Chapter 210: Idle People
At dusk, Qi Xia took his earnings for the day and headed to the school cafeteria.
He bought five cans and five bottles of water from Aunt Tong.
Each of these items cost one "Tao."
To be honest, it was very expensive.
If he didn't participate in games and only had the four "Tao" from the initial interview room, he would probably run out of food and water in two or three days.
But even if he actually went to play those "Human-level" games, how many "Tao" could a normal person earn in a day?
With good luck, maybe three to five.
Sooner or later, the people of "Heaven's Mouth" would either starve to death or die in battle. That was their destined end.
Just as Qi Xia was about to leave, he noticed some canned beer on the side.
He picked up a can and checked the price. This crappy thing actually cost four "Tao."
"Sigh... can barely afford to support anyone anymore."
...
Qi Xia took the food and beer back to the classroom, where three people were already waiting.
Han Yimo, Lin Qin, and Dr. Zhao.
It seemed that after the first few days of the great sifting, the remaining people weren't so easy to kill.
But Han Yimo was always a problem.
These past few days, he either went to play some simple "Human-level" games or stayed in the classroom staring at the sky.
He wouldn't die easily, but he couldn't sever his own "Echo" either.
"I got some food." Qi Xia put the cans and bottled water on the table.
The three of them thanked him, just as Qiao Jiajin also came back.
His hands and feet were wrapped in thick bandages, but he looked very spirited.
"What's the deal?" Qi Xia frowned. "Go lie down in the infirmary. I'll bring you your food."
"Aw man, liar boy, you think this is the first time you've known me?" Qiao Jiajin found a chair and sat down. "You call this an injury? Do I need to recover?"
"Have it your way." Qi Xia shook his head and casually tossed him a can of beer. "If I'd known you were already healed, I wouldn't have even bought this."
Qiao Jiajin caught the beer, thought for a few seconds, and suddenly pretended to be weak. "Ow... actually, I think I feel... really dizzy..."
"Alright, alright, stop pretending." Qi Xia sat down next to Qiao Jiajin and said, "Tell me about today's match. Did you 'Echo'?"
Hearing this, Qiao Jiajin immediately perked up. He gathered everyone together and recounted the day's events in detail.
The game had been full of twists and turns, making him think at one point they would lose.
Fortunately, he and Zhang Shan had managed to "Echo," ultimately defeating their opponents.
After listening to Qiao Jiajin's story, Qi Xia felt there were several things worth noting.
First, his own "Echo" could actually affect others?
Qi Xia casually glanced at Han Yimo. If this condition could really be achieved, Han Yimo's ability would rise to a whole new level.
If "Calamity Summoner" could be inflicted on enemies, wouldn't that be a ridiculously lethal ability?
But Han Yimo was still quite different from Xiao Xiao.
When Xiao Xiao's "Echo" failed, she would at most get injured, but if Han Yimo's "Echo" failed, he would definitely die.
If he realized this, he would always be under immense psychological pressure, and his chances of failing the "Echo" would increase even further.
Another point was the man named "Luo Shiyi."
He seemed to be a mercenary independent of "Extreme Path." According to Qiao Jiajin's description, this man took payment and didn't hesitate to sacrifice his own life to achieve his goal.
But in the "Land of the End," what kind of reward could make someone sell their life?
"Qiao Jiajin, what did you say his 'Echo' was called?"
"It's called 'Can't Feel Pain,'" Qiao Jiajin said confidently.
"Uh..." Qi Xia blinked. "Are you sure that's the name he announced himself?"
"Well..." Qiao Jiajin laughed awkwardly. "I think he did announce a name, but I forgot."
"It's called 'Forget Sorrow,'" Lin Qin spoke up from the side.
"Forget Sorrow?" Qiao Jiajin quickly nodded. "Yeah, that's the name. How did you know?"
"I... I was watching from the screen at the time and happened to see it," Lin Qin replied.
Qi Xia silently repeated the name to himself, feeling something was off.
"'Forget Sorrow' means 'Can't Feel Pain'? That name doesn't seem very fitting."
Qiao Jiajin recalled what the man had said and replied, "It's more than just 'forgetting pain.' When he introduced himself, he said 'he can't receive any bad feelings.'"
Hearing this, Qi Xia's expression slowly changed.
"Forget... Sorrow?!"
He looked at Lin Qin in surprise, and Lin Qin also seemed to have realized something.
But how was this possible?
Could this person be related to Qi Xia's "Grief"?
"Is that man dead?" Qi Xia asked.
"Yeah, he's dead." Qiao Jiajin sighed, looking helpless. "Even though I didn't kill him, he died because of me."
Qi Xia thought for a moment, then turned to Lin Qin. "Can you find him next time?"
Lin Qin nodded slightly.
"Alright..."
"And then there's that rock man," Qiao Jiajin added. "I have a feeling he's not a bad guy. He might even be on our side."
Qi Xia looked at Qiao Jiajin, feeling this was unexpected.
"You recruited a lackey?" Qi Xia asked.
"Not a 'lackey,' a 'brother.'" Qiao Jiajin smiled. "That guy is pretty tough."
"And what about Li Xiangling?" Qi Xia changed the subject.
"Kung Fu girl?"
"What do you think of Li Xiangling?" Qi Xia asked.
"Not bad," Qiao Jiajin nodded. "Kung Fu girl is way sharper than I imagined. Liar boy, you know what? She actually used a 'staff' to kill people. She took a stone stick and knocked down three opponents in one go. If the other side hadn't cheated, she would have won the game there and then..."
"But she's going to die," Qi Xia said.
"Yeah, she almost died back then." Qiao Jiajin nodded. "To save her, I had to lower myself down from that bridge little by little... Huh?"
Qi Xia stared intently into Qiao Jiajin's eyes and repeated himself: "Li Xiangling won't survive tonight."
"What... what are you talking about?" Qiao Jiajin was a bit stunned. "I saw Kung Fu girl's injuries. She didn't have any fatal wounds..."
At this point, Dr. Zhao and the other two also heard Qi Xia's words and were somewhat puzzled.
Didn't "Heaven's Mouth," where they were staying, count as the safest place in the "Land of the End"? What danger could there be?
Qi Xia sighed and said, "Do you remember the tenet of 'Heaven's Mouth'? Kim Won-hoon told us very seriously back then: 'Heaven's Mouth doesn't support idle people.' In the coming days, Li Xiangling won't be able to participate in any games and can only recuperate in the infirmary. She'll waste medicine and food. If I'm not mistaken, 'Heaven's Mouth' will kill her tonight."
"What... what?" Qiao Jiajin looked at Qi Xia in disbelief. "Liar boy... how can you have such a horrifying guess?"
"Because Zhang Shan died inexplicably the last time," Qi Xia replied solemnly. "If they can abandon the third-in-command of 'Heaven's Mouth' without hesitation, they won't think twice about someone as insignificant as Li Xiangling."