Secret World: I Became a God Through Lies

Chapter 269 Advancement Line - The Bet is Made
"Fate is not on the cards."
And how many chips you're willing to bet on that one moment of survival.

"boom--!"

From the depths of the scorched earth fortress, another deafening roar, seemingly tearing the heavens apart, resounded once more.

Deep underground at the heart of the furnace, a war horn towering to the sky slowly rises, like a giant bell symbolizing the end of the world.

A black metal frame is wrapped around constantly rotating gears, and the entire body is enveloped in scorching heat waves.

On its surface, burning inscriptions slowly emerged:
The war dice have been rolled.

[Round: Second Phase - Deployment Battle Stage]

The broadcast system was immediately activated, and a wave of sound rippled outwards, as the phantom of Madman Thirteen suddenly appeared above the fortress.

His spliced, gear-like face, like a twisted mechanical puppet, floated above the black clouds, transforming into an infinitely spreading digital ghost in the scorched sky, like an evil god whispering to the heavens.

"Oh, my lovely chess pieces—"

"Now it's my turn to set up a bet and see if you can find a way out—without getting blown up."

With his flippant laughter, the screen flashed, the light display switched, and three familiar progression paths appeared: [Line A - Flame Corridor], [Line B - Energy Track], and [Line C - Guiding Maze].

Then, graffiti-like strokes in a crazy, mechanical style began to scribble haphazardly along the three paths, which was the Von Blanc tactical AI "drawing a map" for deployment.

The three routes are marked with three different colors:

Red: Heavy troop deployment
Yellow: Small number of troops
Blue: A Deceptive Maze
This means that von Blanc will deploy his tactical resources according to a "non-linear" logic in this round of battle.

Madman Thirteen added with a sinister grin:

"The three-color markings... don't bother looking at them, you can't figure them out."

"I burned your script a long time ago."

[System notification: Enemy deployment complete]

【Your Excellency, please choose the path to advance this round from the three routes】

All eyes were on Siming, who stood in front of the tactical platform.

He was holding the corner of a playing card in his mouth, as nonchalant as ever.

But the sharp glint in his eyes was as cold as a knife, reflecting the tactical map on the red light screen high in the sky, as if trying to peel away some hidden truth from that chaos.

"Damn it," he muttered.

"This move...we'll have to guess it once."

Vera, standing below, called out, "We don't know which lines the enemy forces are deployed on. What's your plan?"

"Calculation?" Si Ming smirked. "I'm a gambler, not a mathematician. Consider it a coin toss."

"I want to guess."

He slowly raised his hand and drew the [Thousand Faces] card from the deck beside him.

With deft fingers, a strand of fate is torn from the edge of the card and slowly moved in front of the light screen, like a gambler trying to glimpse the future in the light and shadow before placing a bet on a mirror.

However, the lines of fate remain blurred.

Madman Thirteen let out a metallic, screeching laugh from the sky:

"Fate cannot be foreseen, for I have already burned your script."

"If you want to gamble, don't be afraid of losing everything."

Si Ming remained silent for a few seconds, staring intently at the tactical fluctuations along the three routes on the light screen.

Line A: The Fire Corridor, bright and scorching, conveys the most intense emotional information.

Line B: Energy track, structural surging, as if hiding some kind of abnormal signal.

Line C: A maze that appears quiet but is actually subject to frequent disturbances.

He suddenly grinned:
"Let's go with route A."

"The Corridor of Flames, the name is straightforward, and so is the fighting style."

He tossed the [Thousand Faces - Destiny Dice] in his hand into the air. The dice drew a silver arc in the night sky, its trajectory pure and all-or-nothing.

"boom."

[Selection Confirmed: Advance via Route A]

[Path of Advancement: Xinnai, Hermann, Vera]

Seconds later, a rapid yet calm message came from the tactical front:

[Frontline Feedback: Enemy units encountered, confirmed to be a small Skeleton Army. Advance under control]

Vera narrowed her eyes and whispered, "You really hit the jackpot."

Si Ming shrugged, his smile still lingering:
"This isn't luck."

"This is called—madmen trying to figure out each other's secrets."

Beneath the burning curtain of light high in the sky, the echo of the dice of fate still reverberating before they hit the ground.

They knew this was just the beginning of the second phase.

The true core of the scorched earth has not yet been exposed.

Every step from now on will tread the line between "experimental waste" and "planetary disaster race".

The gambler has placed his bet.

Even a madman is waiting for an answer.

"Thankfully... it's not the direct red zone."

"Thank goodness, we didn't step on a heavily fortified area."

Si Ming let out a long sigh of relief, a not-too-exaggerated smile appearing on his lips: "Looks like I've dealt a not-bad hand."

