Chapter 153: Gods Are Masters of Playing with Human Hearts

"The abyss is dead... What does this mean? Impossible! Impossible!"

Seeing the system prompt pop up before her eyes, Liu Xiao screamed in despair.

Yet the next second, she was forced to the ground by Lin Bufei.

"Stop screaming! Are you trying to get us both killed?!"

Trembling, Lin Bufei clamped a hand tightly over Liu Xiao's mouth, terrified of being noticed by the unknown and terrifying deities hovering at the edge of the sky.

Even so, the woman still struggled and let out a low roar, her eyes filled with reluctance and hatred.

"Impossible! The abyss cannot die! The abyss is eternal!"

Looking up at the blood-stained sky, the woman roared angrily at the new god.

But the next second, a soul-deep fear reduced everything she felt to whimpers.

The massive silhouette looming behind those giant hands seemed to be looking down at her.

"No... Don't kill me, don't... I was wrong, I was truly wrong, please forgive my impoliteness!"

Trembling in despair, Liu Xiao muttered madly, pressing her palms together and bowing continuously toward the sky.

Blood gushed from her forehead where she had struck the ground, but the woman kept bowing regardless, unable to care.

Amidst the dead silence, the giant hands in the sky slowly opened, and darkness instantly swallowed the earth once more.

[You have triggered: The God's Quest]

[Quest Background: To celebrate the coronation, in this instance of the dungeon, the gods have gathered all currently surviving high-level players in the Thrill World for a grand game. The winner of the game will have a single wish granted.]

[Quest Objective: Become the number one victorious player in this dungeon instance.]

[Quest Success: The winner will have any wish granted by the god.]

[Warm Reminder: This wish can achieve anything, whether it is recalling those who have passed away, or retrieving the lost gods.]

"What..."

Ji Linmo stared blankly at the prompt before him, his eyes wide with disbelief.

All the other players were utterly astonished.

"Really... Is there really such a wonderful thing?"

"Oh god! Is it even possible to wish to leave this place?"

The players grew restless while simultaneously feeling deeply uneasy, as such a prospect sounded too surreal.

Yet in the next second, every single one of them beheld the thing they desired most in the depths of their hearts.

The scene instantly spiraled out of control; numerous players wailed aloud, collapsing to the ground in tears.

Lin Bufei frowned as he looked at the surrounding chaos.

But when he saw that even Ji Linmo wore a dazed expression, the man shook his head helplessly. At this moment, he was perhaps the calmest person present.

"Heh, look at them, even Old Ji got played so quickly. Is this any way to act?"

"There's an old saying: humans think, and God laughs. Gods are the absolute masters of toying with human hearts. How could anyone believe it? It seems it still takes someone as resilient as—"

Before he could finish, Lin Bufei's eyes widened, and his breathing abruptly hitched.

Before his very eyes, the figure of an elderly, white-haired woman cooking in a dim, dilapidated kitchen was suddenly projected.

"Mom... Mom?"

The moment Lin Bufei cried out, the old woman in the projection seemed to genuinely hear his voice. She raised her head, her aged face filled with utter disbelief.

"Ya'er? Ya'er, is that you?"

The old woman muttered tremblingly toward the sky, two clear tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Mom! It's me! It's really me!"

Lin Bufei suddenly shouted with all his might. The old woman on the other side of the projection became even more agitated, trembling as she searched frantically in all directions.

"Ya'er! Mom heard your voice! Where are you, Ya'er? Ya'er!"

The old woman's cries grew higher and more sorrowful with every call. Her withered body trembled so violently that it seemed a slight breeze might shatter her frail frame.

Whoosh!

Behind the old woman, the flame on the stove suddenly surged, and glaring tongues of fire danced wildly in the pot, nearly reaching the range hood.

"Mom! There's a fire! Turn off the fire! The fire!"

Panicking, Lin Bufei roared frantically at the projection, veins bulging on his forehead.

Yet the old woman continued searching for her son's voice.

"Ya'er, talk to mom some more. Mom misses you so much, Ya'er!"

The tongues of fire grew larger and larger, crackling loudly.

Finally noticing the abnormality, the old woman turned in a panic, trying to pick up the pot lid to cover the pot. Instead, she was licked by the flames, let out an agonized scream, and accidentally knocked over the iron wok.

In an instant, the burning wok tipped over, and the flames devoured everything in their path.

"Help... Help! Someone come and save my mom! There's a fire! There's a fire!"

Staring at the projection, Lin Bufei roared with a heart-rending grief, desperately trying to grab the projection with his hands, but his efforts were entirely in vain.

"Ya'er... Ya'er!"

Paralyzed by fear, the old woman seemed to hear the voice once more. Struggling to her feet, she cried out for her son unceasingly, as if doing so could grant her strength.

Yet the next second, her frail body collapsed to the ground again, drawing a cry of pain.

"Ya'er..."

The projection vanished in a flash, and the scene reverted to the desolate reality filled with wails.

Looking at the empty space before him, Lin Bufei collapsed to his knees. His hands remained frozen in a grasping gesture, and his bloodshot eyes were consumed by utter despair.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Ji Linmo raised his head with a haunted look, his lips trembling.

A lifelike girl standing right before him was gently stroking his cheek.

"Ji Linmo..."

The girl's long eyelashes fluttered slightly like the wings of a beating butterfly.

"Take me home... Take me home, Ji Linmo. Let me return to your side... Will you?"

The man tremblingly grabbed the girl's hand, but the next second, the girl shattered bit by bit from the points where he touched her, like fragile porcelain.

"Don't go! Don't go..."

Ji Linmo tried to gather the fragments of the girl, but every touch of his only caused her to disintegrate faster.

Thus, the man's hands hovered emptily in mid-air, as though doing so might slow down the shattering of his girl just a little bit.

"Ji Linmo~ Ji Linmo!"

The girl's infinitely gentle voice turned urgent. She made a final effort to reach out, but right before touching the man, she shattered completely, turning into nothingness.

Ji Linmo dropped to his knees, soul-broken, his fingertips seemingly retaining the lingering warmth of her hand.

The system's cold prompt popped up once again:

[Quest Failure Penalty]

[Except for the "Winner" and their "Teammate", all other players will instantly die.]

[Warm Reminder 2:]

[Players who team up with the ultimate winner who claims first place will also receive the god's favor and be granted a generous reward.]

A blood-red timer appeared before everyone's eyes—precisely seven days.