Chapter 57

"If this reasoning is correct, among hundreds of people, how can we determine who are truly asleep and who is just pretending... The one who is pretending must be the murderer..."

Chu Nan mused, holding the spider claw, and walked back into the church. If he discovered who the murderer was, he would not hesitate to kill them.

Such a murderer, hiding among the crowd, was truly terrifying.

Returning to the church, Chu Nan was suddenly startled again. His figure flashed, and he moved ten meters away, looking up to see another body beside the statue of Jesus.

This time, the victim was a woman. She must have been killed in her sleep, so her face still bore a sweet smile, completely unaware that her throat had been bitten open and she was dead.

During the short time he left the church to chase the rat, another person was killed...

The veins on Chu Nan's forehead were slightly pulsing. His gaze slowly moved up from the newly deceased woman and finally landed on the statue of Jesus beside her.

Since the woman died next to the statue, the statue was also stained with blood.

When Chu Nan's gaze fell on the face of the Jesus statue, he suddenly trembled, and a strange look appeared in his eyes.

He saw that there was blood slowly flowing from the mouth of the Jesus statue.

This is just a statue... How could there be blood at the corner of its mouth... And it looks like it's seeping out from inside...

Chu Nan looked at the dead woman's bitten throat and the torn throat of Zhou Yun, who was nailed to the cross. A thought suddenly flashed through his mind, and a chill ran up his spine.

Could it be that this Jesus statue...

Chu Nan's face turned grim, and he could not help but slowly approach the statue. Suddenly, it seemed terrifying to him.

As he approached step by step, all the muscles and nerves in his body were tense, and the spider claw in his right hand was raised.

Regardless of whether it was related to the Jesus statue, Chu Nan, holding the spider claw, slashed at the statue.

"What are you doing?" Suddenly, a voice of alarm came from the other side.

At the same moment, Chu Nan's spider claw struck the left arm of the Jesus statue, which was raised high.

With a slicing sound, the left arm of the Jesus statue broke off like tofu. At the same moment, the voice angrily shouted, "How dare you insult the divine!"

Looking at the broken left arm of the Jesus statue, which showed no reaction, Chu Nan frowned and turned his head. On the other side, the people who had been sleeping were waking up one by one. When these newly awakened people suddenly saw Chu Nan raising the spider claw to destroy the Jesus statue, they were shocked and angry, and some of them shouted at him.

In their eyes, it was Jesus who had appeared and saved everyone this time. Chu Nan's actions were tantamount to blasphemy.

Su Yao, Tang Sanli, Shen Mo, Nangong Xiong, and others also gradually woke up.

Many people, upon waking up, suddenly noticed that Zhou Yun was nailed to the cross, covered in blood, and saw another woman lying next to the Jesus statue with her throat bitten open. They could not help but scream in horror.

After several others woke up, they glared fiercely at Chu Nan, rushed over, and surrounded him, their expressions unfriendly.

Chu Nan ignored them and just looked at the awakened Tang Sanli and Su Yao, feeling a bit relieved in his heart. No matter what, everyone was finally awake, and at least the murderer had no chance to kill again for now. However, among so many people, was there really a murderer hidden, or was the murderer, as he suspected, related to the Jesus statue?

Looking at the Jesus statue again, he suddenly noticed that the blood at the corner of its mouth was gone.

"Hmm?" Chu Nan frowned.

He was sure he had not seen it wrong before, but now, where had the blood at the corner of the Jesus statue's mouth gone?

"Indeed, is there something strange about this statue?"

Chu Nan muttered to himself and raised the spider claw again, preparing to destroy the Jesus statue completely.

"Boy, what do you want to do?"

Several people crowded forward, glaring at Chu Nan and blocking him.

"Boy, if you dare to disrespect the omnipotent god again, do you believe I will beat you to death, you heretic?" A bald man with a thick gold chain around his neck, looking fierce, glared at Chu Nan.

Several women stood beside him, all looking ferocious, ready to protect the Jesus statue. Their eyes seemed to want to eat Chu Nan.

Chu Nan looked at them and pointed to Zhou Yun, who was nailed to the cross, and said, "Didn't you see that someone was killed here? I want to find the murderer!"

The bald man was furious: "What bullshit! Looking for what murderer? I think you look like the murderer. If you continue to blaspheme, what if the omnipotent god gets angry and no longer protects this church? When those skeleton monsters rush in, we will all be killed by you."

With these words, more than ten people echoed, and they all surged forward.

