Chapter 543: You Were Fooled — Chapter 610: You Were Fooled

Fate and misunderstandings can sometimes be strangely amusing.

For instance, that fool Beiwu over there—he did nothing but sit back and watch the show, yet he started babbling about "real or fake," "acting," and the like, looking utterly deranged.

It's like a streamer who has already stepped away from the keyboard to take a shower, only to return and find the chat flooded with "666."

Yet here I, Su Yulin, an honest, friendly, harmonious, diligent, and kind-hearted system protagonist, am constantly targeted by villains who clearly aren't good people, all eager to smear me with filth.

What are you showing off for?

What are you laughing at?

What are you pretending for?

Then again—

Su Lin stared at the monocle, mask, and dice—whether possession, parasitism, or tricking someone into becoming a fool—and suddenly realized a rather serious question.

—Why am I mixed up with these things?

"I have never lied, I never tell falsehoods, and I have always respected all worlds."

Though I sometimes employ linguistic artistry, and though recent coincidences in the film have been excessive and that witch has been somewhat unhinged, all of it is fake—Miss Kelaien is still Miss Kelaien, not some Azathoth.

"You deliberately let Shang Xiao and the celestial city's background spirits witness the absurd tale you prepared, while having already prepared for exposure—truly, you are unmatched."

Wu Zhenxian muttered: "No wonder my master said Master Su Lin is our greatest enemy."

"Good, keep it up." Su Lin nodded, visibly pleased.

Wu Zhenxian had been watching Su Lin's expression, yet found no trace of urgency or even hostility—his casual demeanor from start to finish, and now this absurd tone.

'Quite awkward.'

Including the three odd figures occupying the Wishbearer's body beside him, an unsettling sensation, source unknown, stirred a bad premonition in his heart.

"Then it's time to leave first." Su Lin took the cigar Zhao Lei had lit and placed it into the red wine glass brought by Aha, then handed it to Amon, rising to say:

"Beiwu, there's one thing I believe you got wrong."

"I humbly ask for your guidance," Beiwu remained alert.

"You say your methods are base, yet under the law of survival of the fittest in profit, what distinction is there between base and noble?"

Su Lin adjusted his black-and-white Taiji robe and recalled his two other incarnations:

"Only those who accept universal good and evil truly divide methods by their nature. If you accept this value, why then do actions contrary to your own conviction?"

"Don't misunderstand—I'm not urging you toward goodness, nor am I engaging in empty rhetoric. I say this because you and I are both contenders vying for dominance over the celestial city's interests."

"I do not believe that using any means to achieve an end is base. Right and wrong hold no meaning before the pursuit of one's own ideal, do they not?"

Under Wu Zhenxian's startled gaze, Su Lin scanned the surroundings, his eyes passing over Meng Wangle, then gave him a slight nod before walking toward the boundless expanse of the Yinglong Tower.

Crowds flowed past, bustling and noisy; he quickly blended into the motley throng of guests.

Only after confirming Su Lin's departure did Wu Zhenxian's furrowed brow relax—he never expected Su Lin to seize his self-deprecation as a way to ease the atmosphere.

'Fish of the Leap Dragon Gate,' 'First of Tianjun Plain,' 'Beiwu Immortal Sovereign,' 'Star Guardian of Yao Realm.' Titles surfaced and vanished—when fortune favors, one ascends to jade palaces of heaven; when fortune abandons, one is despised by a hundred lowly things.

Casting aside distractions, he picked up the jade scepter to contact his master, yet received no response.

Even now, he still did not understand why Yao Tian, one of the Ten-Fang True Rulers, had gone to war with the other nine—except that, after transmitting through the Great Wish Sea the spirit's observations, Yao Tian had sent him some information about a man named 'Su Lin.'

A key enemy of the Great Wish Heaven, a fragmented remnant in an incomplete state.

So then, he too seeks to use this celestial city to restore himself?

Wu Zhenxian knew little, yet began to feel a genuine admiration for Su Lin—the man who, since entering the celestial city, had been orchestrating a grand scheme.

'He's right—it's merely the helplessness and resentment of those with limited power toward the past.'

'There is no base or noble—only competition that spares no means for one's inner vision.'

He stepped out from the tower's peak, gazing down at the silver waves; the former splendor rose before his eyes—all beings had come here, carrying hope to climb higher and fulfill their lifelong wishes.

Wu Zhenxian rubbed his eyes, fixing his gaze on a place that seemed unusually lively.

A giant black dog, taller than a man and wearing loud patterned shorts, sat cross-legged in midair; glyphs flickered through the air, and a vast ancient array manifested, radiating blinding light.

Gong—!

