Oedipus still showed great power in exile, and the people of Kulonos were in awe of him and advised him to perform an indoctrination in order to obtain the forgiveness of the goddess of vengeance. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 It was only then that the elders of the village knew that it was Oedipus standing in front of them, who had committed an unforgivable crime. If it weren't for the timely arrival of their king Theseus, who knows what they would have done with his blasphemy?

Theseus approached the blind man in this foreign land with respect and friendliness, and said to him: "Poor Oedipus, I know your doom. Your blind eye has told me who you are. I am touched by your misfortunes. Say, what do you want from this city and from me personally? “

"From your short words I see the noble mind of you," said Oedipus, "and my request is in fact a gift, and I give you my weary body. It's a small but precious gift. Please bury me, and you will be richly rewarded. “

"Oh, the favor you ask for is very light," said Theseus in astonishment, "ask for something better and higher, and you will be satisfied." “

"This gift is not as light as you think," continued Oedipus, "for the sake of my old body, you will surely be involved in a war." He then explained the reasons for his exile and the selfish relatives who wanted to force him to return, and then he begged Theseus to help him.

Theseus listened carefully to his narration, and then replied solemnly: "My kingdom is open to any friend, and therefore I must not exclude you, especially since you are the hand of the gods who sent you to me." He asked Oedipus if he would go back to Athens with him or stay in Kulonus.

Oedipus chose the latter, because fate dictated that he should defeat his enemies here and end his own life. Theseus, the king of Athens, promised to protect him, and with that, he went back to the city.

Soon King Creon invaded Curonus from Thebes with an armed retinue.

"You will be surprised when my troops come to the Attica region," he said to the villagers, "but don't be surprised, and don't be angry." I'm not naïve enough to boldly challenge the most powerful city in Greece. I am an old man, and the townspeople have sent me to persuade this man to come back to Thebes with me. He turned again and looked at Oedipus, with a false sympathy for his fate and that of his daughter.

Oedipus raised his beggar stick and motioned to him not to come near. "Shameless liar," he cried out, "you don't think I've been tortured enough, and you want to snatch me away!" You don't want to use me to save your city from the coming disaster, and I don't want to go to you. I will only send vengeful demons with you.

My two indisputable sons are not theirs except for two cemeteries in Thebes! “

Creon tried to rob the blind king by force, but the villagers of Kuronos would not let them take him away. Creon motioned for his retinue to snatch Ismene and Antigone away from Oedipus. Ignoring the resistance of the Kullonos, they dragged the two girls away. Creon said mockingly, "I took away your pillars. You blind man, now you wander alone! “

He became more and more emboldened because he succeeded in snatching the girl. He approached Oedipus again and was about to make a move, when Theseus heard the news of the invasion of Kulonus by the armed Thebans and rushed to him. When he heard what had happened, he was very angry and sent men on horseback and on foot to chase down the Thebans, who had taken the two girls. Then he told Creon that he must release Oedipus' two daughters back, or he would never let him go.

"Son of Aegeus," said Creon, as if he were flattering, "I have not come to war with you, with your city. I had been so kind to him, and I did not know that your people would be so protective of my blind relatives, and that they would so shelter a sinner who had taken a marriage and would not send him home. “

Theseus ordered him to shut up and told him where the two girls were hiding. After a while, the two girls were rescued and reunited with Oedipus. Creon was forced to leave Kuronos with his servant in a huff.

Poor Oedipus was still not at peace. One day, Theseus brought him news that one of Oedipus' relatives had come to Curonos. He was not from Thebes, but now he was praying for protection in front of the altar of the Temple of Poseidon.

"This is my son Polynices." Oedipus cried out, "I don't want to talk to him!" But Antigone could not forget his brother. So she tried to comfort her father and calm him down, and asked him to at least hear what Polynicus was saying. Oedipus again asks Theseus to protect him, as he fears that his son will kidnap him by force. It was only after he had made preparations that he summoned Polynices.

The way Polynicus came in suggests that his intentions were different from Creon's. Antigone told her blind father what she saw: "I saw that he had no retinue with him, and that he was in tears. “

"Is it really him?" Oedipus turned around and asked.

"Yes, father." Antigone replied, "Your son Polynykes has stood before you." “

Polynicus threw himself in front of his father, clasping his knees with both hands. He was saddened to see his father dressed in ragged beggar's clothes, with two sunken eye sockets, and gray hair that drifted in the wind. "I have sinned so much that it is difficult for me to receive your forgiveness, Father! Can you forgive me? You don't understand me, do you? Oh, dear sister, help me and let my father forgive me! “

"Tell us first, brother, why are you here?" Antigone said gently, "Perhaps your words will move my father and make him open his mouth to speak." “

So Polynicus told them how his brother had driven him out, how Adrastos, king of Argos, had taken him in and had given his daughter in marriage, and how there he had united the seven princes with their armies and besieged Thebes. He begged his father to go back with him, and promised to return the crown to his father after overthrowing his arrogant brother.

However, the son's repentance did not make Oedipus back down. "When the throne and the scepter are in your hand," he said, "you yourself have expelled your father." Neither you nor your brother are my true sons. If I had relied on you, I would have died. It is only because of the help of my daughters that I am alive today. You deserve to be punished by the gods.

You can't destroy your father's city, and you and your brother will surely lie in a pool of your own blood. That's my answer, you can tell your allies. “

Hearing his father's curse, Polynicus rose from the ground in fear and took a few steps back in fear. "Polynices, I want you to follow my advice." Antigone went up to him and said, "Withdraw the army to Argos, and you must not bring war to your father's city!" “

"It is impossible," replied Polynicus after a moment's hesitation, "that retreat is not only a disgrace for me, but also a ruin!" I'd rather lose both than reconcile with my brother. He broke free from his sister's embrace and walked out in despair.

