I was a charlatan in India

As the prophet and the leader chatted, they lit a few dry leaves and brought them close to their noses.

Sniff, sniff.

Oh!

The two rolled their eyes.

So innocent!

Generally speaking, if a religious group refers to Shiva as "Lord," it means that he was not from the era of the Trinity, but from an earlier era of multiple gods.

At that stage, Indra, the god of gods, held a higher position than Shiva.

Or rather, it is a precursor to Shiva.

The term "Lord" in the local language often refers to deities in general. In other words, using this term to refer to Shiva would be tantamount to lumping him in with other gods.

By the time of the Three Gods, the gods were mostly addressed as Great Heaven or by their full divine names, and this title became rare.

This cult worships one of Shiva's predecessors, the "Lord of Beasts".

From an archaeological perspective, this thing is actually a different deity from Shiva, and even their appearances are quite different.

On seals from the Indus Valley Civilization, there have been patterns resembling the incarnation of a beast lord, depicting a figure with three sides, bull horns, surrounded by various beasts, and in a meditative posture.

It is based on fertility worship, mixed with divinity that incorporates regeneration and natural symbolism, and its followers...

Yes, that's quite extreme.

Let me tell you about the training methods of the Beast Bishops, and you'll get a glimpse of it.

They would typically bring ashes, burn hallucinogenic plants, and go to the cemetery to meditate in a dazed state.

But stimulated by the plants, meditation quickly turned into dancing, revelry, and wonderful little parties known as "sexual rituals."

To put it more bluntly.

Gathering to smoke, dancing on graves, making public announcements in broad daylight...

But they are good people.

Yes, despite playing such big games, they all know they are good kids.

Not only are they devout, but they are also virtuous.

In the doctrine of the Lord of the Beast, believers often provide medical care and food free of charge.

They will lend a helping hand as long as you acknowledge that you are still an animal.

In this order, these practices are also part of spiritual practice, a way to get close to nature and follow the divine nature of rebirth.

Of course, other religious groups didn't like them very much.

Damn it, coming to my territory to rescue people, isn't that stealing our livelihood!

Beat him up!

It is for this reason that the main body of the order was not even able to enter Varanasi and was forced to retreat to a nearby monastery.

This is why they were not corrupted by Shenhe's act of reversing time and space, and they still maintained their faith.

Therefore, these guys have a problem with their understanding of the situation in Varanasi.

They simply believed that their God was being targeted by other religious groups, who had created a similar religious group.

They steal believers, distort doctrines, and corrupt divinity.

Despicable scoundrel, hateful!

Therefore, although the Shenhe trio's plan was very reasonable.

Hoping to set up surveillance cameras to see who stepped on the brakes, and then trace the suspects to catch them all in one fell swoop...

But these brain-dead guys don't follow the rules at all!

They directly inserted the oracle into it, making the rumors even more outrageous.

Eh!

Surprised? Haha!

We have absolutely no intention of leaving!

Moreover, the prophet's ideas were actually very clear.

Those bastards were able to drive us out of Varanasi; they must be beyond our power.

Since they have already prepared to deal with rumors, then we will not engage in a rumor war with our opponents.

Don't you like to make a big deal out of things?

Then I'll lend you a hand!

In the end, you'll be the ones cleaning up the mess!

"Lord, wait for me!"

"We'll soon find an opportunity to help you bring that false god down from his pedestal!"

Judging from his words, it's clear he won't stop and plans to go underground, firing one shot and moving on to another.

Therefore, Mahata's strategy only made the rumors unbelievable, but it did not identify the enemy.

Instead, they need to find a way to quell the messy rumors circulating in the city.

Of course, it was mainly Surya who wanted to take it.

After all, the worst news always comes his way.

"Tsk tsk, it's said that young master Surrey is extremely dissolute, and at such a young age..."

"Tsk tsk, so young, I wonder how long he'll have his fun. I'm so envious, I want to too..."

"You want to regain your former glory, huh? Hahahaha!"

"Go away! I don't need it at all, yes, I don't need it!"

The man spoke with conviction, but his eyes darted around.

Every rumor made Suriya's face turn ashen.

There's no other reason than this: it's a true story!

Damn it, you can't just blurt out the truth like that?

Mahata didn't care that much; he only said he wanted to rein in the situation for Surya's benefit.

After all, the recruitment process has been going very smoothly recently.

With the young master diverting attention... perhaps it's a good thing?

Moreover, the servant who had been taking kickbacks, seeing that the trouble had dragged Surya into it, stopped himself without anyone having to tell him what to do.

Just kidding. If the young master really gets angry about these rumors lately, he might use himself to establish his authority.

If you can't catch the one spreading rumors, can't you catch me?

I chickened out.

Being timid leads to health and longevity.

As for Shenhe, he really cared about this matter.

Helping Surya regain its former glory was accomplished through the power of blessing, and the fact that the other party knows about this is a very troublesome sign.

His first suspicion fell on Ajita.

After all, according to his own records, that guy was almost omniscient, so he needed to be wary.

It's possible he's colluding with someone from the inside.

However, despite his suspicions, Shenhe would not act rashly without evidence.

He simply lowered his gaze and placed it on Ajita.

The moment my gaze fell upon you, the other person sensed it.

This guy really does know supernatural powers.

However, as soon as Acharya sensed something amiss, his power warned him: This is the gaze of Mahakala; do not peer into it, it is very dangerous.

Clearly, he has his own ideas about how he works, he knows about Shenhe's existence, and he's probably no match for Shenhe...

It's also possible that they can't deal with what's behind Shenhe—a divine kingdom, divinity, or something else entirely.

It will issue a warning in advance when it shouldn't tell Acharya.

It's unclear whether, if Ajita insists on knowing the answer, it will compromise, refuse, or deceive.

Acharya never demanded an answer.

He knew perfectly well that this ability was not entirely under his control.

If you don't want to know something, forcing yourself to know it is pointless.

Even if what Nengli said was true, he probably wouldn't dare to believe it.

The gaze of Mahakala should not be explored, so it should not be explored.

However, Ajita knew that he had already revealed something was wrong, and pretending to be nonchalant would not fool anyone; it would only make Mahakala more suspicious.

He understood that the gods were neither all-knowing nor all-powerful.

Acharya sighed slightly, found a lingam, and tried to communicate with Mahakala.

"My Lord Mahakala, Ajita has just sensed your gaze. What are your instructions?"

He was well aware that his ability was not popular.

For deities, having predictable favors and wraths is never a good thing.

Shenhe was slightly taken aback when he heard Aqilu Tuo take the initiative to communicate.

He felt that even if the other person could sense his gaze, they should pretend not to know.

Have you heard the rumors circulating in Varanasi lately?

Shenhe pondered for a moment before tentatively speaking.

Aqilu Tuo remained silent for a moment.

He had certainly heard of it.

Moreover, the moment he heard the rumors, he knew they were true.

Surya regains its former glory...

No, this is not important.

What's frightening is that it's true that there are evil spirits around Surya.

The evil spirits that have recently emerged are either the divine messenger Shenhe, or Mahata, or they refer to myself.

The probability of it being a divine messenger is not high, after all, they are people personally chosen by gods and Buddhas.

Therefore, Mahada was also chosen by Mahakala.

Then, could it be...?

The evil spirit... is it me?

Or is it the will within me?

Ajita came up with an idea that fit his logic perfectly.

Okay, okay, this is what faith-based superhumans are like.

They always feel that the power does not belong to them, and they not only fear power, but are also prone to self-doubt.

Sometimes, even the gods are not as steadfast as the believers.

The same applies to Shenhe, Mahata, and Ajita.

That's such a great idea.