Chapter 1283: The Ingenious Objects Squad
In the blink of an eye, Qinglong saw a fist flying straight toward his face.
He steadied himself and immediately raised his hand to block in front of him.
But at the very moment the fist was about to strike his palm, it suddenly changed direction. Qinglong looked closely and saw Qiao Jiajin stomp his foot hard against the ground, launching himself into the air. In midair, he alternated his hands, switching punches and striking out.
Qinglong narrowed his eyes and retreated, causing several of Qiao Jiajin's heavy punches to miss.
Qiao Jiajin braced his hands against the ground to land, then rolled once and executed a sweeping leg kick. Qinglong hadn't anticipated this attack pattern and was tripped from the ground. He then pushed off with his hands and, before hitting the ground, kicked fiercely at Qiao Jiajin.
Qiao Jiajin blocked Qinglong's leg with one hand while simultaneously snapping a side kick with his other leg.
The brief exchange between the two also resounded with a tremendous noise, and then they both retreated several steps again.
Qiao Jiajin gave a light laugh. "Little green dude, you really do have some skills."
After steadying himself, Qinglong rubbed his wrist. He felt that no matter the outcome of this battle, his own strength would reach a higher level.
Neither of these two seemed ordinary—one favored power, the other technique. Combined with the presence of the "Breaker of Ten Thousand Methods" and "Heavenly Movement," perhaps this was the final step for him to become the one true god here.
"Interesting..." Qinglong paused. "How about the two of you come at me together? Let me see just how far the strongest combat power of the entire 'Peach Blossom Spring' can push me."
"Oh?" Zhang Shan paused after hearing this. "Those are your own words."
"Yes." Qinglong nodded. "If the two of you can't do anything to me, then I am the strongest in the 'Peach Blossom Spring,' and the day of my defeat will never come."
"Big guy, you heard that too," Qiao Jiajin said. "I've always been outnumbered, but this time, he's the one who proposed it."
The two exchanged a glance, then strode forward with fierce momentum.
They knew this battle would be a hard-fought one. Qinglong was different from the ordinary enemies here; he possessed the most exquisite "Echo" and superb killing techniques, never carrying any burden in his heart. Against such an opponent, the two could only go all out.
At that moment, on the corridor just outside the "Engine Room," three figures quietly crept up to this spot.
They were Yun Yao, Zhang Chenze, and Tiantian.
Zhang Chenze's expression was exceptionally anxious. She looked at Yun Yao and said, "Yun Yao, has your 'Strong Luck' really activated?"
"Why do you ask?" Yun Yao countered.
"Sorry, what I'm about to say might make you uncomfortable, but I have to state this fact." Zhang Chenze adjusted her glasses. "We only have two directions—forward and backward—yet your 'Strong Luck' led us in the opposite direction, wasting so much time before finally bringing us here. This forces me to raise this question. If I can't confirm that your 'Strong Luck' truly exists, I can't bring Tiantian and you through that door."
"Don't worry, the 'luck' is strong." Yun Yao paused, then spoke. "Wasting all this time only means that the 'luck' believed we shouldn't have come here before. Only now is the best moment."
Zhang Chenze sighed, unsure how to judge. After all, she didn't understand "Strong Luck," nor did she know the extent of its control—could it even grasp the timing of an event?
"So just how appropriate is this timing...?" Zhang Chenze asked tentatively. "I hear there are many 'Heavenly Tiers' and Qinglong himself in this room..."
"Maybe they've all vanished for no apparent reason," Yun Yao said with a light laugh.
"Is that even possible...?" Zhang Chenze paused. She could faintly hear many sounds of fighting and footsteps nearby.
Everyone here was caught in chaos, but what were the odds that the "Engine Room," serving as the command center, had no one in it?
"Wait..." Chu Tianqiu's voice came from not far away.
The group turned to look and saw Chu Tianqiu pick up a bloodstained fountain pen from the ground, then walk toward them with a worried expression.
"Tianqiu...?" Yun Yao's expression was still somewhat complicated when facing Chu Tianqiu, but at this critical juncture, all the past between them had faded away.
"Are you going into this room...?" Chu Tianqiu asked.
"Yes." As she spoke, Yun Yao's gaze swept past Chu Tianqiu's shoulder to the people from "Heaven's Mouth" behind him. "They..."
Chu Tianqiu didn't answer Yun Yao's question. He merely shook his head and said, "The room is very dangerous. Qinglong, Zhang Shan, and Qiao Jiajin are all inside. They might be in a deathmatch right now."
"But the 'luck' wants me to go," Yun Yao said. "You know my 'luck.' It doesn't lie."
"The 'luck' wants you to go in now...?" Chu Tianqiu frowned.
"Yes."
Chu Tianqiu felt something was off about this. "What's your objective?"
Zhang Chenze stepped forward and briefly explained the task Qi Xia had assigned them to Chu Tianqiu. She said they needed to find the "door" leading to Tianlong's room, then have Tiantian use her Ingenious Objects to create an exact replica.
Chu Tianqiu paused, mentally decomposing and reconstructing the task.
Although the task didn't mention him, he felt he was still part of it—after all, he too was someone who needed to pass through that door.
Qi Xia hadn't appeared here yet, meaning this path wasn't his final choice. He was hiding in a safe spot, quietly waiting for the door to appear before him.
"I see... I'll go with you." Chu Tianqiu thought for a moment and said, "It shouldn't be dangerous. I trust Yun Yao's 'luck.'"
Yun Yao thought it over and nodded.
Seeing that Chu Tianqiu was also insistent, Zhang Chenze had no choice but to stop opposing. The four of them pushed open the door before them.
The scene inside made Zhang Chenze have to believe in the existence of "luck."
There was only a round table in the room, on which sat something that looked like a human head. Aside from that, not a single person was there.
Chu Tianqiu frowned and scanned the room. His gaze quickly landed on another door in the distance.
From behind that door came faint sounds of fighting, as if from far away. Could Zhang Shan and Qiao Jiajin have actually charged straight through to Tianlong's room in front of Qinglong...?
"This is the door, right?"
Tiantian took a few steps forward and stopped in front of that strange door. She was about to reach out and touch its material when Zhang Chenze stopped her.
"Wait..." Zhang Chenze eyed the door coldly, many unrelated thoughts flashing through her mind.
"What is it...?" Tiantian asked.
"Tiantian... is there a way to figure out the door's structure without touching it?" Zhang Chenze recalled the scene from the "Cangjie Chess" experience.
Perhaps this door would only lead to Tianlong when Qinglong pushed it open. If Tiantian touched it, it might only lead to some other strange space.
Even if they could craft an identical door, it might not work.
"Without touching it... then how am I supposed to confirm its material...?" Tiantian said uncertainly.
Chu Tianqiu thought for a moment and handed her the fountain pen in his hand. "Try using this?"