Foolish Game of the Gods Chapter 42

Chapter 42: The Town Gazed Upon by [Prosperity]

Trials contained plenty of background related to [The Gods], but actual objects or artifacts with direct connections to Them that one could observe firsthand were exceedingly rare. So he was deeply intrigued by the so-called will of [Prosperity].

To say something irreverent, this was a rare opportunity to study [God].

Probably no player would pass it up.

Everbloom was far larger than he'd imagined. He'd assumed it was merely a small settlement with a modest population, but after walking through it, it felt more like a city.

Apartment buildings stood in tight rows, estates and guild halls dotted the landscape in orderly arrangement. It was clearly a well-tended settlement of believers, its prosperity enough to make one marvel.

It took over an hour of walking before Cheng Shi reached the town center.

Along the way, through the intelligence he'd gathered and everything he'd seen and heard, he finally understood the hotel owner's words.

And he finally understood what was meant by the will of [Prosperity].

At this very moment, he stood in a place called Everbloom Square.

And at the very center of the square, a "flower" of absurdly colossal proportions was blooming in perfect splendor, radiating a soft, vibrant light in all directions.

Cheng Shi roughly estimated it at roughly three or four stories tall.

At first glance, the entire flower resembled a stone carving. But when you studied its petals closely, the moment your focus concentrated, the petal you were staring at would suddenly come alive, transforming into a crisp, exquisitely detailed botanical sepal.

The texture of each petal was unique. The fine veins running through them looked less like nutrient-conducting channels and more like engravings of divine runic script.

The "statue" was named [Blooming Only to Wither].

This was a holy relic. In player terminology from the [Faith Game], it would be called an SSS Subordinate God-tier artifact: a semi-divine weapon.

Its rank was just below the Subordinate Gods of each Destiny, except it possessed no independent consciousness.

And it was, indeed, where the will of [Prosperity] resided.

Because any place enveloped by it would continue to flourish until the end of its natural lifespan.

In other words, theoretically speaking, no one could die in Everbloom before their lifespan ran out!

Cheng Shi was awestruck by the divine artifact before him.

No wonder this trial was called "Which Road Leads to Death." Because here, death perhaps simply didn't exist.

And the seven-day time limit also meant they wouldn't be waiting around for someone to die of old age.

Not only that, there was something else!

If no one could die before their lifespan ended, then his role as Priest…

Just as that thought crossed his mind, he turned his head and saw that a young woman had appeared beside him at some point.

Yun Ni had arrived, standing shoulder to shoulder with him.

Her voice was as stunningly striking as ever.

"What, scared?"

"Of what?" Cheng Shi smiled.

"Of being unemployed. Where He gazes, death doesn't exist. So, no need for Priests either."

"Have you tested it?"

"No, about to."

With that, Yun Ni flashed past and plunged a dagger into Cheng Shi's heart.

Blood splattered outward. Cheng Shi's chest seized with pain.

Fuck.

My poor heart. Following me has really been endless suffering for you.

But despite the blood pouring from his chest, despite his heart hammering violently from the trauma, despite his brain growing slightly fuzzy from blood loss, Cheng Shi still stood in place. He didn't collapse.

He didn't spare a glance for the "murderer" observing him from the side. Instead, he devoted every instant to examining himself.

This state was extraordinary.

A pure essence of [Prosperity]'s power was wrestling with the [Death] energy within his body, and it quickly ground all traces of death aura into nothing.

Before long, Cheng Shi felt the wound on his heart seal shut.

His life was saved, but aside from the heart itself, the gash on his chest continued to bleed.

In other words, [Blooming Only to Wither] did indeed spare everyone in the town from death.

But it only prevented death. It didn't cure injuries.

Wounds would remain lodged in the body, barely reaching equilibrium with the body's natural recovery rate.

Not life-threatening, but it left the wounded in considerable pain.

Cheng Shi chuckled and slapped a healing spell onto his own chest.

"Looks like we still need Priests."

Yun Ni nodded in agreement, then extended her hand and offered the dagger hilt-first.