The high-altitude system flashed again, and a clear determination appeared on the light screen:
[Advancement Path A: Flame Corridor]

[Enemy Deployment Status: Yellow Zone (Small Force)]

As the judgment was completed, the heavy metal door of the Flame Corridor slowly opened, its interior structure appearing as if it had just been licked by flames.

Large plumes of crimson steam billowed from the cracks in the door, so hot they almost melted one's vision; the ground flickered with the lingering signals of landmines.
The air was filled with the pungent smell of burnt metal and charcoal ash, as if an unscripted baptism of fire had just ended.

This is a battlefield where the flames have just been extinguished, yet the fury still rages on.

Shinobu gripped her katana tightly, glanced sideways at Herman and Vera, and spoke with her usual calm tone:

"Enough with the nonsense, let's cut through the path ahead."

Hermann nodded silently, a glimmer of reason appearing between his brows, his life lines spreading like heavy wrinkles between his muscles.

He waved his hand to summon a half-body armor, the heavy armor covering his arms and chest. He took a step and stepped into the scorching passage.

The next second, a system notification suddenly appeared:

[Enemy Unit Type Identification: Small Skeleton War Dogs x6]

【Features: High-speed movement/tearing and biting/corrosive ejection】

[Note: The death of a war dog will trigger a small-scale burning self-destruct.]

“Warhound type.” Vera’s expression suddenly tightened.

“Don’t underestimate them,” she whispered. “Getting too close would be a mistake.”

"No," Xin Nai whispered in response, the blade silently drawn, its sharpness like the moon.

At the end of the corridor, a swift figure silently pounced out!
The Mystic Warhound was the size of a wolf, with steel-boned teeth and a charred black shell. It moved with the agility of a shadow. With a loud explosion, it leaped up and howled as it pounced on the three!

"Soul-Shattering Moon-Slaying Style—!"

With a swift horizontal sweep of her right katana, Shinobu lightly touched the ground with her toes, her body moving like a swift swallow, a sharp side spin drawing a bright arc of the blade. As the blade sliced ​​through, the war hound was cleanly cleaved in two from the center!

But the next moment——

"boom!!"

The broken debris suddenly erupted into a burst of intense flames in mid-air!
Hermann had already reacted in advance and moved into a defensive position.

He raised his heavy arm guards, and the runic protective membrane suddenly lit up just before the explosion, suppressing the fire wave to within half a meter and preventing it from affecting his teammates.

"They self-destructed!" Vera's voice tightened, and she reflexively took a half-step back.

“I know,” Nobuna said calmly.

As she landed, the tip of the knife dripped charred residue from the melted canine teeth.

"I won't get close to the next wave."

She slowly raised her left arm, her lips parted slightly, and the incantation rang out like the wind:
[Mysterious Activation: Paper Crane Army Formation - Hunting Fate Catalog]

Above the corridor, paper talismans rose like falling leaves, and dozens of paper cranes with dark red flame patterns appeared in the air, their wings trembling, like a flock of star birds in the night.

They swooped down silently, each paper crane's wing covered with a "blood-ink anchor" structure that would trigger an explosive mark upon contact with an enemy!
The war dogs attacked again, swift as ghosts, but their speed advantage was rendered meaningless by the overwhelming swarms of paper cranes that blotted out the sky.

Click, click, click!
Five explosions rang out in succession, and the three-headed war dog was instantly blasted into dust!

The remaining three failed to launch a counterattack, and Hermann activated the "Suppression Armor" for protection, gradually forcing them back to the flame vents on the side wall of the corridor!
Xin Nai hissed, "Lock the position!"

Hermann slammed his arm on the ground, and the heavy armor blocks suddenly extended, the gravity frame trapping the war dog in the corner—

boom! ! ! !

The flames engulfed the three enemy soldiers!

The shadow burned out, and the air was scorched and steamed.

In less than two minutes, the first section of Line A was successfully cleared.

As the flames in the battle area gradually dissipated, a portal with burning gold-edged runes appeared at the end of the corridor, signifying a successful advance.

The three stood on the still-scorching ground, sweat and steam mixing to form damp burn marks on their foreheads.

But none of them fell.

Hermann said in a deep voice, "Clear the previous section. Next section, prepare."

Nobuna nodded, sheathed her katana, and the embers fell from the blade, like the lingering fighting spirit in the dim light.

Vera glanced at them, sighed softly, and gripped the Star of Reason again: "Continue."

This wasn't their first time facing death, but they knew that from this moment on, every choice, every step forward, would be a gamble with the entire squad's survival.

And this gamble has only just begun.

"Phew..." Vera raised her hand to wipe the cold sweat from her forehead and said softly, "Thank goodness it was us."

Nobuna sheathed her sword, her eyes remaining as cold as ever, but her tone betrayed a hint of relief: "We were lucky."

"Don't let Si Ming think he's a god."

She added a sentence, her tone tinged with resentment, as if silently reminding herself not to let her guard down.

