Dark Wizard: Rise! My undead army!

In the third month, the first Holy See was established in the capital, which was also the first church to receive royal authorization.

It was spearheaded by a goblin named Augustus.

He was a retired judge in his sixties with completely white hair, but in good spirits.

Throughout his forty-year career as a law enforcement officer, Augustus was upright and incorruptible, judging countless criminals and pardoning innocent people whose cases were unclear.

On the day the miracle occurred, he saw the phantom in the sky from his home, remained silent for a long time, and then took out the ancient book he had read in his youth and read it again.

Until a palace guard found him and brought His Majesty's order.

Establish the Supreme Divine Church!

Churches are now scattered throughout the cities, creating chaos and even clashing with local law enforcement.

This inevitably caused great concern within the royal family.

The Church and faith are both a sharp blade and a bomb, and must be kept in the Empire's own hands!

The old judge "Augustus" was the first "Archbishop" appointed by the Goblin Emperor!

After reading the ancient texts, Augustus went out and began preaching.

Augustus was unlike those mystical preachers.

He didn't shout slogans or threaten people; he simply explained things calmly.

He said that the Most High God has given us a choice, and that is the greatest grace.

He said that faith is not an exchange, not "I believe in you, you save me", but rather acknowledging one's own insignificance and then trying one's best to live a decent life.

His stories weren't particularly exciting, but many people were willing to listen, and gradually, a group of people gathered around him.

These people helped him establish the Papacy, write doctrines, and manage believers.

The Papacy is located in an old house in the eastern part of the Imperial City, with a wooden sign hanging at the door that reads "The Papacy of the Supreme God".

There were no statues of gods, no incense, only a table, a few chairs, and a portrait of a black-robed phantom hanging on the wall.

Augustus said that God is not in the temple, but in the heart.

But other churches don't think that way.

Imperial City, Steel City, Steam Fortress, Forge City... "Cult Leaders" have sprung up in various places, all claiming to be the true successors of the Supreme God.

They attacked Augustus's papacy as "atheistic," saying that if they didn't even have idols, what kind of believers were they?

The Papacy of Augustus remained unmoved.

They continued preaching, continued to recruit believers, and continued to quietly do their own thing.

There weren't many people, but they were very devout and peaceful.

In the fourth month, the churches began to "reorganize".

Victor, a merchant from the Steel City, acted the fastest. He registered his "Supreme God Church" as a company, opened a bank, and issued "merit coupons."

He said that buying merit tickets is accumulating merit, and that accumulating enough merit will allow one to receive God's protection on the end times.

The donation coupons are selling like hotcakes.

Poor people who can't afford to buy it borrow money to buy it.

Some people used all their life savings to buy vouchers, some mortgaged their houses to buy vouchers, and some borrowed money at high interest rates to buy vouchers.

There are long lines outside Victor's church bank every day, from morning till night.

Gordon in Geartown wasn't idle either.

His church operates on a grassroots basis, accepting people without charging money.

He preached in the streets every day, shouting until he was hoarse, followed by hundreds of people.

Most of these people are workers, farmers, or the unemployed. They are uneducated and poor, but they have plenty of strength.

Gordon sent them to preach, recruit people, and disrupt other churches.

Within a month, Gordon's followers smashed three temples in the Steel City.

Victor was furious and hired a bunch of thugs to fight Gordon's men in the street.

The two sides fought until they were bleeding profusely, and were finally forcibly separated by the security team.

The church in Cliff was the quietest.

He was originally an engineer and wasn't good at these things.

His small temple remained open, with people coming and going, but it never grew in size.

Some people advised him to learn from Victor and get into marketing, but he wouldn't listen.

"God's things cannot be used to make money," he said.

As a result, his followers dwindled until only a few dozen elderly people remained.

This puzzled Cliff greatly. Why was his devout and pure sect not recognized, while those swindlers who used "faith" to deceive people were able to gain so many believers?

By the fifth month, faith had penetrated every corner of the goblin world.

