Chapter 112: Irreplicable Memories
"That's right, ten people."
Yun Yao and Chu Tianqiu both fell silent for a moment.
Chu Tianqiu suddenly raised his head and asked, "Since your room was the 'Ten,' how did you deduce that our room was the 'Nine'?"
"Because when the nine of us walked out of the room, the 'Human Dragon' actually said that everyone in our room had 'survived in full,'" Qi Xia sneered coldly. "How strange—if it was 'survival in full,' shouldn't ten of us have come out?"
Chu Tianqiu nodded silently. Qi Xia's intelligence matched his expectations.
"But 'Nine' feels somewhat reasonable in certain respects, since all the escape devices in the room were 'for nine people,'" Qi Xia continued. "There were nine table boards and nine ropes in our room. If there really were ten people in the room, it would have been impossible to allocate the game resources fairly."
"In other words, our game was originally prepared for nine people. As long as nine people walked out of the room, it was considered 'survival in full.'" Qi Xia's expression turned serious as he glanced out the window and asked in a low voice, "In that case, why were there ten people in the room?"
Seeing that the other two didn't answer, Qi Xia went on, "So I boldly inferred that there was one extra person in our room. That person either activated some special ability or simply and brutally bribed the 'Human Sheep.' In any case, the Human Sheep killed the real 'participant' in our room to protect her identity."
Chu Tianqiu blinked and asked, "From just those clues, you deduced such an accurate conclusion?"
"I wouldn't call it 'accurate,' because before meeting you, I wasn't sure whether that person was male or female," Qi Xia said. "Now it's my turn to ask you something."
"Fine." Chu Tianqiu nodded. "What do you want to know?"
"How did you know the personnel composition of our room?" Qi Xia asked. "How did you find out something that even we, the people involved, didn't know?"
Chu Tianqiu slowly licked his dry lips and said, "I can't answer that question. It's almost the core secret of 'Heaven's Gate.'"
Qi Xia turned his head to look at Chu Tianqiu, once again showing a suspicious expression.
Wasn't the core secret of "Heaven's Gate" that notebook?
So this was something recorded in the notebook?
"Then let me ask another question," Qi Xia said. "What is the principle of 'preserving memories'? Why can only a few people retain their memories?"
"You should have guessed already," Chu Tianqiu replied. "Qi Xia, the answer is 'Resonance.' As long as a person hears the 'Resonance' within ten days, they can retain their memories in the next cycle."
"You're saying only 'Resonators' can retain memories?" Qi Xia had considered this direction before, but he still found it puzzling. Han Yimo and Officer Li were indeed 'Resonators,' so it was normal for them to retain their memories.
But why did he himself remember everything?
Had he also 'Resonated'?
Qi Xia thought for a long time, feeling there was only one answer. If he really was a 'Resonator,' then his 'Resonance' should have occurred a short time before his death, since that place was far from the square, and theoretically he wouldn't have heard the bell.
But if he had truly 'Resonated,' what ability had he gained?
Yun Yao smiled and said, "Qi Xia... judging by your expression, it seems you don't know you've 'Resonated'?"
This woman saw through Qi Xia's predicament in one sentence, making him look at her with newfound respect.
It seemed that everyone who could join 'Heaven's Gate' was indeed no ordinary person.
"I really have no recollection," Qi Xia answered truthfully. "At that time, I was very far from the giant bell. It's possible I missed that information."
"'Very far'?" Yun Yao pondered. "There are giant bells in the four corners of the city—north, south, east, and west. There's no way you wouldn't have heard them."
Qi Xia frowned, realizing the truth.
There wasn't just one giant bell—there were four.
But these four were all within the city. Could it be that he hadn't heard the bell because he had reached the edge of the city?
"Qi Xia, if what you say is true—that you don't even know when you 'Resonated'—then things will be a bit tricky," Chu Tianqiu said seriously.
"Tricky?"
"Exactly." Chu Tianqiu nodded. "You don't know why you 'Resonated' in the last cycle, so you can't replicate it in this one. In other words, you can't stably achieve 'Resonance,' which means you can't stably retain your memories."
Qi Xia stroked his chin thoughtfully and said, "So that's why, when I was about to smash your head in earlier, you said, 'I can't die yet.' That's because you haven't had time to 'Resonate' yet. If you died now, all your previous memories would be lost."
"Yes." Chu Tianqiu nodded. "Such a small matter naturally wouldn't escape your notice. But I still advise you to find the cause of your own 'Resonance' as soon as possible. Otherwise, you'll get lost here."
The two looked at each other, and Qi Xia asked again, "Suppose... in the last cycle, someone briefly achieved 'Resonance' while on the verge of death. If they want to replicate it in this cycle, would they need to put themselves on the verge of death again?"
"Theoretically, yes," Chu Tianqiu answered.
Officer Li's face appeared in Qi Xia's mind.
There seemed to be a paradox here.
If Officer Li's trigger for 'Resonance' was 'near death,' then theoretically, he should never lose his memory.
Whether he died in a game, in the annihilation, or was killed by a 'Zodiac' or 'Administrator,' he would retain his memory. But judging by Officer Li's behavior, he had only retained memories for one cycle.
This seemed to indirectly confirm one thing.
Qi Xia and Officer Li and the others had most likely arrived in the Land of the End quite late.
They had only experienced two cycles.
"No, wait..."
Qi Xia cautiously interrupted his own train of thought.
Suppose in the last cycle, Officer Li had already retained his memory, but he followed the Human Sheep's instructions and concealed it... Was that possibility there?
Yes, and it was quite significant.
This also explained why Officer Li hadn't joined Qi Xia's team from the start, instead choosing to stay behind.
Because he knew there was no rush to collect three thousand six hundred 'Dao.'
But in the end, he died trying to save someone...
That was the paradox Qi Xia was talking about.
If Officer Li really had retained his memory, he should have known that even if Lawyer Zhang drowned, it wouldn't matter—she would resurrect in a few days. Why would he choose such a painful way to sacrifice his own life?
Then, on the other hand...
How many memories had Han Yimo retained?
He was also very susceptible to 'Resonance.' Logically, as long as he came to the 'Land of the End,' there was a very high probability he would retain his memories...
Qi Xia increasingly felt that the situation before him was deeply unsettling upon reflection.
How long had he actually been here?