The labor began atypically in the territory of the Helis that day. A procession of one hundred and fifty elites in shining gala armor, followed by a golden giant lizard twice the size of Etri's, advanced through a curious crowd towards the Mountain of Dominion. Everything was prepared to turn the situation into a spectacle. The major clans had a cold vision, the kind that holds power, but the others, the people, believed and followed the customs and beliefs, thus they were extremely unhappy with the treatment that the God Hellgar was receiving and they needed a whole performance. One point that caused a lot of commotion was that, this time, their God, even with some problems attributed to the incompetence of the four major families, didn't depart after a year but had already lived among them for almost two, what did that mean?
Although the parade was well prepared and the participants ran at a great speed, by human standards, it was fated to be slow. Eighteen hours were needed to reach the top of the mountain and the original few hundred turned into several thousand, a result of the addition of many ordinary people who wanted to follow such an event closely.
The top of the Mountain of Dominion was completely crowded, and various murmurs and sounds of dissatisfaction could be heard. Firstly, Hellgar resided in a ruin that hadn't even been renovated, a heresy! Then, they were tired from the exhausting journey, even for them. There was still the religious expectation because when the ritual failed, only a few hundred people were present, all from the major clans, and the others were not authorized to witness the invocation with their own eyes. There were all kinds of rumors that, let's be honest, deserved at least some credit for imagination. Among the most popular ones: There was a Demonic God who took advantage of the situation and descended to Sombreal. There were those who believed that the four clans wanted to capture and use the power of the God for themselves. And even those who said that he was an incomplete body that didn't even possess a phallus.
The golden cabin opened and a man, in elaborate and shiny clothes, descended in a perfect theatrical cadence. The most attentive observers would realize that his cultivation was at least the initial Silver Body stage. He circulated his energy to vocal cords, with the intention of enhancing the voice, hissed, and caught everyone's attention. Then he headed toward the entrance of the Sage Mansion.
"I, Herald of the Silver Claw, from the Dark Castle Clan, representing the Grand Council, come to this illustrious residence to summon the possible Hellgar God to a session of enlightenment before the powers of the Heli species." The man straight as a spear and with perfect diction and tone, uttered his summons and everyone in the area looked at the mansion with varying expectations.
After about 10 minutes without a response from the other side, along with a hint of confusion arising from the silence, a person much taller than the Heli standards, wearing a simple and voluminous black cloak, walked slowly towards the crowd, coming from inside the facilities.
From joy to strangeness, this was the initial reaction of everyone. The aura and silhouette resembled that of the God Hellgar, as attested by some elders present who had glimpsed him a thousand years ago. The problem was the level of cultivation.
Hellgar was not a God of War but of Fertility. However, he always came into the world in the Silver Body (remembering that every 10,000 years he could come to Sombreal for three hundred years). The individual who appeared emitted little energy, almost like a Heli baby, probably in the early stages of the Basic Body.
"I am the one you seek, and I accept the summons. Please guide me to the meeting location." Ian spoke in a normal voice, devoid of energy, but with good oratory skills, and since everyone's attention was on him, and martial artists had heightened senses, nobody had trouble hearing him.
Contrary to the plan, Ian did not enter the golden cabin but rode his own mount, the black Ongmar. Two reasons influenced this decision. Firstly, without Loli around, he would bounce around in the cabin despite his advancements in body strengthening. Secondly, he wanted to be seen by the procession and everyone he passed by. He wouldn't hide his mediocrity; they should see his low cultivation and basic characteristics. It was better for them to gradually absorb the truth rather than being hit with it all at once.
The return journey took even longer than the outward one. It lasted twenty-two hours, and the procession now consisted of nearly a hundred thousand participants. Leading the way, just behind the elites and beside the enormous golden giant lizard, a tall figure with an arrogant gaze and dressed in dark garments, much like his steed, proudly paraded with his black hair flowing in the wind. The common spectators saw a noble of high caste and not a martial artist of such low level. For the more experienced and astute, the surprise was even greater, because even though they saw him for who he was, they still felt his dominating aura, indicating that this pseudo-God's attitude was no simple.
What no one knew was that Ian had studied rhetoric, politics, and even completed the first stage of the legacy of performing arts just before the end of the preparation period. The Blessing of the Soul's Constitution bestowed two main advantages: a strong and condensed soul, and extreme self-control, in other words, a natural actor.
