[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-foolish-game-of-the-gods":3,"chapter-foolish-game-of-the-gods-foolish-game-of-the-gods-chapter-238":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Foolish Game of the Gods",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},579309,829,"Chapter 238: How Do You Prove You Are You?","foolish-game-of-the-gods-chapter-238",238,"\u003Cp>Which kind am I?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi laughed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Scholar, you're far too narrow-minded. Why must it be one or the other?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Why can't it be both?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'I'm both a crazed trickster and a pure lunatic. Is that not allowed?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Cheng Shi didn't say this aloud. By now, he had already sunk deep into contemplation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was thinking about everything he'd experienced before awakening in this laboratory — what it had actually amounted to.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A dream? Or a rehearsal for a trial?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Chaos] had apparently inserted a fabricated fantasy at the beginning of its trial — a false trial.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So that was it! They really had been him all along!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The realization crystallized slowly, and the more he thought about it, the more he recognized that the so-called [Deceit] civil war had been utter nonsense. It had clearly been himself fighting himself!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How blind he'd been! He should have figured it out sooner!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That farce of a \"trial\" had been fake from the start. Li Yi, Ji Er, Gao San, Zhao Si, Su Wu — all fake, all figments of his own imagination.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even their professions, their abilities, even the items in their hands — every last detail had been drawn from his own cognition and memories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder there had been five tricksters!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder there had been five Masters of Deception!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder the Magician had suited his tastes so perfectly!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder these \"teammates\" couldn't even read!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because all of it had sprung from his own imagination. They had all been born from his memories and could never have transcended his own understanding!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under [Chaos]'s will, he had fabricated five opponents out of thin air for himself — and all five were cunning, treacherous, scheming masterminds!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had it not been for the [Death] Fun Ring in his hand and the divine power of [Fate] coursing through him, the outcome of that imagined civil war would have been genuinely uncertain...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this thought, Cheng Shi laughed again — a bitter, self-deprecating laugh. He suddenly recalled the prophecy Li Yi had spoken:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Minds that differ, yet hearts as one!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What a phrase — \"minds that differ, yet hearts as one.\" They were all him, so of course their hearts were as one!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was true chaos — true [Chaos]!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Making it impossible to distinguish false from real, self from other.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking back on the day's events, it was like having dreamed within a trial, yet it equally felt like having undergone a trial within a dream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What a dream within a dream. What a play within a play. What a game within a game!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If this trial hadn't been labeled with [Chaos]'s divine name, Cheng Shi would have sworn his former patron deity had orchestrated it!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because if this had been a [Deceit] scheme... Cheng Shi wouldn't have been surprised in the slightest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Fun God adored this kind of entertainment — fabricating illusions, beguiling hearts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had he not swiftly killed every version of \"himself\" under [Fate]'s blessing, awakening before the slice experiment could succeed, the situation might have become far more complex and terrifying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A chill ran through Cheng Shi's heart. He couldn't help but wonder: if he'd failed to eliminate every personality slice, would he have truly been turned into a \"deathmatch convict\" upon reawakening?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that point, would there truly have been several identical copies of himself running around in this trial?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>!!!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So this was what it truly meant — \"amid the doubts of others, how do you prove that you are you\"!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When multiple slices actually existed, among the countless copies of six players, who could trust whom? Who would dare trust anyone?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To clear the trial, these slices — each convinced they were the real player — would exhaust every method to prove themselves and every means to win others' endorsement. Because they'd already survived a \"trial\" where self-proof was impossible, and they knew full well how formidable each version of themselves could be!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And those methods and means — it went without saying — would inevitably trigger catastrophic chaos in the real trial.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So this was [Chaos]'s true objective!!!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was brewing a maelstrom where no one could tell self from other, truth from lie, real from illusion!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ruthless beyond measure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi couldn't even imagine how he would have won this trial if he'd truly failed to awaken early and instead dragged those five imaginary tricksters into the real trial — along with every other teammate's slices on top of that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rely on the demigod artifact in his hand again?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No. If he'd already lost once, there was no way he could win the real trial.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, if the one who ultimately proved themselves and cleared the trial had been a counterfeit cultivated from a personality slice — what would have happened to him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Would he die? Would he vanish? Would he simply cease to exist?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The answer, obviously, was yes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But also no — because in everyone else's eyes, Cheng Shi would have won.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They would never know that the person who cleared the trial and returned to the rest area was merely Cheng Shi's slice. Even the slice himself wouldn't believe he was a copy. He would only believe that he was Cheng Shi — the same Cheng Shi who had never changed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this thought, lingering dread flooded Cheng Shi's heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'I'm not complaining, big bro, but I'm technically family. How can you be this ruthless?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Don't you know what happens when six tricksters are crammed together? People die!'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'What if the one who dies is me?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Or does [Chaos]'s will simply not care which Cheng Shi survives?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Setting that aside, considering the \"slice war\" that had played out within his consciousness — was [Time] truly uninvolved in the form and mechanism of that fantasy?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was clearly [Time]'s authority of extrapolation!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everything he'd experienced in the fantasy, every piece of information he'd gathered — all of it had been verified as accurate during this conversation with Selius. That meant it wasn't a wholly fabricated hallucination. At the very least, every story and detail within the \"trial\" was consistent with reality and logic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But how was [Chaos] wielding [Time]'s extrapolation so masterfully?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had it stolen [Time]'s authority?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could it possibly steal [Time]'s authority?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Big bro, isn't your power level a bit over the top?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'I haven't seen you plundering [Civilization]'s wool, but you've certainly sheared plenty off [Existence].'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Wait — did [Deceit] turn me into your \"envoy\" because of this?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Huh?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Have you two formed a united front against [Existence]?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Great. Just great.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if that were the case, had Brother Mouth's awakening also been part of his fantasy?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Could it be affected by an extrapolation of that caliber?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Brother Mouth?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Brother Mouth?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Hello?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No response — but he still couldn't be certain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, it loved playing dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having finally pieced everything together, Cheng Shi calmed the parade of expressions that had been cycling across his face. He turned to Selius:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Never mind which kind I am. Since there's nothing wrong with me, let's move on to the next step.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Let's talk about your escape from this place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That young lady already gave me a complete breakout plan. All you need to do is cooperate unconditionally, and you'll be out of here. So — are you ready?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Selius's eyes showed no excitement at the prospect of imminent freedom. He studied Cheng Shi — who kept rubbing his nose — and frowned slightly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How, exactly, should I cooperate with you?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Simple. Cooperate by dying for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I can carry your soul out of here and find you a new body outside Montrani.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But before that, I need to confirm one thing:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How can you prove that you're truly Selius himself, and not a slice trying to take his place?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At those words, Selius's composed expression finally darkened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that moment, Cheng Shi had thrown the trial's very question back at one of the trial's own NPCs.\u003C\u002Fp>",1332,"2026-05-30T16:17:59.407Z","2026-06-01T04:31:40.442Z",1,"novelbin.me","fca8e0fe29aa859a96ea32f6913b30c59ec3378197550e6013019e4906e47b55","foolish-game-of-the-gods-chapter-239","foolish-game-of-the-gods-chapter-237",1463,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Ffoolish-game-of-the-gods-cover.jpg"]