Chapter 982

If there's still hope......

Cheng Shi had no idea the battlefield had just been a chaotic mess; he only knew he’d slept like a log.

After who knew how long, when he woke again, he found himself back in the rest zone, having lain on the rooftop for some time.

Falling into unconscious sleep without warning was far too reckless; filled with dread, Cheng Shi silently checked his physical state, and only after confirming there was no issue did he let out a heavy sigh of relief.

What did the last line of 【War】 mean? Did the Jester God show up?

If He came, then come—but why send me away?

I was the one who proposed the deal, yet you two reached an agreement and left the intermediary out entirely?

Is that appropriate?

Cheng Shi snorted inwardly, realizing his mortal status had diminished his influence and sense of involvement; all those masks—Ultraman, Fool’s Play—worked on other mortals, but faced with 【Them】, they became nothing but insubstantial jokes.

Indeed, the jester was still the funniest of 【Nothingness】.

But what did “Jester God” even mean? Could He have appeared before 【War】 just to rescue me?

How did He feel about my first interference in His plan?

Cheng Shi desperately wanted answers, but he knew asking the Jester God was pointless; so he changed tactics and decided to meet his other benefactor, 【Fate】.

Even if 【Fate】 was still in the dark, the one who understands you best is often your opponent—and this opponent was His own sibling deity; so if 【Fate】 felt His predetermined path had grown even more treacherous, perhaps that meant the deal had succeeded?

He acted at once.

Without hesitation, Cheng Shi pulled out his mask and began chanting, “Life is as countless as stars,” but before he finished, his prayer was interrupted.

This time, the interruption wasn’t some sudden force dragging him into the void—it was his phone ringing.

Cheng Shi raised an eyebrow, paused briefly, and decided the matter wasn’t urgent; he set the mask down and picked up the phone, hearing Xiang Honglin’s irritated voice on the other end:

“You were right—I prayed to 【Fate】 and indeed met Him again, but unfortunately, He slipped away once more!”

“?” Cheng Shi blinked. “Yug?”

“Who else!?”

Upon hearing the name, Honglin’s irritation spiked further: “Compared to Lin Xi, He’s more like a stinking rat in the sewer—why is this guy so good at running?”

Doesn’t He have even a shred of imperial dignity!?

Forget Him. Not all news is bad lately—at least there’s one good thing: Lin Xi is dead. Did you hear?”

“......” Cheng Shi blinked, saying nothing.

“Hey? Cheng Shi, you still there? I said Lin Xi is—” Honglin’s voice suddenly halted, then asked, suspiciously, “You already knew, didn’t you? It wasn’t you, was it!?”

“Did you just get out of the trial too?”

Wow, who said Honglin was dumb? She’s sharp as hell.

Cheng Shi had no reason to deny it; he simply replied, smiling: “I killed him.”

“You... killed Lin Xi?”

“Yeah, it’s complicated—I ran into...”

Cheng Shi had planned to quickly exchange intel with Honglin, but she cut him off, sighing heavily:

“Chun also died. You know—‘Only Carves Rotten Wood.’ I thought she’d fulfilled her vow, but now I see you killed Lin Xi—so it seems she took her own life...”

“I know.”

“You know?” Honglin’s voice cracked. “Wait—Cheng Shi, did you kill Chun too?”

Well, who said Honglin was sharp? She’s just—

Whatever. We’re brothers.

Cheng Shi sighed and briefly recounted how he’d encountered both of them in the trial.

Regarding Lin Xi’s death, Honglin offered only “Good riddance,” but the death of the 【Prosperity】 believer left her deeply shaken—clearly, she’d considered him a friend, whether ally or just a fun combat partner.

Hearing Honglin’s somber silence, Cheng Shi too fell quiet for a moment, then steered the conversation back to Yug. He was curious about the 【Time】 power Yug had left behind when he escaped, so he asked why Yug carried 【Time】 power.

This time, Honglin was utterly baffled.

