Chapter 994: An Overwhelming Odor
Chu Tianqiu's team had a more complex composition than Qi Xia's, so a cacophony of voices erupted.
Both Doctor Zhao and Xu Liunian looked completely baffled. Not only did they loudly question Chu Tianqiu about why he had chosen them, but they even asked Di Long if they could switch people right now.
In contrast, the situation on Qi Xia's side was much better. Although Lawyer Zhang, Tian Tian, and Zheng Yingxiong's arrival was somewhat unexpected, the three of them seemed to fully trust Qi Xia. They neither asked many questions nor expressed any doubts.
Qi Xia simply walked up to them and said, "I might be interrupting, but right now, I really do need you."
"It's okay..." Tian Tian said, patting Zheng Yingxiong on the head. "There aren't many people in this place who need me. Just tell me if there's anything I can help with."
"Alright." Qi Xia nodded. "To be honest, I don't know what needs help in this game either, since we haven't even been told the rules yet. But every person I chose is someone I trust. For now, let's take it step by step."
Lawyer Zhang nodded solemnly from the side and murmured quietly, "For such a large-scale game... not revealing the rules first is completely unfair to us."
"This place has never been fair." Qi Xia said. "Lawyer Zhang, they've always been trying to kill us by any means necessary, so this makes perfect sense."
Han Yimo, standing behind the group, was now unsure of his position. He stepped forward into the middle of the group and hesitantly asked, "Qi Xia... you said everyone you chose... are people you trust?"
"Yes." Qi Xia nodded.
"Me too...?" Han Yimo asked again.
"Of course." Qi Xia smiled. "Han Yimo, this game is no ordinary one. Not only is Di Long, the leader of the 'Earth Level,' presiding here, but 'Qing Long' is also watching."
"Qing..."
"One of the rulers of this place." Qi Xia said. "Everything we do will be under his nose. Don't be too scared."
The more Qi Xia spoke, the more frightened Han Yimo became. He couldn't even handle a normal 'Earth Level,' let alone figures like Di Long and Qing Long.
He could only console himself repeatedly, insisting that following the 'Savior' wouldn't lead to any fatal danger.
"No matter how many 'setbacks' the protagonist faces..." Han Yimo whispered to himself, "he can never be killed by the villain..."
Just as Qi Xia was about to assign tactics to everyone, a faint, barely audible grunt reached his ears.
Zheng Yingxiong was crouching on the ground, clutching his nose, his expression unusually pained.
"Hero!!" Tian Tian crouched down and exclaimed in surprise, only to find that Zheng Yingxiong's condition was dire.
His face was growing pale, his expression more pained than ever before.
Qi Xia frowned and quickly went over to check on Zheng Yingxiong.
"Qi Xia..." Tian Tian said, "Hero has seemed off ever since he came in..."
"Yeah, Old Qi..." Chen Junnan also nodded from the side. "This kid's nose was bothering him as soon as he walked in. He probably can't hold on much longer... Is there something weird about this place?"
Qi Xia knew that Zheng Yingxiong would be affected upon entering, but he hadn't expected the impact to be so severe.
He leaned close to Zheng Yingxiong, waiting until the boy's expression eased slightly before asking, "What do you feel...?"
"This place..." Zheng Yingxiong said through gritted teeth, "the odor is too overwhelming... I've never felt anything like this."
"'Overwhelming'... how do you explain that?" Qi Xia asked. "Is the odor stronger, or is it more widespread?"
"It's... neither... It's like..." Zheng Yingxiong squinted, thinking for a few seconds, then said, "Before, smells always emanated from a person or a location... But this time, it's as if all of us are standing *inside* the odor..."
"Standing *inside* the odor...?"
Qi Xia thought about it from Zheng Yingxiong's perspective and felt he understood a little. These 'inspiration-type' 'Echoes' weren't completely useless here; rather, they were being disrupted by something intense.
This would cause them to receive only interference, no matter whether they looked, listened, smelled, or touched.
"Inside what kind of 'odor'?" Qi Xia asked again. "Can you sniff out what it's called?"
"I don't know..." Zheng Yingxiong said. "It's too vast... too vast for me to smell its name..."
Zheng Yingxiong's words left the people around him momentarily baffled.
Chen Junnan scratched his head. "An odor so vast you can't smell its name... that's one hell of a niche description..."
"It's not hard to understand..." Qi Xia said. "If you compare this 'odor' to a giant sculpture of text, when you stand at its base and look up, you wouldn't be able to recognize what character you're seeing, either."
"But then..." Chen Junnan glanced sideways at Zheng Yingxiong, "this kid's ability is just smelling, right...? If there's a bunch of other smells here, then he's useless...? Who can smell perfume sprayed in a toilet?"
Although Chen Junnan didn't want to spell it out so bluntly, this was a team of seven people. Chu Tianqiu's team might seem less stable, but they were by no means weak.
In such a situation, having someone who couldn't activate their 'Echo' wouldn't bode well for the group's position in this game.
"It's fine." Qi Xia said. "The fact that he came in and told me this has already helped me a great deal. It's confirmed some of my speculations."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone saw a trickle of blood begin to seep from Zheng Yingxiong's nostrils.
Only then did Qi Xia realize that the situation might be more complicated than he had imagined. Every time Zheng Yingxiong overused his 'Echo,' his nose would bleed, and it would only stop when the odor dissipated.
But if he was constantly inside this space... wouldn't that mean his nosebleed would never stop?
"Zheng Yingxiong..." Qi Xia called out. "Sever your 'Echo.' Don't use your ability for the rest of the time unless absolutely necessary. Save your life first."
"I... I..." Zheng Yingxiong covered his nose, looking troubled. "I don't know how to sever it..."
"You don't know...?" Qi Xia frowned. "It's just an 'Echo.' If you know how it awakened, you should know how to sever it."
"I don't even know how I obtained the 'Fragrance'..." Zheng Yingxiong said. "I only remember that one day I opened my eyes, and this 'Fragrance' was on me. I've tried countless times to sever it voluntarily... even wanted to get rid of this ability, but I've never succeeded."
Qi Xia felt this was tricky. If Zheng Yingxiong couldn't sever his 'Echo,' he would most likely die here.
"Fist." Qi Xia turned to Qiao Jiajin. "He can't sever it, so you do it for him."
"Oh, sure." Qiao Jiajin nodded and was about to say something, but Zheng Yingxiong interrupted them.
"No need." Zheng Yingxiong said. "I'm fine. If I don't have this 'Fragrance,' there's no reason for me to be here. Let me keep this ability."
"Keeping this ability will get you killed." Qi Xia said.
"It doesn't matter if I die." Zheng Yingxiong said. "As long as my 'death' can bring 'life' to others, then everything is worth it."