The bell rang, and every soul across the cosmos felt the terror of countless stars plummeting, the infinite starry sky collapsing.

"The sea turns to dust after ten thousand autumns; the Dao turns yellow hair into endless sorrow. One dream spans thousands of years—where on the immortal path can one wander?"

The dog's voice sounded ancient and detached: "Today, I reopen my master's legacy. Let those destined enter to test themselves."

Behind him, a shop poured forth an endless stream of people rushing inside.

"Purple winds blow east for thirty thousand li; I grasp the eternal wheel of reincarnation. Who in history has been truly splendid? Gods die, demons perish—the purple dragon roars."

A dragon's roar rose high; purple qi cascaded from the heavens; a purple-gold divine dragon, tens of thousands of zhang tall, coiled and soared, lightning and gales swirling around its five claws, radiating an aura of eternity, indestructible through countless aeons.

"The Immortal Dragon Clan seeks sons-in-law and daughters-in-law. All prodigies and beauties who excel in their own worlds may apply. Just pay ten celestial city coins as a processing fee. All who enter my dragon palace shall be granted a cup of Awakening Tea."

From a palace, cultivators of countless races surged inward.

"Wu Liang Tian Zun, this Daoist Priest has no legacy, no children, and his sect was destroyed in a cataclysm—"

Said a ragged, fat Daoist Priest; before he finished, much of the crowd had already dispersed.

"Left with nothing but broken copper and rusted iron, here to sell them."

Clatter! Ding-dong! Countless legendary weapons, gleaming with cold light and radiant aura, were carelessly tossed and piled on the ground.

"Sigh, take these for your mortal disciples—they're worthless. The better ones are inside."

He flipped a sign and stuck it in the ground; it read: "All items from 5 coins."

After a brief silence, a wave of powerful qi erupted from the center of the crowd; a dark tide of people surged forward, yet many beams of light shot straight toward the small building behind him.

Wu Zhenxian watched for a long while, then suddenly realized something was wrong—he opened the backend of his Yinglong Tower and peered closely.

The foot traffic inside his tower was steadily decreasing—vanishing as if by some impossible means?!

"Base—"

He nearly cursed aloud, but shook his head silently and refunded the dragon-dog Daoist's shop fee.

When the false buildings vanished, three portals remained—vast as oceans, brilliant blue, their destinations utterly unknown.

Bei Wu, realizing he might have fallen for another trick, suddenly laughed: "This is exactly how it should be!"

The Heavenly City is already aboard the Great Wish Vessel; the home-field advantage is mine.

He steadied his breath, summoned more Great Wish Envoys from the Sea of Wishes, and concentrated the influence within this tower, demanding equal repayment for the three things that had been freeloaders inside the Responding Dragon Tower.

Hummm.

A resonance spread; within the konghou's melody, new fragmented sounds emerged.

At first, a faint glimmer—gone in an instant—then discordant noises appeared within the Responding Dragon Tower.

"The Dao that can be spoken is not the eternal Dao."

"Namo."

"You are the Primordial, and the End, the One and the Ten Thousand."

Where his gaze fell, where the faint light shimmered, the three Wish Envoys possessed by unknown means beside Su Lin shattered piece by piece; from the cracks grew slick, feathered tentacles, upon each feather inscribed with seals of reincarnation and Daoist runes, glowing with sacred, chaotic light.

What distinction is there between base and noble?

In the instant Bei Wu Zhenxian sensed the madness of this power, he murmured: "Birth."

Multicolored glazed tiles flew, pale gold and dark gold rained down; all that was seen, touched, felt, thought.

All were swallowed and fused by a white light.

At that moment, the world froze abruptly; the karma of life and death formed a hand that gripped the Great Wish Vessel—hanging upside-down, bearing countless universes, existing simultaneously across infinite time and space.

Infinite karma of life and death surged forth from infinite timelines and infinite universes.

The figure with brocade robes around her shoulders furrowed her delicate brows, glanced at the three white orbs, then gazed into the thick fog of the future.

"Su Lin, for once, I must thank you."

She smiled faintly, looking toward a future moment: the Li-family youth who claimed he lost his sheep, entered a cave, and arrived in Yaojie.

There, she had taken him into her doctrinal lineage.

There, she had aided him in entering Suimingjie to seize the Source of Karma Fire—only to be betrayed, the fire stolen, and he fled.

There, she had witnessed the death of the Lord of the Great Wish Heaven.

Those future selves were dissolving into shadows, merging every moment, every second of the past into this present instant.

"I will spare your life, help you purge your memories, and let you be reborn in the Great Wish Wheel—this time—"

Yao Tian concealed the killing intent in her eyes; the other nine True Rulers aboard the Great Wish Vessel suddenly exploded, countless starlight specks flying apart, falling into the star-sea to become worlds in the making.

