Chapter 363: Did You Just Insult Me? |
"Did you just insult me?"
After finishing his sneeze, Cheng Shi opened with an accusation so baffling it stunned even Mo Shu. The Scavenger blinked in astonishment, then burst out laughing.
"I never stoop to petty tricks. If something offends me, I annihilate it on the spot. No point bottling up frustration."
"Besides—you carry [Oblivion] in your heart. I'm not here for you. I'm here for those two."
"Stop hiding. Even cowering behind someone else won't save you from annihilation."
The Scavenger's words were breezy, but every syllable sent cold sweat streaming down Scorpio and Gao Ya's backs.
Gao Ya pulled her hood lower, retreated half a step, and quietly began singing various support melodies behind Cheng Shi. Between measures, she didn't forget to hiss:
"You took my gloves. Where's my cake?"
A cake suddenly materialized in Cheng Shi's hand behind his back—but instead of giving it to Gao Ya, he pressed it directly into Scorpio's palm. Simultaneously, he looked dead-serious at Mo Shu:
Mo Shu blanked again. He didn't know why Cheng Shi was hung up on this, but he had time to spare—so he decided to play along.
"Oh? Even when I've annihilated my own presence, you can still sense being insulted?"
Cheng Shi nodded solemnly.
Mo Shu laughed. He laughed uproariously.
"You can't! Just now while saying that sentence, I insulted you—and you didn't sneeze. You lied, Fate Weaver."
But Cheng Shi showed zero embarrassment. Instead, wearing the triumphant expression of a trap sprung, he exclaimed:
"And you said you didn't insult me!"
"?"
After all that time hunting teammates, Mo Shu once again experienced a feeling of utter helplessness. He realized he'd walked right into a trap—yet the trap had been one he'd entered of his own volition.
He stared at Cheng Shi in speechless disbelief, thinking this Fate Weaver was like the slipperiest eel—no matter how you tried to grab him, he'd wriggle free and spit in your face for good measure.
'The last time I felt this way was when I ran into his rumored girlfriend, Zhen Yi.'
'As expected—birds of a feather flock together.'
But just as he'd given up on talking, Cheng Shi pushed his luck even further:
"What I hate most is people talking behind my back. Since you insulted me, don't blame me for being ruthless."
The instant the words left his mouth, Cheng Shi disregarded the two trembling teammates behind him and charged straight at the Scavenger with dual scalpels.
His charge was so fierce that both Scorpio and Gao Ya froze in shock.
Gao Ya's eyes went wide. 'A priest is at best slightly tougher than a singer—how does he dare play like a warrior?'
Scorpio's thinking was simpler. In his mind, Cheng Shi was still Bald Uses Rejoice, the [Prosperity] Chosen One. A head-on Chosen One clash seemed perfectly fine—especially since Cheng Shi had claimed to be a Druid, which made it even more logical.
[Prosperity]'s warriors never feared injury.
The only odd thing was that his charging form was riddled with openings—nothing like a seasoned warrior. More like an attention-seeking clown.
But given the title of Chosen One overhead, Scorpio figured those glaring holes were deliberate—bait to draw the Scavenger's attention, a trap waiting to be sprung!
Mo Shu thought the same—but one layer deeper.
He knew full well that any player widely discussed among peak players had to be formidable. So from start to finish, he'd never underestimated Cheng Shi just because he was a Fate Weaver. The instant Cheng Shi's feet left the ground, he reacted.
The Scavenger vanished from his position and reappeared atop a distant corridor roof, casually waving his hand to send both scalpels spiraling into the world of impending [Oblivion].
The attacker's weapons were gone before the two sides even met. Scorpio and Gao Ya watched with hearts in their throats.
But Cheng Shi himself wasn't surprised. He'd never expected his scalpels to hurt the man. The charge was only meant to get close enough. And at sufficient range—
BOOM—
He fired a "Thundering Judgment" from his mouth.
A fake one. He'd never intended to fight Mo Shu head-on. All these theatrics were to probe the enemy's reality—because if a Chosen One who'd been granted an audience with the Fun God had some bizarre trick up his sleeve, and three of them got duped by a mere illusion... that'd be humiliating.
So Cheng Shi had gambled by charging in. When he saw Mo Shu retreat cautiously, he knew this was no phantom. It was the genuine [Oblivion] Chosen One.
'Interesting. Both [Death] and [Oblivion]—two of the most aggressive faiths—have cautious-type Chosen Ones. People really have figured out how to play faith correctly.'
Seeing Mo Shu still frowning, scanning for environmental changes triggered by his "boom," Cheng Shi quickly darted back. While retreating, he clicked his tongue:
"As expected of a Chosen One—dodging even my Fraud Judgment. Impressive."
"I acknowledge you. In light of your skills, I'll let the earlier insult slide. I am, after all, a generous man."
"..."
"..."
"..."
This "I'm so generous" act left the dumbfounded Gao Ya stunned all over again.
She replayed the last few moments, confirming she definitely hadn't been singing any Soloist melodies to influence Cheng Shi. The songs she'd played were purely ordinary buffs.
So... was this Fate Weaver always this brave?
Mo Shu's expression finally shed its "shyness." Even if he were dumber, he could tell the charge was merely a probe—and he'd been tricked by two scalpels into retreating this far. How utterly...
Interesting.
Blending truth with bluff, toying with the heart. What a worthy reputation this Fate Weaver had—truly formidable!
He regarded Cheng Shi again, his eyes openly glinting with interest.
"Done playing?"
Cheng Shi pursed his lips: "Yeah. I still want to speedrun the trial. Next time we meet."
"Fine. Very fine. Cheng Shi—as you said, I acknowledge you too. So you may leave. Go speedrun your trial."
"But the two behind you stay. They... don't have my acknowledgment."
"The main issue is they didn't eat my handmade cake."
"That said, I do understand reciprocity. Next time we meet, I'll remember to put away your cake first."
"Then we'll continue today's game."
Mo Shu's words were clearly a warning that their next encounter would be very unpleasant. But Cheng Shi extracted a different meaning entirely—this man followed rules.
At least, he followed the rules he'd set for himself.
Simply because Cheng Shi had eaten that one piece of cake, this Scavenger wasn't planning to make a move on him this trial.
'This path of his really has shown him hope at the end of the road to faith.'
'Though—operating like this makes you look like an [Order] follower.'
Cheng Shi clicked his tongue and said meaningfully:
"You haven't also had an audience with [Order], have you?"
Mo Shu recognized the jab, but just smiled without responding.
And a smiling tiger was the most terrifying kind—it meant he had absolutely no intention of abandoning his kill plan.
Out of options, Cheng Shi turned and gestured for Scorpio to eat the cake immediately.
Scorpio had been wanting to eat it all along, but feared the timing would trigger a direct attack from the Scavenger. At Cheng Shi's signal, he instantly understood and crammed the entire cake into his mouth.
Watching the cream-smeared Scorpio, Cheng Shi smiled and looked at Mo Shu:
"Now what?"
...
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