Dawn of a New Era-Chapter 578 - 552: Must Have Been Held Up by Something

Chapter 578: Chapter 552: Must Have Been Held Up by Something

A little over two hours later, the helicopter began to slowly descend as it approached the border.

Chen Shouyi stepped off the helicopter.

A large military force was stationed here, with the border completely sealed off. Only after passing several checkpoints was Chen Shouyi able to enter the Tai Buddha Country.

A large number of Barbarians were haphazardly camped here, warily watching the Great Xia Country’s army on the other side.

Chen Shouyi, disinterested in slaughter, flew high into the sky and quickly crossed the line of defense.

Compared to the chaos and brutality of the Luoyue Country, this place was undoubtedly much better, peaceful and serene.

Tai Buddha Country always had a strong religious atmosphere, with many believers. Even after being occupied by the God of Conspiracy, there seemed to be no significant changes.

Of course, this is all relative.

The countryside was relatively better, exuding a pastoral charm and with few Barbarians in sight.

But the cities appeared desolate, in decay, with commerce in decline and severe depopulation.

There were not many people on the streets, and most had hungry faces, wearing tattered and old clothing.

From time to time, you could see Barbarians strutting around in human clothes, feeling superior.

But this is Tai Buddha Country, not Great Xia Country. As long as it doesn’t concern him, it’s none of his business!

...

A temple in the city.

Zonglawei Meng and a few Priest Apprentices finished praying in front of the Divine Statue and got up, instructing a few apprentices to prepare lunch.

This place was originally a Buddhist temple.

Even Zonglawei Meng himself used to be the host of this Buddhist temple, but now he had switched affiliations.

In the past, almost all priests were Barbarians, savage and cruel, like uncivilized beasts, making this place filthy and chaotic. Everyone feared and hated the deity more than they believed in it.

Fortunately, the great deity heard their prayers.

But over the past half year, the number of Barbarian priests had significantly decreased.

Instead, humans gradually began to take control.

And these monks, already skilled in their duties, quickly gained importance.

Zonglawei Meng was not dissatisfied with his current life; he was the uncrowned king of this diocese. Even within the entire city, he held a significant position, and as his efforts in spreading faith paid off, he foresaw that becoming the High Priest was not far off.

By then, there would definitely be a place for him in the Divine Country of the deity.

At this moment, the light in the front hall dimmed.

A casually dressed, handsome young man strode in, looking around curiously.

Zonglawei Meng’s face turned angry at once; this was a temple dedicated to the deity, not a tourist attraction... though it used to be, but not anymore. Every believer who entered did so with solemnity, displaying reverence and awe.

The young man was undoubtedly Chen Shouyi.

He looked at Zonglawei Meng, clasped his hands together, and said, "Sawadee Ka!"

"Sawadee you motherf*cker."

Clearly a heretic. He was about to call the guards at the entrance, but upon seeing the sword at the young man’s waist, he immediately changed his mind: "Sorry, prayers are in the afternoon, please leave first."

Chen Shouyi was baffled, realizing a troublesome issue; he couldn’t understand the Tai Buddha language.

Luckily, that didn’t stump him; he was quite good at English.

"Hello, How are you!"

Zonglawei Meng felt even more solemn; this was clearly not someone from Tai Buddha Country. From that heavily accented English, he was likely from Great Xia Country.

Don’t ask how he knew; back when he was the host, he dealt with more visitors from Great Xia Country than anyone else.

He planned to have the guards apprehend him for a thorough interrogation right after he left; clearly, this was a spy from Great Xia Country: "We don’t take visitors here. Please go out!"

Of course, Chen Shouyi understood, but he was already impatient and didn’t want to haggle. He walked up to the main hall and approached the Divine Statue.

This was an ominous humanoid creature, entirely gold, four meters tall, sitting cross-legged.

In conjunction with the temple’s Buddhist style, it felt like some bizarre Buddha statue.

Zonglawei Meng’s face flushed with anger but he dared not speak up. Watching the mysterious young man quietly, he withdrew from the main hall. As he nearly reached the front hall, he opened his mouth to shout for the Defender of the Faith at the entrance, but at that moment, his eyes bulged.

The words he was about to shout out seemed stuck in his throat like phlegm, unable to be uttered, leaving him making unconscious choking sounds.

Just then, at the knee of the Divine Statue, the mysterious young man casually pinched off a large piece, kneading it at will like mud, accompanied by the creepy sound of metal being crushed!

This... this is supposed to be a gold-plated bronze statue!

"So it’s fake! I thought it was gold, but it’s just a thin layer of gold leaf," muttered Chen Shouyi to himself.

"You blasphemous heretic, stop it now!" Zonglawei Meng snapped out of it and, unable to care about his fear of the young man, shouted loudly, shaking all over.

Defiling the Divine Statue was an unforgivable sin, a crime so vile that even the deity would be angered, bringing down its wrath.

There had been rebellious heretics in the past, desecrating and toppling Divine Statues, but all met their demise under divine wrath, either crying and wailing to death in madness or burning in spontaneous combustion. And the priests of this temple were also guilty of a grave crime.

Chen Shouyi glanced back at the priest, not understanding what he was saying, then suddenly kicked hard. The Divine Statue, weighing over a dozen tons, was kicked over with a loud crash.

The Defender of the Faith outside and several Priest Apprentices rushed in at the sound, and upon seeing this scene, their faces turned pale.

At this moment, the atmosphere began to grow oppressive.

A vortex of air surged into existence inside the hall, turning the light dim and filling the world with a furious and stifling aura, awakening in everyone an intense feeling of impending doom.

Every believer, including Zonglawei Meng, fell to their knees, kowtowing endlessly, desperately praying.

"Who dares to desecrate, destroy my Divine Statue!"

A faint rumble seemed to echo in their ears, as if from an immeasurable distance, carrying a thunderous fury, filled with an overwhelming, arrogant disdain.

The Divine Statue was a coordinate of belief, a transit point, exceedingly important to a deity,

For a deity, having its statue destroyed was akin to someone barging into its home, wreaking havoc, and finishing off by dumping waste everywhere.

Absolutely unforgivable.

It had been a long time since anyone dared to desecrate its Divine Statue.

The atmosphere grew increasingly suffocating, nearly reaching a climax at one point, where everyone started trembling uncontrollably, seemingly on the brink of divine retribution... Yet in the next moment, the oppressive aura dissipated instantly, and everything returned to calmness.

It was as if nothing had ever happened.

Chen Shouyi was taken aback.

Gone?

I haven’t even spoken yet!

He walked over to the fallen Divine Statue, kicking it a few more times until the entire bronze head was kicked off, clattering loudly as it rolled across the floor.

Yet no matter how he vandalized, the God of Conspiracy seemed entirely oblivious, with no further response.

The hall was filled with kneeling believers, watching the young man perpetually defile the statue, feeling bewildered, their faith beginning to waver.

Great Lord, please come out!

Open your eyes and look at all this, your Divine Statue has been destroyed, deliver divine punishment swiftly!

He must have... been delayed by something!