From God of Lies to Lord of All Worlds

Chapter 463: Pain of the Old Era

Above Golden Hair's head, Alvin stood with a chuckle, pulling his hand away from the man's head.

"You are entirely correct, Crown. We need to give them a little ambition so the spread of Divine Faith in this world becomes more intense. Otherwise, if these high-level officials just give up and let things rot, how can we expect the populace to take action!"

Indeed, this shift was not a sudden awakening of Golden Hair's patriotism, but rather a mental suggestion implanted by Bai Yang.

Otherwise, if America, the most powerful nation in the world, simply laid down in the face of the Supernatural Crisis, the world would lose so much of its entertainment value!

"But this realm truly is taking a turn for the better, which is quite a comforting sight..." Alvin remarked, finding the situation fascinating.

Looking down at everything within this nation, he could clearly see that during their absence, the lives of ordinary people had improved.

The ruthless capital that once crushed the living space of the common folk had been forcibly halted by the overbearing intervention of Transcendence.

This was exactly what Bai Yang had been striving for all along.

It might seem somewhat perplexing, but Bai Yang was the person in this world who most desired "world peace." After all, only population growth could bring about a surge in Wish Power. Therefore, every single person was an incredibly precious resource.

Everything he had done in this world—the descent of Transcendence, the emergence of Gods, the clear boundaries of Good and Evil in rewards and punishments—might look like he was cultivating a privileged class. However, through divine methods and the authority of a Creator, he was also shaping a low-pressure environment tailored for this world.Transcendent Beings were almost entirely affiliated with various sects. As The Faithful of the Gods, would they dare harm the Gods' sheep?

Just the implication of that question alone was enough to make the vast majority hesitant to act for fear of collateral damage.

In truth, accomplishing this was remarkably simple, as it only required treating ordinary people like human beings.

Yet, it was also incredibly difficult, because in America, Europe, and Asia, very few high-level officials actually viewed the common folk as human beings.

In a world ruled by capital, anyone who could not increase their wealth was merely a consumable good, raw material waiting to be squeezed dry.

Because of this, even in countries with extensive welfare systems, there were still ordinary people suffering from starvation. European nations fared slightly better; their welfare frameworks at least allowed the common people to scrape by.

America's welfare system, on the other hand, was better described as just another layer of exploitation. Selling blood, taking out loans for school lunches, and even paying rain taxes had all become the daily burdens of the populace.

Capital cracked open the bones of the commoners to suck out the marrow, endlessly churning out homeless persons to satisfy their greed at the lowest possible cost.

But now, such atrocities were highly unlikely to occur. The overseers were no longer corrupt government officials colluding with capitalists, but the Gods themselves.

"Alvin, what are you smiling at?" Bai Yang's voice interjected at just the right moment, causing Alvin's expression to immediately turn serious. "Crown, I am looking at our future pool of Wish Power!"

Bai Yang chuckled softly as he walked past Alvin.

Although they were still inside the White House, what they saw was the incredibly vibrant source of Wish Power within this country. The Wish Power generated by the foundational population of white people was continuously flowing toward them.

On this land, the people who were originally destined to freeze, suffer, and die had finally found a way to survive.

And all of this stemmed from The Church, which had transformed into something entirely different under Angus's reforms!

"Then let us go. Let us see for ourselves this nation that has been irrevocably changed by Transcendence!"

"By your will, Crown!"

America's Wish Power foundation and Christianity's embryonic form of Wish Power were Bai Yang's true pillars of strength in this world, so naturally, he kept a close eye on them. Now that the matters in Great Britain had temporarily concluded, he needed to return here to continue solidifying his core support.

The quality of life for the people here directly affected the fundamental stability of his Wish Power.

And tonight, fittingly, happened to be Halloween.

......

Seattle, an ordinary Catholic community. Yang Si was a rare Chinese resident in this neighborhood. Having lived here year-round, he had mingled seamlessly with the locals, becoming one of the few outsiders who could comfortably reside in this traditional community.

Because he managed a restaurant, he was relatively well-off financially, content with his modest wealth and peaceful life. Thus, for this year's Halloween, he had once again opened his door early, setting out bowls of candy to wait for the children to come trick-or-treating.

