When the lights of the street lights went out one after another, and the surroundings became pitch black, Shang Jianyao raised his right hand and pinched the temples on both sides.
He lay down completely and closed his eyes.
…
This time, the place where he appeared was not the "hall of stars", but the illusory sea of flowing shimmering light.
There was a small island in front of him, with dark brown soil and rugged rocks, and there was no trace of life on it.
This is the first island Shang Jianyao encountered after entering the "Sea of Origins".
According to Du Heng, an antiquarian, this corresponds to the fear hidden in everyone's heart. The "islands" encountered by different awakened people will never be the same, and the number is also the same.
Shang Jianyao has been staying here for many days, but he still has not been able to defeat this "island".
There are no monsters on the island, but an extremely harsh "natural condition".
Once Shang Jianyao climbed up, all the light in front of him would disappear, and there would no longer be any sound in his ears.
On the island, he seemed to be in a dark, closed, eerie room, where not only could he see his fingers, but he couldn't even hear his own voice.
This made Shang Jianyao unable to even feel the passage of time. He only felt that darkness and silence seemed to have turned into reality, slowly eroding his soul.
He couldn't stay on the island for too long each time, always quitting because of a nervous breakdown, extreme fear, and near insanity.
If it wasn't for the antiquarian Du Heng who talked about the "sea of origin" and the meaning of different islands, Shang Jianyao must have given up trying, and instead looked for other islands in the boundless sea.
He believes that bypassing here means that he is defeated by his inner fear, and there is a high probability that the ability of the Awakened will not be improved or changed.
After staring at the island for a while, Shang Jianyao lowered his head according to the predetermined plan and looked at himself looming in the illusory water waves.
He hesitated for a few seconds, his eyes gradually deepened:
"They are employees of 'Panga Bio', and I am also an employee of 'Panga Bio';
"They are young, and so am I;
"Their parents are there, so..."
Shang Jian Yao paused for a while, and answered himself:
"So, my parents are by my side."
A smile gradually appeared on his face, a soft, reassuring smile.
Without wasting any more time, Shang Jianyao grabbed the rock on the edge of the island with both hands and turned it over directly.
Because the "Sea of Origin" is illusory in nature, his clothes did not become wet, and there were no drops of water on his hair.
Shang Jianyao's feet just landed, and his eyes suddenly became pitch black, and he could no longer see anything.
This not only made him feel that the space was narrow and would touch the edge at any time, but also inexplicably feared the unknown danger hidden in the dark depths.
"Hello! How are you?" Shang Jianyao tried to speak loudly, but couldn't hear a sound.
At this moment, he seemed to be abandoned by the world and left in an extremely terrifying place that no one cared about.
Shang Jianyao took a tentative step, using walking to resolve the fear and anxiety that gradually rose in his heart.
However, no matter how he comforted himself, the "darkness" was still slowly and unstoppably eroding his heart.
Shang Jianyao shrank his body, as if he had found some support in the dark and quiet place.
This made him persist longer than usual, but later, the fact that there was only air around him still made him feel lost, his heart beat faster, and his expression gradually shook.
"Fake..." Shang Jianyao suddenly whispered.
Cold sweat quickly broke out on his forehead, his knees slowly bent, and he squatted down and hugged himself.
…
In Room 196, Shang Jianyao opened his eyes.
Breathing heavily, he looked around.
The room was dark and silent outside.
Shang Jianyao hurriedly took out his flashlight from under the pillow and pushed the button.
A beam of light shot out and hit the opposite wall, illuminating the clothes hanging on the expansion screw and the sink next to it.
Looking at the yellowish light, Shang Jianyao's breathing gradually stabilized.
After about a minute, he turned off the flashlight, pulled the quilt, and fell into a deep sleep.
After an unknown time, Shang Jianyao was awakened by a knock on the door.
The knock on the door was repeated three times and gradually faded away.
Shang Jianyao knew that this was a member of the "Rite of Life" sect telling himself that the meeting time was coming.
- For members who do not have a watch and are far away from the wall clock on the street, the "Rite of Life" order will send someone who can grasp the time to remind them.
As for the unwillingness to get up after hearing the knock on the door, or for various reasons not to participate in this party, that is one's own business.
If the decision not to participate has been made in advance, or if there are guests staying at home who are inconvenient to know similar things, just wipe off the chalk graffiti under the door before turning off the lights, so that no one will knock on the door.
Shang Jianyao quickly got out of bed, washed his face, and brushed his teeth carefully.
Then, he put on a dark green cotton coat, took a flashlight, and went straight to a nearby public toilet to make it easier.
After doing all this, Shang Jianyao followed the familiar road and came to Li Zhen's house at No. 35, Area A.
Dong Dong Dong, Shang Jianyao knocked on the door three times.
