Cheng Shi silently reviewed the several "new gods" about to ascend.
Qin Xin went without saying. After reclaiming everything of War from the Real Universe, he was, at this point, virtually indistinguishable from the true War — lacking only the Divine Na.
The Dragon King was the sa. At the very least, before mory departed, He had left behind the Container representing mory's Collection Hall to His follower, signaling He had already chosen a successor for His Divine Throne.
Li Wufang's situation was slightly more difficult. After all, Cheng Shi had only obtained the Order Container. To push the Investigator onto the Divine Throne, he needed Justice — the manifestation of Order — to acknowledge that the true Order, Pride, had left valid expectations and instructions for Li Wufang before self-destructing.
Given Justice's rigidity, this might not be easy. But no matter — Cheng Shi had a fallback. Even if Li Wufang's succession was blocked, he could convene an Assembly of Gods Convention and use a vote to place the Investigator directly on the Divine Throne.
When he tallied the counts — Prosperity, Death, Truth, War, Chaos, Silence, Existence, Void... the Fear Faction had long since commandeered the voting bloc. They held absolute control. As soon as Deceit returned, the Pact of Gods would no longer constrain Them. Instead, it would beco a tool for the Fear Faction to govern the Universe.
The Pact truly was a brilliant move — especially for the weak seeking Divine Thrones.
Whether Deceit had foreseen all of this back when He'd hoodwinked the gods into signing the Pact, who could say?
Beyond those three, this visit to the Fire Passing Hall had yielded an unexpected "gift."
That old friend who'd been terrified of causing trouble in the Fire Passing Hall — Nangong — seed to have adapted to the Decay Container's erosion.
Qin Xin told Cheng Shi that the Container's corrosive force was weakening. Nangong no longer had to wrestle against it every waking hour.
Cheng Shi blinked, instantly realizing it wasn't that Nangong had adapted to Decay — it was that the true Decay... was fading.
Though within the ga, not all Decay followers had perished, the Decay who had learned the Universe's truth had long since stopped lingering in this starry sky.
He was vying against countless other versions of Himself across slice universes for the Creator's rcy. But by now, Origin's rcy had yet to co — and Decay was about to be "obliterated" first.
Whatever the world thought of Decay, at the very least, this rotting colossus had never been overly harsh to Cheng Shi. He had even bestowed the Authority of Proxy Action, once serving as a pillar of confidence when Cheng Shi faced his enemies.
Thinking of all this, a complex mix of emotions stirred inside Cheng Shi.
The old gods' era was indeed turning its final page.
They had pursued their own wills and were falling, one by one, on the road toward or away from Origin. Yet they wouldn't exit the stage imdiately — because the ground where they fell beca fertile soil, destined to birth new deities.
With the idea of conveniently claiming one more Divine Throne, Cheng Shi set his sights on Decay. If he didn't act now, the opportunity would slip through his fingers.
At the Fire Passing Hall, wearing the identity of "Fla of Hope," he summoned Nangong.
And when Nangong discovered that the god sheltering the Torchbearers was actually Cheng Shi... the girl who'd already been deceived to the point of shattering looked at the Fla of Hope before her and "shattered" all over again.
"You—"
Cheng Shi smiled. "What about ?"
"You can't possibly be the Fla of Hope." Nangong still couldn't believe it.
"Why not?"
"Because you're Cheng Shi!"
"..."
To an outsider, that reasoning might sound laughable — what kind of reason was that? But to Cheng Shi, it was the only reason that mattered.
'That's right. Precisely because I'm Cheng Shi, I am not anyone else, and I don't want to beco anyone else.'
'Yet also because I'm Cheng Shi, I must be everyone, and I must beco the one I don't want to beco — no, not a person. A god.'
A flash of astonishnt crossed Cheng Shi's eyes. He never imagined that the simplest, most straightforward truth touching his inner heart would be laid bare today by a guileless girl.
But then a smile crept across his face.
"Do you know why I called for you?"
Nangong's eyes still brimd with shock. She nodded stiffly. "The God Creation Plan."
"Exactly. The God Creation Plan.
In truth, the God Creation Plan has already succeeded.
You should know — the Torchbearers launched the God Creation Plan to forge a deity who could oppose the gods' oppression and restore the world to clarity.
