Chapter 963: Natural Disaster

Chen Ling raised an eyebrow, seeing the child.

Without a doubt, the child before him was Shen Nan in his childhood. However, this young Shen Nan was small and thin, with dark yellow skin, appearing malnourished.

"That's wonderful, Xiao Nan." The middle-aged man set down his brush for a moment and smiled gently at the child.

"Could you wait for Dad a little longer? There's just a tiny bit left... I want to finish it today."

"Alright."

Shen Nan crouched by the bonfire, his eyes curiously studying the mask in the man's hand. "Dad, why does this mask look so frightening?"

"Frightening?" The man chuckled. "It's supposed to be frightening. Not only frightening, but it's also meant to scare away all illnesses, bad luck, and evil spirits..."

"So, can it scare away my tumor too?" Shen Nan blinked his large eyes, which seemed to sparkle like stars.

The man's hand faltered for a moment. After a long silence, he nodded:

"It certainly will."

The man applied the final stroke of paint to the mask, as if imbuing it with a profound spirit. Under the flickering campfire, the ferocious mask cast a trailing shadow, resembling a cluster of dancing black flames.

The man gazed at the mask for a long time, appearing very satisfied.

He stood up and walked to the simple wooden stand beside the bonfire, securing the mask to it. Then, he took Shen Nan's hand and walked towards the nearby house.

Chen Ling stood before the wooden stand, a flicker of shock in his eyes.

Clatter—

A gust of evening breeze swept through, causing nearly a hundred distinct Nuo masks to sway gently. There were expressions of joy and anger, some dashing and elegant, others like wrathful guardians... They clattered in the wind, resembling a magnificent wall of deities.

The scene before Chen Ling's eyes shifted, and the setting changed once more.

"Shen Nan's father is a Nuo mask craftsman?" Chen Ling pondered, recalling the previous scene. "It appears their family's artistry, the Shen family's craft, must be hereditary..."

Chen Ling now found himself in an ordinary, cramped, and dilapidated residential house. Through the window, he could see the town outside and the distant layered mountain peaks.

On the room's wall, a familiar, ferocious mask hung centrally. Shen Nan sat at a desk, facing a mirror, his expression incredibly complex.

This past scene was likely several years after the previous one. Shen Nan had grown from a child of seven or eight into a teenager of twelve or thirteen, yet his body remained frail, and his complexion was even paler than before. He wore a black hoodie, his gaze intently fixed on his reflection in the mirror, lost in thought.

Chen Ling stood behind him for a full three or four minutes, yet he saw no movement from the boy.

Was this kid so narcissistic in his youth?

Just as Chen Ling's expression grew puzzled, Shen Nan took a deep breath, slowly raised his hand, and reached for his chin...

Seeing this familiar gesture, Chen Ling froze.

Wait a minute...

This is it...

Rip—

As Shen Nan lifted his hand and tore, a thin layer of skin dissipated into the air. The Shen Nan reflected in the mirror had transformed into a clean, fair celebrity's face. However, the original owner of that face was likely in their twenties, and the mature, defined features appeared strikingly unnatural against Shen Nan's frail, youthful body.

The Path of the Play God, Thousand Faces?!

Chen Ling felt a surge of surprise. After all, how old was Shen Nan now? And wasn't he associated with the twisted Path of the Play God? If he possessed the Thousand Faces ability, it meant he should have already embarked on that path. Why, then, when Chen Ling encountered him in the future, did he not sense the Path of the Play God's presence?

"This is amazing..." Shen Nan looked at his reflection, his eyes instantly lighting up. "I have superpowers?!"

Shen Nan excitedly jumped up and bounced around a few times, then returned to the mirror, rapidly cycling through several faces, each belonging to a familiar celebrity.

It was evident that Shen Nan had only just begun his journey on the Path of the Play God. Not only was he unable to alter his body shape, but even after changing just a few faces, he visibly grew weary, his complexion deteriorating, making it seem as though he might collapse at any moment.

Shen Nan, realizing this, immediately stopped changing faces. He stumbled to his feet, fumbled through a drawer for a few pills, and swallowed them all at once.

After lying in bed for a long while, he finally regained some color, but even then, his face barely concealed his excitement.

"Dad's going to be so surprised when he gets back!"

Shen Nan rolled around on the bed, hugging his pillow, lost in his fantasies.

Chen Ling, somewhat speechless, averted his gaze from Shen Nan and began to wander idly around the room. He understood that Shen Nan's current psychological state was a common reaction for anyone acquiring a Divine Path, especially a child. However, Chen Ling had no interest in Shen Nan's excitement.

"You brought me back here just to watch him roll around?" Chen Ling paused before the Nuo mask, sighing helplessly.

Last time, watching young Lu Xun learn astronomy, he could at least grasp some of what was happening. This time, however, it was purely watching Shen Nan showing off.

As Chen Ling aimlessly wandered, waiting for the scene to pass, his gaze happened to fall upon the calendar on the desk, and he suddenly froze.

"May 12, 2008..." Chen Ling's brows furrowed even deeper.

"That date..."

Chen Ling stared at the calendar for a long moment, then instinctively looked up at the distant, layered mountain peaks. He suddenly realized something profound, turning his head to gaze at the ferocious Nuo mask hanging on the wall.

Click—

The sound of a key sliding into the lock and slowly turning echoed.

"Dad!" Shen Nan leaped from the bed, ready to dash into the living room in his slippers.

Almost simultaneously, a violent tremor erupted from beneath his feet. All the furniture in the room groaned and creaked wildly. Shen Nan felt the floor vanish beneath him, and he crashed heavily to the ground!

Before he could even register what was happening, a dizzying sensation overwhelmed him. The old chandelier above, along with a section of the ceiling, crashed down with a roar. Shen Nan cried out in alarm and, with a quick roll, scrambled under the bed!

BOOM—!!!

The earth churned like waves, and hideous fissures, like gaping abysses, tore open one after another, instantly swallowing building after building. Countless people and houses vanished in an instant. Moments later, the cracks slowly slammed shut, as if they had never existed.

The city was collapsing. The piercing alarms of cars and electric bikes blared in succession, followed immediately by an even more deafening roar...

Chen Ling stood rooted to the spot, witnessing everything. He was like a ghost; even as floors collapsed, houses shattered, and architectural debris passed through his body, he remained utterly unaffected. He simply stood there, stunned, watching the city and its inhabitants vanish amidst the earth's roar.

Dust rose from countless architectural ruins, like mournful clouds, engulfing Chen Ling's form. In just ten seconds, the town, built with countless hours of labor and human effort, had transformed into a living hell.