Oedipus resists the temptations of his loved ones, cursing them with the retribution of the gods, and the end of his life.

One day, thunder sounded in the sky. The old man heard this voice from heaven and asked to meet Theseus. At this time, the whole land was shrouded in darkness. The blind king feared that he would never live to see Theseus, and he had much to say to Theseus, and he wanted to thank him for his kind protection. Theseus has finally arrived. Oedipus blessed the city of Athens from the bottom of his heart. Then he asked Theseus to obey God's call to accompany him to the place where he could die, and not to allow anyone's finger to touch him when he died. After his death, Theseus could not tell anyone about the place, nor could he say where his burial place was, so as to protect Athens from the enemy.

He allowed his daughter and the villagers of Kulonos to give him a ride. So a group of centaurs walked into the sacred grove of Nemesis, and no one was allowed to touch him with their fingers. The blind man, who had been led by his daughter, now seemed to see it suddenly, and walked proudly in front of him, walking towards the path guided by the goddess of fate.

When he walked into the depths of the Vengeful Sacred Forest, the earth cracked, and there was a copper threshold at the mouth of the cracked hole. There are many winding paths that lead there. Legend has it that this cave is an entrance to the underworld. Oedipus did not allow his companions to approach the entrance of the cave. He stopped in front of a hollowed-out tree, sat down on a rock, and untied the belt that bound the beggar's clothes.

He asked for some clean spring water, washed away the dirt that had accumulated on his body from his long exile, and put on the neat clothes that his daughter had brought for him. He stood there refreshed, when the rumbling of thunder could be heard from underground. Oedipus hugged his daughters, kissed them, and said, "Children, farewell! You will lose your father from this day! “

Suddenly, they heard another rumbling sound. It is not known if the noise is coming from the sky or from hell. "Oedipus, what are you hesitating about? Why are you still delaying? “

The blind king let go of the children in his arms and put their hands on Theseus's hands, indicating that he had given them to him. Then he commanded all the men to turn around and go back, and only Theseus could walk with him to the bronze threshold.

His daughter and the people who were with her turned their backs and walked for a while before they looked back. A miracle appeared before his eyes, and Oedipus was gone. There was neither lightning nor thunder in the sky, not even a trace of wind. It was surprisingly quiet, and Theseus stood alone, covering his eyes with his hands, as if the miraculous sight had kept him awake. After praying, he went to the two girls and took them back to Athens with him.

King Adrastos of Argos was the son of Talaus, and he had five children, among whom were two beautiful daughters, Archik and Deipil. There was a strange oracle about their fate: their father would marry one to a lion and the other to a wild boar. The king thought about it and couldn't understand the meaning of the sentence. When his daughters grow up, he wants to marry them as soon as possible, so that this terrible prophecy cannot be fulfilled, but the prophecy of the gods will surely be fulfilled.

One day, two refugees arrived at the palace gate of Argos at the same time from different directions. One was Polynicus of Thebes, who was expelled from his homeland by his brother. The other was Titus, the son of Onius and Periboa, who escaped from Calydon, not caring to kill a relative during a hunt. When the two men met at the gate of the palace, they couldn't tell the difference because of the hazy night, and they each regarded each other as enemies and fought each other. Adrastos heard the sound of fighting outside the door, so he came out with torches and separated the two. When he saw the two fighting heroes standing on either side of him, he couldn't help but be taken aback, as if he had seen a beast.

He saw a lion's head painted on the shield of Polynicus, and a wild boar painted on the shield of Titius. Adrastiston understood the meaning of the oracle, and he recruited two exiled heroes as sons-in-law. Polynicus married his eldest daughter, Akico, and his younger daughter, Deipole, to Titius.

The king also solemnly promised to help them restore their kingdom and return to the throne.

First of all, an expedition to Thebes. Adrastos gathered the heroes of all sides, a total of seven princes, including himself, and led seven armies. The seven princes were Adrastos, Polynices, Titius, the king's brother-in-law Amphiaraus, the king's nephew Capanius, and the king's two brothers, Hippomedon and Parthenopaius. Amphiaeus, once the king's enemy, had a knack for foreshadowing and knew that the campaign would fail.

He repeatedly persuaded King Adrastos and the other heroes to abandon the war. But his efforts were unsuccessful, and he had to find a place to hide, known only to his wife, Elifer, the sister of King Adrastos. They searched everywhere, but they couldn't find him. Adrastos, however, was indispensable to him, for the king regarded Amphiaas as the eye of the whole army, without whom he would not dare to go on an expedition.

When Polynicus escaped from Thebes, he took with him a necklace and a scarf. These are two treasures, a wedding gift from the goddess Aphrodite to Harmonia and Cadmus. Whoever wears both of these things invites disaster. They have killed Harmonia, Semele, the mother of bacchus, and Iocast. Eventually, they fell into the hands of Polynicus' wife, Archik. Now Polynicus tries to bribe Erifeler with a necklace to tell her where she is hiding her husband.

Erifeler had long coveted the necklace that strangers had given to his niece. When she saw the glittering gems on the necklace with a gold chain, she couldn't resist the great temptation, and at last she took Polynicus to the secret hideout of Amphiaras. Amphiaras did not want to take part in the expedition, but he could no longer refuse, for when he married Adrastos's sister, he promised that his wife, Erifel, would be in charge of all controversial matters. Now that his wife had brought someone to find him, he had no choice but to put on his weapon and gather the samurai.

Before leaving, he summoned his son, Alcmaeon, and solemnly told him that if he heard of his father's death, he would take revenge on his disloyal mother. (To be continued.) )