In recent years, Zosyastrian Christianity has been gaining momentum in various parts of Central and Western Asia.

On the surface, the Mongols conquered the peoples of Central and Western Asia by force, but they were defeated in the competition of faith and spirit, even if there were Mongol nobles in the upper echelons of the khanate, and various means were used to suppress them, but Zoroastrianism and other local religions were not only not defeated by the original religion of the Mongols, but instead went on the offensive and gradually invaded the vast number of Mongols.

In the Ilkhanate, the homeland of Persia, there was even a considerable number of middle and upper class Mongols who began to convert to Zoroastrianism.

This was undoubtedly a great success for the local Zoroastrian elite.

Hestia did have reservations about Li Zhe, what she didn't tell Li Zhe was that in this Northern Expedition, Zoroastrianism was far from being passively requisitioned as she said.

In fact, Zoroastrianism had already begun to infiltrate the upper echelons of the Ilkhanate by various means, and Hestia came to Kunduz as a sectarian saint, not at the right time, but as a participant in the war.

However, the upper echelons of the entire sect were still suspicious of taking the initiative to intervene in the war between the Song and Mongolians, after all, the blow brought to the sect by the previous Persian annihilation was too heavy, so that the high-level members of the Holy See felt that in the face of the Song people, the Mongols did not have a great chance of winning, and the Zoroastrian Church itself would never want the Mongols to be affected again when they were defeated by the Song people.

Therefore, Hestia would never take the initiative to admit such a thing in front of Li Zhe.

The entire Zoroastrian religion was well aware of the urgency of the need to find a suitable supporter among the Song people.

However, due to the overall indifference of the Song people to religions outside their homeland, Zoroastrianism has never had this opportunity.

Li Zhe's appearance is also important to Hestia, and Hestia's attention to Li Zhe is far from being as simple as just getting out of herself.

Li Zhe actually didn't know that there were actually many saints cultivated in Zoroastrianism, such as Hestia, and each of them enjoyed a heavy responsibility, and this kind of saintess was to some extent like a hand of the sect to intervene in the secular ruling class, shouldering the role of a bridge between sectarian and secular interests.

Li Zhe's own feeling is right, these saints are indeed a profession specially and carefully cultivated, to borrow the words of later generations, these saints are like the top courtesans cultivated in those political families in later generations, and many saints will eventually be married into political giants and become victims of sectarian interests.

This kind of dirty political transaction is not uncommon in human history, and it has permeated the entire history of human civilization, and most religious groups and families in both the East and the West are proficient in it. Even in later generations of modern society, there is still such a shadow.

Moreover, there is still fierce competition between them, and only the one who can win the greatest benefit for the sect in the end can finally succeed in the power structure of the church.

Hestia didn't pay much attention to Li Zhe before, but the battle that happened in front of her completely woke her up, and she instantly defeated one of the ten thousand households of the Khanate with only 500 people, such a battle was unheard of in her memory.

And Li Zhe, who can make such a record, the little Song Army officer in front of her, has also rapidly grown into a member with great terrifying potential in her subconscious.

The ancestors of the Zoroastrian history and legend once invested in a warrior who was still in trouble, taught and helped him, and finally as the warrior grew into a generation of heroes, the entire sect also quickly climbed to the top, and the legend of the unparalleled Xuan has been tempting her.

It is an irresistible temptation for any missionary to invest in a future king, although Li Zhe is a native of the Song Dynasty, not a disciple of the Zhao and Song dynasties, and cannot become the king of kings in the distant central court, the great emperor of the Central Plains. But even if Li Zhe grows up to become a prince at the level of a hegemon like Qin Ming, the Marquis of Tianfang, it will be an absolute surprise to this sect.

When Hestia found out about this, she immediately became enthusiastic about Li Zhe's affairs, and always thought about where she could show her value in front of Li Zhe, and when she found this group of Sogdian musketeers in the prisoner camp, she immediately realized that a heaven-sent opportunity had come.

"Do you mean that your sect wants to ransom those Sogdian musketeers from me?"

Li Zhe was stunned and asked. While he began to ponder the intention of the Zoroastrian move.

"No, my lord, we don't need these mortal soldiers in the Holy Sect, and now it's you, my lord, who need them even more."

Hestia approached Li Zhe and said to Li Zhe affectionately.

"You will be the greatest general in the world, with the favor of the gods, and the one that every warrior will look to follow, but with all due respect, you have too few loyal subordinates now."

"Now there are only five hundred people under your command, although these people are all powerful warriors, but after all, there are few people, which is not in line with your identity. We in the Holy Church can guarantee that all these Sogdian musketeers will be at your disposal, that they will be your most loyal warriors, and that if you can declare your protection of their faith, they will even regard you as their king, and will always be loyal to you alone. ”

Seeing that Li Zhe was a little moved, Tia continued:

"These Sogdians were the most adept race of muskets in the steppe, and they were also very good at crafting muskets, no less than the craftsmen of the Great Song Dynasty. I see that you are so good at using firearms, and this group of Sogdians is under your command, and it is probably the best fate for them! ”

Thea is right, the Sogdians on the steppe are indeed specialized in the manufacture and use of firearms, although the scale of production is certainly not as large as that of the Great Song Dynasty, but that is of course because of the large scale of the Great Song Dynasty and the strong commercial atmosphere, but under the rule of the Kipchak Khanate, the Sogdians did not have such a good environment

Hearing Tia say this, I have to say that Li Zhe is really a little moved.

He was not really deceived by the words of the Holy Maiden, thinking that he could use these Sogdians now, and seeing the combat power of their masters, the Mongols, he did not dare to hope that these Sogdians could be of much help in the battle, but he thought more about the fact that in the future, when he came to South Africa, if he could include these Sogdians in his territory, it would be a good supplement to both the craftsmen and musketeers in the territory.

As a person from the Republic of later generations, Li Zhe does not have any religious discrimination, let alone racial discrimination, these people are treated equally in his eyes, as long as he can suppress and prevent these people from showing signs of self-reliance, it is not a good choice.

Although Li Zhe is far from reaching the other side of the ocean, his own heart has begun to look at his own thinking as a dutiful lord.

With a flash of brain, he suddenly found the most suitable way to cooperate with this ancient religion, and now he knew about Zoroastrianism, but at that time they were the best partners in the early stage of the development of his territory—Li Zhe's territory needed a large number of people and materials, and Zoroastrianism happened to be the best slave traders.

The belief brainwashing function of the Zoroastrian religion itself is just right to help those slaves who were transported to relieve psychological pressure, and the slaves of all ethnic groups under the rule of tens of millions of Mongols in the two major Mongolian khanates are not Li Zhe's best goal.