Finally, they arrived at the center of Heli territory, at the location of Hellgar's Palace, specifically in a huge stadium attached to it. The four major clans needed to provide the perfect stage for as many representatives of the population as possible, given the gravity of the situation. If they didn't do things this way, a civil war wouldn't be unrealistic, even among this peaceful people.
At the main entrance of the stadium, in front of two titanic bronze doors depicting gladiators fighting demonic monsters, a delegation awaited. Among them were notable figures of society, such as the Patriarch of the Two Towers Clan, his daughter Etri, the Grand Pill Master, and some army officials.
"Pseudo-God, I am Treon, Silver Tower, Patriarch of the Two Towers Clan. I will be your guide from this moment onward!" Treon, a sturdy Heli, though short like the rest of his kind, was as strong as a fortress. He was surprised to see Ian outside the golden cabin and instantly recognized the mount he was using, which caused him to cast a penetrating gaze at his daughter. Her position held high status, and she couldn't be connected with the potential God before the judgment's outcome. Etri, by his side, pretended to be oblivious and pouted, indicating that she felt unjustly treated. He shook his head and sighed, as a doting father, erasing the event from his heart.
"This one asks that you, Patriarch, guide him to the meeting," Ian descended from his mount, patted it, and handed it over to Etri. Treon furrowed his brow at the sight, but said nothing. After all, he hadn't forbidden her from associating with the man for nearly two years, so now it didn't make much of a difference.
The group walked for a few minutes inside the structure through wide corridors adorned with tapestries and paintings depicting the history of Heli and some legends. Obviously, this path was reserved for esteemed guests, as the others didn't possess such luxury. After descending flights of stairs and making numerous turns (Helis loved labyrinth-style structures, the more complex, the better), they finally entered the center of the coliseum.
In the circular center of the arena, chairs were spread out for the Patriarch, the First Elder, and one more guest, totaling three for each clan. There were 100 medium to small clans, so 300 seats were distributed around a stage that had the seats for the four great families and two others, one for the Marshal and one for the accused.
Ian calmly ascended and took his seat in the designated area on the main stage. There must have been a million people in the stands, all of them martial artists. You can imagine the pressure felt by a first-level Base Body.
The representatives of the Great Rock and Dark Castle Clans exchanged astute and pleased glances. For a long time, the matter had ceased to be solely about Ian; it had become a political war where the victor would suppress the opposing side. This time, the Two Towers Clan risked falling into a precarious position since they had put all their chips on the table.
It didn't take long for the Marshal to give a commanding voice and demand silence, accompanied by his peak Gold Body aura, which was so dense that even the other four Gold Bodies present felt uncomfortable. Thus, in a short time, not even a fly could be heard.
"I, Javi, Golden Fist, First Elder of the Ravina Clan and Marshal of the Heli, will be the Judge of this cause and I promise everyone that I will act according to justice and neutrality in the name of my ancestors of the Ravina Clan. Now I will begin the meeting." Javi was a little taller than usual, roughly in line with Ian of Earth, around 1.70 meters. He looked like a middle-aged man, relatively young and holding the greatest power and potential of that race.
"On one side, the Great Rock and Dark Castle Clans accuse this man of being a False God who came to our world in place of the Great Hellgar God for the millennial ritual, with the loss of a millennium of resources and opportunity of the species. The Two Towers Clan maintains that somehow the ritual failed, but that the being, in question, is an incomplete version of the Hellgar God himself, thus we could not desecrate his divinity. The Silver Shield Clan has convened this council in order to better understand the situation with the people and not take a decision alone and hastily."
"Are you, Possible-God, some version of the Divine Hellgar?" Javi looked directly into Ian's eyes and emitted all his aura pressure directly at him. His goal was clear. To break the low cultivated person in front of him and make him speak the truth without reeling. After all, he was a military man, not a born jurist.
Everyone noticed what the Marshal was doing and gave sympathetic looks to Ian, who once again surprised the others by showing little reaction, aside from clenching his jaws. Deep down in the souls of each of those present, they affirmed that this young man was not ordinary. Ian himself hadn't expected to be so resilient but calmed down as he remembered his celestial advantages.
"My name is Ian, and I am not a version of Hellgar. I merely possess a part of his body. I am also no God. I came from a world called Earth where I belonged to a race unrelated to the Helis." Ian replied firmly, shocking everyone with the content of his statement. In an instant, chaos erupted in the stands and seats below the stage. Desperation could be seen on the faces of the members of the Two Towers Clan.