Let's rewind Time a bit, to when Cheng Shi shouted, "Fate is a bitch."
Above the skies of the Hope Continent, within a plane unreachable by mortals, three pairs of eyes opened simultaneously.
The first pair of eyes had heterochromia; the left eye was a burning flame, and the right eye was flowing blood.
As soon as He opened His eyes, an impassioned movement played in the Void, every note stirring souls and igniting War intent.
"This is... My Trial... You... broke the rules..."
The second pair of eyes was cold and Silent, devoid of emotion, the whites filled with swirling spirals, the pupils etched with diverging star-points.
Just meeting His gaze for a moment would make one feel their soul being pulled towards endless Nothingness.
He glanced at the first pair of eyes and said coldly:
"When did you exchange authority with the Order?"
"..."
This was clearly a taunt, and the other party was indeed silenced.
Just as the two were confronting each other, the corner of another pair of eyes slightly curved upwards, emitting a pleasant low chuckle.
The third pair of eyes was similar to the second, but the divine light within them was more vibrant, or rather, more like the eyes of a "person."
He silently watched the two confront each other, not speaking, just smiling.
"You came... to do what..."
"I heard blasphemous ravings, felt Fate being mocked. I shall exercise my authority and banish the ignorant sinner."
"This is... My Trial... You... broke the rules..."
"..."
This time, it was the other one's turn to be Silent.
The third pair of eyes suddenly burst into laughter.
"Interesting, too interesting. An idiot who firmly believes in himself, and a fool who can't chat outside of War. Hahaha, too interesting."
"Is it funny?"
"Isn't it funny?"
The second pair of eyes narrowed slightly, glancing coldly at the third pair.
"Why have you come?"
"And why have you come?"
"He believes in me, yet blasphemes against me. Naturally, I can revoke his qualifications. Do you intend to violate the Covenant to protect him?"
"But He has already been seized by me, so He is naturally considered My believer. Do you intend to violate the Covenant to banish Him?"
That pair of eyes that saw through Nothingness glanced at Him coldly again, was Silent for a moment, and then slowly dissipated.
The third pair of eyes laughed again.
"You came... to do what..."
"Me? Of course, I came to save my lovely follower."
Saying this, a finger as clear as jade extended, piercing through endless planes, and came before the Wrath of Abomination.
He merely placed His hand there gently, and the fiery light filling the sky contracted and tightened, avoiding Him.
The Wrath of Abomination's outburst was interrupted by a "person", becoming furious, but when He saw the eyes behind that finger, His full rage instantly cooled, and His huge body trembled almost imperceptibly.
He Quietly and precisely tightened a thread of the prison door, so that no more Meteor Fire Rain fell on the place the finger pointed to.
The first pair of eyes widened slightly, the blood in His pupils boiling, the flames roaring.
"...You... broke the rules..."
The third pair of eyes blinked and blinked.
"And then?"
"..."
The eyes of blood and fire stared at Him for a moment, and then were Silent.
"Tsk, Your believers are waging War everywhere just to beg to see You, and You, as the master of War, wearing the God title of War, don't even dare to fight me."
"...The Covenant... cannot be violated..."
"Heh, boring."
He gazed at the unknown starry sky for a moment, then instantly dissipated into the air.
...
Everyone was tired from running, especially Chen Chong and Xia Wan.
After realizing they had truly escaped danger, they refused to move another step, just lying on the ground, gasping for breath.
Chen Chong had Nangong treating him along the way, so his condition was maintained quite well, but it was hard on Nangong, who was carried in his hand, her face so pale it looked like she had been dragged the whole way.
As for Xia Wan, due to Cheng Shi's continuous treatment, she had once again become a "mother" "pregnant" for ten months.
Dealing with this kind of problem still required the abortion specialist, Song Yawen.
He consciously hid beside Xia Wan, and whenever a piece of skin burst open giving Birth to a new twisted life, he would immediately cut off this "monster" that hadn't even had time to open its eyes.
While cutting, he would also complain:
"Why do the newborns of Birth all look so sanity-dropping? Do the true Gods like this appearance?"
Xia Wan pursed her Mouth, didn't speak, and looked back at Cheng Shi.
The meaning in her eyes was obvious: Cheng Shi has high points and knows more than me.
No one discussed Birth in Cheng Shi's Faith channel, and he didn't know the reason at all, but he still very confidently gave an explanation, though his expression was somewhat grim.
"When you haven't been born yet, if you could change your appearance, what would you want to become?
