Secret World: I Became a God Through Lies

Chapter 174: The White King's Lonely Game
"Fate has given you an unfair game of chess, and you must place your moves on the board with your life."

In the center of Haicheng, the empty corridors were silent, like a temple forgotten in the abyss of time.

There is no wind, no ripples here, only white and black grids spread out like stone tablets, constructing a maze of fate and a silent massacre.

Siming stood at the edge of the chessboard, a pure white king's mark slowly emerged in his palm, the mark was like a heartbeat,
It pulsed between his finger bones, as if to forcibly bind him to this distorted order.

He stood straight, silent as a monument. Beside him, Celia paced quietly, her shoulders and neck exposed.

Deep red blood veins flowed across the skin like strong liquor, each line like a flower about to bloom before hunting.

She sniffed the air, squinting at the thick fog ahead, her tone brisk yet with a hint of wildness: "Master, this game... is getting interesting."

Sima Ming did not respond, but just sighed softly and pulled out a deck of black and gold playing cards from his sleeve. That was his curse tool, "Elegy of the Fateful Gambler".

He placed the card on his left arm, the dark gold light lurking beneath his skin, as if it could explode at any moment.

The cards in his hand are extremely limited—his life lines are not yet full, but his sanity is more than half burned.

More importantly, this was his first time to be the initiator in a battle where the rules were completely controlled by the enemy.

"It's a trap," he muttered.

Irostia stood at the other end of the chessboard, his figure obscured by the thick fog, only his torn black and white cloak floating in the mist could be vaguely seen.
The mask rotated like a three-phase wheel, and whispers seemed to echo simultaneously from the sky, the center of the earth, and even from his own mind:
"You feel unfair? Then you see the world clearly."

"Fate is never fair."

"Aren't you used to it by now, weaver of fate?"

——In the first round, Black goes first.

The fog moves.

With a slight sound, a figure suddenly leaped up from the mist. Its trajectory was strange, it jumped four squares diagonally and rushed straight to Celian's left.

The shadow twisted and slid down like a folded paper man. The blade had not yet arrived, but the murderous intent was already there.

"Knight." Sima Ming made an instant judgment.

Celian reacted extremely quickly, whipping the air with a whip, and blood flashed like a blade.

The blood whip exploded in the air, hitting the attacker's chest with a substantial muffled sound.

Blood mist spread in the air, her pupils turned red, and a cruel smile appeared at the corner of her lips.

"Great, finally I can kill something."

But before her smile faded, another figure quietly emerged from behind her - this time it came from the angle of the "Queen's Diagonal", and its target was Sima Ming!
Dislocation attack!

"Get out of the way!" she shouted.

Siming turned lightly, held the playing cards in his right hand, drew out a 9 of spades, and condensed a sharp wind from his fingertips, giving it the "cutting" attribute.

He flicked his wrist and a wind blade shot out, forcing the attacking shadow back half a step.

He finally saw clearly that the other person's face was blurred, but he was wearing a tattered military uniform, holding a chess soldier's long sword in his hand, and his epaulettes were marked with the emblem of an "elephant".

"The rules are messed up." Sima Ming whispered.

"This is the most terrifying thing about him." Celian frowned, and the blood whip gently wrapped around her wrist.

"For every enemy, you have to wait until he stabs you with his own hands before you can confirm who he is."

There was anger in her tone, but also a strong sense of unease.

No matter how powerful she is, she cannot suppress an unverified enemy.

And that fog is Irostia's most ingenious chess game.

"He can act with any of the pieces." Sima Ming murmured.

"If he says: 'This is a knight,' it is a knight."

"And until you verify it, you—can't question anything."

Irostia's voice emerged again from the thick fog, like a piece of white paper torn from a dream, slowly burning:
"White King, it's your turn."

"Please...make your move."

Sima Ming did not move.

His steps were as still as a monument. It was neither cowardice nor waiting, but his instinctive choice as a gambler - giving up the initiative and waiting for the false situation to reveal a flaw.

He had long understood that on Irostia's chessboard, taking the initiative was a bait, and he had to use silence to buy himself a chance to "ask back."

He slowly pulled out the second card, his fingertips trembling slightly, and the edge of the playing card glowed with a faint blue light.

