[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-becoming-a-god-through-horror":3,"chapter-becoming-a-god-through-horror-becoming-a-god-through-horror-chapter-192":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Becoming a God Through Horror",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2273735,4441,"Chapter 192: The Church","becoming-a-god-through-horror-chapter-192",192,"\u003Cp>Back in the car, the couple quickly began searching for items.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The cross from St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the deluxe edition Bible, concentrated holy water after mass…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Knock knock knock!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The car window was suddenly knocked on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ed immediately turned his head—and saw a slightly handsome young man smiling as he waved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For some reason, though the boy was only slightly handsome, he had an undeniable pull that drew attention to him, especially his eyes—sharp and vivid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But before Ed could speak, Luo Lin had already panickedly tugged his sleeve.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ed’s heart jolted—he immediately raised the cross.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Amen!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside the window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>???\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at the cross pointed at him, Louis wore a strange expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fuck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You think I’m a demon?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His mouth twitched—he dropped the smile. “Ed Warren, Luo Lin Warren, have I done anything to offend you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the car, the Warrens stared at Louis, his face expressionless, uncertain and wary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing Louis speak, Ed froze. “Looks like a misunderstanding. Of the two possibilities, he’s probably the first.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A powerful sorcerer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moments later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At a café outside campus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Louis and Ed sipped coffee, the earlier awkwardness completely gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After brief conversation, the misunderstanding was cleared up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So, Louis, you’re actually a priest?” Ed said, suddenly understanding.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Correct. In your terms, yes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Louis took a sip of coffee, frowning slightly—he still couldn’t get used to it. It tasted strangely bitter, even with sugar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He set the cup down and looked at Ed. “Ed, what does the Church think of people like us?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the lecture earlier, Ed seemed like a Church-recognized member, yet he clearly didn’t shield the Church from criticism.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Louis had judged correctly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right then, Ed laid out the Church’s views on people like them—their history, causes, and consequences—without omission.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ed began with an obscure fact that defied common sense: witch hunts weren’t initiated by the Church, but were an offshoot of a political movement led by nobles and fringe Church members.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Come on—supporting or launching witch hunts would mean openly admitting miracles exist beyond God.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That violated doctrine. It was blasphemy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So the Church never acknowledged it, never supported the witch hunts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But as the Church declined over time, this stance grew looser—especially after it split into multiple branches, and the Protestant faction dominating America granted everyone the right to interpret the Bible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seemed like progress, but was actually a disaster: countless heretical sects, twisting the Bible, began hunting witches, mediums, and other supernatural beings across America.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Salem tragedy occurred under these conditions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Later film adaptations claiming witch hunts were Church-led weren’t entirely wrong—many prototypes were actually heretical sects under Protestant influence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, this changed completely after the end of the Dark Age, when the Church’s power collapsed, technology advanced, and modernization took hold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Church lost all ability to control other forces. With shifting ideologies, today it openly tolerates other supernatural entities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even permits private contact—and sometimes even borrowing their power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The end of the Dark Age?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Louis, having gotten his answer and learned an obscure fact, wasn’t satisfied—he’d caught a word in Ed’s speech.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dark Age? What dark age?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ed froze—he realized he’d slipped up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beside him, Luo Lin pinched him lightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ed chuckled awkwardly. “Forget it. This isn’t exactly top-secret—some older factions probably have records. It’s not taboo. I don’t know much, but I can tell you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But Louis, you have to answer me a few questions first.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you willing?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Louis said nothing, waiting to see what questions he’d ask.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s the demon inside your stomach?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Louis raised an eyebrow. “That? It’s a special sorcery I cultivate—sealing a demon inside my belly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And the blood-red aura and screams on your body?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, that’s another sorcery—using the demons’ souls to cultivate.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the table.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Luo Lin gripped Ed’s hand tightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ed tensed, then nodded. “I see. Then I have no more questions.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Ed began telling Louis about the so-called Dark Age.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s connected to the Middle Ages.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Middle Ages refers to the period from the 5th to the 15th century. In its early and mid-phase, the Church reached its peak power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the secular world, it achieved the status of a divine kingdom on earth—nearly all nations lived under God’s radiance, and the divine right of kings was fully established.