Haha, I Returned from Hell

Bishop Lot turned to ash, and the warped church collapsed with a thunderous roar. Along with the believers whose souls had long become fodder after being deeply corrupted by Chaos, it vanished beneath the pale light of Colchis. The land once filled with cloying "sacred breath" and writhing growths seemed to have been drained of all unnatural vitality, rapidly drying and cracking, leaving behind only scorched traces of battle and a deathly silence that made hearts tremble.

Vladimir's scouts soon brought news, confirming the complete collapse of Lot's forces. After suffering successive setbacks and internal instability, Vladimir himself had withdrawn his troops and would be unable to expand again anytime soon. An external crisis that had seemed imminent had been resolved in a way no one had anticipated.

But neither Zhou Beichen nor Lorgar felt the slightest relief.

Inside the tent, the halo of an oil lamp flickered over several faces gathered around a crude sand table: Zhou Beichen, Lorgar, Lavoisier, and several newly promoted core cadres who had once been "lackeys." The atmosphere was as heavy as lead.

"...So that thing can't truly be destroyed?" a young cadre asked hoarsely. He had taken part in the final cleanup and had personally seen faint, almost imperceptible multicolored mist occasionally seeping from beneath land that seemed to have returned to normal.

"They exist in another dimension—the Warp." Zhou Beichen tapped the table, his tone more serious than ever before. "What we destroyed just now were only their 'projections' and 'anchors' in the real world. So long as there is war, pain, deception, and indulgence in this universe, the source of their power will never run dry. It's like..." He paused, searching for an apt comparison. "It's like a virus. Once it knows you, the host, exist, it will keep mutating and searching for weaknesses in your immune system until it devours you."

"Then what do we do?" Lavoisier's brows were tightly furrowed, his aged face full of dread. "Pray? Strengthen discipline? But even an archbishop like Lot..."

"What the hell is prayer good for? Can discipline fill your stomach?" Zhou Beichen cut him off bluntly. He rose and paced through the tent. "Trying to fight Chaos with that old Covenant Church nonsense of 'endure suffering and pray for the afterlife' is the same as washing your own neck and offering it up! Think about it. If you can't get enough to eat or wear enough to keep warm, if your life is a miserable pile of mud with no hope in sight, and suddenly a voice in your head says it can give you power, good food, eternal bliss, and make all your pain vanish in an instant—" He stopped sharply, his gaze sweeping across them. "Think about it. Other than saying yes, do you have any other choice? This fucking life isn't worth clinging to anyway!"

The tent fell silent. Everyone understood that this was the cruelest, and most truthful, reality. Colchis was a religious world. Ordinary people needed spiritual support, but even more than that, they needed real food that would let them survive and see at least a little hope.

"So," Lorgar's low voice sounded. His violet eyes were deep pools beneath the lamplight. "We must give them a new choice. An 'answer' that can satisfy their spiritual needs while also giving them hope in reality." He looked at Zhou Beichen. "Father, the idea you mentioned before—the Imperial Truth..."

"Yes! That!" Zhou Beichen slapped his thigh. "That old bastard Emperor may be an asshole, but when he came up with the Imperial Truth—denying divinity and emphasizing humanity's self-reliance—he was headed in the right direction when it came to fighting Chaos! We can't copy it wholesale. The religious roots on Colchis run too deep; outright atheism would cause trouble. But—"

He walked to the middle of the tent and spread his hands like a merchant hawking wares in a market, his voice ringing out. "We can remake it! With the New Covenant Church we've already begun building!"

He pointed at Lorgar. "The core of our New Covenant is you. It is 'action and redemption.' It is 'Heaven on Earth'! Now, we need to give it the hardest possible 'core,' something to arm every believer's mind against those whispers from the void!"

"What core?" Lavoisier could not help asking, a thirst for knowledge flashing in his clouded eyes.

"Good question!" Zhou Beichen picked up the thread. This was the part he was best at. "Remember one most fundamental principle—equivalent exchange!" His blazing gaze swept over every person present. "This is the core of our Earthly Heaven merit-point system, and it must also be the cornerstone of our faith! It is our most powerful weapon against Chaos!"

He walked to the middle of the tent and spread his hands like a merchant hawking wares in a market. "Look beneath our feet! Every grain of food we eat, every house we live in, every sheet of paper we use—what wasn't earned with sweat, wisdom, and organized labor? Father God's grace lies in granting us the wisdom to discover clay and build windmills, not in stuffing bread directly into our mouths!"

