Greek Mythology: The Spiritual Dominator

The further south the road goes, the more vegetation and water systems there are.

Perhaps because there are often people cleaning or patrolling, Ryan never encountered any trouble when he crossed a wide river and came to the plain.

Even if he occasionally encountered some teams with the same goal, most of them would avoid the alchemical chariot and had no intention of getting close. Such expensive things are not affordable for ordinary people, and Ryan was happy to be quiet.

So when the positive displacement of the starry sky moved to the location of the sixth house of the zodiac, the sentry post of Athens, the sanctuary of the goddess of wisdom, the Acropolis of Athens was finally in sight.

…

The carriage went to a hillock, Ryan opened the curtain and looked at the Acropolis in the distance.

The real Athens is still farther away - perhaps in real history, the distance between the two is not far, but in the mythological world it is not the case.

It is the barrier of Athens, the core of the church, and a city built on a mountain, or a fortress built on a hill.

Its real name is Acropolis, which means "high city" or "city on high hill" in the language of the Athenians.

In the original trajectory, it was just a small city with an area of ​​only four square kilometers, and it was passed down to later generations only because of the existence of the temple. But now it is a truly magnificent spectacle.

The city wall is built on the mountain and divided into several layers of barriers. The natural mountain makes people only climb the Acropolis from the west.

The east, south and north sides are all cliffs, and the terrain is very steep. Doric and Oian columns are cleverly interspersed and arranged in front of the city gate, making people feel the solemnity and charm of this city.

There are crowds of people at the city gate, and the scene inside the city is blocked by the city wall and is difficult to see directly with the naked eye. Only two huge light columns rise to the sky, which are still clearly visible even in the daytime.

One rises from the center of the city, where the towering stone columns are much taller than the city wall. There is no doubt that it is the Parthenon, the sanctuary of Athena.

It is said that there is also an Erechtheion Temple opposite it, where Athena and Poseidon once let the people of this city choose their own beliefs. Now it enshrines some of the main gods of the Olympian pantheon that have no obvious contradictions with Athens, but these gods have not cast their power on it.

As for the location of the other light column, it is probably a little north of the city. Although the style of the building could not be seen, Ryan had heard before that it was the Temple of Artemis, and it was also one of the few places in the world where the Lord of the Wilderness, the Crescent Goddess, was publicly worshipped.

As for the reason... It is said that this goddess is full of hostility towards the God King of Mount Olympus, but few people know why.

"Andrea, how much do you know about the Crescent Goddess besides what is in the book?"

Indicating the frame to continue moving forward, Ryan asked.

The records in the Panathenaic Museum are very rich, but most of them are very restrained. In many places, it seems to be superficial, such as the deeds of Artemis.

Although the Crescent Moon Goddess was another patron of Athens to a certain extent, and a good friend of the main god they worshipped, the process of how she came to Athens was clearly described in the style of the Spring and Autumn Period.

The book vaguely hinted that Artemis had a conflict with a certain god. But why there was a conflict, what were the causes and consequences, that would not be recorded in the book.

"Well... if you ask this, ahem, it is said that - I just heard it."

Andrea coughed twice, and she was sure that if she was before being kidnapped, she would never discuss the affairs between gods.

But now, she thought about it, and still did not refuse to discuss the gossip between the gods.

"I once heard my father tell me a bedtime story. Her Highness Artemis originally lived in the southeast of the continent, in seclusion by the Falling Star Lake."

"She hunted and shot arrows every day, ran in the wilderness, honed her skills, and did not develop her own believers. If a mortal is lucky enough to meet her, he will be tested by the goddess - if he can hunt the prey designated by the goddess, the goddess will give him an extra gift."

"Of course, the gods are always noble, and Her Highness Artemis will naturally not live alone. In addition to the moon god who often rides a silver chariot to play with her, because of her identity as the Lord of the Wilderness, there are many nymphs born in the mountains, rocks, forests, water, and flowers who spontaneously gather around her and serve her as their master... Just like what is described in the story, this period of life is so beautiful, and all this should have continued until one day, the king of the gods came here with thunder and lightning and dark clouds to find his children."

At this point, Andrea stopped, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of her mouth, as if she was waiting for Ryan to ask her about the following content.

However, Ryan, who was sitting in the car, had already got the answer after hearing this. He just nodded slightly and said with some emotion:

"Sure enough, no matter how it changes, a dog can't stop eating shit."

"Huh?"

Andrea was stunned for a moment when she didn't expect to hear such a sentence suddenly.

"Isn't it?"

"So the second half of the story is that the child the God King is looking for is actually Artemis, but the other party is not at home on the day he came - so the 'respected' God King had to wait here for a while, and ended up running into her beautiful maid. Just like the Crescent Moon Goddess herself, her maids all swore to remain chaste, so the God King changed into Artemis's appearance to approach her, and finally succeeded, just like he once changed into a cuckoo to deceive Hera's trust."

"After returning and discovering all this, Artemis was naturally furious. She refused the God King's recognition of her relatives, but she was no match for Zeus and could not punish and expel this annoying guy. So she made a prompt decision and moved directly to Athens to accompany the goddess of wisdom - this is what happened, right?"

