Nothingness: A Thing or Two (Part One)

In the Void outside the [Chaos] Temple, amidst the endless churning of Chaos, a pair of eyes filled with the will of [Chaos] looked toward the place where Cheng Shi had left.

Those eyes first revealed a hint of divine praise for his kin, but then flashed with the strategist's disappointment in the steadfast.

He was so complex that the atmosphere around him became even more chaotic under the sweep of His will.

Just then, a violent fluctuation suddenly came from the Void. The eyes narrowed slightly and disappeared instantly. In their place appeared a giant hand formed from Chaos Yellow Mist, which pierced through the surging Chaos torrent and reappeared in the same spot.

Before long, a pair of eyes painted with stars and spirals opened in the Void. It coldly looked down at the Chaos Giant Hand in front of it, and its voice was like the howling Bitter Wind in the cold abyss.

"[Confusion]!"

The giant hand remained motionless, emitting a chaotic sound.

"[Destiny]...

Why have you come?

"You should know why I have come." Those all-seeing eyes pierced through the endless Chaos, as if they had already seen through all the Change in Destiny. "Whatever agreement you have reached with Him, the agreement should not include the Believer I protect."

Destiny Scripture Fold turn; I'm here to remind you that it's time to draft a new agreement with Him.

The giant hand remained noncommittal, clearing away the Chaos Yellow Mist between its eyes, and then hummed:

Who is He?

His gaze grew increasingly cold. "Chaos is not Nothingness. There's no need to dissolve its own meaning. You know who I'm talking about!"

"I don't know."

"..." Her gaze swept coldly over the giant hand without any emotion, and she snorted, "That's all I have to say. There will be no next time."

Having said that, He prepared to dissipate, but at that moment the giant hand asked again:

"Are you a Deception?"

His eyes widened in surprise, then turned icy cold. "You want to fight?"

"Oh, so you're not [Deception] after all. Since you're not Him, why are you meddling in my affairs with Him?"

"I see, so you really do want to fight."

Come, let me show you why my Believer are unwilling to join this boring "Chaos."

A great battle erupted in the Void.

The battle came suddenly and without warning, and its intensity caused the entire Void to tremble and vibrate.

"You have been constantly altering the Destiny of my Emissary, causing the Divinity that should have arisen within Him to vanish, therefore..."

Is it that he's unwilling, or that you're unwilling?

"How laughable! Lacking any Divinity, how Emissary?"

He is a practitioner of "Nothingness," so when did he come to follow "Chaos"?

Such talk of "confusion" is utterly meaningless.

"Ha, [Destiny] is nothing but a bunch of talkers."

"..."

"Boom--"

The tremors in the Void intensified.

Cheng Shi woke up and returned to his rooftop.

But he didn't open his eyes, lying face down on the ground, his mind replaying the words of [Chaos]:

This honor does not yet belong to you.

He keenly noticed the key words in the sentence: "Temporarily" and "still"!

Wait a minute, what does this mean?

Does that mean if I change my mind later, I'll have another chance?

"?"

Cheng Shi touched his head in disbelief, fearing that the audience he had just witnessed was another of his own deductions and fantasies, since he knew that [Chaos] had stolen the Divine Authority of [Time] to deduce things.

But if it's not a fantasy, then why does this Cosmos -proclaimed most insane "He" look at me with such special regard?

On what grounds?

Just because I have a bad reputation among the gods?

Just because some god says I'm greedy every day?

Huh? You can get benefits from being greedy?

There are plenty of greedy people in the world, but I've never heard of another Ultraman...

This Cheng Shi at a loss.

He pondered for a long time without finding anything, so he decided to "ask the question" to the "gods".

Logically, it was [Deception] that transformed his identity into the [Chaos] Emissary, so the question he should be asking now should be about [Deception].

But Cheng Shi now become Believer in "Destiny," so he doesn't know if reciting his former Lord of Grace's name while looking at the Dice will allow his current Lord of Grace to transfer the "call" to him...

Probably not?

After all, what human... what god could endure this?

Even if [Destiny] knows a lot, asking Him about [Chaos] is a bit too absurd, especially since He is also hoping that I will break my vow.

I'm numb.

Cheng Shi was suddenly caught in a dilemma. He thought about it for a long time, and his hair was almost bald from scratching, before he finally came up with a clever trick to exploit the loophole.

He planned to recite the prayer of "Destiny" to a certain Mask, because in this way, if "Deception" summoned him, he would have achieved his goal, and if "Destiny" intercepted him, he could still argue that he had taken the wrong thing.

I'm such a clever little devil!

Let's do it!

So Cheng Shi took out a golden Mask and nervously whispered something to Mask:

"Life is as numerous as the stars, beyond our reach..."

Before he could finish speaking, everything went black and he fainted.

