Chapter 432: The Gods |
May 1, 2014. On the rooftop of Building 12 in Jiang City’s Near River District.
Qi Si sat across from Chu Yining, Xiao Fengchao, and Fu Jue, an unprecedented calm settling over them.
The would-be dark god, a man with a price on his head from the Weird Investigation Bureau, had struck a temporary alliance with the Ark Guild—the very precursor to the Bureau. Whether this truce was born of sincerity or deception, no one could say.
Regardless, as hapless souls trapped in this past timeline, unable to communicate with anyone—human, god, or ghost—they had no choice but to set aside their deep-seated grudges. For now, they only had each other.
Chu Yining and Fu Jue were the first to find each other. Of course, this wasn't the legendary Fu Jue, the top-ranked player worshipped as a god for years, the man who held the title of "Savior." This was merely the angsty young man who had just surrendered his body to Lin Jue using the [Fallen Savior] identity card.
His initial animosity toward Qi Si had stemmed from his resentment over Zhou Ke forcing Lin Jue to make a sacrifice. But under Qi Si's masterful blend of truth and deception, he was quickly convinced they shared a common enemy, causing him to lower his guard and abandon his hostility.
Then came Xiao Fengchao. The man had somehow managed to unbind his [Doomsday Prophet] identity card and switch to the [Taboo Scholar] card. This new role allowed him to periodically communicate with every player across the river of time who had ever held it.
But before he could share any significant information, he began to grumble miserably, "Is this some kind of joke? I make this noble sacrifice, switch my identity card, and what happens? The Weird Game permanently shuts down over there. They're definitely targeting me, aren't they?"
The whereabouts of the others remained a mystery, but four of them were more than enough to start something significant.
"But Xiao Fengchao only received news of the shutdown yesterday. That means time here is flowing at least one hundred and twenty times faster than in the original timeline. My guess is, if we can just wait it out until the two timelines synchronize, we might be able to return to our world."
At this, Chu Yining offered an optimistic smile. "When you look at it that way, being trapped here might actually be a good thing. We used to have to dive into an instance every seven days—it was more exhausting than a full-time job. Now, we've essentially been gifted twenty-two extra years. We can think of it as an extended vacation."
"Given that we don't need to eat, sleep, or even feel tired, we could probably hike across the entire planet."
"But what if, on the day the timelines finally converge, all that awaits us is oblivion?" Qi Si countered, his expression carefully molded into one of grave concern, a bitter smile on his lips. "No one can see us. Theoretically, we're already people who don't exist."
He let out a soft sigh. "Lin Jue planned this well."
He uttered the words in a voice so low it was almost a whisper to himself, yet it was perfectly audible to the other three.
A month ago, Fu Jue would have undoubtedly leaped to his mentor's defense and argued with Qi Si. Chu Yining would have made excuses for Lin Jue, and Xiao Fengchao would have stepped in to play peacemaker and change the subject.
But now, the facts spoke for themselves. Lin Jue was, in theory, the greatest beneficiary of this entire affair. The seeds of doubt had been sown. Even though Fu Jue and Chu Yining were his most loyal followers, their devotion was a finite resource, and it was beginning to wear thin.
Qi Si was confident, at least, that twenty-two years was more than enough time to turn these old guards of the Ark Guild into his own people. And if that failed... well, they would make excellent bargaining chips, wouldn't they?
His own assets were too few. He had left Qi Family Village, Jiang City, the Colosseum, and the Insomnia bacteria in the hands of Si Qi. While he trusted that his more unhinged half wouldn't squander those resources, he still reserved his greatest faith for himself.
If he ever made it back to the original timeline, he would be returning to the high-stakes table, and every card in his limited hand would have to be played for maximum effect.
The question was, would the new Lin Jue—the one who had inherited Fu Jue's identity and had been stripped of all emotion—still feel anything for these loyal followers from his past?
But of course, that was all a matter for if and when they returned.
"I imagine everyone's had enough rest," Qi Si began, pausing for effect. He adopted a conciliatory tone. "Since we're all stuck in this state of limbo anyway, I have a proposal... Let's head west, back to the Snow Mountain. Perhaps we'll find our answers there."
Xiao Fengchao's eyes widened. "Are you serious? We barely made it out of there alive, and you want to go back? Do you have a death wish or something?"
Qi Si retorted, "Could things possibly get any worse than they are now?" "No," Fu Jue stated succinctly. "I agree. We should go back."
Chu Yining winked, a smile playing on her lips. "Weird Game aside, I've always wanted to see the Snow Mountain. I even planned a whole trip in college. Since we can't die, we might as well go check it off the bucket list."
With the vote three to one, Xiao Fengchao was dragged along on their westward journey, fuming but holding his tongue.
He eyed Qi Si suspiciously, muttering, "You don't strike me as the type to enjoy group activities... So, spill it. What are you really after?"
Qi Si's eyes narrowed, but his smile was warm as he uttered a single word: "Guess."
...
Fragrant City.
Dong Xiwen gave a dead-eyed stare at the man before him—the [Calamity High Priest], the other leader of the Balance Church, known only as Yuan. He looked utterly defeated.
"So let me get this straight," Dong Xiwen deadpanned. "You pulled some 'master of strategic retreat' act, never had amnesia at all, and just used some items while playing dumb to fool the Weird Game. You hitched a ride with Lin Jue's group to this timeline just to stay out of White Crow's way?"
Having realized that the intruders in this timeline couldn't attack one another, Dong Xiwen had dropped all pretense of courtesy. He said exactly what was on his mind.
Yuan sighed. "Young man, I understand your prejudice against me. No one enjoys being a pawn in a larger game, kept completely in the dark. But for the future of humanity, my actions were necessary."
Dong Xiwen's expression screamed, *Keep talking. I'm not buying a word of it.*
Yuan remained unbothered and continued his explanation. "The path to godhood requires sacrifice. My competitors offer up their followers or innocent civilians. But rather than sacrifice real, flesh-and-blood people, I chose to sacrifice the nonexistent inhabitants of this false timeline. The rules of the game are already collapsing. If I could deceive the system once, I can certainly do it again."
Dong Xiwen narrowed his eyes skeptically. "Or is it because you couldn't compete with them in the other timeline? Besides, we've already tried. We can't interact with anyone here."
Yuan smiled. "But our identity cards still function."
A card materialized between the man's fingers, pitch-black and devoid of light. Its face was a chaotic collage of symbols—a black crow, a fractured cross, a skull representing plague—lacking the distinct, singular form of other identity cards.
[Identity Card: Calamity High Priest]
[Effect: Script a plausible disaster for a designated area and orchestrate its occurrence.]
Yuan retracted the card, his tone shifting to one of command. "Dong Zixi, your brother and I both want you to accompany us back to the Snow Mountain."
Dong Xiwen's expression hardened. "And if I refuse?"
Yuan's smile was benevolent. "It means you forfeit your right to decide the course of the future."
The next day, Dong Xiwen and Yuan began their journey to the Snow Mountain.