Chapter Summaries

Cheng Shi pieced together that Maxford had likely died and that Flord had hidden his death to manipulate the Circus showdown, leading him to suspect the Fear Faction was a deception orchestrated by [Deception]. Believing both [Deception] and [Destiny] might claim him as a sacrifice, he revealed that he was Fool's Game and asked whether Long Jing and Zhang Jizu could be trusted, but Zhang confessed that the Bone Clock had come from [Deception], not The Great One.

• Cheng Shi concluded that Maxford had died before the final showdown and Flord had concealed his death to protect Morning Cheer from blame.
• Cheng Shi connected the Circus rivalry to the conflict between the Fear Faction and [Destiny], and suspected [Deception] was an outsider manipulating him.
• Cheng Shi realized he might become either [Deception]'s sacrifice in another world or [Destiny]'s sacrifice in his own, leaving him no apparent escape.
• Cheng Shi told Long Jing and Zhang Jizu that he was Fool's Game and asked whether he could trust them.
• Zhang Jizu admitted that the Bone Clock was a lie from [Deception], who had promised to save the world, and Cheng Shi recognized that he too had trusted her.

Cheng Shi explained that [Destiny] had chosen him, while he and Long Jing confronted the possibility of opposing every god. The Lips of Foolish Play questioned whether the Trial’s revelations were an illusion and feared that the original [Deception] had fallen, leaving the Outer God in control of its authority.

• Long Jing asked why [Nothingness] had taken an interest in Cheng Shi, and Cheng Shi blamed [Destiny] for choosing him.
• Cheng Shi warned Long Jing that staying could mean standing against [Nothingness] and possibly all the gods, and Long Jing chose to stay.
• Long Jing declared that he would make his role as a supporting character spectacular, while Zhang Jizu urged them to avoid speaking where the gods could hear.
• Cheng Shi asked the Lips of Foolish Play whether it knew about [Deception], and it said the Outer God might have deceived them all with an illusion.
• The Lips of Foolish Play reasoned that the original [Deception] had likely fallen and that the Outer God might have taken its divine authority, leaving the Clown little chance to resist.

Cheng Shi told Zhang Jizu and Long Jing how [Deception] had manipulated him and considered seeking help from [Time] after [Destiny] failed to answer. He used the Time Deduction Method to meet Zhang Jizu from Another World, who believed his chance to atone had arrived.

• Cheng Shi explained how [Deception] had guided him into becoming Fool's Game and admitted he had trusted the god too much.
• Long Jing and Zhang Jizu suggested asking [Destiny] for help, but Cheng Shi said the god had not answered his calls through the Dice.
• Cheng Shi realized [Time] might still protect the world and proposed seeking an audience with the god.
• Long Jing mistook the Hour Hand's disappearance for evidence that [Deception] had deceived him, and Cheng Shi avoided correcting him.
• Cheng Shi used the Time Deduction Method to meet Zhang Jizu from Another World, who said his chance to atone had come.

Zhang Jizu revealed that his world’s gods had destroyed themselves in a failed attempt to save the world, then offered Cheng Shi a way to escape. Cheng Shi refused to leave his own world, while Hong Lin learned Cheng Shi was in danger and Zhen Xin proposed an alternative plan.

• Zhang Jizu told Cheng Shi that the old gods had surrendered their Divine Authority and destroyed themselves, but the world began collapsing the next day.
• Zhang Jizu revealed that Cheng Shi’s other self, Clown, had persuaded the gods to attempt the plan, and said [Origin] was now crushing their world.
• Cheng Shi refused Zhang Jizu’s offer to take him to safety because he did not want to live in a world without his father, Old Jia.
• Zhang Jizu let Cheng Shi leave and declared that his atonement was complete and he could finally rest.
• Hong Lin learned that [Deception] had planned to isolate her and Cheng Shi from their world, and she rushed toward the Void to find him.
• Zhen Xin stopped Hong Lin and said she had a way to save Cheng Shi, proposing that Morning Cheer’s Clown did not have to be Lake from Dusk Play.

Zhen Xin revealed that she planned to become the Clown by asking [Destiny] to grant Zhen Yi a second Faith, making herself a replacement for Cheng Shi. She sought [Folly]’s help to find [Destiny] and learned they were trapped in the twisted river of [Existence].

• Hong Lin objected to Zhen Xin’s plan to risk her life, while Puppet suggested [Folly] might know where [Destiny] was.
• Zhen Xin explained that she wanted [Destiny] to grant Zhen Yi a second Faith so he could become the world’s second key and she could leave in Cheng Shi’s place.
• Wei Mu took Zhen Xin to an unfamiliar void and gave her a Wooden Bell to summon [Folly].
• Zhen Xin rang the bell and asked [Folly] to give her foolish deed an answer.
• [Folly] revealed that [Destiny] was trapped in the twisted river of [Existence] and opened a rift toward Giggle and Mock.

