Chapter 2: The Strange Occurrence

Chen Fan suddenly looked up, his expression one of disbelief as he stared at the statue on the table.

The statue... spoke!

But that wasn't the most shocking part.

To be fair, considering the environment he found himself in, Chen Fan thought he could accept the idea of a statue speaking or perhaps some divine manifestation. After all, in an alternate world, anything could be possible. What if gods really existed here?

What truly left Chen Fan in shock, though, was the fact that the statue emitted a stiff, electronic synthetic voice and used a highly scientific explanation to refute the superstitions he had mentioned!

Just listen to that—does that make sense?

In stark contrast to Chen Fan's reaction, his mother had already knelt before the statue, her face full of joy as she bowed, muttering words of gratitude to the deity.

The realms of theology and science intertwined in a bizarre way, laid out before Chen Fan's very eyes.

Worshiping an electronic god? Praying for a cyber wish?

At that moment, Chen Fan felt as if his already fragile worldview was being shaken to its very core.

"Xiao Fan!"

His mother's voice urged, "What are you standing there for? Quickly, give thanks for the teachings of the god!"

Fearing she might anger the deity, the middle-aged woman anxiously raised her hand and gently slapped Chen Fan's shoulder.

Slap!

The crisp sound jolted Chen Fan's thoughts back to the present.

Seeing the anxiety on his mother's face and the faint fear in her eyes, a sudden alarm went off in Chen Fan's mind. Without thinking, he followed his mother's lead and knelt before the statue.

"My lord…"

As his mother murmured prayers beside him, a strange coldness suddenly crept up Chen Fan's spine.

Taking advantage of the moment as he stood up, he quickly glanced at the statue on the table.

It wasn't just a psychological effect or the play of light and shadows—he was certain the faint smile on the statue's face was becoming increasingly eerie.

...

After worshiping the statue, it was time for dinner.

Having just been hit with a worldview-shattering experience, Chen Fan clearly wasn't in the mood for the food on the table.

But in order to maintain his image and avoid causing any further conflict, he continued to eat the food in front of him, albeit absentmindedly, under his mother's watchful eye.

He struggled to swallow a piece of what seemed to be some sort of plant root vegetable, its faintly astringent taste spreading on his tongue. As he chewed and swallowed, the details of the worship ceremony replayed in his mind, and he began to analyze the hidden information.

Although his mother hid it well, Chen Fan noticed the deep fear that had seeped into her demeanor during the worship. It was clear that much of her reverence for the statue stemmed from this unexplained fear.

This couldn't be explained by simple religious faith—under normal circumstances, gods didn't instill fear in their followers.

All living beings seek to avoid harm, and humans are no different. If a deity only brought negative emotions, that belief system would never survive.

Unless...

The god was truly real!

Only a real god could grip their followers with such profound fear.

At this thought, a chill ran down Chen Fan's spine. He unconsciously shoveled more food into his mouth, trying to mask the horror building inside him.

"Xiao Fan?"

His mother looked at him with concern, her voice faltering. "You..."

On one hand, she genuinely worried about her son's mental state. Since coming out of his room, Chen Fan had been acting strangely, almost like a different person.

On the other hand, she didn't want to, or rather, dared not probe deeper.

She certainly didn't want Chen Fan to lock himself away again because of her doubts, especially considering that now that he had been chosen by the god, his status was far higher than hers.

"I'm fine."

Chen Fan snapped back to the present and avoided his mother's gaze. He quickly shoveled some more food into his mouth, casually asking, "Mom, did you notice something odd about the god statue's voice today?"

"Odd?" His mother furrowed her brows as she tried to recall. After a moment, she shook her head. "No, it's always been this voice."

She repeated with certainty, "You must've misheard!"

Her words sent a shockwave through Chen Fan's mind!

Always been this voice!

That meant, to her, it was completely normal for the statue to speak and for its voice to sound like an electronic synthetic one!

Chen Fan struggled to maintain a calm expression, but his astonishment and doubt were evident in his eyes.

Of course, this didn't escape his mother's notice.

She furrowed her brows as if thinking about something.

The living room fell into an eerie silence as Chen Fan, still uneasy, hastened to eat more of his meal.

Something was definitely wrong with this world!

To get a clearer picture of this world, he knew he could only hope to find some answers in the notes in his room.

After a long sigh, his mother broke the silence.

"Phew…"

She looked at Chen Fan with gentle eyes. "Xiao Fan."

"You've just been chosen by the god, it's normal to feel some pressure."

"There's still plenty of time before the next selection ceremony, so you can take it slow and adjust. Relax a little."

She paused, then continued with hesitation, "As for what you said earlier…"

"I'll pretend I didn't hear it. Just forget those rebellious words."

"Otherwise…"

She sighed deeply, leaving the sentence unfinished.

Chen Fan's expression grew serious.

Though he had no idea what the selection ceremony was, based on the bizarre events he had witnessed, he was certain it couldn't be anything good.

As he nodded in agreement, his sense of impending danger increased exponentially.

...

After dinner, Chen Fan once again walked into his room under his mother's watchful eyes.

The wooden door slowly closed, cutting off his mother's worried gaze and the strange aura of the statue in the living room.

The room was pitch black. Chen Fan took a few deep breaths, feeling the tension in his body slowly loosen.

He raised his trembling hands, eyes lowered, mimicking his mother's movements as he made a prayer gesture. "Lord, please bring light to the world…"

A faint yellow light suddenly burst above his head, tearing apart the darkness with an overwhelming force.

Ugh, it's still voice-controlled.

Chen Fan weakly twitched his mouth, trying to find humor in the situation.

Humans yearn for light, that's undeniable.

But this light didn't bring Chen Fan any comfort or warmth.

On the contrary, as the bright light illuminated the room, the sense of impending danger and pressure that had receded now surged back, stronger than before!

Chen Fan suddenly held his breath—right in front of him, the god was looking down at him from above!