Chapter 601: Chapter 372: I am a Barbarian, After Entering the Pass, a Great Scholar will Argue the Scriptures for Me

“You will not die a good death, you definitely will not die a good death.”

Pamom cursed hysterically, but as he saw the approaching Genetic Warrior, he lost control of his bladder and bowels from fear.

No matter how much these monks struggled or cursed, it was futile. The Genetic Warriors, following Su Jie’s orders, stepped forward to rid these monks of their worries.

The ear-piercing screams were incessant. Although the Genetic Warriors had never performed such acts before, their enhanced physical abilities were on par with those of highly skilled surgeons; with their daggers, they performed purifications, erasing worries and truly achieving a state of desirelessness.

“Can… Can I do it?”

Suddenly, a voice came from behind.

Su Jie turned his head to see several imprisoned women being brought out.

Their eyes filled with resentment as they looked at the monks, disregarding the risks, they gritted their teeth and spoke.

“Leave it to you.”

Su Jie smiled and the Genetic Warrior stood up from his crouch, handing over the blood-stained dagger to them.

The women stepped forward one by one, their eyes full of hatred.

Many of them had been devout Buddhists, but it was precisely because they trusted these high monks that they ended up in such a plight, imprisoned in an underground, torture-ridden hell. Now, with the chance for revenge at hand, everyone was eager to retaliate.

“You… don’t come over, ah ah ah ah ah!”

One after another, the screams were heartrendingly shrill. These women were even more ruthless than the Genetic Warriors; their actions were savage and brutal as they unleashed their inner rage upon the monks.

Several monks were literally killed by them, while those still alive were picked up by the Genetic Warriors and tied to columns.

A Spider Main Battle Mecha slowly moved forward, its cannon aimed down, targeting Monk King Pamom with its 203mm barrel.

In Pamom’s terrified gaze, the cannon’s muzzle flashed with fire, and a deafening explosion resounded.

Pamom’s body was blown apart, leaving a huge crater where he had stood, erasing all traces of his existence.

There wasn’t even a piece of him left, truly a death without a place for burial.

Following him, other so-called enlightened monks were executed one by one by the Spider Main Battle Mecha.

20mm and 30mm machine guns targeted these monks for free shooting. The dense bullets bombarded them like rain, rending their bodies into pieces, scattering their body parts all over the ground.

No matter how revered they had been in life or how much they were seen as deities by many Buddhists, their deaths were utterly disgraceful.

They were neither protected by Buddha nor able to go to the Western Paradise; after being torn apart by the machine guns, their souls were sucked into the Ten Thousand Soul Banner.

The Buddhist congregation kneeling on the ground were all in a state of shock, having witnessed firsthand how the Monk King died, the spiritual leader of all Siamese Buddhists, blasted into the sky by a single shot.

But no one dared to resist anymore, or even speak, because Jieke Group was truly willing to kill.

Having experienced the ruthlessness of Jieke Group, most people understood that power was the ultimate law; they were utterly powerless to resist any decision made by Jieke Group.

With the deaths of the Monk King and others, Su Jie did not cease his actions. Buddhism’s influence was too significant and not conducive to Su Jie’s control; Siam did not need such a powerful organization to exist.

“From now on, in the entire Southeast Asia, abolish all the special privileges of Buddhism, reduce the number of monks and Buddhist temples, seize all Buddhist temples and monks, arrest those who are guilty and execute those who should be executed. In Southeast Asia, there needs to be only one voice, that is to listen to my voice.”

Su Jie’s gaze then turned to Liu Yingying and Baiya; Liu Yingying naturally had no issue.

She was an unbeliever from Hua Country with no interest in any religious sect.

As for Baiya, having just finished vomiting and seeing Su Jie’s cruel methods, he was already terrified inside and didn’t dare to refuse, quickly nodding and saying, “Mr. Su, I understand, I will definitely follow your instructions.”

Su Jie then faced the kneeling mass of Buddhists, walked forward, and said coldly, “Start with these guys, send all these rioters to the labor camps in the mines, let them comprehend the true essence of Buddhist teachings through suffering, and when they come to their senses, consider them becoming normal people again.”

“You barbarian, you can control our bodies, but don’t even think about controlling our souls.”

A Buddhist yelled defiantly but ultimately lacked the courage to stand up, as the muzzle was already pointing at him.

“Correct, I am a barbarian, but once I enter the gate, there will be Great Scholars to argue scriptures for me. Even if my acts are extreme, afterwards, they will still honor me as their leader.”

Su Jie sneered disdainfully and no longer paid attention to the impotent rage of the Buddhists, turning away and leaving the place.

The next day, as the whole of Siam was shaken by the events at Moran Temple, under Su Jie’s orders, a campaign to eradicate Buddhism was vigorously launched across Southeast Asia.

Buddhism had an enormous influence in Southeast Asia, with Siam being the most profoundly impacted country.

In Siam, 90% of the population practiced Buddhism. The nation had over 30,000 temples, more than 9,000 Buddhist colleges, and several Buddhist universities. Monks had an extraordinarily high status; national education and daily life included the study of Buddhist knowledge and norms.

Under Buddhist rules, men had to join the monastery before they could marry, typically for one month.

