Chapter 1124: Audience and Audience |
The Void.
A flicker of candlelight swayed in the hollow, boundless darkness—now bright, now dim—as if it could be swallowed by nothingness at any moment.
Yet no matter how precariously it wavered, that faint glow never went out. It was like a luminous nail hammered firmly into the void, quietly waiting until...
A pair of eyes opened above it, their upturned corners offering a playful greeting.
"Well, well~"
"A rare visitor! Instead of seeking out your cold and heartless Benefactor, you've come to see me?"
"I have neither Change nor hope here. I can't give you what you want."
The candlelight, ringed by darkness, slowly took shape, reforming once more into a Candle Man. He raised his head, his flames roaring as he gazed at those eyes, then gave a self-deprecating smile:
"I don't want anything. I only want an answer."
Those eyes rolled, amused:
"Then I'm afraid you're asking the wrong god."
"I am the facade of Void, the sovereign of all falsehoods beneath this sky. There are no answers in my mouth."
"And even if there were, they'd be lies."
"If you want an answer, go ask Truth... oh wait—Folly, I mean."
"He knows a lot. And even when He doesn't, He can pretend He does and make something up for you."
"Fine. Then let me go see Folly." The Flame of Hope's tone was devoid of emotion.
"?"
Deceit's gaze faltered, then spiraled slowly as He said, "Interesting. You are a Servant God of Void, an Envoy of my foolish little sister. You are the Change that exists independent of Fate. Since when does the word 'let' have anything to do with me?"
"You are free. Go wherever you wish."
"You don't need my permission."
"Is that so?" The Candle Man lifted his head, his eyes complicated and distant. "Then I can go seek an audience with Origin too?"
"..."
Deceit fell silent.
A heartbeat later, a strange divine power emanated from Him, freezing the surrounding void solid so that no one could spy on this place.
The starry points in His eyes flickered rapidly, spiraling in mesmerizing patterns. Every trace of playfulness vanished from His voice. His entire gaze turned dead serious.
He looked at the Flame of Hope, His tone so tangled with emotion it was impossible to parse:
"Why would you want to see Him?"
"Do you think He hasn't brought enough despair to this world already?"
The Candle Man's flames flared once, and he shook his head:
"Was this world's despair truly brought by Origin?"
"Then by whom?"
"How did He bring it?"
"Why play dumb? Didn't that little clown of yours tell you everything?"
"Our Creator is far, far more than you or I ever imagined."
"Put nicely, we're variables in His experiment. Put bluntly... gods, authority? Heh—nothing but dispensable trifles in the vast Real Universe."
"When the will you've championed for countless ages turns out to be nothing more than grains of sand casually scattered by someone else's hand, wouldn't you be terrified?"
"Of course I'm terrified." The Flame of Hope's reply was absolute. He gazed at those eyes that occasionally flickered with prismatic light, his voice both resolute and lost: "But what terrifies me even more is... who am I?"
Deceit's pupils contracted. A beat later, He burst into hearty laughter:
"Who are you?"
"You are, of course, a Servant God of Void, an Envoy of Fate—the Flame of Hope, formed from the Change that Fate discarded."
"That identity is something you told me yourself when we first met. Why are you asking me now?"
"Yes, my memories tell me I am the Flame of Hope."
"But I've decided I no longer want to trust my memories. Memory is your mortal enemy—surely I can't be wrong in distrusting Him?"
"So I've come seeking an answer. A new answer."
"If you can't tell me, then I'll go ask Fate Himself!"
"I believe He'll tell me who I truly am."
Deceit let out a derisive snort:
"Tch—"
"Fate has always been cold. Since He discarded you, why would He still agree to see you?"
"The world says Fate is heartless, never knowing He's even more heartless toward Himself."
"Save your breath. Even if you were once part of Him, He will never acknowledge your identity. There has never been a place for hope in His eyes."
When Deceit spoke those words, His tone was laced with both gnashing fury and wistful sighs. The Flame of Hope could tell His emotions were deeply complicated right now—but he didn't believe a single word.
Because the being before him was the Benefactor of every swindler in the universe, the greatest liar beneath the starry sky. He'd seen this routine countless times before, and this time, he absolutely wouldn't be fooled again.
So he declared with unwavering conviction:
"Whether He acknowledges me or agrees to see me—that's His business."
"What I can decide is whether I go and whether I ask."
"Since I am free, then I shall go."
The Candle Man's flames erupted across his body as he made to leave. But in the next instant, Deceit swept away every emotion in His eyes. With a languid blink, He conjured countless howling winds of nothingness throughout the void, extinguishing every last spark of the Flame of Hope's light and merging him completely into the surrounding darkness.
When it was done, those eyes gazed down at everything below, enunciating each word with deliberate gravity:
"I do not consent."
...
The Void. At the foot of the Chaos Steps.
Facing the bewildered Hu Wei and the restless Da Yi, Cheng Shi fell into thought.
He hadn't expected the fallout from War's demise to hit the players so quickly. After War's authority scattered into the Real Universe, His followers could still participate in trials under the Convention's protection. But His creations...
Looking at the flickering, phantom-like greatsword in the big brother's hand and the no-longer-sentient Iron Thorn between Da Yi's fingers, he suddenly realized it was time to find a suitable new home for Ultraman's followers.
The Fun God already knew the answer from the Sea of Desire incident. Though it still wasn't clear why War had "torn apart" Order, the god in question was gone—so probing the War camp had lost all meaning.
So how should he settle these two Chaos subordinates?
The grand curtain of faith fusion had been raised for some time now. Before, when most players hadn't yet fused, Hu Wei and Da Yi had managed a combat-tier "faith fusion" by borrowing War's power.
But now, with War's strength gone, they were falling behind.
Of course, fusion opportunities were plentiful. For peak players at this stage, choosing an additional faith was hardly difficult. The reason these two still hadn't fused was their devotion.
Without a decree from Lord Ultraman, they could only keep postponing—until now, when postponing was no longer an option and they had no choice but to request another audience.
Cheng Shi knew what Hu Wei wanted. The big brother had decided to go all-in on the path of Chaos and wished to fuse with Deceit.
But this matter had been discussed for so long, and the Fun God hadn't responded to Hu Wei at all. Could it be that He had no intention of letting Hu Wei fuse with Deceit?
Cheng Shi pondered for a moment, then recalled what the Flame of Hope had said: faith isn't about hoarding—it's about competing.
He needed to actively recruit new followers and expand his territory in the realm of faith. So if the Fun God didn't want Hu Wei, could Yu Xi take him instead?
His eyes gleamed with an idea. He addressed Hu Wei:
"I am aware of your wishes. You performed adequately in the initial phase of approaching Void, and my master's cooperation with Deceit has made some progress."
"Such a minor matter needn't bother the Sovereign of Void. Go and see His Envoy instead—I'm sure you've heard of him."
Hu Wei froze: "That Servant God of Void... Yu Xi?!"
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