Using the MC system to pretend spiritual revival

Chapter 77: Ground Subsidence
Old John is the owner of a small farm in the Florida suburbs.

He has a son and a daughter, both of whom work in a nearby city.

He and his wife run the rural farm and live a relatively comfortable life.

Old John was an easily satisfied man.

Of course, unlike his wife, who was content as a devout believer in God, old John simply didn't have any grand ambitions; he was happy with what he had.

According to his wife, God said that those who are easily satisfied will find happiness.

This is one of the few things that old John agreed with.

The morning was just like any other, nothing out of the ordinary.

Old John got up amidst the hustle and bustle of the farm, ate breakfast, and then took his beloved hunting rifle and began to stroll around the farm.

Although over the years, the wasteland around the farm is no longer what it used to be, with many woods and wild animals.

However, it is inevitable that some small carnivores will still attack his farm.

Newborn calves often get injured.

Besides, after so many years of this habit, I can no longer distinguish between patrolling and taking a walk.

In short, he is someone who doesn't like change. If it's not absolutely necessary, it's best to keep things as they are.

As usual, he strolled through the small farm with his hunting rifle on his back.

Watching the cows slowly emerge from the warehouse, the calves chase and play as the sun rises.

Chirping birds pecked at the haystacks of the cows, searching for any grains of wheat that the machines had missed.

It was as uneventful as every other day of the year, with a tranquility unique to the farm.

Of course, it was boring, but old John didn't care.

They walked at a leisurely pace until they arrived at the place where water was added to the cowshed.

He skillfully turned on the valve and watched the water flow into the long groove.

The cows in the pasture walked over unhurriedly and drank the water just as skillfully.

Old John just stood there watching, waiting for the cows to finish drinking before turning off the valve.

This is also one of his ways of saving money.

Feeling a bit bored while waiting, he looked up at the sky.

Watching the birds whose names I didn't know fly by, the sky was a pale blue, and the scorching sun stung my eyes.

Old John remembered that the television said there would be an earthquake today, not far from the farm.

However, he wasn't worried.

The farm is not large, and it doesn't preserve any old artifacts from the last century.

The warehouse and buildings were both renovated in the last two years.

The steel frame of industry makes them as sturdy as a black olive tree in your backyard.

Thinking like this.

Old John suddenly noticed that the birds, which had been flying with a purpose, suddenly began to chirp and chatter in a chaotic manner.

Those that had fallen to the ground flew back into the air and began to circle and fly around frantically.

This made him realize something.

He quickly turned around and shut off the valve, then looked at the cattle inside the fence.

Sure enough, these docile old fellows started wagging their tails restlessly.

Some of the calves also nervously retreated to their mothers' sides.

Recalling yesterday's news, old John knew that an earthquake must have struck.

He hadn't expected it to happen so suddenly, and he quickly ran towards the backyard.

His wife is still there.

If she's still carrying a ladder and climbing the tree to pick nuts and olives, then all of this is dangerous.

Thinking of this, his aged body suddenly burst forth with some faint vitality, quickened his pace, and ran around the house towards the orchard in the backyard.

He ran while shouting.

"Mary! Earthquake! Get down quickly, Mary! Earthquake! Danger!"

When old John arrived, he saw his wife hurriedly coming down the long wooden ladder, her eyes filled with fear, as she came to greet him.

The two then hugged.

"John, I feel the ground shaking..."

Seeing his panicked wife in his arms, old John quickly patted her back, trying to calm her down.

"It's alright, it's alright... Our house is very sturdy, nothing will happen. Let's go to the farm first, it's open and safe there."

As he spoke, he took his wife's hand and walked back the way they had come.

However, they hadn't taken more than a few steps when they both felt the ground shaking, and it became increasingly noticeable.

Old John wasn't even sure if he was hallucinating, but he heard a series of rumbling sounds in his ears.

It was as if something underground was stirring.

Then, in the next moment.

He then knew that none of this was a hallucination.

A deafening roar, as if it would pierce eardrums, came from the ground beneath our feet.

Old John and his wife both turned around in alarm, looking in the direction from which the sound came.

The ground there looked like a slice of cheese in an oven, softened and sunken in.

Because of the lack of vegetation cover, some of the sandy ground resembles real quicksand, cascading down along a depression and constantly collapsing and deepening.

The fruit trees planted nearby were also swept up and dragged to the ground along with the sand and soil. The whole process was too fast; it took only a few breaths for the two people to finish, and the once thriving orchard vanished in an instant.

