Above Destiny

Chapter 520: Aftermath and Prologue

Let’s not talk about what dream Ji Jue has.

But suddenly overnight, everyone in Huangliang felt that a nightmare was chasing them.

There's no way, it's too scary.

There was no movement at all, and the central city of such a large diocese was inexplicably punished by God!
Even as early as a month ago, their archbishop was still shouting about 'prosperity' every day, but before it could flourish, everything started to develop, the procedures were not followed, all the senior executives were gone, and one third of the people in the city were gone, all thrown into the border prison!

They were all even sentenced to eternal burning with no possibility of release.

The remaining two-thirds will have no chance of survival either, as they will all be reduced to sinners and forced to work as slaves for hundreds of years to pay for their sins of blasphemy and uncleanness.

The first reaction of all those who heard about it was to report this bastard to the church, saying that he was talking nonsense and exaggerating. How could such an outrageous thing happen? But after careful confirmation, they began to sweat in front of the ironclad facts...

What the hell? What happened? Why did Tiancheng suddenly start to spin with his sniper rifle?
At the same time, a severe reprimand stamped with the seal of Pope Tiancheng has been sent to every church and every priest in the three dioceses of the southwest, southwest and north.

The letter angrily criticized the laziness that has appeared in the church in recent years and the phenomenon of a large number of members being disrespectful to divine matters and neglecting the Holy Wisdom, which has led to repeated acts of blasphemy and the spread of decadence that has been difficult to stop, and the situation has deteriorated to its current level. From today on, all churches must conduct self-inspection and self-correction, and report regularly. If there is any negligence or violation, severe punishment will be imposed.

The minimum sentence is fifty years of hard labor.

As for the whole story of the Eastern Diocese, it was also explained in the announcement - during an investigation, Saint Idra discovered that the top leaders of the entire Eastern Diocese had completely corrupted. Not only did they neglect divine affairs and defile the sacredness, but they also openly performed a large number of blasphemous rituals in the church, and even intended to intercept faith, compare themselves to gods, and split the church.

His depravity caused even the Holy Spirit of Mercy to shed tears.

Then, the saint performed thunderbolts, cutting off all the cancer and hidden dangers to maintain the purity of the order. For this merit and honor, he was rewarded by the Holy Spirit and promoted to a seated attendant. From then on, he transcended the world and ascended to heaven, and lived forever. From now on, all churches must set up his holy image next to the emblem of the Holy Spirit.

The rebuilt Eastern Diocese will also be named after him to show magnanimity and grace to this once fallen land.

Then, a new saint was chosen and crowned in the Celestial City...

In short, there are some small problems, but it’s okay, don’t be afraid, it’s just a temporary adjustment.

Our kingdom of God is thriving!
Anyway, what you said sounded quite plausible, and there was no other media outlet in the world, so it was impossible for Ji Jue to stand up and refute it and say that you were talking bullshit.

With absolute voice and credibility, the chaos quickly stabilized.

Even the blasphemous act and excommunication suffered by the Eastern Diocese inspired the motivation and faith of other dioceses, and they all put in all their efforts. The originally expected gap in faith was actually filled by the enthusiasm of a large number of fanatics!

The wonderful ascetic practices and performances are truly eye-opening.

Under this wave of harsh rectification, a large number of low-ranking chief priests were removed from office, while the devout believers who took office suddenly became more determined.

In addition, the defense forces of all parishes and important institutions have been strengthened unprecedentedly. A large number of angel legions have descended from the heavenly city to the earth. These walking miracles have further inspired the fanaticism and faith of the believers. At the same time, it has also eliminated the idea of ​​Ji Jue and others taking advantage of the fire and fishing in troubled waters to the greatest extent.

One after another, resistance camps were eradicated, one heretic after another was staked at the stake in public trials... With the cult's faith machine running at full capacity, the stability of the entire world reached a new level, and even Ji Jue could not show up.

There was no way. No one knew what had been activated in Tiancheng now. It was observing the entire Yellow Millet Dream 24 hours a day. After a ding sound, it started to aim automatically.