Asking for candy on Halloween was a deeply classic and ancient Christian custom, and during America's golden age, it had been the happiest time of the year for children.

They would dress up as various ghosts and monsters, knocking on doors to beg for sweets. Every household would display jack-o'-lanterns and hand out candy to reward the little ones.

This was supposed to be a joyous occasion, yet Yang Si found himself unable to smile. He was somewhat afraid that this year would turn out just like the last.

At the thought of this, a wave of melancholy washed over the middle-aged man. He still remembered last year's Halloween when he had brought out candy to distribute to the children, just as he always did.

But that year, he hardly handed out any sweets. The first child who arrived had locked their eyes onto the half-eaten burger in his hand.

It was not that he could not bear to part with the burger; he just felt it was inappropriate. However, seeing the kids in their cheap Halloween costumes staring ravenously at his food made Yang Si's heart ache.

As a Chinese man, his traditional values made the sight of starving children absolutely intolerable. So, Yang Si placed a delivery order, having dozens of burgers sent over.

That was when things truly spiraled out of control. To his astonishment, he found that many children from seemingly respectable families within the community came running over just to grab a burger.

Some were four or five years old, others were seven or eight, and a few were even teenagers. None of them had enough to eat; they were all starving. Some even grabbed extra for their older brothers who were already in college and too prideful to come beg for food themselves.

At the time, freezing rain was pouring down on the neighborhood. It was bitterly cold. The children wore flimsy clothing, their lips turning a bruised blue from the chill, but their eyes were glued entirely to the burgers. It was the gaze of pure starvation.

Two children from white families even ran out into the downpour, letting the rain drench their faces so no one could tell they were crying. With tears and rainwater mingling on their cheeks, they stepped forward to claim their burgers.

These children were not strangers; they were all local kids Yang Si recognized from the community. He could not fathom how these honest, sincere, loving, and hardworking people had ended up in a situation where they could not even afford a single meal for their children.

Such decent folks, such gentle families, greeting their neighbors with smiles every single day, yet they were forced to let their children—and even themselves—go out on an empty stomach to "ask for candy" during Halloween, a holiday meant for family joy.

The whole situation made Yang Si incredibly uncomfortable. Although he was a third-generation Chinese immigrant and not some hopeful dreamer who had moved to this world chasing tales of the "Beacon of the World," he still felt that this was profoundly wrong.

This was a Christian community filled entirely with devout Catholics. They attended worship religiously every week, and every single one of them worked diligently. He had no idea why things had deteriorated to such a degree.

Later on, someone in the community told Yang Si that this was completely normal. Many people worked three jobs just to barely cover their mortgages, utilities, and tuition fees. If they wanted to actually eat their fill, they had to sell their blood.

And they could not sell blood whenever they pleased. The payout would decrease the more frequently they donated, meaning they could only afford to sell their blood occasionally just to give their children one full meal.

The government was collecting more taxes than ever, but the so-called promised welfare benefits had never materialized.

That was not the end of the misery. There was still so much pain. His next-door neighbor, an old man and a member of the Rifle Association, had been forced to sell off the guns he had collected over most of his life just to pay for his sick son's medical treatment.

This fifty-year-old white man, who had played the tough guy his entire life, drank and sobbed like a child right before he sold his firearms.

"Sigh..." Yang Si let out a heavy breath, shaking off his thoughts. His own days had not been easy lately either. After all, the nation across the sea had ascended, leaving people like him without any true spiritual anchor, cementing their disadvantaged status in this country.

He stepped forward again to peer outside. This year seemed even quieter. He had prepared dozens of burgers specifically because he worried some children might still be starving. His heart genuinely ached for them.

Halloween night in Seattle appeared incredibly still, a silence so ghostly and desolate that it only deepened the unease in Yang Si's heart.

'There is no freezing rain this Halloween. Will just as many people freeze to death as in previous years? This is not a good omen...'

He remembered that countless people had died outside during last year's Halloween. The number of those who had frozen or starved to death was innumerable, stripping this city of whatever warmth it once had and leaving behind only a cruel reality.

Yang Si pondered uneasily, completely failing to notice the silhouettes emerging from the Darkness...