Hu Wei ascended.
He was ejected from Mockery and Jeering, reverting to his original form as he stepped onto the platform. Coming with him was Da Yi.
Honestly, before Da Yi set foot on the platform, Cheng Shi never could have guessed that the foul mouth trailing behind the big round face was actually Da Yi...
'Hilarious — even the Fun God thinks his mouth stinks?'
That tracked. He could even picture Da Yi's face when he first learned he was a "foul mouth." That hot-tempered man would definitely curse:
"Damn — why am I a foul mouth?!"
'Nailed it. With that grandma catchphrase you plaster everywhere, you've earned the Fun God's Best Foul Mouth Award.'
Then again, foul as Da Yi's speech was, it couldn't possibly be worse than Chen Shu's. 'What does Chen Shu look like in the Fun God's eyes?'
At this thought, Cheng Shi suddenly found himself looking forward to seeing Chen Shu's form in Mockery and Jeering.
His state grew ever more relaxed, but the two arrivals were the very picture of solemn gravity.
Hu Wei wasn't bad — he looked relatively composed. Even if nerves gnawed at him inside, this deeply calculating "big brother" would never let it show on his face.
Da Yi was different. His temperant was more straightforward. Especially since he'd already partnered with Lord Ultraman on a mission — seeing the Lord summon him here yet again, he first put on a wide grin as a greeting, then obediently fell in behind Hu Wei.
Both n's peripheral vision, however, ceaselessly scanned their surroundings. They were clearly unfamiliar with this place.
Cheng Shi observed everything, understanding completely. Da Yi had ntioned they'd never walked the Chaos Steps, which naturally ant they'd never been here before.
But the timing of their arrival...
Cheng Shi's mind turned, and the pieces fell into place. This suspicious big brother of his had likely developed doubts about Cheng Shi's identity. So he'd used the pretext of ascending the Steps to seek an audience with Chaos.
And Chaos... had perhaps observed Cheng Shi's Ultraman impersonation during the trial, so the mont the trial ended, He'd summoned Cheng Shi here!
He was helping cover the gaps!
'He's that considerate?!'
'No — no, no, no. Cheng Shi, stay sharp. This could just as easily be a test. It might very well be a lure. He's tempting you to draw closer to Him. Once you taste the sweetness of power, letting go becos nearly impossible!'
'You are a wanderer of Void — not a subordinate of Chaos. Don't lose yourself!'
Just as Cheng Shi was repeatedly reminding himself, mory's words flashed through his mind again...
'There is no kindness without reason in this world...'
'Oh, screw that!!!'
Cheng Shi gritted his teeth and shoved the mountain of doubt down deep.
'Even if there is no kindness without reason in this world — when I'm dirt-poor and powerless to refuse, all I can do is accept this reasonless kindness!'
'I've never feared the world presenting
with illusions, because Old Jia told : even illusions can hold tenderness.'
'And besides, my attitude toward this world is itself an illusion — because the one person I could ever be truly sincere with... is already gone.'
'Since it's all a mirage, since it's all a void dream — then why not embrace Void!'
'Cheng Shi — you can't let mory's words beco your inner demon!'
'Take it as it cos, deceive as you go. No one in this world is immune to deception. Don't aspire to be a liar who's never been fooled — just be the one who gets fooled the least, and that's enough!'
'You have only one goal: win that top scholar title for Old Jia!'
'If Deceit's promise is real — if He truly will grant you the ability to deceive all gods once you beco the Chosen One — then at that point, you'll swindle back everything that was swindled from you!'
'Scheming and counter-scheming — it's nothing more than that.'
'Don't let these seeds of suspicion beco stumbling blocks on your path!'
Cheng Shi had an epiphany. In that instant, it was as though so thin mbrane of shackles burst, and he inhaled a fresh lungful of air from beyond the cage. His entire being beca invigorated — eyes brilliant, spirit soaring.
This kind of radiant confidence blooming from the inside out was sothing he himself might not notice, but in the eyes of the other two, it was as though a halo of divine light had unfurled behind the Herald — a glow that made them feel small by comparison.
Hu Wei's eyes flickered with surprise. He lowered his head in a show of respect. Da Yi was inwardly shaken, his reverence deepening.
Cheng Shi erged from his self-correction and looked at Hu Wei at the front. He chuckled softly and, without giving the man any chance to speak first, challenged:
"I've sensed your doubts. But pointless suspicion will only slow your progress."
"!!!"
Upon hearing this, Hu Wei instantly understood — his probe had ended before it even began. The person who'd been with Da Yi could only have been Lord Ultraman. Absolutely Lord Ultraman. There was no other possibility.
His body stiffened sharply. He bowed his head with devotion: "I overstepped, my lord."
Da Yi also bent into a deep bow, though his expression wasn't quite as reverent. Instead, it carried a trace of amused smugness — after all, the doubter was Lao Hu, not him. The one getting scolded was Lao Hu, not him. So he didn't really care.
His ultimate goal had simply been to walk the Chaos Steps.
Da Yi wanted an audience with a god. Even though Lord Ultraman was a Herald who served before the divine throne and essentially relayed His will — he still wanted to see his Benefactor with his own eyes. To see one of the sixteen most exalted beings in the entire ga.
Seeing both n standing like chastened schoolboys, Cheng Shi smiled again.
"Caution is a good thing. It isn't wrong.
I am indeed trying sothing new — sothing related to Void, and to this era..."
With that, Cheng Shi recycled the speech he'd given Da Yi during the previous trial. Once the two understood the lord's plans, realization dawned on them both.
So the Herald had far deeper sches in play. They were the ones being shallow.
However...
Hu Wei's expression grew complicated. He raised his head and looked at the lord, probing cautiously:
"Then... my lord, the player nad Cheng Shi..."
'Look at that — my big brother still rembers . Even while being dressed down by a Herald, he doesn't forget to ask about !'
'What a great big brother. Aside from never saving , he's perfect in every way.'
"..."
Cheng Shi suppressed the urge to quip and replied casually:
"He's fine.
I rely borrowed his identity. Of course, I'm not the only one trying to use it — others are itching to do the sa."
"Others have stolen his identity too?" Both Hu Wei and Da Yi were dumbfounded.
Cheng Shi nodded:
"Indeed. Everything I said in the diocre Person Society was true — I was impersonating him. And the reason I chose him is because Fate truly did summon him for an audience.
No one can see through Fate, just as no one can comprehend Void.
So I share your curiosity, and this is what drove my decision — to test the waters on behalf of my Lord in Void's era.
But enough. You needn't know too much about these matters. It's too early for you. Today, there's only one thing — to fulfill your wish of an audience with Him.
See that gate? Go. The long stairway to the temple is right there. How many steps you manage to climb depends entirely on your talent."
Cheng Shi pointed toward the gate and smiled aningfully.
Hu Wei and Da Yi both turned to look. When they saw the torn-open Gate of the Order Codex with its boundless surging waves of Chaos, their eyes blazed with fervent longing.
This ti, even the most composed Grand Marshal couldn't control his expression. Though he couldn't see the total number of steps, he took a deep breath to contain his extre excitent before departing, and asked one final question:
"My lord, how many steps must one climb to earn the honor of an audience with our Lord?"
'How many steps?'
'Heh — how would I know? I never even finished it myself.'
Cheng Shi's heart convulsed, but his expression remained mysterious:
"Walk and you'll find out."
...
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