Diamond J - Illusion.

He flicked the card silently, and the energy fluctuations seemed to be dissolved into the cracks of the chessboard.

The "card" slowly emerged in a square on his left, transforming into the shadow of a white soldier, standing still, as if it had been there since birth.

Irostia's voice slowly rose from the fog, ethereal but filled with a biting mockery.

"Are you spreading lies?"

He chuckled, his tone carrying a hint of indifference and judgment. "Look at this card of yours... It's not the mystery of existence, but a deception. There's no interpretation of fate, only a false illusion." He declared, "Counter-questioning verdict—failed."

In an instant, a star on the fate star map fell and dimmed.

Siming's chest suddenly shook, as if a mighty force had crushed his internal organs from within. He half-knelt on the ground.
Cold sweat streamed down his forehead, and his lungs felt a sharp burning pain, as if they were being torn apart by the Origin of Blankness itself.

——The sobriety value is reduced by ten.

But that phantom soldier still stood on the grid.

Irostia's Black Elephant paused, hesitating for a second. The energy surge at the edge of the chessboard stagnated slightly.

Sima Ming raised his head, a tired and sarcastic smile appearing on the corner of his mouth.

"It worked." He whispered under his breath, "You... are afraid of me."

At this moment, Celian was caught in the melee.

Three black pieces have already surrounded her position, encircling her like a net, one of which is confirmed to be an "elephant".
The other one released a blast of flames, forming a flaming formation that blocked her path of movement.

She gritted her teeth and shouted, "Master, I demand liberation!"

"I allow you." Siming's voice was hoarse but firm, "Celian - use all your strength."

Reason changes, and the destiny star ignites!

——Life system·High-level secret activated!

Vampire Monarch form, unlocked!

In an instant, Celian's body was surrounded by blood flames, dark red blood lines appeared on her skin, and blood wings spread out behind her. The blood was like a raging tide, sweeping across the entire battlefield.

She growled and rose taller, like a throne hunter who had fallen into the depths of a nightmare.

His arms had transformed into two flowing blood blades, spinning and sweeping like a storm.

She wields her blade like the wind!
The two black chess pieces exploded on the spot, blood mist splattered everywhere, and the last one retreated three squares in an instant. The light and shadow became unstable, and the field judgment temporarily collapsed.

Celian stood in the afterimage, her pupils turning into crimson swirls. She licked her lips and murmured with a smile, "Master, you are right... I alone am enough to slaughter the entire place."

Siming smiled: "But you are not alone."

He turned around slowly.

"You are my—Queen."

The chessboard trembled and the rules fluctuated like waves.

The White King makes a move and moves forward one square.

Field prompt starts: "Who are you?"

Siming raised his head and looked at the invisible master in the sky, his gaze piercing through the sea of ​​fog and penetrating the chessboard.

"I am the one who makes the moves of fate," he said word by word, "and also—a chess player who refuses to sleep."

Irostia was silent for a moment, as if these words had pierced something deep within her.

He spoke, his voice sometimes deep, sometimes frantic:
"Queen Slash - Attack the White King."

The next moment, a shadow suddenly appeared and rushed from the other side of the chessboard at an extremely fast speed, like lightning in a nightmare, heading straight for Siming's chest!

Crisis is coming!

Sima Ming's expression remained unchanged. He suddenly pulled out a poker card with his right hand and threw it lightly!
——The King of Hearts!

Flames exploded!

A ball of dark flames rose from Siming's body, instantly igniting the attacking shadow.

With a sharp scream, it was burned to ashes in the air the moment it approached!

The actual chess judgment was passed and the kill was valid!

Sima Ming slowly raised his head, and a sharp look was revealed between his brows.

Irostia roared for the first time, the three masks twisted and deformed, and the sound waves were like the shattered universe overturning:

"You only have one king! You don't even have a pawn! What right do you have to question the chess game!"

Siming took back the card and smiled slightly:
"It's not the chess game that I'm questioning."

"It's what you mean."

He turned around and looked at Celian behind him:

"Next turn—attack."

The blood wings spread, and the hunt began. The chess game was just beginning to change.

"The chessboard is invisible, fate is unpredictable. Only the wise can discern opportunities for victory amidst the chaos."

(End of this chapter)