Chapter 189: Ordinary or Supernatural
"Consciousness going to the Unknowable Space..." William pondered secretly.
He had only heard that Spiritual Awakening transcended reality, but he had never experienced it.
After all, as soon as he came to this world, those texts appeared in front of his eyes.
The memory of awakening was learned from his predecessor.
But it was also very vague; William only knew that his predecessor had also participated in this ceremony.
Clang... Clang.
At this time, the church bell rang suddenly, striking seven times.
And the clergy members on the square also entered the inner room one after another.
Richie took William to a closer position, where the whole process of Spiritual Awakening could be clearly seen.
A young male priest bowed to them, then entered the cubicle.
After devout prayer, he placed his hand on a stone statue of a book in front of him.
"This is the Statue of the Bible presented by the Vatican when Dei Church was founded."
Richie whispered.
"It is taken from the Stone of the Holy Land and has a history of thousands of years, helping priests stabilize their spiritual consciousness."
William nodded; he indeed sensed a fluctuation of holy energy on it.
After a moderator announced the start, the young priest closed his eyes.
But a few minutes passed, and nothing happened.
Just as William was curious, he saw Richie shaking his head aside.
"He cannot perceive that space."
At the same time, a priest walked up to the young priest, announced that the latter was not the Chosen One, and signaled him to leave on his own.
The young priest obviously couldn't accept this result.
He begged to try a few more times but was ruthlessly rejected by the priest.
"Why not give more time? Maybe that person was nervous just now..." Roland was puzzled.
William also had this question in his heart.
"This is meaningless." Richie said.
"To find that space, consciousness must enter a state of balance. Being able to perceive the people and things around, yet maintaining peace in the heart."
"When this is achieved, the Unknowable Space is right before your eyes."
"And a person's consciousness is set at birth and will not change due to acquired learning."
"Therefore, many people cannot find the door to enter there in their entire lives."
Roland seemed to understand but not fully.
On the other side, the young priest left with his head lowered.
Soon the next participant filled the spot.
William thought he could meet a few talented ones.
But several hours passed, and more than a hundred people participated in the ceremony.
Yet not a single priest could enter that space.
"This situation is very common."
Richie spoke.
"Every year there is a Spiritual Awakening Ceremony, but only a few priests obtain the Brand in the end."
William glanced at the square.
The priests waiting there were estimated to be close to a thousand.
Thinking that the vast majority of them would fail, William couldn't help sighing.
"This can be considered another form of accompanying running..." (Note: metaphor for participating without winning)
At this time, a commotion suddenly came from one side of the square.
William turned his head and saw an elderly priest kneeling on the ground.
Three tall men stood in front of him, seeming to be forcing the former.
"Please give me another chance! Next time! Next time I will definitely get the Brand!"
The old priest kept crossing himself, his tone full of pleading.
This commotion attracted many people's attention.
"You guy! You have participated five times and still want to fool us!"
One of the men roared.
"Who knows how much Holy Water and Holy Oil you have smeared!"
His companion beside him stopped him immediately.
"Wes, this is a church; keep quiet!"
"But clearly this old man deliberately made such a big noise..."
Clergy members went to inquire, and the three men were quickly asked to leave the church.
Taking advantage of the interval of negotiation between the two sides, William saw the old priest leave secretly.
"There are always such self-righteous guys every year." Richie shook his head.
"Obtaining a Brand is not only a transformation of life quality but also respected by people outside."
"Power, wealth—these are demons on the road of priesthood practice."
"Therefore, rumors outside say that as long as high-quality holy artifacts are used for a long time, the probability of obtaining the Holy Brand can be increased."
"So many people incur huge debts for this and finally destroy themselves."
William rubbed his chin.
"Isn't the result known after participating in the ceremony once? Why do those people..."
Richie smiled slightly: "Obsession is a kind of evil; some people cannot be purified until death."
Roland asked curiously: "In that case, as long as the Church stipulates that everyone can only participate once, wouldn't this situation be avoided?"
Richie smiled and shook his head: "You will understand when you enter the seminary later."
William knew the reason.
With so many people participating in Spiritual Awakening every year, this is undoubtedly a considerable income.
Plus the sales of peripheral holy artifacts, it can also drive local economic development.
Who can refuse such a business?
And from the Church's perspective, it has explicitly stated that participating in the Spiritual Awakening Ceremony multiple times will not change the result; you insist on coming yourself.
Richie watched the old priest run away, his tone turning cold:
"This guy wants to use the Church to block creditors; simply clever but foolish."
Roland said: "Is the Church going to send him to the police station?"
Richie shook his head: "Such atonement is too easy; he will be sent to the Land of Suffering to receive Judgment of Justice."
William raised an eyebrow.
If he remembered correctly, in the "Judgment of Justice," permanent imprisonment is only the lightest level of punishment.
Besides, there are hanging, burning at the stake, etc.
Sure enough, several church personnel wearing black robes soon chased in that direction.
After the brief commotion ended, the ceremony continued.
This time a nun walked in.
She kept her head down, her breathing a bit rapid, looking quite nervous.
After a solemn bow, the nun entered the cubicle and placed her hand on the Statue of the Bible.
In the next second, William discovered an anomaly.
"There seems to be a special energy body emerging from her." He thought secretly.
At the same time, the nun's breathing gradually became steady.
In her perspective, every sound around was extremely clear, and her heart became more and more peaceful.
At this moment, the contrast between movement and stillness formed a certain balance in her body.
Then, when the nun perceived those sounds again, a "Door" was already in front of her.
The frame of this "Door" was surrounded by faint golden light, and inside was a chaotic mist.
The nun was excited inside and immediately entered it with "Consciousness."
Almost simultaneously, William and Richie's eyes lit up.
The former felt a strange power appear in this space.
Mysterious, chaotic, eternal...
Completely different from the land and flowers in the human world, it seemed to be a higher dimensional existence.
But William seemed to have felt this power before.
"She found it." Richie said.
"Next, as long as she finds a Brand in that place and returns successfully, she will be able to hear the Voice of Heaven from now on."
Roland said: "Is it dangerous there?"
Richie nodded seriously: "All power in the world, whether owned or not, will eventually flow into the Unknowable Space."
"For example, the Evil Brand mentioned earlier."
"This is left by demons, thoughts of Old Gods, and some dead cult guys."
"It contains a powerful evil aura inside. Once carved into the body by a priest, it will take root and sprout in the following time."
"And this kind of Brand cannot be expelled. Once planted, it will exist permanently, and the priest will also be expelled from the Church."
"Eventually, either become a demon slave or fall completely into madness."
Richie adjusted his glasses, seeming very apprehensive about this.
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