Chapter 1373: Audience Meeting - The Past |
The Sinking Land?
Cheng Shi frowned, beginning to sift through his Memories.
The only time he had gone to the Sinking Land was during that trial of Corruption. Through a historical resonance with Keinlaur, he witnessed the truth behind the splintering of Order, and also obtained the containers of Corruption and Prosperity.
But Cheng Shi clearly remembered that at the Sinking Land back then, aside from Keinlaur, Lid Yara, and the dying Le Le'er, there was no one else present.
So how could Bai Ling claim to have seen him?
Could she have hidden somewhere at the time?
Cheng Shi looked at Bai Ling again, his puzzled gaze circling her face. When a casual glance fell upon the longbow on her back, a flash of realization crossed his mind, and his eyes widened abruptly.
Bai Ling might not have hidden at all. She had met him openly and generously!
It was just that he hadn't realized she had been there at the time, because back then he still thought Bai Ling was a Sensory Stalker, not some Beast Tamer following Fraud!
That sparrow!
Did a sparrow once land on the Mother Tree of Fear beside the Sea of Desire?
At the time, Cheng Shi had thought it was a hallucination induced by the desires of the Sea of Desire. He had even asked Brother Mouth for verification, but that damned Brother Mouth had just scolded him, and the matter was left unresolved.
Thinking back on it now, that sparrow was likely the beast of the Beast Tamer in front of him!
Seeing the change in Cheng Shi's expression, Bai Ling knew the clever Fate Weaver had guessed everything. She nodded and admitted:
"Yes, that was me."
It was you?
Cheng Shi paused. "That wasn't your beast?"
Bai Ling shook her head, finally forcing a smile. "No, that was me. Even though the Benefactor repeatedly warned me not to go in person to avoid blowing my cover, I couldn't hold back.
At the time, I had only recently become a Beast Tamer, and my beast-taming abilities were limited. I was afraid that if something went wrong in the middle, I wouldn't be able to save the show in time, so I risked going myself..."
As she spoke, Bai Ling transformed, turning into that familiar bird right before Cheng Shi's eyes.
Cheng Shi's gaze narrowed slightly:
"So it is this sparrow. You have the ability to transform?"
"..."
Bai Ling transformed back into a human in a second. Looking at Cheng Shi with a strange expression, she said faintly:
"Yes, I can transform into my own beasts.
But... this isn't a sparrow, this is a lark!
To think I spent so long living in fear, terrified that you'd recognize me and I would violate the Benefactor's instructions. Turns out, boss, you don't even know what a lark looks like..."
"???"
Cheng Shi choked.
Ah, this... this was a lark?
Of course he recognized it—didn't it look exactly like a sparrow?
Cheng Shi's lips twitched slightly, silently paying a faint tribute to Silence.
With words having reached this point, Cheng Shi understood Bai Ling's intentions. Back then in the Sinking Land, this little lark both didn't want him to recognize her and wanted him to recognize her. Otherwise, with a Beast Tamer's transformation ability, she wouldn't have transformed into a lark that could expose her identity.
However, Cheng Shi didn't know what a lark looked like at all, so an encounter was muddled away just like that.
But hearing this, Cheng Shi still frowned. He was very concerned about what the instructions Bai Ling spoke of were.
Bai Ling also knew that the key to this conversation lay in information, so she quickly explained clearly how she had converted to Fraud and what task the Fun God had assigned her.
"My task was to...
Take advantage of the Mother Tree of Fear's dying moments to bring the Corruption container to you.
But I couldn't tell you any of this."
"!!!!!"
Cheng Shi's expression instantly grew solemn. As expected, the Fun God was the unseen hand pushing things behind the scenes in this matter.
Having already learned a lot, Cheng Shi wasn't shocked, for he had already obtained many containers. He was merely curious about where the Corruption container in Bai Ling's hands had come from. That was, after all, Tria's container.
Bai Ling pursed her lips and lowered her head, saying:
"Tria... He has always been with me."
"?" Cheng Shi was stunned. "What do you mean 'with you'?"
Bai Ling smiled bitterly, her tone incredibly complex:
"From the moment the Gods descended and the Faith Game began, I encountered Him at the Path Starting Point.
