Foolish Game of the Chapter 463: The Lost [Decay] Shell?

"Very good. It seems everyone's interested. Since that's the case, I won't hide it any longer.

"What we're looking for tonight... is a [Decay] shell!"

A [Decay] shell?

Everyone froze at this. Only Da Yi remained unfazed— he'd clearly known Hu Wei's plan for tonight.

Mo Li frowned: "[Decay] hasn't fallen. Where would we find a shell?"

Hu Wei shook his head with a smile:

"It's not His shell, Mo Li. Rein in that ambition of yours. A deity's remains could never be sothing players like us would have a chance to covet.

"However... in a certain sense, it can also be considered divine remains.

"A Servant God's remains!"

"A Servant God's remains!?"

Everyone was astonished. Cheng Shi's eyes narrowed slightly. He seed to have guessed sothing, but his knowledge told him that entity shouldn't have been left behind. So he kept quiet and continued listening.

"He was once a child of [Prosperity], later beca [Decay]'s Envoy. But his ambitions grew too large and were discovered by [Decay]. So his Benefactor sentenced him to spiritual-physical separation!"

At these words, Cheng Shi's eyes widened. He'd figured it out— the Servant God in Hu Wei's mouth was clearly the Barren Walker, Eposka!

And before his oathbreaking, this had been the second son whom [Prosperity] granted the Divine Na "Shadowless Crown"— Dizel!

'It's him!'

'But how could it be him?'

'Didn't [Truth] fuse with Eposka's body and thereby inherit [Prosperity]'s Convention voting rights?'

'How could it have also beco [Decay]'s lost shell?'

'Is my big brother's intel... fake?'

But judging by Hu Wei's absolute certainty, he didn't look like soone who'd been deceived.

So who had told him this? What source could make a Chosen One believe so firmly? It couldn't be... Them?

Had the gods undergone yet another change!?

Cheng Shi's pupils contracted sharply. Fortunately, everyone was equally shocked, so his reaction didn't stand out.

Mo Li clearly knew of Eposka's existence. He spoke up with matching astonishnt:

"Your target is Eposka?

"Did this Barren Walker get caught in the crossfire of the God War?"

"Crossfire? No— it was at the battlefield's very center. I don't know what it went through, but..."

Hu Wei glanced at Cheng Shi with a hint of regret, seemingly lanting that his brother's mories hadn't been taken away.

"But I can confirm it's dead. Eposka lost the last shred of living consciousness in its body and beca a completely lifeless corpse!

"Moreover, thanks to my intelligence channels, I know exactly where its body was left!

"And that... is our destination tonight!"

The instant Hu Wei finished, Mo Li's brow furrowed first. He gave the Grand Marshal a thoughtful glance, as if forming so guess about Hu Wei's true objective.

Da Yi looked breezy as ever. As a mber of this campsite's circle, he'd probably discussed this with Hu Wei more than once and already knew everything.

Long Jing frowned — all an act. He hadn't caught any issues, so he could only covertly observe Cheng Shi's reaction.

Cheng Shi hadn't fully grasped it either, but he'd already cataloged everyone's reactions. So he put on a knowing expression and nodded along.

Hu Xuan wore her smile throughout. She neither offered intelligence nor shared opinions — like an unreachable sun, beautiful in solitude and entirely aloof.

Yet to the others, her deanor looked like soone who'd seen through everything. So Long Jing, who'd been studying every face, was even more confused.

'Great. A con artist had beco the person in the room who understood the least.'

'This wasn't being an acrobat anymore— he'd beco the clown.'

To be fair, Hu Wei hadn't said everything. But certain things could only be hinted at. Since this trial contained sothing the Grand Marshal wanted, he naturally wouldn't lay all his cards on the table. Otherwise, with no binding agreents in this ad-hoc team, no one could guarantee others wouldn't compete for it.

So Hu Wei's true purpose in assembling this group was never about splitting treasure equally. It was about finding allies with aligned interests — ensuring he had as much muscle around him as possible.

And what he'd hidden was naturally sothing far more important than a re "Servant God's remains."

The atmosphere turned peculiar. Everyone was lost in thought, but their gazes constantly drifted sideways to study one another.

Nobody could predict how many difficulties a Chosen One's trial would bring. Pre-trial preparation was essential.

And for peak players, their preparation leaned more toward assessing people than acquiring items.

Hu Wei understood this well and didn't rush anyone. He simply smiled and recited the trial's prayer of invocation.

The Faith Ga had never included multiplayer group-matching rules. But that couldn't stop players who were determined to exploit loopholes.

Shortly after the ga's descent, many had discovered that if several acquainted players simultaneously prayed for the exact sa trial, they had a chance of being matched into the sa instance.

This was also why Cheng Shi had previously encountered only three Torchbearers in one trial. They'd actually deployed many mbers to pray simultaneously, but only Fang Shiqing's group of three had been matched in.

Nobody could guarantee that simultaneous prayers would land everyone in the sa instance. That was why Hu Wei gave everyone ti to discuss — so each person could prepare for the possibility of being matched with different teammates.

For the Grand Marshal, all he could do was pull in as many semi-trustworthy people as possible. How many actually ended up together was left to fate.

"This trial requires us to pray to [War]. So you should all understand: this will be a hard fight.

"And the prayer goes:

"How does one survive? Only through blood and fire.

"O all-trampling [War], I am but a passerby struggling beyond the battlefield, shaken by the violence and cruelty before . I humbly pray to You: grant

a trial...

"A trial to witness... Pe Laya's rebellion at the Tower of Logic during the Civilization Era!"

After finishing, he smiled, nodded at the group, and walked toward Da Yi.

The aning was clear: the two of them had business to discuss, and everyone else was free to talk amongst themselves.

By all appearances, only Long Jing and Mo Li were in slightly awkward positions, since the other four each had a "trustworthy" partner.

But circumstances were ever-changing. No one could predict which players would end up together in the actual trial.

To everyone's surprise, shortly after the Grand Marshal departed, Long Jing sidled up to Cheng Shi with a brazen grin, speaking at a volu clearly ant for all to hear:

"Um... there are so details about the contract I should go over with you, Brother Cheng."

Cheng Shi raised a brow— 'Finally'— and nodded without refusing. He watched Long Jing deploy what looked like a transparent curtain around the two of them.

The mont it settled, all outside sound vanished. Within the curtain, only two con artists remained, staring each other down!

"So how should I address you... my fellow colleague?"

Long Jing's smile held steady, but his tone was pure grinding teeth.

Cheng Shi chuckled internally. But he had to keep the act going— because while the curtain blocked sound, their images and movents were being "broadcast" to everyone outside. So instead of answering imdiately, he first laid out the contract on the ground, pointing at various sections as if discussing terms. Only then did he speak slowly:

"I am Cheng Shi. The genuine, authentic Cheng Shi."

Long Jing's pupils contracted violently. His expression transford.

Not because his Master of Deception tagged the statent as truth. But because — unbeknownst to Long Jing — Cheng Shi had already hidden the Tongue of Eating Lies beneath the contract. And now the Fate Weaver had pointed at himself, then at Long Jing.

The aning was crystal clear: the Tongue of Eating Lies ga had begun. From this mont, neither of them could lie!