Chapter 103: The New Team
"Brother Qi, why'd you take so long?" Xiao Ran stood by the door, smiling as she asked.
It seemed she had been waiting for Qi Xia all along.
Qi Xia ignored her and walked toward the others not far away.
"Hey, Brother Qi, wait for me!"
The doors on both sides of the corridor slowly opened, and many zodiac members emerged, covered in blood. Like Ren She, they stood motionless by their doors.
When Officer Li saw Qi Xia catch up, he asked in a low voice, "What are you planning to do?"
"I don't know. What about you?"
Officer Li thought for a moment, his expression complex, and said, "I'm very conflicted right now. I have no direction at all."
"Conflicted?"
Linqin looked at the two of them whispering curiously, then stepped forward to join them.
She covered her mouth and nose lightly as she asked, "Strange... did you two know each other before coming here?"
"No," Qi Xia shook his head.
Linqin stared at Qi Xia for a long moment but couldn't tell whether he was lying.
Officer Li didn't reply and just kept walking forward, eyes straight ahead.
They walked for a long time before finally seeing a light in the distance.
Human-Dragon stood upright, wearing an extremely ugly mask.
"Hello, I am Human-Dragon."
His appearance startled those who were seeing him for the first time.
"Don't be nervous, everyone. Your 'trials' have come to an end. And I won't give you any new trials—just a piece of advice."
Qiao Jiajin glanced at him impatiently and asked, "What advice?"
"Ten days. You have ten days to change all of this," Human-Dragon said slowly. "If you don't obtain 3,600 'Dao' within ten days, the world you're in will be annihilated. Everything you can see will be buried along with it. Now you've passed four trials: 'The Liar,' 'Springing Up Like Bamboo Shoots,' 'Death from Above,' and 'Two Pills.' These are your rewards—and also your 'chips.'"
He pulled four shiny golden orbs from his chest and handed them to Officer Li, who stood at the front.
"What are these?" Xiao Ran asked. "They look weird..."
She reached out and took the 'Dao.' It felt strange—a small sphere with a white outer ring and a golden interior, shaped like a three-dimensional fried egg. Squeezing it gave a bouncy, elastic feel.
"This is 'Dao'!" Human-Dragon waved his hands happily. "With just 3,600 Dao, you can escape!"
Dr. Zhao thought for a moment and asked, "How do we get that many Dao?"
"Participate in the games!" Human-Dragon said. "This city is full of games everywhere. If you're strong enough, you're sure to earn Dao."
"You mean we have to voluntarily join these deadly games?" Dr. Zhao found it hard to understand. "What kind of madmen are you?"
"We're not madmen. We're just trying to survive." Human-Dragon's tone suddenly grew a little dejected. "Don't you want to survive too?"
Hearing his question, everyone fell silent again.
Qi Xia stepped forward and asked, "Human-Dragon, if we manage to gather 3,600 Dao, what do we do then?"
"Then?" Human-Dragon seemed never to have expected anyone to ask that. He hesitated for a moment.
"Yes. Do we hand the 3,600 Dao to someone?" Qi Xia continued. "Or do we need to bring them somewhere?"
"Well..." Human-Dragon thought for a long while before replying, "If I'm not mistaken, once you gather 3,600 Dao, someone will naturally come to find you."
"What do you mean 'if I'm not mistaken'?" Qi Xia found this hard to believe. "In other words, even you don't know what happens after we collect them?"
"Yes, I don't know," Human-Dragon admitted honestly. "I only know that all your actions here are being watched. So once you collect enough, things will become clear."
Qi Xia frowned as he looked at this creature that was half-man, half-dragon. He knew that though Human-Dragon was a 'Dragon,' his rank was still 'Human,' so he couldn't possibly know everything.
"You have a lot of 'questions'... That's good." Human-Dragon's voice still sounded melancholy. "Having questions means you're still clear-headed. I hope you can stay that way forever..."
"Let's go." Qi Xia stopped paying attention to Human-Dragon and turned to the others.
Everyone nodded, bypassed Human-Dragon, and filed out of the corridor.
Qi Xia remembered that last time, after they exited, the building behind them had vanished bizarrely.
So this time, he deliberately turned around immediately after stepping out. Officer Li also sensed something and turned back at the same time.
They saw a solitary 'door.'
They were still standing in the empty plaza, but behind them stood a strange door leading to another space. Human-Dragon stood there, staring at them with a resentful look, as if thousands of words were stuck in his throat.
Then, under Qi Xia's gaze, the door slowly shrank and vanished within seconds.
"Huh?" Tiantian also noticed the anomaly and turned around with a startled cry. "Where's the door we came out of?"
Hearing this, everyone turned around. The sight before them was almost impossible to understand.
They now stood in a central plaza with paths leading in every direction. Behind them was an electronic display screen and a giant bronze clock. On the screen was written: "I heard the echo of 'Disaster Calling.'"
But no one had any idea what to do or where to go.
"I'm going to collect 'Dao,'" Qi Xia said. "I need some teammates."
"Huh?" Dr. Zhao was startled. "No way... you're really going to join those games? Now that we're out, we should definitely find a way to escape first."
"It's fine. You go ahead and escape," Qi Xia said. "Anyone willing to come with me?"
Qiao Jiajin propped his chin and thought for a moment, then said, "I'm in. You've got the brains, I've got the muscle. Let's team up?"
"Good," Qi Xia nodded. "Anyone else?"
Tiantian saw Qiao Jiajin join and thought it over. She looked at the lawyer, police officer, teacher, and doctor beside her, then at Qiao Jiajin and Qi Xia, and said, "Then... I'll join too."
Qi Xia saw this familiar scene but didn't know how to dissuade her. He could only nod.
Linqin thought for a long moment, then slowly walked over.
"Can I join too?"
Qi Xia felt a bit conflicted. He hadn't expected the team composition to be exactly the same as last time.
Although he trusted Linqin and Tiantian, from a benefit-maximization perspective, he would have preferred Officer Li and Han Yimo to join this time. That way, the team would have four men, each with their own strengths, increasing their chances of winning the games.
Especially considering the existence of 'Jidao'—having Tiantian and Linqin with him could expose them to unexpected dangers.
Before he could say anything, Xiao Ran suddenly stepped forward and spoke up: "Brother Qi, you're so capable... could you take me along too?"
"No," Qi Xia replied.