Secret World: I Became a God Through Lies

Chapter 6: Welcome, Master of Mystery, Your Excellency Siming
The boundaries of dreams are blurred, illusory and deep, like an endless stage curtain slowly opening.

This time, the voice of the Thousand Faces was clearer than ever before. It was not the vague whispers like before.

Instead... she whispered in Siming's ear in a charming tone like a girl.

"Si Ming, you are so ruthless."

There was a hint of grievance and even a hint of coquettishness in her voice, as if she were a lover who had been neglected.

"I love you so much and care for you, why do you still refuse to listen to my whispers?"

Sima Ming frowned in his dream and wanted to refute, but the Thousand Faces Man didn't wait for him to speak and continued to chuckle and whisper.

"You think your acting is so good that the audience will applaud you during your curtain call..."

"But in reality, the audience's praise went to another her."

"She acted better than you, hid it deeper, and you never noticed it from beginning to end—

You are just a supporting role, and she is the real master of this drama."

"Poor rookie, if it weren't for my protection, you would have become the fourth prey."

Siming suddenly woke up, cold sweat sliding down his forehead, and his chest heaving violently.

The dream was shattered, and the laughter of the Thousand Faces echoed in the depths of my mind, lingering.

It was as if it was still beside his ear, slowly appreciating Sima Ming's confusion and uneasiness.

"……I lost."

Siming leaned on the shabby bed in the hotel, looking at the ceiling.
My mind raced as I reviewed everything that happened last night.

He finally realized that he had been played around by Natashava from the beginning to the end.

She was smarter and more dangerous than he had imagined.

Siming recalled the last scene - if he hadn't activated "Fate's Favor",
Then perhaps it wouldn't just be those card hunters who died.

"Natashava... She might even be planning to hunt me down as well."

This woman is not a prey that needs "luck" to escape.

But he is a hunter who has carefully planned his hunting plan.

And Leng Ji must know about it.

She definitely knew Natashava's plan, but she didn't tell him.

Siming should have been angry, but he quickly calmed down.

A self-deprecating smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

——This may be the "entrance examination" jointly given to him by Leng Ji and Natashava.

"The world of the Mystic is much more cruel than I imagined."

Siming sighed, washed his face, and sat back on the bed.

He turned on the bedside lamp, took out the "reward" that Natashava had casually thrown to him yesterday, and examined them carefully one by one.

Sima Ming picked up the first card first.

The card shows a monster with a goat's head and a human body, holding a burning iron whip.

The flames twisted slightly on the card surface, jumping like a living thing.

False Name: Messenger of Disaster, Messenger of Misfortune

Real Name: Hell's Postman, Disaster Notice

Entry: Holding the hellfire whip of disaster, he whips the news of misfortune into the world.

Siming narrowed his eyes, recalling that last night the card hunter had only said "disaster messenger".
This means that - the False Name does not require a complete call to summon a card.

"That's valuable information."

He turned the card over, pondering the properties of Hellfire Whip.

"Not only pure fire damage, but also the added effect of 'Misfortune'...?"

Sima Ming put it aside for the time being and picked up the second card.

This is a completely different style of card, depicting a scholar wearing ancient scholar's clothing.
Carrying a book box, he looked reserved and his eyes were wandering.

False name: A lost scholar who guides the lost into the ghost world
Real name: Zi Bu Yu, One Hundred Ghosts Parade at Night, Ghosts Not Human
——A mysterious card with a distinctly oriental flavor.

Siming narrowed his eyes and read its entry carefully:
Entry ①: The scholar is a human, not a ghost, wandering around his companions.
Don't expose it, don't wake it up, when the scholar "plays" a person, it is that person.

(The Lost Scholar acts as either a normal person or an arcane master, depending on the wielder's instructions and sanity cost.)
(It will not reveal any flaws, even if the character played is the enemy of the holder,

It will perform its role wholeheartedly, even to the point of forgetting it's a card, until the holder whispers its name again, and then it wakes up.
Entry ②: The scholar is a ghost, not a human. The awakened scholar peeled off its human skin.
Only blood shadows and countless painful faces were left, hiding in anyone's shadow, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

(When the scholar is awakened, it will transform into a demon, wandering through the shadows of the scene, waiting for an opportunity to launch a fatal attack.)
Sima Ming stared at the card and a smile slowly appeared on the corner of his mouth.

——This is a card that perfectly meets his needs.

"Playing the role of a real person...that even it can't detect?"

"Oh, I'm not the only one who has the identity of 'actor'."

Sima Ming placed the two cards side by side on the table, thinking about how to use them.