The mont Qin Xin obtained War's Authority, the plan was, in theory, complete. Given the current state of the Universe, a single true god — especially War — is enough to shelter the Torchbearers until 'the end.' You shouldn't have to endure this much suffering.
It hurts, doesn't it?"
Cheng Shi glanced at the scars covering Nangong's hands. She flinched, then shook her head, tucking her hands into her sleeves and hiding them behind her back.
"I volunteered."
"Of course I know you volunteered. The Torchbearers would never force a comrade to do sothing against her will.
Your courage deserves everyone's recognition."
Nangong pressed her lips together and shook her head again. Her voice carried a note of gratitude:
"I'm not brave. All my courage was given to
by everyone around .
All along the way, I kept eting people who helped . They didn't look down on . They didn't abandon . They were willing to lend a hand. Step by step, they hauled
out of the mire...
And that includes you, Cheng Shi."
Nangong lifted her gaze to et those "frightening" eyes of his, her own darting away slightly:
"You've always been deceiving
— but I know you ant no harm. You were helping , helping
deal with problems I could never have faced alone."
"No — I just wanted to con you."
Cheng Shi chuckled. Not deceiving Nangong sohow felt like leaving money on the ground — it was unbearable.
Of course, that line was a deception too.
"..." Nangong was stunned into silence. She glared at Cheng Shi for a solid mont before retrieving the thread of her emotions. She continued: "Everyone's kindness — I rember all of it.
So when they were looking for soone who could withstand the Decay Container, I stepped forward.
I have no special skills. The only thing I'm good at is enduring.
If bearing pain is all it takes to help everyone, to repay everyone, then I don't see it as endurance at all — it's a kind of 'joy.'
I suddenly beca useful, and that made
incredibly, incredibly... incredibly, incredibly happy.
I don't taste bitterness. I only taste sweetness."
As she spoke, a radiant smile blood on Nangong's face.
"..."
'One person's suffering is another person's smile.'
The thought surfaced unbidden. Cheng Shi's gaze dimd for an instant, and inwardly he sighed: 'Why does this naive girl always manage to pierce straight through to the heart?'
'Is this what purity looks like?'
'The last person this pure... also belonged to the Torchbearers.'
'Cui Qiushi is truly blessed — a good father, and a good comrade-in-arms.'
'No — not one comrade. A whole host of them.'
Cheng Shi smiled. He already understood what Nangong wanted, but he offered one last word of counsel:
"The matter of the Decay Container is critically important to the Torchbearers' next move. Your courage is already the greatest repaynt you could give to those who extended a hand to you. The road ahead will be extraordinarily difficult...
Nangong, you're a pure-hearted girl, so I won't mince words with you. Whoever takes the Container will eventually beco a god. That ans the God Creation Plan will continue. Before long, you may succeed as the new Decay.
And at that point, the true rot will only just begin.
I'm not Decay. I can't know how agonizing it is to slowly corrode across the endless span of a god's lifeti. Perhaps the pain then will be a hundredfold what it is now. Then again, perhaps once you receive the Authority, all suffering will leave you, and all you'll need to do is hold fast against the loneliness within your heart...
Either way, what I want to say is this: the risks ahead are enormous. You've already done more than enough. You have every right to step away here and now.
I'm not robbing you of the chance to beco a god. I simply know that not everyone wants to beco one."
"..."
Nangong fell silent.
She wasn't foolish. She could feel the sincerity in Cheng Shi's words and his concern for her. But she... didn't want to give up.
She thought of the pile of notebooks in her room, stacked like a small mountain. She thought of the nas written on page after page. She thought of the journey she'd staggered through, pulled along hand after hand, until she stood here today. Her fists clenched tight. She looked up at Cheng Shi, her eyes resolute, her voice unwavering:
"I want to be soone useful.
I don't covet divine power or a Divine Throne. It's simply that enduring is the thing I'm best at. If soone must bear the pain, I'd rather it be . I don't want everyone else to suffer.
Cheng Shi... no — Fla of Hope. Please let
be soone useful.
Even if I rot for eternity in the mire, at least I can still use dead branches and fallen leaves to lift up the ones who once helped ."
Hearing those words, warmth spread through Cheng Shi's chest, and a brilliant smile crossed his face.
"Don't sell yourself short. You have always been soone useful."
...
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