Chapter 32: Divine Descent

Chapter 32: Divine Descent

Dorn walked to the center aisle of the church.

His gaze cut past Jiang Ren and Taylor, fixing with fanatical intensity on the stone idol at the far end. He pulled up the sleeve of his left arm, revealing a single-eye tattoo on his forearm, and then used a small knife to slash his left wrist.

Bright red blood began to trickle out.

Seeing this, Jimmy, Kennedy, and the others resting nearby were struck by the sudden thought that the man had gone mad and was attempting suicide by slitting his wrists.

"Great Azathoth, Chaotic Azathoth!"

Dorn held his bleeding left hand high, chanting with pious vigor: "Primordial chaos of disorder, birthing the orderly Triune God!"

The blood flowing from his wrist stained the faint single-eye tattoo a deep, vibrant crimson.

"Dorn, what are you doing?"

Jiang Ren, who had been quietly listening to Taylor’s explanation, turned back. Seeing the clearly abnormal look of fanaticism on Dorn’s face, he frowned slightly.

*Has it finally begun?*

Unlike his outward expression, Jiang Ren’s heart remained completely calm.

"Dorn, what’s wrong with you?" Taylor asked, her voice tinged with concern.

"Root of all things, the Silver Key! Bearer of life, the Black Goat! Messenger of the chaotic core!"

Dorn ignored Jiang Ren and Taylor entirely, not even glancing at them. His eyes remained fixed on the single-eyed idol as he continued to recite words of unknown meaning.

*Thump!*

Jiang Ren’s leg muscles tensed, and in the blink of an eye, he covered the dozen meters between them. He seized Dorn by the throat and hoisted him into the air, his voice cold. "Dorn, did no one ever teach you basic manners? Answer me: what are you doing?"

Dorn’s face turned purple from the constriction, but he kept his left hand raised, struggling to choke out, "Oh, praise... the... all-knowing..."

Jiang Ren tossed him forward.

*Crash!*

Dorn’s back slammed hard against the stone floor. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his head lolling to the side as he lost consciousness.

"Is this... infighting?" Kennedy blinked, bewildered.

He couldn’t comprehend how the two had been fine just moments ago, only for one to suddenly slit his own wrist and the other to grab him by the throat and throw him to the ground.

In a daze, he recalled the people who had turned into living corpses. Could these two have come into contact with something strange and lost their minds?

"That's it?" Jiang Ren looked at the unconscious Dorn, feeling somewhat speechless.

Although he had sensed something off about Dorn for a while, if the man had gone to such lengths to lure him here just to bleed and recite nonsense, the cost seemed far too high.

"I recall your name is Jiang, isn't it?" Taylor’s voice came from behind him.

Jiang Ren didn't speak; he simply turned around silently.

The Taylor standing there was completely different from before. The youthful, lively aura was gone, replaced by a sense of mature, bewitching seductiveness. It was as if, in this short span of time, her beautiful shell had been occupied by a new owner.

"I had intended to make friends with you before the ritual began, but since you disdain me, so be it." Seeing Jiang Ren’s silence, Taylor put on a wronged expression, her dainty white hand dabbing at eyes that held no tears.

"Interesting." Jiang Ren smiled and prepared to walk toward her.

But the moment he tried to lift his foot, he felt a faint, blood-colored glow ripple across his skin. It acted like a series of shackles, binding his body so tightly that even moving a finger became difficult.

Taylor covered her mouth and chuckled. "Mr. Jiang, if I were you, I wouldn't bother with such futile struggles."

Jimmy and the others were too terrified to speak—or rather, even if they wanted to, they couldn't. Their bodies felt crushed by an invisible weight, forcing them to the ground, unable to move or even breathe easily.

*Was Dorn the bait?*

Jiang Ren recalled everything since entering the town. Looking at Taylor’s look of assured victory, he asked, "Who are you? And what is your goal?"

"Someone will explain that to you soon enough." Taylor raised both hands and clapped them gently.

*Boom!*

The locked church doors swung open, revealing the thick black fog outside. Strangely, the fog did not rush into the church, as if blocked by some invisible barrier.

Then, figures in black hooded robes filed in.

The person in the lead pulled back his hood, revealing a head of white hair and a weathered face.

"A perfect vessel. My Lord will be very pleased." The old man looked at Jiang Ren and nodded with satisfaction.

"Can someone please explain to me what is going on?" Jiang Ren twisted his neck. His head and neck were the only parts of his body he could move freely.

"Of course, Mr. Jiang. As a vessel for the divine, you have the right to know these things before the God descends." The old man placed a hand over his chest, bowed politely to Jiang Ren, and said, "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Frank Xuesai, head of the Calida branch of the Celestial Society. We worship the greatest god in history: the All-Knowing and All-Seeing God, Hosamail."

"And you, Mr. Jiang, have been fortunately chosen by us to serve as the vessel for the All-Knowing God’s descent into our world." As he spoke, Frank wore an expression suggesting Jiang Ren should feel lucky.

Jiang Ren was speechless. "So, I’m supposed to thank you?"

"We accept your gratitude." Frank ignored Jiang Ren’s tone and ordered the robed figures and Taylor, "Begin the ritual. I can already feel it—the urgency of the All-Knowing God to descend."

"Yes!"

All the robed figures nodded. Even Taylor dropped her playful demeanor.

"Oh, praise the All-Knowing!"
"Oh, praise the All-Seeing!"
"Oh, praise the One who is the past, present, and future—the gatherer of all things!"

They formed a wide circle around Jiang Ren, chanting in unison. An invisible energy began to manifest within the church, growing denser by the second.

"This is... truly exciting!" The smile on Jiang Ren’s face grew even brighter. He could feel the presence of a powerful, dangerous species. It was the scent of... a delicious feast!

His left arm, which had been trembling faintly since he entered the church, was now shaking with increasing intensity, sending countless thoughts of hunger into his mind.

*Not yet. You’ll scare it away.*

Jiang Ren whispered softly. Whether or not his arm understood, the tremors subsided significantly, though the hunger only grew sharper.

"Oh, praise the One who exists in all time and space—the All-Knowing and All-Seeing God, Hosamail!"

As Frank and the others finished their chant, they looked up with anticipation toward the glass dome.

The pentagram array on the dome emitted a faint, bloody glow, and a massive eye, filled with evil and chaos, emerged from within.

Then, it began to descend slowly toward Jiang Ren.

As it fell, the eye began to shrink. By the time it was only a few meters above Jiang Ren’s head, it was no larger than a human fist.

Yet, the aura of evil and chaos it radiated only grew more concentrated and potent.