Chapter 997: What Mass Production Means — This World's Absurdity Far Exceeds Your Imagination

Foolish Game of the Gods

Come to think of it, the Jokers' thoughts were quite easy to guess.

The more Cheng Shi understood them, the better he could think as they did.

Zhen Xin's interest in godhood probably wasn't about herself, but about An Mingyu, An Jing, and possibly even Zhen Yi...

If someday she needed to become a god to protect these people, given Zhen Xin's personality, she'd agree in a heartbeat. No — she'd probably already started preparing. Because she had to ensure that when the moment came, she could smoothly claim that divine throne.

That was Zhen Xin: the History School president who planned one move and calculated three.

The Dragon King's position was even clearer. Whether he wanted godhood himself was debatable, but if anyone wanted to become a god and do something for this world, he would undoubtedly be the greatest ally.

Squinty Zhang, with his fearless taboo-breaking nature, definitely harbored some godhood aspirations. Remember — the tombstones in the Cemetery still displayed his ambition to bury the gods. If he were merely mortal, how could he bury Them?

So on the question of "staying alive," he was probably the one who resonated most with Cheng Shi.

As for Long Jing... Cheng Shi's understanding of this acrobat came from Brother Mouth's leaks and the other world's Long Jing. He seemed like a resilient, good person. His fawning attitude toward superiors showed competitive drive. But that fire appeared to have gone out.

The change was most likely connected to the other world's version of himself. Putting himself in those shoes, he could guess at the acrobat's shifted mindset. Still, the fact that Long Jing had kept the truth secret showed he was trustworthy. If he could reignite that drive, the performance-hungry actor might develop aspirations toward godhood.

Cheng Shi had thought it through, but no one spoke up. At a gathering of liars, nobody would crack open their chest to show a beating heart. Cheng Shi didn't mind. He continued at his planned pace.

But before he could proceed, the perceptive Dragon King raised a question:

"Cheng Shi, as you said, eras and epochs have a progressive relationship. Yet since ancient times, the gods have only been created once. Since They've weathered the tidal waves of shifting eras, what do you mean by 'mass production'?

Mass production is about scale. For the creation of gods to be linked with quantity... could it be that each extrapolation isn't merely an extrapolation but a genuinely existing world?

Can [Time]'s power trigger the supreme assembly line, making the gods from every extrapolation materialize?"

"?"

'Not a bad theory, but human cognition was shackled by what they could see. Still lacked imagination.'

Cheng Shi shook his head with a wry smile and explained:

"Good question, but wrong answer.

Mass production is indeed about scale. It's actually quite simple: if one world's gods can be compared to a single production run, then scaling it up — manufacturing gods for countless worlds — turns it into an assembly line."

"Parallel worlds." Zhen Xin had been waiting for this truth. Her gaze sharpened. "So how do these countless worlds you describe differ from [Time]'s extrapolated parallels?"

"The difference is enormous.

Let me use a current example. [Prosperity] has fallen. In the parallel world as you understand it, would She still be alive?"

"Of course not. The gods' existence transcends time. They express themselves consistently beyond temporal constraints—"

Before she finished, Zhen Xin's expression changed.

"So beyond the parallel worlds, there exists a world entirely separate from our universe — with the same gods, the same parallel extrapolations, but completely unaffected by our present reality!"

Cheng Shi nodded gravely: "Exactly. The answer you've been seeking comes from there."

"..." Zhen Xin froze, then lowered her head with an inscrutable expression. "So my preparations were for nothing. Ha. I was actually planning to gather [Time]'s power to pry open the parallels and investigate. Turns out... she was already so far from me."

'Who?'

There weren't many people who could make Zhen Xin this dejected. Li Jingming stole a peripheral glance and silently filed away another hazy memory.

But then Cheng Shi burst out laughing:

"Not wasted at all — because [Time] remains the key to breaking through this space-time barrier!"

This time Cheng Shi leaped straight off the [Fate] tombstone. He couldn't sit still anymore. Revealing the secret he'd held for so long felt liberating — at least from now on, he wouldn't be the only one carrying the fear.

"Remember what I said earlier?

Above the gods stands a supreme existence. That existence truly stands high above all. But the way It towers over everything may be completely different from what you imagine.

Let me put it differently for easier understanding. It's not just a creator. It's more like the director of a grand experiment. Yes, you heard correctly — an experiment!

And this universe-spanning experiment bears a striking resemblance to [Truth]'s slice experiment. The only difference is the content being sliced — because It doesn't slice Itself. It slices the universe!

In Its experiment there are countless sliced universes, each an independent entity. Our universe is merely one insignificant slice among infinite others!

In other words, everything we once understood — [Time]'s constructed past, future, and even parallel universes — is merely part of this single sliced universe. It's a subset relationship, not a parallel one.

True parallelism isn't the parallel created by [Time]'s extrapolation. It's the countless new 'petri dishes' that this existence opened within Its experiment!"

Cheng Shi was pacing with apparent calm, but his entire being radiated a frenzied intensity.

He alternated between cold laughter and mockery, jibes and sarcasm, but none of it seemed directed outward. It all pointed inward — at himself.

What should have been a revelation and a sharing looked, in everyone's eyes, like Cheng Shi laughing bitterly at his own pitiable state.

But if this Fate Weaver — who knew the universe's truth — was pitiable, what did that make them...

Not even worthy of pity?

Cheng Shi's long-suppressed madness continued.

"As for why I call them petri dishes... remember the era-naming I mentioned? What does that make you think of?

Perhaps I'm overthinking it, but there's a voice in my head repeating — over and over — that the so-called 'naming' is simply that supreme existence labeling the specimens in Its petri dishes!

This is the true meaning of mass production. This world's absurdity far exceeds mortal imagination.

Nobody knows what this experiment spanning infinite sliced universes is truly for. But I can confirm one thing: not just you and me — even the gods are nothing more than insignificant variables in this grand experiment.

The only difference is that the parameters They influence far exceed a mortal's. And as for us players... only those of you present here barely qualify as marginal node parameters."

"..."

"..."

"..."

As Cheng Shi's final syllable faded, the room fell deathly silent.

The Jokers' expressions froze on their faces. Only after a long stretch did color gradually return to their eyes — though it was unclear whether that color was shock or dread. They exchanged glances, looked at each other blankly, all momentarily robbed of speech.

When your estimate is 1 but the truth is 2, you feel surprised. When your estimate is 2 but the truth is 4, you're stunned but can cope. But when your estimate is 4 and the truth is 10,000...

Ha. This world is insane.

Of that, I'm certain.

...