Chapter 913: Chun and Lin Xi |
"Who was the player sitting next to you?"
Cheng Shi recalled the appearances of the two combatants. Cross-referencing what he'd seen, he could roughly guess the identity of the sparse-haired, brain-exposed player in this conflict.
Lin Xi!
ID: "Rotten Wood." A Decay Chosen who had fused Oblivion — the rank-one player on the path. A Plague Cardinal whom Big Cat called "the mouse."
Even now, with Big Cat serving as Prosperity's representative, his score on the Ladder of Ascent still sat at the top.
Cheng Shi had no idea what Big Cat was thinking. She clearly didn't care about that spot — but still, didn't she at least owe it to Prosperity's followers to fight for some respect?
He hadn't been able to figure it out before. But after stumbling into today's clash, it clicked.
The one meant to fight for Prosperity's honor wasn't her — it was the Prosperity follower who'd just attacked Lin Xi in this trial!
That's right. The attacker was a Prosperity follower. A Prosperity assassin: Crown of Thorns.
"You don't recognize her?" Sun Miao typed.
"?" Cheng Shi raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Is that strange?"
"A little. Everyone says you're close with Hong Lin. Surprised she's never mentioned her to you.
Her name is Chun. That name might not ring a bell, but if I give you her ID...
Only Carving Rotten Wood."
"!!!"
'It's her!'
'That scabby head is Only Carving Rotten Wood?'
'No wonder she and Lin Xi are at each other's throats. One look at the ID and you'd know there must be some deeply personal enmity between them.'
Cheng Shi frowned and turned his gaze toward the distant battlefield. "Her hair — did Lin Xi do that?"
"Yes and no."
Sun Miao typed at blistering speed, her fingers practically leaving afterimages.
She clearly enjoyed typing. But even as she typed, she didn't cater entirely to Cheng Shi's questions. She surveyed their surroundings, assessing which direction to take, then stepped forward, walking and talking simultaneously.
"They were originally married."
What?
Cheng Shi's stride hitched mid-step. His jaw nearly hit the floor. But the emotionless electronic voice that followed immediately reeled in his spiraling thoughts.
"Don't misunderstand. Chun only looks male in her current form — she's actually a woman.
Decay's curse stripped her of everything feminine. Including her lover.
Their story is long. If you're certain you want to hear it, you might want to think about what intel you're prepared to trade. Don't forget — I'm with the History School. Despite the 'history' label, its true nature is an intelligence organization no one can deny.
So with me, all types of information are welcome."
"..." Cheng Shi trailed behind her, watching Sun Miao's hands move constantly as though gripping a game controller. He couldn't shake the absurdly surreal feeling.
'Sure enough — the History School is full of weirdos.'
'Then again, it probably takes a weirdo to get along with Zhen Xin.'
Cheng Shi mulled it over briefly. A grin quickly formed — he thought of an exceptionally interesting piece of intel for the trade. He spoke outright.
"Order has a problem."
"!!!"
Sun Miao's guiding stride lurched to a halt. She swiveled halfway around, rigid, and for the first time, a change flickered in her gaze. She looked at Cheng Shi, fingers flying.
"That's not exactly news. Anyone familiar with the Grand Tribunal knows that by the mid-to-late Civilization Epoch, the Tribunal began fracturing. That's precisely the era this trial is set in."
"No, no — you've got it wrong. Knowing the Grand Tribunal fractured and knowing Order itself has a problem are not the same thing."
Sun Miao froze again, then typed with her usual blank expression.
"From small things, larger conclusions can be drawn. From the known, the unknown can be inferred. If the surface shows problems, one naturally investigates whether the root has changed.
I'm not stupid. I can reach that conclusion myself."
Watching someone maintain a perfectly expressionless face while earnestly arguing with him — and somehow sensing emotion through an unchanging electronic voice — Cheng Shi couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.
'Why does the History School's Vice President feel less like a Silence follower and more like a scholar?'
'No — more like a wise man!'
'Wait — where did that horse-faced Folly follower go?'
Suspicion stirred in the back of Cheng Shi's mind. Something felt overlooked.
But he didn't let it show. Instead, he assessed her while probing.
"Silence truly is Folly's destination. Your way of thinking closely resembles a wise man's.
But I need to correct you: inference is inference. It can never be fact. Your deductions give you only a floating logical anchor, whereas my intel is indisputable, solid fact.
So for you, this remains new information."
Sun Miao went silent. After a pause, she typed: "You've witnessed Order's problem firsthand?"
"Of course."
"What exactly is the problem?"
Cheng Shi smiled. This was exactly what he'd been waiting for.
"It's a long story. If you're certain you want to hear it, you might want to think about what intel you're prepared to trade.
Don't forget — I'm about to become a History School member. Despite the 'history' label, its true nature is an intelligence organization no one can deny.
So with me, all types of information are welcome."
Cheng Shi returned her own words verbatim. The speech made Sun Miao's ordinarily immovable face twitch.
Seeing her composure crack, Cheng Shi grinned broadly.
He walked past her and pressed on. Sun Miao paused with her head lowered, then hurried to catch up, and began sharing what she knew about those two.
"Chun and Lin Xi were both originally Decay followers."
"?" Cheng Shi blinked. "Oathbreaking curse?"
"Yes. Everything she's suffered comes from the oathbreaking curse. That's Decay for you — He never let a single deserter from His camp go unpunished."
Hearing this, Cheng Shi frowned. True — the old Decay might have been deeply possessive about faith. But now...
He probably wished for as many oathbreakers as possible. Ideally, He'd be the last rot standing in the entire universe.
Sun Miao continued typing:
"Since you've heard of Lin Xi, you must know about how the People in Coffin inspired him to enter the Sighing Forest in search of the Septic Final Tomb."
"Of course. I don't just know about it — I also know it wasn't the People in Coffin who inspired him. It was your History School!"
"?"
Sun Miao paused, then typed:
"Impressive. It seems Zhen Xin has shared quite a lot with you.
Fair enough — she even routed your requests through the History School's assignment system. Your partnership must run far deeper than outsiders suspect.
Correct. It was the History School that leaked the information, directing Decay followers to scout the path.
At the time, Lin Xi was just a small fry with barely two thousand points. Yet this small fry resolutely set off on the dead-end road of seeking Decay's gaze.
And as his wife, after her pleas fell on deaf ears, Chun had no choice but to follow him into the Sighing Forest."
"So you're saying Lin Xi and Chun found the Septic Final Tomb together?
And their relationship fell apart because of the Tomb?"
"Exactly. An absurd farce drove a once-'loving' couple apart. History written by romance is always this melodramatic — and yet, somehow, always compelling."
As she typed this, Cheng Shi noticed Sun Miao's fingers trembling slightly. It seemed the secret she was telling hadn't captivated him yet — but it had already agitated her.
"..."
'Interesting. This Mime Master comes with a natural talent for the abstract.'
...