In the factory, workers place small statues of deities next to the machines, praying for protection before starting work so that the machines won't break down.

In the school, teachers hang images of gods on the classroom walls and lead students in reciting "May the Most High God protect us" before class.

In the hospital, patients place idols by their bedsides, praying for a speedy recovery.

The things sold in the store have changed.

Previously, they sold mechanical parts, tools, and daily necessities, but now their best-selling items are statues of deities, incense, candles, and donation coupons.

Products that can't be sold can be sold out by printing "Blessed by the Supreme God".

Even the black market has started selling "holy water" and "holy objects".

Some people collect the rainwater from the day of the miracle and sell a bottle for 100 yuan.

Some people put the stones they found at the miracle site into small bags, calling them "divine stones," and saying that wearing them would bring them peace and safety.

Some even claim to have received divine revelation through miracles, and have written several books of "oracles" which they sell at high prices.

Most people genuinely believe it.

They believed that the Most High God could save them, that prayer could avert disaster, and that accumulating good deeds could grant them eternal life.

They chanted N'Zoth's name every morning and evening, knelt before the idol and kowtowed, and used the money they saved by scrimping and saving to buy donation coupons, holy water and idols.

Many people do not believe it, or are skeptical.

Scientists at the energy hub are still conducting research.

They don't believe in God, or rather, they don't believe in the thing that claims to be God.

The data analysis from the Explorer probe confirms that the World Barrier does exist and the meteorite's orbit has been accurately determined.

They calculated day and night, trying to find a way to break through the barrier.

Engineers in the steel city are building spaceships.

They knew that five years wouldn't be enough to build enough spaceships, but they would build as many as they could.

What if? What if technology makes a breakthrough?

Workers in Gear Town are working overtime.

Whether they believe in God or not, they all have to work.

If you don't work, you won't have money; if you don't have money, you can't afford food; if you can't afford food, you'll starve to death.

It would be too unfair to starve to death before the end of the world arrives.

The miners in Forge City continued to go down into the mines as usual.

They believed in God, and they also believed in their own pickaxe.

Whether God will bless us or not, I don't know, but the pickaxe is real.

Every day in the goblin world is changing.

Temples proliferated, faith deepened, but so did fear.

Five years, more than 1,800 days, seems like a long time, but as the days pass by, they quickly disappear.

Some people started a countdown, crossing off one page from the calendar each day.

Some people started partying, spending all their savings and living as if it were their last day.

Some people cannot withstand the pressure, and the suicide rate is constantly rising.

Some people hanged themselves in front of the idols, some jumped into the furnace, and some locked themselves in their rooms and turned on the gas.

Their suicide notes all contained the same sentence: "Most High God, please accept me and let me into your kingdom!"

Hmm... they probably think that there are limited spots in the divine kingdom, and arriving early will allow them to secure a good location...

Some people have also started hoarding supplies.

Food, water, medicine, weapons... hoard everything that can be stockpiled.

Some people dug cellars, some built air-raid shelters, and some ran into the mountains.

Prices soared, the black market flourished, and public security deteriorated.

The pressure on the empire is growing.

The emperor held meetings every day, discussing with his ministers how to maintain order, how to appease the people, how to conduct scientific research, and how to build spaceships.

The ministers were arguing amongst themselves, and none of them could convince the others.

The Minister of Industry said that all resources should be invested in the spacecraft, and as many lives as possible should be saved.

The Minister of Resources said that building spaceships requires minerals, energy, and workers, all of which cost money.

Where does the money come from?

The Chancellor of the Exchequer said that taxes have been collected for ten years and cannot be increased further.

The Agriculture Minister said there is not enough food, and many people are not farming but just praying. People may starve to death next year.

The Justice Secretary said that crime rates have soared and prisons are full.

The emperor listened for a whole day, and his head was about to explode.

How long has it been? Why has the world become so chaotic?

And what was Augustus even doing? Didn't I let him establish the "Supreme God's Church" just to use faith to appease the people?

Why isn't he making a move?