From the Carp that Brings Children to the Celestial Officials

Chapter 524 Internal Strife

"The living suffer, the dead find peace. May we be reborn in the Pure Land, may we be reborn in the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss."

"May the wise king above open the gates of bliss and end the suffering of the living."

The Amitabha Rebirth Sect is a very tightly knit organization, and every morning they must jointly worship the Wisdom King.

The reason for choosing this time is that the Bright King is a symbol of light, signifying that darkness will eventually end and light will soon arrive.

In front of the makeshift altar, hundreds of believers and ordinary people sat or knelt, reciting the contents of the "Sutra of the King of Rebirth".

On the altar stands a benevolent-looking statue, draped in a large red cloak, with jet-black eyes. When you look at the statue, it seems to be watching you as well.

Beside this statue were countless sheets of yellow paper, on which were written the names of countless deities.

Among them, the yellow paper bearing the name of You Ming [Yansheng Hongfu Tianlu Zhengshen] is noticeably larger than that of the other deities, and the paper itself looks much more exquisite.

The incense smoke curls and turns into wisps of hazy blue smoke, a scene that unconsciously evokes a sense of sacredness in people's hearts.

However, just as everyone was chanting, unseen by them, countless tiny black snakes fell like rain, landing on each person.

Suddenly, everyone couldn't help but shiver. The believers and followers who had been immersed in the sacred atmosphere were suddenly pulled away from it.

It's like when you're feeling sleepy in class and can't wake yourself up no matter how much you pinch yourself, then suddenly you get a fright and you can't get back into that immersive feeling.

"Does a true enlightened being (or a wise and benevolent ruler) really exist in this world?"

In that instant, many believers who had previously held firm faith in the Rebirth Sect suddenly felt a sense of doubt arise in their hearts, and their minds seemed to become clear.

Upon a moment's thought, I realized that the doctrines I had once firmly believed in seemed to be full of flaws and utterly absurd.

Someone inadvertently looked up and saw the compassionate face of the [Rebirth King]. For some reason, although it was a compassionate face with a slight smile, it looked strange to them.

The eyes that were originally filled with compassion now seemed to carry an ominous light.

That look in his eyes inexplicably evokes the image of a wild beast stalking its prey, sending chills down one's spine.

The believers couldn't help but shudder, wondering how they could possibly believe in such a bizarre thing.

Many people immediately got up and left the scene, muttering to themselves, feeling extremely unlucky.

The members of the Rebirth Sect present did not stop them, because they too were caught in self-doubt.

They weren't doubting the King of Rebirth, but rather their superior. After all, the King of Rebirth was their most revered deity, representing the ultimate salvation to the Pure Land.

Those ordinary believers who used to be respectful before the priests and incense masters suddenly felt that the sacred aura of those superiors seemed hypocritical and distant.

It even became blurry, unfamiliar, and somewhat suspicious.

Every small thing that happened in the past was magnified infinitely in their eyes, thus turning into a questioning of their faith.

"Since we are all equal before the King of Light, why should we be divided into different classes before them?"

"Why do these priests, incense masters, even elders, protectors, and religious leaders place themselves above us?"

"The Wise King loves everyone equally, so what right do they have to distort his teachings?"

"They are heretics!"

"They cannot represent the Wise King at all. These people are arbitrarily distorting the Wise King's teachings, which is disrespectful to the Wise King!"

"Kill all those who disrespect the Ming King!"

Countless thoughts arose in the minds of almost all believers, but they all became trapped in logical self-consistency.

As a result, the superiors who were once seen as high and mighty have now become detestable.

And these superiors, too, began to have doubts. Their minds were filled with even more thoughts; they questioned those above them while simultaneously finding their subordinates utterly repulsive.

One of the priests, in particular, had finally climbed to his current position and was eager to show off his power. However, he inexplicably remembered that a few days ago, an ordinary believer had seen him but did not greet him.

What was his name again? Oh right, I think it was Wang Ergou.

That bastard Wang Ergou deserves to die...

"puff."

But at that moment, a sharp dagger pierced his chest.

He turned around with difficulty, only to find a young man with bloodshot eyes gripping the other end of a dagger tightly, blood flowing continuously down his chest.

What was this person's name again?

Oh right, Wang Ergou, that bastard Wang Ergou, he really... he really deserves to die.

The chief priest's vision went completely black, and he rolled and fell to the ground, his blood flowing everywhere.

"kill!"

The death of one person instantly ignited everyone's emotions.

The ordinary believers grabbed whatever they could find and threw it at their superiors. Those who could become officials in the Rebirth Cult generally possessed some fighting skills.

The leader of the incense shop reacted instantly, grabbed the knife beside him, and slashed down several people before preparing to escape.

However, there were too many ordinary believers, who pounced on him one after another and quickly pinned him down.

Wang Ergou was so used to killing that he simply stabbed the man in the eye socket, twisted it slightly, and finished him off.

"Brothers, we are all equal before the King of Light."

"These people have misinterpreted the teachings of the Ming King and are bullying us. Tell me, shouldn't they be killed?"

Among these believers, some were quick-witted and immediately raised their arms to rally the crowd.

"He deserves to die! He deserves to die!"

The crowd already had this idea in mind, and now they were completely ignited by the emotions, shouting and yelling.

Such things happen in almost every corner of the Rebirth Cult.

The Rebirth Sect, which was originally not powerful but had a large number of members, fell apart and was in chaos within a single day.

However, the name "Rebirth Sect" still exists, only it has been subdivided into hundreds of smaller sects.

Each sect has its own understanding of the Wing King, and they all firmly believe that their own is the true and orthodox Wing King.

So, after killing their leaders, these sects began to fight each other, with many people dying almost every day.

"Tear."

In a secluded stronghold in Yunzhou in the south, a middle-aged man with a compassionate face and features somewhat resembling the King of Rebirth suddenly transformed his hands into sharp claws, tearing two elderly men beside him to pieces.

Blood splattered all over his face, but his expression was as if he had swallowed a fly.

I don't know what got into those two protectors of the Rebirth Sect, that they betrayed my trust and launched a sneak attack on me.

If he hadn't been hiding his strength, he might have actually been injured by them.

(End of this chapter)