Only God

"The fog around here is very thick," Eden said as he walked at the front of the group.

"It fits the line from the Scripture, 'This is the land like dense smoke.'"

The fog was thick and suffusing, dampening everyone's clothes and enveloping their hands and feet with a chilly embrace. They strode briskly through the forest, scaling one earth mound after another as they made their way deeper into the mountain range.

The words of Eden were validated by the Main Priest Molemos, who nodded in approval and chimed in,

"Yes, it seems the path here really does start flat before becoming tortuous. Blessed by the King of Kings, it appears we have indeed found the way."

The Main Priest's words stirred up ripples among the people in the group, causing many to exclaim in admiration and instinctively pray to the King of Kings.

Eden seemed indifferent on the surface, his lips moved slightly, giving the impression he too was praying albeit in a whisper. In reality, he said nothing, his eyes carefully scanning the path ahead and observing the environment.

The surroundings were no different from those of an ordinary forest, with the same trees and underbrush. There seemed nothing particularly holy about this place compared to anywhere else. One couldn't discern anything indicative of a Holy Land.

But Eden didn't let these appearances sway his judgment that the Longma Mountain Range was not the location of Prophet Abyss. After all, he was a Priest who, before being ordained by the Pastor, had made a pilgrimage to the Ancient Kingdom of Logos. The ubiquitous ruins of that ancient kingdom hardly inspired thoughts of a place people yearned for as holy.

Ultimately, the sanctity of a Holy Land is not a matter of appearances.

The group continued their advance towards the Longma Mountain Range. They marched hastily, almost without rest, driven by the fervor of faith, urging them to push onward. Some were so eager that they avoided resting altogether, desperate to reach the Prophet Abyss as soon as possible.

Eden had no doubt that once they reached the Prophet Abyss, they would emulate the Prophet's actions from the Scripture and dive headfirst with bowed heads.

These heathens possessed a passion no less intense than that of the True Believers. They were equally devout to their God. Yet, because of the difference in viewpoint, he always found their devotion to be somewhat awkward and out of place.

Eden tried hard not to let such prejudices interfere,

"I... may need to reevaluate these heathens."

This thought echoed in Eden's mind.

To be honest, when he first arrived here, he witnessed the persecution of True Believers by the heathens, which gave him a poor first impression of them, almost equating them with the King of Aja from the Scriptures.

However, when he observed that True Believers were also persecuting the heathens and heard the savage acts spoken by the Priest George, he had no choice but to reconsider the difference between True Believers and heathens. Who indeed were the harmless lambs, and who were the cruel wolves? Or could it be that they were all lambs, but lambs that also fought each other and slaughtered each other?

Where did the issue between them lie? Was it moral, or was it doctrinal?

Eden watched the group of heathens closely, continuing to press forward.

The group traversed the Longma Mountain Range for three consecutive days.

The search for Prophet Abyss was tedious and monotonous, as there was no clarity on where the destination lay or how much longer the journey would be. It is easy to travel a path with an end in sight, but a path with an unknown destination is difficult. Perhaps the Prophet Abyss was just within reach, and it was merely a momentary lapse that led them to miss it.

Complaints began to emerge within the group. Doubts arose, and some became disoriented, wanting to turn back. Nonetheless, the Main Priest Molemos calmed everyone; he was like a lynchpin of stability.

During restful moments, Eden took the opportunity to discreetly inquire among others about the rumors surrounding the Main Priest.

"Hey, Scholar, have you heard? Our Main Priest Molemos has performed quite a few miracles."

A heathen thus spoke,

"Those called... right, the Ancient Language, he used it to make several lame people grow new legs."

"Anything else?"

For the average Believers, such rumors sounded miraculous, but to Eden, this was nothing significant.

"You should have heard, he's valued by the Holy Servants. I've also heard that he's being prepared to be a Holy Servant, just waiting for one of them to return their soul to God..."

That person whispered in a low voice.

Being prepared to be a Holy Servant...

Eden pondered this term.

The identity of Main Priest Molemos had greatly surpassed his earlier expectations.

He still remembered the scene of deserted streets, countless people crowding the streets, just to glimpse the Holy Servant's face, to heed his sermons and preaching, which were more grand than the arrival of any King on earth, it was almost like a Prophet in the flesh.

And this Main Priest was actually being prepared to be a Holy Servant.

Although not clear on the truth of these rumors, the mere existence of such rumors was enough to prove that Main Priest Molemos's status within the heresy far exceeded his own imagination.

And such a figure also believed that the Longma Mountain Range was where the Prophet Abyss lay, Eden couldn't help but feel more confident about this matter.

They walked for another two days and realized that the mist among the forest was even denser, with a grey-white hue suspended mid-air. Even during the day, they couldn't see the sun when they looked up, only feeling the sunlight that filtered through the mist. At night, the entire forest was pitch-black, not allowing one to see even their own hands in front of them.

They had delved deep into the Longma Mountain Range.

Eden observed the surrounding environment with extreme caution and noted an unimaginable silence; forget the calls of birds or the chirping of insects, even the rustling of leaves was pitifully scant. This place was more desolate than an unvisited graveyard.

Eden relayed this to the Main Priest.

"The Scripture says, 'In the night, within the darkness, God drew near to her.'"

