"No, no," Su Cheng quickly spoke up, "I didn't get a clear look at his face either! I hesitated to say anything because that experience was a bit awkward."
"...Hmm?" The blond man's expression cleared slightly. "Is that so?"
"Yes, I just looked at him, well, his body, and he got extremely angry and started threatening me."
Su Cheng spread her hands. "Plus, his face was hidden in the light, so I couldn't see it clearly anyway. I only remember his statue, but there is definitely a difference between a statue and the real person. If I were to compare his statue to you, of course, you are far more beautiful."
The blond man laughed again. "He threatened you?"
This guy's mood changed way too fast.
Su Cheng silently grumbled in her heart. "Yeah, saying things like I wouldn't be able to keep my eyes if I kept staring at him. But putting everything else aside, any ordinary person who sees a god appear, no matter what that god looks like, would stare, right?"
The blond man looked at her thoughtfully. "...True. Is this why you felt awkward?"
"Not exactly," Su Cheng said with a headache. "I'm not a believer of the Church, and neither is my family, so I don't know much about the gods over there. I didn't know that horse, ahem, unicorn, and he were actually the same entity. Then, when we met, there happened to be a unicorn statue there. Of course, as you might know, it wasn't a coincidence, but a location deliberately chosen by His Highness the God of Lust. Anyway, I thought that statue looked really nice, so I told him to stop threatening me and that I would rather touch that horse—"
"Hahahahahahahaha—"
The blond man on the couch burst into laughter, seemingly finding this incredibly amusing. "I don't care what that idiot Luxara did, but did you really say that?"
Su Cheng nodded vigorously. "I forgot the exact words, but that was the general idea."
"Ah," he smiled even more happily. "Then I understand what you mean. But there's no need to be embarrassed, it's quite normal. The gait of lions and tigers is always more elegant than that of a parading noble, and the scaled wings of butterflies are always more vibrant than the most beautiful silk—"
Su Cheng could not help but show a look of agreement.
"This is the true essence of existence," he said lazily. "Human evaluation of beauty is influenced by many factors: culture, group norms, self-awareness, and those foolish identity anxieties. Or perhaps, due to a resistance against certain symbolic labels, they deny all aesthetic values associated with them. Hah, how ridiculous—"
The blond man slightly drew out his tone. "As for animals, or magical beasts, or creatures that differ too much from humans, they can break free from these constraints. You can better focus on existence itself. Their forms are the truth of survival, the manifestation of laws in flesh and blood. When these are presented in your eyes without any concealment, you can experience a primal harmony, an uncarved reality. If you ask me, I also think that horse is much more decent."
Su Cheng: "..."
Su Cheng suppressed the weird feeling in her heart.
She actually agreed very much with what he said, and even thought he was remarkably good at summarizing.
For now, this guy seemed to be at least a little reasonable, as if he could carry on a normal conversation.
But—
She hadn't forgotten how his face had suddenly changed just moments ago.
If he were a god, with such an appearance and such a fondness for comparing his looks with others, then he could only be the God of Jealousy.
Su Cheng felt a headache coming on just thinking about it.
She was just washing her hands by the lake a moment ago and suddenly appeared here; obviously, this was done intentionally by the other party.
No.
Use your brain.
Su Cheng carefully recalled the moment she was dragged into the palace, and then tried to mobilize her senses to capture everything around her.
She could indeed "see" the god's picturesque figure, "hear" his melodious voice like a heavenly poem, and "smell" the faint, sweet incense of flowers and fruits.
But the feeling the God of Lust gave her, from all the delicate touches to those surging pleasures, was just as realistic and vivid, yet still fake.
However—
No matter what the situation was right now, as long as the other party was the God of Jealousy, she had to be careful.
This person was temperamental and fickle. He could be smiling at you one second and delivering a lethal blow the next.
She couldn't be deceived by appearances and truly relax. Otherwise, if she said the wrong thing, her soul might shatter right on the spot.
"...He is still so hypocritical and pretentious."
The blond man let out a soft sneer. "Even the beasts in the mountains and the insects in the mud have the instinct to breed and mate. Humans are nothing more than slightly smarter animals—"
Su Cheng snapped back to reality and looked at him in surprise.
The blond man said indifferently, "He cannot even tolerate a trace of mortal desire, yet he is fit to sit upon a divine throne?"
Su Cheng: "..."
She really didn't expect him to mock from this angle.