Hermann grinned, his steady voice revealing post-war weariness: "That kid is indeed a skilled gambler, but he also has some lies about fate in his head."

He paused, looking at the teleportation portal at the end of the corridor that had just been extinguished, as if looking through that portal into the depths of the battlefield further away.

"But this time—he played a really good card."

When all paths lead to burnout...

The gambler had only one chip left.

He staked it on himself.

The earth was still trembling imperceptibly, the aftershocks of the arsenal's heart.

The low-frequency rhythm of the heavy metal structure seemed to echo beneath the entire battlefield, like some kind of high-temperature steel behemoth lurking in the abyss, breathing, roaring, and waiting to awaken.

Von Blanc's furnace-like, fiery will still roamed and lingered on the three-front war, each deployment of troops like a divine punishment, attempting to crush all reason into ashes.

Three rounds.

Nine path decisions were made. All three routes were followed.

Each time, Si Ming gambled on the right location, precisely avoiding the heavily fortified red zone, but he also knew—this wasn't victory yet. He hadn't won. He just hadn't lost yet.

On the control panel, tactical data scrolled through page after page. Si Ming's gaze was sharp as he scanned the data of each squad, silently estimating the remaining total value of each person's Star of Reason.

Promote balance.

Losses are controllable.

But—that's not enough.

Far from enough.

The stars of reason among the mystery masters have burned to their limit.

Each star is a supporting structure for their sanity and soul, enabling them to survive, fight, and make choices within the script of a madman.

Now, these stars are falling like shooting stars, disappearing beneath the sky.

Even he himself only had two left.

That was the limit he had set for himself until now.

Lighting another one means there's no turning back.

It spontaneously combusted.

It's insane.

Yes—an irreversible price to pay.

“We won’t last five rounds,” he murmured, his voice so low it sounded like a hiss being forced out of his chest.

Rudolf, standing beside him, heard this and his face darkened: "Indeed... according to the current model, the cost of rationality and firepower required for each round of advance increases linearly, and this battle, conservatively estimated, still has seven rounds to go."

He paused for a moment, his eyes darkening slightly: "At that time, you will become—Xiao Lianyin."

Si Ming glanced at him sideways and smiled, "Your analogy is truly flattering."

As she spoke, Xiao Lianyin, leaning against the half-collapsed observation platform, coldly snorted: "It's a pity you're not as pretty as me. Even if you pretend to be crazy, no one will care about you."

Her makeup was still exquisite, her lips a vibrant red, but her entire body was covered in scars and ashes. Yet her eyes remained as sharp as fresh snow, so piercing that one dared not look directly into them.

Si Ming stared at her figure, marked with bloodstains and stubbornness, and suddenly a bitter smile appeared on his face.

"Let's take a gamble then."

He turned and scanned the entire main control area—

Those team members who were exhausted but still stuck to their posts, those pale-faced but unyielding figures.

"I'm going to the front lines."

His voice wasn't loud, but it sounded like a bell ringing in the stone.

Rudolf's eyes widened instantly: "What did you say?"

Si Ming approached the tactics platform, placed his hand on the team's communication hub, and spoke without the slightest hesitation:

“Starting from the next round—every time you bet, bet on my team.”

The air suddenly fell silent.

Hermann frowned and growled, "Are you crazy! You plan to go straight to the finish line? You think this is a one-man gamble?!"

“I know,” Si Ming said in a frighteningly calm tone, “but gamblers don’t bet because they know the odds of winning.”

"It's because—there's no road ahead."

The main control area became as quiet as a tomb for a moment.

Xiao Lianyin wanted to speak up to stop him, but Si Ming turned around and looked at her first. His voice was as soft as the night breeze, yet it had an unyielding firmness that was impossible to resist.

"Please, hold this command post."

"You and I are both people who have burned out, but there are still people in this city who haven't finished burning."

She remained silent for a long time, her eyes filled with complex emotions, before finally replying in a low voice:
"it is good."

Rudolf took a deep breath, his eyes reddening, but he still gritted his teeth and opened the system control interface.

“I support your conclusions,” he said, “but I hope you won’t leave me… waiting for your bad news outside of the data.”

Si Ming smiled and patted his shoulder: "You forgot, my bad news always... is delivered late."

Having said that, he didn't turn back.

He walked down the steps and stepped into the tactical allocation formation.

Objective: Route B, Energy Orbit.

Selene, Lynn, and Natasha were already waiting in the front-line deployment area, their fighting spirit and exhaustion burning together.

He joined their team.

The next phase of the campaign is about to begin.

Ahead lies an abyss woven from steel and thunder.

He knew it was a gambling table set up by a madman.

And this time—he will personally throw out the last two Stars of Reason.

Natasha tilted her head, raised an eyebrow slightly, and smiled her usual flippant smile: "Finally, you're going to join us? Mr. Gambler."

