The world has turned into Hell's Game, why should I stay human?!-Chapter 1175 - 734: Transformation, Angry Demon

"Stop!"

A voice as solid as stone resounded.

The villagers who had been fighting fiercely gradually stopped and then separated from each other.

"He’s playing you all, can’t you see?"

A strong man, bare-chested with only a pair of shorts on, stepped forward.

His eyes were locked on Liu Zheng, yet he spoke to the villagers.

"Does it matter who is deceiving whom? As long as everyone’s having fun, right? When falsehood becomes truth, and truth turns false, they’re finally lost in this comedy. But you insist on ruining the show—do you really think you’re doing them a favor?"

Liu Zheng said calmly.

"You speak very eloquently, but just talking isn’t enough to pass this test. As long as I’m here, I won’t let them get played like fools without even realizing it."

The strong man declared.

"Alright, then let’s duel. If I beat you, you let me through. If you win, they can play however they like."

He shrugged as he spoke.

Even though he didn’t know how strong the man was, a duel was better than being overwhelmed by the crowd.

"I won’t spoil their fun. Besides, with your skills, you’re not even worthy of me intervening."

The strong man said dismissively.

"Are you all bored?"

Liu Zheng couldn’t help but ask.

"If you had been stuck in a place like this for thousands of years, wouldn’t you be bored too?"

The strong man retorted.

"If you’re bored, you can entertain yourselves."

"How do you know we haven’t done that?"

He let out a cold laugh.

"At first, we amused ourselves, then each other. Later, we started playing with people from other villages. Eventually, none of those thrills excited us anymore, and we began to slaughter each other."

"But as time went on, even killing each other ceased to be entertaining, and we couldn’t die anyway."

"In the end, our only fun left was using outsiders like you for amusement."

The strong man said.

"You seem pretty normal to me."

Liu Zheng commented while looking at him.

"Because I’m the strongest and most devoted to the way of stone carving, I’ve held out longer than the others. But to call anyone here normal is wrong, for we are no longer human."

The strong man replied.

"That’s not a big deal; I’m not really human myself. Have you ever thought about leaving?"

Liu Zheng asked.

"Our life force is bound to the tomb, and taking a single step outside would scatter our souls. Besides, the king wouldn’t allow us to leave."

The strong man turned around as a familiar light thread pierced from his back into his heart.

"We are the king’s subjects, and also his playthings. Even though he’s long gone, we must continue playing the game of a nation and its people with him, until the tomb finally collapses."

The strong man spoke calmly.

"Why don’t you try to make the tomb collapse, then?"

"We can’t. Despite being his toys, we remain the king’s subjects. During our lifetime, the king showed us utmost favor, and we could never commit such an act of betrayal."

The strong man resolutely replied.

"You guys have lived in quite a predicament; no wonder you’ve become twisted."

Liu Zheng remarked.

Yet it’s understandable, given how complex humans are.

"How about this, since you’re bored? I can provide you with some entertainment."

He suggested.

"You can share your idea with us."

The strong man replied noncommittally.

"Let’s not rush. First, you have to promise me that if what I provide can entertain you for a long time, you’ll let me pass."

Liu Zheng was not about to give away his ideas for free.

If it were the Earth God, who seemed more normal, he might extend a gesture of friendship first. But with these pent-up and twisted villagers—forget about it.

Speaking of which, how did the Earth God manage not to go insane? Could he secretly find ways to entertain himself?

"How long is ’a long time’?"

The strong man asked.

"A hundred or two hundred years won’t be a problem."

He pondered and replied.

"A hundred years or two hundred years?"

The strong man inquired persistently.

"Two hundred years."

Liu Zheng replied.

"How can you prove it?"

"Once you try it, you’ll know. Aren’t you a stone mason? Prepare 136 stone blocks of this size and thickness, and 54 sheets of these dimensions."

He gestured as he spoke.

"Li San, you go."

The strong man instructed a villager.

"I’m not going. What if you start playing with him as soon as I leave?"

Li San was unwilling.

"If you don’t go, I guarantee you won’t get to play with him, and no one will play with you in the future either."

The strong man stated sternly.

"Why me, then?"

"I’ll let you have the first turn later."

The strong man offered a mix of a slap and a sweetener.

"That’s acceptable."

Li San sprinted back to the village, soon returning with a bamboo basket filled with stones.

He dumped the stones on the ground, matching Liu Zheng’s requested quantity and precise shape.

"The items are ready; you can start now."

The strong man said.

"Let’s begin with something simple. Use these symbols to represent one to ten, which are soldiers, and carve them on the left and right corners of the tiles—one upright, one upside down—creating four sets of forty tiles in total."

Liu Zheng used "Anger" to draw an A and nine Arabic numerals on the ground.

"Alright."

The strong man gestured, and with invisible force, he carved forty cards instantly. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

"Next, use these symbols to represent Marshals, Colonels, and Captains, and carve them on the left and right corners of the tiles—one upright, one upside down—also in four sets of twelve tiles in total."

He drew the symbols for K, Q, J on the ground.

"Go on."

The strong man said after etching the cards.

"Then use these four designs to represent four factions, and carve them in the center of the tiles. There are thirteen tiles per faction, from one to the marshal, totaling fifty-two tiles."