Foolish Game of the Gods Chapter 7

Chapter 7: I Plan to Give Them a Child

As the Holy Light Wall's duration dwindled, Chen Chong's sweat-beaded grimace slowly twisted into something feral. He roared with fierce reluctance:

"Two minutes left! Priest, prepare to restore my mental reserves. If we can't think of something, the moment the Holy Light Wall falls, we break out!

Assassin, prepare to regroup! I'll smash a path straight ahead and lead the charge. You clear the trash off my back!

Mage, prepare to accelerate!!"

Cao Sansui clenched both fists and was about to speak when Cheng Shi suddenly stood up and, with perfect composure, asked Nangong:

"Have you learned Overload Healing? I need the Time Walker to cast another zone acceleration, the super-sized variety."

Everyone turned to look at Cheng Shi, assuming he'd thought of a way to break the siege. They pressed in:

"You have a plan?"

"You…"

Cao Sansui's spirits surged as he said:

"No need for Overload Healing. Just top off my mental reserves completely. I have Overload Casting!"

Overload meant overdrafting. This casting technique could drain all potential from a future window, using it to upgrade the current spell and amplify its effect.

Cheng Shi shot Cao Sansui an approving glance, thinking that 1900 really was easy to work with. Still, he shook his head:

"Probably not enough. I need a very large area. Nangong, can you do it?"

Nangong gritted her teeth, glanced at the Fear Demon army beyond the light screen, and nodded.

If she didn't give everything now, she'd be dead in moments. No trump cards could be held back.

"Now?"

"Now!" Cheng Shi said with absolute conviction.

Overload Healing could pre-draw future restorative power, effectively raising the target's mental capacity ceiling to a degree, invaluable in desperate straits.

Nangong gave a resolute nod, rose to her feet, and before everyone's eyes, slowly removed the black turtleneck that had swathed her so thoroughly, revealing the body she had kept concealed beneath her clothing.

The instant the shirt fell away, countless grotesque wounds, as glaring and twisted as centipedes, filled everyone's vision.

Densely packed from neck to chest to arms, her visibly pale flesh was covered in uncountable scars!

Xia Wan's brow tightened at the sight; Cao Sansui's pupils shrank.

Cheng Shi raised an eyebrow in surprise, recognizing her true identity.

She was actually a follower of [Decay].

"Blood-Swap Priest??" Chen Chong blurted in astonishment.

[Decay] was the second god of the [Corruption] Destiny, the crescendo of descent, the final grave of the cosmos.

His [Rite of Communion] was to accelerate decay, so His followers often practiced self-harm to complete it.

And [Decay]'s divine power lay precisely here. The faster a follower of [Decay] aged their own body, the more divine feedback they received.

This was why Priests of [Decay] were called Blood-Swap Priests: they could trade their own life to restore their teammates.

The more grievously they wounded themselves, the more fiercely their allies recovered.

Of course, grievous wounds also meant death. Such was the will of [Decay]. So balancing the line between suicide and salvation was a topic every Blood-Swap Priest tirelessly discussed.

Nangong didn't waste time. She simply knitted her brow, clenched her jaw, drew a ridged dagger from her waist, and without a moment's hesitation, sliced open a gash across her own stomach.

Next, between her ribs.

Then, along that scar-covered collarbone, a third horrifying line of blood.

Three offerings complete, she whispered her prayer:

"All living things shall decay; all creation shall rot."

A rich, putrid radiance rose from her wounds, gushing outward and, in the blink of an eye, converging into a stream that poured into Cao Sansui's body.

Cao Sansui felt his body suddenly surge with power. His mental reserves refilled completely, his condition so peak he felt like throwing back his head and roaring.

Feeling the torrential strength within him, some of his confidence returned, though only to a degree.

He looked at Cheng Shi gravely and asked, word by word:

"I can Overload to accelerate the surrounding area, but afterward there's a very high probability I'll be a vegetable for twelve hours. Cheng Shi, can we survive twelve hours from now?"

Cheng Shi smiled and said, "I don't want to die, and I won't die."

Chen Chong, losing patience with their banter, snapped his head around and bellowed:

"Save the posturing for later and focus on the damn job! Priest, if you've got a plan, spit it out!"

Cheng Shi nodded and stopped keeping everyone in suspense. He addressed the group:

"The timing is critical. I need all of you to listen carefully.

After the Holy Light Wall falls, I need one second to cast. Xia Wan, can you buy me that?"

Xia Wan's hand, holding arrows behind her back, tightened. She looked up at the sky-swarming Fear Demons bottled outside the Holy Light Wall and gave a solemn nod.

"I can swallow a Genesis Seed to receive His gaze. When the reproductive force surges, I can fire five arrows simultaneously, but it'll delay them for one second at most."

This was the most Xia Wan had spoken, and the most earnestly.

Cheng Shi had already anticipated that this was the only card she could play, and nodded in acknowledgment.

Chen Chong, face taut with anxiety, shouted again:

"You're a Priest, what are you casting?"

"Don't rush," Cheng Shi smiled and called out loudly. "Song Yawen, I know you can probably hear me. Listen to me: the instant the shield drops, I need you back at my side, ready to unleash Death's Requiem!"

"Death's Requiem??"

Everyone froze for a beat. Nangong, still weak and pale, widened her eyes.

"Not opposed… thank god…"

"He's a Death Weaver?"

"You knew he was a follower of [Death]?"

Cheng Shi ignored their confusion and continued:

"I know you have questions, but forget them. You don't need to worry about the Death Domain. All you need to do is reap everything you can when it's time to harvest.

Song Yawen, this strike of yours determines whether we live or die. I am not joking."

Chen Chong panicked again: "What if he…"

"He won't. Followers of [Death] don't die easily, because their patron also needs someone to carry out His grace."

Cheng Shi laughed, lightening the mood, though it didn't help much.

Seeing that no one possessed a shred of humor, he curled his lip and went on:

"Cao Sansui, the most critical step. The instant after I cast, you must release the zone acceleration. Target: the largest possible area of the ruins outside the shield zone."

Cao Sansui's face changed. He asked, stunned:

"What? The entire ruin field?"

Cheng Shi nodded firmly. "The entire ruin field!"

"You… 1500 points?"

Cheng Shi blinked, then smiled, nodding again. "1501."

Cao Sansui clearly didn't believe him. A 1500-point player, summoning this kind of presence and attitude at the brink of death?

He'd seen 2000-point heavyweights wet themselves at death's door before.

"I have to remind you: the potential energy of time will balance out speed. If the area is this large, then our location will be extremely sluggish. We might not even be able to move!

Are you sure?

This is suicide, Cheng Shi!"

Though Cao Sansui suspected Cheng Shi was hiding his true score, his heart was genuinely pounding. If it were up to him, he'd never dare try something like this.

The reason Time Walkers consistently ranked in Tier 0 was because they could slow enemies down and speed themselves up, creating temporal dominance that allowed for all manner of tactical responses.

But if the reverse happened…

Wouldn't that mean being completely at the enemy's mercy?

"I'm sure. Trust me, you won't want to accelerate yourself."

"Fine! The question is, what do you plan to do?"

Cao Sansui's face was grave as he asked, fraught with doubt.

"As part of this plan, we need to know how you intend to lead us out of this alive."

Cheng Shi grinned:

"Me?

I plan to give them a child."