Chapter 260

Chapter 260

A Christian, tears streaming down his face, looked up at the clouds above. He had always been an devout believer in God, and his faith had never wavered throughout the years. But today, after witnessing the devastation wrought upon the land, his unwavering faith of two decades was shaken for the first time.

"You are not the God in my heart..."

Enormous locusts flew toward the commotion. The Christian closed his eyes in despair, awaiting death. Suddenly, someone tackled him to the ground and aimed a gun at the charging swarm. The trigger was pulled with a fierce determination.

Bang! Bang!

The massive locust's head was violently pierced by the Desert Eagle, causing it to fall to the ground. Yan Ji Zheng Yi let out a breath, hastily reloading his magazine while pulling up the Christian. "Don't just stand there, do you see the entrance to the sanctuary? Hurry up and run over there!"

Observing the Christians' despondent and desperate expressions, Yan Jiuzheng's face was filled with helplessness. "Are you still going to accompany that false God up there in death? Come on, brother, is your long-held faith really that frail?"

The Christian snapped back to reality and recognized Justice Is Beauty. "Aren't you the one who opposed God in the sanctuary?"

"I object to false gods," Justice Is in the Face declared. "Though I have no affection for religion, I do respect those who follow their faith diligently and cause no harm. It's just that I dislike how they attribute everything to God. Don't we deserve your gratitude as well?"

The Christian gazed blankly at the face of Justice Is in Appearance, who, however, had lost patience for further conversation. Shoving the Christian aside, they said, "Hurry up! I still have to save others!"

The Christian stumbled, watching Justice's retreating figure. This time, he didn't stand still to meet his demise. Instead, he turned towards the entrance of the shelter, his steps faltering at first but soon becoming resolute.

His faith was not in error; the fault lay with the thieves who had misused God's name for their deeds.

He needed to rectify that mistake.

The situation on the ground was far worse than the players had initially anticipated. Enormous locusts swarmed the city, an endless horde. The survivors holed up in skyscrapers were gripped by despair. Many hadn't perished in earthquakes, meteor showers, or fires, but under the relentless chewing of the giant insects. The players were overwhelmed by the sheer number of locusts.

Justice, after rescuing the Christian, climbed to a high vantage point and cautiously surveyed the scene. She soon realized the dire circumstances. Though close to the shelter and nominally under the jurisdiction of the Audit Bureau, there were too many unarmed civilians for the armed investigators to save. Moreover, the locusts seemed to possess rudimentary intelligence, attempting to breach the shelter's gates.

The best-case scenario now was for the investigators to fall back and protect the shelter, abandoning the other residents outside. Those people would either be killed by the locusts or, in their dying terror, submit to God—neither outcome was desirable.

Was this main quest truly unwinnable?

Justice felt a growing anxiety, and at this inopportune moment, other giant locusts seemed to have noticed her location, swarming toward her in groups.

As Justice engaged in battle, a sudden change occurred around her.

But this time, it wasn't a new trumpet or a calamity; instead, the billboards and screens of the buildings that should have been darkened illuminated once more.

They displayed scenes of Arkham City and New Port City.

What on earth is happening?

Let's rewind half an hour back.

Right after the disaster ended, the shelters in New Port City were finally opened. Fortunately, there were ample drainage systems installed near the exits, preventing them from being flooded. However, the bad news was that most parts of the city were submerged underwater.

When God Amongst Men and the other players waited for the residents to emerge, they saw the devastated state of the city. To be precise, the aftermath of the typhoon left the water level around knee-deep or even higher.

Unlike what happened with Just Face Value, there weren't many delusional believers among the residents of New Port's shelter. Even those who had superficial faith and knew about the contents of the Revelation were secretly cursing God after seeing their homes in such a terrible state.

"What should we do now?" Fors and the others instinctively asked God Amongst Men, whose management skills within the shelter had gained the recognition of most people. Besides, many of the residents were saved by God Amongst Men and the other players, granting him natural authority.

God Amongst Men had already thought of the next steps to take while in the shelter. Hence, after confirming the situation outside, players like Bloodthirsty quickly sprang into action, setting up mysterious rituals and patterns that the other residents couldn't comprehend around the shelter.

"According to the Revelation, the next trumpet will likely summon massive killer locusts," God Amongst Men said calmly. "We must use this time to prepare our spells."

"Uh, what did you say?" Fors rubbed her ears.

"Spells, magic, rituals – call it whatever you like," the God on Earth was no longer the replica from New Port City's incident; there was no need to force a scientific explanation now. "If you have nothing else to do, could you help me out?"

Fors, carrying the loudspeaker, left with a few young employees who were utterly bewildered. Their task was to warn the surrounding area that another disaster was imminent. This was done in case there were survivors from other shelters who needed to be reminded to seek shelter or come to their location.

The signal station had been completely destroyed by the tsunami. They had no choice but to resort to this crude method. Doctor Fors and the others were instructed not to venture too far.

The ritual that the God on Earth was setting up was something he learned from the Black Cat, who, in turn, learned it from Professor Alders. In short, it wasn't difficult for those in the know to guess what the impending disaster would be. They naturally had a chance to resist, such as by casting a large-scale defensive barrier spell.

By the way, Alders hadn't intended to use such a wide-ranging barrier spell due to its massive mana consumption. It would drain a human's mental energy within ten minutes of casting. However, the Black Cat and the others had presented him with a pile of dazzling Philosopher's Stones.

An ultimate masterpiece in alchemy, these stones contained profound energy that could serve as power banks for large-scale rituals. For players, they were undoubtedly A-grade materials.

Several sets of such materials were in the possession of high-level players like the Black Cat and Blood Thugs. Don't ask how they got them – it was all thanks to Mr. Perfect.

In the meantime, players from the shelter beneath the university had already rushed out after the disaster ended, expanding the range of the barrier spells as much as possible. Of course, the same went for the players in New Port City. Unconsciously, they expanded the coverage of the barriers to include several shelters.

Upon the sounding of the fifth horn, the colossal locusts emerged, swarming into cities en masse – except for New Port and Arkham, where they were barred by barriers.

"Yesss!" Milk Tea Dog slapped hands with Bloodthirsty in excitement. They had managed to set up their defenses just in time, mere seconds before the locusts appeared.

The sky was blanketed with the overwhelming swarm, creating a breathtaking sight. Thanks to the players' foreknowledge, not a single resident within the barriers was harmed.

"He asked for it," Nian Nian chuckled. "Following the Revelation to the letter. Does he really think we have no chance of resistance?"

After confirming that the sequence of disasters was identical to the Revelation, players grew more proactive. They inspected the shelters, giving NPCs tasks while also sealing any gaps, turning them into genuine fortresses. They knew that there would be more battles to come.

Their ruse had indeed fooled the heavens, or perhaps the deity simply didn't bother paying attention to the ants beneath Its feet.

Unbeknownst to the players, as soon as their plan was in place, all electronic devices worldwide began crackling and displayed live footage of New Port and Arkham.

At that moment, Lan, locked in combat with Balder in the skies, mustered a sliver of the Ark's power while the latter was distracted, broadcasting the situation in both cities in real-time.

Regardless of the time, slaughter and fear might inspire temporary dread but not genuine faith.

And when someone raised the banner of rebellion...

When the disparity between reality and the revelations unfolded, people realized that this 'God' was not all-knowing and all-powerful as depicted in the Bible. There were those who defied His judgment and managed to survive.

At this point, would He still be the 'God' in the hearts of people?