Chapter 1235: Looking Forward to a Masterpiece
Qinglong paused, still expressionless, as he slowly lowered his hand that had been raised in midair.
"So Qi Xia has led a rebellion..." Qinglong repeated, then asked, "And what's your role in all this?"
"I am..." Xiao Ran's eyes widened as she placed her hands on her chest. "Like I said, I'm one of the 'Zodiacs'... Why else would I take such a huge risk to come here and nearly anger you?"
Xiao Ran felt there was something off about the man before her. She had laid out the entire rebellion in full detail, yet he showed no reaction at all.
No... Actually, she wasn't even sure if this person was male or female. Their features were too delicate, and even their voice seemed androgynous.
"This is quite a rare situation," Qinglong said, resting his chin on his hand again. "Qi Xia rebels, but he never expected someone like you to be among his ranks?"
"It's a long story!" Xiao Ran gritted her teeth. "Qi Xia and I have a blood feud. He definitely doesn't know I'm here, because as far as he's concerned, I'm already dead. I've suffered so much... all because of Qi Xia!"
Xiao Ran began embellishing her account of her grievances with Qi Xia—how he had caused her to lose her original "Dao," how he had sent her to those deadly games, and how he had ultimately made her lose all face, to the point where she couldn't even be a "Zodiac" anymore.
Whether or not those things were actually Qi Xia's doing, Xiao Ran unceremoniously pinned them all on him. Although she hated that bitch Yun Yao just as much, it seemed that all the big shots here were only interested in Qi Xia. So she simply blamed Qi Xia for Yun Yao's actions and her own experiences as well.
But when she reached the part about "Qi Xia throwing me to the ground and slapping me," Qinglong's expression clearly showed disbelief.
After listening to Xiao Ran's endless rambling story, Qinglong finally understood the gist of it, but his thoughts only grew more muddled.
This woman seemed to understand neither the "Zodiacs" nor "Echoes." It was a wonder she could stand here so boldly.
A game she had never opened, blindly jumping to the final level and baring her claws at the boss.
That was the impression Xiao Ran gave Qinglong.
"So you're saying you became a 'Native,' which is why Qi Xia still thinks you're dead," Qinglong murmured.
"‘Native'...? Yeah, right," Xiao Ran nodded. "You have no idea how much I suffered when I became a 'Native.' If it weren't for my desire to kill Qi Xia, I never would have made it this far."
Qinglong nodded slightly but didn't bother to respond further.
Xiao Ran felt that perhaps she hadn't made some points clear enough, so she emphasized again, "Qinglong... Qi Xia has rebelled. He's brought a lot of people here... Aren't you going to deal with it?"
Qinglong let out a soft laugh after hearing this.
Qi Xia rebelling?
Qi Xia was bound to rebel sooner or later.
He had always wanted to use Qi Xia's hands to get rid of Tianlong. So this rebellion had, to some extent, been fueled by his own efforts.
Those poor "Zodiacs" still didn't understand why the existence of "Qinglong" was meant to "protect Tianlong."
Because if Tianlong died, he would die too. That naturally required him to protect Tianlong with his life.
Walking through "Taoyuan," Tianlong had always been his greatest weakness. Fortunately, Qinglong had already found a way to temporarily break free from the "Twin Flowers." As long as the opportunity presented itself this time... he would surely shake off the shackles of their life link and become the sole king here.
Then he would never have to return to the "Train Car," sitting in this room like a dog guarding the door. Instead, he could go wherever he pleased in "Taoyuan."
He wouldn't have to constantly worry about suspicious characters sneaking onto the "Engine," nor would he have to rush back in a panic every now and then.
But this rebellion was indeed tricky, because he had no choice but to order a crackdown.
No matter how much he wished for Tianlong to die in this chaos, he still had to put on a convincing show.
He had to make sure all the "Zodiacs" saw that he had done everything in his power, only for Tianlong to tragically die at the hands of these rebels due to some uncontrollable, minor accident.
Everyone would have to grieve deeply, himself included.
Only then would the remaining "Zodiacs" be willing to continue working for him.
All the promotion rules would remain the same as before. The only difference for the "Zodiacs" was that there would be one less ruler: Tianlong.
Qi Xia's goal in this game was to "kill both dragons," while his own scheme was to "kill Tianlong." As for Tianlong... he must have his own plan too, but whatever he planned didn't matter.
After all, he had cut off Tianlong's contact with everyone. Tonight was the time for his own move. If Tianlong was lucky enough to survive until dawn and wake up, then he would have to accept defeat.
Now, in the long night ahead, it all came down to whose scheme would prevail among the three.
As for the woman before him...
Qinglong shifted his gaze back to Xiao Ran. Since she harbored such intense hatred for Qi Xia, she should definitely be put to good use.
"Turn left when you leave, second room," Qinglong said. "Go find Tianshe."
"Snake...?" Xiao Ran's face showed a hint of disdain at this.
She still remembered being dragged to the basement by that filthy old snake. The nauseating stench and dirty environment were still fresh in her mind. Just the mention of "snake" made her stomach turn.
"What's wrong?" Qinglong chuckled lightly. "Aren't we on the same side? No trust at all?"
"We're... on the same side now?" Xiao Ran's expression relaxed a bit at these words.
"Yes..." Qinglong was about to agree, but then he felt his mind grow hazy again.
A very subtle sensation began to wander around him. Unfortunately, he couldn't hear any "Immortal Arts," so he had no idea what someone else had done outside. His "Spiritual Hearing" hadn't recovered yet, leaving him like a blind man riding a blind horse.
To ensure his plan proceeded smoothly, it was about time to mobilize all the "Heavenly Level" Zodiacs.
"Tell Tianshe to notify all 'Heavenly Level' Zodiacs who can still move to gather in the corridor and organize the 'Earthly Level' Zodiacs to suppress the rebels," Qinglong continued. "As for you, once it's done, stay in Tianshe's room and deliver him a message."
"A message...?" Xiao Ran nodded after hearing this. "Alright... since we're on the same side now, I'll do my best."
For some reason, every time Xiao Ran said the words "on the same side," Qinglong felt a dull ache in his brow. He shook his head and said softly,
"Tell Tianshe, 'Qinglong looks forward to a masterpiece.'"
"That's it?" Xiao Ran asked.
Qinglong didn't reply. He simply leaned back against his chair again, completely ignoring Xiao Ran's presence.
Even so, Xiao Ran still felt she had been entrusted with an important task. After all, every word she said from now on would carry the weight of "Qinglong's command."