Jiang Yuan forced himself to calm down.
The more flustered he was now, the more dangerous his situation would become.
In his mind, he kept recalling what he had learned about this world over the past few days.
What he roughly understood was that almost everyone in this world was a believer in gods... no, demon gods.
But there were many demon gods, and the Merciful Saint was just one of them. From the news these past few days, he had seen many conflicts between believers due to different faiths.
Also, the older security officer had referred to it as a 'Merciful Worship Ceremony' rather than using the respectful title 'Merciful Saint,' which proved that his faith was not in the Merciful Saint.
"What, is this question difficult to answer?"
The older security officer spoke again, his tone meaningful.
"No, I'm just recalling the scene."
"Oh? It hasn't been more than an hour since it happened, and you've already forgotten?"
"I'm just recalling more specific details."
"You just need to tell the truth about what happened. You don't need to go into such detail."
"Of course I'm telling the truth, but wouldn't clearer details make your investigation clearer? And..."
Anger appeared on Jiang Yuan's face as he shouted, "My parents died this time. My mind is very confused. Is there a problem with me needing to recall?"
"And you're questioning me so aggressively. Are you treating me like a criminal?!"
Faced with Jiang Yuan's angry outburst, the older security officer continued to observe him expressionlessly. The young security officer beside him coughed lightly into his fist, as if reminding the older one.
Suddenly, the older security officer's smile became bright, and his tone turned unusually gentle: "Don't get excited, young man."
"We also want to figure out what happened as soon as possible, so our questioning was a bit urgent."
"You're certainly not a criminal. Alright, go ahead. You can take your time."
With that, he lit another cigarette. In the swirling smoke, his deep eyes never left Jiang Yuan's face.
"This evening, my parents were talking about my birthday tomorrow."
"My dad said it's my eighteenth adult birthday and wanted to invite relatives and friends to celebrate with me at home."
"But my mom disagreed. She blamed my dad, saying there would be too many people, making cooking difficult and cleanup a hassle. If we had to have a celebration, we should go to a restaurant."
"My dad thought having it at home would show more sincerity, so they argued over this trivial matter."
As Jiang Yuan spoke, the young security officer took notes.
The older security officer didn't speak, as if listening carefully.
Jiang Yuan's expression darkened, and grief appeared on his face: "After that, my parents held a worship ceremony for me."
"But my mom kept saying that maybe I could worship the God of Sorrow, that worshipping the God of Sorrow would grant me more powerful strength."
"My dad immediately got angry and had a big argument with my mom. In his words, he even accused my mom of betraying the Merciful Saint, asking if she was a heretic."
"They had already argued at dinner. This argument made me very upset. I prefer a harmonious family."
"But I couldn't interject, so I ran out, planning to eat some barbecue and drink some beer, waiting for them to calm down before going back."
"But... who would have thought..."
By this point, Jiang Yuan's face was full of sorrow, and his voice carried a hint of sobbing.
The older security officer's brows had furrowed at some point. He extinguished his cigarette, stared at Jiang Yuan for a long time, then turned his head and whispered a few words in the young security officer's ear.
Soon, the young security officer stood up and walked outside.
The older security officer didn't speak either. He lit a third cigarette and smoked slowly.
If he didn't speak, Jiang Yuan certainly wouldn't speak either.
The more he said, the more mistakes he might make. The atmosphere gradually became oppressive.
When the older security officer was almost finished with his third cigarette, the young security officer returned. He gave a faint glance at the grieving Jiang Yuan, then leaned down and whispered something in the older security officer's ear.
"Young man, that's not right."
The older security officer's eyes gradually turned cold as he said indifferently, "We just went to confirm something."
"If your mother had converted to the God of Sorrow, why are there no items of worship for the God of Sorrow in your home?"
Jiang Yuan's eyes were filled with confusion: "I don't know. But that's what I heard. As for why my mom suddenly wanted me to worship the God of Sorrow, I don't know either."
The older security officer placed his right hand on the table, tapping his index finger rhythmically. Who knows what he was thinking.
After about half a minute, he suddenly stood up, nodded, and smiled broadly: "Well then, thank you for your cooperation."
"But since we haven't fully investigated the reason for your parents' fall, and it's already late, you'll sleep in our rest room tonight."
"Xiao Wang, take him to the rest room."
With that, he picked up the cigarette pack and lighter from the table and turned to leave the interrogation room.
The young security officer put away his notebook, stood up, and said, "Follow me."
Jiang Yuan followed silently.
Soon, the officer took him to a rest room with bunk beds, a water dispenser, and a bathroom.
It was simple, but clean and tidy.
"Rest well here tonight. We'll find out the truth soon. Once we do, you can leave."
The young security officer comforted Jiang Yuan, patted him on the shoulder, then left with his notebook.
After closing the door, Jiang Yuan first drank several cups of water from a disposable cup, then threw himself onto the bed, burying his face in the pillow.
It was already past two in the morning, but he had no . His mind was in chaos.
Too many things had happened today, too suddenly. It was hard to sort out what was going on!
He needed to calm down and carefully organize the chaotic thoughts in his mind.
If he continued in this confused state, he felt...
He would be in great danger.
His parents' faces were still before his eyes, sending chills down his spine.
That Aunt Wang and the two security officers he had just met—he always felt they harbored malice toward him.
Aunt Wang was his next-door neighbor. Perhaps it was she who had revealed the word 'heretic' that his parents had spoken to the security officers.
With his face buried in the pillow, his breathing was somewhat restricted, but Jiang Yuan's thoughts became clearer.
Perhaps due to the transmigration, Jiang Yuan always felt his mind was much sharper than when he was on Earth.
In simple terms, it was as if his brain had become smarter.
It might also be an illusion.
Slowly, Jiang Yuan organized the events of today, combining them with his superficial understanding of this world after transmigrating, and sorted out several key points.
First, he must never let anyone know he was a 'heretic,' otherwise he would most likely die.
But how was this 'heretic' defined? The most likely guess was not believing in the gods of this world, or not respecting the gods of this world.
He remembered that his parents had gone mad after he called the 'Merciful Saint' an evil god, a demon god.
In short, he must never say anything similar again, nor let anyone know he didn't believe in the gods of this world.
Second, what was the deal with the gods in this world? Were they really demon gods? And what was that scarlet blade qi his father had slashed out, like something from a fantasy novel?
Could worshipping the gods of this world truly grant supernatural powers?
Or was this simply a supernatural world?
Even so, the method of worship involved sacrificing living people, flesh candles, soul incense, and his grandfather's internal organs—these were evil rituals he absolutely could not accept.
And who knew what would happen after worshipping? Jiang Yuan didn't dare to gamble.
Most bizarre of all, the security officers didn't care at all about his grandfather's internal organs!
Third, what exactly were those characters that had been warning him? How had they appeared? Were they meant to warn him not to believe in the gods of this world, or not to say the wrong things?
If so, they seemed to be protecting him.
He wasn't entirely sure yet.
They had warned him twice and then never appeared again.
After sorting out these three points, there were still two major difficulties.
The first difficulty was that the lie he had fabricated was full of loopholes. He didn't know if there would be problems.
But he hadn't killed anyone. As long as he firmly denied being the 'heretic' his parents had mentioned, there shouldn't be major issues.
From what he could see, there was a certain order in this world. They wouldn't kill him just because they suspected he was a 'heretic.'
The second difficulty, and the most one for Jiang Yuan.
Assuming that not believing in the gods made one a heretic.
Then...
How could he survive?