Chapter Forty-Seven: Blasphemy
Yang Yuning noticed Qi An's longing and realized that Qi An seemed to have always been interested in things like the remnants of pre-apocalyptic civilizations.
Last time he rode the bus, Qi An looked around excitedly.
He suggested, "How about we stop and rest for a while, and I'll go up with you to take a look?"
Qi An's eyes lit up immediately, and he looked at Yang Yuning: "Is it okay?"
Yang Yuning immediately felt she should go!
He used a walkie-talkie to report to Yu Shuang.
Yu Shuang did not agree immediately because the mountain looked far away, and if Yang Yuning and Qi An were to hike there and back, it might take several hours, or even half a day.
This is dangerous and it also delays the convoy's progress.
Qi An was aware of the danger, and she was unusually conflicted because, on the other hand, this might be the only time in her life she would pass through this place!
She was genuinely curious and genuinely wanted to go.
Zhao Bohan was also tempted, but he was a patient and hesitated even more.
After a few minutes of this stalemate, Qi An gritted his teeth and said, "I'll use a drone to take a look. Let's find a small hill that's close to that mountain and launch the drone to film it."
Everyone was delighted with this plan!
Yu Shuang smiled and said, "Go ahead, but it's best to be back within an hour."
It was exactly noon, so the convoy could stop and rest for an hour.
Zhao Bohan threw off the blanket: "I'll go with you."
However, Su Qingran flatly refused: "The vice-captain can watch the video!"
Yang Yuning found a safe place to park the machine gun vehicle.
While at the ranch, everyone worked together to thoroughly wash the vehicle, and after several days of letting it air out, people can now freely enter the vehicle.
This vehicle replaced the wrecked off-road vehicle and became the new lead car; the cabin was spacious enough to make a bed and sleep in.
To everyone's surprise, Li Yi also wanted to go see the Buddhist temple!
His own teammates were all surprised, and Jia Wenxuan asked them curiously.
Just before Li Yi left, she whispered, "Before the apocalypse, my parents said they would bring me here for a trip."
Jia Wenxuan fell silent, and Li Yi followed Qi An and the other two.
The mountain path was muddy, but Qi An's burden was mostly on Yang Yuning's shoulders. She was focused and not slow at all. Half an hour later, she climbed a small, gently undulating hill.
The rain has almost stopped, and the thick clouds in the sky have dispersed considerably, indicating that the sun is about to shine.
Qi An put on the headset and launched the drone.
Dozens of temples were scattered across several mountain peaks. Remembering the time limit, Qi An only glanced over the temples on the other peaks, and only lowered the drone at the foot of Zhongshan Mountain.
The drone camera footage showed what was truly the best-preserved architectural complex she had ever seen in the apocalypse!
Most of the modern brick and stone buildings have collapsed, but the blue stone steps winding up the mountain, the white stone archway at the entrance, and the mottled ancient wooden palaces are still trying to peek out from the overgrown vegetation, showing their exquisite beauty as relics of civilization!
Qi An's drone, like a bewildered bird, ventured into the silent and ancient sacred place, hovering in awe and lingering before the large incense burner and prayer wheel, now wrapped in vines, and the bronze wind chimes hanging from the eaves.
The image was displayed in real time on Li Yi's tablet. He watched it very attentively and couldn't help but say, "My grandma believed in this. She used to have a white porcelain Guanyin statue in her room. She would wipe it every day and treasure it like a precious gem."
He spoke in a low voice, and the coldness and hostility that usually surrounded him had faded considerably. There was even a nostalgic smile in his eyes.
Yang Yuning couldn't help but look at him, "You believe that too?"
Brother Yao believed in it and always wore a string of Buddhist beads on his wrist.
Brother Yao said that the more chaotic the times, the more people need faith to maintain their confidence in life. However, in China, no large-scale religious sects have emerged, and the people's beliefs are diverse, including Celestial Venerables, ancient gods, the One and Only God...
There are even people who believe in the Kuroshio virus!
There are quite a few letters in the military, after all, it's the Kuroshio virus that gives people enhanced abilities.
Li Yi snorted: "I don't believe it. I've never seen a god protect any of His believers from being corrupted!"
But despite what he said, when Qi An's drone was about to enter the hall, his expression became even more serious, even devout.
The drone flew into a south-facing hall. The floor tiles were covered with moss and weeds, and the colorful offering tablecloth was decayed, but the golden statue at the center...
The statue was drenched from head to toe in a black, unidentified gelatinous substance!
Qi An's heart skipped a beat, and the other two were also stunned. The drone veered to the left and, sure enough, saw that the originally exquisite painted murals on the palace walls had been covered by messy and distorted graffiti!
Qi An's drone flew out of the main hall, zoomed in for a bird's-eye view, but saw no trace of the fallen insects.
Those graffiti aren't new.
This is the second hall of this ancient temple. With a heavy and complicated feeling, Qi An continued to fly forward and arrived at the very center of the temple, in front of the magnificent and majestic Mahavira Hall.
The palace looked like it had been maintained. There weren't many weeds in the courtyard, but the entire main hall, from the paving stones in the courtyard to the steps and the pillars, was covered with graffiti!
These graffiti, however, are not as messy as those in the villages. Instead, they are abstract, neat, and have a certain regularity. They even have a kind of eerie beauty, like words!
Qi An's drone came to a stop. For some reason, her heart was pounding and she felt a strong sense of fear!
Yang Yuning had already closed her eyes; these graffiti were highly offensive.
"Stop looking, this place is already filthy from insect urine!" he said in a deep voice, his tone filled with anger.
The anger in Li Yi's eyes seemed to deepen and intensify. He roared, "Does the Fallen Insects even dare to blaspheme against the gods?"
The facts prove that the fallen insects dared to do so.
The drone tentatively crashed into the main gate of the hall, but saw no statue of a deity, only a lotus platform placed silently.
The gold ornaments on the panel behind the original statue have long been removed, and the ribbons and incense are nowhere to be seen. Between the two carved lacquer pillars is a vividly colored abstract mural.
The moment Yang Yuning saw the mural, he abruptly closed his eyes and took several steps back. The pollution level soared from 30% to 49%!
However, Qi An viewed the entire painting.
At the very center of the mural is a pitch-black circle.
Twisted lines extend from the circle, making it look like a dark sun.
The dark sun was surrounded by concentric circles of patterns that radiated outwards, as if it were emitting some kind of energy.
Below the sun is a golden, sloping trapezoidal structure, seemingly supported by a throne!
Beyond the throne and the sun lies a sky full of dots, perhaps representing the stars.
Between the energy released by the stars and the dark sun, there is a very inconspicuous red line segment.
Do these refer to...human beings?
Qi An wasn't sure if it was human, but she was absolutely certain that it was a religious mural, a pilgrimage site for the polluters!
This magnificent palace has been transformed into their temple by the fallen insects!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com