Game of Deception Chapter 30: Promotion Ritual, Cleared!

Ming Po's three consecutive sentences plunged Chang Ning into silence.

"Heh..."

Ming Po smiled, a look of pity in his eyes. "So that is how it is. You changed the past, but it seems she didn't want you to change all of this."

"...No, it's not like that!"

Chang Ning roared, swinging the steel pipe wildly at Ming Po. He howled as if venting his frustrations, resembling a monster that had lost all reason. "You don't understand anything!

"The first ti I went back... I did fail! I killed that man, but... I thought the problem started even earlier, so I went back a second ti, back to an even earlier past—"

—Clang!

The steel pipe swung out, smashing into the ground. It swung again, shattering a television behind Ming Po.

The steel pipe narrowly missed Ming Po.

"—And then you killed him?"

His voice was low. "You created an orphan... is that right?"

Ming Po swung his right hand toward Chang Ning's chin again—but this ti, Chang Ning, having anticipated the move, reached out and blocked it.

Chang Ning grabbed it and squeezed, snapping Ming Po's right hand!

Then, with a forceful kick, he sent Ming Po flying.

He still did not deal a lethal blow.

Because rather than killing this promoted participant, Chang Ning wanted to vent.

Perhaps it was because he instinctively realized—

This might be the only, the last... person who could understand him.

"I am not wrong."

Chang Ning's voice was incredibly stubborn. "Although she lost her father, she survived at least!

"It's just a slightly harder life! Even the most despair-filled life is better than death—tell , which is better!"

"...What do you think?"

Ming Po, slowly picking himself up, rely asked softly in return, "When you were one of the Wronged Dead, how did you die? And why are you here now?"

Seeing that Chang Ning did not answer, he mimicked the other man's tone, speaking with dramatic cadence: "'To be, or not to be? That is the question.'

"—Didn't you design this death ga yourself?

"Don't you know the answer perfectly well yourself?"

But unexpectedly, Chang Ning did not break down from this.

He did not launch another attack either. Instead, his entire being quieted down.

"...I am here because I no longer exist."

Chang Ning said sarcastically, "When the ordinary person 'Chang Ning' survived, the who was a Deceiver of the World died. My only regret is that I didn't actually make Gu Tao participate in this ga... make him repent. If he could have repented and beco a good father, he wouldn't have had to die.

"But unfortunately... as a living person, he couldn't participate in my ga. I heard that higher-level Deceivers of the World can pull living people in, but I couldn't reach that high...

"I did change the past... changed a past far enough back.

"Although Ke'er beca an orphan because of , and although my past self beca a juvenile delinquent because of murder... the reason for falling in love with her is gone. The probability of her hating , however, exists.

"I had no chance to attend the training, and neither did she. From then on, our lives are two non-intersecting parallel lines... The future has already changed. The future will no longer hold on to such an obsession to beco a Deceiver of the World, and therefore cannot participate in the ga and change the past.

"The possibility of becoming a 'Deceiver of the World' has already been changed by . I won't die, and neither will she."

"Grandfather paradox," Ming Po said with absolute certainty.

If a person went back in ti and killed their young grandfather... then without the grandfather, there would be no father, and without the father, there would be no them. So who went back in ti and killed the grandfather?

Ming Po had considered this question before—if a person went back to a past far enough away, even an hour's ti could change a distant future.

The simplest example was sending lottery or sports betting information back to the past.

But in that case, one might strike it rich. Yet if they struck it rich, their future self might not necessarily die, much less die harboring a deep obsession.

...Is this what they ant by "changing the past, then resurrecting"?

Ming Po had known before that if one's identity was discovered, they might be targeted by a doxxing strike, then resurrect and lose their Deceiver Authority to participate in the Ga of Deception. But now he finally knew what happened to Deceivers of the World after that.

"Because you ceased to exist... you can only remain in your own Mind Palace?" Ming Po murmured. "Are all the other Promotion rituals like this too?"

The Promotion ga they had cleared was entering soone else's Mind Palace.

That was why Chang Ning could manifest certain things here.

Because in a sense, this was his Domain... his dream.

"At least the ones I've participated in were."

Chang Ning's voice was low. "So, I knew I would die by doing this—that's why I did it."

"...It seems this is a mandatory lesson. To show every Deceiver of the World the danger of casually altering their own past." Ming Po shook his head. "Then I have no more questions."

"What, do you still want to live?" Chang Ning's smile was complex. "Then beg . Maybe I'll let you go."

"Ha..."

