Chapter 666: When Chaos Doubts, It Sounds More Credible

Chaos watched Zhou Yun, savoring the words he had just spoken.

A thousand conflicting emotions—belief, doubt, hesitation, caution—rose and shifted within Him.

Yet overall, the Lord of Change believed what Zhou Yun had said.

This was truly the only plausible explanation for why Zhou Yun and the Emperor would risk everything to seize the Domain of Malicious Arts.

It was precisely because the gods had once dismissed the idea that Zhou Yun had any reason to seek the Domain of Malicious Arts that they inadvertently created the opening he seized to ascend.

The Emperor hoped Zhou Yun would ascend in his place as humanity’s protector, weaken His own power, and ultimately unite the gods to confront the Dark King—this aligned perfectly with Chaos’s understanding of the Emperor.

But Chaos remained wary, for the Emperor, that cursed deceiver, was one of the few beings in the galaxy who could rival Him in trickery; though He believed most of it, Chaos still spoke:

“I don’t trust your words,” Chaos croaked, his tone laced with suspicion as he addressed Zhou Yun.

Upon hearing this, Slaanesh and Khorne, who had been wavering and hesitant, saw their doubts vanish almost entirely, and began to trust Zhou Yun instead.

“Thank you,” Zhou Yun replied with a sincere smile, addressing Chaos: “Your skepticism confirms my honesty.”

The suspicion, doubt, and cunning on Chaos’s face froze momentarily.

This Lord of Change had recently become obsessed with digesting the alien concepts forcibly imposed upon Him—muscle, fitness, excessive drug use, and the endless pursuit of physical strength—so much so that He’d nearly forgotten just how terrible His reputation was in the Warp.

Originally, Slaanesh and Khorne had found no flaw in Zhou Yun’s claims, yet still instinctively harbored suspicion.

But when Chaos began questioning Zhou Yun, their first reaction wasn’t to join in the doubt—they suspected Chaos himself was plotting some treachery.

Chaos’s skepticism, paradoxically, made Zhou Yun seem more trustworthy.

They did harbor doubts about Zhou Yun, but compared to Chaos, Zhou Yun appeared remarkably honest and reliable.

After all, Khorne was content with their past battles, and Zhou Yun had indeed crushed Inade, satisfying Slaanesh.

“If I weren’t aiming to utterly suppress the Dark King, why would I become the Lord of Malicious Arts?”

“Many of you know me well—you know how deeply I value my humanity.”

“I now willingly shoulder the faith of humanity, even at the risk of being corrupted and destroyed by the Domain of Corruption and Destruction—what else could possibly drive me, if not to suppress the Dark King?”

Zhou Yun spoke with earnest sincerity:

“Do you really think I want to seize the Domain of Corruption and Destruction?”

These words made Khorne chuckle deeply, Slaanesh let out a soft giggle, and Nurgle wore a look of concern.

“That would be terrifying!” Nurgle said, his voice tinged with dread. “Thankfully, you won’t do such a thing.”

Accepting the Domain of Corruption and Destruction would be tantamount to suicide; the Domain of Malicious Arts is currently far weaker, and if Zhou Yun sought the former, his fate would be to be overwhelmed, burned alive, and consumed as a sacrifice.

The end result would be the birth of the Dark King, wielding both the Domains of Corruption and Destruction and Malicious Arts to overturn the entire universe.

“Why not just take over Greed Dissolution and Unbound Distortion too? I’ll be the one god ruling all four,” Zhou Yun said with a smile, winking at Chaos.

Chaos remained silent, but inwardly, he was beginning to trust Zhou Yun.

But he didn’t realize that his current state was precisely what Zhou Yun had anticipated.

The key lay in the Change-Spirit.

The Change-Spirit had been captured by the Emperor decades ago.

This young Lord of Change was, in essence, the embodiment of deception, suspicion, and chaos within Chaos’s domain—the most chaotic facet of Chaos Himself, a reflection of His nature.

But now, Chaos had forgotten the Change-Spirit—or rather, the Change-Spirit had forgotten itself.

Zhou Yun had repeatedly used a secret artifact, the “Memory Disc,” which could extract any being’s memories as a disc and freely alter them.

Through this, Zhou Yun caused the Change-Spirit to forget its true nature, to no longer recognize itself as a manifestation of Chaos’s domain, and instead believe it was the loyal Imperial Chancellor, the successor to Malcador.

This indirectly altered Chaos’s own memories, rendering the aspects of deception, suspicion, and chaos within His domain dormant. Coupled with Chaos’s recent obsession with digesting the forced domains, this imbalance had significantly weakened His innate instinct for suspicion.

“If we can contain the Dark King and protect the life of the galaxy, I wholeheartedly agree,” Nurgle said with a gentle smile, patting his belly. “I will alter the way I interfere with humanity, aiding you in gaining more of their faith.”

Khorne and Slaanesh still hesitated.

“I will ensure the intensity of war,” Zhou Yun said to Khorne, lowering his voice in promise. “Many worlds remain unrecovered, and the Tau Empire is itching to provoke us.”

“And Blood God, are you truly satisfied with delaying your confrontation with the Dark King? Don’t you long to fight Him?”

“Very well,” Khorne finally nodded. “I will temporarily reduce the bloodshed among your empires and instead increase warfare against other races, against traitorous humans, and ignite conflicts among planets still resisting the Imperium—helping you gain more human faith.”

“Dark Prince, what are you hesitating about?” Zhou Yun tilted his head, feigning confusion at Slaanesh’s reluctance. “If human society improves, wouldn’t your domain spread even more effectively?”

Slaanesh lowered His head slightly, forced to admit Zhou Yun was right.

The Imperium’s current society is far too oppressive; His influence over humanity pales in comparison to Nurgle’s, Khorne’s, and Chaos’s.

Slaanesh still remembered the demons He once sent to Terra, disguised as noble aristocrats—those poor fools experienced no pleasure whatsoever, only endless overtime.

“I will revive artificial intelligence in human society and use automation to free up people’s time. With more leisure, they’ll naturally have more opportunities for pleasure—benefiting your domain.”

“Very well,” Slaanesh finally nodded. “I will support your actions and ensure your faith spreads—no interference from me.”

Finally, all the gods turned their gaze to Chaos.

“Your chaos and change can spread across regions still unrecovered by the Imperium, and your new domains tied to muscle can be disseminated within the Imperium. I know you cannot suppress your instinct for change—but for the sake of containing the Dark King, I urge you to reconsider.”

“Once the Dark King is born, there will be no more change at all.”

Chaos’s expression shifted several times, but in the end, he verbally agreed to Zhou Yun’s demands.

Zhou Yun knew Chaos, Slaanesh, and even Khorne would still play their own games and subtly spread influence—after all, their promises carried no real binding force.