Observe My Valor?

If the best way to escape from the prison before its collapse was to disguise oneself as Punishment Knight, then the safest way after the explosion was to impersonate a corpse.

So many people died in this disaster, their bodies piled up like mountains. Becoming a corpse and joining them was the most normal and simplest way.

That was exactly what the Master of Trickery was thinking, so he disguised himself as a corpse and fooled the knights who were digging in the dirt.

But his luck seemed to run out. Just when he had barely managed to survive until he was dug out and thrown into a pile of corpses, Cheng Shi arrived.

And it happened at just the right time; I saw him being dragged out of the pit.

Overjoyed, Cheng Shi decided to write a play for this Master of Trickery who once claimed to be a screenwriter—an improvisational performance.

"You absolutely mustn't let me down, Nicholas Zhao Si."

Instead of directly confronting his teammate, he looked around, searching for something, and soon found it... a rat.

Many rats.

There were many rats after the disaster. Even though the collapsed prison killed countless rats, some lucky ones still survived.

As the saying goes, those who survive a great calamity are destined for good fortune, so a few lucky rats ended up in Cheng Shi's hands.

He secretly took out a deck of ordinary Playing Card from his personal space, used glue to secretly stick the cards to the rats' bellies, squeezed some stimulant into the rats' mouths and noses to make them frantic, and then threw these "modified" rats all at once towards the pile of corpses.

The rats in the prison were extremely omnivorous. They liked to eat meat, and they also liked to eat human flesh. After suffering inhuman torture, they desperately needed a hearty meal to relieve their discomfort. So a group of rats with red eyes scattered in all directions at the smell.

This scene might not have seemed unusual to the nearby city guards, but to Zhao Si...

That could be fatal.

Like Cheng Shi, he had long seen through this as a Deception civil war, so when he saw a group of red-eyed rats approaching, his first thought was of the missing Hunter, Su Wu!

He must be a Beast Tamer, and he's not dead yet!

Are these rats his doing? What is he trying to do?

Wait a minute... why is there a playing card stuck to the mouse's belly?

Magician? The Magician is still alive? And he's teamed up with the Beast Tamer?

Did they find out they were the ones who detonated the Explosives, and thus join forces to retaliate?

Oh no, this is bad!

Zhao Si couldn't lie there any longer. Danger was approaching, and he felt he could no longer sit idly by pretending to be a corpse, because no one knew what unbelievable things these deceitful teammates would do!

So he made his move. There were too many knights around for him to risk it, so to be safe, he quietly changed his posture, using Abstract Imitation to disguise himself as...

A mouse.

A giant rat.

This trick was useless against the city guards, because Zhao Si's target was these rats; it was a trick he used to confuse them!

He chose the simplest method: to trick the mice into thinking he was part of the feeding swarm, thus avoiding them from biting him.

It must be said that this is the least risky and most ingenious method. This Master of Trickery has an excellent idea, and his reaction speed and performance are also perfect. He has brought this impromptu performance to life!

Anyone who sees it has to exclaim, "Wow!"

Even screenwriters couldn't write such a perfect script!

The only pity was that there was a nitpicking audience member who happened to be the "screenwriter".

After witnessing all of this, Cheng Shi suppressed a laugh and made a suggestion to his fellow knights around him.

"Too many rats can cause disasters. I think we can't just keep digging up ruins. These rats that roam around also need to be dealt with properly, otherwise they will bring diseases to the city."

Look at those rats on that pile of corpses, they're already starving. If this continues, I'm afraid they'll endanger the residents living nearby.

How about... we burn some of it first?

"Everyone, please step back a little, I'll set the fire!"

To be fair, Cheng Shi wasn't lying; he didn't even touch his nose.

He simply concealed his true intentions within this sincere suggestion, resolving Montrani's troubles while simultaneously addressing his own needs.

The knights agreed with him, so they all stepped back a few paces, clearing a space around the pile of corpses.

However, these few steps completely deprived Zhao Si of any buffer space with the city guards. It should be noted that no matter what kind of [Deception] talent it is, there must always be a rationale when activating it.

You can alter details that others haven't seen clearly, conceal truths that people can't remember, or even Muddling Through by pretending to be someone else, but the premise is that you don't create too outrageous cognitive contradictions.