The edge of the collapse was less than 100 meters away from where the two were standing.

This sudden change startled John and his wife, leaving them frozen in place.

I don't know how long I was stunned, but when I came to my senses, the tremor had subsided.

But the area that had collapsed has now become a bottomless pit.

Once the two mustered their courage, they approached the collapsed area, attempting to visually estimate the depth of the collapse and see if it would affect other surrounding buildings.

Then, the moment their eyes fell upon the bottom of the pit...

"what!!!"

Mary, the wife, screamed in surprise and fell to the ground.

He moved backward using all four limbs, his expression one of utter panic.

If you were close enough, you could hear her praying to God.

After she could no longer see the view from the bottom of the pit, she quickly pulled the cross hanging around her neck from her collar, clenched it tightly with both hands, closed her eyes, and began to chant.

Old John didn't try to comfort his wife anymore; instead, he stared intently at the scene at the bottom of the pit.

The sudden stimulation made him swallow hard. When he came to his senses, he quickly took the hunting rifle off his back and held it in his hand.

It was as if this would give him some sense of security.

"...God...what is this...?"

Following Old John's gaze, the collapsed area was not large, only about ten meters long.

The edges are jagged, like a wound torn open in the earth.

The depth didn't look very deep, probably only three or four meters, but these were clearly not the reasons that caused such a strong reaction from the two people.

What aroused him was the purple mist emanating from the bottom of the pit and the chilling scenery that sent shivers down his spine at first glance.

All that could be seen was a pitch-black stone gate, half-buried in the sand and gravel, so large that it covered the entire collapsed area.

Inside the unknown black door frame, a translucent purple film was constantly wriggling and rotating.

It is this thin film that constantly emits bursts of particulate mist that look terrifying and evil.

Around the dark door frame, you can see some things that are different from the surrounding yellow sand and gravel.

Old John didn't know what it was, but even a simple glance sent shivers down his spine.

It was a bunch of dark red, sticky, light red and pink stones that looked both disgusting and eerie.

At some edges, small sand dunes can also be seen.

However, compared to the collapsed sand, these things can hardly be considered sand at all.

They looked filthy, with dark brown sand grains mixed with eerie white particles.

There were some blurry, face-like patterns wriggling on the surface, but due to the distance, they were not clear and it was impossible to determine what they were.

Old John was breathing heavily, and after hesitating for a moment, he still couldn't muster the courage to go forward.

Instead, with trembling hands, he took out his phone from his pocket and dialed the number.

After several agonizing dial tone notifications.

The next moment, amidst a clatter, the phone was finally answered.

"Hello, this is the Federal Police Department. What kind of emergency is it?"

A series of calls came through the office operator's characteristically calm, inorganic voice, which calmed Old John's heart, which was pounding in his chest.

After catching his breath, he recounted the bizarre situation before him.

"Officer, my farm was hit by an earthquake! The ground cracked open, and... something evil is coming out of it!"

"...Perhaps there's a pile of demonic flesh...or a group of vengeful spirits...This is terrifying!"

Meanwhile, on the other end of the phone, as the increasingly agitated words came through the receiver, the operator could only interrupt and try to calm him down.

"Where are you, sir? You may have just experienced a geological collapse."

"Now I suspect that perhaps geological changes caused some small natural gas leaks, and these toxic gases caused you to hallucinate."

"Stay calm, get out of the sinkhole area immediately, and warn people around you to stay away from there as much as possible."

"We have dispatched the nearest rescue team. Please take care of your personal safety..."

Hearing the explanation from the other end of the phone, Old John also became somewhat unsure of himself, and could only respond blankly.

"Okay, okay, I'll go right away, I'll do it right away..."

After saying that, he sent his location and then hung up the phone.

After standing there for a moment, I glanced at the bottom of the pit again and couldn't help but turn my head away, unable to bear looking anymore.

Even if this is some kind of hallucination, it's going too far.

He took a deep breath, slung his shotgun back over his shoulder, and went to Mary's side, helping his wife, who was still in a daze of fear, to her feet.

The two staggered around the house and walked together toward the road outside the farm gate.

And after he left.

The deep purple light at the bottom of the fissure seemed to flicker, the inward swirling waves accelerated slightly, and then everything returned to calm.

It's like nothing happened.

...

...

"Hmph... Hmph~"

(End of this chapter)