Chapter 143: Kneel Down!
On the beaches of the United Federation, cheers and praises rose like a surging tide.
Gazing with awe and deep reverence at the divine figure wreathed in holy light, walking upon the waves of the sea, the sacred spectacle wrung involuntary, frenzied shouts from the crowd. Some white citizens, witnessing what seemed like a veritable miracle, dropped to their knees, their eyes pious as they begged for the deity's grace.
Devotees of various religions went wild with ecstasy, raising their voices in hymns of exaltation to praise and glorify the being.
"Our God!" A priest hoisted a Bible high, shouting, "Welcome to this realm! Thank us for your grace and deliverance! It is your glorious light that washes away our sins!"
"You have granted us rebirth!"
"We are your most devoted believers. Oh God, please accept the praises offered by your humblest servants, these lowly mortals! We yearn to bathe beneath the radiance of your glory..."
Out upon the deep, towering waves surged upward, a hundred-meter wall of water rising to elevate the majestic, divine figure walking amidst the holy light.
He looked down upon the white people—some shouting praises in a frenzy, others crying out in excitement, and still others kneeling in supplication.
A faint smile touched the corner of his lips.
"Mortals, I have heard your cheers and praises, your pleas, and your desires. Your God has heard them."
Rolling divine decrees descended from the heavens, the voice laden with divine might like a muffled rumble. "I am well pleased with your welcome."
"You shall receive the blessing of the gods."
At these words, the white people on the beach dropped to their knees one after another, their gazes filled with pious bliss.
"The deity is actually going to grant us his grace!"
"Oh heavens, the blessing of a god!"
"Those people from the Great Xia were lying after all! How kind and benevolent the gods are, just like in the legends!"
"The god has come to us bearing goodwill!"
In the livestream room of a certain white streamer, the viewers watching this sacred scene could no longer sit still!
"Oh God!"
"He's going to bestow his grace! I just dropped in to watch the spectacle, but the god actually appeared and is going to bless us!"
"Holy mother of God! If I'd known, I wouldn't have stayed at the office. Wait for me, I'll be at the beach in five minutes!"
"I'm going too!"
"Who gives a damn about work now? The deity is bestowing his grace! Brothers, get down to the West Coast beach! Once the god blesses us and grants us immortality or divine power, we'll transcend humanity in one fell swoop!"
"Charge!"
"No time to talk, I'm already driving over there!"
In an instant, the entire United Federation plunged into a frenzy as countless citizens, learning of the deity's descent, rushed toward the West Coast.
They had witnessed the glory of the god, and vowed to become his humblest devotees.
***
The deity tempted humanity with the lure of grace, and humanity eagerly unlocked Pandora's box.
On the beach.
Radiance spilled across the shore as sacred light poured from the man standing tall above the towering oceanic waves, cascading onto the sands.
Every white person bathed in the holy light wore an expression of bliss, feeling an all-encompassing warmth throughout their bodies—this was the grace of the divine!
Even some elderly citizens of the United Federation felt their bodies grow light; that wondrous divine power was subtly dissolving the illnesses and agony within them.
They raised their heads, looking up at the deity with adoration.
"Mortals," the god standing upon the waves wore a benevolent smile, an increasingly dazzling holy light radiating from his form, noble beyond description.
His gaze, carrying sacred radiance, swept over the humans bathed in glory who wore such blissful expressions.
"You say you are my most devoted followers, and you have bathed in my glory. Tell me, are you willing to believe in me?"
"Are you willing to surrender your whole hearts to become my followers? Truly believe in me as my faithful?"
The deity atop the waves looked down at the mortals below, speaking softly.
On the beach, the citizens of the United Federation bathed in the radiance broke into thunderous cheers at these words.
The god was asking if they were willing to believe in him?
Did that even need to be asked?
That was a god!
"We are willing!"
"Oh God, we shall follow you for all eternity!"
"Please accept our pious worship!"
A trace of delighted surprise welled up in the deity's eyes. When he and Aser, the third-tier god of the ocean, had arrived in this plane, they had witnessed its vastness and sensed the potential of billions of potential believers.
They had originally thought that conquering this plane might prove arduous.
Yet they never imagined... it would go so smoothly!
There was no need for warfare; these foolish mortals possessed no consciousness of struggle or resistance. Merely witnessing the glory of the divine had reduced them to prostrating themselves and cheering without restraint!
Foolish mortals!
No, perhaps they shouldn't be called foolish.
After all, humanity was so insignificant; even if they resisted, facing a divine invasion would be entirely futile.
Looked at that way, these humans who proactively worshipped him seemed quite clever.
He smiled, looking down from on high at the humans on the beach who were as tiny as ants, and spoke softly: "Since you are willing to enshrine me as your supreme god and offer up your faith, then... kneel!"
***
"Kneel!"
Those two words, laden with divine power, swept across the entire beach!
"Did he say... kneel?" A white man suddenly felt that something wasn't quite right.
The deity nodded, a divine decree descending from the skies: "As long as you kneel, you shall thoroughly become my believers."
"Your souls shall be one with mine, and you shall surrender yourselves entirely to become my humblest servants."
"You shall enter my divine domain, bathing in my glory for all eternity, shedding your mortal flesh to wield the divine power I bestow upon you."
"You shall... possess the power granted by the gods!"
In an instant, countless white people on the beach dropped to their knees!
"Quick, kneel down! Prove our loyalty to the god!"
"Oh God, we are willing to place our whole hearts in your faith!"
"Please grant us transcendent power!"
The frenzied crowd shouted aloud, their eyes brimming with excitement.
A little white girl looked at her mother, who was now kneeling on the ground, and whispered, "Mommy, why does the god want us to kneel?"
"Don't ask so many questions. We are humans, of course we must worship the gods!" the white woman urged hurriedly. "Kneel down, quickly kneel! Then you will be the god's most devoted follower, and the god will bestow his grace upon you, bringing you to his side..."
"Boom!"
The cheering abruptly ceased.
Every single citizen of the United Federation who had knelt down exploded at that very moment!
Their bodies shattered from the inside out!
Clusters of bloody mist burst forth instantly, crimson gore painting the entire West Coast.
Those who had not yet managed to kneel stood frozen amidst the littered flesh and fragments, splattered with the gore of the exploded dead.
The little girl stared in utter shock as her mother's words cut off mid-sentence, her entire body bursting apart right before her eyes. She remained rooted to the spot, her innocent, childlike eyes filled with bewilderment, utterly uncomprehending of what had transpired.
"Mommy..." She gazed blankly at the spot where the flesh had fragmented, then bent down to scoop up the blood and tissue mixed into the sand, attempting to push them back together.
It was as if she believed that by gathering them up, her mother would return.
Her innocent, childish face was stained crimson with gore and blood.
In that instant, of the twenty million citizens of the United Federation gathered along the West Coast, the half that had knelt first shattered instantly on the spot. The remainder stood paralyzed, staring blankly at the sea of blood and mutilated flesh all around them, a scene straight out of hell.