Citizens were required to regularly make offerings to monks, who would accept worship from the followers, placing them above ordinary citizens.

When Su Jie’s orders were issued and one decree after another targeting Buddhism was signed, Siam was the first to act.

The Jieke Group’s troops stationed in Siam scattered swiftly. Armies, armed to the teeth, knocked on monks’ doors, while Spider Main Battle Mechas smashed through the gates of temples, invading these sanctified places.

Disaster followed disaster for the Buddhists: numerous temples were consecutively banned, vast temple properties were confiscated, innocent monks were forced to return to secular life, and those found guilty were taken to prison.

Subsequently, a large number of temples and sanctuaries were sealed or demolished, and assets such as temple buildings, lands, and bronze statues were totally confiscated.

In no time, the whole of Siam was filled with the cries of monks; every day, monks could be seen being escorted to prison, and numerous temples were forcibly shut down and dismantled.

Meanwhile, the Siam Royal Family issued a decree that all Siamese people were no longer to follow Buddhist rules, all Buddhist-related knowledge in schools was to be erased, and all Buddhist universities were to be closed. Furthermore, all future government officials could not include Buddhists.

Those who still clung blindly to Buddhist faith would face restrictions in every aspect of work and life.

Through various measures, the Jieke Group’s campaign to eradicate Buddhism was conducted with great fervor. Within just a month, Buddhism, which had been widespread throughout Siam and included many revered monks, suddenly found itself deserted.

Beyond the ruin of Buddhism, what was not realized was even more shocking.

The influence of Buddhism in Siam was too deeply integrated into each aspect of the nation. The very existence of Buddhism conflicted with the state. Many laborers joined monasteries or aligned with temples as lay disciples, undertaking temple work, which thus accumulated substantial lands and labor force.

Not only did these monks not engage in labor, but they also enjoyed substantial fiscal subsidies. Siam provided salaries to monks based on their ranks, essentially maintaining hundreds of thousands of monks at government expense.

These monks and temples often had numerous privileges locally, required to pay little or even no taxes, and vast wealth was siphoned away by them, like parasites leeching off the nation.

Their controlled wealth never entered the tax system, thus could not be utilized for military or national construction, which was intolerable for the Jieke Group aiming for complete control over Siam.

Since it impacted the revenue-making ability of Siam, it was blocking the financial paths of Jieke Group. Competing against the Jieke Group, armed to the teeth, could only lead to predictable consequences.

Fueled by this eradication of Buddhism, the Jieke Group boasted impressive accomplishments: shutting down 30,000 temples, returning over 300,000 monks to secular life, confiscating millions of hectares of prime land, and accumulating a massive amount of riches, fattening the Jieke Group from this Buddhist calamity.

These Buddhists appeared upright but possessed excellent skills at accumulating wealth, exploiting Buddhism’s extremely high status in Siam to develop numerous means to make money.

Through the looting of Buddhist assets, the Jieke Group obtained large sums of cash, immediately initiating several new Mechanical Combat Brigades and planning to purchase more armaments from abroad while investing in extensive infrastructure like roads, bridges, railways, and hospitals.

After the crackdown on Buddhism in Siam, this campaign of eradication swiftly spread throughout the whole of Southeast Asia.

Zhenla, Chan Country, An Nan, Lancang–none escaped, all entered the phase of the eradication of Buddhism.

The Buddhists didn’t intend not to resist, but the Jieke Group, through its military force, entirely controlled the situation. How could the entirely unarmed Buddhists stand against the brutal, domineering Jieke Group?

Two months later, the entire Southeast Asia was transformed. All temples were regulated and banned, and the number of temples and monks was less than a tenth of what it had been before; a vast amount of wealth and land was in the hands of the Jieke Group.

Not long after the Jieke Group announced the end of the eradication campaign, it was Su Jie’s birthday. Many high-ranking Buddhist monks spontaneously gathered at the Manchester Royal Palace, kneeling with banners and a statue of Su Jie towering over ten meters high.

Behind these high monks waved the Jieke Group’s military flags, as they knelt outside the gate and shouted, “Mr. Su, unparalleled in righteousness, brings all earth under his rule, saves the world from difficulties, has a heart like the Bodhisattva, truly a reincarnated Buddha from heaven. On this birthday, with boundless joy, it should be celebrated universally. Wishing Mr. Su a life as long-lasting as heaven and earth and as bright as the sun and moon.”

These monks, by kneeling and shouting, seemed to have completely forgotten that Su Jie was the one who ordered the eradication of Buddhism. Instead, they declared him a reincarnated Buddha, defended him passionately, and flattered him outrageously, shattering conventional views.

The nearby Siamese people, witnessing this shameless behavior, felt their faces burning with embarrassment and disgrace.

Yet these high monks didn’t care in the slightest, completely submitting to Su Jie, and vied with each other to demonstrate their loyalty, fearing that their flattery wasn’t sufficiently servile.

Thus, with the submission of these high monks, along with the reduced influence of Buddhism, they descended from their high positions to the secular world.

With this campaign to eradicate Buddhism, Su Jie ensured that the Jieke Group became the sole influential voice in Siam, with no domestic powers daring to contend with the Jieke Group anymore.