(6000!)
Ti had woven his story into a loop. So the Ti miracle the little assassin had hoped to witness — he'd actually witnessed it already. He'd even been the one to set it in motion.
Cheng Shi had thought Fate was wondrous enough. Who knew His rival, Ti, was every bit as extraordinary.
But one question remained: why had Ti inexplicably entered the tug-of-war between Corruption and Birth?
What role was He playing in this unthinkable ethical drama?
Confused, Cheng Shi shared what he could of the trial's story with Hu Xuan.
Though Hu Xuan was a heavy-hitter in Birth's camp, her "seniority" was far too shallow. She'd risen so fast that she lacked the depth of knowledge other Chosen Ones had accumulated. This was also her first ti hearing about Go Lis. She knew barely more about Go Lis's past than Cheng Shi did.
But after hearing the na from her Benefactor's lips, she'd made a point to learn what she could about this so-called "first child."
So she still had intelligence to share with Cheng Shi — information he could never have obtained from the outside world.
Because she'd read it off Birth's Divine Pillar.
"You can view His Divine Pillar?" Cheng Shi was astonished. Being an Envoy candidate ca with perks aplenty.
"Yes. During audiences, with His permission, I can.
Though each audience, under the influence of His aura, triggers another... tamorphosis in ."
"..."
'tamorphosis...'
'Sis, that's a delicate way to put it.'
'In a certain sense, you and Aph Ros are the true kindred spirits.'
Cheng Shi licked his dry lips: "So what exactly is His Divine Pillar? Another Envoy like you?"
Hu Xuan shook her head with a soft laugh:
"No. Think of it as a manifestation of His will.
My Lord values new life above all, but He's deeply sentintal. That's why He strings together all the Life Marker Boards of the vanished — as a morial to His departed children.
To so degree, you could even see it as Him, or a part of Him."
"..." Cheng Shi felt their solemn, straight-faced discussion of Birth was off-kilter sohow. He quietly shut his mouth.
Hu Xuan soon laid out what the Divine Pillar recorded about Go Lis — though her account wasn't entirely clear, since the Pillar contained only terse entries, not detailed histories.
What was certain: Go Lis's birth predated Aph Ros's by far.
And Aph Ros's birth hadn't co about through the trial Cheng Shi experienced, but through Go Lis's "devotion"!
Yes — devotion!
The historical Go Lis was identical to the trial's Go Lis: relentless in her pursuit of her Benefactor, using every ans necessary. And precisely because she indulged, without limit, in her desire to approach a deity, she "fortunately" attracted Corruption's gaze. Through ceaseless evolution, she beca Corruption's emissary — Aph Ros.
But becoming an entity opposed to Birth was never her goal. She still wanted to approach Him. She'd rely drawn close to Corruption on the way, and since Corruption didn't refuse her, Aph Ros used Corruption's power to strengthen herself — all while singularly, consistently pursuing one aim: closing the distance between herself and Birth.
And so!
It was Go Lis's desire that gave rise to the Gate of Joyous Lust. And it was Aph Ros's obsession that evolved into the Sin Brood Mother.
They were twin-born, yet they were the sa person.
This ethically twisted relationship gave Cheng Shi an aching jaw. Seeing his conflicted expression, Hu Xuan remained perfectly composed — as if such matters were hardly worth ntioning among Birth followers.
She continued:
"But there's sothing very strange. On the Divine Pillar, the two of them aren't registered as one entity. They're... separated by an enormous span.
If they're truly the sa person, there shouldn't be a temporal gap. Even if there were, a short one would be understandable.
But the gap between them on the Pillar is far too wide. I even spotted Civilization-epoch Life Marker Boards between them — ones resembling the Bord people."
Cheng Shi listened, frowning, and thought once more of Aph Ros's ntion of "eras."
'So what exactly happened in that Existence era he spoke of?'
'Did Ti enter this story during an era that belonged to Him?'
'What does the real history look like? Would Hu Xuan know?'
Cheng Shi's curiosity got the better of him. He asked — but Hu Xuan shook her head, indicating she didn't know either.
"I only know He's trapped sowhere. And now, learning from you that Ti most likely imprisoned Him...
Birth is uncontentious. He's a very... 'stable' deity. So I can't fathom what kind of conflict existed between Him and Ti that led Ti to imprison His first child!"
'Stable?'
'Sure — you Birth people are consistently insane. I'll give you "stable."'
Cheng Shi frowned, suspecting Ti's imprisonnt of Aph Ros probably had nothing to do with Birth. Perhaps Ti's target was Corruption, and since Aph Ros and Go Lis were one being, she'd been caught up in the sa punishnt.
But without a conclusion, he said nothing. He simply listened.
"Also — I personally witnessed Go Lis and Aph Ros vanish from the Divine Pillar. That ans the two of them, who'd long since faded from history, were fished out of the river of ti by soone.
I'd assud that person had to be a peak player. I never imagined it would be you, Cheng Shi."
"?"
Cheng Shi blinked in surprise: "Didn't you say He asked you to deliver sothing to ? How could you not have guessed—"
He stopped mid-sentence and went quiet.
'Damn — I got played.'
No — "played" wasn't quite right. He'd played himself.
Hu Xuan had only said she "had sothing to give him" and that "it involved Him." She'd never said anything else. It was Cheng Shi who'd over-imagined and ntally inserted Birth into the picture.
So...
Hu Xuan's arrival had nothing to do with Birth at all. She'd co of her own accord!
The instant Cheng Shi realized this, he looked up at Hu Xuan with wordless exasperation — only to see her smiling coyly with one hand extended. That single, innocuous gesture was enough to silence every objection he'd been about to raise.
"I didn't lie. And I really do have sothing for you."
With that, Hu Xuan produced a blood-red shackle and gently presented it to Cheng Shi.
Cheng Shi stared at the painfully familiar object. His mouth twitched. From his own storage, he produced an identical one...
Umbilical Shackles!
"?"
...
Reviews
All reviews (0)