Since all these rules and superstitions are outdated, what's wrong with me indulging in some me

One mystery after another was like a giant net, trapping Lu Changsheng inside and making him feel extremely troubled.

"Am I seeing things? Why do I see rocks growing? And why are those plants growing?"

"No! The road is open!"

"I saw that door! So this is God's punishment... we can't escape!!!"

"Door?"

It's this door again.

Lu Changsheng's heart sank to the bottom. What kind of door was this? What was behind it?

Not only the former archbishop's records, but even the old monk Mo was constantly trying to warn him of something.

There were only a few words written on the parchment, but every single one sent chills down Lu Changsheng's spine.

He glanced at the hourglass beside him; it was getting late.

He slowly picked up the second book of black iron and began to skim through it.

This book mainly discusses the early records of Echo Valley.

The book clearly points out that Echo Valley has a very long history, and Lu Changsheng noticed that the reason why the early Echo Valley was called Echo Valley was because it was very empty inside, and it would make a whistling sound when the wind blew by, rather than the strange murmurs and whispers that appear now.

After hastily finishing the remaining book, Lu Changsheng found no valuable information. So, based on his memory, he wrote down the hymn he had heard that morning in a different tone on a piece of scrap paper.

This poem is divided into three sections.

The first paragraph is clearly a record of the current situation.

Swaddling clothes means an infant, gray spots mean gray spot disease, and stone thigh means echo valley.

Silence is the period of silence, the shepherd and the lamb. It refers to priests and believers.

The first paragraph is quite easy to understand.

Lu Changsheng then turned his gaze to the second stanza of the poem.

The poem takes a sharp turn in the second stanza, beginning a list of various unrelated words.

It tells of the starry sky, two rabbits, a hunter with a gun, arsenic, and honey.

The third paragraph is relatively shorter, but its meaning is more profound.

The "foreigner" likely refers to oneself.

The boulder being pushed is likely the boulder of Sisyphus.

Legend has it that Sisyphus was punished by the gods and had to push a giant boulder up a mountain, but every time he got close to the top, the boulder would roll back down to the bottom.

This futile act has to be repeated endlessly.

Does this mean that I am doing something in vain?

However, the next phrase, "wings," should refer to the butterfly effect, and "tail-eating snake" refers to the tail-eating snake, which is also a symbol of infinite loops.

Is this implying that he might be able to break this endless cycle by making just a small change?

But what kind of changes are needed? And what kind of cycle needs to be broken?

Lu Changsheng was overwhelmed. One mystery after another appeared before the next one could be solved.

The chat in the live stream also started to collectively break down.

What nonsense am I spouting? It seems like I'm just writing down whatever comes to mind from a dream?

I swear I will exterminate all riddle solvers in the world!

[This poem is getting scarier and scarier the more I read it! My God, I got goosebumps again in the middle of the night!]

[Upstairs, are you remembering that weird tune the choir sang today? It was really creepy!]

This poem feels like a prophetic poem!

[This is chilling to think about. If this is a prophetic poem, then wouldn't it mean that the arrival of the Land God was already foretold back in the time of the former archbishop?]

[Not necessarily. The premise for calling him a prophet is that Lu Shen must be this stranger!]

Lu Changsheng pondered for a moment, then silently drew a circle on the two rabbits.

The hourglass beside him was almost empty, and Lu Changsheng didn't plan to stay up tonight. He slightly activated the spiritual energy in the jade pendant, snapped his fingers, and burned the draft paper on which he had copied the poem.

He walked to the door, placed a hair at the entrance, broke off another hair, and put it inconspicuously inside the buttons of his clothes, then gently tied it up.

Then, unlike yesterday, he didn't wait for the forced hibernation at 11 o'clock.

Instead, he lay in bed and went to sleep early.

Day 3 of the instance.

Lu Changsheng was awakened by the regular knocking sound as usual. He got up wearily and once again found that his skin was tingling slightly all over.

The stinging sensation was even stronger than yesterday.

"My God, the time has come."

Outside the door came Judge Cass's steady voice.

"Hold on."

This time, Lu Changsheng did not let them in as he had yesterday.

He discovered that the hair he had clipped to his clothes button yesterday had broken off.

He first took off his inner shirt, revealing his slightly thin body.

He carefully examined his skin and found that the skin on his arms was slightly red, and when he got closer, it had a strange, pleasant fragrance.

"Has someone tampered with my body...?"

Lu Changsheng frowned.

He didn't keep Cass waiting long; he got dressed and went to the door.

Unsurprisingly, the hair by the door was also gone.

Lu Changsheng opened the door.

