Cheng Shi was free.
Whether it was the Eternal Sun's blazing radiance that proved too fierce, or Go Lis's Grudge finally collapsing under the Offspring Priest's devout faith, the result was the sa: Cheng Shi dropped.
Yes— dropped.
When his feet hit the ground, he realized the so-called "Sinner's Regret" truly had suspended everyone from on high.
The peak players still trapped hung like the Uma Sinners dangling from the ceiling of the Evil Infant Inquisition— each curled into a fetal position, strung up against the phantom of so eerie structure's do.
Cheng Shi had a nagging sense that the phantom of this building looked familiar. Squinting under the great sun's light for a better look, his entire body went rigid and cold sweat broke out across his skin.
He rembered now. The phantom of this eerie building looked uncannily like...
The Assembly Hall of the Dolgod Church!
'That lingering ghost Dolgod is still chasing !'
Just then, the great sun reached its zenith and a figure wearing a black halter-top dress erged from its blinding center. Bare feet touched down, and she descended along the Eternal Sun's rays toward Cheng Shi.
Sure enough— the Void differed from reality. Here, Hu Xuan possessed a complete physical body rather than an intangible projection.
Watching this ally who technically counted as a friendly reinforcent approach, Cheng Shi felt a faint, inexplicable flutter of... fear.
'She is coming to rescue , right? She won't have any unreasonable demands, will she?'
He couldn't bla himself for overthinking. One look at Hu Xuan in this state and his brain automatically echoed with that single word: "Co."
As Hu Xuan drew closer, Cheng Shi chuckled nervously and greeted her:
"Well, I certainly didn't expect we'd et again so soon."
No sooner had the words fallen than a response echoed through the Void.
"Quite unexpected indeed."
"Quite unexpected indeed."
"..."
Cheng Shi froze. Just like Zhen Yi monts before, his smile solidified on his face.
Hu Xuan halted too, stopping mid-step and hovering in the air.
Because both of them realized the second response hadn't been the Void's echo— it had co from the lips of soone else, re steps away!
Cheng Shi's eyes narrowed with gravity. Hu Xuan turned in surprise. Where their gazes converged, amid the shadowed seats of the Assembly Hall's phantom, a man clad in a moonlit gilded black robe rose to his feet. He turned and offered them both an exquisitely elegant smile.
"My brother, the way you appear before
is always so... well, unexpected.
"And might I ask— are you on a date with this beautiful lady?
"That's terribly heartbreaking. You actually chose to et a stranger inside my cage.
"Could she be your... Miss Sun?
"I sense His aura upon her. So would you tell — who is this Miss Sun?"
"..."
Aph Ros!
Cheng Shi never imagined Go Lis's Grudge would deliver him straight back to Aph Ros!
Though on reflection, it made perfect sense. This being was Go Lis, and the Sinner's Regret was Go Lis's "authority" left behind in history.
So when Go Lis had awakened from history, the effects of this Servant God relic... had they actually been powered by Aph Ros all along?
Wait— had he accidentally summoned Aph Ros with these Umbilical Shackles?
'Hold on. How is he already working for [Void] this quickly?'
"..."
'No, Cheng Shi, stop thinking about random nonsense. You need to face this— face this historic mont where two Envoys are eting for the first ti!'
While Cheng Shi stood there slack-jawed, Hu Xuan recovered first. She gazed at Aph Ros with calm composure, recognized his identity at a glance, yet offered neither greeting nor acknowledgnt. Instead, her eyes lit with curiosity as she turned to Cheng Shi:
"What's 'Miss Sun'? Is that what you call
behind my back?"
"..."
'Please, spare .'
'You think that's a complint?'
'The [Corruption] Envoy only elevates his objects of desire to "Miss Moon." Him calling you "Miss Sun" is practically a blasphemy!'
'That's a "filthy" term dripping with desire. Let's not pick up these dirty habits!'
Cheng Shi shook his head emphatically, signaling the term had absolutely nothing to do with him. But to his dismay, Aph Ros seized the mont and began "explaining" on his behalf.
