Deities Are All Just My Food

"We're alive!"

The old lady breathed a sigh of relief.

"What chant were you reciting?"

The middle-aged man with short hair forcibly made his way through the crowd to stand in front of Lin Baici.

"Can you teach us?"

Those tourists with sparks on their foreheads were more anxious than the next.

"When the doors of this great hall opened just now, didn't a chanting sound emerge? The chant I had her recite was that one!"

Lin Baici informed the crowd.

"So that's how it is!"

The tourists suddenly realized.

"You actually remembered it all?"

Hua Yue Yu was shocked. What kind of superhuman memory was this?

Isn't that too amazing?

"Those with sparks on their foreheads, don't just stand there, hurry to the front of the Buddha and kneel down, follow this handsome guy in chanting!"

The man with short hair took matters into his own hands.

From the current situation, everyone's survival depended on this student, but whether he would help others or not was up to him, so the man with short hair wanted to listen to the chant again and quickly memorize it.

The unlucky ones, having heard this, immediately knelt in front of the Buddha and then anxiously looked at Lin Baici.

"Listen carefully..."

Lin Baici was indifferent, after all, it was just a matter of reciting it one more time.

The crowd's recitation was choppy and stilted, akin to someone who had never learned English suddenly hearing a teacher recite a paragraph in English and having to follow along...

It was extremely difficult.

Even though Lin Baici paused at each phrase, there were still those who couldn't keep up, and many pronounced it incorrectly.

The Dark Buddha listened to a few phrases, frowning deeply,

Is this what you call chanting and paying respect to the Buddha?

This is nothing but a buzz of flies, a complete desecration of the scripture.

So boom! Boom! Boom!

Those unlucky ones were set alight by the sparks on their foreheads, quickly burning into charcoal statues.

At this point, the great hall already had more than hundred bodies lying inside,

It was frightening.

"Why were they killed again?"

Zhang Ju hugged her daughter tightly, completely clueless.

"They must have chanted it incorrectly!"

Sima Mu thought to himself, if he heard such chantings, he would also feel like hitting someone.

The man with short hair listened carefully for a few phrases and, realizing he couldn't understand or remember, grew puzzled. How did the pretty girl manage that?

She did not look like a straight-A student to him.

The man with short hair's gaze fell on the padded mat held by Kim Myungjin.

Could it have something to do with this thing?

"Step forward!"

"Kneel!"

"Pay respects to the Buddha!"

The Dark Buddha urged on, still snorting, spewing out sparks.

It was the fourth batch.

Swish!

Everyone's gaze turned to Lin Baici.

Lin Baici did not step forward voluntarily, but this time, the sparks from the Buddha drifted in front of his forehead, and Hua Yue Yu was unable to avoid them either.

"You kneel on the padded mat and follow me in the chant!"

Lin Baici told the hostess to prepare the Vanilla Padded Mat quickly.

The tourists, wanting to hear more clearly, tried to get closer to Lin Baici, so some began to push and shove, curse, and even fight.

Hua Yue Yu was panicked, worried she couldn't remember, but soon realized she was overthinking it.

She could remember Lin Baici's strange pronunciation after listening to it just once.

"Was I always this smart?"

Hua Yue Yu marveled.

"Don't get distracted!"

Lin Baici warned.

Hua Yue Yu immediately straightened her back, trying to pronounce each word precisely until Lin Baici's voice no longer resonated, and only then did she realize she had finished chanting.

She then looked up at the Buddha, waiting for the verdict.

"You two, step back!"

Hua Yue Yu heard these words and excitedly pumped her fist.

Yay!

"Bai Ci, thank you!"

Hua Yue Yu, with tears in her eyes,

Brother with the long legs, thank you for taking me on this flight!

The other sixty-odd tourists with sparks on their foreheads became panicked; the Dark Buddha had not mentioned them, obviously dissatisfied.

"Handsome guy, help us!"

Before they could plead for help, the sparks set them ablaze.

There were casualties all over the ground!

The smell of charred flesh was spreading.

"It really does have to do with that padded mat!"

The man with short hair, not caring about those who were burning, dashed up to Lin Baici in a few strides.

"Hello, I am Jiang Hong, the boss of Hongji Real Estate. I'll give you ten million. When it's my turn to pay respects to the Buddha, could you lend me that padded mat to use?"

The middle-aged man got straight to the point.

In fact, a dozen other tourists also noticed the Vanilla Padded Mat and wanted to borrow it, but Jiang Hong's name and the ten million immediately overwhelmed them.

The middle-aged man said this with confidence.

Hongji Real Estate was the leading enterprise in Guangqing City, and Jiang Hong himself, being the city's richest man, was extremely famous. Who wouldn't give him face?

Ten million should definitely make the student bow down, right?

But the money couldn't be given in cash; he'd give two apartments at market value in exchange, which would be the most cost-effective.

Jiang Hong felt sure that the other party would agree.

"Ten million?"

Lin Baici looked at the middle-aged man.

So this is the unscrupulous businessman uncle mentioned, huh?

"Since you have money, why don't you finish building the unfinished building of your company?"

Uncle's family bought a house from Hongji Real Estate seven years ago for his son's marriage, planning to make it a marital home, but it's still an unfinished building to this day.

It's been said that many people can't move into their new homes and still have to pay mortgages every month; they've been terribly scammed.

Jiang Hong didn't feel awkward at all, pointing at Lin Baici with the attitude of an elder, "You don't understand business!"

"Baici, I can offer two million in cash, you must help me, okay?"