Once Ji Jue emerges from the cracks, he will be faced with massive encirclement and suicide attacks at all costs.

The first time, Ji Jue thought something unexpected had happened. The second time, he already felt something was wrong. The third time, he understood that he was being completely watched by the cult. Every day, at least three saints were on standby, ready to go on the field to defend against him.

Fortunately, the rabbit hole exists, otherwise, I don’t know how much loss I would have suffered.

But after several times, when Ji Jue went to Bao Dacai to purchase goods again, he was opposed by Lao Deng - everything will leave traces, and the rabbit hole is not omnipotent.

"Have you noticed that in these past few times, they have always gathered large numbers of troops and carried out large-scale sieges and blockades, but they have rarely taken action?"

Ji Jue suddenly realized: "You mean, they are specifically guiding our people to use the rabbit hole?"

"Yes."

Bao Dacai sighed and patted the cloth bag that had cracks on it. "The essence of the rabbit hole is also a spirit that guides people to freely cross the dreamland. It imitates the supreme craftsmanship of the Gate of Eternity. In this Huangliang, the effect has been enhanced, but at the same time, there is no way to target it.

If I'm not mistaken, there is someone or something else watching Tiancheng now, and every time a rabbit hole appears, it will leave traces.

If we continue like this, I'm afraid that one day they will completely grasp the relevant traces and may directly ban it as a bug.

Then everyone will be miserable.”

Ji Jue thought for a long time: "How many times can it be used?"

"If he wasn't caught on the spot, it would be about eight or nine times. If he was watched again..." Lao Deng hesitated for a moment and said, "Three times. No, to be safe, two times would be the maximum."

"I understand."

Ji Jue nodded without thinking: "Then continue to use it, no need to give it to me. Since I'm being targeted, it's okay to let someone else take my place."

Bao Dacai was stunned for a moment, but he didn't scold Ji Jue for not cherishing the opportunity at all. Instead, he was curious: "Who are you going to give the job to?"

"Yeah, who is it?"

Ji Jue's palm swept across the camp casually, ignoring Yan Fei who was eager to try, and finally pointed at a confused face:

"Just you."

"……I?"

Yu Shu, who was covered in dirt and working as a part-time bricklayer, was at a loss. He pointed at his face, confused.

Yan Fei also became anxious: "Why? I'm obviously much better than him!"

"Besides fighting when you get angry, what else can you do?" Ji Jue was amused and asked bluntly: "Contact other resistance camps? Sneak into the parish to set up safe houses and underground organizations? Even communicate with the people in the church, or persuade believers to rebel? Can you do it?
Come on, stop looking so gloomy, there are still things for you to do later, and besides, if you leave, who will take over the protection work?"

"Me. Me?!"

Yan Fei, who had just had a gloomy face, was instantly overjoyed, and his invisible tail began to wag: "Yes, yes, yes, I want to protect you, Mr. Ji, and keep you safe..."

So, children are so easy to be controlled!

"Me? Me?!"

Yu Shu was complaining in his heart while sweating profusely.

"What else? Leave it to Sister Wen? It's hard to imagine Sister Wen doing these things."

Ji Jue scratched his head and mentioned a former camp leader who, after having sufficient supplies, abused his power for personal gain and drank wine every day.

If she were really asked to do diplomatic and underground work, everyone might fall out completely on the first day, and the underground supply point would be destroyed on the second day.

"There aren't many people who can do this job except you, right? Why don't you use your work experience in the Chongguang Cult in reverse? After all, you have both organizational and operational abilities, and excellent communication skills. Although your combat effectiveness is a little lacking, you can make up for it with some equipment. Okay, stop shirking your responsibilities, it's you."

After Ji Jue threw the work out, he looked at Lao Deng without waiting for him to object: "Are you free?"

"Ah, I'm getting old..." Bao Dacai was about to do his usual thing, but when he noticed Ji Jue's dangerous look, he immediately changed the subject: "I have a lot of free time when I'm old, what's the matter?"

"Lend me the workshop. Besides, there is something else I want to talk to you about." Ji Jue walked towards the chicken feet house. "Just treat it as a demonstration of Qi Tan Alchemy, Lao Deng, let me see your limits!"

