The fact that [mory] had cast an abstention rather than a vote against on a motion championed by [Deceit] already proved that soone had influenced His decision.
But the will of the gods would never bend to the whims of mortal affairs. Even if certain mortals could leverage circumstances to sway a true god's decision, it was always the god's own choice made after weighing various considerations — never because He'd truly listened to so mortal's advice.
[Fate] being the exception.
With [mory]'s abstention, the most uncomfortable person in the chamber was undoubtedly Cheng Shi.
It wasn't that he felt [mory] had broken a promise — the god had never actually promised anything. But without that vote, the only gods who hadn't yet voted were [Decay] and [Silence].
For the petition to pass, neither of them could vote against.
[Decay]'s vote was at least a coin-flip. But [Silence]... that deity had once tried to assimilate him!
Given such an unpredictable god, had [Death]'s boss actually succeeded in lobbying Him?
The mont the thought ford, the low-profile [Silence] directly cast His vote — in favor.
Cheng Shi's spirits surged. He imdiately looked toward [Death]'s boss, only to find the massive skull seemingly looking right back at him.
He bowed in respect, assuming the lord was offering silent reassurance. Little did he know that at this very mont, [Death] was drowning in utter bewildernt.
Don't forget — the one who had summoned Cheng Shi in the false Fishbone Hall wasn't actually [Death] at all. It had been [Deceit]!
[Deceit], for reasons unknown — perhaps purely for the entertainnt value — had not told [Death] a single thing!
Which ant that when [Justice (Order)] had dragged [Death] into the Assembly, the lord had assud [Deceit] had finally devised a plan and was making a move on [War]'s Divine Throne.
But when [Justice (Order)] announced that the petition was for Herobos to inherit [Oblivion]'s throne, this ancient true god of [Life] felt old for the first ti. Felt like He couldn't keep up with the tis.
'The true god isn't dead. Isn't imprisoned. How can a throne be inherited?'
While He was still puzzled, a voice inside His skull had answered on His behalf, uttering that rule-defying loophole.
At that point, He'd understood everything.
He didn't even need to guess where the voice ca from — even without a brain in that enormous skull, He knew it was [Deceit] who'd used His identity to orchestrate this setup, then pulled Him in along the way.
But the setup was...
'Perfectly to my liking!'
Never mind the details — [Oblivion] was going to suffer. And whenever His rival suffered, He would support it wholeheartedly.
So He'd cast His vote quickly, and afterward kept watching the [Void] section — especially Cheng Shi's reactions to the other gods.
It was plain to see that this cunning employee had played a pivotal role in this "usurpation" sche. Otherwise, [Deceit] wouldn't have brought a mortal to the Assembly of Gods Convention. So [Death] began wondering whether Cheng Shi had orchestrated the entire thing.
And His glance happened to coincide with [Silence]'s vote — leading Cheng Shi to the false conclusion that [Death]'s boss had spent major capital to successfully lobby [Silence].
'Everyone says [Silence] covets the universe's secrets. What kind of secret had the boss traded away?'
With [Silence]'s vote cast, only one god remained.
[Oblivion] glanced at the barely-alive sibling god beside Him, and the light of victory already glead in His eyes.
He turned to look at [Deceit] and Herobos by His side, then sneered:
"The facts will show you that all your sches and plots are aningless! I am [Oblivion], and only I am [Oblivion]! Your machinations have failed! What follows is my internal family matter — everyone else may leave!"
"!!!"
Hearing this, Herobos shuddered. He didn't even look at the final voter — instead, His nervous, unwilling gaze shot first to [Deceit] beside Him, His voice trembling with anxiety:
"You lobbied [Decay], didn't You?"
The complex tone sounded less like a question and more like a plea.
[Deceit] scoffed and gave no reply. It was Cheng Shi who, to steady morale, nodded:
"Yes, I lobbied [Decay]."
Herobos whipped around in disbelief, exclaiming:
"You?!
With your status, how could you possibly sway [Decay], who shares the [Descent] Path with [Oblivion]?!"
