Chapter 540: Each Reaps Their Own Rewards |
Reality. Some barren mountain in an unknown province.
Moonlight hung like white silk, embroidering dappled patterns through the forest.
A gentle breeze swayed the leaves, startling the hunter perched among the treetops.
Qu Yan snapped his eyes open. Lingering in his gaze was a mixture of trepidation and thrilled shock. In a single trial, he'd encountered two of Them. Granted, neither was among the supreme sixteen — but who said servant gods weren't gods?
Lord Yu Xi especially — this Void servant god who'd bestowed upon him a servant's contract — was, in Qu Yan's eyes, an absolutely flawless master!
Though the invisible-text contract written on A4 paper seemed like child's play, the pie this lord had drawn was anything but distant!
In this trial, he'd done negligible work — no, not even negligible. Any random previous trial had been harder and more complex than this one. But this time? He barely needed to lift a finger, and the clear time had been compressed to a single day!
One day!
In peak-tier matches, some people couldn't even figure out the situation on the first day, let alone clear the trial!
What boss draws a pie like this? This wasn't pie-in-the-sky — it was freshly baked flatbread! Still sizzling from the oven!
Qu Yan laughed — a wild, borderline manic laugh.
He'd been in the God Worship Society for so long, and finally he could see a glimmer of hope for advancement. Not advancement within the Society, of course — with his strength, he could easily rank in the top five there. No, this advancement meant he'd finally latched onto Their leg.
At this thought, the chameleon extended his hand. The arm that should have blended with the bark's color was now threaded with black fissures oozing with the aura of rot. This was Decay's gift!
No wonder everyone wanted to develop a second faith. Though it didn't bring an additional talent, gaining the blessing of a second profession was an enormous boost even at the peak tier.
Though Qu Yan hadn't originally been pursuing Decay, at this moment he was deeply satisfied.
After admiring his new skin tone, he produced an arrow from his storage space. The slightest activation of his Decay power transformed the arrow into a thorned vine shaft. Eyes gleaming, he drove the thorned arrow into the trunk beneath him.
The power of Sudden Dusk erupted instantly, and in the blink of an eye, the once-lush tree had become dead wood. Seeing that this arrow's power was every bit the equal of a true twilight hunter's, Qu Yan's eyes burned with increasing fervor.
'Praise be to Silence. Praise be to Decay. Praise be to the great... Lord Yu Xi!'
...
Reality. Some uninhabited zone in an unknown province.
A campfire crackled vigorously, casting dancing light. In its glow, a burly, hulking man sat cross-legged on the ground, staring at the flames with a wonderfully complex expression. He seemed to be recalling something amusing.
Before long, someone arrived.
Before the voice came the sword — a massive blade dripping with blood and flame was thrust into the ground beside the campfire. The big man looked up in surprise to see the newcomer approach with cold, grim features, sitting down with a darkened expression.
The big man blinked. "Damn. Lao Hu — what did the lord send you off to do?"
"?"
The big man was Da Yi. The newcomer was the Grand Marshal, Hu Wei. Hearing Da Yi's question, his brow furrowed deeply and he shot back coldly: "What do you mean?"
Da Yi froze. 'Makes sense he wouldn't know.' So he relayed everything about his encounter with Lord Ultraman in a steady, unhurried manner, capping it off with:
"Damn — if I'd known I could earn a faith this way, I would've volunteered for the black-robe acting gig myself. That chameleon lucked out.
Hey, Lao Hu, why have you gone quiet again?"
Quiet?
The moment Hu Wei heard Da Yi say Cheng Shi was Lord Ultraman, he'd lost all desire to speak.
He hadn't witnessed Da Yi's experiences firsthand, so he naturally couldn't empathize as strongly. Even though Da Yi was sharp enough not to be easily fooled, and the quoted words did sound like Lord Ultraman's style, the problem was...
'My brother Cheng — how many identities do you have?'
He could be Zhen Yi. He could be Lord Ultraman. But apparently, he just couldn't be himself?!
So what was it about the identity of "Cheng Shi" that was so special, that even Lord Ultraman would impersonate him?
When had He started the impersonation?
Who was the Cheng Shi in the Mediocre Person Society?
Where had the real Cheng Shi gone?
It was too convenient. Every time he encountered Cheng Shi, the man wore a different identity. So was it different people stealing his identity, or had he deceived everyone?!
But seeing Da Yi's rock-solid conviction, Hu Wei didn't want to argue. Since Da Yi was certain it was Lord Ultraman, whether it was or wasn't could be settled by simply asking.
Hadn't Da Yi also mentioned he'd earned the right to walk the Chaos Steps? This was the perfect opportunity to go back and compare notes with Lord Ultraman in the temple...
A face-to-face verification.
