[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-gods-foolish-game":3,"chapter-the-gods-foolish-game-the-gods-foolish-game-chapter-988":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Gods' Foolish Game",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2362116,4617,"Chapter 988","the-gods-foolish-game-chapter-988",988,"\u003Cp>There’s no boss in the world this good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you setting up a mirror just to welcome yourself?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Tsk, pretty funny. It seems the corruption of [Deception] is spreading through you faster than I thought...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could finish speaking, Cheng Shi fell silent, suddenly realizing the object before him wasn’t a mirror at all—but... another skull!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As [Death]’s chosen deity, placing a skull at the entrance to greet oneself might make sense, but... why does this skull look so much like me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi froze. At first he thought it was some relic left behind by Zhang Ji’s enemy, but he quickly realized something was off—the skull still bore faint, uncleaned traces of deliberate carving!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly someone had carved it from a massive bone. Coupled with Zhang Ji’s practiced hand in pulling out a camera just now, Cheng Shi’s face darkened as he spun around and cursed:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You sneaky bastard Zhang, so this is where you’ve been waiting for me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s the meaning of carving this tiny skull?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I haven’t even used you as a scapegoat yet... I treated you like a friend, and you keep dragging me into your messes?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When have I ever dragged you into anything?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Isn’t this proof?” Cheng Shi stomped around the carved skull, teeth clenched. “You carved a perfect copy of me just to whitewash your own sacrilege!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cheng Shi, it’s just a skull. All skulls look alike.” Zhang Ji smiled with narrowed eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You think I’d believe that?” Cheng Shi scoffed. “Are you trying to fool ghosts?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fine. Even if I buy it—what about Them?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You don’t seriously think placing this thing on every tombstone and photographing it will fool Them?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t you underestimate the gods? Even if they’re not truly omniscient, don’t they know everything that happens in this game and every mortal’s actions?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You really think this can hide it from Them?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is pure self-deception!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ha! Are you planning to present this farce to the God of Entertainment?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then I admit—from now on, you’re a qualified [Deception] believer.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the tiny skull had salivary glands, Cheng Shi’s spit would’ve sprayed straight onto Zhang Ji’s face... no, his feet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He kept hopping around Zhang Ji’s feet as if suffering a terrible “betrayal.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Zhang Ji paid him no mind. He merely smiled, dragged over a wooden stool, hoisted Cheng Shi onto it, then sat cross-legged opposite him, narrowing his eyes and repeating Cheng Shi’s own words back to him:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You should be asking yourself, Cheng Shi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do you really think you can fool Them?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi froze. He stopped moving, stunned—Zhang Ji had meant something entirely different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Ji continued slowly, as if he’d already guessed Cheng Shi’s purpose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Because of the Jester, I’ve been speaking often with Li Jingming. He seems to hold a peculiar view of you—that you possess secrets no mortal should know, and that hoarding such secrets without sharing them only plunges you into overwhelming fear.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So he told me you’d eventually seek someone to confide in.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I never believed it—until today, seeing you appear again in the graveyard...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There’s no information exchange that can’t be resolved by phone. Face-to-face meetings only happen when something’s critical—or when you lack confidence, or both.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Jester’s mask has no new leads. Neither the historians nor Li Jingming have found anything. You’ve been here long enough but never once brought up the mask—so you’re not here to discuss it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The only thing comparable in importance to the mask fragments must be something concerning Them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So you came here because of Them. And the reason you’ve danced around the topic this long suggests it’s not something good about the gods...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s why I ask you—if something is truly important, do you think you can hide it from Them?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this game, there are no fools...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi fell silent, tapping his chin. “Can’t I just be here to look around?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No. Because you’re Cheng Shi—you never do pointless things.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Zhang, you seriously underestimate our friendship!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I only recognize a liar’s trick. The more you deflect, the more my guess proves right.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sometimes talking to a smart person is exhausting—but at least this smart person is on my side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi tapped his chin again and sighed:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There are indeed some extremely thorny matters. But under the God of Entertainment’s protection, I think we’re safe.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So it’s the Jester!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Ji narrowed his eyes, nodding as if everything suddenly made sense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So you really plan to hold this Jester gathering. What exactly are you going to confess to us at this meeting?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Never mind that—since you used the word ‘should,’ it means you’re not sure yourself. This has something to do with [Deception], doesn’t it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi was speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He glanced at Zhang Ji, then stepped back two paces, gesturing irritably:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fine, here—take the mic. You talk. Keep going.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re so good at guessing—just figure out my whole purpose already.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The whole stage is yours. I’m curious what else you can say.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No sooner had he finished than Zhang Ji shook his head with a wry laugh and pulled from his personal space a large bell made of bleached bone fragments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bell wasn’t huge—about the size of a human head. Had it not been round, it might’ve looked like a set of bronze chimes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi froze. A bell saturated with [Death] energy—hard not to associate it with the Singer of the Lord, the Bell Ringer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Zhang, why are you pulling out a bell now? You planning to perform for me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What kind of twist is this—Bell Ringer Zhang Ji, the [Death] metal musician?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Cheng Shi stood bewildered, Zhang Ji slowly shook the bell and explained:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ve figured it out—it’s a gift from the Lord.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I prayed to the Lord, asking for a treasure capable of shielding us from the gods’ scrutiny...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“???”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What the hell?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi stared at the bone bell, voice nearly cracking. “This... is it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes. This is the Bell Ringer’s Funeral.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi frowned. “I understand the Lord better than you in some ways. That’s not His name.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...It doesn’t matter. What matters is this bell emits enough [Death] energy to mimic the Lord’s presence, blocking all surveillance from other gods.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, Cheng Shi was genuinely stunned—he immediately realized this bell was meant for the Jester gathering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You... you’ve been preparing for the Jester gathering all along?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Zhang, I never thought you cared so much about the Jester...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Ji narrowed his eyes and shook his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not me. Li Jingming—or rather, Zhen Xin.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Their anticipation for the Jester gathering far exceeds mine. I know what the Jester truly is, but they don’t—they’re full of hope.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even these two rarely speaking individuals have reestablished some communication because of the Jester. And this bell? It’s the result of their exchange.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The bell’s bestowal was unexpected. When Zhen Xin proposed it, none of us thought it would work—no god permits mortals to block their sight and hearing.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As expected, their prayers failed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mine failed too. When I asked the Lord for this, He refused.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“?” Cheng Shi blinked, looking at the bell in Zhang Ji’s hand—clearly asking: Then what is this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Ji understood his confusion. His expression turned strange. He stared at the tiny skull before him, eyes glinting oddly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...Until I mentioned you. I said this artifact was requested on your behalf.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“???”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After a long silence, the Lord granted me this bell.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So Cheng Shi—I also want to ask: why does the Lord favor you so much more than me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheng Shi was dumbfounded. He pictured the Lord’s form—the towering, radiant figure upon the bone throne.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There’s no boss in the world this good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a moment, the tiny skull wept.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faked.\u003C\u002Fp>",1295,"2026-06-21T06:05:16.216Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","fb77509a696f10839008d105693714b6a5e55bc5497f7455d1fac19004a65b71","the-gods-foolish-game-chapter-989","the-gods-foolish-game-chapter-987",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-gods-foolish-game-cover.jpg"]