Main Priest Molemos thus spoke,

"We have studied this passage and believe that during the day, everything is too noisy, preventing people from focusing on God's voice. It is only at night, when all is quiet, that people can understand God's will. This Scripture hints at us to stray from worldly desires, to receive the highest revelation."

Eden slightly nodded; he remembered a similar statement in the True Religion, so he spoke:

"During the day, the worldly people talk, clamor, and often overlook truth for trivial matters, their eyes remain fixed within the material world. But come night, especially in the deep of night, people have the energy to focus on the spiritual gifts bestowed by God. Naturally, one realizes that truth is not the result of man's cognition or thought; neither sensibility nor rationality can create truth, but rather by comprehending and discovering the truth."

Main Priest Molemos nodded in agreement, smiling in approval.

Eden looked at him and thought about how similar the principles they discussed were, with numerous common points.

Only, the God in Eden's words was the Lord of Heaven, whereas the God in Molemos's words, was the King of Kings.

"We are very close now."

Molemos, the Main Priest, closed his eyes, his nose slightly uplifted,

"I hear God calling, summoning His devout children, do you hear it?"

Eden's pupils constricted.

He heard nothing.

He did not think that Molemos, the Main Priest, would deceive him, such a revered figure had no need to deceive him.

So the only possibility was that the priest was hallucinating, or... really did hear the call of his God...

Eden did not consider the latter to be fanciful.

Firstly, because of Molemos, the Main Priest's status, and secondly, because all signs indicated that the King of Kings was not a fiction, but indeed a real Divine Being.

Furthermore, this place was likely the Prophet Abyss, so it was not strange for Molemos, the Main Priest, to hear something.

After contemplating for a moment, Eden shook his head,

"I... I didn't hear anything."

Molemos, the Main Priest, showed disappointment, but soon comforted with his voice:

"No matter, Scholar, the others probably cannot hear it either, just like you, for now. But when you reach the Prophet Abyss, you will surely hear it."

In the silent darkness, there was nothing, not even the sound of an insect.

By comparison, Eden couldn't help but shiver.

............…

The group seemed to sense that the Holy Land described in the Scriptures was getting closer to them.

Eden noticed that the heathens became more and more devout.

Under the leadership of Molemos, the Main Priest, they began performing all sorts of rituals, and Eden noticed that these rituals were even more numerous than those of the True Believers, seemingly with a specific and strict set of rules, requiring them to perform the same rituals day after day, year after year, without addition or subtraction.

The surrounding silence was extreme, the fog terrifyingly thick, and from all directions came only the continuous drone of heathen scripture recitations, which spoke not of redemption but of the inevitable penalty to come.

For many days, Eden had come to understand that heresy seldom spoke of redemption; in their doctrine, redemption was never the foremost, even though they too spoke of their God as merciful, just, and omnipotent. But compared to redemption, they emphasized punishment more.

Punishment occupied a significant portion of their scriptures, detailing the death of those who sinned and the terrifying punishment that awaited them after death, which, unlike the True Religion, was irremissible; not instruction, but eternal penalty.

Although the True Religion also advocated for goodness and the prevention of sins—after all, the Scripture had said that the wages of sin is death—the punishment after death for the True Believers was not eternal but temporary. Humans must repent, atone for their past sins, change their souls, repent wholeheartedly, and ultimately return to Heaven, basking in the glow of God.

The forest was pitch-dark, the fog so intense it was choking, the earthy stench filled the air, and the black trees displayed sinister outlines. The heathens prayed, and Eden also participated in various complex rituals. Those verses seemed to be repeatedly emphasizing the same thing.

Humans do not live for redemption, but to avoid punishment.

Eden listened to their devout prayers, in the ominous silence of the dark forest, with only the sound of praise echoing back. He felt a chill to the bone.

Slap, thunk, slap.

The sound of people slapping their knees and the sound lingering in the forest after their hands lowered was disconcertingly spooky.

Molemos, the Main Priest, said aloud to the Believers:

"We are near now, and with this, defend the glory of God!"

The heathens shouted in unison, the sound enormous, yet the leaves around them did not shake.

To use people to defend the glory of God was laughable in itself.

Eden thought to himself.

They continued advancing, slowly moving upwards, the path becoming narrow and steep, making their progress difficult. Time passed quickly, and night fell, coming sooner than it had on previous days.

The muffled footsteps echoed through the woods, darkness fell, and Eden wanted to stop to rest, so he turned his head.

But a gaunt hand reached out from behind him.

"No, don't stop, we are near, so near, I hear the voice again, we all hear the voice."

The voice of Molemos, the Main Priest, was aged and urgent.

Eden glanced slightly to the side, in the quiet dark, he saw pairs of gray-white, fervent eyes.

The heathens stared ahead, the corners of their mouths wearing faint smiles, such coincidental similarity in their expressions.

Eden broke out in a cold sweat.

What's... happened to them?

Are they all... hearing... voices?

Thud, thud, thud.

The sound of footsteps came from behind as the heathens, seemingly impatient, continued advancing into the dark depths of the mountain range.

Eden had no choice but to press on.

As he walked, he observed the group of heathens.

Something's wrong, something's very wrong...

Eden's hands trembled slightly.

What's... happened to these people?