Chapter 263
The bell stopped ringing, and Plesinas led the saintesses out of the crowd. They stood on both sides of the entrance of the temple and began to sing in unison.
This time, it was not just pure singing, but also lyrics:
God Hades is just and strict,
Your light shines on the earth,
Our hearts are full of passion,
Come to your holy temple,
Your light shines on us,
… "
"Is … is this a new Ode to Hades?!" The people were full of surprise. The unique melody was so beautiful and magnificent. As the song continued, they were deeply moved by the holiness and ideals of the song.
Countless people knelt on the ground devoutly, silently chanting the Ode to Hades, and tears of excitement flowed from their eyes …
When the song ended, some people still couldn't get away from it until the people around them cheered, "Devers!!!" Only then did they realize that the Archon of Dionia, the High Priest of the Alliance, was wearing a white robe and a white scarf on his head. He was holding a torch in his hand as he appeared on a circular altar in front of the temple. Beside him, Pleasinus and another priest were carrying a large, smooth, concave bronze mirror.
The people widened their eyes in curiosity, because it was rumored that the elders of the Senate had a heated discussion about the Sacred Fire of the Temple of Hades. Because the Sacred Fire was not only the spirit of the Greek city-states, but also the inheritance of civilization, especially the Greek city-states in the western Mediterranean Sea. They were all colonial cities, and the Sacred Fire of the acropolis couldn't be ignited by any random fire source. The colonists had always taken a little fire source from the temple of their mother state and kept it until the new city built a new temple. Only then would they use the fire source to ignite the Sacred Fire, and it would burn for generations to remember their homeland and pass on the fire!
Therefore, the Turín -born elders, led by Polyxis, proposed to bring the fire source from Athens again, but it was strongly opposed by Antonios, Amyntas, and the others. The reason was that the old Turín no longer existed, and the new Turín was not a state of Athens!
As for Cornelus's proposal to draw the Fire Seed from the Temple of Zeus in Amendolar, it was also rejected. The Turií elders believed that the small city of Amendolar was not enough to represent the entire Diónia Alliance.
In the end, the Devers made the decision and said, "Since Diónia is a newly established city-state alliance, there is no mother state, and the Temple of Hades is almost the only guardian temple of a city-state in the Mediterranean Sea. In that case, I believe that Hades will bestow upon us the Holy Flame on the day of the celebration in the temple, to show his favor to Diónia! "
These words were spread throughout the city and quickly spread throughout the entire Alliance. Now, be it the common people, the senators of the Senate, or the VIPs who had just received the news, they were all staring at the unlit torch in the hands of the high priest with curiosity and excitement. They were waiting for a miracle to happen, or perhaps they were looking forward to the biggest joke in Greece.
Facing the entrance of the temple, the Devers half-knelt on the altar with a solemn expression, holding the torch high in their hands.
Plesinas and the high priest took a few steps back and raised the bronze mirror with difficulty. They slowly rotated it, adjusted the angle, and focused the hot sunlight on a cluster of papyrus extending from the top of the torch …
The familiar song of Hades was sung by the Adoratrice once again, their voices echoing through the clouds …
The noon sun was scorching everyone, but the sweaty people were completely unaware of it. Their attention was always focused on the motionless Devers …
Time passed minute by minute.
The bronze mirror was dazzling, but the torch was still the same …
"Saying that Hades will bestow the Holy Flame, I think he is just being arrogant. Does he really think he can do anything!" Polyxis sneered in a low voice. He had contributed a lot to the speech of the Devers at the meeting being spread so widely and so quickly. He hoped to see the Devers make a fool of themselves at this moment, which would be a great blow to the prestige of this young Consul!
Burkes nudged him with his hand, kindly reminding him to keep quiet.
Polyxis rolled his eyes back at him. Burkes used to be his good friend, and now he was one of the strongest supporters of the Devers among the Turií senators in the Senate. If it weren't for certain reasons, Polyxis wouldn't want to have anything to do with him anymore.
Suddenly, he saw that the top of the torch seemed to be emitting green smoke. He thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, so he blinked hard.
Exclamations came from all directions one after another.
Soon, the green smoke turned into a small cluster of red and yellow flames, quickly igniting the linen soaked in olive oil.
The flames were burning fiercely!
"Oh, Hades!!!" The people who witnessed this miracle burst into a tsunami of cheers, and the whole hill seemed to be shaking.
Even the VIPs looked at each other in disbelief: Is Diónia really blessed by Hades?!
Are the Devers really blessed by Hades?! The senators looked at the Devers in front of them in awe, and Polyxis' body was trembling slightly. He seemed to see the majestic eyes of Hades staring straight at him from the torch held high by the Devers.