Soon, a deliberately suppressed voice came from the door:
"Life is the heaviest."
Shang Jianyao responded very skillfully:
"A new life."
In a slight movement, the door quickly opened back, and the dim yellow light inside flowed out.
Li Zhen, whose eyes were slightly raised, glanced at Shang Jianyao, smiled and said:
"come in."
She quickly moved away and let Shang Jianyao walk into the room.
"We'll have to tell us what it really looks like outside." Li Zhen smiled and greeted him as he opened the door.
"Okay, Aunt Li." Shang Jianyao was very polite.
Li Zhen casually pointed to a location:
"Sit down, it's about to start, you're a little late."
She just said that casually, and didn't mean to blame, after all, it wasn't really time for the party.
Shang Jianyao explained seriously:
"I brushed my teeth first."
"..." Li Zhen nodded stiffly with a smile, "Okay, very good."
Shang Jianyao then walked to the small bench and sat down.
The bench was short, and for a man of his height, he had to tuck his feet up as much as possible to allow his butt to rest completely.
Seeing that his sitting position was obviously uncomfortable, Shen Du, who had already arrived, stood up:
"Let's change positions."
"Thank you, Uncle Shen." Shang Jianyao was not polite.
After sitting down again, he looked around and greeted the other members.
He has attended similar cult gatherings several times, and is familiar with all members of this floor.
After waiting for a while, the "leader" Ren Jie came out of the room leading to the inner bed and walked between the big bed, the wardrobe and the cupboard.
"Xiao Shang is back?" Ren Jie, who was wearing a polyester shirt, nodded lightly and greeted with a smile.
Shang Jianyao immediately replied:
"Praise your tolerance!"
"..." Ren Jie was stunned for a few seconds before she understood that coming to Shang Jianyao meant thanking Si Ming for his care, and finally returned safely.
She forced a smile:
"It doesn't have to be so formal, it's just an ordinary chat."
Before waiting for Shang Jianyao to respond, she said with a solemn expression:
"The sermon officially begins, and today's content is death.
"Life will pass away, just like leaves will always turn yellow and fall to the ground..."
Shang Jianyao suddenly raised his hand.
"What's the problem?" Ren Jie asked worriedly.
She thought Shang Jianyao found something unusual.
Shang Jianyao got up and said:
"The leaves of many trees do not turn yellow..."
Ren Jie's face muscles twitched, interrupting his statement:
"It's just a metaphor.
"Similar questions will be raised after the sermon. Listen carefully and don't talk."
"Well." Shang Jian Yao slightly sat down in disappointment.
After that, he listened to Ren Jie's sermon with a very focused expression, but his eyes seemed a little empty and lacked focus.
It didn't take long for Ren Jie to end the sermon and said to all the members present:
"The next step is the narration phase, where you can tell your brothers and sisters your troubles and draw strength from them..."
When she said this, she stared at Shang Jianyao, suppressing the guy with her eyes and preventing him from speaking.
She remembered that the first time she said similar words, Shang Jian Yao suddenly interjected:
"Not just brothers and sisters, but uncles and aunts."
After finishing speaking, Ren Jie let out a sigh of relief after confirming that Shang Jianyao was no longer able to interject.
The next second, Shang Jianyao took the initiative to raise his hand and share his inner troubles:
"I'm a little hungry now."
"Next." Ren Jie responded without hesitation.
A woman in her twenties pursed her lips and said:
"Wang Yafei, the director of our 'material supply market', has been supporting the establishment of a 'fertility center', believing that this can reduce the excuses for female employees to ask for leave, and think that it can make the relationship between husband and wife better.
"I know this is a personal opinion, and it doesn't mean anything, but I can't help arguing with him, and he, and he actually made an excuse to transfer me from my original post and put me in the hardest cleaning post... "
After Ren Jie listened quietly, she raised her arms and shook her like a baby:
"God will punish sinners."
She didn't say more, and said to Shen Du:
"It's your turn."
Shen Du scratched his hair:
"My children are becoming more and more disobedient..."
Next, the members shared their troubles such as the death of their relatives, the rude husband, the cold wife, the naughty child, and the unsatisfactory work, all of which were comforted by others.
At the end, Ren Jie returned to her original position and said to the members of the sect:
"Next, take the sacrament."
Shang Jianyao's back was straight, and his eyes were piercing.
Soon, Ren Jie and Li Zhen came out of the inner room, one holding a cylindrical translucent container and the other carrying various tableware.
The container was filled with a white, viscous liquid.
Ren Jie first came to Shang Jianyao and scooped a spoonful of liquid into the lunch box in his hand:
"This is communion today, yogurt."
Shang Jianyao took a light breath, and responded very religiously:
"Praise your tolerance!"