When he opened his eyes again, a pair of eyes drawn from stars opened before him once more!

[Deception]!

This whirling spiral and the shimmering, joyful stars are clearly those of my former Lord of Grace— [Deception]!

The moment He opened His eyes, the entire Void began to become Yin-Yang.

"As expected of someone else's darling, under the protection of [Destiny], she even dares to use other people's prayers to blaspheme me."

Just from those one sentence, Cheng Shi instantly broke out in a cold sweat.

I'm sweating a lot today; I'm going to get dehydrated if this keeps up.

But this can't be blamed solely on me, my Lord of Grace. There wasn't a single Mask at the Path of Fate's Beginning!

What were you doing at that time?

If you were to use all the energy you've spent trying to manipulate me here on that Yin-Yang, would I be able to break my oath?

Thinking of this, Cheng Shi's eyes suddenly lit up.

Yes, how could it be my fault for breaking my vow?

I couldn't resist, it's obvious you sold me out, and I haven't even asked you for an explanation yet!

So Cheng Shi confidently raised his head, ready to have a good debate with his former Lord of Grace. But unexpectedly, those eyes seemed to see through Cheng Shi's thoughts, and the moment he raised his head, they subtly changed the subject:

"Ask whatever you want, I'm just passing by and can't stay any longer."

"..."

"Um... why do you want me to renounce my oath?" Cheng Shi abandoned his original question and blurted out the question.

His eyes flickered twice, and he sneered:

"You picked up His Dice yourself, yet you dare to talk about it in front of me?"

Who gave you the audacity to blaspheme me?

Is this your new Lord of Grace who used to call a 'bitch' all the time?

"..."

What a satisfying and cathartic experience to be scolded!

No, let's get down to business. Can you please stop with all this blasphemy?

Whom did I offend?

I don't even respect myself anymore.

Cheng Shi shrugged, unconvinced:

"Lord of Grace lord, let's stick to the facts. When I returned to the starting point of my Destiny, was there only Dice inside, and no Mask?!"

What did you call me?

"..." Oh no, I've gotten used to calling him that, and I just don't remember to correct myself every time.

However, the eyes in the Void paid no attention. Not only that, the entire Void even began to come alive, with psychedelic colors quietly rising.

But Cheng Shi Cheng Shi was extremely nervous, didn't notice this at all. He hesitated for a moment and changed his words in a low voice.

"Former... former Lord of Grace."

The boiling Void instantly froze!

An indescribable pressure rose from all directions. If Cheng Shi hadn't been Cheng Shi to see that what was in front of him was [Deception], he would have felt as if he had returned to the Path of Fate's Beginning, the moment he reached out to touch the Mask!

This terrifying pressure is far stronger than it was back then!

His eyes glanced at Cheng Shi without any joy or sorrow, and his voice was as cold as the icy wind sweeping through an abyss.

How do you know there aren't any Mask inside?

Cheng Shi, with his neck stiff, said, "I reached out three times, and [Destiny] almost killed me, but I still couldn't touch a single Mask!"

His eyes flickered, turning playful. "Why does the Mask have to stay in its original place?"

Huh?

Ah?

Ah?

Ah?

(The emoji is missing, please help me by putting a picture of a kitten spinning around here!)

So, Mask can be found in other places too?

Cheng Shi was stunned.

No, at that point, you wouldn't have put the Mask somewhere else!?

My Lord of Grace, please be more careful! What's the difference between this and not wearing Mask at all?

No, there is a difference!

The difference is that it made me realize that I am a Clown, and a Clown has lost his Mask!

"So... you still placed the Mask at the Starting Point of Life Path, but I just couldn't find it, is that right?"

At this point, Cheng Shi was utterly despondent, and he even began to question himself:

Why not spend a little more time looking at the Starting Point of Life Path?

Why repeatedly desecrate Destiny and suppress your own choices?

Am I truly not a victim of Deception, but rather a victim of Destiny?

Could it be that I'm not a born liar? Otherwise, why didn't I find, or even sense, the Mask that should have belonged to me?

He was stunned, feeling like a Clown was neither in the right nor in the right, ridiculously questioning a high and mighty being!

If this isn't blasphemy, then what is?

He tried several times to open his mouth to ask where the Mask was, but he was too ashamed to speak and kept his mouth shut.

But at that moment, the spiral in his eyes suddenly started spinning rapidly again, and he laughed, laughed happily.

Hehe~

I definitely didn't put it in.

"..."

Cheng Shi felt as if struck by lightning, his mind going blank for a moment. He stared in disbelief at the rapidly blinking eyes before him, finally realizing one thing once again:

Cheng Shi Clown!

He was right, Cheng Shi really is Clown!

But...

What a coincidence! My name is Cheng Shi!