Chapter 744: The First Audience

Everyone wears a mask, but that is not you.

You are merely performing it. Remember — do not lose yourself.

And above all, never let it become you!

...

The Void. Fishbone Hall.

A massive skull sat upon the Bone Throne, silently watching the bewildered smaller skull at its feet. It seemed on the verge of saying something, but after a moment's hesitation, chose silence.

Right now, It wanted nothing to do with any being connected to the Void.

The small skull before the hall was silent too, but the complex expressions flickering across its face betrayed inner turmoil — thoughts boiling furiously.

It thought for a long time. About many things. Only when the great one on the Bone Throne released a sigh did it look up at its Benefactor with sincerity:

"Unnecessary.

The one, who recognized you, was not, I.

I, merely, made, a deal, with Him.

The deal, is concluded, so, you may, withdraw."

The small skull froze. Then slowly nodded.

Its eye sockets narrowed tight, as if trying to connect every clue it possessed. But for an outsider, this was impossibly difficult — she couldn't even confirm whether the "deal" the great one mentioned had occurred during the trial she'd experienced, or at some point before she arrived in this world.

Indeed — this bewildered Death follower was none other than the Destiny Chosen from another timeline: An Mingyu.

Not long ago, the Blind One had cried herself to sleep at her desk. But soon, in her sleep, she sensed a faint, ethereal summons.

She jolted awake to find her rest area invaded by a crowd of bouncing little skulls. The moment she opened her eyes, they grew even more animated, chattering:

"Hurry up! Come on, move it! Don't keep Him waiting!"

As they spoke, they began disassembling themselves. Countless white bones scattered and reassembled, forming a pallid Bone Gate before the Blind One.

She recognized it immediately: a summons from Death.

Such an unannounced divine summons should have been terrifying — especially from the deity bearing the divine name Death. Yet somehow, the Blind One felt no fear whatsoever. Instead, a strange anticipation rose within her.

After all, in the trial, it was Death who'd saved her. Even though Death's initial stance had been refusal, the outcome was still good.

Most importantly, what happened in the trial felt far more intimate than anything she'd experienced in this world. Only when there were connections to the trial did she stop feeling like an An Mingyu who'd arrived in a foreign world all alone.

So the Blind One didn't hesitate. She lifted her skirts and stepped through the gate. In a blink, she stood before the Bone Throne — transformed into a small skull with "open eyes."

Honestly, it was her first time clearly perceiving Death's form. She was awed by the massive skull's divine might and surprised by Its attitude toward her. She desperately wanted to ask whether she could ever find her way home — but before she could, Death spoke directly and bestowed a new faith:

"Will, you, become, My follower?

To toll, Death's, funeral bell, for, all beings, of the universe?"

The Blind One was dumbfounded. Truthfully, she'd been mulling over her faith fusion for a while. Her list of candidates was long — Order, Truth, Folly, even War, and yes, even Deceit!

But Death... genuinely hadn't been in her plans.

Of course, mortal plans meant nothing. Faith fusion was ultimately subject to the gods' will. With opportunity at her doorstep, she had no reason to refuse — no right to refuse. And this was a deity who'd once saved her life, even if it was done for the Fate Weaver's "sake."

Come to think of it, Cheng Shi had plenty of Death-aligned abilities too. Could Destiny fusing with Death actually be what She had intended all along?

The Blind One was confused, but she quickly accepted.

Yet her acceptance didn't immediately bring a new faith. The two skulls — one large, one small — stared at each other in silence for a long time. Only when a stream of Destiny light sliced through the Void and descended did the Blind One feel Destiny's true guidance. In that moment, a surging torrent of Death power rose from the river of bones beyond the hall and gradually enveloped her.

Moments later, a new Bell Ringer was born beneath the great one's Bone Throne.

Feeling the two intertwined divine forces coursing through her, the Blind One's thoughts grew even more chaotic — and then came the scene from the beginning.

After hearing her new Benefactor's dismissal, the small skull nodded firmly and prepared to leave. But the very instant she was about to leap through the Bone Gate — the unexpected struck first.

A pair of eyes painted with stars and spirals wrenched open above the Fishbone Hall. No sooner had they appeared than they whipped up Void gales without a word of warning, blasting down toward the hall below.

The massive skull's eye sockets contracted violently at the sight. Without even a greeting, It abandoned An Mingyu and dissolved into a river of white bones, fleeing the premises.

It was exhausted.

Dealing with one Void deity had already drained every last ounce of Its spirit. After all that, It simply lacked the energy to face another Void deity.

Besides — all this trouble stemmed from agreeing to Deceit's deal. It couldn't explain anything to Destiny. That burden of explanation didn't belong to It — it belonged to that insufferable Deceit!

So It left. Swiftly, cleanly.

But when It left, the Bone Gate naturally crumbled. And so the Blind One — freshly fused with Death — was left like an orphan abandoned by her Benefactor, suddenly face-to-face with her other Benefactor: Destiny!

This was her first time standing before Destiny. But the timing couldn't have been worse.

Though her Void-sight showed her nothing, she knew the being before her was her Benefactor Destiny. And she could feel an endless fury radiating from Her.

Most terrifying of all — a sliver of that fury seemed directed at her.

The Blind One... was afraid.

She clenched her teeth so hard they almost cracked, refusing to let her fear ruin her first audience.

But she didn't really have an image to protect — she was still a skull, after all.

How ironic. Destiny's Chosen, meeting her Benefactor for the first time... wearing Death's clothes.

No wonder the Fun God, far away in another corner of the Void, had said a good show was about to begin.

"Praise my Benefactor. Praise Destiny. May..."

"You are not part of the fixed path. You... should not be here."