Chapter 10 Chapter nine

The corpse lying on the ground is horrifying.The deceased, Leonardo Witterer, was lying on his back, completely naked.His skin was greyish and bluish, his broken cervical vertebrae protruded upwards, his head was completely turned upside down, drooping, his face was pressed against the ground, and he could no longer see clearly.The man lay in a puddle of his own urine that had frozen into thin ice, and the pubic hair around his shrunken penis was frosted and cobweb-like. Langdon almost spat, but he fought it back.He turned his gaze to the dead man's chest, which had been branded with a clear and perfect symbol, and the burnt skin showed raised patterns.Before coming, the photo of the deceased had been faxed to him.Although he had seen the symmetrical symbols on the burnt part of the deceased many times, the scene in front of him was obviously more realistic.

Langdon suddenly felt a chill in his heart. He didn't know whether it was because the room was too cold, or he was completely shocked by the "Illuminati" symbol in front of him. He circled the corpse, his heart pounding.He read the word backwards, reaffirming this symmetrical work of genius.At this moment, he stared at this symbol, and the more he looked at it, the more incredible it became. "Mr. Langdon." Langdon heard no one calling him.He was immersing himself in another world...his world, his field of study.In that world, history, myth and reality collided and filled his brain.He began to have some clues.

"Mr. Langdon?" Kohler stared at him expectantly. Langdon didn't look up, however.With a focused expression, he stared at the corpse on the ground and said, "How much have you learned?" "Only those who read from your website know that the word 'illuminati' means 'enlightened men.' It was the name of some old brotherhood." Langdon nodded. "Have you heard the name before?" "No, until I saw it on Wittler." "So you searched online?" "yes." "There is no doubt that there are hundreds of relevant information jumping out!"

"Thousands," Kohler replied, "but your information provides Harvard, Oxford, and a well-known publisher in this area, as well as a list of related publications. As a scientist, I am well aware that The information itself is as important as its source. Your presentation of it seems solid." Langdon's focused eyes remained on the dead man. Kohler didn't say anything more, he just watched everything in front of him.Obviously, he was waiting for Langdon to give a reasonable explanation for what was happening before him. Langdon raised his head and scanned the icy room. "Shall we find a warmer place to discuss this?"

"This room is pretty good," Kohler didn't seem to feel the cold, "Let's talk here!" Langdon frowned.The history of the Illuminati cannot be explained clearly in a few words.If I want to explain clearly here, why don't I freeze to death?He looked at the symbols on the dead man again, and couldn't help feeling scared again. Although modern semiotics describe the symbol of the Illuminati miraculously, no one in the academic circle has ever seen it with their own eyes.Ancient texts describe this marker as a symmetrical body, which means that the word can be read both forwards and backwards.Symmetrical symbols are very common in semiotics, such as: the German national emblem in the Nazi period, the Chinese Yin-Yang map, the Jewish one, the common cross, etc., but it seems completely impossible to arrange a word into a symmetrical shape.Modern semioticians have tried unsuccessfully to arrange the word illuminati into a symmetrical form.Currently, most scholars believe that the existence of this symbol is still a mystery.

"So who is illuminati referring to?" Kohler asked curiously. Yeah, thought Langdon, who exactly?He began the narrative. "Historically," Langdon explained, "science and religion have always been at odds and bitterly bitter. Outspoken scientists like Copernicus—" "He was executed," put in Kohler. "He was killed by the Holy See for revealing the truth of science. And religion always persecutes science." "You are right. But in the 16th century, a group of people in Rome began to resist the persecution of the Holy See. At that time, some people of insight in Italy—such as physicists, mathematicians, astronomers, etc., began to meet in secret. They were worried about certain false dogmas spread by the Church. They feared that the Church's monopoly on 'truth' would jeopardize the spread of Enlightenment ideas around the world. They formed the world's first think tank of scientists and called themselves the 'Enlightened Men'."

