Chapter 18 Why Modern People Are Not Easily Fooled by Religion?

Why are modern people not easily fooled by religion? Aside from seeing certain religious factions putting on farces to gain secular influence during U.S. election years, it's likely because most questions and doubts have various explanations. Science allows people to understand the ever-changing weather, everything in nature, the diseases and disasters that always cause fear, and even fear itself. Perhaps people have less awe and obsession with certain things, and perhaps the lack of faith isn't a good thing for some, but religion almost never has the opportunity to build faith on the ignorance of the masses.

In an era when people are generally rational, religious fanaticism still emerges in various groups... for example, fans. On one hand, people need some spiritual sustenance or release, and on the other hand, in an age of developed information, the great enrichment of various propaganda techniques, summarized and refined from thousands of years of time and from modern mass communication theories, plays a considerable role. Deceiving people's hearts has become something that can be manipulated in the eyes of some.

At first, Ye Tao was a little hesitant to write such an action plan. After all, this wasn't about building some great building, but about creating a huge deception. If this plan could succeed, even if it was highly controlled, it would inevitably cause many people to doubt, panic, and feel disappointed in the future. However, when Ye Tao tried hard to recall various propaganda methods, various psychological cues, and various methods of creating "miracles" by using knowledge and creativity that surpassed this era or by taking advantage of human blind spots in thinking, when these methods were hesitantly copied onto the draft paper by him, arranged, and considered whether they should really be written into this potentially most detailed and evil plan in history, the long-dormant spirit of mischief quietly surfaced, finally allowing him to write all kinds of bizarre ideas into the plan. He didn't have to care what kind of reaction this thing would cause after it was sent up, didn't have to pay attention to how many people could understand these things and truly understand the real meaning of some seemingly naive and ridiculous methods, didn't have to care about how many censor officials who had attacked him and seemed to enjoy attacking him would blow their beards and stare, and didn't have to care about how many people would laugh out loud because of the mischievous and interesting content... Being able to appreciate various reactions and expressions was perhaps one of the pleasures Ye Tao could pursue.

In Ye Tao's view, the Daoming Sect had many similarities to the Taoism from the time and space he and Tan Weixin came from, summarizing and refining a set of divine position systems from the ancient myths and historical development of this time and space. The Daoming Sect might be the perfecter of this system. They devoted a lot of energy and financial resources to summarize and organize the divine position system of traditional religions, and also published relevant documents, but the Daoming Sect could not be regarded as the original creator of this divine position system and religious genealogy. Although the similarity of cultures among countries meant that the Daoming Sect did not encounter much resistance when quietly infiltrating countries other than Xiling, this cultural similarity, this common framework with almost identical divine position systems and a vast historical depth, had too many places that could be exploited.

Ye Tao chose Lei Yin Mozun (Demon Lord of Thunderous Sound) from the vast divine position system, a not-so-famous figure who had always stood behind several great gods in legends, known for his eccentric temper and resolute actions to eliminate evil. Judging from the folk rumors and the documents compiled by the Daoming Sect, according to Ye Tao's ideas, this guy was a thorough conspiracy theorist and a paranoid sufferer, and this personality led this "god" to constantly change his image, constantly kill evil in its infancy, and constantly create a sense of mystery... And this "god" had countless various folk tales, and in the stories, "Lei Yin Mozun" mostly left people with the image of a good person with an eccentric personality, and there were too many elements that could be excavated and utilized.

With such an image as the core, and with mystery and a sense of justice as the core values, Ye Tao thoroughly played a round of integrated marketing communication. He didn't regard himself as a swindler or anything else, but completely placed himself in the position of a brand marketing manager, except that what he wanted to promote was a virtual product, and in this era, promoting such a product was really challenging. Design, as Ye Tao's old profession, was naturally not difficult for him. He quickly designed a simple and clear identification mark for Lei Yin Mozun and drew several different styles of images. As a designer with a solid foundation in art, he had also copied various figure paintings by Mr. Dai Dunbang in his early years, and admired that kind of brushwork and tone, and that kind of flamboyant and vivid figure image very much. Now, he pondered that kind of brushwork feeling, and used upright ink lines to present the image of a "god" who was firm and somewhat crazy, wearing gorgeous armor, wearing a beast head mask, carrying a bow that opened like wings, and holding a long spear on paper, he felt that the feeling of copying those figure paintings in those years had returned. In addition to such a standard ink portrait, various other extended images also emerged one after another, including New Year picture-style god portraits with strong contrast and rich colors, meticulous god portraits with gongbi figure painting properties but with strict proportions like photos, and even cartoon versions of god portraits that he scribbled at will were not difficult for him at all. The only trouble was that he didn't have a complete set of painting tools with him after all, and that complete set of painting tools had always been Dai Qiuyan's patent.