The Doombringer is a direct combat card. The combination of fire and misfortune has a strong suppressive power.

As for Lost Scholar...it is a card that is more suitable for controlling the situation.

He had a feeling that this card would become his trump card in the future.

Siming tapped the table lightly, and had already begun to outline a new plan in his mind.

"Natashava played a trick on me once... She thought she was the one in charge of the show."

"Then... next time it's my turn to write the script."

He must find a way to ensure that he is not just an "actor" in this play, but the master of the stage.

"The Thousand Faces..."

Siming slowly closed his eyes, and the whisper of the card seemed to appear in his ears again.

The girl's charming voice chuckled softly, full of teasing and doting.

"You finally want to hear my voice?"

The hometown of the returnees is still brightly lit, and the dim light and shadow sway in the liquid in the glass.

Leng Ji leaned against the bar, twirling a glass of wine in his hands, his usual playful smile on his face.

As Siming walked in, she chuckled and looked up at him.

"You're smarter than I thought. Could it be a habit from your previous career—a gambler?"

She shook her wine glass and asked meaningfully:

"Okay, Siming, what have you learned?"

Siming smiled slightly and did not answer directly. Instead, he pulled out a chair and sat down opposite her.

He picked up the wine glass on the bar and gently swirled the liquid inside, as if thinking seriously, before slowly speaking:
"Never underestimate any mystic."

He paused and looked directly at Leng Ji.

"Even if she pretends to be a wounded kitten."

"Right, Leng Ji? This is what you want to tell me."

Leng Ji put down his wine glass, the smile on his lips deepened, and he slowly clapped his hands.

"Congratulations, Siming."

"Now, you are a formal mystic."

Siming looked at her quietly, tapping the edge of the wine glass with his fingertips, and said with a smile:

"Leng Ji, have you been plotting against me from the beginning?"

Leng Ji raised his eyebrows slightly, seeming a little surprised by his straightforwardness.

"What do you mean?"

"For example...are you and Natashawa testing me or plotting against me?"

Leng Ji tilted her head and smiled easily and naturally, but Siming caught a hint of subtle consideration in her eyes.

Then, she said lightly:
"We are simply evaluating which of you and your card is more valuable to the world of the Mystics."

--Evaluate?
Siming's smile faded slightly, and his fingers tapping the wine glass stopped unconsciously.

This statement appears to be a summary of his ordeal, but in reality, it conceals a deeper meaning.

——They were not evaluating his ability, but rather measuring which was more valuable, him or his card.

Leng Ji, Natashava, and even more unknown mystics are actually coveting his cards.

It's not that they didn't take action, but they were considering whether it would be more valuable to let Sima Ming live and control this card.
Or would it be more valuable to change the owner of this card?
Siming's fingers tightened and his mind raced.

If one day they came to the conclusion that "Ka" was more important than him, then he...

Will they be dealt with so lightly like the card hunters last night?

"In the world of the Mystic, there's only exploitation and being exploited. And am I... the hand controlling the game, or just a pawn on the board?"

Siming was thinking in his heart, but still maintained a calm smile on his face.

He raised his glass slightly, touched Leng Ji's glass lightly, and said slowly:
"Then it seems that my current value... is pretty good?"

Leng Ji took a sip of wine, smiled lightly, and did not answer.

She just looked at him meaningfully, as if admiring a work that still had potential.

At this point in the conversation, Siming suddenly changed the subject.
He deliberately showed a distressed expression and looked at Leng Ji with some helplessness.

"Ms. Leng Ji, I've thought about it. What happened yesterday was indeed a bit... excessive."

Leng Ji raised an eyebrow, seeming a little surprised by his change of attitude.

She looked at him hesitantly, then smiled perfunctorily:
"Okay, I admit that I went a little too far yesterday."

"As compensation, I can tell you a piece of information, free of charge."

She tilted her head, smiled, and blinked.

"Just treat it as... the beginner's guide I gave you yesterday. Is this okay now?"

Siming raised the corners of his mouth slightly and nodded with satisfaction.

He did not waste this opportunity and directly asked the question that concerned him most.

"Sanity value, how do you see it?"

Leng Ji smiled lightly upon hearing this, with a hint of teasing in his tone.

"So you can be careless sometimes, Siming."

"So good at observing your opponent that you forget to observe yourself?"

She raised her chin and motioned him to look at her wrist.

"Look at your right wrist. Is there something extra?"

Si Ming raised his wrist as he was told and was stunned for a moment.

Only then did he notice that he had a tattoo on his wrist.

--wrong.

He has always been clean and never touched tattoos, but now... ?
Leng Ji gently shook his wine glass and said with a smile:

"Bingo. From the moment I recognized you as an official mystic, it belongs to you."