The previous thick fog and skeleton monsters had bypassed the church, giving it a mysterious aura, as if it was protected by a divine being. Chu Nan's actions indeed stirred their sensitive nerves.

On the other side, Shen Mo, Nangong Xiong, and others also crowded over.

"Everyone, calm down, calm down." Shen Mo raised his voice and shouted.

Nangong Xiong also looked puzzled and said, "Chu Nan, what's wrong with you? Why are you destroying this statue?"

Chu Nan did not know how to explain. He couldn't say that Zhou Yun and the other woman were killed, and he suspected the Jesus statue.

Although Zhou Yun and the other woman were killed, the group had seen too many deaths on their journey, and they were almost numb. So, the addition of two more dead bodies did not overly concern them.

"They are dead, and I want to find the murderer..." Chu Nan said coldly.

"Finding the murderer, why do you need to destroy the Jesus statue?" Shen Mo was also puzzled.

Su Yao and Tang Sanli on the other side also looked stunned.

"Chu Nan must have his reasons," Tang Sanli finally spoke, firmly supporting Chu Nan. In fact, Chu Nan had saved him several times on this journey.

"There's no reason at all," the bald man shouted, waving his hands, almost unable to resist hitting Chu Nan.

Chu Nan stared at him. If this man dared to make a move, he could kick him ten meters away in an instant.

"Have you ever heard a story?"

Suddenly, a somewhat hoarse voice came from behind. In the chaotic crowd, an old man with gray temples walked out.

This old man was the one who had previously told the story of the Flying Dutchman's ghost ship.

Chu Nan looked at him.

"In an ancient novel called 'The Record of Gods and Monsters,' there is a story about a mountain village with a temple. Inside the temple was a statue that received various offerings and sacrifices from people. Over time, the originally clay and wooden statue came to life."

Many people were startled by the old man's sudden storytelling and looked at him.

Chu Nan, however, felt a stir in his heart.

The old man continued, "The statue, having come to life, enjoyed human blood. The village's women and children suffered one after another, but no one knew who the murderer was. Instead, they offered more incense and sacrifices to the statue, seeking protection. It wasn't until a wise man came and discovered the truth. He struck the clay statue with a mallet, and blood flowed out. It turned out that the statue, having absorbed human blood and received offerings, had grown veins and arteries inside."

The old man's sudden telling of this legendary story made everyone understand his meaning. Many people instinctively looked at the Jesus statue at the front. Could it be that this legend was true, and the Jesus statue, having received the faith of the people, had come to life?

The bald man with the thick gold chain angrily shouted, "Nonsense! The omnipotent god has always had a spirit. Without the protection of the god, we would have all died long ago. How could the god harm us?"

The old man, however, stared at the left arm of the Jesus statue that Chu Nan had cut off, nodded, and sighed, "Yes, it's just a story. If the story were true, there should be blood flowing from the broken arm. Clearly, this is just an ordinary clay statue. Young man, perhaps you really suspected the wrong direction."

After saying this, the old man looked at Chu Nan and said, "It's dangerous to provoke the masses. There's no need for conflict now."

He then shook his head at Chu Nan.

In the church, almost all the people stood with the bald man. Everyone believed that the church had a mysterious power that had protected them in the thick fog. If Chu Nan really destroyed the Jesus statue and the church lost its power, and the skeleton monsters rushed in, they would all be doomed. Therefore, almost everyone stood up to protect the Jesus statue.

Chu Nan frowned, looking at the broken arm of the Jesus statue. It did not bleed as described in 'The Record of Gods and Monsters.' It seemed that he might have been overly suspicious, and the Jesus statue was just an ordinary statue.

Stepping back a few steps, the tense atmosphere eased somewhat.

Many people, seeing the left arm of the Jesus statue destroyed, glared fiercely at Chu Nan.

Some of them were so angry that they wanted to rush over and teach Chu Nan a lesson.

Tang Sanli, Su Yao, Shen Mo, and others also crowded over, but they stood on Chu Nan's side.

Seeing Chu Nan retreat, the bald man thought Chu Nan was afraid and took advantage of the situation. With their numbers, he stepped forward, grabbed Chu Nan's collar, and threatened him fiercely, "Boy, you destroyed the Jesus statue. If the god gets angry and no longer protects this church, and those damned skeleton monsters rush in, I will be the first to kill you!"

Chu Nan gave him a cold look. Suddenly, the golden power in his right leg burst forth, and his right leg turned golden.

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