novelraw Chapter 96 : Art Is an Explosion
Chapter 96 : Art Is an Explosion
Chapter 96: Art Is an Explosion
With the government’s full cooperation, the spread of the Church of Myriad Spirits across the Neon Metropolis reached a jaw-dropping pace.
Television, the internet, newspapers, radio……
All media outlets were requisitioned, broadcasting Asahara Shoko’s “divine miracles” and “gospel” around the clock.
Even school textbooks were supplemented with “theological” content from the Church of Myriad Spirits.
“The radiance of Master Asahara Shoko illuminates the entire Neon Metropolis.”
“The Church of Myriad Spirits is the only truth.”
“Those who believe in the Myriad Spirits shall gain eternal life.”
The overwhelming propaganda, like a virus that could infiltrate anywhere, rapidly eroded the minds of every person in the Neon Metropolis.
Amid the fanatical atmosphere, non-believers were regarded as heretics and reported by neighbors and colleagues.
They were isolated, ostracized, and even harassed.
In just a few short days, the number of believers in the Church of Myriad Spirits broke past the ten-million mark.
……
Neon Metropolis, Chiyoda Ward.
Tokyo Dome, this massive stadium capable of accommodating fifty-five thousand people, was packed to the brim at this moment.
Brilliant lights, a deafening roar of voices.
This was the most famous sports venue in the Neon Metropolis, ordinarily a holy ground for star concerts and baseball games. But at this moment, it had been transformed into a colossal “holy temple”.
Tens of thousands of believers wore uniform white robes, each holding the emblem of the Church of Myriad Spirits—a badge glowing with white light.
They densely filled the entire Dome, stretching beyond the limits of sight.
Every face bore an expression of fanaticism and piety as they sang hymns at the top of their lungs, their voices merging into a massive torrent that surged straight into the heavens.
“God loves the world!”
“God bless the Neon Metropolis!”
At the center of the stage, Asahara Shoko wore a pure white robe trimmed with gold, a crown of thorns upon his head, a scepter in hand, like a god descending to the mortal realm.
He stood there quietly, smiling as he gazed down upon the multitude of living beings at his feet.
Behind him was a gigantic LED screen dozens of meters tall, broadcasting in real time footage of his “exorcisms” and various “divine miracles”.
Government endorsement, media hype, and those irrefutable miracles one after another.
In just a few days, the Church of Myriad Spirits swept across the entire Neon Metropolis like a virus.
From lofty politicians and financial magnates to the lowest vagrants, countless people found this to be the only lifeline in their despair.
“Great God!”
A wheelchair-bound girl seated in the front row, supported by her family, tremblingly reached out her hand toward Asahara Shoko.
She suffered from congenital muscular atrophy and had never stood up in her life.
Asahara Shoko saw her.
He slowly descended from the altar and came before the girl like a benevolent father.
The entire venue, over fifty thousand people, fell instantly silent.
Everyone held their breath, waiting for that moment of miracle.
“Child, you have suffered.”
Asahara Shoko’s voice, transmitted through top-tier sound equipment, clearly reached every corner, carrying a warmth that pierced straight into the soul.
He extended his hand and gently placed it on the girl’s atrophied legs.
“In the name of God, I command you……”
“Stand up!”
Buzz——
A blinding white light erupted from his palm.
Under the gaze of countless eyes, the girl’s withered, stick-like legs visibly became plump and strong at a speed discernible to the naked eye.
The next second.
The girl shakily held onto the wheelchair, and then……
She truly stood up!
“I…… I can stand!”
Tears streamed down the girl’s face as she tentatively took a step forward.
Though unsteady, it was incomparably real.
Boom!
The entire Tokyo Dome erupted.
Cheers, sobs, and prayers converged into a massive wave of sound, nearly lifting the dome itself.
“A miracle! This is a miracle!”
“Long live Venerable Asahara!”
“Long live the Church of Myriad Spirits!”
Countless people knelt to the ground, kowtowing and worshiping that white figure.
Even the police officers and security personnel responsible for maintaining order could not help reddening their eyes; some even quietly set down the batons in their hands and joined the crowd in prayer.
At this moment.
Asahara Shoko felt a power unlike anything he had ever experienced.
It was a force of faith formed from the convergence of the wills of tens of millions.
That power of faith surged into Asahara Shoko’s body like a tide.
He could feel the power within him undergoing a qualitative transformation.
He felt his soul ascending, his flesh metamorphosing.
What had once required physical contact to activate his healing ability now needed only a single thought to cover the entire venue.
What had once been limited to inducing hallucinations through mental suggestion could now even distort reality.
He looked at his glowing hands, a trace of intoxication flashing through his eyes.
“So this is…… the power of a god?”
He raised his head and looked toward the night sky illuminated by the lights above.
“Not enough…… still not enough……”
“I want more!”
“I want this entire country to become my divine kingdom!”
……
Meanwhile.
In an inconspicuous corner of the Tokyo Dome’s stands.
An ordinary office worker, carrying a huge backpack, wearing a cheap suit and black-rimmed glasses, coldly watched everything unfold.
His name was Tanaka Taro.
A corporate drone who had worked at some black-hearted company for ten years.
Working overtime until late every day, earning a meager salary, while enduring his boss’s abuse and his wife’s complaints.
Just the day before yesterday, his wife, obsessed with the Church of Myriad Spirits, not only donated all of the family’s savings, but also took their daughter and left home, claiming she was going to serve the “true god”.
When he finally found his wife and daughter, what he saw were their fanatical and unfamiliar eyes, along with that icy divorce agreement.
Tanaka Taro stared at Asahara Shoko on the stage, an indescribable rage burning in his chest.
If he were just an ordinary man, he could only watch all this in despair and helplessness.
But fortunately, the true god had shown him mercy.
Thinking of this, he closed his eyes and looked at the words in his mind.
【Welcome to ‘Game of Gods’】
【Matching player identity and faction】
【Player: Tanaka Taro】
【Identity: Explosive Prodigy】
【Faction: Radiance】
【Art is an explosion; let the world bloom to its heart’s content】
This rage was enough to burn everything to ashes.
“Damn false god!”
“Since this world is rotten to the core.”
“Then……”
“Let it all be blown away!”
He took out an ordinary-looking thermos from his backpack.
It was the water bottle he brought to work every day.
But now, in his hands, it had become a high-explosive bomb capable of destroying half the stands.
“Art……”
Tanaka Taro stared at Asahara Shoko’s hypocritical smiling face on the big screen and slowly pressed a red button on the lid of the thermos.
“Is an explosion!”
Beep——
……
Tokyo Dome, center stage.
Asahara Shoko was immersed in the ecstasy of the crowd’s adulation when suddenly, a powerful sense of foreboding struck his heart.
That was a Transcendent’s instinctive intuition toward danger.
“Hm?”
He subconsciously looked in a certain direction.
There, a figure slowly stood up, holding a silver thermos in his hand.
Their gazes met in midair.
Asahara Shoko saw those eyes.
There was no fanaticism or worship in them, only deathly coldness, and a rage sufficient to burn the heavens themselves.
“Goodbye, false god.”
Tanaka Taro’s lips moved slightly.
The next second.
BOOOOOOM！！！！！！！！！！！！
A dazzling ball of fire erupted abruptly from a corner of the stands!
A massive shockwave, carrying countless fragments of stone and dismembered human limbs, swept through the entire stadium like a tsunami.
Screams and wails instantly replaced the cheers.
What had once been a sacred preaching assembly turned into a living hell at this very moment!