Chapter 1082: The Final Gambit
"Chu Tianqiu... Although I don't quite understand the principle of 'Artifice,' I roughly know the principle of 'Echo.'"
Yan Zhichun said, "If that person called Tiantian can 'repair a screen,' then theoretically, she should be able to create 'Characters' out of thin air, right?"
Chu Tianqiu nodded after hearing this. "That's right."
"Then wouldn't it be a matter of minutes for the other side to gather twenty-eight 'Characters'?" Yan Zhichun felt there was a logical flaw in this. "The structure of a 'Character' is clearly simpler than that of a 'screen.' If she can repair a 'screen,' why not create 'Characters'?"
Chu Tianqiu frowned deeply after hearing this, feeling that Yan Zhichun was somewhat similar to Wen Qiaoyun—their way of thinking could compensate for the defects in his own logic.
"There's a rare possibility," Chu Tianqiu said. "That Tiantian has a better understanding of the structure of the 'screen.'"
"Assuming what you say is true—that Tiantian knows more about the 'screen' than about 'Characters'—the difficulty of this repair is still enormous," Yan Zhichun said. "First, we need to confirm that this girl named Tiantian can actually obtain 'Echo.' Then, Qi Xia would have to guess that you would actually smash the 'screen,' and subsequently have Tiantian perform a restoration that allows no room for error. Not to mention, what you smashed wasn't an ordinary screen, but a touchscreen capable of writing. Would Qi Xia really stake the outcome of victory or defeat on such a slim possibility?"
As he listened, Chu Tianqiu kept pondering the feasibility of this scenario. Since he was engaging in a gambit with Qi Xia, he had to believe as much as possible in things that were normally unlikely.
Perhaps Qi Xia had truly anticipated this step and had already arranged for Tiantian to start training her 'Echo' in advance. After all, in all this time, no one had ever heard of anyone entering a game venue with Tiantian, which meant she was always active, yet she wasn't in the 'preparation zone.'
So where would she be?
"If I really assume Tiantian can repair the screen... I'll have no choice but to go," Chu Tianqiu said.
Yan Zhichun didn't know how to dissuade Chu Tianqiu, but the current situation was difficult for both sides. Before Earth Dragon announced the game results, no one could predict who would emerge victorious.
A Tiantian who hadn't shown her face for so long had become a knife pressed against Chu Tianqiu's throat. As long as her ability remained unrevealed, Chu Tianqiu could never set his mind at ease.
Chu Tianqiu let out a sigh. "Yan Zhichun, have you noticed that this man Qi Xia... is truly terrifying?"
Yan Zhichun was startled. "What do you mean?"
"Everyone in his own camp has played a crucial role in this game," Chu Tianqiu said. "Qi Xia is responsible for overall coordination, Qiao Jiajin for taking down Zhang Shan, and Chen Junnan for tactical execution. I thought only these three would shine brightly in this game, but I never expected that what directly led to our defeat wasn't the three of them, but the remaining people."
"Including that child...?" Yan Zhichun asked again.
"Yes, including Zheng Yingxiong," Chu Tianqiu said. "Earlier, I noticed that Chen Junnan, Han Yimo, and Qiao Jiajin had all obtained 'Echo.' I couldn't understand why they could achieve such stable 'self-suggestion' in such a short time. But when I thought about Zheng Yingxiong's ability, it suddenly clicked. The other side doesn't need everyone to perform 'self-suggestion'; they can completely rely on Zheng Yingxiong to perform 'explicit suggestion.'"
"'Explicit suggestion'...?"
"Originally, it was a situation where everyone needed to lie to deceive themselves. Now, only Zheng Yingxiong needs to lie," Chu Tianqiu replied. "Simplifying a difficult task to the greatest extent—truly making the best use of everyone's talents."
It was only then that Yan Zhichun realized her understanding of this game was still somewhat one-sided. Having been fighting on the front lines the entire time, constantly seizing 'Characters' from the opponent, she had no idea how the commanders on both sides were deploying their strategies.
