Biyun Star, Central Region, Capital of Shengqian Imperial Dynasty.
In the Hall of State Affairs, within the Purple Gold Dragon Court.
Emperor Yuhe and the civil and military officials of the court were listening to the report from the Commander of the Supervisory Department regarding the investigation into the Sun God Cult:
"Your Majesty, the priests of the Sun God Cult indeed seem to possess divine abilities, beyond those of ordinary mortals, demons, or even celestial beings. During their free clinic, I sent many patients to them, including many with fatal conditions, or those on their last breath who certainly wouldn't survive the night.
As a result, none of the priests in charge of the free clinic refused anyone. After taking some medicine and undergoing some unknown treatment, these patients either recovered within hours or their conditions were controlled and they gradually healed.
Furthermore, they seem to possess techniques such as 'Sleeve of Heaven' and 'Five Ghosts Moving Wealth'. To entice the common people to worship at the Sun God Temple, these priests tempt them daily with eggs. By simply entering and reciting a few words, one receives six eggs. Most people are quite willing.
They even form queues.
Hundreds of thousands of eggs are consumed daily.
However, I cannot ascertain the origin of these eggs, nor where such a continuous supply of so many eggs comes from. Besides this, they have hardly procured any supplies externally, yet they remain well-fed and clothed. This seemingly confirms that the priests of the Sun God Cult might possess the ability of 'Sleeve of Heaven'.
Additionally, they appear to be establishing free schools.
And recruiting people to spread their faith externally."
As soon as the Commander of the Supervisory Department finished speaking, many officials who had already heard rumors began to discuss:
"Hundreds of thousands of eggs. Just seeing them distribute eggs from those few Sun God Temples every day, I never imagined it would be so many. How many chickens would it take to lay that many? Hundreds of thousands of chickens, it's unimaginable.
The entire capital probably doesn't have that many chickens!"
"Queuing for six eggs?"
"Is the free clinic also free?
How much wealth does one need to be so generous with their money? Are they mad? While their actions might be construed as buying over the populace, thus far, aside from demanding faith in that Sun Goddess, there doesn't seem to be any heresy. It's quite different from past evil cults!"
"Their free clinic is indeed quite effective. My young cousin contracted tuberculosis, and he was cured there. He recovered completely in just three days. Now their whole family believes in the Sun Goddess, they even specifically invited a statue back and dedicated a room to worship it."
"Sounds a bit like the White Lotus Saint Mother. Didn't they say something about saving the suffering, bringing about a new golden age, or something like that?"
"Haven't heard that. From their propaganda, it seems they say the Sun Goddess has a vast divine kingdom, and as long as one's faith is sufficiently devout, they can enter the divine kingdom after death, or even in life, to enjoy a blissful existence!"
"Just another version of the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss!"
"They can cure tuberculosis?"
"Yes, I heard that not only tuberculosis, but even when internal organs were damaged, an arrow was lodged in the head, the stomach was bitten by a wild wolf, and a section of intestines was missing, they managed to save them!"
"Such skilled physicians, yet they joined this Sun God Cult and believe in a goddess. It's truly absurd."
"What are His Majesty's thoughts on this?"
"I heard that the Empress Dowager, who was praying at Heqing Temple, has also converted to the Sun God Cult, and even wants His Majesty to join her. His Majesty learned of this and dispatched people to investigate."
"Those priests are quite adept at manipulating people's hearts."
The officials discussed for a short while before being silenced by Emperor Yuhe's dry cough. They quickly fell silent.
Then, Emperor Yuhe spoke:
"I initially thought this was just an evil cult that misled people and defrauded them of money, but now it seems I was mistaken. To continuously pour out wealth like this, even using eggs to buy over followers, is something I've never seen before.
I wonder who is behind this.
If they cannot be traced, perhaps they are merely well-hidden.
And not some supernatural beings.
Li Han, since you were the one investigating, you will continue to handle this matter. Take a contingent of men and inquire, see if you can contact their so-called 'Bishop', and ask them, where precisely do they come from?
What abilities do they possess, and what are their intentions?
If they are truly capable, we might even consider incorporating them!
If they refuse, or if they are frauds with no real abilities, then terminating them on the spot would be a fitting choice..."
Before he finished speaking, the sound of the Empress Dowager's phoenix carriage returning to the palace and cheers of "Long live the Empress Dowager" could be heard from outside the Hall of State Affairs.
Soon after, the Empress Dowager, Emperor Yuhe's mother, entered the hall, holding a small black token with the mark of the Sun God Cult. She hurried forward:
"My son, you must not act rashly.
The power of the Sun God Cult is beyond our ability to resist. We can only accept it, and even accept it openly and assist them in their proselytizing. That would be the best course of action!"
"Mother, you..."
As son and mother who were quite close, and had only been apart for less than a month, Emperor Yuhe immediately noticed the change in his mother's appearance. She looked significantly younger than when she left the imperial palace more than half a month ago. While not exaggerated to the point of appearing like a teenage girl, she truly looked as he remembered her from ten years prior. Therefore, his first reaction was not to listen to what his mother was saying.
Instead, he was shocked by his mother's transformation.
Then, combining it with his mother's words, he thoughtfully blurted out the next second: "Mother, is your transformation related to the people of the Sun God Temple?"
"My transformation?
You mean my becoming younger, right? It is related, but to be precise, it's thanks to the Goddess's blessing. From what those priests mentioned, it seems that as long as one's faith in the Sun Goddess reaches a certain level, reaching the status of a devout believer, one will receive the Goddess's grace.
I'm not entirely sure of the specifics, but a few days ago, I suddenly felt the Sun Goddess smiling upon me in a profound way, and bestowed upon me a golden light and a cultivation method. My rejuvenation is mainly due to cultivating this method, which has restored my health.
However, according to Priest He, ordinary people without the Sun Goddess's bestowed 'Solar Power' cannot cultivate. Even if they know the cultivation method, they cannot practice it.
So, I probably can't teach it to you.
And I heard that if this cultivation method is cultivated to level nine, one can gain several thousand years of lifespan. Beyond that, there's even a possibility of becoming a god, a god capable of creating their own divine kingdom.
Oh dear, these are not what I wanted to tell you!"
Because Empress Zhanghua had possessed the Sun Token for two days and had spent two days learning and discussing on the Sun Token's forum, her speech had become much more direct, and she no longer referred to herself with feminine titles like 'this Empress'.
Instead, she directly referred to herself as 'I'.
At this moment, after a brief explanation, she remembered the main point and quickly continued: "The information I just told you is not important. What's important is that I now know where the Sun God Cult truly originates from, and how terrifying and irresistible the forces behind the Sun God Cult are!"