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in its later phase, around the 11th century, the Church began to decline—secularly, due to changes in institutions, ideology, technology, and warfare; humanity awakened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in the occult, it declined because the Church had exhausted its power suppressing the Dark Age.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Dark Age refers to nations that refused to submit to the Church, pagan deities unwilling to be demoted to angels, non-human races rejecting human dominance, and more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They united in a war lasting over a century.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Secular and occult forces intertwined, influencing each other, creating unprecedented chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, the Church subdued most European nations, defending its supreme divine authority.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It overthrew the last few pagan deities, turning them into angels or demons.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It slaughtered countless non-human races fighting for survival space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The entire process was brutally bloody, showcasing glorious martial might.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this was also the Church’s final glory—afterward, its power began to wane, its control over the secular world plummeted, and by the Renaissance, it lost its supreme crown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So the Dark Age was essentially a rebellion against the Church?” Louis summarized.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You could say that—but it wasn’t just a rebellion. The Church did some good too; otherwise, those non-human races wouldn’t have let humanity survive,” Ed added a defense for the Church.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Later, there were a few more Dark Ages, but none as large-scale—especially as human technology rose. Many dark forces couldn’t stand against human firearms.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The last one was about a century ago—led by werewolves, vampires, trolls, and other non-human races, mainly in Europe.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But it was crushed by a Church exorcist and the Holy Knights.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Also, this is only the Dark Age since the Middle Ages. I’ve heard a Church rumor that there was a Dark Age even before then—but that belonged to the divine realm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Back then, it was probably the Lord himself who dealt with it…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the table, Luo Lin pinched Ed’s flesh hard again—Ed winced in pain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s… all I know about the Dark Age.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ve spoken vaguely—there’s much more: Church schisms, secular kingdom conflicts, the fall of gods…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t know much. These are ancient secrets—beyond the understanding of modern people like us.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing Ed’s account, Louis fell into thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pagan deities, armies of non-human races…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back then, the occult world was truly flourishing, with power levels far higher than now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Look at now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hmph.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And this Dark Age… was truly dark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, in a sense, the Church had become inseparable from humanity itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Dark Age against the Church was the Dark Age against humanity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the Church was indeed powerful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just from Ed’s description, Louis could faintly imagine how mighty the medieval Church had been—divine right of kings, dominating all nations, eroding other nations’ mythologies, demoting their gods, rewriting their cultures, seizing their weapons.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Overbearing. Too overbearing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Good thing it declined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wait.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Church with God—why did it decline?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just because the Dark Age drained its power and manpower?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did God just ignore it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wasn’t He called Lord of Hosts, God of Gods?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had He already started slacking off back then?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That doesn’t make sense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly, there were likely deeper reasons behind this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this was not something Louis could investigate now, and he shouldn’t even think about it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All he needed to know was the Church’s current strength and course of action—ensuring it wouldn’t label him a heretic and launch a massive purge. As for other secrets, they would surface on their own once his strength was sufficient.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Louis had a clear sense of his own limits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Don’t touch what you shouldn’t; otherwise, you only invite trouble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, he should ask the Warrens about Annabelle—Annabelle was the beginning of the Conjuring series, so this was a good chance to confirm the timeline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was how to turn action into reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Across from him, Ed was exchanging glances with his wife, Luo Lin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ed was no fool—he wasn’t easily fooled. Having spent years on the path of exorcism, he possessed an instinct for deception sharper than that of ordinary people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He immediately recognized that much of what Louis had just said was lies!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or rather, four parts truth, six parts falsehood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only because his wife had reminded him did he choose to explain calmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter Louis’s true origins, at least he currently meant them no harm—so don’t provoke him. First, soothe him; avoid stirring trouble if possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the conclusion Ed and his wife reached through their silent exchange.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1452,"2026-06-19T23:34:28.869Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","d5cbec2e6071ff961ba23212882aa04871cf5d512d4b5f05cae7d1676503f789","becoming-a-god-through-horror-chapter-193","becoming-a-god-through-horror-chapter-191",253,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fbecoming-a-god-through-horror-cover.jpg"]