"What," the blond man glanced at her, "do you disagree?"
"Actually," Su Cheng hesitated before speaking, "I was thinking about myself. If I was walking down the street wearing clothes I liked, I guess I'd be quite happy to be looked at. But if I fell in the mud and got covered in dirt, and people stared at me, even though I wouldn't say anything, I probably wouldn't be very happy about it in my heart."
The blond man stared at her for a few seconds and suddenly started laughing again. "Hahahahahahahaha, you are right!"
He seemed to be pleased once again, his expression particularly satisfied. "Only rotting meat fears flies. What he dares not face is exactly what he fears."
Su Cheng blinked. "Um... although I don't know him, but looking at you, you don't mind being looked at. You must know that your beauty is unparalleled in the world, and no one can tear their eyes away, and you are very open about this."
Obviously, he was quite happy about it too.
She thought silently.
The blond man chuckled softly, seemingly very satisfied with this statement. "I am not the kind of person who hides filth in his heart. He was clearly once a human himself, yet he still has to put on that kind of act."
He said with a look of disgust, not wanting to say more on this topic. "Furthermore, if you were the kind of person he hates the most, you would have become Luxara's favored one long ago."
Su Cheng could not help but perk up, wanting to take the opportunity to figure out the God of Lust's rules for choosing people.
Although she felt she had already guessed a bit, it might not be the whole picture.
She wasn't too afraid that the God of Jealousy would choose her as his favored one, because she probably didn't have any "aptitude" in this area.
Su Cheng: "...Are you talking about people who disregard everything in pursuit of physical pleasure?"
"That is only one aspect," the blond man looked at her with interest. "Whether it is physical copulation or the tasting of delicacies, any sensory pleasure should not become the anchor of your existence, otherwise it is just treating the reflection in the cup as the true moon. It is true that some alcoholics catch a glimpse of poetic lines in their stupor and compose poems in their intoxication, but most people will only drown in the abyss of desire."
Su Cheng: "?"
Is this some kind of paradox of desire from an existentialist perspective?
Su Cheng looked at him in confusion.
The blond man blinked at her, as if giving some kind of hint.
A moment later, she realized he was answering her question about the authority of gods and the selection of their favored ones. Perhaps due to some rule, he couldn't answer directly.
Or perhaps he just liked speaking in riddles.
Su Cheng carefully pondered his words and seemed to vaguely understand a little.
She couldn't help but remember that the God of Lust and Filth was said to be the weakest of the Seven Gods, and in the original novel, "her" relationship with the others didn't seem very good either.
Of course, none of these seven were easy to deal with, so their interactions with each other were never exactly harmonious or friendly to begin with.
Su Cheng hesitated to speak.
She felt that the god in front of her was full of triggers; she might accidentally say the wrong thing and anger him.
Su Cheng: "...Is there one among your colleagues who really loves to eat? I'm curious if she enjoys the taste of gourmet food, or if she just purely likes eating? Is she a picky diner who becomes obsessed once she finds something to her taste, or the type who refuses nothing?"
The blond man raised an eyebrow slightly. "I'm also curious why you used a feminine pronoun. 'She'?"
Su Cheng: "..."
It was all the original novel's fault.
Su Cheng: "I didn't know the gender of that Highness before they died, I was just guessing."
The blond man scoffed dismissively. "It doesn't matter anyway. We aren't human anymore. Our true forms are already... a certain concept. Whether it's a human body or some other form, the manifestation is merely the physical embodiment of power. It doesn't mean much."
He seemed to want to say something else, but stopped himself. "Do you know my past?"
Su Cheng really didn't want to face this topic. "I've read a little of what the bards wrote, but I don't think it's very realistic."
"Oh?" The blond man cast a light glance at her. "You don't believe someone could be so vicious as to do those things?"
Su Cheng quickly shook her head. "It's not because of that. For one thing, I know many similar works are influenced by rumors and legends, and I've always felt those things are easily distorted as they spread. On the other hand, seeing you in person, to be honest, I can't imagine anyone being more beautiful than you, let alone so beautiful that it would make you uncomfortable—"
These words might sound incredibly flattering, and she indeed had the intention of complimenting him to save her own life.
But it was also genuine.
Because with his flawless, breathtakingly stunning face, she simply couldn't believe there was any man in the world whose looks he could be jealous of!
The blond man looked at her quietly for a few seconds, then suddenly curled the corners of his lips.
