Chapter Summaries

Cheng Shi revealed that The Fated intended to seize the sixteen Divine Thrones and resist [Destiny], then explained the Creator’s experiment and the group’s desperate need for leverage. He left the members facing the choice of becoming gods as a way to survive.

• Cheng Shi claimed The Fated planned to break [Destiny]’s bonds and raise its members to godhood, while Hong Lin served as proof that it could be done.
• Big Cat stayed quiet after Cheng Shi warned her not to interrupt, and Li Wufang and Tao Yi struggled to accept his revelation.
• Cheng Shi told An Mingyu that the gods were merely wielders of authority beneath a higher Creator, who observed countless worlds.
• Cheng Shi explained the Creator’s experiment, [Destiny]’s plan to create a Perfect Replica, and his own selfish wish to survive.
• Cheng Shi argued that seizing the Divine Thrones was the most practical way to gain bargaining power, then asked the group if they had more questions.

Cheng Shi privately explained the deaths of other versions of An Mingyu and Zhen Xin, then urged An Mingyu to investigate [Destiny] and help Zhen Xin. Li Wufang accepted that he should use his luck to help others, only to learn Cheng Shi wanted him to claim [Order]'s remaining power and Divine Throne.

• An Mingyu asked Cheng Shi whether her other self had died resisting destiny, and he confirmed that she, Zhen Xin, and many others had died.
• Cheng Shi told An Mingyu that Zhen Xin was working with Li Jingming to find a way out, and advised her to study [Destiny] and help Zhen Xin's History School research.
• An Mingyu accepted Cheng Shi's advice and returned to the Gathering Table with renewed resolve.
• Li Wufang asked why [Destiny] had protected and rescued him, and Cheng Shi explained that [Order] had protected him and Cheng Shi had saved him.
• Li Wufang decided to use his luck to help others, and Cheng Shi proposed that they claim [Order]'s remaining power and Divine Throne.

Hong Lin and Tao Yi reconciled over the dangers of joining The Fated, while Tao Yi gave Cheng Shi a Lucky Tree sprig grown with divinity. Tao Yi’s memory of [Destiny] appearing with warm, humanlike smiles left Cheng Shi questioning what she had encountered.

• Hong Lin apologized for bringing Tao Yi into The Fated, and Tao Yi reassured her that she would stay alive and urged her to follow her own destiny.
• Hong Lin affirmed that she wanted to protect her friends and resolved to gain enough chips to do so.
• Tao Yi approached Cheng Shi and gave him a Lucky Tree sprig as a source of luck independent of [Destiny].
• Cheng Shi learned that Tao Yi had an S-rank Character in the Play talent bestowed during an audience with a god.
• Tao Yi described [Destiny] appearing as Starry Eyes with a warm smile, and Cheng Shi urgently asked her to recount the entire audience.

The Fated discussed Tao Yi’s strange audience with [Destiny], and Cheng Shi suspected that [Deception] might have impersonated the deity. He planned to pursue [War]’s authority in the True Universe, then left Li Wufang behind to question Tao Yi about the owner of his jacket.

• Tao Yi recounted how a smiling figure who looked like [Destiny] drew her into a starry vision before she fused with [Destiny], leaving her unsure whether she had been manipulated.
• Hong Lin, Li Wufang, and Blind Man described [Destiny] as cold and said the smile Tao Yi saw was unusual, while Blind Man suggested Cheng Shi might be the only one who could elicit it.
• Cheng Shi suspected that the God of Merriment might have posed as [Destiny], told the Fated he would investigate, and urged them to prepare for the approaching end.
• Cheng Shi asked Li Wufang to help him settle matters with [Order] and told Hong Lin to prepare to accompany him to the True Universe to reclaim [War]’s authority.
• After Cheng Shi and Blind Man left, Li Wufang stopped Tao Yi and asked whether she had met the owner of his leather jacket; Tao Yi confirmed that she had.

Li Wufang asked Tao Yi about the Leather-Jacketed Uncle, and she recalled how the man had once saved her friend Hong Lin by giving her money. Tao Yi recognized his shadow in a young Priest during an [Annihilation] Trial, leaving her with a possible lead to the man and a chance to repay him.

• Li Wufang excitedly asked Tao Yi whether the Leather-Jacketed Uncle was alive and what his name was.
• Tao Yi remembered how she had struggled to help Hong Lin, whose family could no longer afford her life-support equipment.
• A man in a leather jacket found Tao Yi crying outside a lottery shop and offered to solve her financial troubles.
• The man had A Ying arrange the money as a lottery win, then told Tao Yi to repay his son instead of him.
• Tao Yi recalled hearing the man's words, "Can I trust you?", from a young Priest during an [Annihilation] Trial and seeing the man's shadow in him.