After having an image, he also edited the *Canon* for this imaginary religion. Due to the personality of this Lei Yin Mozun, the core *Canon* was only a collection of quotations of less than one hundred pages. However, Ye Tao put a lot of effort into the surrounding materials of the *Canon*. The annotations and commentaries on the *Canon* were finally completed, and with the icons and line-drawn embroidered images that Ye Tao added to it, it was estimated to be more than four hundred pages thick. In addition, Ye Tao also wrote a "biography" of Lei Yin Mozun's step-by-step transformation from a mortal into a god according to the legendary framework, and roughly determined a *Legend of Lei Yin Mozun* that was more faithful to folk legends and slightly exaggerated. This "biography" was just the beginning. On the basis of this biography, Ye Tao drafted an outline for the *Romance of the Demon Lord* story that storytellers could tell in taverns and teahouses. This more YY outline would be even more exaggerated after being embellished by storytellers in combination with the local language characteristics, but the goal of leaving a fresher impression on the listening public would be easier to achieve. He was even actively considering the possibility of bringing the story of the Demon Lord to the folk drama stage. At least, he already had a stage play script for the *Legend of the Demon Lord* in his mind. When he returned to Danyang, he might be able to let those children of aristocratic families who had been cultivated by Tan Weixin to have an interest in stage plays during that idle time try it out.

After envisioning the theoretical level of the entire "Lei Yin Mozun" plan, Ye Tao began to plan the practical aspects. In the process of spreading a "religion", there were some things that had to be done, such as establishing a temple-type building complex. And those "sacrifices" or "monks" in the temple would always need clothing that was compatible with the style of the "god" they were worshiping, which could be graded. The sacrificial clothing that Ye Tao drew looked a bit like Japanese Kendo clothing, except that the protective gear was removed, the helmet was replaced with a hood, and masks were added, and the different forms and materials of the masks simply formed the hierarchy between the sacrifices. Considering smooth breathing, the Jiaobing (teaching soldiers) belonging to the temple used mask-style masks covered with mesh, and the weapons used were mainly specially designed heavy swords that could be held with both hands and one hand.

The temple was just the fulcrum of the entire religious system. What was more important was the organizational structure of this "religion". Since Ye Tao was considering a highly controllable system, traditional religious forms did not seem to achieve this function. So, what form could organize and restrain a large group of people who were prone to getting hotheaded? The first thing that jumped into Ye Tao's mind was the kind of fan group, fan club-type organization. Although the organizational structure was not strict enough, this point could be greatly changed.

When establishing a membership system for Yi Zhan Lou (Chess Battle House) in those years, his father and senior brothers supported him in establishing a system that they didn't understand what it was for, based on their consistent trust in Ye Tao. However, with the issuance of membership cards and the establishment of the membership system, they gradually realized that the membership system was not just an excuse to provide discounts to those players who had always liked Yi Zhan chess, nor was it just evidence for members to show off their qualifications to non-members, or for members with extremely early numbers to show off to those later members whose numbers were starting to become huge. For the operators of Yi Zhan Lou, the membership system actually provided them with an extremely powerful feedback, analysis, and organization tool. Through the statistical data of each member's consumption when entering Yi Zhan Lou, Yi Zhan Lou's every adjustment to the layout of the building, and every organization of competitions and activities were very targeted. Especially in recent years, with the increasing influence of Yi Zhan Lou's Army Chess Open, membership has become increasingly important. Many members even unconsciously advertised for Yi Zhan Lou in their repeated boasting. In the operation and management of the membership system for several years, Yi Zhan Lou and Ye Tao have also accumulated considerable management experience.

What Ye Tao wanted to implement in this religion was a very similar membership system. When formulating this set of things, Ye Tao grinned and felt that it was a bit of a bully. Modern organizational behavior was such an interesting, powerful, and comprehensive discipline. From managing a small team to managing super-large groups with thousands or even more people with complex organizational forms and interest orientations, there were various applicable theories and techniques. Unfortunately for Ye Tao in those years and for Xiling today, in order to constantly gild himself in the formal workplace, in order to be able to move from a purely professional technician to a management position, Ye Tao was very serious in various training courses in a certain time and space.

Ye Tao divided the "audience" targeted by the Lei Yin Mozong (Thunder Sound Demon Sect) into several different levels. The first was the cultural influence group, which was the most extensive group. The vast majority of them would not be subjected to the targeted propaganda of the Lei Yin Mozong, but only heard about a strange god like Lei Yin Mozun and what kind of sect the Lei Yin Mozong was from hearsay, from storytellers in teahouses and taverns, and from their fellow villagers and neighbors. For this part of the people, due to the large number and very random distribution, it was almost impossible to infer the propagation paradigm in the absence of modern statistical tools and analysis tools. The main purpose of propaganda was to constantly correct those messages that might be transformed, alienated, and distorted in the process of dissemination, so as to ensure that the information obtained by this part of the people was as consistent as possible with the core value system of the Lei Yin Mozong, so as to achieve the goal of integrated communication marketing.

