Chapter 1209: Who Walked into Whose Trap |
To a liar's ears, [Pride (Order)]'s words sounded exactly like the honeyed persuasion of a prisoner plotting a jailbreak.
But Cheng Shi didn't move. He even held back the restless Kataro.
With a slight frown, he murmured:
"[Order] won't run. Because It knows Its appearance would only plunge the current universe into greater chaos.
The gods would have to decide between two [Orders], and choosing sides would mean taking a stance. But right now, nearly the entire universe is under the Fear Faction's influence. If It realizes that, It will know that the moment It escapes and blows the lid off this secret, the gods led by the Fun God will side with the Iron Law of [Order] and formally legitimize the [Chaos] that stole Its nest.
That would hand the Fun God the chance to claim the Iron Law's vote.
So if It chose to 'break out' now, It would only let our Benefactor reap the benefits.
It's prideful, not stupid. It wouldn't do something that foolish.
But It's definitely trying to do something in the meantime. The one thing I can't figure out is — even if It breaks free of Its chains, what can It actually do..."
Li Wufang bowed deeply, the very picture of devotion.
"My Benefactor, the universe will always need order. But I am neither Your Chosen One nor a man of great merit. I don't know if I can bear such a burden..."
"Divine decree cannot be defied. Divine gifts cannot be refused."
The codex's icy voice cut him off, and the frenetic rustling of pages once again filled the air.
"This is no longer a question of whether you can or cannot. You must!
Do not let your cowardice plunge the universe into lawlessness!"
The struggle on Li Wufang's face deepened further. He desperately wanted to run back and catch up with Cheng Shi — to ask whether this so-called "path to godhood" required shouldering a fallen god's will.
He wasn't afraid of carrying the weight. He was afraid that his failure would lead the Destined Ones to an unfortunate end.
He wanted to lend a hand to destiny, but only on the condition that he didn't drag destiny into the abyss.
Seeing the follower remain indecisive, the codex grew increasingly agitated and finally played its trump card.
"Think about the man who brought you here. Do you really believe he left?
Hmph — the fact that he hasn't appeared to stop you proves he, too, hopes you will take everything I have.
I know his schemes. But I trust my follower more!"
"..."
Li Wufang was swayed.
[Pride (Order)]'s analysis of Cheng Shi's attitude finally convinced him. He nodded resolutely and asked with determination:
"What should I do?"
"Good child. Step forward and grant me release."
Li Wufang harbored no suspicion. He walked toward the codex with steady steps. It was his first time sensing a deity's presence at such close range — the fine creases on the codex's cover, the light and shadow playing within its pages, the faintly leaking breath of [Order] inscribed with weariness... and a vague, indescribable flicker of hope.
He assumed it was [Order]'s relief at finally passing on Its legacy. He had no idea that from the very beginning, every single person had misread Its intentions.
The moment Li Wufang reached for the spike, a string pulled taut in Cheng Shi's mind suddenly snapped. His breath caught, his pupils contracted.
"Wait — don't!"
But the warning came one step too late.
The Investigator's hand passed through the cage woven from [Deceit]'s power and [Chaos]'s power without the slightest resistance. He pressed his palm against the Mockery Spike and with a gentle tug, ripped free both the spike and the chains that had imprisoned [Pride (Order)] for untold ages — all in one motion.
The cage that had held a True God captive tore apart like flimsy window paper, punctured by a mortal atop the highest temple.
By the time Li Wufang heard Cheng Shi's shout, it was too late. His face went pale with shock as he spun around — only to see Cheng Shi leap down from within the yellow mist of chaos and reappear before him, just as his Benefactor had said: the Destined One had never left.
But the expression on Cheng Shi's face was strange and complex — so much so that even an Investigator like Li Wufang couldn't pin a name on the tangle of emotions.
Cheng Shi's eyes were indeed complicated. Among the many emotions, the most dominant was undoubtedly shock.
He stared in disbelief at the liberated [Pride (Order)] and managed, after a moment of stunned silence:
"Why?"
The codex, freed from its shackles, floated above their heads. Its cover blazed with golden light. Pages peeled away one by one, spinning like leaves, drifting down like rain. The commands of law sang in soaring chorus, and [Order]'s grand voice thundered across the heavens.
The fallen pages curled upward from the ground, spiraling back to wrap the now-bare, shriveled codex — nothing but its cover — into a tight sphere. It looked like a chrysalis awaiting metamorphosis, or a burial shroud encasing a corpse.
From on high, It gazed down upon the stunned Cheng Shi, the terrified Kataro, the fear-stricken Li Wufang. First It let out a scoff, then spoke in a tone laced with wistful self-mockery:
"Time and again I've proclaimed myself the orthodox, the builder of [Civilization], the vanquisher of [Chaos], the one who held [Void] in contempt. And yet here I am, at this moment, forced to draw closer to [Void] in this manner.
This is the one thing I learned from [Deceit]. A lie.
My follower, I deceived you.
As a shattered fragment of [Order], I lost all Authority long ago. Otherwise, how could [Chaos] have stolen my Divine Throne without a single god noticing?
Bestowing the Judgment Seat was already the limit of what I could do. The Authority and Container you seek... are the very things I, too, wish to reclaim."
The codex's gaze swept over Li Wufang and Cheng Shi, then turned to the universe beyond the temple.
In that moment, in everyone's eyes, It no longer resembled [Pride (Order)]. It looked more like the complete [Order] — the one once affirmed by Origin itself.
"Not every question in this world has an answer. You ask 'why,' but how would you know that for all these years, I too have wished to ask the same?
I do not know what He is doing. I only know that I am [Order] — and this universe needs order!"
The instant the words faded, all sound vanished around the page-wrapped sphere of the codex.
Countless fractures erupted across the paper in an instant, like golden veins reframing the codex anew. But that radiant spectacle lasted no more than a single breath. The next second, the gold dimmed, [Order] faded, and the pride that had once disdained Its prison finally submitted within this temple that was never Its own.
The codex dissolved. It crumbled without a sound.
As a fragment of [Order], Its death was not like that of other True Gods. It didn't even disturb the universe beyond the temple walls.
Its departure was quiet. Hasty. And yet profoundly stirring.
Watching the golden light scatter like rain, Kataro and Li Wufang were left completely stupefied.
They could never have imagined that the True God who, just moments ago, had seemed intent on "escaping" would choose to self-annihilate the instant It was freed.
Before dying, It had said: this universe needs order.
If that was Its will, then why did It choose to perish?!
[Order] was dead. Where would the universe find its order now?
Only Cheng Shi had guessed what [Pride (Order)] intended to do. Because Its words had been "step forward and grant me release" — not "break my chains and receive my Authority."
'What a "release" indeed!'
He simply hadn't expected [Pride (Order)]'s desired release to be this decisive.
'Why?'
The question surfaced in his mind once more.
Without a doubt, the Fun God must have foreseen this — perhaps even expressed His approval of [Order]'s self-annihilation by choosing not to appear.
Otherwise, how could a fragment of a True God that still had remaining value possibly self-destruct before three mortals?
But why had [Pride (Order)] done this, and what had shifted in the Fun God's attitude toward It? All of it remained shrouded in questions.
Cheng Shi gazed up at the temple's ceiling in a daze, then looked at the other two beside him. But in their eyes, he found nothing but an even deeper bewilderment.
Li Wufang was equal parts horrified and stunned. His mouth opened and closed several times before he managed to squeeze out:
"Was this also... destiny?"
Cheng Shi clenched his fist, his expression complicated, and nodded:
"Perhaps. But not yours or mine."
...