Chapter 1459: I Want It All! |
No one in the universe could save Cheng Shi now. The only one who could was himself.
Come to think of it, this wasn't his first time facing a choice. Back on the day the gods descended and bestowed the Faith Game upon the world — in that pristine white Path Starting Point — he had faced a dilemma as well.
But back then, at least Brother Mouth had been there to "guide" him, telling him to choose the Dice of Fate.
And now?
Who would remind Cheng Shi now?
No one. Not a single soul!
But Cheng Shi would remind himself. He told himself that the greedy always win in the end. From the moment he grabbed both the Mask and the Dice at the Path Starting Point, the Greed Lord had proven his name!
The Clown never chooses. The Clown wants it all!
That's right — Cheng Shi had made his decision long ago.
He wanted two futures to arrive at the same time!
Was that possible?
It wasn't impossible. If the universe had two "Origins," each could handle one side. But where would a second "Origin" come from?
He actually had one!
Perhaps even Cheng Shi himself hadn't anticipated it — when Shadow Chengshi separated from him and became an independent being, a new choice appeared in the despair before the era's curtain fell.
Whether this was a contingency Deceit had planted or a foreshadowing Fate had laid — who could say? But when Deceit and Fate split apart, both worlds gained their own "hope."
Watching Shadow Chengshi slowly peel away from his body and stand before him, Cheng Shi looked at that pitch-black version of himself, his smile laced with bitterness.
"This is the 'best' ending I can think of. I'll give everyone an answer — except you. I'm sorry."
Shadow Chengshi smiled, lips curving faintly. "I am you. Turned around, what you're saying is: I can't give YOU an answer."
"I don't need an answer."
"I only need a 'future.'"
"Then — here's the question."
"A lonely future, or a despairing reunion — which do you choose?"
"I'd guess..."
"Deceit would choose the reunion."
"Then Fate chooses the 'future.'"
"Will we be reunited?"
"Yes. Because that IS our future."
The moment the words fell, both "Origins" moved at once. Infinite iridescent divine power erupted from the Container, sweeping across the universe, tearing Void from Reality. From this moment forward, the Void was permanently severed from the real.
The Deceit "Origin" gathered the Void and returned to Dolgod, producing the raw materials he had prepared, and began planning the next experiment.
The Fate "Origin" organized Reality, observing the drip-timing of "Origin" Divinity within the "Origin" Container. He needed to find the right moment to notify Time — who existed beyond the world — through the Pointer, so that the imminent upheaval in the Real Universe could create the perfect window for the world's separation.
Both sides were preparing. But the difficulty couldn't have been more different.
At the experiment's outset, the Deceit "Origin" faced a tangle of a thousand threads.
He revisited the Origin's true intent. After all, Time hadn't only hinted at the existence of the "moment of negligence" before departing — He had also conveyed a deeper meaning through His eyes to the Doctor: "The folding and accumulation of time will always collapse."
The Doctor had interpreted this as "the graveyard of time must eventually overflow." And it was precisely this insight that had sparked Cheng Shi's wild idea of launching a new experiment.
If the Origin's experiment simply continued as a futile progression, then aside from reuniting with friends in each cycle only to share in the despair anew, there would be no meaning at all.
Reunion was bliss, certainly. But going through the despair again might not be what anyone wanted.
So Cheng Shi kept thinking: if the Origin was simply another version of himself existing outside the Creator's experiment, then the fact that It willingly entered this cycle of despair — did that mean It, too, believed that within this ever-knotting time, some endpoint could eventually be reached?
Was It accumulating Its own despair in order to touch that impossible possibility?
The bewildered Cheng Shi looked up into the infinite Void. He dearly wanted to pierce through that impenetrable world barrier and ask the Origin — ask "himself" — that same question:
"Can I trust you, Origin?"
Cheng Shi's turmoil didn't last long. He knew the universe's time was running out too. Without them by his side, pointless time shouldn't be prolonged. So he quickly steeled his resolve.
"I have no road left. I can only carve one myself!
If this experiment truly has no end, then let despair consume us both, and let us fall into eternal Void.
At least within that vortex of despair, I can still find you.
I'm sorry...
I shouldn't be making you endure despair and fear again. But I am a selfish, greedy Clown. Even for the sake of that ephemeral hope — for the sake of the self that can't let go — this time, I want to be just a little greedier.
At least the future you hoped for has truly arrived. If I can still remember, I'll tell you — Fixed Destiny did not betray the fear. He gave the universe a future."
After delivering his answer to his friends, Cheng Shi lowered his eyes to the experiment gradually taking shape in his hands.
In that moment, every Truth experiment he had ever known flashed through his mind, each becoming theoretical bedrock for this experiment.
Slices, faith, puppets, gods... The experiment seemed simple on the surface — as if transplanting everything he'd experienced would suffice. But the moment he actually began designing it, he discovered that the Creator's experiment was far from a simple copy of memories.
Cheng Shi had to acknowledge the Changes within the experiment. He couldn't rely solely on the nebulous belief of "trust yourself, trust the Origin."
He had to consider the possibility that everything happening now was merely a "script" the Creator had crafted for him — the "purpose" of his existence as a Variable. What if Its goal was to trick him into believing "the Origin is Fixed Destiny"? Then what?!
So he had to pay attention to the experiment's details. This was, after all, his original intent — and it could very well become his source of inspiration for resisting the Origin.
He needed the Cheng Shi within the experiment to resemble himself — yet he also needed the experiment to contain enough Change.
Pure memory replication wouldn't work. Memories stained with subjectivity would make the experiment's "Cheng Shi" inherently himself...
He realized he had to be neutral. In other words, he had to be as much like the Origin within the Creator's experiment as possible!
He had to recognize his own role within the experiment. He must not use personal will to control the experiment's "Cheng Shi." He had to put away his goodness, discard his malice, suppress his desires, rein in his emotions, and never develop any feelings toward "Cheng Shi" and his friends that he shouldn't have...
He had to be an outsider. He was merely an Observer.
Wait!
Why did all of this feel so familiar?
When Cheng Shi reached this thought, he froze. Then his consciousness began to roar, and countless memories flooded his mind.
He remembered once more — in that false curtain call, Deceit, playing the role of the Outer God, had also given him two choices.
...