Chapter 4: Exchange and Identity
When Ning Lu finished speaking, the figure of the Celestial Worthy in front of him fell silent for a long moment before finally speaking.
"You seem to have some misunderstandings—and prejudices—about me."
"My friend, you play the part of a human so convincingly—how do you do it?"
The voice of the Celestial Worthy drifted past Ning Lu's ears; His shadow seemed to come alive, stretching behind Him into a single, enormous and grotesque silhouette.
The silhouette resembled an oversized, deep robe; beneath the robe countless tentacles writhed outward, every sucker etched with uncanny patterns and slick, greasy light.
The thought "no mortal may look upon a god" had only just surfaced in Ning Lu's mind when he immediately relaxed again.
If I were truly nothing more than an "ordinary person," merely gazing upon an Outer Deity while inside Sefirah Castle would have driven me mad!
At that, his tone gained a measure of certainty, and he spoke calmly to the Celestial Worthy.
"You can take me for an ordinary human who simply woke up here."
Listening to Ning Lu, the shadow behind the Celestial Worthy shrank back; eyes woven of starlight studied Ning Lu a moment longer, then a friendly smile split the pale face.
"In that case, my dear friend, you probably don't remember how you arrived."
"While God and I struggled for dominion, we discovered you had unfortunately fallen into this world. God wanted to use you to destroy me, whereas I rescued you from the evil God and ended up perishing together with Him…"
Apart from the five words "evil God," is even half a syllable of that believable?
Ning Lu complained silently; watching the Celestial Worthy about to launch into another torrent, he merely replied flatly,
"If I can speak your name, isn't it possible I actually know the relationship between you and God?"
The Celestial Worthy's words abruptly ceased; the smile returned to His face.
"You should have said so sooner, friend—what shall I call you?"
As He spoke, the Celestial Worthy extended His right hand.
Ning Lu deliberated inwardously—from the earlier probes of word and gesture, the Celestial Worthy had verified whether he was merely a frail mortal and gauged his attitude.
"Playing the part of a human…" Seen this way, the "Celestial Worthy" appearing amid the grey fog did not seem as weak as in the original tale; He had not fallen asleep inside the Fool's dream. It appeared He could not read minds—but who knew whether that was merely another act; after all, the Lord of the Mysteries loved watching marionette farces… He could not possibly believe he was a literal deity from beyond the firmament like certain predecessors who transmigrated and immediately ascended to godhood?
At that thought, Ning Lu smiled, clasped the Celestial Worthy's hand and said,
"Just call me Ning Lu."
"…Ning Lu?"
The Celestial Worthy let go and stepped back twice, snapped His fingers, and the chaotic grey mist quickly dispersed, forming two plain stone chairs.
Leaning upon the chair He had just created, He spoke slowly to Ning Lu.
"That name sounds like one of the offspring of the Primordial One—do you have a connection with God?"
"Who knows?" Ning Lu narrowed his eyes and sat upon the chair the Celestial Worthy had fashioned. The instant he sat, the Celestial Worthy crooked a finger and the substantial stone chair began to collapse into illusion.
Yet Ning Lu remained steadily seated, causing the Celestial Worthy, who had intended another test and prank, to stare fixedly.
"Celestial Worthy," Ning Lu said softly. "I do not know this world well, much less why I came—but I know you. If you could seize my will, the one standing here would not be me."
Since the Celestial Worthy had not infiltrated his will as effortlessly as described in the original tale, Ning Lu was willing to gamble on one possibility: in the Worthy's eyes, his rank equaled theirs—incapable of erosion, difficult to suppress.
Therefore, Ning Lu dared not reveal weakness before this ancient deity and could only continue impersonating an equal.
"…I do not understand what you wish to say, but perhaps I can recount how we met." The Celestial Worthy's tone became normal again. "Very simple: while God and I contested for Sefirah, we discovered you bore no will—do you realise how rare that is?"
"Kindred, all things possess divinity—yet you do not. This means you are not a creation of the Primordial creator; you are a visitor from beyond the world, the greatest 'Error' this world has ever seen."
"Initially, I wished to keep you as my final contingency for resurrection; your body was both unique and dangerous…" The Celestial Worthy clearly did not intend to elaborate, merely producing a fan from nowhere to cover the lower half of His face.
"Hence, I concealed you deep within Sefirah Castle, intending to awaken you only after every other measure for resurrection had failed. Unfortunately…"
At that point the Celestial Worthy sighed. "Look around— the heir I found is truly a prodigal; locating so many souls similar to mine in one go is no easy task…"
The Celestial Worthy referred to the former Outer Deities who had once hung within Sefirah Castle.
In other words, after Klein Moreti released every soul from Sefirah Castle, "I" was automatically awakened by Sefirah?
Ning Lu studied the Celestial Worthy suspiciously, convinced He was hiding something.
Such an explanation could not account for why he had transmigrated, nor why he had been "cast" into Tingen City long before the moment Klein Moreti himself crossed, at practically the same temporal node.
"In that case, why was I thrown into Tingen prior to the moment Klein Moreti liberated the souls of Sefirah?"
Ning Lu narrowed his eyes.
"If I remember correctly, at the moment I awoke… only three souls had been released from Sefirah."
"You seem to have been lying all along, Celestial Worthy."
"Which is why I say you are a natural 'Error.'" The Celestial Worthy flicked the fan gently.
"The countdown upon the back of your hand is no work of mine; after you awoke, I awoke as well, only to discover you had already experienced seven days in another timeline—you plundered the power of Sefirah and allowed the authority of the 'king of time and space' to display unprecedented effect."
Half curious, half deliberate, Ning Lu replied,
"So you mean that, as the 'king of time and space,' your grasp of time truly falls short of the 'King of Decline,' and your mastery of space inferior to the 'High-Dimensional Overlooker'?"
The Celestial Worthy fell abruptly silent.
After a long pause, He continued languidly,
"We merely emphasise different authorities."
But I must remind you: though you rank equal to me and cannot be contaminated by the mind or power of an Outer Deity, your body remains fragile—harm on the physical plane can still kill you, my kindred."
"I do not wish to see you die too horribly; after all, apart from Zhou Mingrui, you are also one of my hopes for resurrection."
When the Worthy finished, the grey mist around them rose like a curtain, gradually obscuring His figure; He seemed no longer inclined to answer Ning Lu's questions.
Behind the grey veil, the voice of the Celestial Worthy drifted faintly,
"Of course, I have not lied—only whether you believe… is up to you."