Facing Hu Xuan hovering in the air, the Envoy smiled with effortless charm.
"It seems you know who I am. Allow
to clarify: Miss Moon is the woman I love most dearly. I assud you were the woman my brother loves most dearly, which is why I called you Miss Sun. If I was mistaken, please forgive—"
"You weren't mistaken."
"..."
Hu Xuan moved.
She glided down with graceful steps, her expression— which had previously held no intention of acknowledging Aph Ros's existence— softening noticeably.
"The aning behind it may be wrong," Hu Xuan said with a glance and a smile at the speechless Cheng Shi. Then she walked with effortless poise to stand between Aph Ros and Cheng Shi, shielding Cheng Shi behind her while blocking each man's line of sight to the other. Facing Aph Ros with elegant composure, she smiled: "But I like the title."
"Even though it's tainted by [Corruption]?" Aph Ros studied Hu Xuan with fascination.
"[Birth] resides within the heart." Hu Xuan offered a modest bow in return— a concise response.
The scene resembled nothing so much as dieval royalty crossing verbal swords with the most refined of noblewon. The surface was perfectly calm; beneath it, undercurrents raged.
The clash of faith ignited in that instant. The collision of divinity had already, at so unknowable point, begun perating the Void.
And as the sole human in this standoff of faiths...
Cheng Shi was absolutely terrified.
Not by the tension— but purely by the words coming out of these two.
"[Birth] resides within the heart..."
'Is that really sothing a normal person would say?'
'And you, the other one— you're flaunting your [Corruption] aura right in front of a candidate for [Birth] Envoy. Are you not even slightly afraid of getting hit?'
'Oh, Aph Ros probably genuinely wasn't afraid, because Hu Xuan definitely couldn't beat him.'
'Even caged as he was, undeniably he was a genuine Envoy— no, two Envoys!'
'Whereas Hu Xuan? She was half of one at best!'
'Moreover, they weren't standing outside the cage. They were inside it!'
'This was Aph Ros's ho turf.'
But sohow, Cheng Shi found he wasn't actually that panicked. After regaining his composure, he crept behind Hu Xuan and introduced the pair with a nervous laugh:
"So, uh... we're all friends here. Let's stay calm, everyone. Let's talk this out.
"Aph Ros, this is— well, you've probably guessed. She is His Envoy, the Eternal Sun.
"Hu Xuan... and this one, I won't bother introducing. You probably know him better than I do..."
Listening to Cheng Shi's thoroughly unhelpful introduction, Hu Xuan chuckled softly. Her gaze burned as she fixed Aph Ros:
"Indeed, I do know you. My Lord's first child— Go Lis."
The na didn't surprise Aph Ros at all. As a child of [Birth], Hu Xuan could never possibly call him by his other na.
But he didn't mind. Both nas were him. Far from taking offense, he smiled:
"The obsession of faith is itself a form of desire. If you cannot face my na and identity, perhaps that, too, is a kind of injury to Him."
Hu Xuan frowned slightly, her smile fading.
Yet before she could respond, Cheng Shi spoke up from behind her, glaring at Aph Ros:
"She chooses to acknowledge you but refuses to speak your [Corruption] na— isn't that precisely the act of resisting faith's corruption? She is restraining her desire. Therefore, [Birth] was not hard. Rather, it received a devout offering."
The instant those words left his mouth, Hu Xuan turned back with a radiant smile— and the sheer force of that smile sent Cheng Shi crouching to the ground.
'Lady, I'm helping you here! And you turn around and terrify ?'
'Please, rein in those divine powers...'
Aph Ros watched this scene with undisguised amusent, clicking his tongue:
"Perfection.
"My brother, you are a perfect God Upholder.
"I once believed you were [Corruption]'s darling, but I was wrong. You are this era's darling.
"[Void]— [Void]!
"Only in this era could there be a stage that lets you shine.
"I'm growing envious, my brother. If only I had been born in this era...
"How wonderful that would be!"
Era!
Cheng Shi's gaze sharpened. The very reason he'd been longing to see Aph Ros again was precisely for this— the "era." Today, at last, his questions would be answered!
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