Cheng Shi was somewhat taken aback. This follower of [Annihilation] seemed to process things quite differently from ordinary people.

"?"

His expression perfectly conveyed his bewilderment.

Yun Ni waved irritably and said:

"I won't stab you for free. Now it's your turn."

So she meant one stab each?

Cheng Shi grinned. He accepted the young lady's dagger, admired the gleam along the blade, and said with a laugh:

"Seriously?"

"Hurry up."

Cheng Shi nodded and drove the dagger into Yun Ni's chest.

Except the angle of this thrust was extraordinarily cunning. Even after the blade sank an inch into flesh, it hadn't reached her heart.

Cheng Shi raised an eyebrow in surprise. That padding seems thicker than it looks.

Yun Ni's eyes flew open in astonishment first, then darkened as she said in an icy voice:

"You like this?"

Cheng Shi snorted, released the dagger, and turned to leave.

As he walked, he said:

"You see, what I like, you don't like. So what you like, I won't necessarily like either.

Nobody enjoys being randomly stabbed.

We're only at the 'shook hands once' level of acquaintance. Don't treat me as your test subject.

And don't assume your trade is fair. Fairness without the other person's consent isn't fairness.

Put away your dagger, Miss Assassin. Otherwise, there's plenty more dislike waiting for you."

Yun Ni silently withdrew the dagger, feeling the changes in her body.

Blood sprayed onto the ground and vanished in the blink of an eye.

She looked at the blood still pouring from her chest, her expression unreadable.

Simultaneously, amid the crowd, a bare-chested man's gaze swept past countless heads toward this spot. He frowned in thought.

…

Cheng Shi left Everbloom Square. His next destination was the Enforcement Bureau.

He was deeply concerned about the murder case that the hotel guests had been too frightened to discuss openly. Come to think of it, a murder case and [Death] were a perfect match.

So much so that Cheng Shi spent the entire walk wondering whether the trial's clues would really be handed to them this easily.

As a member of the Natural Alliance, Everbloom's governance model was similarly alliance-based.

But rather than a partisan alliance, it was a functional department alliance.

Several departments overseeing different areas voluntarily cooperated, jointly deliberating on the town's development matters, gradually forming a rudimentary parliamentary system where department heads convened to discuss and decide affairs.

And the Enforcement Bureau was the most powerful department in town.

It functioned as court, prison, and police station combined.

The Enforcement Bureau was southeast of the square, occupying a sizable footprint. The closer one got, the more uniformed Enforcement Officers one saw filing in and out.

Facing an unfamiliar law enforcement agency, Cheng Shi didn't rashly approach and interrupt. Instead, he pretended to be a passerby, keeping his ears pricked to catch the surrounding officers' conversations.

Before long, he reconstructed the full details of the murder case from their scattered chatter.

Exactly seven days ago, a jeweler in town had suddenly died.

Had this happened anywhere else, it probably wouldn't have attracted public attention, just another murder-robbery case.

But it happened in Everbloom, a place where no one could die except by reaching the end of their natural lifespan.

The townsfolk panicked immediately, and the Enforcement Bureau swiftly intervened and launched an investigation.

But the bizarre thing was, apart from a terrified expression, the merchant bore no wounds whatsoever on his entire body. It was as though he had been scared to death.

This was even more absurd. No one could die under the protection of [Blooming Only to Wither], unless…

His death carried the will of another [God].

The town's autonomous alliance realized this matter might have far-reaching implications, potentially even faith-related. So they urgently reported it to the Grand Tribunal, requesting the assistance of [Order] followers.

However, during the window of waiting for the Grand Tribunal's reply, two more people died under identical circumstances.

And all three victims had died on the streets at night.

The sudden, successive deaths plunged everyone into panic. A terrifying cloud of dread loomed over every resident's head.

So much so that the town's autonomous alliance was forced to declare a temporary curfew.

And yesterday had been the first day of the curfew.

Yet another drunken patron had collapsed just five meters outside a tavern.