A Shrine For The New God

"Step aside, step aside! I am coming through!" A stout man shouted as he managed to make his way through the gathered crowd.

His mouth clamped shut as he took in the scenery of his surroundings. The wide pathway miraculously formed between the mountains did nothing to assuage his growing fury.

"Sorcery!"

He screamed, pointing a trembling finger at the hollowed out mountain range.

"Blasphemy!"

Arlo jumped up in rage. His cheeks quivering as he gnashed his teeth harder. "You dare to call it Sorcery? This is our God's miracle!"

"My Lord, please allow your servants to punish this heretic!" Arlo requested.

"Who is this guy?" Raymond looked at the man, up and down. He was wearing gold trimmed robes and his expensive looking fur coat screamed 'I am Rich'. "He seems like an important person!"

"Bah! He is just the mayor of this shanty town. Really nobody for you to take him seriously, My Lord! We will deal with him!" Arlo preened with confidence as he received a nod of approval from Raymond.

"Beat him up, guys! He dares to accuse our lord of sorcery! He needs to be thoroughly punished to make him see our ways!" Arlo ordered.

"Aye!" The rest of the merchant group shouted in agreement and ganged up on the mayor.

Raymond completely ignored the wailing mayor as he was given a thrashing, instead, he focused on the new pathway he had created.

He would be taking a step into the world beyond the FireBorn empire and wouldn't be returning any time soon. What if his grandpa was in the empire itself?

He couldn't say with certainty that it wouldn't be possible. His grandpa was the kind of person who would do that just to prank him. At least, that's the kind of image he had portrayed in front of little Ray— always a cheerful and mischievous old man.

"Arlo, I have a task for you!" Raymond called out to his most ardent devotee.

"Of course, My Lord. I am at your service. You can ask me anything you want!" Arlo bowed.

Raymond's head pulsed with irritation at Arlo's constant bootlicking. "Really? Will you do anything? Then…go climb that mountain." He pointed towards the nearby mountain and took out a painting from his pendant.

"My Lord, please show mercy to this plump body of mine. I would die halfway while climbing and wouldn't be able to serve you any longer." Arlo clenched his fist harder as he sweatdropped in fear. He took a mental note to hold back while buttering up someone in the future.

"I will cut off my flesh as a punishment for not being able to follow your order." Arlo declared resolutely and took a shining knife out of nowhere.

"Alright! Enough with your whining. I don't need your flesh or anything!" Raymond quickly stopped him. Arlo seemed like the kind of madman who would do anything to prove his point except for giving up his life. "Here, take this painting and make copies of it. Reach out to all your merchant friends and distribute this painting. I want you to search throughout the FireBorn empire and immediately inform me if you find any clues regarding this person or better yet find the person himself."

He gave the painting of an old man with a shaggy beard and shoulder length white hair to Arlo, who took the painting religiously.

"And remember," Raymond continued. "Do not engage in any kind of conflict with the man in the painting! He is my close relative and I want him alive. Do you understand?" Raymond pressed on the word alive. Who knew if these guys beat up his old grandpa and ended up killing him? They were really too eager to please him and he wouldn't know what to do if they dealt with his grandpa with their over-enthusiasm.

"As you command, My Lord! I have numerous friends who travel all across the empire to sell their merchandise. We will find this person in no time!" Arlo thumped his chest and said confidently.

"I hope so…" Raymond wasn't so sure they would find him in the empire. His father had done a thorough search throughout the land to find nothing at the end.

*******

Raymond was offered a ride on one of the carriages bought by Arlo. He was requested to inaugurate the Great Thomas Route by travelling first, to which Raymond wholeheartedly agreed and hopped on the carriage along with Jasmine and Lyla.

They took the seat by his side and enjoyed the view outside as the lush rainforest came into view. The lineup of trees was reaching for the skies with their rich foliage. Most of the forest was veiled by the layer of hovering mist which gave an archaic and arcane feeling to the forest.

A wide trail was created for the common folks to walk and carriages to move around. The trees neatly parted to the side to allow a wide berth enough for six carriages to travel abreast.

"Haha, My Lord, it must be your first time here!" Arlo surmised, seeing the interest at which Raymond was looking at the forest.

"This trail is not going to be enough from now on. The traffic is going to increase in the coming days." Raymond pointed out. "Also the Timber town will have to stock up their woods for the fireplace. All this cold air is going to that side unhindered, now that a mountain has been cleared up." He added further.

"Of course, My Lord. We will inform the locals, well, if they haven't already become aware of the new changes." Arlo said briefly and stopped as he hesitated to speak further.

"Say it!" Raymond noticed his hesitation. "You don't have to hesitate if you have any opinions."

"Uhmm, it's a good thing that we can travel freely from now on and most of the townspeople will be overjoyed by this arrangement you've made, My Lord. You will soon have even more devotees." Arlo said proudly before deflating. "But not all of them will be happy. Especially the homeless people. They are going to have a hard time coping with the increased cold winds! My Lord, I think they're going to protest if we don't do anything about them!"

"Hmmm, what do you suggest we do, Arlo?" Raymond asked. "I would like to hear your suggestions. You seem to have something in your mind already."

"Indeed, My Lord. If I may be so bold I would like to erect a shrine in your name!" Raymond had to fight the urge to sigh. He never expected his little play to turn this serious. "We can use the donations we collect to help the people. It will definitely spread your name far and wide as a benevolent god!"

Raymond didn't know whether to laugh or cry. There were all kinds of shrines throughout the empire dedicated to different gods. Now, his shrine was going to be added to the long list of false gods.

He considered them false gods because not even for a moment had he considered them real. Raymond believed they were just cultivators who had more power than others and nothing more.

"And of course, the rest of the donation and offerings will be yours, My Lord," Arlo explained.

"Alright, do your thing and make sure the people are taken good care of. I will come to check on them every once in a while." Raymond agreed. When he was being offered free money for doing nothing, who was he to refuse?

If there were any troublemakers, he could give them his fist of love and solve the problem.

"As you wish, My Lord!" Arlo bowed respectfully. He still had a hard time believing that Raymond was a god. But that strength was not humanly possible.

Even a Martial King with the earth affinity would need days of preparation and great strength to even slightly move that mountain. These mountain ranges were as old as time and weren't so easy to destroy or else they would have already done what Raymond had done, a long time ago.

Even if Raymond was not a god, his power still deserved to be respected and worshipped. His two companions weren't any less either, especially the short and pretty lady who was always looking around vigilantly. Her eyes were cold and ruthless, ready to strike down anyone that got closer to Raymond with ill intent. She was in the Martial King realm and he had never seen a king up close. Her sheer presence made him want to kneel. He was just a Martial Master, he had no choice but to submit in front of someone like her.

It only cemented his belief that Raymond must be someone special to have such a strong person as a bodyguard. There was much to gain from being in his favour.

An hour or so later, a shanty village appeared in their view. It was made of wooden structures and a few mud houses. Most of the roofs had mosses and a variety of vines covering them. The village itself had become a part of the forest and didn't feel out of place.