Bao Dacai's expression twitched, and he finally understood why his fists sometimes itched when he saw that bastard Ji Jue.

When it comes to assigning tasks to people, he's exactly like the commander-in-chief of Nirvana!

The old man could hardly hold back his swearing.

But he was sure that if he didn't meet Ji Jue's demands, that bastard Ji Jue would definitely find a way to make things difficult for him... So, he had no choice but to follow him.

When I'm awake, I work overtime for Nirvana. When I'm asleep, I work for your Director Ji and I have to work overtime.

I really enjoyed it!

As Ji Jue disappeared, the cult that had been watching day and night seemed to gradually relax. It was only a superficial relaxation, but secretly they were becoming more and more tense.

It’s a pity that my fishing skills are not good enough. No matter how I fished, the bastard never showed up.

Logically speaking, the resistance camp should have ceased.

However, the Tianmu instrument would sound the alarm from time to time, and traces of the rabbit hole would appear every few days.

And in each diocese, the magic modified version of the Holy Seal began to spread again...

Even among the ten major sins listed by the cult, the charges of abusing the Holy Seal and distorting God's grace are still hanging on the crooked tree, but once people take the shortcut, it is very difficult to get back on the right track.

Especially... when the sect cannot tell the difference between the faith offered through ascetic prayers and the results of an automatic prayer machine.

No matter how strictly we guard such a secret and how we publicize its harm, it is still difficult to eradicate it.

Fanatics are a minority after all, and no matter how many devout believers there are, they still cannot cover up the remaining rotten wood and dung...

There is no way. The origins of the countless souls that form the basis of this pipe dream are uneven.

In the Thousand Islands, Middle-earth, and even the wilderness of the Federation and the Empire, it is not to say that there are many demons dancing wildly, but we can only say that each has its own unique skills. Everyone is originally in a state of waiting to die, and they have all kinds of bad habits. It is a bit of a stereotype to say that everyone is mean and evil, and it is also a dream to say that they are kind and compassionate.

The "troublemakers" who were brought up in poor and remote areas may have never had the opportunity to be good people, but there are many more who are simply accustomed to being bad or habitually looking for the simplest way to solve problems.

Laziness is human nature, and no matter how hard you try to educate it, it will be difficult to solve the problem, let alone such a crude brainwashing.
Perhaps they are afraid of the power of the cult, or perhaps they are disgusted with the boredom of day after day. Countless believers have already grown tired of it. Now they repeat the same prayers every day just to ensure their minimum survival. They would consider it a success if they don't get thrown into prison.

Even if paradise is placed before them and they are told to delay gratification, only a few people can do it.

We had no choice before, but now we just want to pray for relief... Although I can't tell the high priest, how could I not know whether this holy seal is useful or not?

What's more, behind the scenes, there is Ji Jue who is offering a buy one get one free promotion regardless of the cost, and even disclosed the production method of this thing and a simple alternative method...

There's no need to do it yourself.

Booklets and free Holy Seal experience kits began to flood into various dioceses. Some people even started to innovate after their success.

The remnant spirits of angels are hard to find, but it doesn’t matter, we have replacements—the remains of those Faceless Men who went crazy praying can also be used!
There are so many of them. Over the years, which church doesn't have a hundred or so to decorate the facade? If a hair is missing from the remains, who would be able to find it?

So much so that, when the cult cracked down on the gang that desecrated the Holy Seal, they discovered that a Faceless Man in the temple was almost completely bald!
The many priests of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith have suffered countless cerebral hemorrhages, and even some priests of churches pretend not to know when they know that believers are using the holy seal.

After all, everyone wants performance!
As long as you don't overdo it, life will be fine.

However, the chain reaction it brought about has caused all the investigators to become extremely anxious... and the disastrous consequences have begun to emerge.

The small holy seal, like a magnifying glass, induces believers to start paying attention to everything they used to take for granted.

When the concept of "value for money" is mixed into faith, all sacred meanings will be completely unrecognizable under the utilitarian deconstruction.

