novelraw Chapter 77 : The Only Savior
Chapter 77 : The Only Savior
Chapter 77: The Only Savior
Faced with Asahara Shoko’s question, the bar hostess froze.
Of course she was guilty. She had scammed men out of money, had abortions, and had even pushed down an old lady just to grab her way through.
But at a life-and-death moment like this, who cared about that?
“I…I want to live…I want to live on……”
She cried until her makeup was smeared, clinging tightly to Asahara Shoko’s leg, as if holding onto the last straw.
“As long as I can live…I’ll listen to anything you say…please…please……”
Asahara Shoko smiled.
That was exactly the line he wanted.
He reached out and gently pressed his hand on top of the woman’s head.
Buzz——
A visible white light wave, centered on Asahara Shoko, suddenly spread violently outward.
Within a radius of ten meters.
All the illusions created by the “Mad King” instantly dissipated.
The bar hostess discovered in astonishment that the ferocious demons before her eyes were gone; the streetlights turned back into streetlights, the buildings back into buildings.
That suffocating sense of terror that had been pressing down on her also receded like a tide.
Replacing it was a warm, cozy feeling, like basking in the winter sun, so comfortable it made her want to fall asleep.
“God…a…a miracle……”
The woman stared blankly at Asahara Shoko, the fear in her eyes transforming into fanaticism.
Not only her.
The dozens of people around who had been swept by the light wave also regained their clarity.
They looked around in confusion, then their gazes focused in unison on Asahara Shoko.
What was this?
A superpower? Magic?
No.
In despair, this was God!
“Those who believe in me shall obtain salvation.”
Asahara Shoko’s voice rang out again, this time carrying an unquestionable authority.
“Those who do not believe in me shall fall eternally into purgatory.”
Clatter.
No hesitation, no doubt.
Within ten meters, dozens of people dropped to their knees in unison.
There were wealthy ladies draped in designer brands, tattooed gangsters, police officers in uniform……
……
Exhilarating.
Too exhilarating.
This was the life he had dreamed of!
In the past, just to swindle a few tens of thousands, he had to plaster on fake smiles, grovel like a grandson, and stay on guard against the police.
And now?
These social elites who usually stood high above others were crawling at his feet like dogs, begging him to accept their kneeling.
This was the pleasure brought by power.
This was the taste of authority.
“Don’t rush.”
Asahara Shoko raised his hand, and the believers instantly fell silent, not daring to even breathe loudly.
“God loves the world, but God does not save those without destiny.”
He began improvising doctrine on the spot.
As a seasoned cult leader, this was second nature.
“This disaster is the prelude to the apocalypse, the punishment for humanity’s greed.”
“Only by joining the ‘Church of Myriad Spirits’, sincerely repenting, and offering worship to the true god, can you obtain a ticket to the ark in this great calamity.”
“Tell me, are you willing to offer up your loyalty?”
“Yes!!!”
The roar of over a thousand people was perfectly synchronized, deafening.
……
Because of the chaos in Shibuya, the mobile unit officers who had been hiding far away witnessed this scene.
Their hands holding their guns were trembling.
What had happened to this world?
First monsters appeared, and now even gods had appeared!
Was this still the world they were familiar with?!
Some young officers with weaker mental fortitude had even dropped their shields and knelt down with the crowd.
In the Metropolitan Police Department’s monitoring room, Sato watched this scene, and the cigarette he had just lit fell straight onto his pants.
“Th…this guy…who is he?”
“Have you found out yet?!”
Beside him, the technician was drenched in sweat, fingers flying across the keyboard.
“Fo…found him!”
“Asahara Shoko, male, 45 years old, former leader of the ‘Truth Sect’, prosecuted for fraud, indebted to loan sharks……”
Sato froze.
A fraudster?
You call this a fraudster?
“If this is a fraudster, then what the hell am I?”
Sato muttered to himself, “This world…has changed.”
……
At the same time,
Heimu Jue was like a spectator watching a play, savoring with great interest the “drama” he had personally directed.
Suddenly, he noticed that vast, surging procession.
“Hm?”
Heimu Jue tilted his head, the smile on his face turning playful.
“Interesting……”
“To think there are fireflies daring to break into my night.”
“Are they lost?”
He extended a finger, pointing it at Asahara Shoko’s procession.
“Then let you all…become part of the play as well.”
Boom!!!
A surge of malice ten times stronger than before crushed down toward Asahara Shoko’s procession like a tsunami!
“Ah!!!”
The believers walking on the outermost edge of the group were struck heavily in an instant.
In their vision, the companions beside them suddenly turned into lumps of flesh covered in eyeballs, the torches in their hands becoming skeletal arms burning with miserable green flames.
“Monsters! They’re monsters!”
“No! You’re the monster!”
“Kill! Kill them!”
The formation of the procession instantly fell into chaos, with some people even beginning to swing weapons at their own companions.
“Hold steady!”
Asahara Shoko’s expression changed as he immediately felt the pressure.
The opponent’s power was far stronger than he had imagined!
The power of faith within his body was being consumed at an astonishing speed.
“God is with you all!!”
Asahara Shoko roared, unleashing without reservation all the accumulated power of faith within him.
Buzz——
A massive milky-white light barrier, like an inverted bowl, enveloped the entire procession.
Outside the barrier was a hell of dancing demons.
Inside the barrier was a holy, peaceful paradise.
But maintaining this barrier consumed Asahara Shoko enormously.
He could feel that the faith he had just “harvested” was rapidly nearing depletion.
This couldn’t go on!
He had to…he had to go big!
A trace of resolute madness flashed through Asahara Shoko’s eyes.
He suddenly leapt high into the air, floating above the procession, spreading his arms like a true deity.
He looked at those survivors outside the barrier who were struggling in fear, crying, and killing each other.
Using all his strength, he let out a thunderous shout:
“People of despair!”
“People of fear!”
“Raise your heads!!”
“God says—”
Asahara Shoko poured all the remaining power of faith, in one breath, entirely into this “miracle”.
“Let there be light!!!”
Boom Boom！！！！！！！！
A holy pillar of light so thick it defied description shot skyward, centered on Asahara Shoko!
At the heart of Shibuya, the light formed a gigantic, semi-transparent energy dome radiating soft white light, enveloping the most central area of the intersection.
Within the dome, all illusions, all malice, all madness vanished in an instant.
The world fell silent.
The several thousand surviving people stood there blankly, looking at the streets that had returned to normal.
Finally, all of their gazes converged on that man suspended in midair, radiant like the sun.
After a brief dead silence.
A mountain- and sea-shaking frenzy of worship erupted.
“God!!!!”
“The true god!!!”
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Several thousand people, a vast black mass, dropped to their knees in unison.
They prostrated themselves fully, offering their faith to their savior in the most devout posture.
……
And Heimu Jue, looking at that enormous “lightbulb”, saw the smile on his face grow ever more brilliant, finally turning into uncontrollable,狂 laughter.
“Haha…hahahahahaha!!”
“Interesting! Too interesting!!”
“Come on! Come play!!”