"Then there's Zhang Chenze, who could enter the enemy's 'preparation zone' alone and deduct points without a tremor in her hand or a flutter in her heart," Chu Tianqiu continued. "And now there's a hidden final weapon: Tiantian, who can use 'Artifice' to ensure the team never loses."
The more Chu Tianqiu spoke, the more helpless he felt. He shook his head with a bitter smile. "Even the mole we sent over, Han Yimo, his very existence was meant to lead us to failure... How can there be such a well-rounded team? And look at our teammates... each fighting for their own agenda, harboring their own thoughts. When you realize that everyone on the other side is giving full play to their abilities, what kind of blade is sharp enough to cut an opening in that team and let us see the light of victory?"
Yan Zhichun shook her head after hearing this. She knew, as Chu Tianqiu had said, the seven people on the other side were like a seamless wall. Although outwardly they didn't seem to be cooperating with each other, everyone was striving for 'victory.' The seven of them attacked from seven different points, creating the current situation.
"I'm not particularly good at managing people either. There have just always been people helping me," Yan Zhichun said.
"'Always having people helping you'—isn't that a form of managing people?" Chu Tianqiu laughed. "Many times, I too wish someone could help me, but unfortunately, it's the same at every stage—no one understands what I'm doing at the time. For 'Jidao' to have come this far, maybe there really are people helping you, but your contribution is still indispensable."
"Ha." A rare smile appeared on Yan Zhichun's face. "I should have visited 'Heaven's Gate' earlier and had a long night of talks with you about managing people."
"It's too late now," Chu Tianqiu said. "By the time you stepped into 'Heaven's Gate,' it was already a spent force."
"Alright." Yan Zhichun nodded. "Then, as the bowstring of that 'spent force,' what are you planning to do now?"
"Qi Xia has blocked off all the paths," Chu Tianqiu said. "If I don't go to the 'River Channel' to settle the final outcome with him, then the result won't be in my hands, nor in his, but in Qinglong's hands. That's no different from losing."
"Going there... won't guarantee you won't lose?"
"At least there's a probability of winning," Chu Tianqiu said. "Don't forget... the 'mole' hiding among us from Qi Xia's team hasn't revealed himself yet. I suspect this is also a killing move."
Yan Zhichun sighed after hearing this. She knew Chu Tianqiu didn't trust her, so any explanation would be useless. She could only say softly, "Very well."
"Besides, if I really do lose..." Chu Tianqiu added, "I still have a 'backup plan.'"
...
As soon as they returned to the 'preparation zone,' Chen Junnan and Qiao Jiajin dragged their heavily injured bodies and began recounting what had just happened to Qi Xia.
Qi Xia merely nodded faintly, as if he had already roughly guessed the current situation. He soothed Qiao Jiajin and Chen Junnan, telling them the game was about to end.
Now, all that remained was to gamble one-on-one with Chu Tianqiu at the very last moment.
"No way, Old Qi..." Chen Junnan said. "Our screen is smashed... Can we really still win?"
"Yes," Qi Xia nodded. "Just like how Chu Tianqiu came to our place to smash the screen, there are many ways to win. You don't necessarily have to score points with 'Characters.'"
"Hey!" Chen Junnan leaned in and whispered to Qi Xia, "I just thought of something—don't we still have Zhang Lijuan here? Can she help us fix the screen?"
Qi Xia shook his head helplessly. "Unfortunately, Tiantian's 'Echo' isn't strong enough yet, and there's no more time to let her build it up again. Besides, if there's a single mistake in repairing the screen, we won't even have the 'shattered screen' anymore."
"If she can't repair the screen... what's she doing right now?" Chen Junnan asked.
"She has another task to handle."
Chen Junnan's heart began to harbor doubts after hearing this.
In this game, Zhang Lijuan didn't need to create 'Characters' or 'screens'... so what other task could she have?
He only remembered that Qi Xia had dispatched Zhang Lijuan very early in the game. Had the 'task' already begun back then?