"...You know it and still ask me!"

With a light snort, Andrea expressed dissatisfaction with this.

"No, I didn't know before... at least I didn't know it would happen here, but this is also in line with the character of the God King. He can always release his energy that has nowhere to vent in any situation, whether there is something serious to do or not."

Spreading his hands, Ryan would definitely not say that there was such a paragraph in the original myth, and the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper were born because of it. He just attributed it to Zeus's character.

The God King's defects in this regard have been widely circulated, and even for most mortals at this time, if the existence of Queen Hera is not considered, Zeus's romanticism is not even a defect. After all, most of their ancestors came from this way, and now it is naturally impossible to blame this behavior in turn.

Another doubt was solved during the chat, but the frame did not stop. Not long after, the alchemical carriage arrived at the foot of the hill where the Acropolis was located.

Not far away, the huge ring-shaped building is basically close to completion, and it looks a bit like the ancient Roman Colosseum. It's just that this venue for selecting people of "fairness and wisdom" is circular, and there is a suspended alchemical platform in the center.

I don't know if it was prepared for the 'judges' or for the contestants, or if Athens was going to play up the characteristics of the classical republic and directly cancel the judges and let the audience decide the winner...

"Evan, are you sure you want to take me in like this?"

Andrea raised her eyebrows outside the circular archway that was still some distance away from the city gate.

"You mean this [Spell Invalidation Barrier] solidified on the portal, right? Don't worry, in order to give you a permanent disguise that can't be broken no matter how high your 'magic penetration' is, I held a special God-given ceremony."

Ryan didn't know if there was a game term similar to 'magic penetration' in this world, but this kind of coined word can be understood literally.

"Besides, wouldn't it be great if you exposed your identity? Soon you can go back to your palace and be a princess."

"Humph, as long as you are not afraid of being killed as a kidnapper."

Puffing up her cheeks, Andrea drove the carriage through the archway called [Gate of True Vision].

As a city built in the form of a fortress, it is natural that there is such a magical device that can identify non-human life, break invisibility, stealth and appearance change. However, as Ryan said, Andrea still did not change until she passed through this door.

Following the flow of people, going up the ramp, Ryan and the others entered the city without any surprise.

Passing through the towering city gate, Ryan noticed the tall spires on both sides. The power of the elements gathered at the bottom of his tower, and there were two things like "lightning rods" at the top of the tower.

Looking at this shape, Ryan couldn't help but think of a magical creation that he had discussed with Hecate through the [Book of All Laws]. At that time, he just recalled a weapon used by the Arcane Empire in a game before coming to this world, but now it seems that it has been realized?

Without personal contact, it is not easy to draw conclusions without authorization. After all, this thing has probably not been used since it was created, because no enemy has really hit the gate of the Acropolis, and it is not known whether there will be a chance in the future... Turning his eyes away, Ryan looked at the scene behind the city gate again.

The bluestone-paved road leads all the way inward, connecting the main roads and alleys in the city. The flickering crystal lamps hang on the roadside, but because it is daytime, they are not lit.

At a glance, there are residences, public baths, and various workshops. Not far from the city gate, there are bronze statues of the contemporary kings Theseus and Phaedra.

Well... seeing this, I have to mention Chaos's outrageous operation from gods to mortals.

The father of the current Queen of Athens, Phaedra, is actually the King of Crete, the son of Zeus and Europa, and the King Minos who was previously called "fair and strict" by the priests of Olympia.

But in fact, Minos and his son-in-law, King Theseus of Athens, did not have a good relationship.

According to legend, although Minos was an excellent king, he was probably not a person with an online moral level-this is also the norm among Chaos mortals. In short, his throne did not come from inheritance, but usurped the position of his brother Radamanthys.

After ascending the throne, perhaps out of worry or perhaps because of uneasiness in his heart, in order to prove the legitimacy of his ascension to the throne, the King of Crete naturally turned his attention to God.

Needless to say, Zeus, although theoretically his father, on the one hand, the situation between him and Europa is well known, on the other hand, Hera is famous for being jealous, not to mention that he usurped the position of his brother... So Minos finally chose the head of Poseidon, the king of the sea, as the object of sacrifice.

Poseidon was also very happy that the son of Zeus prayed to him, so that not only did he not embarrass the king, he even took the initiative to give him a sacrifice to himself - a head of water from the sea. White bull walking out.

It stands to reason that as long as Minos sent back the cow, which was obviously sent by Poseidon himself, as a sacrifice, everything would be happy and nothing would happen, but the gods and people of this era were so arrogant.

Just like Tantalus who killed his son and feasted on the gods, the son of Zeus thought he could hide from the eyes of the gods, so he was reluctant to sacrifice such a beautiful bull to the gods. So he secretly replaced the sacrifice and kept the white bull given by the Poseidon.

As for the result... of course Poseidon discovered it. The enraged Poseidon thought he had been mocked, so he cursed Minos' wife, causing her to suffer from zoophilia.

In human terms, it changed her gender from female to male, to the unique aesthetic concept of a certain Mauryan dynasty.