Foolish Game of the Chapter 964: This Yu Go Is Rather Interesting

How had this escape artist — one even Big Cat couldn't track down — ended up running straight to him?

After the initial shock subsided, Cheng Shi regained his composure. Clearly, this being ant no harm. Otherwise, having approached in total silence, the one to break the awkward standoff wouldn't have been Cheng Shi himself.

But what did He want?

Question marks plastered Cheng Shi's forehead. From his perspective, this [Decay] Envoy was decidedly not an ally.

Yu Go remained within the smoke and showed no sign of retreating, nor any concern about what the smoke might do to Him. He didn't seem as cowardly as Big Cat had described. His beady, rat-like eyes simply swiveled about, sizing up the invisible Cheng Shi sowhere in the mist.

His sowhat rotund fra paired with those shifty little eyes was a far cry from the imperial image Cheng Shi had imagined...

One god and one cloud of smoke silently assessed each other for a long while. The smoke gradually dissipated, and Cheng Shi revealed himself once more. He took a cautious step back and regarded this "ill-intentioned" Vulture King with a low voice:

"What business do you have with ?"

By now, Cheng Shi had already steeled himself for the worst-case scenario: the Envoy was most likely here for the "authority" on his person.

Why else would the timing be so convenient? Lin Xi had just been Faded, and now a [Decay] Envoy showed up right on cue.

Sure enough, the mont Cheng Shi dropped his disguise, Yu Go's first glance went to his left arm — the one harboring the [Decay] authority. Then, with notably polite mannerisms, He retreated two steps, creating so buffer distance, and smiled with narrowed eyes:

"Your reputation precedes you. I've co to pay my respects."

The whole deanor scread small-ti hustler who'd clawed his way up from the streets. It was a far cry from any emperor, let alone an Envoy of divine status.

This only deepened Cheng Shi's confusion. Coming here because of "your reputation"? Was this really the sa Yu Go who'd bolted from Big Cat in three seconds flat?

But since the other party had opened the conversation, whether it was a probe or a trap, Cheng Shi had to respond. His eyes shifted subtly. Sensing Yu Go's gaze repeatedly drifting toward his left arm, he deliberated for a mont, then played dumb:

"I wouldn't call it a great reputation. Compared to your eminence as a Servant God, I'm rely an ordinary player.

Your Majesty Yu Go, you've co a long way. If you have orders... just speak plainly."

Yu Go paused. Not because he was surprised Cheng Shi recognized Him, but because he found Cheng Shi's keep-away attitude rather interesting. So He frowned, retreated two more steps, and fell into thought.

"?"

Watching the other party suddenly grow even more cautious, Cheng Shi was baffled.

'Buddy, you clearly tested my abilities with that silent approach. How are you being more careful than

now?'

'Who are you afraid of? Big Cat? But Big Cat isn't even here. Besides, not every player is Big Cat.'

'Yes, I'll admit I've already marked you, and if push cos to shove, I might have to flash Aph Ros's tiger skin. But you shouldn't be able to sense Go Lis's mark, right? So is this foresight or just natural paranoia?'

Yu Go's contradictory behavior only fed Cheng Shi's puzzlent. But before long, the rat-eyed Rosna Emperor let out a drawn-out "Oh," as if struck by sudden epiphany:

"I understand now. As expected of His kin. Such dedication to the role.

But rest assured on that point. Your fri— your travel companion can't hear what we're saying.

I ca specifically for you, Mister Yu Xi."

'Who!?'

'Yu Xi?'

'How does He know about Yu Xi!?'

Though still bewildered, Cheng Shi's reflexes were razor-sharp. The instant Yu Xi's na was ntioned, he activated Chaos Acting and transford into the true Yu Xi before Yu Go's eyes: that tall, gaunt masked figure who had once graced the stage of the Joy Theater in San Dales.

Simultaneously, his mind raced. Today's events were truly a case of stumbling into luck. Perhaps his slow reaction to Yu Go's approach and his failure to imdiately claim his "identity" had led this [Decay] Envoy to fill in the blanks himself, concluding that Cheng Shi had been staying in character...