A higher level than this was those who were already somewhat inclined to the Lei Yin Mozong for various reasons. This part of the people should be able to easily get help and guidance from the various levels of people in the Lei Yin Mozong around them. This help could be some medicines when they were sick, a little money and food when they were poor, and a little help when they were bullied by bullies and various systems in Xiling. The key was that while allowing these people to know the more orthodox ideological system of the Lei Yin Mozong, they needed to understand that individuals were powerless, and only by uniting could they fight against greater "evil". And the Lei Yin Mozong was such a group, a group that was harmless to kind people and would unconditionally extend a helping hand to those who were harmed by evil.

A higher level began to enter the strictly managed membership management system and become the basic members of the vast Lei Yin Mozong group. Each member must have registered information, must have a unique number, and must be able to be understood their recent situation in various ways. After joining the Lei Yin Mozong, basic members would be given a member handbook printed with a unique number, a black band with a white printed emblem representing members of the Lei Yin Mozong that could be tied on their arms or foreheads, and a printed image of the Demon Lord that could be clipped in the handbook. Since the illiteracy rate was still very high in this era, after joining the Lei Yin Mozong, they could also participate in periodic scripture lectures and prayer ceremonies, and could obtain various help and support from the sect.

A higher level was senior members. "Senior"... this word was actually so unpopular in this time and space, but in the Lei Yin Mozong, senior members meant that the emblem on their band was not printed but metal-stamped, with more exquisite workmanship, meaning that they would be able to get more opportunities to communicate with Mozong priests and high-level priests, and could have more opportunities for those highly respected clergy to answer various questions they encountered in life and various doubts in their hearts, meaning that they would have the opportunity to be selected to enter the Mozong's temple for two pilgrimages each year, and also meaning that they would have to bear the obligation to serve ordinary members and the people around them and spread the Mozong's blessings.

Further up were advanced members whose loyalty and firmness to the Mozong had been tested. The number of advanced members would be strictly controlled, because some of them might be able to undertake some more complex and dangerous tasks. And what these people could get was also more comprehensive. They could get guidance on professional knowledge and skills, and even get help from the sect to help them obtain better official positions, because that was for greater "good" and to be able to more effectively eliminate evil.

Further up was the Mozong's operating team. The operating team was divided into three levels: priests, high-level priests, and high priests. Priests had only one job, which was to preach. Their performance evaluation was comprehensively assessed based on how many new believers and members they developed and how their recruited members performed within the sect. Only when they reached the level of high-level priest could they be qualified to issue orders and organize believers and members to hold actions that might attract the attention of the local government to speak out for justice for those who were persecuted. Only when they reached the level of high priest could they command the teaching soldiers protecting the teaching or issue orders for assassinations instead of just demonstrations. Of course, this was only in theory. In reality, if there were no accidents, it was estimated that the entire high priest group would be strictly trained Dongping secret agents, or very reliable Xiling people who had completely turned to Dongping. They would all know what kind of organization the Lei Yin Mozong was. The high-level priests and priests were strictly controlled in terms of authority, but very strict in terms of evaluation.

Even more exaggerated was that Ye Tao integrated the ideas of performance management and the practices of emphasizing self-motivation and mutual assistance in modern MLM methods into the entire system. The operation of the entire system was transparent to a certain extent but highly controllable. From bottom to top, the mystery of each class was increasing. And the information that each level could obtain was also designed. When an ordinary believer gradually became a member, a senior member, and an advanced member from an ordinary person who was just a little curious, they would constantly obtain information that the original class could not obtain. Newer and more powerful theories would gradually conquer those who did not have much persistence, and even constantly repeated dogmas would gradually accumulate and eventually become something they would take for granted.

However, even after putting his bad intentions to this extent, Ye Tao still felt that it was not enough. Establishing such a system was very expensive, and was there any way for such an organization with many marketing system characteristics to provide financial feedback? Even if it could not offset the necessary investment, it would at least be able to recover a part to alleviate the financial pressure of such an organization. Ye Tao put his mind on projects similar to "religious theme stores". Consumables such as membership manuals and logos would naturally be indispensable, as well as many other products with the Lei Yin Mozong mark, such as self-defense weapons, underwear, statues, amulets, religious books, etc... And by slightly using his brain on the pricing of these products and the payment methods for selling these products, he would not make the believers feel that the sect was making money, but would instead be grateful to the sect for providing them with these things.

Ye Tao wrote these things too proudly. These things could be said to be monsters that combined the characteristics of modern communication theory, management, organizational behavior, psychology, and other disciplines. The designs he made for this architecture, costumes, printed matter, and so on for this architecture also had a unified and operable nature that was completely ahead of the times. He almost exhausted all his skills to piece together the various thoughts and memory fragments in his mind to form such a plan with a terrible thickness and even more terrible content... Ye Tao was so proud that he didn't even notice that Feng Zi, who had been constantly helping him copy the drafts from the middle, was constantly amused by the novel ideas in his plan, and the look in her eyes when she looked at him was completely different.

Who would dare to say that Ye Tao, Lord Ye, was a good person? He was so bad that he had already started to use his mind on "gods".

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It's been a long time since I posted a long chapter...