"You will be my most truthful disciple, the new Ten Directions True Ruler."

A disciple of limitless potential, utterly obedient, born from the Great Wish Heaven.

Layer upon layer of illusory veils gradually lifted; the Lord of the Great Wish Heaven still gathered the wishes of infinite worlds within the star-sea, bestowing rare completions, rescuing beings, ferrying them across the Sea of Life and Death to the Pure Land beyond.

Yao Tian walked toward him; he showed no reaction. When she extended her hand and flung a flame of black-and-white life-and-death karma, matter, energy, time, and space all rejected the truth of this act.

"Fulfill the Wish."

Her crimson lips parted; within the countless multiverses linked to the Heavenly City, the lingering influence of the former city lord, embedded in cosmic processes, passed through Bei Wu Zhenxian, crossed the distance of time and space, and flew into the flame in her hand.

In a flash, the karma fire engulfed the Lord of the Great Wish Heaven—but he remained in the same posture, utterly unchanged.

"One more step, and I shall be the new Lord of the Great Wish Heaven."

The star-sea of Yaojie began to flow, vast and primordial, magnificent beyond measure.

Within the World-Wide Knowledge Sphere group chat.

"How did you do it?"

Su Lin was puzzled, especially about Amon—he hadn't even given him an Angel-level transcendental trait, and though these three were strange, he'd never expected them to reach this level.

These three bodies—

Just with their flesh alone, they could fight Shi Hao.

"Mutual aid," Aha answered first: "We three are truly amazing."

Zhao Lei said: "It's all thanks to your teachings, my master—properly wielding holy light and erroneous power."

"Are you Anduin? Then who am I?" Amon replied.

Aha: "This is hilarious!"

Su Lin: "."

The conversation among the three seemed to trigger something; one of the Great Wish Envoys' dice suddenly shattered, and he removed his silver mask, pulling from his chest a monocle carved from crystal.

"I remember now," Amon grinned:

"He lied to me that I had complete ontological status; I parasitized him through error and gates; he lied to himself that he was always me, and I forgot I was me."

"Wait—why did I do this?"

As Amon spoke, Aha's face suddenly cracked open, revealing a face identical to Zhao Lei's—his expression exuded ecstasy and madness.

"Because I am Zhao Lei—you've all been fooled by me!"

These words triggered another mechanism: the monocle on Amon's eye socket dissolved into flesh, fell into his palm, and twisted into a die; Zhao Lei suddenly understood, peeled back his own skin, and revealed the face beneath.

Su Lin: "."

Damn it, are we playing "Who's the Spy" here?!

"Don't rush, my friend—we did this for a reason," Aha stroked his chin, thinking long: "I recall I was trying to separate them from themselves—it was an interesting experiment."

The die shattered again, revealing beneath it a segmented worm.

A blood-red dot appeared on the monocle.

"Listen, I don't want to play this endless 'who-is-who' horror doll game," Su Lin said, expressionless.

I'd rather go back, open a bottle of champagne, and celebrate that Kleine's mouth has finally stopped working.

"Yes, horror…" Amon (?) adjusted his monocle and said:

"I did this to recreate the state I was in when I touched the sect's sacred inheritance stele, as under normal circumstances, I cannot possess the host of this body."

Upon hearing these words, Zhao Lei's eyelids twitched twice. "I did this to use his power to rewind and retrace the last time the dice attempted to possess you, Brother Su Tianfu."

"No wonder you're the Kuishizhu Sect's my lord—your power over Fate is too useful," Ah Ha clapped and laughed. "But our bodies seem about to break apart, hahaha."

Su Lin watched the ceramic-like cracks appear on their faces, and calmly met their gaze—he understood how these three had pulled off the counter-killing.

"Senior, that Daoist named Zhang Heng is mentally unstable."

Song Shuhang saw the Four Great Kings of Entertainment gathered in the group livestream and came over to mention the Reincarnator Daoist: "He keeps asking me if I was his teammate in a past life."

"Silly child."

Su Lin's face softened with compassion; he pressed his palms together and smiled. "Run."

Song Shuhang blinked, then—

A terrifying white light swallowed everything.

Song Shuhang had a dream.

Then came a 360-degree, all-angle vision, and—

"I will never abandon you, never make you despair, and so on."

In a full-length mirror, four masks—"Sorrow," "Mockery," "Sneer," and "Delight"—floated suspended; behind them, dark shadows slowly turned their heads to lock eyes with Song Shuhang beyond the glass.

"Do we have the copyright?"

(End of Chapter)