"You mean the Illuminati?" "Yes," Langdon went on, "they were the most learned men in Europe at the time, devoted their lives to the search for scientific truth." Kohler was silent. "Of course, members of the Illuminati were hunted down by the church. Those scientists could only protect themselves by hiding their identities. The news spread secretly in the academic world, and the Brotherhood of the Illuminati quickly developed into an organization that included scientists from all over Europe. They met regularly at some secret place in Rome - what they called the 'Church of the Illuminati'."

Kohler coughed and shifted in his chair. "Many members of the Illuminati want to use violence to fight against the autocratic church, but there is a very prestigious person among them who persuades everyone to give up force. He is a pacifist and one of the most famous scientists in the world." Langdon believed that Kohler must have known the scientist's name.Even ordinary people outside of academic circles are familiar with the name of the unfortunate astronomer who was arrested by the Church and almost executed by the Church for claiming that the center of the solar system was the sun and not the earth.Although his theory was unquestionable, it meant that God had placed man somewhere other than the center of the universe, and that is why he was severely punished by the Church. "He's Galileo," Langdon said.

Kohler raised his head and said, "Galileo?" "Yes. Galileo was a member of the Illuminati and a devout Catholic. He claimed that science would not make people doubt the existence of God, but would make people more convinced of its existence, in an attempt to reduce the church's control over science. He once wrote that he could hear the voice of God when looking through a telescope at a rotating planet. He believed that science and religion were not enemies but allies. They just told the same story in different languages, a story about symmetry and Stories of balance, heaven and hell, night and day, heat and cold, God and the devil. Science and religion coexist harmoniously in a symmetrical body of God's creation . . . coexist in an endless struggle between light and dark." Langdon paused Come down, stomp your feet to make your body warmer.

Khloe sat in her wheelchair, watching Langdon. "Unfortunately, however, the church does not want to see science and religion combined." "Of course they don't," Kohler interrupted him suddenly, "because the church claims that it is the only way for people to know God, and the combination of science and religion will shake the status of the church, so they judge Galileo as heresy and put He has been under house arrest. Mr. Langdon, I am familiar with the history of science, but this is centuries ago, how does it have anything to do with the death of Leonardo Wittler?"

Good question.Langdon went on to say: "Galileo's arrest led to upheaval within the Illuminati. There were mistakes in their actions, four members of the Illuminati were exposed, and the Church arrested and interrogated them. But even though the four scientists were tortured tortured, and confessed nothing." "Torture of torture?" Langdon nodded: "They all suffered a living crime, and their chests were branded with a cross." Kohler's eyes widened and he glanced uneasily at Wittler's body. "Subsequently, those scientists were brutally killed, and their bodies were thrown on the streets of Rome to warn those who tried to join the Illuminati. As the church pressed harder and harder, the remaining members of the Illuminati fled Italy." Langdon paused, trying to convince him.He looked into Kohler's eyes and said: "The Illuminati went underground and gradually united with some exile groups, such as mystics, alchemists, mystics, Muslims, Jews, etc. They are also the targets of the church's suppression. After a long period of continuous absorption of new members, a new Illuminati emerged, which was more hidden and more thorough in its opposition to Christianity. The Illuminati grew stronger and stronger. They used mysterious rituals, and their actions were highly secretive. They vowed to come back one day and take revenge on the Catholic Church. They The continued growth of the church has caused uneasiness in the church. They are regarded as the number one anti-Christian organization in the world, and the Holy See declared the Brotherhood to be 'Sedan'." "Sedan?" "'Sadan' is Islamic, meaning 'enemy'—the enemy of God. The church chose Islamic to call the Illuminati because in the church's eyes, Islamic is a dirty language." Langdon hesitated for a moment , Said: "But the English word Satan (Satan) is derived from Shaitan (Saidan)." A little anxiety crossed Kohler's face. Langdon's voice deepened. "Mr. Kohler, I don't know how or why this symbol was branded on this man's chest. But what you see now is the symbol of the oldest and most powerful evil organization in the world , it hasn't appeared for a long time."

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