Chapter 992: Assembly
Xu Liunian was perhaps the most hesitant of everyone so far.
At that moment, she stood on the rooftop of "Paradise Gate," overlooking the decayed and scar-ridden city.
If she truly had a choice, she would join neither Qi Xia nor Chu Tianqiu.
As one of the people who had preserved her memories the longest, she knew clearly that those two were on an entirely different level from her.
Being drawn into their game was like willingly becoming a leaf in the midst of a storm, with absolutely no chance of resistance.
Every time she thought she had seen through their schemes and made a different choice, she would immediately realize she had fallen into another trap.
This dangerous and helpless feeling terrified her.
She knew better than anyone that neither of them regarded her as a teammate. So where could she run?
The terror of the name "Earth Dragon" was no less than that of "Qi Xia" and "Chu Tianqiu." The experience brought by long memory told Xu Liunian that if she chose to flee now, the consequences would be even more tragic.
"Can't you just leave me alone...?" Xu Liunian asked the pitch-black Light Gate. "I'm just an ordinary person... Why do all your choices have to drag me into them...?"
Unfortunately, when a storm sweeps through the forest, it does not ask the fallen leaves for their opinion.
The Earth Dragon could not answer Xu Liunian's question. She simply waited silently for her decision.
How should Xu Liunian choose? She only knew she had no choice at all.
After fear, despair, and helplessness flickered in her eyes, they eventually dimmed as if dead.
Chu Tianqiu's team was fully assembled.
But for Chu Tianqiu, the game of "Appointing Generals" was not over. He needed to choose the last person for Qi Xia.
He approached Qi Xia's device, his mind spinning rapidly.
At this moment, the one person who absolutely could not be chosen was "Lin Qin." Otherwise, this exchange of "Appointing Generals" would lose its meaning.
His ultimate goal in this move was to disrupt Qi Xia's plan of having all seven members be his own people. Therefore, he had to stuff a completely irrelevant person into his team.
But saying it was easy; thinking about it carefully was somewhat difficult.
If he wrote down names of people who had no connection to Qi Xia, they would likely refuse, and Qi Xia's team would be short one person. Although that would increase his own chances of winning, it would create an uneven game. Even if he won, it would be dull.
"Got it..." Chu Tianqiu suddenly thought of something. "Your team already has plenty of the old, weak, sick, and disabled... It shouldn't hurt to add one more, right?"
Chu Tianqiu knew that this person had some acquaintance with Qi Xia but was otherwise useless. So he wouldn't refuse the invitation and would instead choose to join.
Once he joined, Qi Xia wouldn't ignore him and would have to divert energy to take care of him.
But this person's "Echo" was a support type, and Qi Xia was already in a relatively passive position.
The "Breaker of Ten Thousand Methods," "Scapegoat," "Soul Migration," and "Ingenious Objects" in his team were all support types. The only "Echo" with any lethality was "Disaster Invocation."
Now adding this person... that would be perfect.
"Zheng Yingxiong."
When Qi Xia saw this name, he paused and couldn't help but laugh out loud. The smile made Chu Tianqiu feel a bit unsettled.
"What are you up to..." Qi Xia laughed maniacally. "This is what you came up with after careful consideration...?"
At that moment, Chu Tianqiu felt as if he had overlooked something. Seeing Qi Xia's unconcerned expression, could it be that he had once participated in a game with Zheng Yingxiong?
He had clearly disrupted the other's plan, but now Qi Xia seemed to have no plan at all.
Had "Lin Qin" never needed to join the team from the start?
Zhang Shan had once said that Zheng Yingxiong's "Echo" was most likely the ability to sniff out the type of "Echo" on others. Even if Qi Xia really had some connection with Zheng Yingxiong, how could he use this seemingly useless "Echo" to defeat his own team?
Now, his team had "Heaven's Constant Motion," "Soul Steal," "Quantum Leap," "Separation," and "Shape-shift."
The only support-type "Echo" was Wen Qiaoyun's "Energy Storage."
But Wen Qiaoyun's sharp mind could fully compensate for the drawbacks of her support-type "Echo." Add to that his own walking "Echo Warehouse"... How could Qi Xia still be so calm?
The Earth Dragon turned around and reached out to pull open the door standing alone behind her. But this time, the situation was a bit unusual.
When the door opened, it was pitch black, as if it led nowhere—just an empty doorframe.
Neither Qi Xia nor Chu Tianqiu knew what was happening. They saw the Earth Dragon frown.
A few seconds later, she turned back and asked, "Is the name written correctly?"
Chu Tianqiu and Qi Xia naturally thought the name was correct—after all, a name like "Zheng Yingxiong" was unforgettable after hearing it once.
"It should be correct," Chu Tianqiu replied. After all, he had interacted with Zheng Yingxiong. The kid looked less than ten years old—how could he be cunning enough to use a pseudonym?
"There is no 'Zheng Yingxiong' among all the people in 'Peach Blossom Spring,'" the Earth Dragon said. "Are you sure the name is right?"
Qi Xia thought for a few seconds, seeming to remember something, and said, "Try a homophone."
The Earth Dragon nodded, closed the door again, muttered a few words in her mind, then reopened it.
This time, there was finally light outside the door.
Zheng Yingxiong was sprinting down a road, and the door followed him like a moving camera in fast motion.
He quickly noticed the change before him, then gradually slowed to a halt, panting heavily.
"What character...?" Zheng Yingxiong murmured. "Accept... Command... What does that mean?"
Fortunately, the characters on the black Light Gate were not many—five in total—and Zheng Yingxiong could recognize them all. Besides his own name, it said "Accept Command."
The Earth Dragon hadn't expected that the last person, passed back and forth between the two sides, would be a child just a few years old. She couldn't help but freeze for a moment when she saw him. Not to mention his combat abilities, he probably couldn't even understand the "rules."
The Earth Dragon quickly recovered and said as usual, "The Commander 'Qi Xia' has appointed 'Zheng Yingxiong' to join the 'Cangjie Chess' and assist in the battle. To accept the command, step into the gate. To refuse, step back five paces."
"Qi Xia...?" Zheng Yingxiong was stunned. He instinctively reached up and took off his crown, his demeanor showing utmost humility.
The Earth Dragon would never have guessed that Qi Xia was the "Master" that this eight- or nine-year-old child had acknowledged in his heart.
Zheng Yingxiong first turned his head to look into the distance, where a crowd was hastily gathering, and then looked back at the Light Gate before him. He didn't seem to want to retreat but rather to confirm which side he should join.
He wanted to go to the main force to protect everyone, but he also wanted to follow Qi Xia's orders.
After hesitating for a moment, he stepped into the Light Gate.
Thus, both teams were fully assembled.
After closing the door, the Earth Dragon said, "Next, please wait here for a moment. I will take you to the 'Troop Review.'"