Lynn's expression was tense, her eyes filled with worry: "Are you really... ready?"

Selene stood at the front, her long hair swaying slightly in the heat, her eyes flashing with an undisguised smile: "I told you he would come."

Si Ming stood still, and with a gentle flip of the "Elegy of the Fated Gambler" in his hand, a heart card slowly appeared and hovered in the air.

The card seemed to emanate a blood-red light from its center, with crimson rays swirling around his fingertips like a flame of destiny.

He whispered the oath-like phrase:
[Fate's Favor - Activated]

The next instant, a golden light burst forth from his body and shot straight into the star map!
The constellation of fate unfolded on his chest, and the eighth star of reason was immediately ignited!
At that moment, starlight, like thunder, pierced the sky, tearing through the trajectory of fate before everyone's eyes and illuminating the future that was about to consume them.

"All your choices will be judged 99% of the time by luck in the next round."

Si Ming slowly raised his head and looked at the huge system card host's phantom in the sky.

His eyes were cold, but a provocative smile played on his lips.

“Now,” he said.

"The battlefield I'm on—"

He smiled slightly, with the composure of a gambler when revealing their cards.

The whispers of the Thousand Faces echoed softly in my ears, like a prayer in an ancient temple:
"Blessed by fate."

In the rust-colored air, von Blanc's deployment round was quietly completed.

The war behemoth, forged from molten steel, slowly materialized, rising from the center of the volcanic furnace, its armor plates meshing together like a tower.

The eight cannons spewed steam simultaneously, shaking the air, as if it were the final alarm bell before the end of the world.

A light curtain appeared, and three propulsion paths were once again reflected in the sky.

This round of deployment has been completed.

[System locked: Awaiting input of advance command]

On the control panel, Xiao Lianyin stood in the center, wearing a tattered battle robe, her face pale, but a familiar smile appeared on her lips.

Her gaze swept over the tactical console, and she slowly pushed the Star of Reason diagram into the central command slot.

"Next, I will take the place of that mad gambler—Si Ming."

Her tone was calm, yet carried the unwavering resolve that followed her passionate outburst.

"This round, the advancement path is Line B."

The light curtain twisted again.

The von Blank deployment map's triple grid began to unfold, the highlighted areas rapidly processed and loaded, and the red, yellow, and blue color distribution gradually emerged.

Everyone held their breath.

[Advance Path B: Enemy Deployment Results]

——【Empty Area】

In an instant, the tactical front line trembled, and the fog ahead of Route B receded like a tide, revealing a straight and empty volcanic conduit.

On both sides of the passage were broken and charred steel frames and burnt-out energy nodes, with only ashes and sporadic sparks in the air.

Almost invincible.

Natasha let out a long whistle, her smile widening dramatically:
"Honey, I'm really afraid you're not a gambler anymore."

Si Ming smiled to the side, turning his head back as he walked forward:
"Then what are you afraid of me for?"

Natasha shrugged, a smile curving her lips: "Fate itself."

At that moment, deep within the heart of the volcanic furnace, Von Blanc suddenly unleashed a deafening roar!

His structure, like the heart of a city, trembled violently, and scorching black flames spewed from his chest, like the breath of a steel dragon!
"No—this is impossible!!!"

"I laid three rounds of mines, two waves of assault skeleton soldiers, and a terminal self-destructing spider nest on Route B!"

"How could you-"

"How is this possible?! Empty!!!"

Si Ming stopped and looked into the distance at the von Blanc statue, which stood at the heart of the volcano and seemed to be burning the entire city.

He lightly tossed the playing cards in one hand, while the other rested on his waist, his eyes filled with an unwavering arrogance and a kind of almost absurd determination.

His voice wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears clearly, like the tolling of a bell:
"destiny."

"It's not the numbers you shout out in your tactical analysis after you've set a trap."

"It's not the statement you confidently made after listing the probabilities."

"It's not the moment when you think you have everything under control and victory is assured."

He took a step forward, and the playing card was stuck into the scorched earth with a "snap," the heart facing up, its light faintly burning.

"destiny--"

"It is when you think you have everything under control that you stumble and fall."

"It is your whispered prophecy that has lost all direction in the face of the true benefactor."

"It was your entire set of debugged data that completely collapsed the moment the Thousand Faces flipped the card."

He paused, his smile as sharp as a knife:

"but me--"

"The moment you leave the field, the threads of fate have already been plucked."

"Misfortune stays away from me, nightmares flee from me."

"I am—luck itself."

Von Blanc roared wildly, his mechanical howl spewing flames:

You think—luck can decide a war?!

Si Ming turned around, a faint smile on her face, her voice as gentle as the night breeze blowing through the ruins after the war.

"War is not an option."

"But... a bet is possible."

"The gears of fate do not mesh; they only turn for him the moment he smiles."

(End of this chapter)