"The nobles and commoners in the capital don't know what happened to the temple yet. But if the Forge Temple, which has not been moved for thousands of years, is demolished, this matter can't be concealed." The king's voice was full of worry. "Whether this matter is described as a false god invading the temple and pretending to be the God of Forge, or a fire broke out between the nobles and the temple, causing heavy casualties, we can't explain it clearly to everyone. This will directly hit the dwarves' loyalty to the kingdom and their faith in the God of Forge."
Luo Ling said, "But according to Bohawks, if these soul marks are not eliminated, the dwarves in the entire capital will continue to replenish energy for that false god, so there is no way to destroy it."
The king said, "Perhaps we can do it piece by piece, slowly replacing the stones that have the imprint of the soul."
Xiao Chen held his chin, looked at the gate of the temple and thought for a while, "Maybe I have other ways to solve this problem. And by the way, I can also solve some of your troubles."
"What is the solution?" asked the king.
"I need a larger warehouse and a stone that is big enough." Xiao Chen said.
———————
Three days later, a huge tent appeared in the central square in front of the Dwarf Palace, surrounding a very tall object that was more than ten meters high and seven or eight meters wide. The king's guards stood in layers around it, showing a tense feeling as if they were facing a great enemy. And just around the guards, there was a wooden platform more than one meter high, with a podium and amplification array prepared on it. Some ministers of the kingdom, temple priests and palace servants stood on it, waiting for something.
The central square in front of the palace is the largest open space in the lower part of the canyon. It is closer to the central axis of the lava river than the forge temple, and can be seen clearly from both sides of the canyon. Normally, dwarves with less than five strands of beard are not allowed to enter the square at will, unless they are summoned or invited by the king.
But today, this rule was broken. From 12:00 a.m., many dwarves came from all over the canyon. If you look closely, you will find that the dwarves have beards ranging from one to seven strands. They walk on the road in a clear line. Only nobles with five or seven strands and their followers can walk in the middle of the road. Craftsmen and farmers with one or three strands of beard can only walk on the sides of the road, and slaves without beards are not qualified to walk on the road. They can only walk on the bumpy muddy ground beside the road or on the rocky slopes. Unless there is nowhere to go, they dare to step on the road carefully a few times and then quickly walk down. No matter whether they are nobles, craftsmen, soldiers, farmers or slaves, they were notified yesterday that they must arrive at the central square of the palace and the high ground several floors nearby at 10 a.m. today.
Dwarves have the strongest sense of time among all races. Because there is no movement of the sun or moon underground, the ancestors of the kingdom placed large clocks that can tell time at several important locations in the canyon. It is said that these clocks were made with the help of humans in the ancient times when magic was flourishing, and they are still ticking away today.
When the hands on the clock crossed half past nine, many dwarves had gathered at the entrance of the square. They were searched by the guards and allowed into the venue.
Of course, slaves were not eligible to enter the square. They were driven to relatively high places around the square where they could see the square clearly and watch what was happening in the square from afar. Farmers and craftsmen could only stand at the outermost part of the square, while the middle was reserved for the nobles.
Even so, many dwarves with only three or one wisp of beard were grateful, as this might be the first and last time in their lives that they would have the chance to be so close to the palace. Many of them did not even dare to step through the gate when entering the square, and were pushed in by the soldiers guarding the gate.
Of course, there are more dwarves in the royal capital. Those who can enter the square are selected representatives. Most dwarves do not have the opportunity to enter the square, but they are told that they must find a place where they can see the central square after ten o'clock and listen to the king's speech.
When it was almost ten o'clock, the square was already crowded with people. Tens of thousands of dwarves had filled the square so tightly that no one could get through. Only in the direction of the square facing the palace gate, there was a passage blocked by the soldiers.
At ten o'clock, the palace gate opened, and the king, accompanied by members of the six major families, walked out of the palace into the square. What surprised the dwarves was that there were several tall humans walking beside the king.
The king was wearing a traditional dress that he would wear on the most solemn occasions. It was a gorgeous dress made of refined gold and mithril. Although the texture was a bit like scale armor, the style was like a robe. His crown, robe and beard were all inlaid with gems of various colors, looking like a moving pile of treasure. He held a scepter in his hand, which was also a gorgeous style of combining metal and gems. The head of the scepter was square in shape, and it looked like a long-handled war hammer.
The six patriarchs of the six major families appeared behind him, wearing similar-style costumes, but with fewer metal pieces than the king. Behind them were the important members of the major families, each wearing family costumes of different colors, lined up in six rows.
Xiao Chen and his companions followed behind the king, slightly separated from the people of the six major families, and formed their own line. Xiao Chen walked slowly beside the king. Today, the king was the protagonist of this play, and he was the director behind the scenes.
The king stepped onto the platform next to the huge object, and Xiao Chen, Luo Ling and the patriarchs of the six major families followed him.
The king looked up at the huge object, took a deep breath, and looked back at the nobles. They were all staring at it with different expressions. Some were nervous, some were curious, and some looked a little disdainful. The king whispered to Xiao Chen, "I hope your plan really works."
Xiao Chen said, "As long as Your Majesty tells the story well, I think there will be no problem. You see, the curiosity of your people has been aroused. They will definitely listen carefully to what you say."
The king looked at the huge crowds of people around him and said, "If we don't do a good job, these people will become nutrients for that monster. Now that it has come to this, we can only pray for the blessing of the God of Forging. Of course, I'm serious!" (To be continued)