Cheng Shi prayed to [Time] for a path to [Destiny], then entered a Void Rift that [Time] opened for him. Before leaving, he asked Zhang Jizu to bury him if he failed, and Zhang Jizu revealed that he had his own plan to save the world.

• Zhang Jizu told Cheng Shi and Long Jing that he had refused the other world's offer to escape the coming Apocalypse.
• Cheng Shi concluded that [Destiny] might still be capable of change and prayed to [Time] for an audience.
• [Time] privately judged Cheng Shi's prayer insincere but opened a Void Rift leading to Giggle and Mock.
• Cheng Shi gave Zhang Jizu and Long Jing scalpels and asked them to keep him from being taken by the Outer God if he failed.
• Cheng Shi entered the rift, and Zhang Jizu told Long Jing that it was time to begin his plan to save the world.

Zhen Xin asked [Destiny] to keep Cheng Shi in the present and offered herself as a substitute key, but [Destiny] revealed that Cheng Shi himself was Predestination and Zhen Xin could never take his place. He then offered her a way to contribute to the world’s Predestination, warning that it would cost her life, and she accepted.

• Zhen Xin pleaded with [Destiny] to let Cheng Shi remain and offered to become the world's second key, while asking Him to grant Zhen Yi a second Faith.
• [Destiny] rejected Zhen Xin's offer and insisted that there was only one Predestination, prompting her to realize that Cheng Shi himself was Predestination.
• [Destiny] told Zhen Xin that Cheng Shi had been born Predestination and that she could never become Predestination.
• Zhen Yi woke and threatened to kill Cheng Xiaoshi, while Zhen Xin reprimanded her.
• [Destiny] offered Zhen Xin a chance to contribute to the world's Predestination but warned that she would die, and Zhen Xin accepted the possibility.

Cheng Shi confronted [Destiny] in Giggle and Mock and demanded to know why he was predestined. [Destiny] revealed that the truth involved [Origin] choosing him, leaving Cheng Shi convinced he might be meant to succeed [Origin].

• Cheng Shi called out to [Destiny], who subdued Giggle and Mock and rebuked him for walking the Wrong Path.
• Cheng Shi explained his suspicions about [Deception] and demanded to know what predestination meant and why it lay in him.
• [Destiny] began to explain that Cheng Shi’s fate was not their own will, prompting him to realize that [Origin] had chosen him.
• Cheng Shi broke into hysterical laughter and speculated that he was destined to inherit [Origin]’s position and bring about the Cosmos’s collapse.
• Cheng Shi wondered aloud whether Old Jia was [Origin] and whether his fate was a succession test, causing Giggle and Mock to boil again.

Cheng Shi confronted [Deception], who revealed that the Trial and its deception were meant to prepare him to sacrifice himself in a universe-wide resistance against [Origin]. As Cheng Shi grappled with the revelation, an enraged presence appeared and ordered [Deception] to leave Giggle and Mock.

• Cheng Shi recognized that the apparent [Destiny] was [Deception] and accused the god of manipulating him.
• [Deception] explained that Cheng Shi could not escape or die in the illusion and said his only ending was to leave with it.
• Cheng Shi challenged [Deception] over the destruction of worlds, and [Deception] argued that sacrifice across worlds could help the True Universe resist [Origin].
• [Deception] revealed that it had chosen Cheng Shi because he resembled a Clown from its world who had died, and said Cheng Shi's sacrifice could help the True Universe.
• An icy rift opened over the frozen river, and a furious voice ordered [Deception] to return to its own world.

[Deception] defeated and suppressed [Destiny], then forced Cheng Shi to choose between leaving with her as Fool's Game to save the True Universe or staying to die with his world. After realizing he had little real agency, Cheng Shi chose option one.

• [Destiny] pulled Cheng Shi and [Deception] into the Void and attacked her, trying to protect him from the battle.
• [Deception] turned [Destiny]'s chains of misfortune and Change against her, then pinned her beneath the Starry Tome of Knowledge.
• [Deception] offered Cheng Shi two choices: become Fool's Game and leave with her, or stay and die alongside his world.
• Cheng Shi questioned whether he truly had a choice and suspected becoming a Sacrifice required his consent.
• [Deception] threatened to erase Cheng Shi's memories and trap him in an eternal choice if he refused to decide.
• Cheng Shi chose option one.

Cheng Shi refused to yield to [Deception], demanding the power to become the true Fool's Game before denouncing their attempts to control the Clowns. [Deception] revealed that the original [Deception] was dead and that the Divine Throne Cheng Shi had found was assembled from Clowns and gods, prompting [Destiny] to realize the being before them was not [Deception].

