡebe6HMx96P
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOEh8sjk5QR
Would he be any different?148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo5C61XTOgT
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbFrQ0wsIV9
A bitter smirk pulled at his lips. He wanted to believe so.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRbkyBNSD7d
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEwCRSSOHtl
But he knew better.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw7KVG8lDf0
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiICA0NiC2h
Lies weren't just tools of the powerful. Sometimes they were the only way to survive. If he returned to civilization, he'd wield deception as readily as those he despised.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2UxbSAouHd
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBLOU1EfQdK
He had to.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeiBR60iOlf
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJLPLCrCCAV
Ahead, Selina stopped.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp4Rc5EJKPb
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb0C3hPPipz
Cel nearly collided with her before catching himself.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDG93u5mYFQ
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8butiYZwGA
She turned to face him, white robes trailing through the mist like they were woven from it.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJp0b8LTl3b
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFhIJjtjxZK
"We are nearly there, Chosen One."148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLFnH27nJJl
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWllWUFH4kG
Selina gestured forward into the mist, but Cel remained still.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiur3knL2sK
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi0xR1g03ge
She paused, waiting.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSb0TyiorzE
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzRCN246k8o
"I have questions," he said. "About the trial."148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVoHFMCR0rI
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡic1zTg5FE5
After a moment, she lowered her hand and faced him fully. "Of course. Please, ask."148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8zw0IAUdaJ
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ96yLLdxjCe
Cel studied her masked face. "When I was dying in that cavern, I heard a voice. Female. Sharp and commanding - telling me to get up." He paused. "At first, I thought it was you. But the tone was different. Harsher."148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrYWb11l1EB
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk4yAnjz7TO
Silence stretched between them.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKD016yZZ3g
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPE02oZmoQM
"Who was it?"148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFqG5GCgZGI
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKP1GUF7zcq
"I am sorry, Chosen One. This does not lie within my authority."148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTCGrnZTeev
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEmtDxPQweK
He was silent for a moment, then moved on. "The moon appeared right as I was dying. No trigger I could see - unless dying itself was the trigger. Was the trial simply to survive long enough? Or was there something else I was supposed to do?"148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrgkzomuVF9
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLOJWOEYLdq
"That, too, does not lie within my authority," Selina said, her tone carrying something that might have been regret.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJiYlIfKgUD
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡne4J0Kzy6T
Cel hummed softly - half-amused, half-resigned. "Can you tell me anything about what I just went through?"148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB2YeJrCQxE
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnE3WiYPPwy
"Only what you experienced yourself. The trial's purpose belongs to the goddess alone."148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXjXJirIATq
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWc6XOYVlNg
He let out a quiet breath. 148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEnCNjEZpuP
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3CVyJ56WWk
He expected as much, and he didn't really care. The trial was over. He'd survived. Whatever secrets it held, whatever meanings he'd missed - none of that mattered anymore.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxiyZGNui4Q
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTrxgpZMhQQ
"Alright," he said finally. "I'm ready."148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡArtNcf3Yag
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdaToIWEU7Q
Selina turned, gesturing forward once more. "Then let us continue."148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrD0iv2iq9U
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyQDa5b5Q0v
They walked in silence, moonlight breaking through the mist in shifting rays. The air grew colder. Thinner. Each step felt lighter, as if the ground beneath his feet was becoming less real, less solid.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ06Kfh4dAVz
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwSdyFL2O6Z
Then the mist parted.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD8VhJrkKqG
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRyx9KfE1Bc
Cel stopped.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ57GNOYZLHT
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxZRx6ebBvu
The ground was carpeted in bluish-white flowers that swayed gently through the mist, their petals drawing in moonlight and releasing it in steady pulses. At the center, a focused beam of moonlight descended - so strong and concentrated it almost seemed tangible.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLeoG3eKSIU
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUMRYILL4T5
At first sight, he knew that this was a sacred place.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDFBCFylw1o
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGaJRnfKBjJ
Selina stepped forward.148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqM267ekRgr
148Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN6M5C0RmCZ
"We have arrived, Chosen One."1234 copyright protection144ＰＥＮＡＮＡe7kSerRzha 尼

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