Tao Yi told Hong Lin that the man who had saved her family was Cheng Shi’s father, then admitted she had concealed what she heard him say about his son. Meanwhile, Cheng Shi waited at the [Chaos Divine Steps] to bring Li Wufang to visit the imprisoned [Order], while the God of Merriment remained unreachable.

• Hong Lin revealed that she and her family had discovered Tao Yi’s lottery-ticket secret through surveillance footage and had later erased the evidence and donated the money.
• Tao Yi told Hong Lin that the benefactor was Cheng Shi’s father, leaving Hong Lin stunned and prompting her to ask whether Tao Yi loved Cheng Shi because of him.
• Tao Yi recounted how she connected the benefactor to Cheng Shi and admitted she had concealed part of the conversation she overheard.
• Tao Yi recalled the man explaining that he had invented a son to give her something to hope for and continue forward toward.
• Cheng Shi waited at the [Chaos Divine Steps] for Li Wufang, while Katarro obeyed his instructions to prepare for a visit to the imprisoned [Order].
• Cheng Shi tried and failed to contact the absent God of Merriment through [Truth], [Chaos], and [Time].

Cheng Shi brought Li Wufang before the imprisoned [Order] and tried to persuade the Codex to give him power and inheritance in the name of restoring cosmic order. Li Wufang joined Cheng Shi in asking for the same, leaving the Temple in stunned silence.

• Cheng Shi led Li Wufang into [Chaos]'s Temple to meet the imprisoned [Order].
• Cheng Shi presented Li Wufang as a witness to his supposed work for cosmic order, and Li Wufang pledged that Cheng Shi had told the truth.
• The Codex rejected their claims and accused them of staging a clumsy trick to obtain something from it.
• Cheng Shi openly asked [Order] for authority, vessels, or any other inheritance that could make him stronger.
• Li Wufang, bewildered by Cheng Shi's approach, held out his hand and asked for the same.

Cheng Shi maneuvered the Codex into granting Li Wufang the authority of [Order], though the Codex believed it was thwarting Cheng Shi’s own bid for power. Li Wufang realized Cheng Shi had planned for him to inherit the authority as part of a scheme to challenge the false [Order].

• Cheng Shi persuaded the Codex that the cosmic order needed urgent help, while Li Wufang held out his hand to request a blessing.
• The Codex agreed to grant authority to a member of the Judgment Seat but chose Li Wufang, its devout believer, instead of Cheng Shi.
• Cheng Shi pretended to be shocked, while privately celebrating that the Codex had followed his plan.
• Cheng Shi intended for Li Wufang to wield [Order]’s authority and help unseat the [Iron Rule of Order], shifting its vote away from the Fear Faction.
• Li Wufang doubted he was worthy, but Cheng Shi secretly explained the plan, and Li Wufang realized the authority had been meant for him all along.

Cheng Shi persuaded Li Wufang to tell [Pride (Order)] what was happening in the Cosmos, then learned that the Codex wanted Li Wufang to free it and inherit its Divine Authority. The chapter ended with [Pride (Order)] urging Li Wufang to become its Emissary and restore [Order].

• Cheng Shi angrily rebuked the Codex for considering bestowing its Divine Authority on Li Wufang, then left the Temple with Katarro.
• Cheng Shi told Katarro he had no deeper plan and explained that Li Wufang's testimony could convince [Pride (Order)] that the Cosmos's order was collapsing.
• Li Wufang answered [Pride (Order)]'s questions, and the Codex learned that gods had begun to fall despite the [Covenant].
• [Pride (Order)] told Li Wufang to pull out the Mockery Spike and tear apart the Chaos Chains so it could bestow its Divine Authority on him.
• Li Wufang questioned how a mortal could undo the restraints, and [Pride (Order)] insisted that the spike and chains posed no threat to humans and urged him to become its Emissary.

Cheng Shi realized that [Arrogance (Order)] was not planning to escape, but Li Wufang freed him before Cheng Shi could stop him. [Arrogance (Order)] revealed that he had deceived Li Wufang and then destroyed himself, leaving Cheng Shi, Li Wufang, and Katarro bewildered.

• Cheng Shi reasoned that [Arrogance (Order)] would not flee because it would strengthen the God of Merriment and throw the universe into further chaos.
• The Codex persuaded Li Wufang to approach and release him, claiming Cheng Shi had left and urging Li Wufang to accept the task.
• Cheng Shi shouted for Li Wufang not to touch the spike, but Li Wufang tore it away and freed [Arrogance (Order)].
• [Arrogance (Order)] admitted that he had deceived Li Wufang and lacked his former authority, then declared that the universe needed order.
• [Arrogance (Order)] dissolved in golden light, and Cheng Shi concluded that his death had not been the fate of either him or Li Wufang.