The Devers secretly heaved a sigh of relief. Although he had practiced several times before, and even specially chose a sunny day to perform in the square, he was still a little nervous. After all, this was in front of tens of thousands of people. If he messed it up, his meticulous plan and the prestige of the God-favored would be ruined! Fortunately, with the blessing of Hades, he succeeded!
The Devers slowly stood up, held the torch high, and slowly walked around, solemnly enjoying the cheers of the people, like the waves in a storm, pushing him to the peak again and again …
Then, accompanied by the priests, he walked into the temple and lit the dark bronze braziers in front of the statue of Hades one by one. From now on, the holy fire of the Temple of Hades would burn day and night, blessing the prosperity of Diónia.
When the Devers walked out of the temple, a loud bugle sounded, accompanied by a low drum beat. The three Legion Commanders, Capus, Drax, and Hieronymus, led by eight captains in full military uniform, each carrying three stone tablets. Under the escort of 40 captains, they arrived in front of the temple.
When most of the people looked at the three stone tablets in confusion, the words of the High Priest, with the help of the voice transmitter, were transmitted to the ears of the people, "The establishment and development of the City-State Alliance of Diónia cannot be separated from the blessing of Hades! It cannot be separated from the efforts of the people! Today, when we are enjoying peace and prosperity, please do not forget the brave warriors who sacrificed their lives to protect Diónia! Their names are engraved on these three stone tablets. Hades appreciates their loyalty and bravery to the alliance, allowing their souls to enter the temple and turn into heroic spirits to continue to protect Diónia, and to accept the worship and worship of the descendants and descendants of Diónia! "After that, the Devers knelt in front of the stone tablets with a solemn expression.
Then, the Legion Commander, the captains, the captains, and all the soldiers present knelt in front of the stone tablets with a solemn expression.
In the eyes of the people, the stone tablets that were engraved with words were no longer cold stones, but vivid figures with names …
"Sob sob sob …" Other than the distinguished guests, the mountains and plains were filled with kneeling Diónia citizens. In this solemn atmosphere, there was an uncontrollable cry. Those who were crying were the families of the soldiers who died in the battle.
"The brave warriors do not die, the heroic spirits live forever!"
"The brave warriors do not die, the heroic spirits live forever!"
…
The Devers led the people to kowtow to the stone tablets.
At this moment, the grass and trees were sentimental, and the heavens and the earth mourned together. A strong wind blew at the right time, even the sun was blocked by the clouds, which made the people believe that their cries were answered.
For a time, the people's prayers lasted for a long time …
The bugle and war drums were played in unison. The generals and captains walked in neat steps, carrying the stone tablets into the temple under the watchful eyes of thousands of people.
"I can't believe the people of Diónia revere the warriors to such an extent!" Lysias had heard that Diónia held a triumphal ceremony for the victorious returning army. At this moment, he could not help but be moved when he saw the stone tablets of the dead being sent into the temple.
"With such a sacred act, how can the citizens of Diónia not be willing to fight to the death!" Ascamas, the commander of the Crotone Navy, was no longer in the mood to mock them. Instead, he looked solemn.
He and Lysias looked at each other, thinking about the same question: If there was another war with Diónia in the future, could the Crotone defeat the people of Diónia with such high morale?
The VIPs from the Southern Alliance more or less felt the same way. For Caños of Elia, he was happy to see the strength of Diónia.
After the drums and horns stopped, the harp sounded again …
Amidst the melodious sound of the harp, Heraclide Jr. and Piasix carried a stone bust to the front of the temple.
"People of Diónia, please tell me, who designed the New City of Turií? Who led us in building it? "The Devers asked loudly.
"… It was Heraclide." The reply was intermittent.
"Who designed and built the Temple of Hades?" The Devers asked again.
"Heraclide!" This time, the reply was much more orderly.
"Whether it was the construction of the new city or the temple, who was the first to arrive and the last to leave every day? Who was gravely ill, but still devoted all his energy to the construction of the city that he loved so much, and finally sacrificed his life for it?" The Devers asked loudly again, "Who is he?!"
"Heraclide!!!" The orderly and powerful reply echoed in the hills.
"In view of the contribution of Heraclide, the master architect, to Diónia, his statue will be placed in the Sage Hall of the Temple, and he will be favored by Hades. He will continue to use his talents to contribute to the Elysium! At the same time, in the future, as long as there are people of Diónia who have made great contributions to the prosperity and development of Diónia, their statues will also be placed in the Temple of the Sage, and their souls will coexist with the Alliance! " Due to the miracle of the Holy Flame, the Devers were like Hades at this moment, and his words were naturally more motivating to the people.
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