What Exactly Triggered the "Discrepancy" in Time

The road to the mine warehouse was short, but during these few moments of solitude, Cheng Shi pondered an unusually large amount of things.

With each step he took, he was processing everything he had seen and heard during the entire Trials. Details he had previously overlooked became clear again as he tried to recall them.

When did Li Wufang start to change?

If every minor difference is taken as a signal of "Cencha," then there is no doubt that the Trials should have already shown abnormalities before the first group discussion.

The "anomaly" that he the First "witnessed" was not actually the Investigator Li Wufang, but the Believer of "Truth," the Doctor Assassin. Wang Weijin!

Wang Mou deliberately concealed his identity at the beginning of the game, but carelessly exposed himself when the Ember Annihilator created the Annihilation disaster, and even revealed his name afterward.

Cheng Shi found the change in attitude puzzling, but could explain it as Change in the other party's mindset. However, it now seemed that things were not so simple.

Perhaps, before that Annihilation, Wang Mou had already stepped into the trap of "time" and become another "Wang Mou" who did not belong to this timeline.

The same goes for Li Wufang. At the beginning of the Trials, he was still seeking guidance on "Destiny" from the Blind Man, but during the first group discussion, he said something like "I don't believe in fate." This clearly shows that he is no longer the same person.

Judging solely from their anomalies, the first time-related anomaly seems to have occurred during the First few hours of the Trials.

Not bad, first time!

Because Cheng Shi remembered that Qin Xin's Change only became apparent after exploring the shantytown, the "Cencha" in the timeline likely occurred twice, or even more than twice!

After all, he was not sure which teammates he had met were the result of several "Cencha". The most compelling evidence for this was the Change in Li Wufang's attitude. Cheng Shi confirmed that he had encountered at least three "different" versions of Li Wufang.

This means that once a player falls into the trap of "time", he may be constantly affected by "Cencha" and his identity may change continuously.

So what exactly influenced them, and how did they fall into the trap? These are the most crucial questions. Only by finding the reason can we uncover the whole truth behind this Trials of time.

Also, is Qin Xin... really no longer the Qin Xin used to be?

Then who dares to say that the Blind Man they're looking for hasn't changed at all?

Cheng Shi's brows furrowed more and more. He wasn't simply worried about the safety of the Fire Keeper; he was more concerned about himself.

If the trap of "time" has already been laid, and the "Cencha" of the Trials has already begun to befall the players, then... what about yourself?

Is it possible that I have already been infected?

Even if Cheng Shi knows he is the darling of the "Nothingness", he is not the darling of the "existence". Since "time" is increasing the difficulty, is it possible that this difficulty is increasing on his own head?

Clearly, Li Wufang had become "Cencha," was completely unaware that he or his teammates had encountered a problem. As an Investigator known for his keen observation skills, if even he was unaware of the problem, it meant that the change in [time] would hardly be noticed by the players. All the Cencha appeared silently, so who could guarantee that Cheng Shi hadn't changed?

No one can guarantee it, not even Cheng Shi.

He can only guarantee that his consciousness and Memory are continuous and that there is no gap in his experiences today. However, once "Cencha" occurs, and the spacetime of different timelines is disturbed and confused, as the one affected, he can only guarantee that his perception of the outside world remains unchanged, and he cannot control anything else.

For example, if he really became "Cencha", it means that the original him has been replaced, and the current him is the one who was "abandoned by the original timeline" and appeared in another space-time.

In other words, Cheng Shi doesn't know if he's still in the timeline he should exist in, nor does he know whether his teammates "intruded" into his timeline due to the Cencha in time, or... exist in the current timeline, while he is the outsider!

All of this requires first figuring out where the trap of [time] lies and why the "Cencha" of the Trials occurred before any deductions can be made. This is also what Cheng Shi now.

However, no matter how much fear Growth and spread in his heart, Cheng Shi was able to control himself, at least under the protection of the Door Key.

Now, it remains to be seen whether the Blind Man is the lifeline he's been searching for.

Thinking of this, Cheng Shi's gaze sharpened, his expression instantly changed, and he pushed open the warehouse door, walking in with a smile on his face.

Inside the warehouse where the two [Folly] Believer Experiment, Qin Xin had already sensed Cheng Shi's approach. Why was Cheng Shi slowly walking back when he had only just left?

What did he discover? Or did he discover himself?

The founder of the Fire Keeper smiled faintly, but he remained silent and continued to sit opposite the Blind Man.

An Mingyu's face was tinged with a faint sorrow. Her brows were slightly furrowed, as if she was thinking about something. The reason for this expression was, of course, that just now, after Cheng Shi left, she and Qin Xin had a "Memory exchange" that was unique to the Fire Keeper.

Rewind a bit, and at the moment Cheng Shi and Li Wufang closed the warehouse door, the Blind Man man, "looking" at Wang Mou, who was intently observing the Experiment, slightly turned to Qin Xin beside him.

Her tightly closed eyes could not see anything, yet they seemed to radiate some kind of mysterious glow, making Qin Xin feel uneasy.

However, Qin Xin did not respond; he simply stood with his arms crossed, extremely An Jing.

After a long while, the Blind Man sighed and said softly, "Don't you have anything to say to me?"

Qin Xin smiled and shook her head, "Should I have it?"

"Okay, I understand." The Blind Man laughed. "Xin Xin told me that the best way to break the silence is to force people to comply. I don't know if our teammates can hear what I'm saying now, but I have to remind you that if you don't want to say anything to me, then the next thing I'll say is that I'll reveal our identities."

Qin Xin was taken aback, then smiled in surprise, "Are you serious?"

"Fire Keeper, you and I are both Fire Keeper."

"..."

As the Blind Man finished speaking, she looked down at Qin Xin's hand, and unbeknownst to her, that strong hand had already grasped a smooth, white jawbone.

"You... are more lively than I expected."

"You are more silent than I expected."