Cass and Ilya, along with several monks, came in and helped him change.

Then Lu Changsheng went to the prayer room and received the prayers of three believers. He then went to the altar to cut his own hair. After lunch, Knight Rex was already waiting for him at the door.

"Is everything ready?"

Lu Changsheng looked at his sturdy armor and the bronze greatsword in his hand.

"Yes, my God."

Rex's voice sounded somewhat muffled as it traveled through the armor.

He turned slightly to the side, gesturing for Lu Changsheng to go first.

A horse-drawn carriage was parked outside the side entrance of the church.

"The mountain road is rugged, so it is safer for my god to ride in a chariot."

Judge Cass explained from the side.

Lu Changsheng said no more and boarded the carriage, while Rex sat in front and drove the carriage.

"Bless my God."

The voices of the archbishop and the judge rang out from outside the car door.

Lu Changsheng did not respond. The carriage slowly started moving, emitting a monotonous sound of its pulley. (Announcement: Update coming soon, please stay tuned!)

"Rex, are you married?"

Lu Changsheng suddenly broke the silence inside the car.

Although knights are also members of the priesthood, they differ from priests in that they are allowed to marry and have children.

Lu Changsheng clearly felt Rex outside the car pause, and then heard him reply respectfully.

"Report to my God that I have a deceased wife."

"My deceased wife..."

Lu Changsheng pondered these two words, his gaze sharp as if it could penetrate the simple wooden planks of the carriage and land on the tall, upright figure in front of him.

He hesitated for a moment, recalling Rex's expression when he heard about the missing baby yesterday, and tentatively asked:

"Do you...have children?"

"My wife left me with our newborn daughter before she passed away. We named her Alice."

Lu Changsheng nodded. He understood that Rex's euphemism meant that his wife had died in childbirth.

"How is the child?"

A brief silence fell over the car. The sound of wheels rolling over gravel and the distant, harsh wind created a somber atmosphere.

"...Reporting to my god," Rex's voice rang out again, this time even trembling slightly:

"Alice...she didn't live past the first new moon."

Lu Changsheng's pupils contracted slightly.

It's another new moon night.

"But three new moon nights ago?"

"Exactly."

Knight Rex's child also went missing three months ago?

My condolences.

Lu Changsheng sighed.

Rex's head shook slightly.

"My God need not worry, it is God's punishment for me, and it is what I should bear."

"punish?"

Lu Changsheng keenly grasped this word.

"What did you do?"

Rex remained silent for a long time before finally saying:

"Punish me for my wavering faith."

"In the early years of the Silent Remembrance, prayers went unanswered, the sacred fire was extinguished, and disasters struck frequently. Looking at the townspeople, I asked myself countless times, if God is truly all-knowing and all-powerful, why does He turn a blind eye to our suffering?"

"If God has abandoned us, then what are we worshipping day and night?"

His voice trembled, as if he had been suppressing it for too long, and it was almost tearing his soul apart.

"Then Alice was born, the last thing my wife left me, but the moment I had her, I had a blasphemous thought—maybe God doesn't exist at all."

"But not long after, punishment came, and Alice disappeared before my eyes."

"I once questioned the archbishop, but he just told me that it was God's punishment for my blasphemy."

"My daughter... paid the price because of my wavering faith."

"From that day on, I understood that disasters were not God's abandonment, but punishment for our weak faith. If we want God to return, we need to make amends for our mistakes."

Lu Changsheng listened quietly, but suddenly felt that something was wrong the more he listened.

Rex's account seems reasonable, but the logic is completely flawed.

In the beginning, people believed in God, and in the beginning, God was even helping people.

However, because of the constant calamities and the fact that God never appeared again, people's faith in God wavered.

It's not as Rex described, where people first lose faith in God, and then God brings evil upon them.

But judging from Rex's state, he has clearly been brainwashed.

Moreover, the child's disappearance was also very strange.

Is disappearing into thin air truly divine punishment?

If God is so powerful, why use an infant as punishment?

"Therefore, when you descend and perform miracles, it signifies the end of the Silent Era, and you are the beginning of my redemption!"

"I'm willing to sweep away all darkness for you, even at the cost of my life! Just to end this nightmare!"

Rex turned and looked into the carriage. Even through the wooden board, Lu Changsheng could feel the intensity and obsession in his gaze.

"I have seen your loyalty."

Lu Changsheng said slowly.

"As a reward, I will give you something."

Rex was taken aback.

Do you have any of your daughter's personal belongings? That would help me find her and let her rest in peace in heaven.

