Though the theory couldn't be verified, Cheng Shi shared his deductions anyway.
The mont Hong Lin heard that the person who had duped her was another world's Cheng Shi, her expression turned beyond bizarre. Qin Xin's did the sa — though it only reinforced his belief. In every world, it seed, every Cheng Shi was "indomitably" striving.
With Qin Xin found and [War]'s Authority secured, Cheng Shi had fulfilled this Real Universe expedition's objectives.
In hindsight, aside from the agonizing first ten days, the rest had been remarkably smooth — so smooth it carried the distinct flavor of "fixed destiny."
Yet the one who had sent him and Big Cat here was [Deceit]. How could [Fate]'s shadow be in this?
Cheng Shi couldn't make sense of it. He shoved the thought aside and addressed the other two:
"Authority secured. Now we need to think about getting back.
I'm not sure if you noticed, but none of our arrival points have a passage back to the original world. That ans returning won't be as easy as arriving.
If this were a trial, given what I know about the Fun God, He might set up so prank to tornt the play... ers. But this is the Real Universe — a place even the Fun God can't fully reach. He wouldn't just send us here without planning how to bring us back.
So my guess is that sothing changed in the Real Universe that severed our 'howard' path, and that change is most likely tied to spaceti.
Whether it's the other-world Cheng Shi traversing freely, or the Silent Puppet that drifted in from nowhere — clearly the Real Universe operates under spaceti rules we don't understand, and those rules are probably what's 'blocking' our way ho."
Qin Xin frowned and mulled it over: "So before we can return, we need to figure out these spaceti rules and find a path ho within them?"
"Exactly. That's all we can do for now. Unless..."
Cheng Shi gave a self-deprecating smile and offered an unlikely possibility: "Unless the path ho reappears on its own.
But regardless, the first thing we should do is return to our 'starting point.'
Qin Xin — can you still find your way back to where you arrived?"
Qin Xin nodded. Like Cheng Shi, he had prudently scattered [War] markers along his route, markers only he could trigger. No matter where he wandered, he could always trace them back to his "starting point."
The problem was that ten days of exploration had taken him very far from it.
Hong Lin was the sa. Like the "Hong Lin" Cheng Shi had encountered, she had scattered [Prosperity] seeds across the Real Universe. In fact, this cautious approach had been suggested by the Cheng Shi she had t.
After a rough calculation, the three realized Cheng Shi's "starting point" was the closest. So they decided to investigate his first.
That was when Qin Xin raised another question:
"If the Hong Lin you encountered was actually another you, then the [Prosperity] seeds you left as markers... are they safe?"
Cheng Shi had been wrestling with that too.
Logically, since the other him bore no "ill will" — and had even helped Qin Xin acquire the Authority — he shouldn't have sabotaged sothing as critical as the route ho.
But then again, the other him was a liar...
Cheng Shi sighed and opted for the cautious play.
"Let's go to the farthest starting point instead. Qin Xin, lead the way.
With the Authority boosting you, you should be able to retrieve all your [War] markers."
Qin Xin smiled, turned, and led the way. Hong Lin naturally had no objections, though sothing else was eating at her.
The person who had tricked her was another world's Cheng Shi. Worse, she would probably never get a chance to settle the score. So... could she punch the Cheng Shi in front of her to vent?
The looks she kept giving Cheng Shi were peculiar indeed. But Cheng Shi was completely oblivious, assuming Hong Lin was pondering the other Cheng Shi's motives.
Several tis along the way, Cheng Shi felt a chill on the back of his neck. Each ti, he took it for approaching danger and warned Qin Xin to watch their surroundings — never once suspecting it was Big Cat behind him, staring at his exposed nape.
Luckily, [Fate]'s rcy had rubbed off on Big Cat, teaching her forbearance. And so Cheng Shi narrowly escaped disaster.
The three traveled for several days, relearning just how vanishingly rare it was to encounter another soul in the Real Universe.
When they finally reached Qin Xin's "starting point," the desolate starry sky crushed every hope of a pleasant surprise. There was nothing here — absolutely indistinguishable from the endless starscape they had been crossing.
Cheng Shi frowned and studied the area from every angle. Big Cat and Qin Xin threw everything they had at it too. But even wielding the Authority's power, the local spaceti remained utterly calm and stable. Not a ripple, not a change.
All three were montarily lost.
...
On the other side.
The two figures drifting through the Real Universe suddenly sensed sothing. They stopped and turned toward the direction of Cheng Shi's group.
[Deceit] Cheng Shi curled his lip, grinning:
"The spaceti storm's coming. Wonder where they'll be when they receive the Real Universe's warm greeting."
[Fate] Cheng Shi, for once, showed a glimr of interest. He barely suppressed the upturn of his lips and said coolly:
"Care to bet?"
[Deceit] Cheng Shi's eyes lit up. He nodded vigorously: "Given how sharp the kid is, they definitely won't go to the starting point I marked with [Prosperity] seeds. So I'm betting they'll go to the one Big Cat marked herself."
[Fate] Cheng Shi raised an eyebrow: "Why not Qin Xin's?"
[Deceit] Cheng Shi laughed: "Compared to Qin Xin, I trust Big Cat more. He is , so I'm betting on Big Cat."
[Fate] Cheng Shi nodded: "You're sure you swapped all the markers? Both Qin Xin's and Big Cat's?"
"Of course. When I do a job, you can rest easy.
All that awaits them is a spaceti storm. As for the howard path...
Tsk, they'll have to wait for their guardian to co pick them up. This dirty work's fee should be settled face to face, don't you think?"
A brief silence fell. Then [Deceit] Cheng Shi pressed:
"You still haven't placed your bet. Who are you backing?"
[Fate] Cheng Shi snorted: "I don't bet. If I don't bet, I can't lose."
"???"
[Deceit] Cheng Shi eyed him with disdain: "But you can't win either."
"I can afford not to win. But right now, I absolutely cannot lose."
"...You know, you are so boring. Why do you always have to make everything profound?"
...
Back to Cheng Shi's group.
Just as the three sat around the starting point trying to puzzle out the Real Universe's spaceti rules, the sky above them suddenly went dark.
All three jolted in alarm. They scattered instantly, and only after gaining so distance did they look up — to find that, at so unknowable mont, countless chaotic, agitated orbs of pitch-black light had appeared high overhead, pulsing in erratic patterns.
At first, the black spheres were only fist-sized, like light-devouring black holes warping every ray around them. But in the blink of an eye, the three found themselves swallowed by darkness. Not a trace of light remained.
Ti collapsed. Space twisted. Consciousness dissolved. Bodies fragnted.
The silent spaceti storm arrived, swallowing the three who had no ti even for fear.
...
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