Cuifeng City.
“What on earth has been going on these past few days?”
“So many people died again last night. Life was already hard enough; is Heaven coming for our lives early now?”
In a small diner, several middle-aged men sat drinking and eating together.
They chatted as they ate. Having had a bit too much to drink, the alcohol loosened their tongues, and they vented their frustrations without restraint.
“It's good they're dead. Living is just suffering anyway,” one man said despondently.
Another retorted, “Don't say that. A bad life is better than a good death.”
“In ten or twenty years, who knows what the world will look like with tech development? It's not impossible that we'll be lying in gaming pods with our consciousness in virtual reality games.”
“If you die early, you won't get to enjoy anything. Thinking about it like that, don't you want to live?”
“Besides, if you live a few days longer, you might get to see certain people get what's coming to them!”
At this point, he lowered his voice.
“That You-Know-Who from the Yin family loved doing... that stuff with couples. He's ruined so many families over the years, and now his whole family is dead.”
“And that eldest son of the You-Know-Who family who shot an innocent pedestrian and insisted his eyes were playing tricks on him, saying he thought the person was a bird.”
“Even though it caused a huge stir and he was sentenced, I heard it was just a paper sentence. He never spent a day in jail and continues to drag race as if nothing happened. People like him deserve to die!”
“And that guy surnamed Wang—how many young girls did he ruin? Dying a hundred times wouldn't be enough for his whole family!”
The group spoke over each other, their voices growing louder.
“These people are total cancers on the city, yet how does the local media describe them? They call them ‘outstanding talents’ who made ‘significant contributions to city development’!”
“This world is a pile of shit! Does the Investigation Bureau really have no idea about the heinous things those people did behind the scenes?”
One man slammed the table in anger. “They know everything!”
“If ordinary people can see it at a glance, how could they not know?”
“They're clearly in cahoots. They don't even bother to hide it anymore. They don't give a damn about the common people; they only care about money!”
The sound of the wind and snow outside muffled most of the noise in the diner.
The winter cold couldn't extinguish the crowd's anger. Complaining together only caused the hatred in their hearts to surge manifold.
Seeing the customers making a fuss, the diner owner didn't stop them. Instead, he smiled and brought out some free side dishes.
The atmosphere became increasingly lively and volatile, drawing in all the diners.
“Everyone, quiet down and listen to me for a second.”
A young man suddenly stood up and spoke loudly.
“Have you all considered the reason why those scumbags are dying miserable deaths one after another?”
“I know! It's the Radiant Church!” another person chimed in immediately, not giving the others any time to think.
“Exactly! It's the Radiant Church!”
“The Lord the Church believes in couldn't bear to see the civilians of this city suffer, so He descended here to punish those villains!”
“We must serve the Lord with all our hearts to be saved by Him!”
The young man's voice carried a strange, seductive incitement, and hope appeared on many faces.
It wasn't that they were stupid or easily misled by brainless rhetoric.
Rather, in these times, many people's lives had reached a dead end.
Giving them even a shred of hope, even if fake, could at least serve as a brief spiritual pillar, preventing them from suffering a mental breakdown under the weight of life.
Scenes like this in the diner were happening in other parts of Cuifeng City as well.
Clearly, the Radiant Church was taking the opportunity to proselytize.
Occasionally, someone would raise a doubt.
“Violent crimes in the city are skyrocketing. It's not just the elite scumbags dying; many ordinary people at the bottom are being killed too.”
“Why doesn't the Lord protect these poor, suffering people?”
Then, a missionary disguised as an ordinary passerby would sternly rebuke them: “Because those people are all guilty!”
“Only by believing in the Lord can they atone for their sins!”
Due to Yue Shi's departure, the growth rate of violent crimes in the city had slowed down.
But once the human heart turned bad, it was basically impossible to turn it back.
Aside from the Supernatural Forum, an unregulated online platform, the attitudes of other media platforms were unified, criticizing the public's “evil deeds” from a moral high ground.
Even some self-media bloggers were no exception.
Self-media or clickbait accounts were usually good at stirring up conflict and creating hot topics to increase traffic and discussion.
But now, they were all singing the same tune.
This one-sided public opinion was definitely influenced by the authorities.
Any dissenting opinions would be deleted in seconds.
The mastermind behind the conflict was already viewed as a conspirator by the local Investigation Bureau, someone who was destroying the city.
Their guess was correct.
However, the people of Cuifeng City had their own ideas.
If anyone was to blame, it was those who squeezed the ordinary people too hard; trust in the authorities had long since collapsed.
Some even cheered for the current state of chaos.
Others were fishing in troubled waters, seeking opportunities for profit.
...
Inside a building not far from the Cuifeng City Investigation Bureau.
At the top of the spacious building, an internal church had actually been constructed.
At this moment, a Bishop in the church was praying devoutly to the statue in the center.
A Priest stood behind him, asking with a respectful and humble attitude, “Was the ceremony successful?”
“It was. We are just waiting for the Lord's response.”
The Bishop spoke softly, a look of mercy on his face.
“This city is now a powder keg; a single spark will make it explode.”
“The statements from the official media represent the attitude of the Cuifeng City authorities. But the ordinary people of Cuifeng City don't trust the authorities much.”
“Many have been dissatisfied for a long time, and some have even developed extreme emotions. They don't believe a single word the authorities say, speculating with conspiracy theories all day long.”
“The worst part is that the conspiracy theories they speculate about are true.”
“The elites and transcendents have the ability to leave this place and live in other cities, remaining stable and secure.”
“As for those ordinary people, once Cuifeng City is destroyed, they can pretty much only wait for death.”
“To save this city, there must be a new ruler who cares about the people's livelihoods and changes the status quo. Who do you think can do such a thing?”
“Only our Lord, of course!” the Priest answered without hesitation.
Although they had used the method for Rank 5 advancement as bait to collude with the local Investigation Bureau Director and were also exploiting the civilians—even more harshly—
All of this was a necessary sacrifice.
Only suffering could create a savior.
A helping hand extended in despair is remembered forever.
Never mind who caused that despair.
In short, the Radiant Church would become the hope of this city.
As if thinking of something, the Priest's expression turned grave.
“The people on this land are very difficult to teach.”
“Even when using the Divine Voice to proselytize, they occasionally remain unwilling to accept the Lord's domestication, constantly raising doubts.”
“Will our plan be affected?”
The Bishop shook his head. “The people here are smart, so there's no need to worry.”
“They are also longing... for a change to occur. They love watching the drama and will subconsciously add fuel to the fire.”
“Regardless of whether their faith is real or fake, as long as they want to change the status quo, they will become our help.”
“When the Lord descends, we will be able to take back everything we once lost!”
Hearing this, the Priest's blood boiled, and he clenched his fists.
The grudge of their clan's extermination was something they didn't dare forget for a single day!
The statue in the center of the church suddenly emitted a soft, bright light.
The Bishop immediately listened devoutly.
The Church had been lurking in this city for a long time.
Not long ago, the Bishop had received an oracle. The world had undergone a massive change, and the Lord was now able to descend into reality.
It just so happened that this city had fallen into chaos, making it convenient for them to set up the divine descent ceremony.
Headquarters was easy enough to deal with, but no matter what the Radiant Church wanted to do in Cuifeng City, there was still one hurdle they couldn't bypass.
Just who was that mastermind who had triggered the chaos?
Some of the arrested criminals were babbling crazily about a “beast-god” or “brute immortal”—it was hard to even comment on it.
The Bishop set up the ceremony to ask the Lord.
Now, he finally received a response.
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