Chapter 215: I Am Who I Am

“Mm.”He gave a soft hum.

After a moment of silence, the unknown figure clad in a large red opera robe spoke again:“Since your mind is made up, I won’t try to dissuade you further... However, the scope of this domain is limited to the seven major districts. Outside these districts, events that have already transpired cannot be altered. Do you understand?”

“I understand.” The voice remained quiet and docile.

After a long sigh, the figure in the large red opera robe slowly stepped forward, its fingertip gently brushing his face... A mask, seemingly without thickness, lightly adhered to his face. The moment the mask settled, his body visibly grew taller, as if he had completely transformed into someone else.

After a moment of hesitation, the figure removed its own large red opera robe and gently draped it over him.“If, one day, you find yourself lost and uncertain, come find me...”“We will be waiting for you in the Ancient Treasury of Theatrical Arts.”

He nodded. “Alright.”

The figure turned to leave, but then paused abruptly, as if remembering something. Slowly, it turned its head back, its voice low and cold.“However, if in the end it is ‘Mockery’ who arrives... I will personally kill you.”

The next moment, the surrounding scene violently twisted, as if brutally torn apart by something, and the memory vanished in an instant!

An unprecedented pain surged through his heart. The red-clad figure, as if awakening from a profound dream, abruptly opened his eyes!

In the void before him, countless black hands devoured all other memory fragments. Wisps of white smoke were kneaded and crushed within their grasp, utterly disappearing... Thousands of souls vanished under their gaze.

Having completed their task, the hands vanished as if they had never existed.

The red-clad figure now stood once more on the familiar stage. He slowly lowered his head to look at his hands, his expression incredibly complex.“Am I... Chen Yan?”

He replayed the recent conversation in his mind. Although he hadn't seen any images or much other information, there were only a few characters present. After much thought, it seemed he could only be Chen Yan, embodying the role of Chen Ling?

But who was the person in the large red opera robe? Why were they there? And why did they claim to be his master?

And what was ‘Mockery,’ as mentioned by them? Were they the audience?

Riddle after riddle swirled in his mind. He stood motionless on the stage like a statue for a long time. Just then, a soft sound came from nearby.

Thud—It was the sound of a book falling.

He came to his senses and turned towards the sound. It came from the bookshelf where he kept his scripts... For some reason, a script had slipped off the shelf.

He instinctively walked over and picked up the script. On its cover, large characters were prominently displayed:

The First ActChapter of Genesis — *Soulless*Starring: Chen Ling

Upon seeing the last line, his body trembled, and his pupils contracted slightly... At that moment, a thought seemed poised to emerge from his mind but vanished instantly, impossible to recall... It was as if something deep within him was preventing him from deeper contemplation.

“No...”After an unknown period of silence, he shook his head. “I am Chen Ling.”

He looked down at his reflection on the screen and spoke again, his tone steadily growing firmer,“No matter who I once was, I am now Chen Ling... No one can deceive me, no one can influence me. I am myself.”

Chen Ling placed The First Act back on the shelf, his eyes now free of gloom and confusion. Whether Chen Yan or Chen Ling, they were merely characters in a play... Now that he stood on this stage, if he believed himself to be Chen Ling, then he was Chen Ling.

As he turned, his fingertips tore at his chin, and Chen Ling's face reappeared beneath the mask. The large red opera robe swayed slightly with his steps;He returned to the center of the stage.

“This farce must end.”

Chen Ling looked down at the screen. The audience's expectation value had already plummeted to 14, reaching an all-time low... But the situation was far worse than that.Audience Expectation Value 1Current Expectation Value: 13

Chen Ling's expression instantly darkened!

The Starfall Guild.Crimson clouds churned in the sky. A paper sun, suspended above the red clouds, slowly opened like a hollow eye gazing down upon the human world, as its paper surface began to crack.

The instant this eye opened, all living beings within the manor, regardless of their location or whether they saw the eye, were suddenly overcome by an unprecedented dread. It was an instinctual terror from the deepest parts of their being, slowly eroding their sanity.

“Wha... what is that thing??”

Inside the most heavily secured building of the Starfall Guild, Yan Xishou cowered by the window, his body trembling uncontrollably as he stared at the eye suspended high above the crimson clouds.“It’s a Calamity... a Sixth-Tier Calamity!” Fine cold sweat beaded on the old butler's forehead. “How could a Calamity appear in Aurora City...”

“It’s that Chen Ling! He *is* a Calamity!” Yan Xishou watched the Guild being gradually razed to the ground, frantically pulling at his hair, his expression filled with intense remorse. “Damn it, why did we have to cross him of all people... What kind of monster is he?!”

Previously, the Starfall Guild had indeed experienced some turmoil, but it was just a prisoner escaping or a journalist investigating organ trafficking. The matters were significant yet minor... But, unexpectedly, it had escalated to the point where the entire Starfall Guild was about to be leveled. This was far from a simple mistake!

When his father returned to find the Starfall Guild gone, it wouldn't just be a question of whether he could inherit it anymore... His father would surely beat him to death with his own hands!

“Don’t worry, Young Master,” the old butler comforted him. “Our location is far from the battlefield, and this building has shelter-level protection. We’ll be safe here...”

No sooner had the old butler finished speaking than a gaze from the crimson clouds above lightly swept over them. The next moment, everything around them glowed with an eerie red light.The thick walls visibly thinned, fluttering like paper in the wind. The solid, cold marble floor inexplicably began to lose its texture, and the gaps between the bricks seemed to morph into crooked, hand-drawn lines... Even the window before the two men gradually grew fangs, like the gaping maw of a ferocious beast.

And at that moment, the two men resembled food trapped within the beast's mouth, seemingly about to be chewed to oblivion at any second.

The changes before them completely defied their comprehension. The building, once the pride of the Starfall Guild, had suddenly transformed into some unknown monster. Yan Xishou collapsed onto the ground, his gaze at his surroundings filled with terror!

The ornate chandelier transformed into an organ resembling a tonsil, rapidly vibrating with the hurricane-like winds that swept in from outside. A deep roar, like thunder, rumbled loudly!Yan Xishou and the old butler's eardrums were instantly torn. They writhed in agony on the ground, blood trickling from their ears...