After [Pride (Order)] died, [Fear (Order)] panicked while [Justice (Order)] accepted that the fragments of [Order] were destined to fall. Cheng Shi then reconsidered his failed attempt to obtain [Order]'s authority, while Li Wufang mistakenly concluded that Cheng was a god.

• [Fear (Order)] arrived before [Justice (Order)] and accused [Deception] of killing [Pride (Order)] and plotting to destroy order.
• [Justice (Order)] told [Fear (Order)] that both he and [Deception] were afraid, then said that the fragments of [Order] were tools and had to die for a new order to arise.
• Cheng Shi regretted failing to obtain [Order]'s authority and considered seeking it from the [Iron Rule of Order].
• Li Wufang asked whether Cheng Shi was human or a god, then mistook Katarro's glance toward the temple ceiling as confirmation that Cheng was divine.
• Cheng Shi answered Li Wufang with a remark about their shared fate, and Katarro added a devout declaration that left Li Wufang confused.

After arranging with [Hope's Flame] to seek [War]'s authority in the True Universe, Cheng Shi prayed to [Time] for help finding a route there. Instead, he received an unfamiliar invitation asking him, “What is [Annihilation]?”

• Cheng Shi visited [Hope's Flame] and learned that two Fire Keepers had become possible vessels for [Decay].
• Cheng Shi questioned whether the Fire Keepers could endure Qin Xin's death, and [Hope's Flame] told him the passing of the flame did not depend on Qin Xin alone.
• Cheng Shi and [Hope's Flame] agreed to begin collecting [War]'s authority once Cheng Shi found a route to the True Universe.
• Cheng Shi prayed to [Time] for help, expecting a response from his Lord of Grace.
• Cheng Shi received an unfamiliar invitation that ended by asking, “What is [Annihilation]?”

Cheng Shi sent Shadow Cheng Shi to meet Mo Shu, who wanted to understand [Annihilation] and offered information about Jie Shu in exchange. After learning that Jie Shu had met a Master of Trickery surnamed Su, Cheng Shi questioned Mo Shu about the stranger and heard that Herobas believed Cheng Shi had inspired [Annihilation] to discover its true meaning; Cheng Shi answered Mo Shu's doubts by declaring that nothing had meaning in the age of [Nothingness].

• Cheng Shi ignored Mo Shu's repeated paper-airplane invitations until Mo Shu offered to reveal Jie Shu's plan in exchange for an explanation of [Annihilation].
• Cheng Shi sent Shadow Cheng Shi to meet Mo Shu in the void, where Mo Shu asked what [Annihilation] was.
• Shadow Cheng Shi demanded that Mo Shu share information before expecting an answer, and Mo Shu recounted his meeting with Jie Shu.
• Mo Shu revealed that Jie Shu was accompanied by a Master of Trickery surnamed Su, making Cheng Shi suspect the man might be Su Yida.
• Mo Shu said Herobas had told him that Cheng Shi inspired [Annihilation] to annihilate himself and discover its true meaning.
• Cheng Shi told Mo Shu that nothing had meaning and that having no meaning was the greatest meaning in the age of [Nothingness].

Cheng Shi confronted Mo Shu over his devotion to [Annihilation] and learned that Jie Shu was searching for a world without Cheng Shi as a final home. Mo Shu admitted he had not told Jie Shu that Zhao Xishi was dead, but Cheng Shi left without killing him, leaving him confused.

• Mo Shu broke down over [Annihilation]'s self-annihilation, and Cheng Shi condemned him for becoming the kind of bully he hated.
• Cheng Shi told Mo Shu that [Annihilation] had chosen self-annihilation because he could no longer pursue his will in the Mortal World, not because Cheng Shi had inspired him.
• Mo Shu revealed that Jie Shu was seeking a world without Cheng Shi as a final home and was waiting for Zhao Xishi's reply before advancing the plan.
• Mo Shu said he had not told Jie Shu that Zhao Xishi was dead and thanked Cheng Shi for jolting him awake, but insisted the world had made him evil.
• Mo Shu offered his neck for Cheng Shi to kill him, but Cheng Shi disappeared and left a note reading "SB," leaving Mo Shu bewildered.

Cheng Shi reasoned that the God of Merriment might use Giggle and Mock to bypass [Time] and reach the True Universe. In the River of [Existence], he found a complete Kraun Mask and suspected the Nose of Discernment was hidden there.

• Cheng Shi considered capturing Jie Shu to learn how he could cross the Spacetime Barrier, but abandoned the idea after thinking of Cheng Dashi.
• Cheng Shi concluded that [Deception] might have a way to bypass [Time] and reach the True Universe, and recalled the God of Merriment’s connection to the Time Deduction Method and [Birth].
• Cheng Shi realized that Giggle and Mock, the God of Merriment’s fabricated River of [Existence], could be a means of breaking through spacetime’s constraints.
• Cheng Shi used the Tongue of Lies to enter Giggle and Mock and found that its spiderweb had grown around a complete Mask resembling Kraun’s face.
• Cheng Shi suspected the Nose of Discernment was hidden in the River of [Existence] and resolved to search for it so he could obtain the Mask.

