Chapter 78
Chapter 78
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Became the Cult Leader of a Fake Religion (3)
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Hypnosis, brainwashing, mental manipulation, and so on.
These are collectively known as MC stories.
In other words, they mind-control the heroine, completely corrupting her, subjecting her to all sorts of humiliations until she becomes a sex slave.
They had an absolutely perfect synergy with the netorare genre.
Making someone cheat on their wife or girlfriend.
Defiling the person someone else loves before they even get a chance.
The NTR guys who snapped their fingers to instill utter helplessness in their victims were the worst kind of villains, no exaggeration.
They planted all sorts of suggestions in the heroines, and they were as cunning as their cheats allowed.
It was hard to even figure out what kind of brainwashing the heroine had fallen under.
What hypnosis she was trapped in.
And there were quite a few cases where the heroines themselves were uncooperative.
They'd throw fits just hearing the words hypnosis or brainwashing.
The mind-controlled heroine herself wouldn't even realize her state and would lash out at anyone treating her like she was off.
For the husbands, girlfriends, or crushes who'd lost their loved ones, all they could do was watch helplessly as she slipped away.
But even those cheat-level mind-control powers weren't without weaknesses.
There were two major ones.
First, the suggestions could be broken simply by making the victim aware of the hypnosis or brainwashing.
Encouraging rational thinking in the heroine, pointing out contradictions in the suggestions, and restoring her distorted perception and cognition to normal.
That's why the NTR guys went to great lengths to hide their suggestion triggers and contents.
Second, those NTR guys were still human.
Their powers might be perfect, but the people wielding them never were.
They overestimated their abilities, and they had unexpected flaws.
In that sense, Kang Woojin was the natural predator of those MC-type NTR villains.
Having played the original game, he knew the big and small events of this world's future inside out—including exactly what hypnosis or brainwashing the heroines were under.
Moreover, being intimately familiar with the NTR guys' circumstances, he even had high resistance to mind control itself.
There was still a slim chance he could get brainwashed without realizing it.
But with his sensory manipulation ability, he was effectively immune to hypnosis, brainwashing, and other mind-control tricks on a matchup level.
Even so.
Just like when dealing with Choi Si-hyeok, Kang Woojin never let his guard down for a second. He proceeded with utmost caution, targeting the weaknesses of Han Jong-hoe and his daughter Han Ye-eun.
[Yeah, Ye-eun-ah. Already there? I'm just about to head out too.]
Like right now.
[Alright, see you in a bit.]
After finishing his call with Han Ye-eun, Kang Woojin prepared to head to school at the crack of dawn.
Swoosh.
Suddenly, a shadow fell over his back as Kang Eun-seol emerged from her room, scratching her bare white belly.
"Yaaawn. Bro, where you off to again?"
"Academy."
"This early?"
"Gotta get there early. Winter break's coming up soon, so think of it as wrapping things up properly."
"You've been super diligent lately. Heading out at this hour all the time, huh?"
Unaware that her brother was engaged in cult activities, Kang Eun-seol rubbed her eyes and added.
"Anyway, bye."
She gave a small wave with her other hand for good measure.
"Yeah. Looks like you pulled an all-nighter too, Eun-seol. Sleep well."
He nodded and mentioned her streaming activities.
With Kang Eun-seol's days and nights completely flipped, they lived together yet barely crossed paths—making moments like this their only chances for chit-chat.
"All-nighter? Nah, just chatting with viewers and gaming. It's more fun than I thought..."
"Oh, right—still no luck with companies?"
"Yeah..."
Kang Eun-seol's situation hadn't changed much, but internet streaming had brought some positive shifts.
At least she wasn't crying through the nights anymore.
Dark circles aside, her expressions were noticeably brighter than before.
"Still, glad you've taken a liking to streaming. How many subscribers? What games you playing these days?"
On a whim, Kang Woojin paused at the door and turned back.
"Subscribers... uh, last I checked yesterday, 532. Viewers average around 100."
As expected.
No originality in content, no special hook to the channel—but Kang Eun-seol was racking up subs fast on looks alone.
"Game's [Maid Connect! Re:Dive]. It's a gacha one. You know it, bro?"
"Oh, that. Played the original before the reboot."
"For real? Then help with my stream next time? Like pulling for me or brainstorming content. Honestly, no clue what else to do here."
"Sure."
Kang Woojin readily agreed to her request for help.
After all, he'd pushed her into streaming to follow the original story to some extent.
For his one and only little sister, he could help out anytime(?).
"For now, do what you can on your own."
Even if she told him to stop meddling like old times, he planned to insert himself into every aspect of her life—and he smiled, promising to follow up later.
"I'll think on it too. We'll brainstorm heads together sometime."
"Yeah, thanks."
With that, Kang Woojin left the officetel and headed to his old house before going to the academy.
[Dropping by the temple today too. Don't wait up, Sia. See you at the academy.]
Cynthia, still utterly devoted to him.
[You too, Harin-ah.]
He left the message in the group chat with Yoo Harin, then went on.
Morning cult activities had become part of his daily routine.
* * *
Morning sunlight bathed the grand mansion.
Whoosh. Swish.
A few people were doing qigong exercises in one corner of the garden, swinging their limbs.
"What do you think?"
I asked Han Ye-eun, proudly showing off the temple I'd established, just like I'd done before.
"Uh, it's... totally legit...?"
