Foolish Game of the Gods - Chapter 123

This was undoubtedly a melodramatic story.

The killer lurking in the shadow of the blood moon wasn’t a killer at all—but a guardian.

This reversal of roles caught Cheng Shi off guard.

But suddenly, he understood what the trial’s title, “Who Deserves Redemption”, was pointing toward.

Between the townspeople, both victims and those being guarded, and the “Divine Envoy,” who was both a murderer and a guardian, the trial asked him to choose who should be redeemed. This agonizing dilemma perfectly aligned with fate’s twisted cruelty.

Fate, both a source of suffering and a dark joke.

Yet something about this story didn’t quite align with Cheng Shi’s understanding of Far Dusk Town.

While the issue of population control was explained, many questions remained unanswered.

For example, what happened to the travelers?

“Patience, there’s more to see.”

Cheng Shi furrowed his brows, his gaze returning to the memory unfolding before him.

The “divine decree” that blasphemers would be punished soon spread throughout Far Dusk Town.

Since divine punishment only occurred at night, the town’s nights became eerily quiet from that day on.

Once night fell, everyone would stay indoors, in well-lit spaces, to avoid losing the protection of [Eternal Sun] and becoming tainted by [Bloody Moon].

At this point, the townspeople had come to understand divine punishment as His anger and His withdrawal of protection.

From then on, the town entered a brief period of peace, albeit under the shadow of terror.

However, fate has a way of tormenting those who seem to live honest, simple lives.

On yet another seemingly ordinary night, when the blood moon rose again, a curse befell the town.

After that night, none of the townspeople could reproduce with each other. This curse was unbreakable, and not even the “Divine Envoy” could find a solution.

But around this time, a traveler from far away accidentally stumbled into Far Dusk Town, a place that had long seen no newcomers. He was a bard.

The bard wandered through the town, seeking inspiration, writing ballads that would later be passed down through generations. He also fell in love with a local girl.

It seemed like an insignificant affair, but one night, using a mysterious ritual he had learned on his travels, the bard managed to make the girl pregnant…

And so, he became Far Dusk Town’s greatest savior!

The “Divine Envoy” met with him, promising him riches beyond his imagination—if only he would stay in the town for a while longer.

At first, the bard was happy and agreed.

But as time passed, he realized that the mysterious gifting ritual was draining his soul and sapping his life. He grew weak, powerless, terrified.

And so, one night under the blood moon, he risked everything and fled.

Whether he escaped or not, no one knows.

The townspeople only know that after that night, a complete gifting ritual was established in the town.

Not only that, but travelers began arriving in Far Dusk Town with increasing frequency after that, leading to the developments Cheng Shi had witnessed, culminating in the town’s current state.

The blessings of [Eternal Sun] remained, and the curse of [Bloody Moon] persisted. Under the web of faith and fear woven by the “Divine Envoy,” Far Dusk Town continued, year after year.

No one could live to old age, but no one faced disaster again, either.

Outsiders couldn’t say whether the townspeople were happy or miserable, but one thing was clear—they were still alive.

And they lived longer than their ancestors.

Here, the memory ended, the fuzzy image dissolving back into the void.

Cheng Shi furrowed his brows, organizing his thoughts in the wake of everything he’d seen.

“That memory…”

The older Cheng Shi suddenly appeared, dragging the black-robed figure by the collar, laughing as he spoke:

“When you brought him here, you unlocked that memory.

And this will be your final stop for the Fate’s Judgment!

The meaning is clear: who deserves salvation—the townspeople or the Divine Envoy? It’s a choice between the two!”

“No!”

Before the older Cheng Shi could finish, Cheng Shi shook his head vehemently.

“No, that’s wrong. You’re saying he’s still the first Divine Envoy?

No, he’s not alive because of [Eternal Sun]’s blessing—he’s alive because he turned himself into a puppet!

He turned himself into a puppet!

That’s why his lifespan is so unnaturally long!

And mastering this kind of technique could only come from the Tower of Logic’s Alchemical Creations Department, not some Divine Envoy of Far Dusk Town!

But what does Far Dusk Town have to do with alchemical creations?

Also, the authority of [Eternal Sun] is an incomplete version of [Birth], not an incomplete version of [Prosperity]. His blessings wouldn’t grant someone extended life!

How did the sun and moon come to be here? What does ‘clinging’ mean? Why do Their authorities resemble the ones we know? And why does the blood moon’s curse descend so irregularly? These are still unanswered!

While [Fate] may be nauseating, It never gives you a half-baked problem just to annoy you.

[He] meticulously designs all the details, and when you finally realize you can’t change fate, [He] jumps out and mocks you.

The memory itself… is too crude to be His work.”

Cheng Shi’s thorough analysis left the older Cheng Shi momentarily stunned.

His expression became unusually strange, and a look of genuine admiration appeared in his eyes.

“You… really dare say anything, don’t you?”

Cheng Shi was a bit surprised by his reaction but nodded:

“Just telling it like it is.”

“…”

The older Cheng Shi laughed, truly amused.

“Hahaha, of course, you are me!

Indeed, if you stop here, it won’t just be you who stops—it will be everyone.

He has indeed hidden the answer in the void.

But it’s not the void you think.

It’s the true… Nothingness!”

As he spoke, the older Cheng Shi raised his hand and swiped across the void above them.

His hand was like an eraser, wiping away the inky blackness of the void to reveal the image that had been hidden beneath the dark canvas.

As his hand moved, a dazzling, almost unreal starry sky slowly emerged before Cheng Shi’s eyes.

And within that starry sky, shimmering with void-like stars, a blindingly bright sun and a blood-red moon gleamed menacingly, casting their light over every corner of the universe.

Cheng Shi took just one glance and immediately felt his scalp go numb. A deep, primal fear surged from the base of his spine to the top of his head, leaving him paralyzed with dread.

But it wasn’t the sight of [Eternal Sun] or [Bloody Moon] directly that filled him with terror.

No.

The terrifying truth was…

Those colossal celestial bodies representing incomplete versions of the authorities of [Birth] and [Corruption] were merely…

A pair of eyes!

In the starry void above, a massive corpse floated upside down, its body bound by starlight, its feet shackled by black holes.

And in the gaping eye sockets of that decaying corpse, two glowing orbs stared out—one the glaring sun, the other the blood-red moon.

The corpse was titanic, towering beyond comprehension. Even if all the stars of the void were to gather together, they wouldn’t compare to even one of its bones in size.

It had long since decayed, its rotting skin barely clinging to its bones, and the cracks in its bone structure spread like a world-ending spiderweb across the entire cosmos.

Such a monstrous entity loomed before them, and Cheng Shi and the others stood motionless, nestled in the grasp of its hanging, skeletal hand, watching… as it watched them.

No… it was still moving.

Though its body had long since decayed, its eyelids… were still moving.

Cheng Shi saw it:

The right eye slowly closed, while the left eye gradually opened, the sun vanishing into the void as the blood moon ascended in the sky!

And so…

Far Dusk Town’s night had fallen.