But that worked in his favor. At least the earlier blunder was now compensated. Their "identities" were on equal footing now.

Of course, Cheng Shi couldn't rule out the possibility that this was all a performance designed to test whether Yu Xi was genuine. Master of Deception wouldn't help him against Envoys.

But he followed the other party's "script" anyway, because the Yu Xi identity offered enormous room to maneuver.

He raised a finger and tapped the mask on his face, then smiled eerily:

"I'm curious. Very few know of my existence, let alone an Envoy of a dying god.

Yu Go, state your purpose. I don't have much intermission ti left."

Seeing the person before him suddenly shift in tone and address him with a faintly condescending air, Yu Go's smile — far from stiffening — actually grew brighter. He seed thrilled to have found the right person. But Yu Xi's pressure made Him back up several more steps, even placing one foot behind the other, ready to bolt at any mont.

Yu Go's beady eyes darted about, seemingly composing his pitch.

He didn't find anything strange about Cheng Shi's "intermission" comnt or the roleplay elent. He knew that every Servant God who walked the mortal world on behalf of their patron had quirks of one kind or another. He had his own.

So the stranger Cheng Shi acted, the more He believed.

Seeing the other party finally willing to cut to the chase, Yu Go dropped the pretense too.

He stared covetously at Cheng Shi's arm, rubbing his hands together in a politely eager manner:

"I've co to propose a trade with you, Mister Yu Xi."

"Oh?" Cheng Shi tilted his chin up and scoffed. "I don't usually trade with the audience."

'The audience?'

'So He knew all along that I was watching Him?'

Yu Go started, but quickly heard the next line: "But there are exceptions. Tell

about your trade. While I still have ti."

Cheng Shi's words were, of course, designed to patch the roleplay he'd already established. As for what new conclusions they inspired, he didn't know. Yu Go pondered for a mont, confird there were no other observers nearby, nodded, and with a solemn expression, drew from his robes a...

Container!

A [Decay] container!

"???"

The sight of this rotting-wood-and-dead-root container stunned Cheng Shi so completely that for a mont he couldn't even mask his shock. So he resorted to bursting into wild, exaggerated laughter, using the twisted and unsettling sound as his disguise. At the sa ti, he produced his own container.

Not the [Prosperity] one. The [Deceit] one.

As before, he feared this was a performance to verify his identity, so he had to match the bet. And when Yu Go saw the container in his hand, He let out a small breath of relief, just as expected.

Seeing this, Cheng Shi seized the initiative:

"What? You're interested in the Fun God?

Could it be you want an admission ticket to this [Void] banquet as well?"

"..." Yu Go's expression went rigid. He instantly retreated several more steps. Any further and they'd need to shout to hear each other.

The runaway emperor gave an awkward smile, and the flicker of genuine panic in his eyes didn't look faked.

"No, no. I shed the emperor's cloak long ago, so I've no desire to attend any banquets.

I won't pretend otherwise before you, Mister Yu Xi. Yes, I fear [Void]'s curtain call. And I know I hold no favor among the gods.

You're aware of my Benefactor's... situation." He glanced at Cheng Shi's left arm again.

Cheng Shi curled his lips into a grin. "Abandoned you all?"

"..." Yu Go's expression soured, but He had to concede the point.

Reducing the entire universe to nothing but [Decay] was, from another angle, tantamount to abandoning everything except [Decay].

But as a [Decay] Envoy, Yu Go could hardly badmouth his boss. Even if the boss was no longer paying salaries, the "social insurance" was still being deposited. For the sake of survival, Yu Go could only remain "devout."

"Not abandoned. It is we who are too foolish and have delayed our Benefactor's great enterprise..."

Hearing this, Cheng Shi laughed even louder without bothering to hide it.

'Why do I get the feeling this Yu Go is kind of interesting? Not nearly as detestable as Big Cat described.'

...