• Cheng Shi rejected the second choice as a trap and demanded the power to become the true Fool's Game as compensation for his blocked path.
• [Deception] accused Cheng Shi of using the demand to remain in this world and warned that his choice could undo the resistance built by countless Clowns.
• Cheng Shi declared that the Clowns' legacy was meant to preserve each self's freedom of choice, and vowed that [Deception] would never impose their will on the Clown.
• [Deception] revealed that Predestination would soon leave and admitted that they had deliberately prevented Cheng Shi and the others from returning to their world.
• Cheng Shi asked where the original [Deception] had gone, and [Deception] implied that they had died and that the Divine Throne in the Corpse Field had been assembled from the lives of Clowns and gods.
• [Destiny] broke free of the Starry Tome of Knowledge and confronted [Deception], declaring that they were not the original [Deception].

[Destiny] revealed that he had disguised himself as [Deception] to find a replacement for the predestination his twin took with him when he died. He admitted that his efforts to save the world were also a demand for answers from [Origin], and the revelation left both [Nothingness] and Clown's sky collapsing.

• [Destiny] unleashed a tide of misfortune across the cosmos as grief over his twin god's death overwhelmed him.
• [Destiny] accused the figure before him of not being [Deception], explaining that his twin had always opposed [Origin] and the Divine Throne.
• Cheng Shi realized that the Divine Throne in the Gods' Graveyard might be predestination and wondered whether he was meant to fill its cracks.
• [Deception] revealed cold Starry Eyes and an overwhelming aura of [Destiny], then declared that he was [Destiny] and that [Deception] had died in both worlds.
• [Destiny] explained that he had come to this world disguised as [Deception] to find a replacement predestination and demand an explanation from [Origin] for his twin's death.
• The skies of [Nothingness] and Clown's world came crashing down.

Cheng Shi learned that the Outer God [Destiny] had replaced [Deception] and intended to take him to the True Universe to forge a Divine Throne. He refused, while the world’s [Destiny] unleashed cosmic misfortune, and a sudden explosion left the god missing.

• The Outer God [Destiny] revealed that it had replaced [Deception] after [Nothingness] descended and explained its plan to take Cheng Shi’s Predestination to the True Universe.
• Cheng Shi cursed the Outer God [Destiny] and rejected both gods’ plans to make him part of a Divine Throne.
• The world’s [Destiny] amplified the cosmos’s misfortune and blocked the gods who rushed to intervene.
• The Outer God [Destiny] used a wisp of [Origin]’s power to turn the misfortune back on its source and urged Cheng Shi to follow Clown’s path.
• Cheng Shi refused to leave or surrender his Predestination, and the Outer God [Destiny] reached for him with a giant hand.
• A tremendous explosion shattered the darkness and blasted the Starry Tome of Knowledge aside, after which Cheng Shi found that the world’s [Destiny] had disappeared.

After [Destiny] destroyed themself, Cheng Shi confronted the Outer God [Destiny] and was seized by Nothingness winds. [Order] convened a Gods' Covenant Assembly, giving Cheng Shi a chance to survive by restraining the Outer God's use of [Deception]'s Divine Authority.

• [Destiny] self-destructed beneath [Origin]'s power, leaving Cheng Shi without the lifeline his plans depended on.
• Cheng Shi endured the pressure of [Destiny]'s death and accused the Outer God [Destiny] of imposing their will like [Origin].
• The Outer God [Destiny] seized Cheng Shi with a hand formed from Nothingness winds and declared that he could not escape his fate.
• [Order] summoned the gods and Cheng Shi to a Gods' Covenant Assembly, while this world's [Deception]'s Divine Authority entered the Starry Sky.
• Cheng Shi realized the [Covenant] could restrain the Outer God [Destiny] and protect him from their use of [Deception]'s Divine Authority.

Cheng Shi sent Long Jing to carry three hidden messages to the Dragon King, Doctor, and Chen Shu as a backup plan against [Deception]. The Dragon King persuaded [Memory] to hear him out, but [Memory] refused to join the fight, leaving one of Cheng Shi’s three plans broken.

• Cheng Shi gave Zhang Jizu a scalpel to kill him if [Destiny] could not protect him, then secretly carved three instructions onto scalpels he gave Long Jing.
• Long Jing read the instructions—Dragon King-[Memory], Doctor-[Decay], and Chen Shu-[Hope's Flame]—and found Li Jingming in My Nightmare, Your Dream.
• Long Jing shared Cheng Shi’s memories and revelations about [Deception], and Li Jingming agreed to seek an audience with [Memory].
• [Memory] recognized that [Deception] had hidden a lost memory in the archive but said [Time]’s stance was its own and that [Deception] had fallen.
• Li Jingming realized [Memory] would not join the effort against [Deception] and thought that one of Cheng Shi’s three plans had snapped.