"..."
'Why couldn't I sway Him?'
'I'm at least the proxy of the Faded authority.'
Cheng Shi couldn't afford to undermine his own side's confidence at such a critical mont. Though he had no idea how [Decay] would vote, he put on an air of absolute certainty:
"What status am I?
Oh right, I forgot to tell you — actually, I'm—"
"Abstain!"
Before he could finish, the last-breath [Decay] made His choice.
"!!!"
The gods were stunned once more. Even [Oblivion] stared at the dying god with eyes full of shock.
He seed unable to accept that a sibling god from the sa Path of Fate had shifted his stance — refusing to cast the opposing vote.
While the effect of an abstention and a vote against were identical for this petition, the gods saw beyond the imdiate result. They would wonder: what had caused [Descent] to fracture?
And why had [Decay] done this so openly before all the gods?
But among everyone present, the one who could accept this least was undoubtedly Cheng Shi.
When [Decay] cast that vote, his mind went blank for an instant. He nearly lost the ability to think.
'It's over. It's all over.'
Herobos, unable to believe the result, stood frozen in place. He looked toward the dark, shadowed eyes of His Benefactor, and for the first ti — felt fear.
It was at that mont that the motionless Cheng Shi's mouth continued to move:
"...Clown."
"..."
'Brother Mouth, are you twisting the knife too?'
Cheng Shi gave a self-deprecating smile, rubbed his nose with his fingers, and nodded:
"Indeed. I, Cheng Shi, am nothing but a clown."
With all eligible voters having cast their ballots, [Justice (Order)] personally certified the validity of the vote. The current tally stood at 8:2:4 — in favor, opposed, abstentions. One vote short. The "usurpation" had failed at the final hurdle.
Seeing this outco, [Oblivion] sneered endlessly. [Fate] fixed His cold gaze on the proceedings. [Deceit] stopped smiling.
Under the rigid impartiality, [Void] appeared to have conceded defeat.
But—
'[Void] losing has nothing to do with , Cheng Shi!'
The fingers rubbing his nose suddenly stopped. He began to laugh — loud and wild. The laughter grew louder and louder, more and more unhinged, loud enough to interrupt [Justice (Order)]'s announcent of the result, drawing the gaze of every deity present.
Even Hong Lin, who'd been pretending to sleep, nervously cracked open one eyelid.
She suspected Cheng Shi couldn't accept the result and was about to cause a scene!
That was without a doubt the most insane possible decision. Yet Hong Lin didn't spend a single thought on how it would end. In her mind, there simply was no option for refusal or retreat. Her entire body was coiled and ready to throw herself into a battle she had zero chance of winning.
Beyond that, she had only one thought: how to protect her friend in the divine lee that was about to erupt.
[Oblivion] watched the instigator lose his mind and mocked:
"I finally understand what [Folly] ant by 'foolish acts.' He was indeed ahead of us in that regard. Now that I've witnessed one in person, I must say — it feels rather good. Mortal, I can accept my Divine Throne falling to another. But can you accept that you're about to lose your life?"
With that, [Oblivion] moved to strike. But before He could take a step, [Death]'s boss on the opposite side had already drawn that colossal scythe — forged from untold amounts of concentrated divinity.
He said nothing. Yet said everything.
For a tense mont, [Oblivion] eyed the eager [Void] and the cold-eyed [Death] across the way, then sank back into His seat with a shadowed expression.
And just as [Justice (Order)] deed the matter concluded and prepared to announce the final result, Cheng Shi interrupted Him again.
He lifted his head. His gaze swept past his two [Void] Benefactors, past [Death]'s boss, past every god who had supported the petition. Finally, it settled on [Oblivion], and he smiled wryly:
"When you said you could accept your throne falling to another, you'd better have ant it."
Then he turned to face the Flowing Light Scales — eyes fixed solemnly upon [Justice (Order)], that embodint of the Convention — and asked, word by deliberate word:
"When there are still gods who haven't voted, how can you declare this matter concluded?"
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