Chapter 1073: A Guarantee for the Human-Level
"I kill you…?"
The Snake felt that every word Qi Xia uttered challenged his understanding, and for a moment, he didn't even know how to respond.
"Am I not qualified?" Qi Xia said. "Do you have any execution weapons here—knives or guns?"
"I… uh, yes…"
"Kill me," Qi Xia said. "If you're not at ease, I can leave my corpse here right now."
The Snake paused, his face contemplative as he looked at Qi Xia.
Two paths now lay before him. First: trust Qi Xia's claim that no "Zodiac" would die in this game, wait quietly here until the game ended, then incite the Zodiacs to remove their masks together in the afternoon, using the broken bell as a signal.
Second: make a decisive move, take Qi Xia's head as a trophy for Qinglong, and seize the chance to become an "Earth-level."
The first path was too dangerous, fraught with uncertainty. The second path was too safe, almost like a trap.
But the Snake had spent a long time with Bai Yang and could generally tell when someone was lying. Qi Xia's eyes at this moment were very sincere, not at all like he was deceiving him.
An idea involuntarily rose in the Snake's mind… Was this man really prepared to leave his life here? At this critical juncture when the plan was about to begin?
As if reading the Snake's thoughts again, Qi Xia said softly, "I can't let any loopholes occur today. So either path works. As long as you fully trust me, it doesn't matter if I die here."
The Snake was taken aback, then asked, "If you die… can the plan still continue?"
"Yes," Qi Xia said. "Whether it's me or Bai Yang, at this final moment, we're both expendable."
The two fell into another brief silence.
Soon after, the Snake slowly stood up, his expression complicated. "I understand. I trust you."
Upon hearing this, Qi Xia furrowed his brows slightly, then rose as well. "There's no need to force yourself. If you don't believe me, I can leave one hand here first."
"No need," the Snake said. "Although you're not Brother Yang, and Brother Yang isn't you, you're very similar."
"Are we?"
"The one who pulled me out from those days of suffering had a cold sheep's face," the Snake said. "That's all I remember, so I can't acknowledge you as Brother Yang. But I will still carry out Brother Yang's plan. Consider it me helping you for his sake."
Hearing this, Qi Xia felt his own feelings toward the Snake were equally complex.
Scenes of spending time with the Snake swirled in his mind, but he was no longer Bai Yang. How should he treat him now?
"Since you trust me, I'll entrust this matter to you," Qi Xia said. "I guarantee you… none of the 'Human-level' caught up in this affair will die."
"What…? You guarantee it?"
"That's right," Qi Xia said. "Since you said I'm like Bai Yang, you should also know we wouldn't make such empty promises to our own people."
The Snake looked down at the puzzle book on the table. Bai Yang had deceived him before, but only once—the most fatal time.
"Alright. Since I've decided to help you… I'll trust you on this too," the Snake said. "Leave the matter of the 'Human-level Zodiacs' to me. Even if I can't incite a second person this afternoon, I'll remove my mask myself and shake Zhuque's conviction."
"Thank you," Qi Xia said.
"And the second issue that needs handling?" the Snake asked.
"The second issue?" Qi Xia paused. "You mean… the other ear besides Qinglong?"
"Yes," the Snake nodded. "If I survive this game, he might still kill me. After all, everything I do is under his surveillance."
"Tian Gou might not have that courage," Qi Xia said, lifting his head to look at the ceiling. "In this flood, he has to choose sides too. He'll soon know who represents the inevitable tide."
The Snake followed Qi Xia's gaze upward.
Qi Xia paused again. "Even if he heard that, it doesn't matter. He's always known what I'm doing. I believe he has his own judgment."
"Alright…" the Snake nodded. "In that case… it's settled."
"Good."
Qi Xia turned and walked toward the "Door." Just as he was about to open it, he suddenly thought of something, his brows knitting tightly.
He paused, slowly turned around, and felt he had discovered a very strange problem.
"Chen Junnan had 'Bao' and 'Jin'…" Qi Xia murmured. "How did he meet you?"
"What?"
"Theoretically, neither of the two 'characters' he had could 'cross the river.' Once they cross and open the 'Door,' they'd meet an 'Earth-level Zodiac,'" Qi Xia said, frowning. "Is there something I've overlooked? Why did he meet you?"
"Are you also caught in a mindset?" the Snake said with a bitter smile. "After he opened the 'Door,' he indeed wouldn't have seen me. But I was the one who opened the 'Door.'"
"You opened the 'Door' voluntarily?"
"Yes," the Snake said. "Like a destined coincidence. I wanted to open the 'Door' and secretly see what was on the other side. The moment I opened it, Chen Junnan was standing there."
"I see…" Qi Xia narrowed his eyes, feeling he had obtained another crucial piece of information.
Since Zodiacs could open doors voluntarily… then there was much more that could be done in this "Cangjie Chess."
For example… what if he didn't open the "Door" but knocked on it instead?
For example… if a "Human-level Zodiac" and an "Earth-level Zodiac" opened the same "Door" together, whose "Door" would actually lead to "Cangjie Chess"?
"Interesting," Qi Xia said. "It seems the 'Door' is even more interesting than I imagined."
"Don't 'interesting' me," the Snake said. "Since I've agreed to help you, don't you die in the 'Cangjie Chess' in the time to come."
"Alright. An 'Earth Snake' just told me the same thing," Qi Xia chuckled lightly. "I won't die. Even if I die here… I won't die."
Qi Xia's words left the Snake baffled again, but the feeling was just like Brother Yang.
"Farewell."
Qi Xia turned and opened the "Door," stepping out of the room. To his surprise, in the span of a few minutes, the three "characters" he had dropped were still on the floor. Just as he bent down to pick them up, the room's "Door" opened.
Doctor Zhao stood on the other side, staring at him in shock.
If Doctor Zhao had opened the "Door" just a few seconds earlier, the "characters" on the floor would have a new owner. If he had opened it a few seconds later, he wouldn't have seen Qi Xia at all. But he happened to open it at this very moment.
Qi Xia bent down nonchalantly, scooped up all the "characters," and put them in his pocket. Then he gave Doctor Zhao a cold stare.
"You… you…" Doctor Zhao had opened the "Door" but dared not step inside, his speech stammering.
"What did you see?" Qi Xia asked.
"I-I saw nothing…" Doctor Zhao quickly said.
"No, you did see something," Qi Xia said. "Go tell Chu Tianqiu."