Seven Types of Believers

However, people who Hearts Aware of Gods and Ghosts are not indispensable to the gods, because although such people believe in the existence of gods, they have no intention of making sacrifices for them. They rarely burn incense and make wishes, and even when they do offer sacrifices, it is always for their ancestors.

"These kinds of people are basically ordinary folks who have a sense of awe towards ghosts and gods, but they won't put it into practice."

Next comes the fourth type of person: those whose Hearts Devoted to Gods and Ghosts.

Such people harbor supernatural beliefs and hold not only reverence for deities but also a certain yearning and longing for them. They believe that deities can change their own destiny and engage in rituals such as making wishes and offering sacrifices.

However, such people have one characteristic: they do not just believe in one god, but believe in multiple gods at the same time, and they do not think that any one god is more important. They worship whichever god they see, or choose to worship different gods at different stages according to their own needs.

This is also a result of the prevailing customs of Great Rui, and is consistent with its history.

"Those who Hearts Devoted to Gods and Ghosts are still thinking about themselves, which is understandable. They pray to gods to change their fate, so their thoughts are naturally not pure. Moreover, because they believe in multiple gods, their will is not firm enough, and the incense Votive Thoughts they place are thin. But it is undeniable that the number of such believers is huge, and they are the backbone of maintaining the immortality of the gods."

The immortality and indestructibility of deities are relative, because the foundation of deities is not their souls, flesh, and blood, but rather the Votive Thoughts believers and their Divine Rank Divine Office. Even if those who Hearts Devoted to Gods and Ghosts cannot provide enough incense offerings, they can still maintain the existence of deities.

As Qiu Yan read the book and compared it with her own experiences, her understanding of Xinmin deepened. Some fragmented insights were connected by a single thread and began to form a coherent whole.

"The key is to spread the Divine Name; otherwise, even fickle people who Hearts Devoted to Gods and Ghosts will not know about it, so how many people will actually worship it?"

Qiu Yan was no stranger to this kind of person. If he went out on the street and found ten people, half of them would be those who Hearts Devoted to Gods and Ghosts. His approach to the Kitchen God worship was to target these people who Hearts Devoted to Gods and Ghosts. Only by spreading the worship could he further refine it.

This "shrewdness" refers to the fifth type of person.

Those who Devout Faith in Gods and Ghosts.

Most people are self-interested, and worshiping gods is ultimately for their own benefit. However, devout believers have come to recognize the greatness of the gods and have begun to favor certain deities, elevating them above all other gods in their hearts.

"Firm faith, firm faith, the word 'firm' itself means wholehearted devotion, referring to loyalty. Loyal faith is naturally different from ordinary faith. Such believers are precious to any deity, no wonder that unknown deity felt those emotions after discovering the changes in the Fenglin Stockade."

The Votive Thoughts of devout believers are far greater than those of those who are devoted to Hearts Devoted to Gods and Ghosts, and they also tend to conduct their rituals in a planned manner.

It can be said that devout believers are a valuable resource to the gods and deserve careful nurturing. However, it is not easy to bring forth devout believers.

On the other hand, the value of devout believers is gradually revealed over a long period of time. The most prominent characteristic of the incense they entrust to is stability. Therefore, although the Fenglin Stockade is full of devout believers, Qiu Yan will have to wait at least several years to feel any change.

However, now that he understands the division of believers and carefully senses the Incense Faith, he naturally discovers that the incense originating from Fenglin Stockade is pure, rich, and contains pure power, which is slightly different from ordinary incense. Using this as a reference, and following the connection, he discovers many more devout believers by going against the current of the incense.

Those who hold firm to their beliefs are mainly concentrated in Wuxin City and the Land of the Divine Remains.

"Wuxin City?" After a moment's thought, Qiu Yan understood the key point. "Back then, when the mountain fell from the sky, the entire city of Wuxin City was terrified. I stepped forward to stop it, displaying my Divine Ability and saving the lives of the soldiers and civilians in the city. Naturally, I left a deep impression on them, similar to the situation today. In this light, the birth of this devout believer is not without reason."

At that time, Qiu Yan's Divine Spirit Body appeared on Wuxin City to save the people from suffering, and now he has saved the villagers of Fenglin Stockade. The two are similar in nature and are naturally connected.

"As for the Land of the Divine Remains..."

Having understood the division of believers, Qiu Yan suddenly realized what a huge opportunity that the Land of the Divine Remains was for him.

"This is a secluded place with a large population. Apart from me, no one else can collect incense Votive Thoughts. Once it develops, it will be a veritable granary! However, I wonder what those few gods who have invaded it are planning. I will deal with them after I have quelled the matter with Lü Liang. It is not advisable to alert them now. Moreover, the Land of the Divine Remains is vast and still needs to be explored."

When several deities invaded the Land of the Divine Remains, Qiu Yan, hiding under his fortuitous opportunity Heart Demon, learned of it by chance but did not interfere. This was partly because he couldn't ascertain the origins of these deities, and partly because the Land of the Divine Remains was not Qiu Yan's exclusive domain, containing many secrets that were difficult to fathom.

Now, for Qiu Yan, whether in his Fleshly Body or his Divine Spirit Body, he is entangled in matters and finds it difficult to extricate himself.

