Chapter 1148 - 1148

The old lady's suspicions dissipated instantly.

She said excitedly, "Dirk, let me tell you, as long as you join The Astral Sect and practice diligently, it will cure all diseases. We have a brother in our sect who had cancer a few years ago and was almost dying. Thanks to the Sect Hierarch, he's now lively as ever. Just last year, at the age of 70, he had a big baby boy with his wife..."

Such absurd rhetoric.

Made Dirk Carter break into a cold sweat.

The old lady continued, "Athena, Dirk, I'm not meddling, but not just anyone can join The Astral Sect. You must be introduced by someone familiar to participate. The government always thinks of us as a cult, so we have to be cautious."

"We understand, Auntie, we understand,"

Dirk quickly nodded in agreement.

Now that the verification was complete.

Moreover, the time was just right.

Led by the old lady.

The three of them passed through a nearby dark alley.

And after many twists and turns, they finally stopped at the entrance of a small convenience store.

It was the deep street of a secluded alley.

And there wasn't any streetlight.

At this late hour, this small shop called "Sister Na's Convenience Store" had zero business.

Yet its door was wide open.

It seemed unusual.

Inside sat a plump middle-aged woman, her eyes vigilantly scanning the quiet street.

"Huijuan, who are these two young people behind you?"

The old lady hadn't yet spoken.

The plump woman in the shop asked proactively.

The old lady replied cheerfully, "Sister Na, this is my niece, and this is my nephew-in-law. My nephew-in-law's mother..."

For the next while,

The old lady embellished the story Dirk Carter had made up.

Though Sister Na was still suspicious,

Since it was Aunt Huijuan's introduction,

Ultimately, they passed the "review."

"Once inside, don't speak rashly, listen carefully to the lecture. Today's session is delivered by the Saint from Silverwood City, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, consider yourselves lucky."

Sister Na said,

And opened a door behind her.

The old lady grew instantly excited.

Leading Dirk Carter and Athena Meyer, she walked through that door.

It was a corridor about ten meters long.

Very narrow and crowded.

Once they finally passed through the corridor,

It was suddenly spacious.

In front of them was an open area of over a hundred square meters.

In the middle of the area, there stood a giant camphor tree, surrounded by local homes enclosing the land tightly, making "airtight" not an exaggeration.

Facing them was a four-story self-built house.

But all the windows were pitch black, looking quite eerie.

A line of people queued at the entrance, men and women, old and young, all quietly waiting as if for that door in the middle to open.

"Auntie, can I ask you a question? What is this Saint?"

Dirk lowered his voice, asking in the old lady's ear.

The old lady, looking proud, said, "Let me tell you, the Saint is the head of The Astral Sect in Silverwood City. Each province's head is called Immortal or Immortal Master."

Upon hearing this,

Dirk understood.

This must be the structure of The Astral Sect.

He pondered for a moment and asked, "Is there more?"

The old lady nodded and said, "Above the Immortal Master are seven Pharaohs, and above the Pharaoh is our revered Sect Hierarch, but officially in The Astral Sect, he should be called Astral, which means the representation of the Divine on Earth."

Hearing such rhetoric,

Dirk found it a bit amusing.

Although the titles were peculiar, wasn't this structure similar to the government's hierarchy?

But come to think of it, it makes sense.

Ron Linden himself had come from within the system, his understanding was only such. Mimicking the government's structure to build a cult's hierarchy is quite normal.

"Athena, Dirk, let me tell you, you members hardly ever meet Liu the Saint, but you're lucky today, so you must listen to the lesson devoutly, understand?"

The old lady spoke earnestly.

Dirk Carter and Athena Meyer exchanged a glance, nodding repeatedly, "Don't worry, Auntie, we definitely won't cause you any trouble."

With this promise.

The old lady felt assured.

After waiting for about ten minutes,

Meanwhile, several more people arrived.

Suddenly.

With a creak,

A wooden door in front opened.

A young man stood at the door, shouted loudly, "Time's up, the teachings commence..."

Having shouted,

He withdrew back into the house.

The dozens lined up outside, bustling inside.

It was now that Dirk Carter and Athena Meyer realized, inside the house was not at all dark, the windows were covered with thick curtains.

This explained the absence of any light outside.

Looming before them was an empty living room.

On the floor of the living room, were neatly placed dozens of prayer mats.

At the front was a low table, behind the table too had a prayer mat, presumably this was the spot where the Saint delivered lectures.

Those entering from the congregation seemed familiar with the layout, cross-legged sitting upon the mats.

For Dirk Carter and Athena Meyer, it was their first time here,

Led by the old lady, they sat at the very end.

Once everyone was seated.

Dirk Carter secretly scanned the room.

Only then realizing, the prayer mats were far from enough.

Some of the people even sat cross-legged directly on the ground of the corridor, slightly closing their eyes, chanting softly as if possessed.

"Alright, let us give a warm welcome to our esteemed, approachable, kind, savior Liu the Saint to take the stage and deliver his teachings."

The young man at the door shouted.

A surge of applause ensued, uninterrupted.

Amidst the applause, a middle-aged man in a pure white long robe slowly walked out from a side door.

The man looked about forty.

With a small mustache.

His shifty eyes and sneaky expression revealed nothing good.

He feigned modesty, standing by the low table, raised his hand to everyone, saying, "All right, all right, no need to clap. Here at The Astral Sect, we don't mess around with such trivialities."

The applause suddenly ceased.

Looking again at the male and female disciples, their faces gleamed with excitement, eyes sparkling with fervor, that look as though ready to rush up and kneel before Liu the Saint.

"My last visit to the Greenhill Church was half a year ago. Seeing us today, many new faces have joined our congregation. I'm delighted, you see, it proves The Astral Sect is truly a divine sect awakening countless souls lost in darkness..."

Once Liu the Saint finished speaking,

Another wave of applause erupted.