Though Cheng Shi had partially anticipated the so-called "proxy power to distribute [Prosperity]'s trial rewards" that Hong Lin had inherited, he was still stunned when he saw his own settlent page.
'Well, well, well—halfway through the exam, the test-taker beca the proctor and started cheating out in the open.'
'That's way too entertaining!'
'Good thing the cheater is . Otherwise, watching soone else pocket cheated bonuses would be maddening.'
He sat on the rooftop, reviewing his scores again and again, then shook his head with an amused laugh.
Twenty bonus points to the Road to Ascension. He'd never heard of anyone getting twenty points—the most he'd ever earned was seventeen.
But this wasn't necessarily a good thing. Higher Road to Ascension scores only made trials harder. Better to have more Ladder of Ascent points and cheat his way straight to first place.
'Unfortunately, even if Hong Lin really could inflate Ladder scores, that privilege only extends to [Prosperity]'s followers. After all, my Benefactor is still alive—and doesn't seem like He's dying anyti soon.'
But beyond the scores...
Cheng Shi's expression turned serious as he produced the so-called divine gift—the partial Authority of [Prosperity]'s Vitality!
It was a branch slightly thinner than the true Authority.
Looking at this thick bough he'd shoved into Hong Lin's hands without hesitation—now "partially" returned to him through trial settlent rewards—a peculiar smile crept across his face.
'Does this count as gambling?'
'Probably not, since I only gave it away because my Benefactor told
to.'
'But who says honesty isn't just another form of deceit? Perhaps this wasn't absolute deception, but it was certainly a generous test!'
If he wanted to walk further down a solitary road, he needed so companions on parallel paths who could keep pace. It seed he'd truly gained another friend who understood him to the core.
'Though I have to say—Big Cat really is... generous.'
Indeed, Hong Lin was generous.
When she exited the trial and discovered that her inherited power was the ability to distribute [Prosperity]'s trial rewards, she'd beco shrewdly strategic in an instant.
She hadn't returned to the Rest Area right away. Instead, she'd appeared atop a canopy drained of all color—a sea of ashen gray. And at the very summit of this canopy sat a treasure vault of [Prosperity], embedded in the space between reality and illusion.
It was packed with all manner of items. So were crafted by Her own hand. So were trophies plundered from other deities. Others were [Prosperity] sacrifices that players had discovered during trials or offered up to Her, which She'd fished from the river of ti using the Pact and casually stored inside.
In short, every [Prosperity]-related reward ca from this vault.
And now, Hong Lin had beco its master.
Its true master.
From this point on, every item related to [Prosperity] would pass through her fingers before reaching the players in trials. In a sense, she was already fundantally different from ordinary players.
Because she had truly beco Frazor—the eldest daughter of [Prosperity], as recognized by the Pact.
And this Frazor was undeniably generous. The mont she learned she had the power to bestow gifts, her first thought was of her friend. She gifted the most precious item from that vault.
Of course, the vault's most precious treasure wasn't actually inside the vault—it was on her person.
She took out [Prosperity]'s sole remaining Authority and, without hesitation, bestowed it upon her friend, Cheng Shi.
"We won this gamble together. You've already won more than enough on my behalf, so this heaven-sent Authority should rightfully be your share—chips you earned for yourself, Fate Weaver."
Her heart was generous, but the bestowal failed.
For a player without Envoy status, the Pact did not permit the proxy wielding of a complete Authority.
Left with no choice, Hong Lin split the Vitality Authority and sent out only the portion most critical for survival.
As [Prosperity]'s divine gift descended alongside the rewards, above the vault, a pair of gleeful eyes quietly faded from view.
"[Fate] truly deserves His title as the god who governs good fortune. Your luck isn't bad—sha I didn't snatch her up first."
Another pair of cold eyes likewise vanished, leaving only a frigid snort echoing from the depths of the void.
"You can't deceive her."
"A silly little cat—how hard could she be to fool? Don't tell
you think only you can deceive her?"
"Yes."
"...[Fate] really is always changing. And growing more shaless by the day."
"You want a fight?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
BOOM—
Another battle erupted in the void. Compared to the spectacle of [Prosperity]'s self-destruction, however, this explosion went entirely unnoticed.
...
[Prosperity] Authority "Vitality" (Partial): A True God's Authority recognized by the Pact, bestowed by its steward, granting the holder the partial power to wield this Authority as proxy.
Authority Effect — Endless Life: Influenced by the Authority, the proxy's vitality becos boundless. Until their life force is completely extinguished, no weakening of vitality will occur.
Staring at this Authority effect, Cheng Shi was dumbfounded.
He didn't know how many effects the full "Vitality" Authority contained, but judging from this one alone—Big Cat truly didn't want him to die.
This "Endless Life" was basically a cheat-code health lock!
Reading the description, as long as the damage didn't one-shot him, his condition wouldn't deteriorate!
What?
'Who would have thought that I, Cheng the Steady, would one day be able to stand up and go wild!'
From the descent of the Faith Ga until now—when had he ever encountered damage that could instantly kill a player?
'Oh, right—being squished to death by Them doesn't count...'
'Well, this is great. Priest skills are useless on
now—oh wait, no, they're still useful. Cleansing debuffs is still necessary.'
'But even so, this is an ultimate power-up!'
Cheng Shi's eyes sparkled with excitent. 'See? See! Greed pays off—be greedy enough, and you end up with everything!'
After grasping the Authority's function, he quickly stowed the branch and pulled out the other cheated reward—the Lush Horn Crown.
It was a headpiece, sowhat resembling a wooden circlet, but with two impressively majestic antlers jutting from either side.
The crown was far from light. Cheng Shi tried it on, and his first impression was that the pressure on his cervical spine was rather excessive.
"What's this supposed to an—personally targeting ?"
"I said Tao Yi has spinal problems, so she gives
a neck problem?"
"That can't be it..."
But after reading the crown's effects, Cheng Shi understood. Hong Lin wasn't making a pointed jab—her goal was the sa as always: she didn't want him to die.
She was even more cautious than he was. More cautious than him—Cheng the Steady himself.
True to her word—when she inherited [Prosperity]'s power, she wanted her friends to prosper forever.
Lush Horn Crown (SS): A crown forged from thousand-year antlers and immortal wood, offered by the Antler Folk of [Prosperity]'s tribes. When you wear this crown, your healing effects gain the Recovery property. When healing a living being whose life force has been completely extinguished, it will revive them. This effect can only trigger once per living being.
A resurrection artifact!
Since the descent of the Faith Ga, Cheng Shi finally possessed a resurrection item of his very own!
Though its effect could only work on the sa target once, this wasn't a consumable—which ant he now had the ability to revive others!
And whether held in reserve during trials or played as a trump card in negotiations, this kind of ability was invariably the most valuable of all.
Now he truly had no choice but to praise [Prosperity]!
These two items alone made every risk he'd taken in this trial absolutely worth it!
Not to ntion he'd also gained the friendship of an Envoy—the genuine friendship of Frazor herself.
And there was also the matter of divinity he'd forgotten to return—and which Baldy hadn't asked for back.
'I couldn't have just... accidentally pocketed it, right?'
'Is that... okay?'
...
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