Even if fanatical believers can remain unmoved and devout believers can still persist day after day, when they realize that others can enjoy their time leisurely and easily, while they have to spend a lot of time every day in torment and meditation, how can they not feel a gap in their hearts?
Even without using the Holy Seal, when people start to wonder whether it makes sense to persist in being boring every day, this kind of consideration and hesitation is enough to become a temptation for "degeneration".

As a result, after all the conflicts and contradictions, an invisible storm has gradually arisen within the cult.

It all started with an extremely ordinary report.

——A mentally unbalanced believer complained to the high priest that his companions were secretly using the Fallen Holy Seal. The Ministry of the Doctrine of the Faith sent people to investigate and found that the accusation was groundless. However, the reporter later regarded it as a cover-up. He became more and more angry and reported it to the archbishop. After the matter became more and more serious, it was a mess. In the end, the report was hastily ended with the believer being given a serious warning.

But the ripples caused by this have been growing bigger and bigger.

Because the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith receives more and more letters of complaint.

More and more people began to doubt whether the people around them used the holy seal and questioned whether they were pious.

Some are just hearsay, some are based on solid evidence, and some... are simply malicious speculation.

Another deacon was reported by his colleagues, and the Fallen Seal was found in his residence, but he could not explain its origin. Even though it was later confirmed that this was a frame-up and false accusation, he still suffered a long period of torture and his faith was shaken. At the same time, he also lost a crucial opportunity for promotion.

And the number of letters of complaint is still increasing.

When a product appears in the hands of consumers, how it is used is probably not decided by the manufacturer - for example, when everyone finds out that this product is not only a tool for laziness, but also a valuable opportunity to frame others or even get rid of a thorn in their eyes... things become out of control.

With the end of the Rectification Movement, the parishes did not usher in peace, because soon after, a vigorous witch-hunting movement began!

But the more they hunt witches, the more witches appear. It's really strange!

The contradictions and conflicts that were hidden under peace and smiles in the past quickly surfaced under the intensification of the Holy Seal, and gradually evolved into a life-and-death struggle.

To describe the experience, I can only say it was disgusting, extremely disgusting!
The Ministry of the Doctrine of the Faith is about to vomit.

Because they have handled too many reports, they are regarded as thorns in the eyes and psychopathic villains by more and more people. But if they leave it alone, the work they use to deal with heretics today may be used on themselves tomorrow.

The change in the situation was like the gradually spreading and rising ice water, which began to make it difficult for everyone to breathe and chilled to the bone, yet they were afraid of the warmth of the stake, and they kept wandering in the torment of torture.

With repeated accusations and arrests, more and more believers began to think again.

The meaning of faith, and the cost of faith.

A grain of rat shit was stinking up the entire soup at a speed visible to the naked eye. The brilliant and splendid dream gradually began to deteriorate under the shadow of the spreading stagnation and decay...

As the initiator and the mastermind behind all this, Ji Jue suddenly felt that his previous understanding of corruption was too superficial.

Sometimes, decay is not caused by external factors, and stagnation is not the result of evil deeds.

This terrifying and strange power may have already existed, but no one has noticed it. All it needs is a pair of eyes that can see it, and a pair of hands that can guide it...

“It’s getting more and more interesting.”

In the workshop of the camp, Ji Jue looked down at the summary of messages that Yu Shu had gradually sent him, smiled, threw them into the fire, and stared at the rising flames.

From within the stone cauldron, gurgling sounds were heard, emitting an enticing fragrance.

The original owner of this place had already hidden in a corner wearing a gas mask. Bao Dacai complained in a muffled voice: "It's a pity that you don't go to Yousui!"

"Who says it's not?"

Ji Jue tapped his fingers on his knees, waiting nonchalantly.

Soon.

The temperature is about to be reached...

On that day, urgent intelligence from the anti-rebelion army was sent to the city above the clouds, arrived at the Papal Palace, and finally, after being passed on by the cardinals, came before the Pope.

This includes one good news and one bad news.

There is also a 'corpse'.

(End of this chapter)