"Life pattern."

"Life pattern? What's the connection between it and sanity?"

Siming carefully observed the lines on his wrist. It was a complex pattern.

A mysterious magic circle formed a hexagram, with the six stars in the center faintly glowing.

Leng Ji stretched out his finger, tapped Siming's fate pattern, and slowly explained:
"The stars on your fate lines represent your sanity value."

"Your cards, whether they are secret cards or legacy cards,
Their star rating is actually hidden in the pattern on the back of the card. "When summoning, the number of stars on the fate pattern will light up according to the star rating of your card."

"If you light up more stars than the limit, you will be consumed by your card."

"This is the fate of the Mystic."

Siming frowned slightly and looked down at the three cards in his hand.

——The One with a Thousand Faces.

He looked carefully and found that its stars were hidden in the mist, appearing and disappearing... twelve of them.

——A lost scholar.

Clearly visible, three stars.

——The messenger of disaster.

One star.

Sima Ming gently stroked the card of the Thousand Faces, thinking in his heart.

"Twelve Stars... is far beyond my current capacity."

"Then, is the upper limit of the number of stars in the fate pattern fixed?" Siming looked up and asked.

Leng Ji smiled slightly and stretched out his wrist ostentatiously.

On her life pattern, seven stars were shining brightly. Unlike the hexagram of Sima Ming, her magic circle was the Seven Stars.

"of course not."

"The number of stars in the fate pattern will increase as the level of the mystic increases."

"With every upgrade, the arrangement of the magic circle will change."

"Look, I'm Qi Xing Yao. And you?"

She squinted her eyes and looked at Siming's fate lines, raising her eyebrows slightly.

"Six stars? Hexagram? Haha, what a promising newcomer."

Sima Ming breathed a sigh of relief.

——This means that one day he will be able to truly bring down the "Thousand Faces".

Is this lucky or unlucky?
Sima Ming cannot judge.

Siming played with the cards in his hand and said thoughtfully:

"Wherever there are people, there are rivers and lakes."

“Where there are interests, there are organizations.”

He raised his eyes and looked at Leng Ji with a hint of inquiry in his eyes.

"But aren't mystics supposed to be mercenary predators?"

"You guys...actually have your own organization?"

"How ironic."

Leng Ji smiled lightly, picked up the wine glass and took a sip, then said slowly:

"Who told you that mystics must fight on their own?"

"Compared to a lone hunter, a stable trading system

It will bring more long-term benefits than indiscriminate hunting of each other."

She raised her eyebrows slightly and looked at Siming, as if trying to see something from his eyes.

Siming nodded thoughtfully and suddenly asked:
"Leng Ji, you just mentioned 'certification'."

"So… you have the authority?"

Leng Ji was slightly stunned, then he chuckled and raised his hands to applaud lightly.

"Not bad, newbie."

"You got into the groove quicker than I thought."

She put down her glass, stood up straight, tapped her fingers lightly on the bar, and then spoke slowly:
"Now that you are an official mystic, it's time for you to know some things."

"The Guild of Mystics."

Leng Ji uttered the name, and Siming narrowed his eyes slightly, listening quietly to her explanation.

"An organization that exists only among mystics."

"Anyone who becomes a secret master is eligible to join."

"The guild is responsible for exchanging intelligence, trading cards, and issuing 'Gate Quests'."

Leng Ji paused, a subtle smile appearing on the corner of his mouth.

"Oh, by the way, our guild also has its own currency."

She casually took out a gold coin from her pocket, placed it on the bar, and flicked it gently. The coin spun and made a crisp sound.

It was a metal coin as black as ink, engraved with a strange triple mark—

A half-open door, a card, and a hooded mystic.

"gold."

Leng Ji said with a chuckle.

"This is the common currency within the guild. Only those who have completed the 'Gate Quest' can obtain it from the guild."

"Its preciousness... In the outside world, one gold coin is worth about the same as an entire gold brick."

Siming picked up the gold coin thoughtfully, stroking its cold metal surface with his fingertips.

“What can gold coins do?”

"a lot of."

Leng Ji smiled and tapped the table, his tone carrying a hint of temptation:
"You can use gold coins to purchase intelligence, trade cards, or even seek temporary 'shelter'."

"Most importantly—the gold coins represent the guild's commitment and credibility, and are your reward for serving the guild."

Sima Ming gently turned the gold coin, his eyes flickering slightly.

——Intelligence, transactions, asylum...

If the guild really controlled these key resources, then it would definitely be a force much larger than he imagined.

"I see."