"Damn it, Lao Hu — what are you brooding about with that face?"
"Does he know you're the Refracted Light Shadow?"
"Who?" Da Yi blinked.
A strange light flickered in Hu Wei's eyes. The name nearly escaped his lips, but he swallowed it and said instead: "The chameleon."
Da Yi scratched his head. "Damn, who cares if he knows or not. The way I see it, the lord's already got that one wrapped around his finger. Our little meetings might be gaining a new mute soon."
"..." Hu Wei said nothing, just nodded and fell silent.
Seeing Lao Hu refuse to talk, Da Yi figured the man had probably fought a tough battle. His expression turned serious: "Damn. Who did you run into?"
"Lin Xi. He's merged with Oblivion. It's a bit of a problem."
"?"
...
A trial. Some city in an unknown location.
In a blood-reeking basement, six players bound to the walls opened their eyes one after another. Once they'd sized each other up, a pastry chef easily broke free of his restraints and produced an antique wooden box.
He smiled with amusement, took a cake from the box, and — before everyone's eyes — made it vanish into thin air from his palm.
"What a shame. It seems someone won't get to taste my pastries."
He then set the box on the ground and politely addressed the group:
"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Mo Shu, a pastry chef. I'd originally intended to treat everyone, but something unexpected has come up today. I probably won't be able to attend to you all, so please help yourselves. Make yourselves comfortable.
As for me... I've encountered someone I can't stand the sight of, and I've got a bit of a temper to vent."
With that, he raised his hand and obliterated the ropes before him, releasing the player bound to the wall directly across from him.
"Cockroach skeleton — today, I'm going to find out just how many lives you have!"
Indeed, the player facing the pastry chef was none other than squinty-eyed Zhang Jizu. But the Death Chosen had clearly forgotten who this opponent was. However, after sensing the other's Oblivion power, he nodded thoughtfully.
'Since we're natural enemies, hostility makes sense.'
Zhang Jizu surveyed the room through nearly closed eyes. After identifying his teammates, he nodded with sudden understanding:
"So it's you. It seems something unpleasant happened between us last time we met.
However, I must point out that cockroach exoskeletons are external by nature, making 'cockroach skeleton' a redundant expression. I hope you'll correct this in the future.
Also, I'm not sure how many lives I have. But I suspect it's at least a few more than yours."
"..." The spectating teammates' eyes suddenly blazed with interest. The opening salvo was packing a bit too much gunpowder.
Mo Shu snorted coldly. He didn't waste more words on Zhang Jizu. Instead, he charged straight at him in the cramped underground space. For a warrior, actions always spoke louder than words.
Though if he could manage to disgust the enemy with some verbal barbs during the fight, he wasn't above using those tactics either.
"Heh — after I'm done with you, I'll take your head and go meet that Fate Weaver surnamed Cheng!"
Mo Shu moved fast. He obliterated every obstacle in his path and drove a fist straight at the squinty-eyed man's face. Zhang Jizu's reactions were no slouch either. Seeing the incoming fist, he instantly assumed a fighting stance, ready to exchange blows with this natural enemy.
But no matter how quick a priest's reflexes were, they couldn't possibly match those of a...
Assassin!
"Boom—"
Mo Shu's fist didn't connect with the squinty-eyed man's face. Nor was it deflected by Zhang Jizu. Instead, a nimble assassin reached out and caught it, stopping the blow a hair's breadth from its target.
The basement's occupants all raised their eyebrows at this. Zhang Jizu's eyes narrowed even further. Mo Shu's expression darkened. He turned to face the assassin who'd unexpectedly intervened and spoke coldly:
"You're going to protect him?"
"No, no, no — the Death Chosen doesn't need me to save him. I just wanted to ask — the Fate Weaver surnamed Cheng that you mentioned...
That wouldn't happen to be Cheng Shi, would it?"
Mo Shu's gaze sharpened. He instantly retreated, fixing a hard stare on the assassin without a word.
The squinty-eyed one, however, nodded and replied in his characteristically measured tone: "It is."
The assassin's lips curled into a delighted grin. "And you two are...?"
"Not close." Zhang Jizu's face was expressionless.
"Oh~ Got it." The assassin nodded meaningfully, then looked at Mo Shu in the distance with a smile. "Hey, pastry chef — I feel like I've seen you somewhere before. Can't remember, but it doesn't matter. What I want to say is — you've got beef with the little priest?"
"So what if I do?"
"Simple. If you do, then how about we resolve that conflict right here?
Sounds fair... doesn't it?"
The moment those words fell, a dark flash blazed across the dim basement as an all-out brawl erupted.
Powers of faith intertwined and clashed. Before long, the space could no longer withstand the terrifying fluctuations of power, and with a thunderous "BOOM—" it collapsed entirely.
...
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