Chapter 1343: The Anxious Kataro

The [Chaos] Temple.

Kataro was unusually panicked today, because things had happened inside the temple that he couldn't begin to understand.

First, the entire [Chaos] Authority had returned — hovering above the temple for a long time before some unseen force swept it all away, making it impossible to sense anymore. And even the faint trace of [Void] energy his patron had left inside the temple had vanished entirely.

This undoubtedly meant the universe had experienced another earth-shaking event — and it was quite likely connected to [Chaos].

Kataro naturally knew that [Chaos] was his patron [Deceit]. But his instincts told him this was far more than his patron stirring up trouble — it was almost certainly tied to the true [Chaos].

He had never once seen his patron hand back authority he had already seized.

Who was [Deceit]? The same type as Lord Cheng Shi — someone who never gave up anything he'd already gotten, unless he was fishing for something bigger. So if he was using this authority as bait — who was the catch?

Normally, when something big happened, Kataro wouldn't need to panic. There were taller targets for trouble to hit first — and if Lord Cheng Shi couldn't hold it, there was still his patron. But his patron had recently vanished without a trace. How could he not be worried?

Factor in everything he knew about Lord Cheng Shi, and his awareness of the incident involving [Chaos] usurping [Order]'s throne — and intelligent Kataro found it hard not to wonder whether [Chaos]'s current upheaval was connected to the Iron Law of [Order]'s identity being exposed.

Thinking that, Kataro's face went a shade of green.

He stared out into the distant void, muttering to himself nervously:

"My lord, my lord — stirring up the winds between all the gods, just please don't stir away this lowly Kataro along with them.

My patron has been absent for a long time now. Perhaps, my lord, you could come inspect the temple and offer a word of encouragement to this dutiful Kataro?"

Speak of the devil — and the devil appears.

The moment those words left his mouth, Cheng Shi's figure materialized inside the temple.

"!!!"

The Magician had arrived alongside him. But — what was that aura around the Magician?

Kataro was stunned. That was an aura he had only ever sensed on his patron.

That was a god's aura — and moreover, a god's aura deeply resonant with this very temple.

Even so, Kataro — accustomed as he was to the presence of true divine beings — wouldn't have been shocked by that alone. At most, it might mean the patron had granted the Magician proxy authority over [Chaos]. But this time was different.

You see — when the patron had held the [Chaos] Authority, the entire temple had been under Kataro's vigilance. And his role wasn't just doorkeeper; anyone who came or went had to pass through his awareness.

Yet just now, when Lord Cheng Shi and the Magician arrived — he had felt nothing whatsoever.

Only when they appeared in his field of vision did he realize someone had come.

The only time that had happened before was when his patron [Deceit] arrived.

So in that instant, the way Kataro looked at Zhen Xin completely changed. He bowed with absolute reverence, and compliments flowed immediately.

"This humble servant of [Void], Kataro, greets the great patron, and greets Lord Cheng Shi."

"?"

Zhen Xin blinked, then looked curiously at the Kataro in front of her.

She knew about [Deceit] replacing [Chaos], so she understood what a servant of [Void] was. She just couldn't work out when this servant had arrived at the temple — whether he was someone the Fun God had left to receive them — or, incidentally, when exactly Cheng Shi had become "Lord Cheng Shi."

Zhen Xin shot Cheng Shi a suspicious glance. His expression looked slightly uncomfortable. She then looked back at Kataro, taking in that familiar figure, those unmistakably familiar gestures, that air which strongly resembled someone she knew — and immediately felt her eyebrow rise, as if something had clicked.

Just as Zhen Xin was about to say something, Cheng Shi reached out, clapped Kataro on the shoulder, and said with an uneasy smile:

"It's been a while, kid. Your eyes have gotten noticeably worse.

Have a good look — is this your patron?"

"!!??"

If Lord Cheng Shi himself said so, then obviously the Magician in front of him was not his patron [Deceit]. But the problem was — if that was true, how had she bypassed his awareness entirely to arrive inside the temple?

She couldn't be [Chaos], could she?

Ha. Don't be absurd.

Kataro nearly laughed at his own dramatic imagination — but then he froze in place. His eyes trembled as they turned toward Cheng Shi, pupils contracting to pinpoints. Stunned and unable to believe it, his mind raced:

How is that not possible?

The [Chaos] Authority being returned out — didn't that mean the patron had given up that authority?

So then.

This Magician here had inherited [Chaos]'s authority?

Then she was —?!

Kataro's whole body shuddered. He immediately prostrated himself before Zhen Xin.

"Great [Chaos] — I have sinned!"

"?"

Cheng Shi realized things were about to develop in a strange direction. He reached out to pull Kataro up, not wanting to hear any sort of confession — but in this place, which was [Chaos]'s temple, no one could move without [Chaos]'s permission. His hand was immediately stopped by a wall of churning chaos-fog.

Zhen Xin gave Cheng Shi a look that was half smile and half something else, blocked his mouth with chaos-fog, then looked down at the prostrated Kataro with an expression of amused mischief.

"You get one chance."

Kataro never squandered opportunities. He immediately blurted out the story of how he had once impersonated Lord Cheng Shi and deceived the actual Cheng Shi.

Zhen Xin blinked, looked back and forth between the two "Ultramans" present, and let out an exasperated laugh. She released her hold on Cheng Shi and looked at him without sympathy.

"Is there a single honest word in your mouth?

How many more things haven't you told us? No — how many times have you actually lied to us?"

"..."

Lost count.

Cheng Shi's expression shifted to something complex. He still managed to argue weakly: "Everything I say is the truth. Not my problem if you don't believe me."

Then he turned a meaningful glance toward Kataro, and said with languid amusement:

"Looks to me like this servant of [Void] has some other ideas on his mind. What is it — thinking of pledging yourself to the new god [Chaos]?"

New god [Chaos].

So it was confirmed — this former "artifact" of [Deceit] had truly inherited the [Chaos] throne.

Kataro's world had caved in. He had always assumed this position would be Lord Cheng Shi's — what else could explain the rewriting of history, the emergence of the Chaos Envoy Ultraman, the bestowal of the [Chaos] Container? His patron had evidently been cultivating Lord Cheng Shi as the heir.

How had the sky changed like this?

But the change wasn't the reason Kataro had "confessed." Having once played the role of Lord Cheng Shi, he knew exactly what kind of person the man was — and on the strength of the "contributions" he'd made in supporting Cheng Shi before, Lord Cheng Shi would absolutely not abandon him.

But the new god [Chaos] was different.

Under patron's direction, Kataro had paid considerable attention to this Magician — and he knew full well that inside her body lived a far more terrifying "little sister." If that one were provoked, never mind keeping his position — even keeping his life would be another matter entirely.

So steady-minded Kataro went straight for the "confess" tactic. Selling out his lord would, at most, earn him some light sarcasm from Lord Cheng Shi — but it could at least keep him alive while the new god [Chaos]'s temperament remained unknown.

Besides — since [Chaos] had arrived alongside Lord Cheng Shi, his chances of anything going badly wrong were probably manageable.

So Kataro acted decisively, demonstrating his resourcefulness to the new god once again.

Zhen Xin saw through it all clearly. She found the "job application" reasonably satisfying.

"Don't be nervous. Even my status as a god was something your Lord Cheng Shi arranged. A spot tending a temple — I don't imagine he'll begrudge you that.

Isn't that right, Lord Cheng Shi?"

"..."

The Fun God wasn't here. But its particular brand of pointed remarks had still found their way into this room.