Chapter 598: Deceit Fuses with Chaos—The Clown Who Lost His Mind! |
【Cheng Shi, Male, 22 years old】
【Path of Fate: Void】
【Path Talent: Reflection of Nihility (SSS): ...】
【Current Faith: Deceit (Fused) Chaos】
【Road to Ascension: 2204, Global Rank: 387,994】
【Ladder of Ascent: 175, Path Rank: 48】
【Faith Talents:
Lies of Yesterday (SS): Deceit faith talent...
Master of Deception (S): Deceit faith talent...
Shared Divine Grace (S): Priest class talent...
Aspect of Sentient Beings (S): Fate oathbreaker talent...
Chaos Acting (SS): Chaos faith talent, active. When you are impersonating a target, regardless of whether others recognize the identity you are playing, you can project any image, aura, and voice you wish onto observers, achieving an effect indistinguishable from the real thing.
Order Horn (S): Chaos faith talent, active. You may perform any action to create sound and have it count as the sounding of Order's horn, thereby extracting disorder from the target's heart and removing all Chaos status effects from the target.
Fishing in Muddy Waters (S): Chaos faith talent, active. Within any type of fog or smoke, you gain a panoramic field of vision and can transform into mist to merge with your surroundings.
...】
"!!!"
The faith fusion had struck so suddenly that Cheng Shi completely lost the ability to think. He stood there, utterly stunned.
He read and reread his new talents, gradually emerging from his stupor. The corners of his mouth began climbing—higher and higher—until they physically couldn't stretch any further. Only then did he expel the breath that had been lodged in his chest.
"Hahahaha—!
So this is what real faith fusion looks like! So even I can get new talents!
Oh, Mi Laozhang—bet you didn't see this coming. I also have eight... uh, never mind. Only kids compare. Adults know when to be modest.
Hm? Wait—I also have a Path talent. So that makes...
Ha!
Mi Laozhang—bet you didn't see this coming. I'm a nine-talent man now!"
In this moment, the Clown was "triumphant" beyond measure.
But why was he able to fuse with Chaos even after the Void unification?
Did this count as fusing a second faith or a third?
Chaos, Deceit... Sanity Eroder, Clown...
What was he now?
A clown who'd lost his mind?
'Hss—'
'That sounds even more absurd.'
But none of that mattered. What mattered was: if Deceit could fuse with Chaos, then did that mean his other faith, Fate...
...could also fuse with something?!
Four faiths?!
Cheng Shi's spirits soared. That cunning gleam returned to his eyes as he mentally reviewed which gods his Benefactor Fate was closest to. One divine name leapt from memory:
Folly!
Fate had personally nudged him toward Galusha, and that Oathbreaker from the Grand Tribunal was a follower of Folly!
'Huh?'
'So my next identity is... a Folly-purging Fate Weaver?'
'Actually... that doesn't sound bad?'
While Cheng Shi was still daydreaming about infinite possibilities, his freefall through the Void finally reached its conclusion. He heard a crash—as if he'd shattered something—and then his vision went dark. The Void spat him out.
When he opened his dazed eyes, he found himself back inside the Supreme Court of Katouting.
Before him: a wary Big Cat. A deeply frowning Dragon King. A dazed Chernosly. And...
Radiating Order's holy light, hovering majestically in the air with every page intact and an aura of supreme authority—"Order."
It had recovered!
But this "Order" was not truly Order. The problem was, most people in this world couldn't see past the surface. They could only perceive what they chose to believe.
And so, the chaotic Supreme Court had order once again.
The Iron Law had fully emerged from its deranged state and returned to being the world's symbol of order. Its pages rustled as they turned, the surrounding Order aura surging in rhythm with it. A terrifying pressure gathered—it appeared to be searching for the appropriate charge with which to judge these blasphemers standing before it.
Hong Lin's face was carved from stone. She hadn't had time to wonder why the ground around her looked like something had chewed it up, nor why she was covered in mud. She simply retreated a few steps to shield Cheng Shi, every nerve taut:
"This is bad—get ready to run!"
Li Jingming looked even darker. He'd expended countless resources to get here, only to be swallowed by chaos with nothing to show for it—not a single frame of what had happened recorded.
But now wasn't the time for complaints. He edged closer to the other two and spoke with icy composure:
"I've heard of wars between the gods. Order may have been affected by Chaos during a God War, causing it to lose its own Order at certain moments.
But this isn't the time for analysis. We need to end this expedition early.
A god's gaze doesn't distinguish between dream and reality. Before the Iron Law passes its verdict—move. Now."
He quickly traced several Memory symbols in the air. Memory power surged, gradually dissolving the three tangible bodies back into spectral form.
But right then, the Iron Law Knights arrived on the scene, drawn by the commotion. And alongside the fully armed sentries came Grand Executioner Artair and his student, Moxius.
The instant Moxius saw the Iron Law looming overhead, actively judging Chernosly, his face went deathly pale.
His worst fear had come true. It seemed the Benefactor had rejected Chernosly's defense and was poised to deliver severe punishment.
Chernosly, meanwhile, had slowly regained consciousness as the surrounding Chaos aura dissipated. But this was a lucidity built upon Chaos-warped cognition. He hadn't forgotten what he'd said—the influence still held. He was still affected.
So when he took in the scene before him, he looked up at the Iron Law in terror—then turned to Moxius in fury.
"Moxius, I trusted you with everything, and you betrayed me?!
You called them here?!
You covet my position the same way they covet power—it's disgusting!
You've disappointed me beyond words. You're no different from them, drowned in greed for power!
How dare you face the oath you swore to our Lord! How dare you face our friendship!
Moxius—you have blasphemed Order! It is you who blasphemed Order!"
Moxius was frozen. Watching Chernosly's descent into madness, he thought of Lord Lo Yat, who had broken down in the exact same way.
Now, at last, he was beginning to believe what the Grand Justice had said. And yet... he couldn't bring himself to accept that any of this was real.
He wanted to reach his senior. Wanted to salvage the friendship. But the moment he stepped forward, his teacher Artair blocked his path.
"Teacher, Chernosly is—"
"He violated the constitution. He committed blasphemy!"
"He—"
"He violated the constitution. He committed blasphemy!" Artair repeated, face cold as steel, brooking no argument.
Moxius went white—as if all strength had drained from his body. His head dropped.
"Yes, Teacher. I understand."
Seeing Moxius's submission, Chernosly's expression twisted into even greater fury: "Moxius, I will remember your betrayal! I will remember your filth! I will remember your 'order'!
What a Grand Tribunal! What justice! What fairness!
I am innocent! I was framed! I am not wrong! I beseech my Lord to bear witness—I, Chernosly, First-Class Inquisitor, am not wrong!"
As his voice faded, Li Jingming finally completed his dream-escape technique. He flicked his wide sleeve, called out "Go!"—and prepared to spirit Cheng Shi and Hong Lin out through the dream.
But at that exact moment, the Iron Law, which had been calmly turning its pages, stopped. It had landed on a page inscribed with the crime of blasphemy. Across the page, furious thunderstorm energy erupted instantaneously.
The roar of the lightning plasma was so violent it seemed to freeze spacetime itself for a single heartbeat—and in that instant, the Dragon King's Memory technique for breaking free of the dream failed outright.
They hadn't escaped.