Chapter 1232: Stray Cats
Chu Tianqiu, Qiao Jiajin, and Zhang Shan had almost completely cowed all the nearby "Zodiacs" and "participants."
Not only did the "Zodiacs" dare not approach and cause trouble, but even the "participants" had retreated far away.
They had wanted to bring Qian Wu along, but his complexion showed that he could no longer sustain any further movement.
"Qian Wu-er." Qiao Jiajin checked on Qian Wu's condition. "What are you gonna do? Gonna get off the train with those people?"
"No..." Qian Wu waved his hand, shifted his body backward in the Earth Dog's room, and leaned against the corner of the wall to sit down. "The 'Cat's' tasks are all complete, but I've only finished nine-tenths of mine... Give me a little more time."
"What kind of joke are you telling?" Qiao Jiajin frowned. "You think I wanted to save you because your tasks weren't done?"
"I know what you mean..." Qian Wu gave a bitter smile, pulled out the cigarette the Earth Dog had just given him from his pocket, and lit it with a lighter. "But I really can't leave... I might need a long rest..."
Chu Tianqiu slowly crouched down, staring at Qian Wu's haggard face. "I thought all your tasks were finished..."
"Yeah... pretty much." Qian Wu smiled bitterly. He looked too weak to even take the cigarette out of his mouth; he just let it hang from the corner of his lips, wisping smoke.
"So what task is left?" Chu Tianqiu asked. "With your body like this... can you still complete that last one?"
"Yeah, yeah." Qiao Jiajin nodded. "Qian Wu-er, is the last task hard?"
"I can't really describe the difficulty..." Qian Wu shook his head. "Because I need to 'survive.'"
"'Survive'..." Chu Tianqiu frowned. "That's your last task?"
"Yes." Qian Wu nodded. His consciousness already seemed a bit hazy. "At the final moment, I have to be alive. So I won't know if my task can be completed until that final moment..."
Qiao Jiajin looked at Qian Wu's frail state, not knowing what to say, and tentatively asked again, "You sure you don't need someone to stay with you?"
"It's fine." Qian Wu smiled. "Even if I really die... it won't have much impact... It's just that a group of stray cats will disappear from the world..."
"A group of stray cats disappearing?"
"Yeah..." Qian Wu slowly lowered his head, his bangs beginning to cover his eyes. "Would a normal person notice if the stray cats on the street disappeared?"
Chu Tianqiu sighed. "Someone will remember them."
"Yeah..." Qian Wu whispered. "I remember. I remember the patterns and scars on every stray cat... I remember the sounds they make when they're angry and their movements when they fight. I remember them all."
The people around him felt a heavy wave of sadness emanating from Qian Wu, even though his expression was blank.
"Stray cats have bad tempers; they can't win human affection..." Qian Wu continued. "But if you take cat food to feed them, they'll treat you as one of their own. They'll stand on the high walls in the corners of the city, waiting for your arrival with proud expressions. If I don't remember them, no one will..."
"Qian Wu," Chu Tianqiu said. "You need to stay lucid. Your state isn't good right now."
"I'm very lucid..." Qian Wu's lips moved, and the ash from the cigarette by his mouth fell onto his leather jacket. "I need to stay lucid to lead a group of stray cats to the finish line. I won't die."
Qiao Jiajin turned to look at Chu Tianqiu. Both of them felt that Qian Wu's situation was not good. If the three of them all left, the surrounding "Human-level" might rush forward to kill Qian Wu.
But what should they do now?
A soft sound of leather shoes began to echo behind them. Someone among the "Zodiacs" seemed to be walking over through the crowd.
Qiao Jiajin looked back. The newcomer was a Human Snake with a very tattered mask.
"F***..." He paused. "You bastard..."
The Human Snake in front of him could be considered Qiao Jiajin's first impression of this damned place. Although there was no major grudge, there was certainly no goodwill either.
"Oh? How'd you get so tall?" The Human Snake stared at Qiao Jiajin casually. "That's interesting."
"What the hell are you doing here, you bastard?" After Qiao Jiajin said it, he paused. "...Oh, right, this is your turf. We're the outsiders..."
"Hand him over to me." The Human Snake gestured with his chin toward Qian Wu. "I can take him to my room for shelter."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Shan and Qiao Jiajin naturally turned their gazes to Chu Tianqiu. They couldn't tell whether the newcomer was friend or foe, so they had to rely on Chu Tianqiu's judgment.
Chu Tianqiu narrowed his eyes, as if searching his memory. "Human Snake... the 'assistant' from Qi Xia's game site?"
"The very same, yours truly." The Human Snake nodded. "You trust me enough to hand him over now?"
Chu Tianqiu paused, then turned to look at the Earth Rat.
Although he knew that the people associated with Qi Xia's room should have been pre-selected, the identity of an "assistant" was highly random. He wasn't one hundred percent certain.
Upon receiving Chu Tianqiu's gaze, the Earth Rat nodded slightly and said in a low voice, "Aries's student."
"Then it's settled." Chu Tianqiu said. "But handing him over to you... will also put you in danger..."
"Don't worry." The Human Snake stepped forward, draped one of Qian Wu's arms over his own shoulder. "I don't have many advantages on this 'train,' but I have a lot of friends. Most people will give me some face."
The group watched as the Human Snake led Qian Wu slowly away, then reorganized their thoughts and set off toward the "head" of the train.
In stark contrast to this Earth Dog's room was naturally the room of another Earth Dog not far away.
Although Qiao Jiajin and the others had already clashed with many "Zodiacs" and fought fiercely, the other Earth Dog still lay lazily on his own sofa.
Xiaoxiao, Lin Qin, and Zheng Yingxiong were like ants on a hot pan.
They felt that all sorts of actions were already starting outside, but why was this Earth Dog still not moving?
Xiaoxiao paced back and forth anxiously, feeling like her mania was about to break free. But she couldn't directly attack an "Earth-level." If she had known this would happen... it would have been better to take Lin Qin and Zheng Yingxiong and act alone, rather than being stuck here fretting.
She looked at Zheng Yingxiong and saw that the boy was standing silently beside the Earth Dog, staring at him. But the Earth Dog had a thick skin; despite such a burning gaze, he still leaned back on the sofa, unmoved.
Meanwhile, Lin Qin sat in another corner of the room, head bowed, constantly muttering something to herself.
Behind the Earth Dog's sofa lay Han Yimo, who had long since passed out.
Xiaoxiao glanced at the other "Jidao" members and found that they had all lost their morale, just staring into space in various corners.
She felt like she was leading the most unreliable team.