Deception, even if it involves stolen or chaotic means, is still essentially about deception and trickery, not confusion.

At this moment, all the knights see only rats and dead prisoners on the pile of corpses. If you were to conjure up another knight now, it wouldn't be Deception performance, but rather an attempt to become Clown.

Therefore, Zhao Si's face turned extremely ugly after hearing Cheng Shi's words!

What a coincidence!

Who exactly is behind all of this?!

Is this knight Magician?

Or are the Magician and Beast Tamer mixed among these knights, secretly watching this place?

The rats roamed freely all day without anyone interfering, so why did they suddenly become an eyesore when they were thrown into the pile of corpses?

There can't be so many coincidences in this world; there must be a mastermind behind it all!

Good, very good, your methods are truly brilliant!

Zhao Si gritted his teeth but was helpless. Cheng Shi naturally wouldn't give Zhao Si any more time to think of a solution. He slightly curled his lips and casually threw a torch stuck in the ground over to him.

The torch landed right at Zhao Si's feet, and the flames ignited the prison uniform of the corpse beneath him. The flames slowly spread along the fabric toward his body.

When Zhao Si saw where the torch landed, he was certain that the dog knight was his teammate, but who it was was still uncertain!

"Damn it, I'll risk it."

The Master of Trickery was in a hurry. He could no longer calmly use his tricks, so he had no choice but to angrily rush towards the side with the fewest knights and try to break through.

While charging, he tried to blend into the crowd to deceive the knights. However, the scene was too bizarre, so bizarre that it was hard for anyone to believe that the fleeing figure was a knight's companion. So, without Cheng Shi even having to lift a finger, the surrounding city guard knights surrounded him with serious expressions.

Of course, Cheng Shi wouldn't miss this opportunity.

He mingled among the knights, wielding his lance and stabbing randomly. Although his attacks were seemingly casual, they always managed to hit Zhao Si's escape route, constantly extinguishing the hope that flashed in Zhao Si's eyes and turning him back into despair.

After this happened three or four times, Zhao Si finally noticed the city guard knight behind him.

It's him!

He's a fraudulent teammate!

Who is he!?

It was a somewhat unfamiliar face, good-looking but very annoying. Zhao Si didn't remember ever seeing this face before, but he always had a feeling of familiarity about it.

That Magician Li Yi?

Is it still that Beast Tamer Su Wu?

Whoever it is, it's best to kill him in the chaos, otherwise you won't be able to escape at all.

So Zhao Si, who was squeezed and had almost no room to move, suddenly turned around and appeared in front of Cheng Shi in an unbelievable way. He threw a thunder spell at Cheng Shi with a sinister expression, but he didn't expect that the other party would be even more excited after seeing him turn around.

?

It wasn't Cheng Shi who typed the question mark, but Zhao Si.

He was stunned for a moment, but in that instant he felt his vision suddenly blur.

With a reaction speed and agility beyond human comprehension, Cheng Shi dodged the lightning elemental attack, lunged into Zhao Si's arms, and then, with unstoppable force, grabbed Zhao Si's neck with his left hand while raising his gun high in his right, asking with a somewhat mocking look:

"Will you see my courage?"

Before Zhao Si could respond, he thrust his spear down, the sharp lance piercing Zhao Si's chest. The immense force dragged the terrified Master of Trickery downwards, pinning him to the ground in the blink of an eye.

"Bang—"

Dust rose and screams filled the room.

Today's Warrior landed with a swift movement, turned around, and clapped—all in one smooth motion.

Although the surrounding knights were surprised by Cheng Shi's fighting prowess, they didn't pay much attention to the outcome of the battle. Only when everything had settled did they suddenly shout to their surroundings:

"Attention, city guards! There may still be people feigning death and trying to escape among the pile of corpses. Form ranks, surround, count, and burn them at the stake!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a dozen or so prisoners of various kinds, wearing Prison Helmet, broke through the pile of corpses, howling in pain, and fled in different directions.

Cheng Shi watched them, looking like Zhao Si, at a loss for what to do, and smiled wryly.

"As expected, the players aren't the only protagonists in this chaos..."

After saying that, he dragged Zhao Si's body toward a deserted corner.

It's time to confirm the result of my suspicion.