"What are you laughing at? I'm serious! I never lie—"

Seeing Ming Po laugh, Chang Ning actually grew anxious. "There's no point in killing you! I already advised you to stop participating in the Ga of Deception... This is an endless cycle of suffering! Everyone is dood to be trapped here for lifetis! Living in ignorance is actually a kind of blessing..."

"Ah, I believe you are serious." Ming Po simply nodded. He raised his completely deford right hand, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly.

He walked forward slowly.

His steps were slow, yet they carried a ghost-like oppressive force.

"...But your right hand is completely ruined! Are you still going to fight even like this?" Watching Ming Po slowly approach, Chang Ning actually retreated half a step in fear. "Besides... you already cleared the ga before! Why did you insist on coming to !"

He now possessed superhero-like strength—albeit of the bottom-tier variety. But the strength to casually toss objects weighing tens of kilograms like baseballs was enough to fight ten n at once.

However, his mind had still not grown enough.

It was as if... he was still that quiet, inferior student. And the man slowly walking toward him right now was his teacher.

"Speaking of which," Ming Po said suddenly, "I'm guessing... you've definitely never read Frankenstein, have you?"

"...Why do you say that?"

"Because, the na 'Frankenstein'..."

As Ming Po spoke, a dim yellow fla suddenly ignited in his pupils. His back hunched over, his expression suddenly turning ferocious to the point of distortion, saliva dripping down.

He bent over abruptly, his spine like a spring! He dashed forward, dodging left and right like lightning—the two changes in direction were like a basketball crossover, shaking Chang Ning so badly he lost his balance.

His cobbled-together body was uncoordinated to begin with, and in this situation, he almost fell over. Yet even under these circumstances, he instinctively reached out with his left arm and accurately grabbed Ming Po's right wrist!

—Squelch.

But right at that mont, a muffled sound rang out. Unbearable agony struck from his right chest, and Chang Ning curled up in pain.

He wanted to shout, but pink foam bubbled out when he opened his mouth. A red halo ignited at the bottom of his pupils—the on of his Title ability activating.

However, it was already too late.

The next mont, Ming Po's knife-wielding left hand viciously stabbed toward his neck. It pierced upward from the chin, then thrust right through his right eye.

As he cried out in pain, clutching his throat and then his eye, Chang Ning's left hand violently punched Ming Po! Ming Po's spine let out a crisp crack of fracturing bone, yet he acted as if he hadn't felt it at all, tackling Chang Ning directly to the ground!

The pain only further activated his wild nature. He held the knife in his left hand and pinned down the wrist with his right. Three stabs a second, plunging downward relentlessly!

The eyes, the throat, the mouth— Then he pinned the head down and drove the knife right through the temple!

And just as Ming Po was about to bite through the other man's throat, a mont before he could chew flesh and drink blood, he seemingly triggered so underlying code and suddenly punched himself in the left cheek without warning.

After that single punch, Ming Po's eyes beca clear again. He swayed, getting up off the dying Chang Ning.

"...Contrary to popular misconception, 'Frankenstein' is actually not the na of the stitched-together monster. It's the na of the scientist who created him.

"That ugly monster had no na from the very beginning. Even after learning human language and knowledge, he didn't give himself one. He was rejected by society, attacked by people. And as he gradually grasped the concept of love and understood human nature from studying humanity, he even rescued a drowning girl... But because of his monstrous ugliness, he was never accepted.

"He longed for a female companion, and for this, he demanded a female monster from his creator, Frankenstein, a true mber of the opposite sex who could understand him. And his creator refused his demand.

"And so, the monster harbored a grudge. On Frankenstein's happiest wedding night, he killed Frankenstein's wife—the monster wanted to make him regret, wanted to make him suffer worse than death."

Ming Po whispered softly, "How could it be... such a coincidence. ...Is this your fate, 'Frankenstein'?"

[Promotion ritual, cleared]

[Difficulty: 3 Days]

[Deceiver Authority has been promoted. Current authority level is Day's False Gold]

[From now on, you may only participate in gas with a maximum reward of 1 Day's False Gold or higher]

[Reward obtained: Ti Chips - Day's False Gold (3 chips)]

[Hidden Mission completed—]

[Defeated Paradox - Frankenstein]

[You have obtained an additional reward]

[Evaluating...]

[Inheritance conditions t]

[You have inherited the Title - Frankenstein]

[Frankenstein (Strength - False Gold)]

[Equip Effect: You may ignore conditions to use your own or another's body parts to heal severed limbs]

[Use Effect: Take a body part from one person and give it to another; the provider must be alive, and the receiver must be willing. If the other party's abilities are related to this limb, their abilities can also be used; maximum power obtained is at the 'False Gold' level]

[This Title is an inherited Title and cannot be advanced]