Chapter 928: The Extreme Hero
Yan Zhichun stared into Qi Xia's eyes for a long time before nodding seriously. "Yes... you're right... Brother Yang, I spoke out of turn."
"You know that well enough," Qi Xia said. "Yan Zhichun... you might not know what terrifying experiences I've gone through to get to this point. More than anyone, I want to 'win.' Even if I'm the only one left here, I still want to 'win.'"
"I understand..." Yan Zhichun nodded. "Brother Yang, the plan remains the same. I'll go arrange it now."
Just as Yan Zhichun was about to leave, Qi Xia called out to her again. "Wait."
"What is it...?"
"There's no need to trust the White Sheep too much," Qi Xia said.
His words made Yan Zhichun freeze entirely.
"What do you mean, 'don't trust the White Sheep too much'..." Yan Zhichun clearly didn't understand. "Brother Yang... you... aren't you..."
"He is also me, but I can't trust myself," Qi Xia said. "To join forces with someone I can't trust—no matter how I think about it, it's full of uncertainties."
After hearing this, Yan Zhichun stood frozen for a long time. It wasn't because Qi Xia's words were hard to understand, but because the White Sheep had once said exactly the same thing.
How absurd was this situation...?
The White Sheep was Qi Xia, and Qi Xia was the White Sheep.
It was clearly a mutual collaboration across time and space, a shocking chess game that could only happen in the 'Land of Endings' and would go down in history...
Yet they didn't trust each other.
The reason seemed to be that each thought the other... wasn't as clever as themselves?
"This is too absurd... Brother Yang..." Yan Zhichun said softly. "Do you know what you're saying? That's also you... If neither of you trusts the other, how can you..."
"That's not the real me," Qi Xia interrupted Yan Zhichun. "I wouldn't despise a clever person like that. His foolishness lies in his arrogance. You'd be better off trusting me instead of him. After all, he won't come back, but I'm still here."
"I-I understand..."
After pondering for a long time, Yan Zhichun finally left the room.
Qi Xia turned back to look out the window.
Before long, a head poked into the room. "Yo!"
Qi Xia turned around and saw Chen Junnan walking in with a mischievous grin.
"Old Qi... did you bully that girl? Why did she have that expression when she left?"
"Boring..." Qi Xia said. "Why would I bully her?"
"Anyway, that girl looked unhappy," Chen Junnan said. "She seems pretty tough. What's her deal?"
"King of the Extreme Path," Qi Xia replied.
"Whoa~~~~~~"
Chen Junnan shouted at the top of his lungs, causing Qi Xia to frown repeatedly.
"Can you be serious for once?" Qi Xia said. "I happen to have something to tell you."
"Alright, alright." Chen Junnan put away his cynical expression and asked seriously, "What are your orders, sir?"
"I need to know if 'Cat' has been reborn," Qi Xia said. "Go to the prison and take a look for me."
"You..." Chen Junnan paused. "Old Qi... you're even going after 'Cat'..."
"I need Qian Wu," Qi Xia said. "He shouldn't be dead. He's still in the prison now."
"Are you really okay..." Chen Junnan looked at Qi Xia with slight worry. "You've repeated your old tricks so many times in such a short time... Even a 'Heaven' couldn't pull this off."
"I have no choice," Qi Xia replied. "I really want to rest too, but I can't right now."
"Sigh..." Chen Junnan sighed. "Fine, I'll go take a look. If it's 'live Cat' there, what then? And if it's 'dead Cat'?"
"As long as Zhou Liu and Qian Wu are still there, it's not 'dead Cat,'" Qi Xia said. "Have Zhou Liu contact me."
"Alright, got it." Chen Junnan waved his hand. "I'm off. Don't save me dinner tonight."
Chen Junnan gave Qi Xia a brief farewell and set off into the setting sun.
...
When Yan Zhichun returned to her classroom, she heard Jiang Ruoxue's voice from inside. She seemed to be talking to someone.
After standing at the door for a few seconds, she realized the other person seemed to be a child, so she pushed the door open with a puzzled expression.
Jiang Ruoxue was speaking helplessly to a little boy who looked only eight or nine years old. The boy wore a crown on his head and had a dirty bedsheet draped over his back.
"Oh my, Zhichun, you're here," Jiang Ruoxue said. "Come and talk some sense into him. I can't persuade him."
"Persuade?" Yan Zhichun raised an eyebrow and looked at the little boy.
Jiang Ruoxue reached out to pat the little boy's head, guiding his gaze toward Yan Zhichun, and said, "Little brother, it's no use talking to me. This is my boss. Tell her whatever you need."
Without saying a word, Yan Zhichun stared at the strange boy for a long time, completely baffled by his outfit.
"What do you want?" she asked bluntly.
"Sister, are you the leader of the Extreme Path?" the little boy asked. "My name is Zheng Yingxiong. I want to join the Extreme Path."
"Impossible. Leave," Yan Zhichun said.
"Ah...?"
Hearing Yan Zhichun's reply, Jiang Ruoxue burst out laughing. "Haha... Zhichun, what are you doing..."
"What's wrong?" Yan Zhichun looked at her. "Isn't that what you were thinking too?"
"Even so..." Jiang Ruoxue shook her head. "You're a bit too cold. What if you scare the kid?"
"The Extreme Path isn't a charity organization. What's the point of a little kid like this joining?" Yan Zhichun continued sternly to Zheng Yingxiong. "Don't waste our time. We have important matters to discuss. Go now."
"I'm not leaving," Zheng Yingxiong said firmly. "I have a reason I must join the Extreme Path... You can't just kick me out because I'm young, can you? My memories go further back than many people's!"
"That still won't work," Yan Zhichun refused decisively. "Unfortunately, you've come at a bad time. A major event is about to happen in the Extreme Path. Since the outcome is uncertain, I won't allow anyone to join now."
"A major event...?" Zheng Yingxiong was taken aback. "Sister, if there's a major event, then I especially need to join."
"What?" Yan Zhichun felt that this child was indeed a bit special.
Zheng Yingxiong pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Yan Zhichun. On it was a line of writing:
"Zheng Yingxiong, go find 'Cause and Effect.' The path she has chosen is most likely correct. From now on, no matter what happens, absolutely never choose to become a 'Zodiac.' Goodbye."
After reading, Yan Zhichun slowly frowned. "Whose handwriting is this?"
"My older brother," Zheng Yingxiong said. "He is a 'Human Monkey' here. Do you know him?"