Chapter 1228: Dirty Tricks
Qiao Jiajin looked down at his body, which was being reshaped like clay before his eyes.
Though the patterns on his skin remained, the contours of his muscles were no longer his own.
"Damn... that's impressive..."
He clenched his fist, feeling a surge of power flow through his fingertips. Qian Wu quickly signaled him with a look not to make any rash moves.
Qiao Jiajin turned to him and noticed that Qian Wu's face had turned as pale as paper. It seemed that replicating a "Tianxingjian" had taken a massive toll on him.
"Qian Wu..." Qiao Jiajin said. "How about we stop here? I think I have enough strength..."
"No." Qian Wu shook his head. "It's not stable yet. My ability can't forge a brand-new 'Tianxingjian' body for you. The only option is to establish a stable twin-link between you two."
"Twin-link...?"
"One blossom blooms, two blossoms flourish. One blossom withers, two blossoms die." Qian Wu said softly. "From now on, Zhang Shan must maintain the 'Tianxingjian' state at all times. Beyond that, any damage either of you takes will simultaneously affect the other."
"Oh...?" Qiao Jiajin turned to look at Zhang Shan. "Big guy, how are you at dodging? Don't get hurt."
Zhang Shan hadn't felt much change in his own body, only noticing that Qiao Jiajin was growing taller and broader.
"I'm not great at dodging..." Zhang Shan answered honestly. "But I can take a hit."
"Damn..." Qiao Jiajin blinked, feeling like his chances of getting hurt had somehow increased. "You can take a hit, but I might not be able to. I usually dodge."
Hearing their exchange, Tian Chuqiu began to ponder from the sidelines.
If even someone like Qian Wu couldn't forge a brand-new "Tianxingjian," then what kind of conviction had Qi Xia injected into resurrecting him? Could his "Endless Growth" really sustain everyone from dying...?
As they spoke, a crowd of "Earthly" and "Human" ranked "Zodiacs" began to gather outside the door.
Some of these "Zodiacs" shared the same mindset as the Earthly Ox from earlier. They didn't care what these people were doing—only that they were here, disrupting their own interests.
These audacious "Participants" had not only thrown the already fully mature "Zodiac" system into chaos but had even killed someone on the "train."
Whispers started to rise outside the door, each person uncertain about the current situation.
"Did an Earthly Ox just get killed?" one "Zodiac" whispered to another. "Isn't the White Tiger in charge of 'Zodiac killings'? Why hasn't he shown up?"
"Maybe that Ox isn't dead yet?" another replied. "So it doesn't count as a 'Zodiac killing' yet..."
"No way... even if he's not dead, that kind of beating proves they wanted to kill..."
"No, no, no. I think it's because the attacker was a 'Participant,' not a 'Zodiac,' so it doesn't count as a 'Zodiac killing.' That's why the White Tiger should..."
The many "Zodiacs" bickered outside the door, never once suspecting that the White Tiger couldn't care less about so-called "Zodiac killings."
If the White Tiger hadn't also believed that "Zodiacs" were pitiful figures, he wouldn't have hesitated to do the killing himself.
Caught in a dilemma, he chose to simply leave the "train."
After much deliberation at the doorway, the "Zodiacs" finally decided to join forces and subdue these clearly abnormal "Participants."
Seeing the crowd slowly gathering nearby, the Earthly Rat wore a grim expression. He glanced back at the scene of "power transmission" still in progress, then let out a long sigh, turned around, and used his body to block the door.
"All of you look so human, yet here I am, the one taking the bullet." The Earthly Rat let out a hollow laugh, muttering to himself. "Makes you wonder who the real beast is."
The Earthly Dog saw the hostile intent and quickly shifted his position, moving from inside the room to outside.
"Hey... you guys..." The Earthly Dog twitched the muscles on his face, looking at the aggressive "Zodiacs" approaching and quickly spoke up. "You're finally here!"
"Whose side are you on?" an Earthly Pig asked.
"I swear I'm crying here—I was forced into this! Hurry up and figure out a way to save me!" the Earthly Dog said.
The Earthly Rat gave him a cold look, then shook his head. "I know another dog leader. He's usually lazy and unreliable too, but compared to you, he's like a police dog—dependable."
"I swear I'll die laughing," the Earthly Dog sneered. "The sky's falling, and you're still putting on airs."
Tian Chuqiu could sense the gunpowder in the air at the doorway, but Qian Wu clearly still needed time. So he stood up, gripped a single eyeball in his hand, and moved behind the Earthly Rat.
"Hey, Earthly Rat." Tian Chuqiu frowned. "You can't hold them off alone. Let's try to stall for time together."
"Boss, you're overestimating me..." The Earthly Rat gave a dry laugh. "With this many people, you want me to stall? I can't beat them, and I can't out-argue them."
Tian Chuqiu also took in the situation at the door. From left to right, there were at least four unfamiliar "Earthlies," plus over a dozen "Humans."
And the Earthly Dog, who had just promised to protect everyone, was now standing among them, making him the fifth "Earthly."
Tian Chuqiu had only one "Tianxingjian" left, along with a few auxiliary abilities. He had planned to use that "Tianxingjian" after entering the Tianlong's dream, but now it seemed he couldn't afford to save it.
If he wanted to protect three lives from so many "Earthlies" at once, he'd probably have to use several more.
"Boss..." The Earthly Rat turned to look at Tian Chuqiu. "Do you have a trump card too?"
"Sort of," Tian Chuqiu nodded.
"Looks can be deceiving," the Earthly Rat said. "Both of you have the ability to go head-to-head with 'Earthlies.' If you'd said so earlier, this fence-sitter of yours would be flourishing."
"I wouldn't say I can kill all these people for sure, but I can buy enough time," Tian Chuqiu replied.
"In that case..." The Earthly Rat shook his head. "Then I don't recommend we charge together."
"Oh?"
"'Concentrated fire' is usually meant to overwhelm the opponent and win instantly." The Earthly Rat lowered his voice. "But our goal is to stall, so we should go one at a time. After all, I have a trump card too."
"You have a trump card?" Tian Chuqiu looked at the Earthly Rat. In his opinion, even though the Rat had an "Earthly" body, he clearly wasn't a fighter. What kind of trump card could he have?
The Earthly Rat gave a light laugh. "That's right. I learned a dirty trick from a former teammate in my room—a socially awkward guy."
"A dirty trick...?"
The Earthly Rat turned his head, sweeping his gaze calmly across all the "Zodiacs" before finally landing on the Earthly Dog.
Their eyes met. Before the Earthly Dog could even spit out a retort, the Earthly Rat opened his mouth and asked, "Boss, why haven't you made your move yet?"