"No, Li Chen, you can't leave!"
"That's not the path you should take, Li Chen. Do you want everything to end in disaster?"
"You madman, you bastard..." The Eldritch God roared like thunder, his expression ferocious.
Li Chen looked at him with a slight smile and said softly, "This is not your place to speak. He should choose his own path. I am merely guiding him."
"Now that the Six Great Authority are shattered and you've devoured almost everything, what else does the Eldritch God want?"
"I've given you my body, and I've given you my Authority."
"Do you intend to master the Forbidden?"
"With your newly born wisdom?"
Although he didn't utter a single curse word, it only fueled the wrath of the Eldritch God. He glared at Li Chen, his voice booming like thunder, and said, "Li Chen, believe me... you must believe me. Although I am indeed an evil god, I don't want you to walk that path right now. We are one, and you will die!"
"We can master the Forbidden gradually. I can relinquish this body; once the seal is broken, I will leave on my own."
I will never disturb your world again.
"Whatever you do, don't go down this road." The voice of the Eldritch God grew increasingly deep, pleading with Li Chen in every possible way. This was the first time he had kindly advised Li Chen, and it was also the first time Li Chen had seen him in such an embarrassing state. However, this also made him question the path.
Why did the Eldritch God say he didn't want to embark on this path?
If this path is indeed the Path to Godhood, then the Eldritch God is afraid of becoming God himself. But why is he so afraid? Why would he even lower himself to communicate with him?
This is very abnormal... even more abnormal than what Li Chen said earlier. What exactly are these two gods plotting?
Li Chen wanted to become a god.
The Eldritch God, on the other hand, is urging himself to ascend to godhood.
He was well aware that everyone had their own agenda, but did he have any way out now?
If we don't go in, the Eldritch God will emerge from within us, and any promises he utters will be nothing but a fart.
Do you really think he's without any guile?
Li Chen gazed at the Heavenly Dao, hesitated for a long time, and asked a seemingly nonsensical question.
"Li Chen, the Eldritch God, are there other Gods watching me from the outside world?"
"Or perhaps, the so-called ascension to godhood is merely a means for me to break free from the limitations of this planet, while you are all Gods trapped within it?"
"You can only get out by relying on me?"
Silence... utter silence. Even the Eldritch God fell silent.
Li Chen narrowed his eyes slightly and asked, "Why do you have this idea?"
Li Chen shook his head and closed his eyes. "I can't tell what's true and what's Eldritch God was born, or where you came from."
"I know nothing about the outside world."
"But you, he seems to be expecting me to ascend to godhood. The Eldritch God is afraid I'll find out, because he'll be the first to suffer if I ascend to godhood, but what about you?"
"Li Chen, what about you?"
"As a God, you abandoned everything and laid out a thousand-year-old plan. Now that your ascension to godhood is within reach, you must be getting anxious."
"If I am to ascend to godhood, then the first thing I must do is break free from this damned cage. But my faith has been utterly crushed by you. Why then do you continue to support me, even guiding me toward God, leading me to this gate that no one has ever stepped through?"
"Was the Eldritch God truly born from you?"
"Instead of being one of your pawns?"
"Used to suppress my pieces?"
"A chess piece that I must strive to move forward?"
At that moment, Li Chen's soliloquy echoed in the void, but his words were extremely logical.
Li Chen fell silent. He seemed to have forgotten that Li Chen was now destined for godhood, and his control over him was weakening. But how could he have guessed all this...?
Li Chen took a step back, his figure disappearing into the darkness, his calm eyes meeting Li Chen's.
The Eldritch God suddenly chuckled, his gaze turning mockingly to Li Chen, and said, "Pfft, hahaha."
"Li Chen, you have failed."
"You are still a loser, a complete and utter loser."
Li Chen's expression turned cold, and the aura emanating from his body was terrifying, even swirling with a dark aura. With a flick of his finger, he erased the mocking face of the Eldritch God in the void, but with another grab, he dragged a ball of burning Dark Flame out of the void, accompanied by the Eldritch God's scream.
"Eldritch God, I told you to shut up, so you have to shut up."
"Your body was given to you by me."
"Even though you're going to leave now, I can still bring you back."
In an instant, the screaming Eldritch God fell silent.
Li Chen looked at Li Chen, his tone devoid of the emotion he had shown in his previous words.
"Li Chen... perhaps I did lie to you."
"But this is the path you should take."
"I don't need to lie to you now, and there's no reason for me to. You grew from an ordinary person to who you are today not because of yourself, but because of me. Do you understand what that means?"
Even if the whole world betrays you, I will still make you a god.
"This is not just an obsession, but my wish."
"Didn't you want to see the outside world?"
"The fifth gate has revealed everything to you, the fourth gate revealed Authority, and the third gate made me aware of my existence."
"And now, the sixth gate should be Land of Salvation."
"But because reincarnation has also become the Path to Godhood."
"I wished you to become a god... I wished you could flatten everything, transform into Forbidden to destroy all, but I overlooked your feelings. I understand the game's strengths and weaknesses, I understand everything, but there's no turning back now."
There's no turning back for either of us.
"Turning back..." Li Chen shook his head and said, "Are you going to give me a chance to back down?"
"Wasn't it always just being pushed along by this whirlpool?"
"How many endings have you orchestrated through countless reincarnations? Now that you've finally reached the end, you've forgotten everything that happened before, but I know!"
"You only care about the outcome, just like those Human Race. I accept that you used me as a pawn, and I accept that the Eldritch God used me as a vessel, but how am I supposed to face reality with this shattered belief?"
"Is it to continue fighting those ancient gods after stepping into the outside world?"
Or should I freely step into the universe and enjoy endless solitude?
"Tell me, my whole life has been nothing but enemies, and it won't end even until I die."
What's the point of pursuing freedom?
"I'd rather be dead..."
Li Chen closed his eyes, then suddenly covered his face with his hands, staring into the void and laughing uncontrollably.
"Li Chen, can death truly be an escape?"
Will you really be able to get what you want?
"In this world of truth and falsehood, we are all just pawns."
"Freedom... I too once longed for it."
"But I couldn't leave, so you were born!"
"Li Chen!!"