Cheng Shi searched Giggle and Mock for the Nose of Discernment, but accidentally found a passage to the True Universe. After returning to reality, he told Hong Lin he had found the way and planned to gather help to search for the nose before they left.

• Cheng Shi searched Giggle and Mock for the Nose of Discernment, then used his power of [Time] to look for signs of a passage to the True Universe.
• Cheng Shi accidentally shattered a Scrying Mirror that opened a passage to the True Universe and suspected the God of Merriment had guided him there.
• Cheng Shi memorized the mirror's location, broke another Scrying Mirror, and returned to reality in front of an unfamiliar villa.
• Hong Lin fell from the sky as a Giant Bear and asked Cheng Shi how he had arrived there.
• Cheng Shi told Hong Lin he had found the way and needed to contact others to help search Giggle and Mock for his missing clown nose.

Cheng Shi and Hong Lin set out through Giggle and Mock toward the True Universe to search for [War]'s authority, while Qin Xin followed a separate route into the same storm. Their departure drew the attention of two figures in an unknown universe, who prepared to investigate.

• Cheng Shi prepared for the journey, then entered Giggle and Mock with Hong Lin and encountered the Mask's bickering parts.
• Hong Lin became a kitten and insisted on entering the [Time] storm first, leaving a Symbiotic Root behind to warn Cheng Shi if she was in danger.
• Cheng Shi watched the furball for signs of trouble, then jumped into the storm after Hong Lin.
• Qin Xin recalled Hope's Flame's explanation that [War]'s authority might be hidden beyond the world and entered the storm to seek a path to godhood.
• Giggle and Mock's shattered Scrying Mirrors reassembled as Starry Eyes, and the deity wished the travelers good luck.
• Two figures in an unknown universe noticed the disturbance and set out to investigate, hoping to show the newcomers that not everyone was good.

Cheng Shi searched the True Universe for Big Cat, but his signals brought no response, and he became trapped at his starting point with no way home. When a figure appeared and seemed to be Big Cat, Cheng Shi embraced her before realizing she was not Hong Lin and threatening her with a blade.

• Cheng Shi searched the True Universe using the Thorn Weeping Ceremony and Dice to track his range, but he found neither Big Cat nor Qin Xin.
• Cheng Shi detonated a magic bomb and then used his remaining bombs to try to attract Big Cat, but nothing responded.
• After spending several more days searching, Cheng Shi returned to his starting point to replenish supplies, only to find no way back to his original world.
• A figure appeared before Cheng Shi and asked how he had arrived before her, and he recognized her as Big Cat.
• Cheng Shi embraced the figure, then pressed an icy blade to her neck and demanded to know who she was because she was not Hong Lin.

Cheng Shi met a Hong Lin in the True Universe, but her unfamiliarity with it and her prepared food made him suspect she was an impostor. He followed her toward seven o’clock while secretly probing her, as the real Hong Lin found Cheng Shi arriving ten days later and confronted him.

• Cheng Shi and the apparent Hong Lin verified each other with their dice, then compared their conflicting experiences of arriving in the True Universe.
• Cheng Shi noticed the apparent Hong Lin had brought food despite the real Hong Lin’s Divine Authorities making outside sustenance unnecessary, and decided to conceal his suspicions.
• Cheng Shi suggested they explore the barren universe for clues, and the apparent Hong Lin rolled a seven and led him in that direction.
• Cheng Shi asked how to return to his original world, but the apparent Hong Lin did not understand his question.
• After ten days of searching, the real Hong Lin returned to the starting point and found Cheng Shi there, then pinned him down and demanded to know why he had arrived late.
• Cheng Shi, confused, told the real Hong Lin that he had come right behind her.

Hong Lin and Cheng Shi searched the True Universe in separate versions of events, each trying to steer the other away from a direction. Hong Lin began to suspect the Cheng Shi beside her was an impostor, a hallucination, or something tied to the Creator’s “Eyes.”

• Hong Lin used glowing [Prosperity] seeds to mark her route as she searched with Cheng Shi, then suggested changing direction when they found nothing.
• Cheng Shi distrusted Hong Lin’s eagerness to continue and persuaded her to follow a different direction, which she accepted.
• In a parallel search, Cheng Shi rolled the Dice and led Hong Lin one o’clock, where they found nothing and her combat instincts grew uneasy.
• Hong Lin questioned Cheng Shi’s identity, but he responded that they had come to gather [War]’s authority and resist [Destiny].
• Hong Lin pointed them toward a new direction, then concluded that the man with her was not Cheng Shi because he had never suspected her identity.