"So," Zhou Beichen raised one finger, his tone utterly firm, "any promise of gaining something for nothing, soaring to the heavens in one step, or achieving instant fulfillment—whether it offers power, knowledge, health, or pleasure—is all a lie! It is poisoned bait coated in sugar, cast out by false gods! Their purpose is to lure you into giving up thought, giving up labor, giving up the 'order' we depend upon to survive, until they swallow you whole, skin, bones, and soul!"

The tent was silent as a grave, with only Zhou Beichen's voice echoing within it. Lavoisier and the cadres listened in stunned silence. They had never imagined that faith could be so... practical, so tightly bound to everyday labor and distribution.

"We must tell everyone," Zhou Beichen continued, speaking quickly but clearly, "that Father God's true grace is 'possibility'! It is a 'future' that can be created through honest labor, obedience to order, and the use of wisdom! Merit points are the manifestation of this 'equivalent exchange' in the real world! You receive as much as you contribute! That is fair! Far fairer than those seemingly generous 'blessings' that actually demand everything from you!"

He looked at Lorgar. "Your sermons must emphasize this again and again. Sanctify 'equivalent exchange.' Shape it into one of the most fundamental laws of the universe, ordained by Father God. Any 'miracle' that violates this law must be a trap laid by false gods."

Lorgar slowly nodded, light shifting within his violet eyes. He understood Zhou Beichen's intent. This was not merely about establishing a faith; it was about constructing a powerful psychological defense mechanism. When someone believed from the depths of their heart that there was no such thing as a free lunch, that every gain must come from their own effort and exchanges within order, the gaps those tempting whispers could exploit would become far smaller.

"At the same time," Zhou Beichen shifted gears, his tone becoming practical, "weapons of thought alone aren't enough. We must make this system of 'equivalent exchange' genuinely bring people better lives! The merit-point system must be improved, contributions must be evaluated more fairly, and daily supplies must become more abundant! Education must continue spreading, so more people can gain knowledge and the ability to change their own fate!"

"We must make Earthly Heaven a place where—through hard work—you can eat your fill, dress warmly, earn respect, and see hope! Only then, when Chaos whispers in your ear, will you have the confidence to tell it, 'Fuck off! I can live well on my own. I don't need your deadly charity!'"

Zhou Beichen's words painted an immensely appealing picture. It was not merely about survival, but about surviving with dignity and hope. Everyone present, including the previously anxious Lavoisier, felt their blood begin to boil.

"As for specific measures," Zhou Beichen said, sitting back down and tapping the edge of the sand table, "first, establish the Faith and Order Defense Bureau, directly under Lorgar's command. It will be responsible for monitoring, identifying, and handling possible signs of Chaos corruption. Its methods must be decisive, but its procedures must be public. The standard will be whether someone has violated the principle of 'equivalent exchange,' whether they are attempting to gain without labor, spreading despair, or making empty promises."

"Second, Lavoisier, take the lead. Based on the core of 'equivalent exchange,' quickly improve the New Covenant Church's doctrinal catechism and daily prayers. They must be simple, direct, and easy to understand, woven into the details of production and daily life. Let every believer remember Father God's 'order' every day as they work and eat."

"Third, the economy and production cannot stop. Use the uncontaminated resources seized from the Lot Diocese to speed up recovery and expansion of production. Especially food, salt, and paper. The people's stomachs and minds must not be left empty."

Orders were issued one after another, clear and efficient. Everyone accepted their assignments and departed, leaving only Zhou Beichen and Lorgar in the tent.

Lorgar was silent for a moment before looking at Zhou Beichen. "Father, you once said that the Emperor hated being treated as a god. Yet what we are doing now seems to be building a new religion centered on me."

Zhou Beichen grinned, his smile somewhat complicated. "Different times, different measures. On Colchis, completely denying divinity won't work. What we need to do is shift the concept—move worship away from vague, intangible divine power and toward identification with order, labor, wisdom, and you as a concrete symbol. You, Loga Aurelian, are not a god in the doctrine. You are the practitioner and highest example of divine order. What we worship is the action and will to build Earthly Heaven that you represent."

He sighed, his tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible depth. "Sometimes, to fight one virus, you need another, milder and more controllable virus as a vaccine. As for later..." He waved a hand. "Let's fill the shit pit in front of us first."

Lorgar fell into thought. He raised a hand, and a faint golden flame danced at his fingertips—the power that fought Chaos. It seemed to faintly echo the "order" his father had spoken of.