Long Jing delivered Cheng Shi’s memories to Doctor, who learned that Cheng Shi was Fool’s Game and obeyed his order to seek [Decay]. [Decay] sent Doctor away and declared that only [Nothingness] could grant mercy to the Believer of [Deception].

• Long Jing gave Doctor a memory page from the Dragon King before rushing off to find Chen Shu.
• Doctor absorbed the memories and discovered that Cheng Shi was Fool’s Game, then treated Cheng Shi’s request to find [Decay] as an order.
• Doctor prayed to [Decay], invoking Cheng Shi’s plight to gain an audience.
• [Decay] told Doctor that [Nothingness], not [Decay], should grant mercy to the Believer of [Deception], then began to disintegrate.
• The Sighing Tide swept Doctor from the Blood Rot Tomb before he could take any of [Decay]’s ashes.

Long Jing tracked down Chen Shu to ask about Hope’s Flame and urgently sought his help after learning Cheng Shi had become a god. Chen Shu realized Qin Xin and Blind Man might learn the secret too, and concluded Cheng Shi had come to him to keep them out of it.

• An Mingyu used Qin Xin’s help to give Long Jing Chen Shu’s location, then worried when Zhen Xin did not answer her message.
• Qin Xin learned Long Jing was looking for Chen Shu, but could no longer reach Chen Shu after he cut off their Fire Keeper connection.
• Chen Shu mistook Long Jing’s arrival for an attempt to expose the Fire Keepers, until Long Jing showed him the Dragon King’s Memory Page and said Cheng Shi needed saving.
• Chen Shu read the page, learned Cheng Shi had become a god, and told Long Jing he had long known Cheng Shi was Fool’s Game.
• Chen Shu realized Qin Xin and Blind Man might discover the secret through the location request, then reasoned that Cheng Shi had approached him because he did not want them to know about Hope’s Flame.

Cheng Shi chose to send a message to Hope's Flame through Chen Shu rather than risk involving Qin Xin or An Mingyu, while the Fire Keepers pieced together that Cheng Shi might be in danger. Sun Miao concluded that Cheng Shi was seeking Hope's Flame, and Qin Xin recognized the likely target as the god itself.

• Cheng Shi decided not to involve Qin Xin or An Mingyu, and asked Long Jing to find Chen Shu instead.
• Chen Shu and Long Jing learned that President Gong had let two people connected to the Fire Keepers discover what was happening.
• Qin Xin convened a meeting of senior Fire Keepers and revealed Chen Shu's identity to those present.
• Sun Miao connected Cheng Shi, Long Jing, Chen Shu, and President Gong, and proposed that Cheng Shi was seeking help through Chen Shu.
• An Mingyu found that Hong Lin was unreachable, reinforcing the suspicion that several important people were in trouble.
• Sun Miao reasoned that Cheng Shi was avoiding Qin Xin and the Fire Seekers to reach the Fire Keepers' god, and Qin Xin named Hope's Flame.

Chen Shu and Long Jing sought Hope's Flame at the Fire-Keeping Hall to discuss Fool's Game and the threat posed by Predestination. Hope's Flame explained the dangers of corrupting Fool's Game's faith, but the Fire Keepers declared they would protect him as a friend.

• Chen Shu convinced Long Jing that Ji Yue would help them reach the Fire-Keeping Hall, and Ji Yue agreed to arrange their visit.
• Chen Shu and Long Jing arrived at the Fire-Keeping Hall, where Long Jing knocked Ji Yue unconscious so they could reach Hope's Flame without delay.
• Long Jing explained that Fool's Game was the Outer God [Deception] and had come to plunder Predestination for another world.
• Hope's Flame warned that corrupting Fool's Game's faith could cost him his status as Predestination and leave him vulnerable to [Destiny].
• A Fire Keeper declared that the Fire Keepers would protect Cheng Shi or Fool's Game because he was their friend, affirming the meaning of Passing the Flame.

Long Jing told the Fire Keepers about Cheng Shi’s attempts to find a way out of Predestination, and Hope’s Flame explained why each apparent path to survival threatened either Cheng Shi or the world. The chapter ended with the group facing that impossible choice, while An Mingyu recognized Cheng Shi’s struggle as resistance against his fate.

• Long Jing learned that Qin Xin led the Fire Keepers and recounted Cheng Shi’s attempts to seek help from [Memory], [Decay], and [Hope's Flame].
• Hope's Flame explained that [Memory] and [Decay] could not offer Cheng Shi a viable escape from Predestination.
• Hope's Flame revealed that Cheng Shi needed to corrupt his faith with a genuine Emissary identity or become a True God, but either route endangered him and the world.
• Hope's Flame admitted that it could not find a third path, leaving the Fire Keepers to weigh saving Cheng Shi against saving the world.
• Long Jing realized that Cheng Shi might never have intended to survive, and An Mingyu said his struggle against [Destiny]'s predetermined identity was already an act of resistance.