"Hahahahahaha—"
He looked genuinely pleased, laughing so hard that he trembled. The pendants by his ears shook rustlingly, and the swaying chains collided, making a faint friction sound.
"Have you never thought—"
After a long while, he stopped, slowly turning the ring on his finger. The silver chain looping over the back of his hand rustled, vibrating against his clearly defined bones and tendons.
"That perhaps I wasn't born looking like this?"
The blond man said with great interest, "Moreover, the vast majority of humans cannot resist divine corruption. Whether it's having their sanity affected by the power of a god's authority, or having a forced attraction imposed on them at a cognitive level. If I weren't a god, your feelings upon seeing me like this would be different from what they are now."
Su Cheng: "...Then I really haven't thought about it. My mind is full of how beautiful you are, I don't have time to think about anything else."
"Is that so," he gave a light sneer. "Your mind should be full of how not to offend me and how to survive, right?"
Su Cheng: "......Not at all. I'm just a kid not even twenty years old. I know you definitely wouldn't hold a grudge against an ignorant and childish human like me."
"Is that so," the blond man raised an eyebrow slightly. "I've never been known for being magnanimous. In fact, compared to my colleagues, people think I'm the most petty one."
Su Cheng shook her head frantically. "No, no, otherwise I would have died last month."
He was taken aback instead. "Why?"
Su Cheng: "?"
Su Cheng instantly relaxed a bit. "I thought... it was because Count Gauler died, and you were unhappy, so you brought me here."
The blond man looked at her in bafflement. "What is that?"
Su Cheng blinked. "Some noble who cooperated with an organization claiming to be your believers. Her son and I had a bit of a disagreement, then the conflict escalated, and she died. Of course, I also had a hand in that outcome."
The blond man frowned slightly, seemingly very impatient with hearing about these trivial matters, and he didn't look interested either.
"My believers?" He sneered. "Those people are very stupid. I haven't communicated with them in many years."
Su Cheng couldn't help but be a little curious. "I heard they can somehow... obtain your power through certain channels? Doesn't that require your approval?"
"Not necessarily. Certain actions and rituals that replicate the essence of divinity can indeed allow people to directly obtain blessings, without the will of the god."
Although if the god was dissatisfied, they could take it back at any time.
But in his current state, he obviously couldn't be bothered to care.
Su Cheng was speechless for a moment. "Since it's not because of that, may I ask why you, um, gave me this opportunity to meet you?"
"I just heard some interesting rumors."
The blond man propped one arm on the armrest of the couch, resting his face in his palm, and looked at her lazily. "One of my colleagues got beaten up because of you."
Su Cheng: "?"
Was he talking about the God of Lust and Filth?
He was chased back by the God of Purity at that time, right?
Perhaps in a dimension she couldn't perceive, the two of them had already fought?
There was a clear gap in their combat power. In a one-on-one fight, the God of Lust and Filth would definitely lose, so it counted as getting beaten up?
However—
Judging from the reaction of the one in front of her, he was probably just enjoying the show. He definitely wouldn't want to stand up for his colleague; he was likely just gloating.
Su Cheng: "Even so, it wasn't really because of me. I mean, the person who beat him up wasn't trying to vent my anger for me. That person actually finds me quite annoying."
The blond man looked at her noncommittally, then suddenly beckoned to her.
At that moment, the air in the hall seemed to become viscous, and the speed of the entire world seemed to slow down.
It was like falling into a slowly flowing dream.
Su Cheng instinctively walked closer, until her knees touched the edge of the jade couch. The sudden spread of coldness and a faint pain awakened her.
"Your Highness?"
Those dark green eyes were like two clusters of unextinguishable foxfire, reflecting her bewildered face.
They were close at hand.
Su Cheng only felt her wrist tighten, and she was pulled to half-kneel on the couch, one hand propped by his ear.
The blond man looked up at her. His soul-stirring beauty appeared even more breathtaking due to the suddenly shortened distance.
His hair snaked among the dark green jade, like countless serpents swimming in the morning light, and large patches of skin were exposed through his open robe.
"When I was human, this is exactly what I looked like."
He said softly.
Su Cheng nodded vigorously. "I think so too."
"Hmm? You think so too?"
"I read it in that poem. The author said that for His Excellency, the Grand Master of Ceremonies who serves the darkness, blond hair is a crown, and his eyes are malachite..."
Su Cheng stammered as she repeated the verse. "Before you all ascended to godhood, you were all high-ranking members of the Secret Cult of the Eternal Night. So this is talking about your time in the cult, right?"