She gawked, reacting with the same unfiltered awe I once had.
"You were serious, Woojin-ah..."
Not just the grand, impressive design of the world's most majestic temple—the interior layout and decor left her stunned too.
"Of course. Who joins a religion as a joke? Even if they did, they wouldn't burn over 3 billion won."
Me, at the top of the Peach Blossom Truth Cult's donor list, chin up like I owned the place.
"Honestly, when you said come check out the temple, I wondered what you were thinking. Makes sense you'd wanna brag now..."
"Right?"
"Can I go inside?"
"Obviously. In a way, I joined the Truth Cult because of you, Ye-eun-ah. Had to show it to you at least."
Revealing my tremendous faith(?), I led Han Ye-eun deeper into the mansion.
"But, Woojin-ah."
As we entered, she suddenly asked like it'd just occurred to her.
"Why are all the followers here women?"
Pointing at the female devotees doing qigong.
"That's..."
Regardless of age, I'd only let women into this temple because I couldn't trust damn men.
"Just a coincidence."
But I couldn't say that straight-up, so I gave an awkward smile.
"Hmm. Seems suspicious. Mind if I peek at the membership registry later?"
She teased with a playful grin.
"What? Did you transfer to the 감사부 or something? Since when?"
"Kidding, kidding. Obviously not on purpose, but recruit some male followers too. Gotta balance yin and yang."
Not like that—I wanna achieve a very lewd yin-yang harmony with you, Ye-eun-ah.
I guarantee we'd be perfectly compatible, great in bed.
I could make you feel pleasure you never could before.
"Thanks for the advice."
No matter what, I couldn't pounce on Ye-eun right then, so I showed her around the mansion.
First stop: the basement.
"Put the scrolls and Buddha statues down here. Wanted to keep it separate from the living areas."
The dimly lit space housed an imaginative portrait of the Primordial Heavenly Venerable, along with the Peach Blossom Truth Cult's signature double-faced Asura Buddha statue.
Might seem odd for a Taoism-based place to have a Buddha statue, but that proved it was a cult.
Taoism had borrowed heavily from Buddhism anyway.
"Did you light the incense, Woojin-ah?"
Han Ye-eun stared at the two-faced statue and said.
"Nah, Jiwon changes it every morning."
"Jiwon...?"
"She lives here and helps manage the temple."
"I-I see..."
"Probably upstairs. Let's head up."
I also showed her the meditation room and the library stocked with scriptures.
And soon after.
Exiting through the main gate, I naturally got Ye-eun into my car and asked.
"De Neve Academy, right? This the address?"
"Yeah. You don't have to drive me..."
"It's fine. Don't wanna be late. Buckle up."
Saying that, I leaned in like an embrace to fasten her seatbelt myself.
"Th-thanks..."
Han Ye-eun blushed as the distance closed suddenly then pulled away.
From her reaction, one thing was clear.
'Looks like the emotional side isn't brainwashed.'
She felt discomfort at skinship with a guy crossing lines, but she didn't hate men themselves.
Like at the local chapter before.
Meaning she could develop favor or affection toward me.
"Ye-eun-ah."
Confirming that, I deliberately lowered my voice, recalling the local chapter incident.
"H-huh? What?"
"Can I hold your hand?"
"...Hand?"
"You said speak up if I wanted to before."
"But you're driving..."
"Autopilot's on."
I extended my arm sideways, offering my hand.
"Mm..."
The bold girl from before now let out a small groan of shyness.
But.
She took my hand.
Maybe because of her own words.
Or maybe she already felt more than friendship toward me.
One thing was certain: the name Kang Woojin was carving out a big space in her mind, constantly shuttling between past and present.
"Ye-eun-ah."
Pressing the advantage, I gently scratched her palm with my index finger.
"Wh-what now?"
Her shoulders twitched, but she didn't pull away—instead, she stared out the window and asked back.
She wasn't feeling sexual pleasure, of course.
Her flushed face suggested ticklishness and deep embarrassment at the situation.
"Can I ask you for one favor, Ye-eun-ah?"
"...Favor?"
"Yeah. Thing is, everyone's kinda salty 'cause I put my name on the registry as a mega-donor."
"Well..."
"As you know, I'm just a nominal disciple. None of the chapter leaders or elders upstairs have taught me doctrine."
"Can't be helped now. People's stares will fade with time..."
"That's why—could you teach me, Ye-eun-ah?"
I stared straight into her eyes and continued.
"Reading scriptures alone, tons I don't get. Hard to interpret, or I get it but can't picture it."
"Mm. I'll teach what I know. Specifically, what..."
"Most curious about? Bedroom arts, obviously."
"...Bedroom—hic!"
The would-be saintess candidate of the lewd Peach Blossom Truth Cult was still a virgin and hiccuped.
"Read the cult rules—formal disciples at Lord rank can have cultivation partners, right?"
"Th-that's, um..."
"I want you as my partner, Ye-eun-ah."
"I-I'm a candidate for Great Joy Saintess... so until now, with no one..."
I gripped her hand tight as her eyes darted side to side, pushing hard.
"No one's tried 'cause of status. But nothing says saintess candidates can't cultivate or have partners."
I drove the point home with cult rules.
"Be my dual cultivation partner, Ye-eun-ah."
In plain terms: be my sex partner.
Be my comrade—no, my dual cultivation mate, Ye-eun-ah!