“Who has 【Time】 power?”

Cheng Shi hadn’t realized anything was wrong: “Yug—how else did He slip past you?”

“Yug?”

“Cheng Shi, are you drunk?”

“Yug is a follower of 【Decay】—where would He get 【Time】 power!?”

“He escaped using 【Decay】’s power—what does that have to do with 【Time】? Are we talking about the same Yug?”

???

Are you kidding? Where am I supposed to find a second Yug? And Yug isn’t even a twin—He—

Wait.

Cheng Shi’s gaze sharpened; he gripped the phone tighter and asked sharply: “You just said He escaped using 【Decay】’s power?”

“You’re definitely drunk.”

“When did you enter your trial?”

“?” Hearing Cheng Shi’s serious tone, Honglin sensed something was off; she recalled her trial’s timing and replied firmly: “Seven minutes ago. After the trial ended, I drank one glass of water, then called you.”

Seven minutes...

That’s impossible!

The last trial ended long ago. Even if divine audience time didn’t sync with the world, I’d already slept in the rest zone for ages—this isn’t just a seven-minute issue. Logically, Yug should’ve lost 【Decay】’s protection long ago—how could He possibly use 【Decay】 power to escape?

Who drank?

Or what went wrong?

“Cheng Shi, what happened?” Honglin’s tone turned grave.

Cheng Shi didn’t know what had happened—but a wild theory suddenly struck him. Yet it was too absurd to voice to Honglin; so he simply explained his own fading of Yug and admitted he didn’t understand what had occurred.

Honglin fell silent. After a long while, she spoke:

“Maybe there really is another Yug?”

【Time】 has spun countless possibilities—what if one of the two Hes we encountered came from a simulation world?”

I can confirm my trial had no 【Time】 follower—so Cheng Shi, the one you met was a fake from a simulation!”

What a brilliant big-cat Holmes!

But the problem is—my trial had no other 【Time】 followers either. The only 【Time】 follower was me.

Wouldn’t I know if I’d done a simulation?

Meanwhile, on the rooftop rest zone:

“Delivered?”

A figure sat at the rooftop’s edge, drinking thick fluid under the setting sun.

Behind him, the black-cloaked hooded figure chuckled and nodded:

“This Yug was too cautious—but luckily, Anshen’s divination technique was convincing enough. Mission accomplished.”

Hearing the confirmation, the seated figure wiped his mouth and smiled:

“Good. We can only help this much. The rest depends on whether they can find their own path.”

No sooner had he spoken than several figures landed on the rooftop. A crisp female voice, laced with mockery, spoke:

“I heard you turned down Qin Xin?”

The seated figure didn’t turn, only nodded at the sinking sun.

“We’re different from them. The torchbearers shouldn’t pin their hope on me. I am myself—I’ve never been a god.”

“Pity. You refuse a safe god-making plan and insist on leading a god-slaying one...”

The female voice paused, then another male voice spoke:

“Interesting. So—who’s the target?”

The figure everyone watched slowly rose, his gaze fixed far ahead, hardening with resolve.

“【Prosperity】!”

“Perhaps He is the true answer.”

“Because the 【Prosperity】 in that world fell?”

“Not entirely. Recently, I met another interesting version of myself—he told me 【Time】 is the answer, but 【Prosperity】 is the paper screen blocking it.”

“So he helped that world tear through the screen and topple 【Prosperity】.”

“It’s a bit late for us now—but what if?”

“As long as the gamble isn’t over, who knows what number the dice will show?”

As he spoke, the figure raised a single red dot before his eyes, blocking the last rays of the sun.

“Oh? So the success in that world wasn’t accidental—it was an inevitable result of collective effort?”

“Interesting. I’m suddenly curious what memory my counterpart in that world would carry. But I’m even more curious—did the one who tore through the screen... escape?”

“Escape...?”

“No one escapes. If your own world still holds hope, who would light the only spark elsewhere?”

“He was more unfortunate than I am—at least I still have you.”