"Then please forgive my bluntness, great God of Birth. I wish to inquire about a certain existence."
"Who —"
"Origin!"
The instant the word left his mouth, a foul wind erupted through the Void. That terrifying Divine Pillar lashed directly toward him, coiling around the cold-sweat-soaked Cheng Shi in spiraling loops, erecting a wall of Birth too blinding to look at.
Gazing at the countless life templates stitched together before him, Cheng Shi couldn't help thinking that this was what 0221 and Zangier had been trying to create with their "Aberrant Mother Tree."
It seed Zangier truly had studied Birth extensively.
But there was no ti to think about Zangier now. Cheng Shi had paid a price for his probing — though it was only weak knees. She didn't seem intent on attacking directly, and She hadn't even shown surprise that he knew Origin's na.
"Rea — son —"
'A reason?'
'She isn't refusing !'
Cheng Shi's eyes blazed with excitent. He'd gambled correctly after all.
Birth truly was laissez-faire about Origin. She could even tolerate a mortal discussing the "Creator" in Her presence!
This was good. It ant today might actually yield sothing!
His heart surged with heat.
Of course, his real reason for coming couldn't be spoken aloud. Having the nerve to gamble with his life didn't an he actually wanted to die. Thankfully, Cheng Shi had rehearsed this. He raised his head with an air of even greater "reverence."
"Great God of Birth, I have learned terrifying things from other sources. I not only know His divine na, but I've also discovered that one of my Benefactors..."
He paused.
He'd been about to say it was Chaos who was distancing Himself from Origin, and that he'd co to ask what kind of existence Origin truly was. After all, Chaos had abandoned chaos to play the part of Order — which, in a sense, wasn't even a lie.
He'd chosen to ask Birth because both Aph Ros and Hu Xuan had repeatedly described their Benefactor's rcy and tolerance, making him believe this compassionate God of Birth might be willing to grant him an answer.
This way, Cheng Shi could offer a plausible excuse while simultaneously flattering his two allies — killing two birds with one stone.
What he hadn't expected was that, at the very mont he was about to say "Chaos," he was forcibly interrupted. Then another divine na escaped his lips entirely beyond his control:
"Deceit!
One of my Benefactors — Deceit — is distancing Himself from Him!
This fills
with deep unease. I've co specifically to seek answers, hoping that You — rciful and compassionate toward all living beings — might grant
clarity, so that I may counsel my Benefactor and guide Him back to the right path."
The mont he finished, the Divine Pillar went still. So did Cheng Shi.
A single bead of cold sweat rolled from his forehead, traced down the ridge of his nose, grazed the corner of his mouth, then dripped from his chin into his palm. The icy sensation jolted Cheng Shi awake. He imdiately lowered his head, eyes wide with horror, and began ntally screaming at Brother Mouth:
'Fool's Lips! Whose damn side are you on?!'
'You think this is the ti for jokes?!'
'If you want to play traitor, don't drag
into it! You just outed the Fun God — what am I supposed to do now? I'm his—'
Wait. Wait.
Why had Brother Mouth blurted out the Fun God's na without any warning?
It was, ultimately, the Fun God's creation. It couldn't possibly be openly sabotaging its own master.
But if it wasn't sabotage, then why...
Hmm?
The Fun God was here?!
!!!
Cheng Shi's brow furrowed sharply. He suddenly recalled how Brother Mouth had previously collaborated with the Fun God to accept Fate's fusion with Ti on his behalf. The sensation was so eerily similar that a hypothesis ford instantly:
Had the Fun God already arrived?!
Had He co to protect him, or — like Cheng Shi himself — had He identified Birth as the sa breakthrough point?
The thought had barely ford when the limb-entwined Divine Pillar snapped back and cracked like a whip against the Void above Cheng Shi's head.
Crack —
The Void shattered. Above Cheng Shi, the underlying canvas of nothingness began to show through, and there, within that boundless nothingness — within the kaleidoscopic, phantasmagoric flow of Mockery and Jeering — a pair of star-bright eyes with dramatically upturned corners gazed down with keen interest, drinking in the scene below. Peals of side-splitting laughter echoed through the emptiness.
Deceit!
He had been here all along.
Seeing his Benefactor reveal Himself, Cheng Shi felt no delight — only alarm. He ducked his head, playing ostrich.
He hadn't forgotten that his self-initiated audience with Birth was partly a test of the Fun God. Now, being caught red-handed by his own Benefactor, his mind was already in full crisis-mode, furiously brainstorming excuses.
But Deceit's sarcasm was far faster than the Clown's cogitation.
"Well, well, well — let
see which little backstabber is paying court to soone else's Benefactor?
Oh? It's the Clown.
What's this — surely the Clown hasn't co to Birth hoping to steal Her authority, carry it back as an offering to his own Benefactor, and then indulge in a universe-defying 'blasphemous' romp?"
"..."
Cheng Shi's eyelid hamred. Cold sweat drenched his back.
"Silence ans consent." Those eyes pressed relentlessly.
Having no choice, Cheng Shi tried to weasel his way out:
"Yes!"
!!??
"Heh, Cheng Shi, Cheng Shi — honest as always.
But I must remind you: humans and gods cannot share Birth's authority.
So stop dreaming, Clown.
Though I will pass your little notion along to your Benefactor Fate.
Heeheehee~
No wonder you blasphe Her at every turn — it was all to push Her tolerance, to test Her boundaries, so that by the ti She has nowhere left to retreat, you can finally bare your wolfish ambitions.
Who'd have guessed — your 'desires' are quite sothing!"
"..."
'Excuse ???'
'May I please ask a question?!'
'Benefactor, are You and Brother Mouth running a honey trap on
right now?!'
'How did Fate even get dragged into this?'
'When did I ever want to blasphe Fate?!'
"..."
'Fine, I admit that I have, on occasion — rarely — accidentally — unintentionally — blasphed Her. A few tis... But how does that beco "testing" Her? I—'
'Forget it. What's the point of arguing with the Fun God? Does it work?'
'No.'
So Cheng Shi fell silent and resigned himself to lying there, accepting the mockery.
But in the lull between human and god's wordless stare, the "mistress of this domain" — Birth — suddenly spoke. And the mont Her voice rang out, the entire expanse of nothingness fell into absolute silence.
"Hu — mans — and — gods —
may — share — My — au — tho — ri — ty —"
"..."
"..."
Even the Fun God froze at that. He blinked, cast a glance at the abstract Divine Pillar, and then burst into laughter so brilliant the stars flashed and the Void overflowed with color.
"Ha ha ha ha! Now that's interesting — truly fascinating.
Say, Big Sis, You're so adorable — are You trying to make
die laughing so You can inherit my authority?"
The instant the words landed, Birth's Divine Pillar snapped out like a whip again, swatting those convulsing eyes clean across the Void.
"..."
Watching this scene, Cheng Shi decided he wasn't witnessing an audience with a god. He was watching a divine circus.
And naturally, he had a cao role in that circus — the funniest clown in the whole troupe.
I, Cheng Shi. The Clown.
Renowned across the universe.
...
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