He looked at her with an unreadable expression. "Didn't you say you didn't believe in poetry? Now you do? And I don't think those were the exact words of that poem, were they?"
Su Cheng gave a dry laugh. "Poetry is just stuffed with all sorts of messy rhetoric to make it rhyme, isn't it? We just need to strip away those decorative clauses and leave the subject, verb, and object."
The blond man stared at her in silence. A few seconds later, he suddenly pushed her away.
Caught off guard, Su Cheng fell backward.
Then she found herself sitting by the lake, her hands pressing into the damp, slippery grass. Ripples spread across the surface of the water in expanding circles, shattering the silent moonlight.
On the opposite shore, the dragon-eagles had drunk their fill and were preening each other's feathers, occasionally exchanging playful pecks.
The sky had turned completely dark, making the other figures indistinguishable in the night.
"...Speaking of which."
Sasha stood by a tree with his arms crossed, watching the girl on the opposite shore who looked as if she had just woken from a dream, before turning to look at the commander of the mercenary group.
"Why were you gone for so long earlier? I mean at Miselos."
"Hmm?" Kai also withdrew his gaze. "I had a fight with that guy."
"...The one in the illusion?" Sasha was a little surprised. "Wasn't that just a clone meant to test swordsmanship? Couldn't you have just exchanged a few blows and passed?"
"It was linked to his true body," the black-haired man said casually. "I was a bit curious about his skills."
"How did it feel?"
"For a human of his age, it was alright."
...
Meanwhile.
In a distant and ancient plane—
Among shattered mountains suspended in the eternal night, inside a hall hanging high in the void like a floating island, a heavy and oppressive aura flowed through the air.
Dark debris spiraled like ash, falling into the obsidian hall that flickered with dim flames.
The furnace in the very center was winding with tree-ring-like patterns. The dark red light surging in its core flickered uncertainly, and every ebb and flow of the heatwaves stirred ripples in space.
At the opening directly above the furnace, where a chimney should have been, a gaping rift connected to the void, occasionally spewing out streams of dark energy.
Someone stood in the majestic and empty hall, gazing at the slightly vibrating blast furnace, his tall and slender figure outlined by the firelight.
The flickering firelight glided across curly hair as black as night, only to be quickly swallowed by that pure darkness.
"...Your Eminence."
Another person appeared at the entrance, stepping elegantly into the grand hall.
The man's frost-white silver hair fell behind his back. When he spoke, his voice was deep and beautiful, his pronunciation carrying a certain rhythm.
"He has awakened."
"I felt it," the person in the hall tilted his head slightly. "He destroyed your projection. Why? Did you anger him?"
"...I merely told him that his companion is quite talented in swordsmanship."
"Oh?"
"Then he said she prefers greatswords," the silver-haired man stated lightly. "I quickly sensed his power."
"You are injured," the person inside said calmly. "...Once he fully recovers, it will be more than just this."
Receiving no further instructions, the silver-haired man quietly withdrew from the hall.
On the steps outside, a person leaned against a pillar, watching him thoughtfully.
"Oh, Lord Grand Master, ever since you were cursed by that guy, this is the first time I've sensed you in such a terrible state."
The person said with a smile, a hint of amusement appearing on his exquisitely handsome and striking face, while the golden threads fracturing around the outer edges of his pupils slowly rotated.
The silver-haired man cast a cold glance at him. "If I were you, I would feel ashamed of myself, Luxara. The wounds Cessia left on you have yet to dissipate. A thousand years have passed, and you are still just as fragile."
"Of course you aren't me. After all, you are the noble Lord, fighting to the very last moment to protect your territory."
The person curled his lips. "While I am just an idiot who was evaluated from the very beginning as having inferior talent, unworthy of your wasted time."
"Every single thing you do now, every hopeless failure, every pathetic escape—"
The silver-haired man sneered, "They all prove that my evaluation was correct."
"Say what you will," the person shrugged. "That good student you favor actually likes me quite a bit."
"She is merely blinded by your despicable tricks."
"Oh, is that so? Some people don't even dare to leave their names, only playing the part of a pathetic wretch fading into history. Yes, I am talking about you—"
"You!"
Their words came to an abrupt halt.
"...Get out of this plane."
A cold and melancholy voice echoed from within the hall.
Without a moment's hesitation, the two figures outside instantly vanished.
