My brother is so cunning

Chapter 1158 The People's Eyes Are Sharp

However, this amazement was quickly shattered by reality. As the two Western saints spent more and more time searching the city, the contempt and disgust of the common people became increasingly apparent.

Some people pointed at them and said, "Why aren't the invaders leaving?" Others mocked them from a distance, calling them "cowards who only know how to hide in the protective aura." Even worse, some people followed behind them with baskets full of rotten eggs, throwing one out every few steps. The eggs hit the protective aura with a "smack" sound and emitted a foul smell.

What alarmed the two saints even more was that they could clearly feel that as the contempt and disgust of the common people continued to accumulate, the golden light of their merits was slowly dissipating, and their blessings were being depleted little by little—as if they were being eroded by invisible "resentment." With each passing moment, this depletion increased.

"Oh no! This is that devil's tactic of wearing down his troops!"

Saint Zhunti suddenly realized what was happening and his expression changed drastically: "He deliberately made us delay in the city, taking advantage of the disgust and contempt that mortals have to weaken our merits and blessings!"

The Guide Daoist instantly understood, and the frustration and anger in his heart surged up again—they knew it was a trap, but they couldn't break free: if they retreated, they wouldn't be able to avenge the grudge against Mount Ling, and the Western Sect would be homeless; if they advanced, they would continue to suffer the contempt of mortals, deplete their merits and blessings, and fall into endless procrastination.

Generally speaking, saints who possess absolute power, or even control, rarely suffer setbacks, but there are always exceptions.

For example, if the Tongtian Sect Leader makes a stupid mistake, he can squander a winning hand. Such a powerful sect, with its myriad immortals coming to pay homage to the Jie Sect, was lost in just a few years due to his folly.

The Western Sage also had a similar experience of being humiliated, but his losses were much smaller than those of the Tongtian Sect Master. He only lost the "Merit Lotus", a 3rd-grade innate treasure that suppressed the Western Sage's fortune.

The two exchanged a glance, both seeing helplessness and anxiety in each other's eyes—they had fought across the three realms for tens of thousands of years, never imagining that one day they would be "publicly disliked" by mortal beings, and be in such a humiliating situation. They never expected that even after seeing through Wen Rui's utterly shameless strategy of exhausting the enemy, they would still be caught in a dilemma and suffer the consequences.

As the sun sets, the streets of Liberty City are illuminated with soft lights, and the number of aircraft in the sky gradually decreases, replaced by groups of ordinary people taking a stroll.

The Guide and the Sage Zhunti had been searching the city for nearly three hours, passing through one street after another and looking at one building after another, but the Creator Heavenly Venerable was still nowhere to be found. The golden light of merit around him had dimmed by nearly 30% compared to the morning.

Every time they were swept by the disdainful gazes of commoners, every time their qi was hit by rotten eggs, it was as if tiny insects were gnawing at their blessings, causing even the most solid foundation of their saintly path to develop a slight crack.

Moreover, their every move was broadcast live across the entire internet, and every intelligent life form inhabiting any place in the Three Realms with internet access watched, commented, and mocked them on various screens.

One streamer even suggested in his livestream that if fans sent him a giant rocket, he would throw a rotten egg at the saint.

Many streamers seeking to gain traffic have begun to lower the bar, singing and dancing wildly in front of the two sages while streaming, engaging in outrageous antics, and recklessly challenging the sages' magnanimity and composure.

These people were unaware that offending the supreme being of the Western Religion was not as simple as death; after death, they would surely be sent to the Avici Hell and never be reincarnated.

"This is not the way to go."

Saint Zhunti stopped in his tracks. The light of the Seven Treasures Tree had dimmed considerably. He could clearly feel that the circulation of spiritual energy within his body had slowed down considerably: "I don't know why, but my merits are being depleted extremely quickly. If I search for another hour, my magical energy won't circulate smoothly anymore."

The Guide glanced with utter disgust at the streamer who was doing a hip-wiggling dance in front of them, secretly making a fuss about it and issuing him a "perpetual residence permit in hell," before frowning and saying, "But we have no other choice." He looked at the brightly lit high-rises in the distance, his tone full of helplessness: "Mount Ling has been destroyed, our lineage is in grave danger, and we have nowhere to retreat; if we cannot find the demon and kill him, not only will we not be able to avenge our grievances, but the Western Sect's legacy will also be cut off in our hands."

The two saints did try to use their great spiritual power to "influence" these foolish mortals, persuading them to repent and wholeheartedly turn to "goodness".

Unfortunately, their solemn chanting of Buddhist hymns only drew ridicule from onlookers and was broadcast live across the internet, where it was turned into a meme by a group of talented netizens.

The result was contrary to expectations. Not only did it fail to influence any foolish beings, but it was also regarded as foolish by all beings in the three realms who saw the bizarre video.

Merit points are falling even faster!

Wen Rui had taken precautions and set up a mental barrier in advance, which was now coming in handy. Without the support of spiritual power, the chanting of the sutras was not much different from the chanting of shamans to the ears of ordinary people.

Whether intentional or accidental, wherever the two saints passed through, every projection screen was playing parody videos from video websites.

Even though the two sages were highly accomplished in their cultivation and rarely got angry, such a direct and blatant mockery made them feel their nameless rage growing increasingly uncontrollable.

It should be known that the sages of the primordial era valued their reputation most, and their hearts were not necessarily very big. If a ruler made a few teasing remarks, it could lead to the destruction of the country. If the altar was overturned, the entire region might be implicated and never see rain again.

However, these two saints of the Western religion made a great vow and made a pledge to save all sentient beings. The doctrines of the sect were nominally for the sake of all sentient beings. They couldn't openly break with God, so no matter how angry they were, they could only endure it in silence.

As they searched, the surrounding civilians grew louder and louder, and many of their words pierced the hearts of the two saints like needles.

An old woman carrying a vegetable basket pointed at the two saints and said loudly, "What saints? I think they're just here to cause trouble! We now have clean water to drink, warm houses to live in, flying machines to go out, and hospitals when we're sick. Our lives are a hundred times better than before! Why do we need you to 'convert' us?"

"What can these chanting monks give us? Free chicken soup for the soul? They always say we sentient beings suffer, but why should we suffer? Don't we deserve a good life?"

A young man in overalls chimed in, “Exactly! You always say mortals are foolish, but we’re not blind! We know very well who can truly give us a good life and who is using ‘heavenly ways’ and ‘Buddhist teachings’ to fool people! I’ve heard the older generation say that Western religions always talk about how wonderful the ‘Pure Land’ is, but why is that place only for gods and Buddhas? Ordinary mortals can’t even get a glimpse of it!”

Upon hearing this, the surrounding commoners nodded in agreement. A scholar-like man wearing glasses adjusted his glasses and said sarcastically, "You occupy those good places in the heavens and paradise, living a life of luxury, yet you come here to meddle in our mortal affairs! We work hard to improve the land, making crops grow in barren places; we build machines to make life more convenient, and you, on the other hand, accuse us of 'disrespecting the way of heaven,' 'destroying the environment,' and 'being greedy.' Why is it that you can live in good places, but we can't live a good life?"

"Only those who have nothing better to do than point fingers!" a child exclaimed in a childish voice, holding a toy. "My dad said that it was the Creator God who gave us a new school and delicious candy. If you drive him away, we won't have any candy to eat!"

The guide opened his mouth, wanting to refute, but found himself unable to find a suitable word—these commoners were talking about real life, things that the Western Church had never given them—the Western Church, on the contrary, had earned a lot of real gold dust from mortals.

(End of this chapter)