The Dragon King's suggestion was a good one. Cheng Shi resolved to have a chat with old ng.
But before leaving, he pulled out the dyed container once more.
Seeing two fetuses connected by an umbilical cord, Li Jingming's expression turned slightly peculiar: "A Birth container? You prepared this for the Life Sage?"
"No. She's already inherited the Divine Throne. She no longer needs an external vessel for validation.
This is a Dyeing Container — the one thing Deceit left .
It can be dyed into any faith. Try activating it with your mory power. I suspect it's part of impersonating 'Origin.'
The Pact's Proxy rely resembles Origin but isn't the real thing. Origin is unconquerable — aning He possesses the power to annihilate all things. The Pact, on the other hand, only shelters gods; it has no jurisdiction over beings beyond the divine.
So I've been wondering: what thod could allow 'Origin' to directly wield the gods' powers?
And this Dyeing Container in my hands may well be the key.
'Origin' legitimizes the gods, bestows Authority — and then holds faith containers, wielding divine power as a proxy.
He would be both the source of faith and faith's 'Envoy.' Perhaps only through this approach can one approximate the real Him to the greatest possible degree..."
"???"
Li Jingming couldn't believe his ears.
'What — Origin is the gods' Envoy?'
'What kind of ntal gymnastics does it take to arrive at that relationship?'
But the Dragon King quickly caught on. The "Origin" in Cheng Shi's mouth wasn't the Creator orchestrating experints in the Real Universe — it was the road ahead for Fixed Destiny.
The future Wei Mu had described hinged on "replacent." And since it was replacent, Fixed Destiny naturally had to draw as close to Origin as possible.
So Cheng Shi's reasoning was entirely logical. This Fate Weaver, shouldering the weight of everything, was still dragging the world forward.
A smile of agreent crossed Li Jingming's face. He stirred the ever-present mory power within the Collection Hall, transforming it into a surging Sea of mory that instantly subrged the container in Cheng Shi's hand. Inside the sea, the container's color faded once more, then was dyed into a brilliant crystal.
Cheng Shi nodded, retrieved the container, and said:
"The era's curtain call is imminent. If I'm not mistaken, the path forward lies at our feet.
Perhaps the world's future will look a bit different from what everyone imagines. But I'll do everything I can — at the very least, to see everyone safely into the next era.
Whatever future They envisioned, we must ultimately walk our own road.
Dragon King — once I've arranged everything, I'll give everyone an explanation.
Please keep looking into that strange duration. I'm going to have a talk with Ti's candidate."
With that, Cheng Shi bid the Dragon King farewell and left the Collection Hall, descending directly upon a spot in the real world.
Li Jingming watched his departing figure, sighed once, then smiled:
"I told you — mory is the most precious thing. Having walked this road alongside all of you is the greatest fortune of my life."
...
The real world — a private courtyard in an unknown city and province.
ng Youfang sat cross-legged in the yard, deep in ditation. Before long, a figure appeared across from him, mirroring his posture exactly.
The bard sensed the arrival but didn't open his eyes right away. Instead, he let out a languid sigh:
"Which old friend has finally deigned to visit?
You've paused the Trials. Is it because my performance has gone far beyond the scope of the test?
Honestly, I haven't yet exhausted the full breadth of mortal suffering. It's too early for
to return to my Divine Throne. But if you insist, I suppose..."
Mid-sentence, ng Youfang opened his eyes. But when he saw not a deity but Cheng Shi, delight flashed across his brow. He shot to his feet, grabbed Cheng Shi's wrist, and exclaid:
"Brother! What brings you here?
Did Deceit send you to deliver the news that my trial is over?"
"..."
Quick-witted as Cheng Shi was, even he found himself outmatched by ng Youfang's "the world revolves around " cadence. His lip twitched faintly; he had no idea how to begin this conversation between a human and a delusion.
He could only shake his head with a weary smile, look at this long-absent "friend," and toss out his question directly.
There was no matching the man's rhythm — the only way to break it was to introduce a new one. So he cut straight to the point:
"Brother ng — are you interested in Ti's Divine Throne?"
"?"
ng Youfang froze for a beat. Then his gaze narrowed. He slowly released Cheng Shi's wrist, his expression turning grave:
"So Void is finally making a move on Existence?
I always assud Deceit had His eye on mory. I never imagined He was coveting Ti's Throne.
Brother Yu Xi — Ti is my old friend. He's done His duty and sheltered
well throughout this trial. I appreciate your thinking of , but I, ng Youfang, could never betray a friend.
I have my own Throne. Why would I covet another's seat?
You... sigh, you've co to the wrong person. You shouldn't have told
any of this.
I haven't reclaid my divine position yet. If Ti cos after you because of this, it'll be very hard for
to protect you."
"..."
For one brief, shining instant, every ounce of pressure and frustration in Cheng Shi's heart simply evaporated. His sole desire was to deploy a Silence field right here and now to shut this "Ti candidate" up.
But he knew it would be futile. A normal person's brainwaves could never sync with a case of galomania.
Fortunately, Cheng Shi was hardly a normal person. He fell back on old habits — opening his mouth and fabricating on the fly:
"Brother ng, the situation is far more dire than you imagine. Did you hear nothing at the Audience eting?"
ng Youfang frowned, dead serious:
"The Audience eting?
Why would I attend an Audience eting? Ti is my old friend. Between us, there's no such thing as 'an audience.'
That's His reward for His followers. Naturally, I can't bully the little people by taking a mortal's spot."
"..."
Honestly, Cheng Shi nearly turned and walked out. Were it not for the fact that there simply weren't many Ti followers connected to Fixed Destiny, "Origin" would have just lost His Ti.
"Fine. Then let
tell you everything.
The gods have sacrificed themselves one after another in defiance of Origin. Many Thrones sit vacant. For the Universe to carry on, we must step up. Your—"
Before he could finish, ng Youfang seized his wrist, eyes alight with barely contained excitent:
"The Origin you speak of — could it be..."
Cheng Shi assud the man already knew sothing. After all, the Chosen Ones sat at the top of the Faith Ga's intelligence chain. Delusions of grandeur or not, his strength alone should have given him access to what mattered.
So he nodded: "That's right. He is—"
"I knew it!" ng Youfang cut him off again, face radiant with joy. "Hahahaha! My good brother — I've finally recovered my Divine Na! So my Divine Na is Origin!"
"?"
For a mont, Cheng Shi was utterly at a loss.
Because he realized he couldn't actually refute the man.
'Old ng has always called himself the Universe's seventeenth god. And in this entire cosmos, the only being that could be called the seventeenth god truly is... Origin.'
'By that logic, ng Youfang being Origin... isn't technically wrong?'
...
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