Chapter 1292: Work Plan

In a room that looked relatively spacious, faint sounds of labored breathing gradually arose.

The badly wounded Dishu was leaning against the door, barely able to move. A strangely shaped wooden sword was stuck in his stomach, and even his intestines were spilling onto the floor.

Behind him, the door panel kept being struck with rhythmic thuds.

*Thump!*

Dishu lifted his head with difficulty, looking at Tianshu who was leaning against the wall opposite him. Then, curling his lips into a smile, he said softly, "Boss... where's that spirit you usually have for toying with us? In our day, we retired at fifty-five... and you, Boss? Deciding to retire suddenly today?"

Tianshu was also bleeding profusely. The two seemed to have gone through a deadly fight.

Except Dishu's injuries were far more fatal, while Tianshu only appeared to be suffering from extreme exhaustion.

"I really can't figure it out..." Tianshu said with a bitter smile. "I caught the killing intent radiating from you just a few steps away... Over all these years, even when I put that collar around your neck, you never directed such murderous intent at me..."

"So now you understand how hard I've had it, Boss?" Dishu chuckled softly. "Not wanting to kill a great leader like you is harder than reaching the heavens. After all, you're just too dazzling and too deserving of death before my eyes. Every day I suppressed my true desires... all so you wouldn't bother with insignificant little people like us."

Tianshu knew that Dishu had hidden a considerable amount of his strength in order to kill him. Though he had neither an "Echo" nor powerful combat abilities, he possessed a reckless determination to die.

And Tianshu's own "Immortal Arts" happened to be "Spiritual Scent," "Ingenious Objects," and "Crops"—none of which could help him survive in this situation.

If neither of them considered their "Immortal Arts" and only relied on "Body Enhancement," Tianshu was just a frail old man, while the other was a strong, young man who had completely abandoned any fear of death.

Even putting that aside, even if their fighting levels were on par... he still had old wounds left by Qinglong on his body.

Countless coincidences had led to the current situation, leaving both men lying on the ground, barely able to move.

"You could have killed me from the very beginning..." Tianshu coughed a few times. "Then why did you only choose to act now?"

"No way, Boss..." Dishu pressed his hands against the floor and struggled to stand up, his intestines still hanging outside his body. "You don't really think I was afraid of you, do you? Though I've always had the ability to kill you, I would have died for sure as well. What I feared wasn't your trembling, aged bones, but the retaliation afterward."

He pulled the wooden sword out of his stomach and casually tossed it to the ground, blood staining the floor red.

"But can you survive now?" Tianshu looked up at the battered Dishu. "If we keep fighting... the one who dies isn't certain yet..."

"That's hard to say." Dishu walked step by step to Tianshu's side. "Boss... may I ask a blunt question? Have you heard that knocking sound since just now?"

Tianshu had naturally heard the continuous thumping, but he didn't understand why the corridor was so chaotic. Did the other "Zodiacs" usually keep knocking on doors like this in the middle of the night?

"I overheard an interesting plan today." Dishu walked up to Tianshu and slowly bent down. "They said they want to liberate all the 'Ants' here... Boss, you've seen a lot, and you've got one foot in the grave. Can you help a young man like me figure out what this plan means?"

The moment Tianshu heard this, his eyes snapped open. He raised his nose and sniffed, indeed sensing a trace of killing intent from outside the door.

Did ordinary "Zodiacs" carry such murderous intent while constantly knocking on an unremarkable door?

"The 'Ants'... are on the 'Train'?!" Tianshu asked incredulously. "What nonsense... The 'Ants' have Tianniu... and a 'door' that can't be opened from the inside. They can't hear or see, it's theoretically impossible... Even if they really were to rebel, you'd still die before I..."

While Tianshu was speaking, Dishu suddenly reached out with both hands and cupped his face, pressing his two bloody thumbs against the other's eyeballs.

Startled, Tianshu squeezed his eyes shut and waved his hands nervously.

"Boss..." Dishu held Tianshu's cheeks and spoke with a weak, smiling voice. "If I open the door now, they'll tear you apart. And yet you're still worried about whether I'll die? You really keep my life and death on your mind every moment. Where else could I find such a caring boss who cares so much about his subordinates?"

"Dishu... wait..." Tianshu swallowed and spoke in a flustered tone. "Listen to me. If you kill me, Qinglong and Tianlong will never let you go... You're already disemboweled. If I put in a good word for you and give you emergency treatment, you might..."

"Hold on, Boss..." Dishu paused. "I don't think you quite understood something."

As soon as he finished speaking, his two thumbs began to press slowly.

Tianshu immediately sensed something was wrong. After letting out a scream, he reached out and grabbed Dishu's dangling intestines, pulling hard. But Dishu showed no sign of letting go.

With a faint smile, Dishu shoved both thumbs deep into Tianshu's eyes.

He felt as though he had popped two beads filled with dirty water. His hands instantly became incredibly sticky.

"AHHHHH!!!!!!"

"Boss..." Dishu chuckled softly. "Please allow me to report my upcoming work plan to you. First, you will be slowly tortured to death by me. No matter what happens to me afterward, my top priority is ensuring your death, strictly implementing the ruthless action policy you've honed over the years."

"You beast... you're insane... you're completely insane..." Tianshu flailed his hands frantically, striking Dishu's wounds. He could clearly feel the blood gushing from Dishu's body, but his thumbs remained buried in his eyes.

"Boss, if there's an unfortunate hiccup in the plan to torture you to death, don't worry about surviving, because the 'Ants' are still waiting outside to greet you. The moment you meet with them, you'll experience all the enthusiasm of the grassroots workers."

"Wait—" Only upon hearing this did Tianshu realize that today, he really was going to die here.

Whether he could kill this Dishu or not, once the door opened, he would perish without a shred of dignity.

No... he felt he was overthinking. Was there even a way to open the door now?

He might die before he could even open it.

A sharp pain swelled in his eyes. Dishu slowly retracted his fingers, as if he had completely run out of strength.

Then those sticky hands grasped Tianshu's neck, intending to end his life right there.

But his ice-cold hands couldn't muster any real force; it only felt to Tianshu like a gentle caress.

Tianshu knew his opportunity might have arrived... Dishu was putting up a brave front, but his own vitality didn't seem willing to give him a chance.