Foolish Game of the Gods - Chapter 188

“Wait!”

Cheng Shi’s voice trembled with urgency as he suddenly stood up from the defendant’s seat, his expression darkening.

“Innocent until proven guilty!

If you’re accusing me of murder, then, Your Honor, provide evidence!”

“[Order] sees all; no sin can escape.

When order is not witnessed, sin is still sin!

The defendant’s words are blasphemous, disrupting the trial, guilty of murder, with no remorse—multiple crimes, and the sentence is…

Death by Lightning!”

BANG—

The heavy sound of a gavel echoed throughout the courtroom.

When Cheng Shi heard the final strike signaling the end of the judgment, his pupils constricted, and his face turned deadly serious.

So this is the beginning of [Civilization]’s so-called order? How incredibly “civilized!”

As soon as the gavel struck, Cheng Shi instinctively attempted to leap from the defendant’s seat, trying to escape by any means necessary. In his desperation, he clutched his [Death] ring, the one with only one last charge remaining.

If it came down to it, he was prepared to engage in a magical showdown with the courtroom’s lightning!

Even if he only had one shot, who knows?

Maybe the lightning would fizzle out after one strike?

And if it didn’t? Well, he didn’t have much choice. Under the looming threat of death, every second of survival counted.

He even regretted not activating “Foam on the Sea of Dreams” the moment he entered the courtroom!

If he could snap his fingers right now, would this biased judge forget and end the trial?

But there were too many variables—so many that no amount of backup plans could save him.

My life is at risk!

With the judgement passed, the lightning descended mercilessly!

Cheng Shi’s attempt to flee looked utterly foolish in the eyes of the judge.

The moment he lifted his foot to jump from the defendant’s seat, lightning as vast as a world-ending storm rained down upon him.

The sheer destructive power of it—hundreds of [Thunderous Judgments] couldn’t compare!

How was he supposed to fight this? A one-versus-a-hundred situation?

Damn it!

This was nothing less than an inescapable death sentence!

Cheng Shi even considered giving up then and there.

He stopped attempting to flee, standing tall with his back straight, his gaze filled with playful defiance as he looked up at the judge’s seat.

He spoke his final words coldly:

“I hope that one day, you won’t find yourself sitting where I am, my dear Judge!”

BOOM—BOOM—BOOM—

The roaring lightning crashed down, and in the blink of an eye, struck…

A massive tentacle!

Somehow, in the vast expanse of the courtroom, an enormous tentacle had appeared.

It swept across the air above Cheng Shi, shattering the torrents of lightning into sparks and dispersing the electric plasma in mid-air.

Cheng Shi felt a powerful gust of wind blow across his face, the force of it surpassing even the sound of the thunder!

His cheeks stung from the wind, but he endured the pain and lifted his head.

!!!!

One glance, and Cheng Shi’s heart shook with fear.

One glance, and his very soul quivered!

He knew instantly what this was. Even though he had never seen it before, he recognized immediately what had swept away the lightning.

It was a [Divine Pillar]!

A [Divine Pillar] of [Birth]!

No wonder Zhen Yi had once said that it was a piece of “life petrified,” something you wouldn’t want to see twice!

She was absolutely right.

As the colossal tentacle, adorned with countless lifeforms, swept over his head, Cheng Shi could clearly see the countless fossilized eyes, noses, mouths, limbs, and… reproductive organs—all layered in ways both familiar and alien.

It was…

Overwhelming.

So overwhelming that Cheng Shi forgot entirely that he was still in [Order]’s courtroom, a defendant on the verge of execution!

The [Divine Pillar] didn’t leave after scattering the lightning. It whipped through the air, the friction with the life force around it producing maddening whispers.

“I—have come—because I—keep my—promises—”

Hearing the voice of [Birth], Cheng Shi’s face flushed, and he instinctively crouched down in reverence.

The judge’s chair, upon hearing the voice’s warning, fell silent for a long time. A deep voice finally echoed:

“Dismissed…”

The courtroom scene dissolved like a receding tide, and as Cheng Shi’s vision blurred, his consciousness once again plunged into darkness.

…

Meanwhile, another trial was taking place.

The same towering judge’s chair, and the same defendant’s seat.

The mighty voice echoed once more, each word reverberating with authority that filled the courtroom.

“[Order] above, the judgment begins!

Do you admit to desecrating [Order] more than once during this trial?”

Hu Wei, seated in the defendant’s chair, chuckled nonchalantly.

“Admit it.”

As he spoke, a thunderous sound of [Chaos] rose from beneath his feet. The sound was like the wailing of flames and the clashing of iron, stretching endlessly like an unrelenting tide.

The chaotic noise lifted Hu Wei higher and higher, until he was looking down on the judge’s chair itself. He laughed heartily, leaping off and stomping the seat beneath his feet. Now in control, he sneered:

“[Order] below, how do you dare to judge?

Why don’t I ask you instead?

Do you admit that you’ve fabricated order more than once during this trial?”

The judge’s chair trembled, trying to resist, but it couldn’t move a single inch.

After a long pause, the once-authoritative voice lost its power.

“Dismissed…”

…

At the same time, a third trial was taking place.

“[Order] above, the judgment begins!

Do you admit to desecrating [Order] more than once during this trial?”

Bai Fei said nothing, coldly staring at the judge’s seat, before a force from [Abyss] pulled her away.

As the defendant vanished, the judge let out a helpless sigh:

“Dismissed…”

…

A fourth trial.

“[Order] above, the judgment begins!

You have never broken [Order] during this trial, and you shall receive His reward…”

…

A fifth trial.

“[Order] above, the judgment begins!

Do you admit to desecrating [Order] more than once during this trial?”

“I admit—I admit everything, I confess, I admit it all!”

“The defendant makes no defense and wholeheartedly confesses. Considering the minor nature of the blasphemous acts, after careful consideration, the sentence is…

One hundred lashes!”

BANG—

As the final gavel struck, the courtroom was immediately filled with the harsh sound of whips and… the gleeful cries of “ah~ ah~” resounding one after another.

…

[Wishing Trial (Unlicensed Crime [Order]) Challenge Cleared]

[Evaluating performance and calculating rewards…]

[Player: Cheng Shi, Performance Score: C]

[Reward Item: Mask of Wrath (S) x1]

[Reward Item: Mask of Disgust (S) x1]

[Reward Item: Mask of Failure (B) x1]

[Reward Item: Mask of Obscurity (C) x2]

[Path to Godhood -17]

[Ladder of Ascent +3]

[Current Path to Godhood Score: 2139, Global Rank: 450008]

[Current Ladder of Ascent Score: 169, Fate Path Rank: 57]

[Trial cleared. Exiting soon…]

And then…

[Wishing Trial (The Pearl in the Crown of Truth [Chaos]) Challenge Cleared]

[Evaluating performance and calculating rewards…]

[Player: Cheng Shi, Performance Score: S]

[Reward Item: Mask of Forgetfulness (S) x4]

[Path to Godhood +17]

[Ladder of Ascent -3]

[Current Path to Godhood Score: 2156, Global Rank: 442351]

[Current Ladder of Ascent Score: 166, Fate Path Rank: 61]

[Trial cleared. Exiting soon…]