[{"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-278":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},579549,829,"Chapter 278: You're Not Playing Me, Are You?","foolish-game-of-the-gods-chapter-278",278,"\u003Cp>'Correct — so damn correct, old man. As long as you're willing to talk, you're absolutely right.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'No wonder the Mushroom-Footed People didn't think to reclaim their lantern from Zuo Qiu. Turns out it resets on its own?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi nodded approvingly, giving the Old Patriarch a praising smile that affirmed his \"devotion.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the divine envoy smile, the Old Patriarch's anxious heart finally settled. The Mushroom-Footed People truly had earned His forgiveness — otherwise Lord Baldie would have refuted him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By this point, the players had a solid understanding of the trial's full picture. Setting aside whether [Prosperity] had truly forgiven the Mushroom-Footed People, the players' objective might very well be Eposka — the creature relentlessly killing the tribespeople!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi glanced sideways at Hong Lin behind him. A brief exchange of looks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hong Lin read his intent. A silent nod.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And so Cheng Shi wrapped up the meeting in the most official tone imaginable, then asked the Old Patriarch to arrange lodging — no, standing-lodging — for the group.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the warm gazes of the entire tribe, the players were left in the Patriarch's main house — the largest building in the settlement. The Old Patriarch and a group of young tribespeople quietly relocated elsewhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a brief span, the entire settlement fell so quiet you could hear a pin drop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Puppet Master wordlessly erected a sound barrier around the main house, ensuring nothing said inside could leak out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the moment privacy was secured, Hong Lin finally found her chance. She launched Cheng Shi across the room with a single kick, then said through a twitching eyelid:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That kick was the one you asked for. But one kick doesn't settle the debt from using my ID.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So talk, our dear divine envoy. What exactly is going through your head?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you can't convince me, someone's going to have a very bad day.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Hong Lin even finished, Cheng Shi grinned from the floor and asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Have you ever despaired?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I'm asking you — have you ever truly despaired?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hong Lin's brow furrowed. \"Don't change the subject.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I'm not changing the subject. When you've truly despaired, you'll understand what giving up on yourself feels like.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Trapped in a tiny enclave surrounded by [Decay], holding a tool that generates [Decay] power, constantly hunted by [Decay] monsters — if on top of all that they lose hope...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How can you be sure they won't abandon [Prosperity] and embrace [Decay]?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They're Mushroom-Footed People — born kin of [Prosperity]. How could they possibly embrace [Decay]?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why couldn't they? Everyone wants to survive. Whoever keeps them alive earns their faith. Simple logic, isn't it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That's blasphemy!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Do you truly believe in your faith?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...\" Hong Lin went still. She couldn't argue. After all, she herself was someone whose faith wasn't absolute — otherwise the Chosen One title and the divine envoy role wouldn't make her so uneasy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And besides — they're already committing blasphemy!\" Cheng Shi laughed openly, pointing at the Desolate Lamp the Mushroom-Footed People had left behind. \"A faith converter that turns [Prosperity] into [Decay] — even if it's a gift from [Prosperity] Himself, isn't using [Decay] to protect yourself fundamentally a desecration of [Prosperity]?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the Mushroom-Footed People truly had ironclad faith, they shouldn't use it at all.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But it's His gift!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Exactly. And that's precisely what confuses me. Never mind how He pilfered [Decay]'s authority, or why He'd brazenly deploy stolen power in the Sighing Forest of all places. All I want to know is this:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why would He use pilfered [Decay] power to shelter a tribe He Himself condemned to exile?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This isn't Far Dusk Town...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hmm, though I suppose there's one possibility. You don't think [Prosperity] is, well... the indecisive type?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even the silent Puppet Master's expression shifted at that sardonic jab. She was privately grateful she'd sealed the room's sound. Otherwise, that one sentence alone would have sent the Mushroom-Footed People storming in to fight this blasphemous \"envoy\" to the death.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hong Lin laughed from sheer fury. This man truly had no filter — every profane thought came straight out of his mouth. Wasn't he afraid of divine retribution?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She stood and pulled Cheng Shi to his feet, then sighed and asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If they wanted to betray their faith, they've had centuries. Why would they wait until today?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He said nothing — just locked eyes with Hong Lin in silence. He didn't believe for a second that the [Prosperity] Chosen One couldn't figure out the answer. She was just angry he'd used her name, leaving traces of her in this buried pocket of history.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure enough, when Hong Lin saw the knowing look in his eyes, her pupils contracted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She knew why, of course. Because... the players had arrived.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>People living in darkness can accept a life without sunlight. But once you let them taste a sliver of light and then snatch it away — the darkness that follows won't merely be darkness. It will be a grave with no sun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They'll suffocate and die in despair, lingering until the next ray of light illuminates their corpses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ah — so you've worked it out. That's exactly why I didn't dare let their hope die.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I'm not sure whether the 'prairie fire' in this trial refers to the hope the Mushroom-Footed People have been guarding in their hearts, or merely to biological prosperity in the literal sense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I couldn't risk it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hong Lin studied him, her expression complicated: \"I thought you loved to gamble.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I do. But I only place bets in two situations:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One — there's no road behind me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two — I'm holding aces up my sleeve.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside of those conditions, I never gamble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right now, neither condition is met. So I'm playing it safe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, bamboozle them. Then find my opening to place a real bet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You know how it is — we [Fate] followers are the best bamboozlers around.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'True. But compared to fate's bamboozlement, you're more like a...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Trickster!'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The word surfaced unbidden in Hong Lin's mind. She felt it captured Cheng Shi perfectly — same as Zhen Yi. A lie-spewing trickster through and through.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know it was wrong to act without consulting you all. Time was tight. But now we have a chance to discuss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If anyone has a better idea, by all means — share it. Otherwise, we're committed to the divine envoy act until the end.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The players exchanged glances. Nobody spoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They clearly agreed with Cheng Shi's approach and were willing to follow his script.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the unanimous compliance gave Cheng Shi pause.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Hold on. Something's off.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'I'm the lowest-scored player in this trial. How did I end up running the show?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Huh?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'You're not all playing me, are you?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Your \"high scores\" are competing for who freeloads harder?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi swept a suspicious gaze over everyone. Hong Lin: frowning in silence. The hunter: cold-faced, eyes closed. The assassin: mute as ever. Poop Scooper... was at least courteous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He closed his history book and treated Cheng Shi to a broad grin — a face full of consolation-level fake-smile, plainly applauding Cheng Shi's hard work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The familiar smile inevitably reminded Cheng Shi of his old boss. Once upon a time, a certain [Memory]-path manager had stood by his cubicle, clapped his shoulder, and said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Keep at it. Next year I'll give you a raise and make you team lead.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi had actually gotten a little excited about that. But then... there was no \"then.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because before the next year arrived, the Faith Game descended.\u003C\u002Fp>",1263,"2026-05-30T16:17:59.408Z","2026-06-01T04:31:40.442Z",1,"novelbin.me","fb92b444a98f78b07f1c49353746d94feb10f9878ef371b03d57986bf6200503","foolish-game-of-the-gods-chapter-279","foolish-game-of-the-gods-chapter-277",1463,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Ffoolish-game-of-the-gods-cover.jpg"]