These newborns who worship 'My Lords' just want to become what 'My Lords' like, but...
They don't know what Birth likes, so they started using their imagination.
As for the result, you've seen it too."
It was the first time everyone had heard such an explanation, but Cheng Shi's confidence in speaking didn't sound like speculation at all; it was more like an explanation after knowing the cause and effect. Coupled with his repeated rescues of everyone from desperate situations, everyone instinctively somewhat wanted to believe him.
Only Cao San Sui widened his eyes and confirmed again:
"The consensus among Birth Players that I understand is that the newborns already know the appearance of Birth, but with their abilities, they can only restore a part of it.
This is completely different from what you said. Do you mean that even the newborns born under the influence of Birth don't know His appearance?
Is this true?"
Everyone looked at Cheng Shi, waiting for his answer.
The reason everyone attached so much importance to this was that this answer concerned the relationship between Gods and believers.
If the newborns knew the appearance of Birth and restored Him as much as possible, it would indicate that Gods can accept the reverence of believers, and then the rumored "getting close to God, saving oneself" would also become possible.
But if the newborns did not know the appearance of Birth and were just trying to please Him, then the relationship between Gods and believers might be much colder.
And coldness means that humans and Gods are different.
Those who beg for God's grace may perhaps forever be trapped in God's game, merely existing as Players.
Cheng Shi didn't know if what he said was true or false, but lying had become his "habit" and "constraint." Even if he didn't want to lie sometimes, his Mouth would have opinions.
His smile was a bit forced, but his tone was unquestionable:
"Absolutely true."
Xia Wan was stunned, looking at the "tentacle" newborns constantly being born within her body, and asked with a shocked look:
"You... where did you learn that from?"
Cheng Shi smiled mysteriously: "It's a secret."
Xia Wan nodded thoughtfully and didn't ask any further questions.
It was Song Yawen who suddenly said:
"Cheng Ge, you're not the God Chosen of Birth, are you?"
God Chosen, the Player ranked first in Faith on the Ladder to the Audience for each Faith.
Cheng Shi was startled and quickly waved his hand in denial:
"I'm still far from the first place on the Ladder to the Audience; even if I crane my neck until it breaks, I can't see their feet."
After he finished speaking, Xia Wan and Nangong next to her simultaneously looked at Cheng Shi's feet, and the same conjecture arose in their minds:
"Could Cheng Shi really be the God Chosen on the Ladder to the Audience for Birth? Only a 'God Chosen' would have such an incredible way to escape..."
Cheng Shi guessed their thoughts, instinctively shrank his neck, and continued to deny it.
But Xia Wan didn't believe him at all. She secretly glanced at the Ladder to the Audience for Birth and corruption and saw that the ID of the Birth believer ranked first was "Specialist in Infertility."
"..."
This tone... it sounds like him, very much like him.
Seeing that everyone's conversation kept revolving around Cheng Shi, Chen Chong, who had rested for a while and recovered, responsibly interrupted their discussion.
"Um... shouldn't we find a safe place first before discussing the God Chosen issue?"
"Ah, yes, yes, yes, saving our Lives is important."
Everyone first looked at each other, and then burst into laughter.
The joy of surviving the ordeal finally erupted here.
"Generally speaking, after the Trial is solved, the danger level will drop sharply, but we should still be careful.
Let's go southeast. Whether based on the battlefield orientation of the Hope Continent or the marching direction of the Fear Demonss, the southeast should be away from the center of the War vortex.
Let's walk a bit further and see if we can find the Blizzard Mountain Range. Perhaps we can avoid all disputes there and survive until the Trial ends."
Cao San Sui regained his composure and extensive knowledge, dragging Chen Chong and leading everyone towards the southeast.
After escaping the Meteor Fire Rain, everyone's mood was clearly much better, but their vigilance still remained.
Along the way, Chen Chong took the lead, Song Yawen kept watch around them, Cao San Sui coordinated in the middle, and Nangong drank blood potions while treating Xia Wan.
As for Cheng Shi...
Like an old man on his first tour group, he eagerly wanted to understand everything about the Hope Continent, grabbing the "tour guide" Cao San Sui and bombarding him with questions.
Familiarity with history might increase a Player's survival rate in the Trial. He didn't understand it before because there was no useful information in the Faith channel, and the information in the profession channel was hard to verify, so he just skimmed through it without paying attention.
Now that there was a rare "living history book" in front of him, it was a waste not to ask.
...