Now that he has a plan for the Divine Path, Land of the Divine Remains is about to become an important part of it, he naturally cannot let his guard down.

"Given this opportunity to attain Divine Path and possess Three Bodies, we should seize it and explore the mysteries of humanity and divinity. Now that we understand the division of believers, building a bridge between the Divine Path and Human Path will no longer be a pipe dream."

As he pondered, his gaze fell upon the next sentence in the book in his hand, which mentioned the sixth type of believer, called "Fanatical Devotion."

"Obsession" is not necessarily a derogatory term; in fact, to a certain extent, it can be seen as a wholehearted dedication. Many famous figures in history have been described as "obsessed."

In contrast, the word "crazy" has a derogatory connotation, which is contrary to the moderation and restraint advocated by Confucianism.

Those who are Fanatical Devotion with ghosts and gods are, as the name suggests, wholeheartedly devoted to deities, and to outsiders, they appear somewhat mentally deranged.

Such people not only regard the gods as supreme, but also place the interests of the gods above their own lives. Their behavior is criticized by mainstream schools of thought. However, in the eyes of the gods, such people are exceptionally precious. Not to mention the difficulty of their birth, the incense offerings they receive are far more numerous than those of ordinary people. They are often able to establish the Unseen connection with the gods. They are the eyes of the gods and, more importantly, their tools.

Even among those Fanatical Devotion ghosts and gods, there are those who are even more extreme, believing that they were born to bear great responsibilities. Not only do they worship a certain deity, but they also believe that other deities are illusions. They want everyone to agree with the deity they worship, and they will not hesitate to step forward to defend those who insult their gods, even if they know they are no match for them.

However, for a Fanatical Devotion believer to emerge, many conditions are required; the right time, the Heavenly Timing, Earthly Advantage, and Human Harmony, and the right people are all indispensable.

Therefore, such believers are very popular with the gods and are the darlings of many deities. They almost always grant their requests. Some Lesser God with limited influence will often protect such believers carefully if they have one under their command, for fear that the believer might be harmed.

Upon seeing this, Qiu Yan frowned slightly, then shook his head and said, "Fanatical Devotion believers may seem valuable, but for a deity's ritual to spread, it's not through force and suppression. On the contrary, madness will bring resistance. From this perspective, Fanatical Devotion are even more useful than devout believers. In the spread of the ritual, they can be generals, but not commanders."

To put it bluntly, the Fanatical Devotion believers are more like a facade, used by the gods to decorate their image. However, because they devote themselves wholeheartedly to worshiping the gods, their minds are affected, and their judgment of things becomes biased. It is a double-edged sword.

In comparison, the seventh type of believer is even more precious, but very difficult to encounter.

The seventh type of believer is Divine Insight.

A believer with Divine Insight has his own understanding of the gods, but in terms of worshipping the gods, he is the same as Fanatical Devotion person. In fact, a person with Divine Insight is just as famous as Fanatical Devotion believer. The probability of the two being born is similar, and both are extremely rare. However, to achieve Divine Insight, the believer must have experienced many twists and turns and vicissitudes, and have a unique perspective on the world.

Such a person can easily see through the ways of the world and achieve the Soul Dao. However, because they have a god in their heart, after experiencing a certain opportunity, their State of Mind will transform to a new level. Once formed, this will be of great benefit to the gods.

It should be understood that Third Grade deity can grant believers power and enable them to use Spirit-Strike Method, but cannot possess them at will. However, if a believer Divine Insight, they can disregard rank and directly possess the deity.

In critical moments, those with Divine Insight can even receive divine blessings by sacrificing their own flesh and blood!

"Divine Insight. In that sense, my Fleshly Body does possess a certain quality of Divine Insight, at least outwardly, it's extremely similar..."

As Qiu Yan pondered the word, the image of Yuan Shoufang flashed through his mind.

"Unfortunately, this book only provides an introduction and does not offer a detailed description, making it difficult for devout believers to discern the truth in a short period of time."

After thinking for a moment, he squeezed hard, and the book instantly shattered and vanished without a trace.

"Very well, now that we understand the division of believers, and that raising the level of believers and expanding the scope of sacrifices cannot be done in a short time, the most urgent task now is to gather all the accumulated resources to help the Divine Spirit Body improve, so as to deal with the impending threat!"

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, Qiu Yan moved his Divine Spirit Body and landed at the cave entrance on the top of Stove Mountain.

Half a month later, in the suburbs of the Eastern Capital.

For the past ten days or so, Qiu Yan's Fleshly Body has been working during the day and reading behind closed doors in the evenings and at night. His temperament has become more and more peaceful, and the aura he gained from Life Cultivation has gradually dissipated. Even his Literary Thought have been kept to himself.

At first glance, he seems like a scholar who is too weak to even kill a chicken, but upon closer inspection, one will find that his every move seems to contain some kind of pattern, and his walking, sitting and lying down reveal a mysterious artistic conception.

After a long period of studying, he finished the last book. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, the sharp glint in his eyes had faded, replaced by a return to simplicity.

"The methods of Sage Sun and the Agricultural School philosophy are both in my mind, but they need to be refined. Working in isolation is no longer effective; it's time to move on to the next step."

At noon, after Qiu Yan finished his meal, he took the box containing the Legalist Sage's manuscript and left the hut in the Lin Zhong.

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