Lu Changsheng made up a story with his eyes wide open, and the real story was that he used his personal belongings to find Alice. As for the idea of ​​a peaceful and carefree heaven, that was just to give Rex some comfort.

Rex's eyes widened, then he was overjoyed.

He took out a clean handkerchief from his clothes, and from inside he took out a small longevity lock.

"Yes, my God."

At this moment, the tall, imposing man's eyes were filled with tears.

"This is the longevity lock Alice wore when she was one month old. But it became too irritating to her skin, so she stopped wearing it. Is this okay?"

Lu Changsheng nodded and reached out to take the longevity lock.

Longevity locks are quite a good thing.

"My God, can you truly grant Alice joy and peace in Heaven? The Archbishop said your power will gradually recover... until the seventh day..."

Rex's voice suddenly stopped; he seemed to realize he had let something slip.

But he was unwilling to give up, and cautiously asked Lu Changsheng:

"Are you able to do it now...?"

Are you questioning my abilities?

Lu Changsheng raised an eyebrow, knowing that his current persona was that of an omniscient and omnipotent god.

"I wouldn't dare!"

Rex quickly shook his head. If he didn't have to drive the carriage, he would have knelt down and kowtowed to Lu Changsheng to apologize.

But Lu Changsheng heard everything he just said clearly.

What does it mean for strength to gradually recover? Does it take 7 days to fully recover?

Is the 7th day his last day in the dungeon? What exactly does "fully restored power" mean?

Lu Changsheng kept his questions to himself.

The carriage fell silent again. After about half an hour, the carriage finally arrived at the entrance to the valley.

Thick fog billowed and whispered, like a gaping maw ready to devour its prey.

Rex's eyes widened, then he was overjoyed.

He took out a clean handkerchief from his clothes, and from inside he took out a small longevity lock.

"Yes, my God."

At this moment, the tall, imposing man's eyes were filled with tears.

"This is the longevity lock Alice wore when she was one month old. But it became too irritating to her skin, so she stopped wearing it. Is this okay?"

Lu Changsheng nodded and reached out to take the longevity lock.

Longevity locks are quite a good thing.

"My God, can you truly grant Alice joy and peace in Heaven? The Archbishop said your power will gradually recover... until the seventh day..."

Rex's voice suddenly stopped; he seemed to realize he had let something slip.

But he was unwilling to give up, and cautiously asked Lu Changsheng:

"Are you able to do it now...?"

Are you questioning my abilities?

Lu Changsheng raised an eyebrow, knowing that his current persona was that of an omniscient and omnipotent god.

"I wouldn't dare!"

Rex quickly shook his head. If he didn't have to drive the carriage, he would have knelt down and kowtowed to Lu Changsheng to apologize.

But Lu Changsheng heard everything he just said clearly.

What does it mean for strength to gradually recover? Does it take 7 days to fully recover?

Is the 7th day his last day in the dungeon? What exactly does "fully restored power" mean?

Lu Changsheng kept his questions to himself.

The carriage fell silent again. After about half an hour, the carriage finally arrived at the entrance to the valley.

Thick fog billowed and whispered, like a gaping maw ready to devour its prey.

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Rex's eyes widened, then he was overjoyed.

He took out a clean handkerchief from his clothes, and from inside he took out a small longevity lock.

"Yes, my God."

At this moment, the tall, imposing man's eyes were filled with tears.

"This is the longevity lock Alice wore when she was one month old. But it became too irritating to her skin, so she stopped wearing it. Is this okay?"

Lu Changsheng nodded and reached out to take the longevity lock.

Longevity locks are quite a good thing.

"My God, can you truly grant Alice joy and peace in Heaven? The Archbishop said your power will gradually recover... until the seventh day..."

Rex's voice suddenly stopped; he seemed to realize he had let something slip.

But he was unwilling to give up, and cautiously asked Lu Changsheng:

"Are you able to do it now...?"

Are you questioning my abilities?

Lu Changsheng raised an eyebrow, knowing that his current persona was that of an omniscient and omnipotent god.

"I wouldn't dare!"

Rex quickly shook his head. If he didn't have to drive the carriage, he would have knelt down and kowtowed to Lu Changsheng to apologize.

But Lu Changsheng heard everything he just said clearly.

What does it mean for strength to gradually recover? Does it take 7 days to fully recover?

Is the 7th day his last day in the dungeon? What exactly does "fully restored power" mean?

Lu Changsheng kept his questions to himself.

The carriage fell silent again. After about half an hour, the carriage finally arrived at the entrance to the valley.

Thick fog billowed and whispered, like a gaping maw ready to devour its prey.