285: Santa Maria Maggiore

“Put some more effort into it!”

“We should be able to complete one-tenth of the foundation today!”

“Heiya hey, heiya hey!”

“It is our honor to build the Great Holy Mother Palace for the great Supreme Holy Mother and the righteous Holy Mother Sect!”

“Every one of us should be proud of this, work hard to build it, and strive to let the Holy Mothers move into the Holy Mother Palace as soon as possible.”

“Just thinking about the benevolent Holy Mothers being able to move into the magnificent Holy Mother Palace that we are building…”

“…even my back straightens up unconsciously.”

“Yes, yes, the Holy Mothers are truly Holy Mothers. Even while working, I feel much better.”

…

Under the scorching sun, countless people, bare-chested and drenched in sweat, toiled in a vast open space.

Sweat gathered on their bodies into large droplets, splashing onto the ground with a pattering sound.

They dared not look up, fearing that if they did, sweat would stream into their eyes.

Here, there were no conditions for rubbing one’s eyes.

However, just thinking that they were building the Holy Mother Palace suddenly filled them with vigor.

The Holy Mother Palace, the most righteous and upright power on the Sky Dome Continent.

It was located in the heart of the Central State, at the center of the Sky Dome.

It spanned four million four hundred forty-three thousand kilometers in length, three million seven hundred thousand kilometers in width, and five hundred seventy-eight thousand six hundred ninety-nine kilometers in height.

Inside, it contained the Hall of Benevolence, the Hall of Sacred Virtue, the Hall of Good Virtue, Heaven and Earth…

This was a grand project, and most people in the Central State voluntarily participated in its construction.

Countless people worked hard, toiled desperately, and shed their sweat, all just so the Holy Mother Palace could be completed one day sooner, allowing the great Holy Mothers to move in one day earlier.

Clunk!

At this moment, perhaps due to an overwhelming devotion to the Holy Mothers, someone suddenly lost his grip on a huge rock, which then smashed onto his body.

The man immediately spat out a mouthful of blood, pinned under the boulder, but he desperately covered his mouth, not daring to make a sound.

However, blood still gushed out continuously through the gaps between his fingers.

Those working nearby saw him, but no one paid him any mind, continuing to do their own work.

They knew this man; he still had an old mother at home, and originally, he had a wife and children.

However, his wife and children had been taken away by the Holy Mother Sect to 'make contributions,' leaving only his old mother at home.

But what did that matter? There were countless people like him in the field.

There was nothing to pity; weren't they all the same?

The man was still desperately holding on, tears almost welling up from the pain, but he just wouldn't make a sound.

However, with such a loud commotion, the Holy Mother responsible for overseeing the area naturally noticed it.

With a compassionate expression, she wore a kasaya, baring her chest, and walked barefoot to the man's side.

Seeing the man's tragic state, the sorrow on her face was completely unconcealable, and she asked with concern, “What happened to you?”

Seeing that the Holy Mother had already arrived, the man knew he could no longer hide it.

He quickly spoke, with a hint of pleading in his tone, “Holy Mother… Holy Mother, I just… I was just too tired.

Now, too, as long as… as long as I rest for a bit, I’ll be fine!”

The Holy Mother looked at the man under the stone; a pool of blood had already formed beneath him.

She knew he loved the Holy Mothers too much, that even injured, he wanted to continue working and did not want to leave.

He was unwilling to give up his chance to contribute to the Holy Mothers. What sincerity this was!

“Supreme Holy Mother, good, good. But you can no longer work. Why not go down?”

(Here, 'Supreme Holy Mother' is used in the same way monks and Taoists commonly say 'Amitabha' or 'Boundless Heavenly Venerate'.)

Upon hearing this, the man's face changed drastically, and he cried out, “No, I can still work, I can still… Pfft, pfft, pfft!”

Before he could finish speaking, the man suddenly spat out several more mouthfuls of blood, and his face instantly turned pale.

He had been holding it in, but now that he spoke, the blood could no longer be stopped.

He could only look at the Holy Mother with a helpless, pleading gaze.

The Holy Mother understood his meaning and sighed softly, “Your devotion to the Supreme Holy Mother has already been felt by her. Why do you struggle so?”

“In the 'Scriptures of Virtue,' there is a passage that says this.”

“The Mother said: Humans are born with sin. They should follow the teachings of the Holy Mothers, experience the ups and downs of worldly affairs to atone for their sins. Only when atonement is complete can great liberation be attained.”

After explaining, the Holy Mother looked at the person under the stone and said with an envious expression, “The fact that you were struck by a huge rock today is a sign that your atonement is complete.

This is Heaven wanting you to shed your mortal body and grant you great liberation!”

Speaking of this, the Holy Mother couldn't help but once again reflect on the greatness of the Supreme Holy Mother, “Supreme Holy Mother, good, good.”

The man desperately shook his head. The Holy Mother understood his meaning; he was saying he didn't want to wait and hoped it would happen sooner.

The Holy Mother's eyes were full of smiles, “You, ah, you're already so impatient. But then again, to attain great liberation, this is something countless people in the world envy.”

Thus, the Holy Mother placed her hand on the huge rock. The rock trembled slightly, then began to move downwards.

The man under the stone felt the pressure on his body grow heavier and heavier, and his expression became increasingly distorted.

All the blood in his body, under the immense pressure, frantically sought an outlet to escape.

Since the boulder was pressing down on his body, the blood naturally gathered towards the edges of his body.

At this moment, some small areas of his body where blood clots had formed from the compression had already burst open from the accumulated blood.

However, most of the blood was squeezed into his head, and the man's face changed from white back to red.

It was easy to see that in the head, the mouth was clearly the best outlet.

Seeing that the blood in his mouth was about to gush out like a fountain.

But the Holy Mother was quick-witted. She was inherently averse to seeing blood, so she quickly acted to seal his mouth.

It could be seen that the man's head was noticeably larger, like a balloon.

But there were other outlets besides the mouth: the six orifices of the ears, nose, and eyes. Blood was already flowing incessantly from them, like small rivers.

The pressure from the stone, however, grew greater and greater. The man's body was completely covered by the huge rock, sinking into the ground.

Immediately after, with a 'bang,' his head could no longer withstand the blood pressure and exploded directly underground.

Blood was already seeping out from the cracks along the edge of the stone.

Soon, the entire huge rock was completely submerged in the ground, leaving only a tiny tip of the stone visible.

The Holy Mother waved her hand and sliced off the protruding tip instantly, revealing a stone surface as smooth as a mirror.

After doing all this, the Holy Mother clasped her hands together, “Supreme Holy Mother, meritorious achievement complete!”

When the surrounding workers saw this, their backs no longer ached, their legs no longer hurt, and they felt even more energized.

The tools in their hands were swung with more force than before, whistling through the air with power.

The Holy Mother saw this scene and nodded gently.

It seemed that the man's attainment of great liberation had motivated them.

Each and every one of them was working desperately, hoping to cleanse themselves of their sins one day sooner.

Thereby achieving great merit, great fortune, and great liberation!

In the distance, Chen De watched this scene from afar, then glanced at the Holy Mother Palace, which was still under construction, only its foundation laid.

But the magnificent and spectacular sight could not be concealed.

Beneath every stone brick of the Great Holy Mother Palace lay the life-like dedication of countless people.

Perhaps only in this way could the grandeur of the Holy Mother Palace be highlighted, and the greatness of the Holy Mothers truly displayed.