Siming thought for a moment, then looked up and asked:
"So, what about the card hunters?"

"Do they belong to the guild?"

Leng Ji sneered, his tone carrying a hint of disdain:
"them?"

She raised her fingers, gently played with her silver hair, and smiled slightly.

"They are just a group of scattered organizations that are not under the control of the guild."

“Like garbage, it’s everywhere.”

"So, the guild will occasionally issue some tasks to clean up this 'junk'."

Siming's eyebrows raised slightly.

——Clean up?
In other words, the guild will directly hire the Mystic to hunt down these Card Hunters?
"...So, what was Natashava's action yesterday?"

Leng Ji shrugged and said casually:

"She's lucky."

"Those card hunters happen to be on the guild's bounty list. Once she clears them out, she can naturally go to the guild to exchange them for gold coins."

She chuckled, picked up the wine glass, and whispered to the liquid in the glass:
"I guess she's somewhere happily counting her gold coins right now, marveling at how good luck always seems to be with her."

Siming was silent for a moment, then he raised the corner of his mouth slightly and said in a low voice:
"Yeah... Luck is such a good thing."

but……

Is Natashava really just "lucky"?

She could have just sniped those card hunters,

But he still spent time and energy "playing games" with them, and even dragged himself as a "temporary teammate" to join.

why?
Siming tapped the wine glass lightly, with a thoughtful gleam in his eyes.

"It seems that the Guild is the real controller of the world of the Mystic Master."

Leng Ji smiled upon hearing this and said slowly:
"No, Sima Ming."

"It's never the guilds that control the world of the Mystics."

She raised her eyes and looked at Siming deeply, the smile on her lips becoming meaningful:

“They are the ones who truly understand ‘how to control your destiny’.”

"For example, you."

Siming narrowed his eyes slightly, stroking the gold coins in his hand with his fingertips, with a thousand thoughts in his mind.

——Can destiny really be controlled?
Or……

——Can he really become a “driver”?

At this moment, Sima Ming finally realized one thing——

He has already stepped onto a path of no return.

The Lost Scholar's background story:

You are silent and the night is dark; you are lost on the road and your shadow follows you.

One day, a scholar carrying a heavy book bag hurried to a shed in the wilderness to rest.

Seeing that he looked haggard, the waiter quickly served him some tea and entertained him warmly.

The scholar said that he was going to Beijing to take the imperial examination, and he had been delayed for a long time passing through this place, fearing that he would miss the special examination.

Upon hearing this, the waiter looked troubled and whispered, "The path ahead is foggy and dangerous. Many travelers have taken this path recently, but none have returned the next day."

The scholar smiled and waved his hand, saying, "Thank you for your kindness, but fate cannot be defied, and the dangers of the road are nothing to be afraid of. Could it be that there are really ghosts and monsters in this world?"

The waiter shook his head and sighed, muttering softly, "Another one, seeking death."

As we entered the path, thick fog gradually rose around us and a cold wind blew.

The night was deep, and the chirping of insects suddenly stopped, replaced by faint fox moans and soft murmurs. The wind blew coldly, as if countless whispers were coming from the fog.

Although the scholar was a little frightened, he held his book bag tightly and quickened his pace.

Suddenly, he saw a group of pedestrians in front of him. They all had hunched backs, walked slowly, and stopped frequently.

The scholar stepped forward and asked, "Everyone, why are you all wandering here?"

The passersby were silent, except for a woman in red who looked back and said slowly, "A hundred ghosts roam the night, leading the lost and the dead to the underworld."

The scholar was alert and shook his head, saying, "I am a living person, how can I be a ghost?"

Upon hearing this, the woman sneered, her eyes filled with mockery. "A stranger? Look at the corpse on the side of the road. Does it resemble you?"

The scholar looked in the direction the woman pointed, and saw a bloody corpse, bitten by wild beasts, lying on the side of the road in the fog.

The corpse was dressed in rags, but the patterns on the clothes were exactly the same as the ones he was wearing now.

What's more, the jade pendant around his waist was clearly a treasure he brought from home.

The scholar's body was cold as ice. He retreated wailing, muttering, "No... This is impossible... This is not me! I'm still alive, I'm a living person, I'm not dead!"

The woman slowly approached, a sly smile on her lips: "Who are you? Where do you come from, and where are you going?"

The scholar stood there in a daze, his eyes gradually becoming unfocused as he muttered to himself, "Who... who am I? Am I lost? A scholar? Hehehe... lost... scholar..."

From then on, a figure carrying a book bag appeared in the fog.

He wandered among the ranks of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, stopping and starting, muttering to himself, to greet the next person who strayed in.

(End of this chapter)