Aunt Xu Xiu was sincere, wanting to use the money to buy her life, as she was now scared to end up in the same batch as Jiang Hong.

"I'll pay too, one million. Can I reserve a spot first?"

"I don't have that much cash, but I have a villa. Once we get out, I'll transfer ownership to you!"

"I'll give you half of my canned food factory's profits every year!"

Some wealthy people began to bid, trying to offer Lin Baici a price that would move him to help them first, but the majority were poor and so remained silent.

An average salary of three to four thousand a month left them without even the qualifications to compete.

"Aunt Xu, don't panic, I'll definitely help if I can!"

Lin Baici offered reassurance.

"Step forward!"

"Kneel and bow!"

"Pay homage to Buddha!"

The Dark Buddha yawned, and this time, he expelled a large spark that directly enveloped over two hundred people.

The little girl and her mom, Zhang Ju, Aunt Xu, Jiang Hong, and Sister Xiao Li, all had sparks attached to their foreheads.

"Fuck!"

Jiang Hong cursed, then continued with a smile, trying to persuade Lin Baici, "Young brother, please help, I'll remember this favor for a lifetime!"

"Hungry Ghost Oppa!"

The little girl waved her small hand at Lin Baici when she saw him looking at her.

"Handsome, please save my daughter?"

Zhang Ju cried.

"Baici!"

Aunt Xu trembled.

Sister Xiao Li didn't speak, but the plea in her eyes was clear. Given the slightest chance of survival, who wouldn't want to live?

Hua Yue Yu and Sister Xiao Li were besties, and out of friendship and reason, she hoped that Lin Baici would help Xiao Li, but the little girl was only a bit over three years old, never having even tasted the aroma of her youth.

Lin Baici was just a student who had graduated from high school. He should have been enjoying a happy summer vacation, then off to college, finding a girlfriend, and savoring his youth. But now, he had to choose who to help survive.

Those not chosen were certain to die.

Lin Baici detested making such choices.

Whoosh!

Lin Baici exhaled a breath of foul air, looking towards the Dark Buddha seated high on the platform, overlooking all beings, "Can I recite scriptures and pay homage to Buddha on behalf of these tourists?"

"Oppa!"

Kim Myungjin was startled, wanting to urge him not to be impulsive, but after seeing the look in Lin Baici's eyes, she gave up.

This...

Perhaps this was what a hero looked like?

"Brother Lin, do you have a death wish?"

Sima Mu was anxious, as it wasn't worth risking their lives for these people.

"Saving one is saving, saving a bunch is saving, there's no difference!"

Lin Baici waited for the Buddha's response.

"You may!"

The Dark Buddha showed a smile full of wicked delight, pointing with his left hand at the virtuous men and women in the mural, "As long as you can follow them in recitation, completing a session of paying homage to Buddha, I will forgive these ants' disrespect!"

"Alright!"

Lin Baici agreed, it was just reciting scriptures.

Even if it was long, with the help of 'Guo Er Cheng Song' and the Vanilla Padded Mat, it wasn't an issue.

"Don't rush, let me finish. If the chanting is interrupted halfway, you'll die!"

The Dark Buddha chuckled.

Everyone gasped when they heard this.

"Brother Lin, don't take the risk!"

Sima Mu urgently advised, "Save one you wish to save, doing your best is enough!"

The Dark Buddha looked on with interest at Lin Baici, "So, will you still chant for them?"

"Begin!"

Lin Baici sat cross-legged on the padded mat, concentrating deeply.

"Nobody talk, if anyone speaks, I'll kill him!"

Jiang Hong bellowed, "Even if you want to fart, hold it in!"

Life and death were at stake, and Jiang Hong tolerated no errors.

Ding! Ding! Ding!

Three sharp bell and chime sounds rang out, and then those virtuous men and women in the mural began to chant.

Upon hearing a few phrases, the tourists all changed color.

The sound was pleasant, but wasn't it too difficult?

It was like listening to the heavenly book.

Who could remember that?

Despair began to rise within them as they watched Lin Baici.

We're doomed!

In the midst of the sacred chants, everyone was touched by the law-rain, beneath the scripture's voice, they all bathed in Buddha's grace.

What seemed an insurmountable task to others, Lin Baici achieved. He didn't understand the meaning of the scriptures, but he followed the devotees, not missing a single word, chanting with precise pronunciation.

"It's possible!"

The tourists grew excited.

Hua Yue Yu and Kim Myungjin were still worried, as the chanting became faster, seemingly spitting out thousands of words in one breath.

Fortunately, Lin Baici was able to keep up.

After a full fifteen minutes, Lin Baici's lips had gone numb, but he finally awaited the end of the chanting.

When he stopped, every tourist had a look of elation and gratitude, as if they had survived a catastrophe.

Surely the Buddha could find no fault with such perfect chanting, right?

And seriously, how good was that guy's memory?

"Genius!"

Kim Myungjin looked at Lin Baici, her eyes filled with amazement.

She had just utilized the Vanilla Padded Mat, a Taboo object, and although 'Guo Er Cheng Song' was powerful, remembering it didn't necessarily mean one could speak it out.

The padded mat didn't come with a feature to automatically correct errors in pronunciation.

That meant Lin Baici's linguistic expression and imitation skills were extremely strong, and one must remember, this was all under the immense pressure where failure meant death.

Lin Baici had succeeded!

His ability to withstand pressure was unbelievably strong.

"Is it done?"

Lin Baici asked with a smile, rubbing his lips with the back of his hand.

To improve his English listening skills, he had recited aloud a short text every morning since his first year of high school, and over time, his lips had become well-trained.