Long Jing's intentions were simple and pure — he wanted to pull off the performance of Yu Xi and extract sothing interesting from these fraudsters. Think about it: when you've tricked every fraudster in the room into making a fool of themselves at the Convention, President Gong's mont of glory would arrive naturally, and his notoriety would eclipse Zhen Yi's — making him the most dazzling "star" of the whole ga.
So his gaze at the crowd grew more and more eager — though he hid that eagerness expertly, making it look to outside observers like sharp, penetrating scrutiny.
The assembled fraudsters said nothing, all simultaneously looking toward the unclothed mask-wearer at the highest position.
The fourth-place player frowned slightly. After a mont of silence, he suddenly raised his head and looked steadily at Yu Xi.
"I'll go first. I've heard that you enjoy playing as a player, and have personally participated in trials and given so guidance to other players within those trials. So I want to ask you a question."
"?"
Yu Xi raised an eyebrow and smiled. "This is an Assessnt eting, not a Q&A session. Are you sure you want to violate the assessnt rules?"
The fourth-place player gave an amused snort, his tone odd:
"I don't believe I've violated the assessnt rules at all. You said to move you with a mory — and what I just described is my mory. As for the thod to move you — that is my question. My understanding of 'moved' relates to emotional change. I believe this question will absolutely cause a change in your emotions. Would you... like to hear it?"
"..."
Long Jing's eyelid twitched slightly. Was the fourth-place player retiring from the performance?
But he couldn't just step off the stage at this mont — or the clown would be himself again. He had to improvise, and clapped in recognition of the other's cunning argunt:
"Very good. Cunning sophistry is itself an aspect of my lord's authority. I can feel your devotion. Ask your question. Your devotion deserves a response."
"!"
Hearing this, the others suddenly understood — so the assessnt worked like this. The "rules" Yu Xi had stated weren't the complete rules — and one's response didn't have to be a rigid response either. The assembled fraudsters perked up imdiately, revising their ntal scripts while pricking their ears to hear the fourth-place player's question.
The unclothed mask-wearer studied Yu Xi carefully for a mont, then asked tentatively:
"Since performance is a subject that can never be avoided on the road of [Deceit] — I'd like to ask you, Lord: when you were playing the role of a player, did any player ever play the role of you?"
"!!??"
At those words, the entire scene was stunned.
The fourth-place player's words were crystal clear — essentially guessing out loud, in front of everyone, that the Yu Xi standing before them might be soone else's performance. Yet paradoxically, this very attitude of suspicion made the other fraudsters more convinced. It wasn't that they hadn't considered that these two might be in on an act together — the problem was that right now, the fourth-place player's expression didn't look like an act at all. It was rare to see such gravity in his eyes.
This could only an he himself was uncertain about Yu Xi's identity. If even the fraudster most familiar with the Acrobat didn't think this person was the Acrobat — could Yu Xi's identity still be fake?
Long Jing was also taken aback. For a mont he felt vaguely disoriented himself. Co to think of it, the fourth-place player's question was an enormous assist to the construction of Yu Xi's identity — Long Jing should have been pleased. But the problem was he could see the gravity in the fourth-place player's eyes, and when he factored in the man's expression and really savored the question—
No way. Co on. You actually started believing?
I made a face at you, and you can still see
as Yu Xi?
You must be thinking the real Yu Xi is out there impersonating , Long Jing!
In that mont, Long Jing showed nothing on the surface — but inside, he was laughing his heart out. He had never imagined things would develop this way. But he had to admit the current situation was enormously favorable to his performance. And so this peak fraudster, with his deep understanding of human nature, did the opposite of what was expected — and with a smile, gave everyone an answer they couldn't have predicted.
"Of course there have been. Whether she, he, or him — all of them have borrowed my identity at so point."
Long Jing gestured toward Zhen Xin's, his own, and Cheng Shi's platforms, then said with a smile: "To impersonate a divine being while mortal is a great act of blasphemy — yet to use the arts of [Deceit] to deceive the world is enormous devotion to our patron. I recognized their devotion, but I would not pardon their transgression on account of it. And so between reward and correction — I chose a path for them. A path of redeed reward: a journey to explore another world. If they gain sothing from it, that is the reward. If they encounter misfortune — that is the punishnt. This is also why you haven't seen the three of them here. And you... not bad. Your performance puts you very close to them."
"..."
Looking at the strange smile Yu Xi turned on him, for one instant the unclothed fourth-place player felt with absolute certainty that the person in front of him was Yu Xi — could not possibly be Long Jing. The real Long Jing could never have acting this refined. Even if Long Jing's technique could reach this, it could never produce an aura this close to a divine being's.
Yes — the aura. An identity could be perford. After all, your mouth could say anything — but aura could never be faked. And right now, behind Yu Xi's back, an abstract and distorted [Deceit]-aura was rising — exactly the kind of scene one expected when a divine being manifested. It had appeared a little late, yes — but who could say for certain that wasn't Yu Xi deliberately toying with them?
If even the divine being would toy with itself — how could it not toy with fraudsters who thought themselves clever? If any fraudster dared question its identity and was then proven wrong — could that fraudster ever show their face in the fraudster community again? Even if they weren't laughed to death by their peers — they'd probably lose the god's attention forever.
For this reason too, the fourth-place player, even internally uncertain, no longer dared to test the person's identity further. He could only accept "the one standing before him who looks exactly like Yu Xi" as Yu Xi — even if it was Long Jing, being "tricked by Long Jing" was far more tolerable than "failing to recognize Yu Xi."
And Yu Xi's reverse-confessional answer — along with the aura rising behind the figure — finally made the other fraudsters drop their guard. This had to be an Envoy. Where else would this power co from?
Yes — where from exactly?
Cheng Shi was also curious. No — that was the wrong word. He was stunned. He too had noticed the [Deceit]-aura rising behind Long Jing. He had considered lending Long Jing a hand earlier — after all, who wouldn't want to get so free information out of other fraudsters? But he had held back, also uncertain whether the [Deceit] Container he was holding could pass through the invisible curtain before him.
But now it seed there was no need to pass anything through. The aura had already risen on its own — and it was a [Deceit]-aura distinctly different from pure [Deceit] energy. Faint — but unmistakably there.
Cheng Shi was thoroughly confused. He even started wondering whether the Fun God had long since created sothing like a "divine throne" specific to Yu Xi — one that anyone could sit in, not just himself?
But then he imdiately rejected that idea, because he thought of another reason:
Faith.
[Ti] had once said: as long as they believe — the force of faith will burst forth.
Whether it was Selius's Divinity Germination Experint, or the Yu Xi circus Long Jing was performing right now — both involved belief. Even the sacrifice dedicated to [Void] had been telling him all along that believing seed to be sothing critically important.
So the fraudsters here had already co to believe that Long Jing was Yu Xi?
Then himself — who exactly was he?
Cheng Shi froze. His thoughts plunged into montary confusion — and then, down below, another change occurred.
After various rounds of brainstorming, the fraudsters studying Yu Xi and the fourth-place player seed to grow increasingly certain of Yu Xi's identity. And so, eager to "distinguish themselves," they began to compete in trying to move Yu Xi.
The first to speak was the bandaged man on the eighth platform — Du Qiyu.
"I won't do what certain soone did and break the rules by asking a question. I'll demonstrate my devotion to the maximum within the rules as stated. [mory] — if it isn't used for entertainnt, then its conflict with our patron holds no aning whatsoever. So my understanding of 'moving' you is: making you laugh. And as it happens, I know of sothing rather amusing."
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