I didn't know that the tokens of the Gods couldn't speak. I thought everyone was the same, that we would all receive guidance from a deity, so I approached Him.
At the time, I didn't know who He was. It was only later, when I met Frau... the Benefactor, that I learned I could encounter Tria at the Path Starting Point because that Mercy Lord was running for His life at the time.
He fled in a panic, and seeking a trace of a similar aura, crashed into my Path Starting Point."
"?"
This time Cheng Shi was truly shocked. A Servant God, running for His life when the Gods descended? Who was He hiding from?
Could it be...
Cheng Shi's eyelids twitched. He looked at Bai Ling and saw her nod. "That's right. He was evading the Benefactor's pursuit."
As expected, it was the Fun God!
Cheng Shi's expression became exquisitely complex: "Why would the Fun God pursue Tria?"
As soon as he asked the question, Cheng Shi shut his mouth, realizing he had asked a completely pointless question. The answer was obvious.
For Corruption!
From Drasilco being "imprisoned" in That Dream My Nightmare, it could be seen that the Fun God was sparing no effort in utilizing the Envoys of Corruption to explore the Sea of Desire. He was very interested in Corruption.
In fact, he couldn't blame the Fun God. Having learned enough of the universe's truths, wasn't Cheng Shi himself very interested in Corruption?!
He knew Corruption was the nexus of the universe's secrets. He had even thought about playing the god cards in his hand, letting them enter the Sea of Desire to explore. Such a thought practically aligned perfectly with the Fun God's.
"So before the Faith Game descended, the Fun God had already targeted the Sea of Desire.
At that time, Aph Ros was imprisoned by Time in Dolgod, and Drasilco had already 'fallen into the net'. Only Tria was left outside, so He wanted to capture this Mercy Lord?"
"Yes," Bai Ling nodded, confirming Cheng Shi's guess.
Cheng Shi didn't stop talking. He thought and sorted out his thoughts simultaneously, "Since Tria had already escaped disaster at the Path Starting Point, how was He caught?
Because you changed your Faith to the Fun God?
A fleeing Tria would absolutely never want to get close to the Fun God, so why did you choose to approach Him?
You..."
Cheng Shi seemed to have guessed something. He examined the Bai Ling before him with a complex gaze and let out a sigh. "You recovered your memories, saw me in the trial, and so you went to ask the Fun God for help, right?"
"..."
Bai Ling trembled all over. She raised her head, meeting that complex gaze, and suddenly broke into a brilliant smile.
She nodded forcefully, finally snuffing out the nervousness and inner turmoil she had buried in her heart for so long right then and there.
This was the reason she had never dared to meet Cheng Shi's eyes. In that trial concerning the bitter fruits of fate, Cheng Shi had used the gift of Memory to make the Torchbearers forget him. But because of the Flame of Hope's intervention, Bai Ling had recovered her memories.
That terrified her intensely. She feared she couldn't protect those memories. If anyone rummaged through her mind, Cheng Shi's existence would be exposed. So, after immense struggle, she Prayed to Fraud to discard those memories.
Fraud granted her an audience, and naturally, found Tria upon her person.
Bai Ling would never forget the scene of her Audience with God back then. Those star-like eyes with high-tilted corners looked at her with brimful joy, asking her what she needed—He could satisfy anything.
And when Bai Ling stated she wanted to forget those memories once again, Fraud burst into hearty laughter.
He said:
"It seems Fixed Destiny has returned to the right path, even attracting the followers of Corruption.
But blind evasion is not a solution. Since you fear you cannot protect them, then I shall give you the power to protect them."
Saying that, under Fraud's guidance, the helpless Bai Ling completed her Oathbreaking on the spot, falling into Fraud's embrace and becoming a Beast Tamer.
And Tria...
"What about Tria?" Cheng Shi's gaze focused. He really wanted to know what progress the Fun God had made in exploring the Sea of Desire after finding Tria.
However, Bai Ling recounted an ending for the Servant God that he had never expected.
"The Benefactor killed Him on the spot, right in front of me."
"!!!"
...