Chapter 968

From the protection of [Deception]

He wondered that even [Fate] itself, under the empowerment of mystery, might aid him in better wielding his deceit—but he had never had the chance to encounter [Void].

Until one day, a True God found him.

Yes, Du Qiyu had made his audience with a God; he kept this secret tightly, telling no one.

It was in a pitch-black void that he faced the Yanqian ... pitch-black void and completed his first audience.

This makes sense, doesn’t it? After all, [Void] possesses nothing, so naturally it would have no concrete form.

The one who summoned him was a God of [Void]—to be frank, it was [Deception].

No one knew why the Jester God had summoned Du Qiyu; He merely offered Xiao Qi a choice: to abandon his oath and join the ranks of [Deception].

He also promised that the power boost from switching factions would far exceed the side effects of the [Corruption] oath-abandonment curse, and told Xiao Qi to consider carefully and reply within three seconds.

This was clearly coercion—who dares refuse a True God? And who could make such an oath-abandoning decision in three seconds?

Someone did.

Xiao Qi gave his answer in just one second, because he never wanted to refuse!

He had envied the followers of [Deception] for too long; under the witness of the void, he finally became a member of the [Deception] faction.

But this was also the beginning of his nightmare.

[Deception]’s promise was brutal and direct; every talent He bestowed upon Xiao Qi was sufficient to make him shine in this game, and his power did indeed rise substantially.

To be honest, if we ignore the [Corruption] oath-abandonment curse, Xiao Qi’s talents were so strong that, had he simply followed the trial protocol, reaching the next tier beyond 2600 points would not have been difficult—even the Audience Ladder could have climbed several ranks under the Patron’s protection.

But the problem lay precisely in this oath-abandonment curse.

[Corruption]’s punishment for oath-breakers was exceedingly cruel; the curse He bestowed was called “Uncontrollable Desires.” Under its influence, Xiao Qi’s desires grew and swelled at an unimaginable speed, accompanied by a massive accumulation of garbage emotions—this endless craving nearly devoured his reason and left him paralyzed.

Fortunately, [Deception], seemingly having foreseen this curse, gave Xiao Qi a countermeasure—and thus a split beast-tamer was born.

Du Qiyu could only suppress the growth of his desires and calm his emotions by taming and splitting beasts in vast numbers, but as a result, the power granted to him by [Deception] also split apart.

[Deception]’s former promise seemed to have become an empty promise—until today!

Until he found, in the hands of another [Deception] follower, this item capable of absorbing all emotions, did he realize that [Deception]’s gaze had never left him.

And when the one who provided this crucial item was Xiao Shi himself... at that moment, Du Qiyu’s elation rivaled that of Cheng Shi when he first fused with [Void].

He felt he was truly the destined one of this game.

Now, he no longer needed to deliberately split his beasts to suppress his emotions and desires; he had sufficient power to do what he wished—such as...

Seizing this perfect opportunity, this rare match probability, to eliminate the original owner of this item—his old friend, [Deception]’s own Xiao Shi.

Only then could his path ahead be free of lingering threats.

Cheng Shi was undoubtedly dangerous; Du Qiyu had heard the rumor that the Fate Weaver had shattered Experiment Field 0221 and rescued a host of experts—this was his last chance.

This thought was not a reflection of his obsession, but the product of the coldest, most rational analysis: if he let Xiao Shi go, would those experts rescued by the Fate Weaver use this as an excuse to come after him?

He knew full well that in the high-stakes arena, there was no friendship—only interest; few might truly help Xiao Shi out of gratitude for that rescue. But if Xiao Shi went out and claimed this item had fallen into Du Qiyu’s hands, how many of those so-called expert players, upon learning the whereabouts of such a useful item, would not be tempted?

So this was a calculation too clear to ignore: either attempt a 1v2 in this trial, or survive until its end—only to face 1vUnknown afterward.

Whether driven by desire or rational thought, Du Qiyu would unhesitatingly choose the former.

He was merely pondering how to strike—ideally, first drive a wedge between Xiao Shi and the Sage, then find an opportunity to face Xiao Shi alone.

Du Qiyu had always been cautious, but when a person’s fear, like other emotions, gradually dissolves, that person becomes confident—strange, unnatural confidence.

Who knows how much water is mixed into a victory one has never witnessed firsthand?

Even if Xiao Shi defeated Lin Xi in this trial, don’t forget—he had help.

How many forces did the former [Prosperity] Chosen have? Who knows? And since Lin Xi vanished, Chun vanished too—doesn’t that prove they exchanged blows, and Xiao Shi was merely the final beneficiary?

Thus, increasingly certain, Du Qiyu began contemplating how to eliminate Cheng Shi before the trial ended; time was running short, for the moment the battlefield concluded remained unknown to any individual—and as long as he lacked control over that timing, he had to seize every second.

And as he meticulously prepared for this new hunt, a small interruption occurred—he sensed the presence of a [Him] in this trial!

Yes, [Him].

The stench of [Decay] here far surpassed that of Lin Xi; as Sun Miao had suspected, a force of such magnitude could not possibly belong to a player.

Thus, fearless, Du Qiyu had a sudden insight—and made a startling decision: he followed the faint trace of this aura, determined to find out why a Messenger had descended into this trial.

Of course, if he could somehow spark something with this Messenger—or even forge a connection—it would be a boon to his future.

Didn’t Xiao Shi win against Zainjir because of the legendary, ugly-faced Gorylis?

But all this was cautious, rational probing; at this moment, Du Qiyu was utterly devoted to [Deception]. He had not a single thought of returning to [Drowning], and even believed he was about to become a Child of [Deception], perhaps even earning a place at the Audience Gathering through this devotion.

No, not “perhaps”—certainly!

He would have a place at the Audience Gathering.

But life is never perfectly smooth; while [Deception] granted him protection, [Fate] clearly had no intention of acknowledging him.

Du Qiyu had barely glimpsed the Messenger’s back when he caught only one phrase: “How is He here too?”—then the [Decay] Messenger vanished in an unimaginable manner.

Thus, Xiao Qi learned that yet another Messenger had descended into this trial.

But who could this one be?