Chapter 335: Unjust Sin
Qi Xia, Qiao Jiajin, and Li Shangwu had been following the group of "Cat" team members for nearly an entire morning, gradually beginning to feel exhausted.
Was the "Cat" faction's base really this far from "Heaven's Mouth"?
"Scammer boy..." Qiao Jiajin muttered in a low voice. "There's something I've been bothered by."
"What?"
"There..." Qiao Jiajin jerked his chin backward. "That little hero has been following us."
Qi Xia turned his head, his gaze passing through all the pale-faced "Cat" team members, directly landing on Zheng Yingxiong at the very back of the group.
The child was still wearing the crown folded from newspaper, his eyes cautiously scanning his surroundings. His hand remained on the newspaper short sword at his waist, as if ready to respond to some unknown threat.
"Song Qi," Qi Xia called out.
Song Qi, who was at the front of the line, turned his bloodless face upon hearing this and asked, "What is it?"
"You... have you seen that child before?" Qi Xia glanced toward the back of the group.
Song Qi looked into the distance, pondered for a moment, and said, "I think I've seen him before, but nothing particularly memorable."
"I once heard an interesting theory," Qi Xia said. "Everyone who enters the 'Land of the End' is a sinner, here to 'atone for their sins.' But do children also have their own 'sins'?"
"Of course they do." Song Qi sighed and said, "If you've retained enough memories from the 'Land of the End,' you'd even find that some people are born with unforgivable 'sins.'"
"Is that so?"
"A completely ignorant little child who helped her mother hang herself was deemed guilty of 'matricide.' A beggar wandering the streets who stole another beggar's food during a harsh winter was accused of 'plunder.'" Song Qi wore a bitter smile, listing off cases with a look of despair. "There was a down-and-out magician who accidentally broke an expensive watch belonging to a spectator, burdening himself with millions in debt and destroying his family. There was a courageous guy who unintentionally beat a notorious thug to death. And there was even a taxi driver whose failure to notice a college entrance exam candidate's admission ticket left behind in his car led the student to miss the exam and commit suicide..."
"Absurd," Qi Xia cut him off coldly. "Song Qi, do you think these are 'sins'? If such logic can hold, then what 'sins' are these people atoning for? And why should they 'atone'?"
"Absurd indeed, but how is this not 'sin'?" Song Qi turned to look at Qi Xia, his eyes equally cold. "Every one of us has an unbearable past—why should I care about what crime a child has committed?"
Officer Li, who had been listening to their argument, slowly spoke up. "In my opinion... for something to be called a 'sin,' the person should at least have broken the law. If even the law doesn't deem them guilty, then naturally it means this 'sin' is unjustified."
"Heh..." Song Qi glanced at Officer Li. "That sounds nice, but I've seen far too many people... There are even a rare few who, no matter how hard they try, cannot recall ever doing anything wrong. Are you saying all these people broke the law without knowing it?"
Officer Li sighed and remained silent.
"If all of us broke the law, then why is the 'Land of the End' the one to judge us?!" Song Qi let out a cold smile. "Judging by your tone, you're an 'enforcer,' aren't you? Tell me... by all rights, should we be trapped here for eternity?!"
None of Song Qi's questions could Officer Li answer.
Wasn't he also someone trapped here?
"What the hell...?" Qiao Jiajin stepped between them and said to Song Qi, "Explosion boy, you mind your tone. Can't you see the situation we're in? If you keep shouting at my people, don't blame me for not being friendly."
Upon hearing this, Song Qi sighed—whether out of fear or having come to his senses—and turned to Officer Li. "Sorry, I didn't mean to target you. It's just that this place always brings back bad memories."
Seeing that Song Qi had calmed down, Qiao Jiajin turned back and asked, "Scammer boy, what about that kid? Are we just going to let him follow us to the 'Cat' base?"
"I don't think 'Cat' would kill a child," Qi Xia said. "But we should still be careful. After all, we're not children."
Song Qi shook his head. "If Fifth Brother wanted to kill you, he wouldn't go through all this trouble."
Qi Xia said nothing. The group continued following the "Cat" members for another half hour before finally arriving at the entrance to a massive prison.
Standing at the gate was a rather tall woman. She wore a lip ring and heavy dark lipstick, giving off an unfriendly vibe.
"Sister Six..." Song Qi, clutching his broken right hand, trudged forward to greet the woman.
"Little Seven... What happened to you all?" The woman called Sister Six looked angrily at the defeated group. "Who's bold enough to lay hands on you?"
"It was just a transaction..." Song Qi said. "The person Fifth Brother was looking for... we've found them."
"Is it them?" The woman turned to look at Qi Xia and his two companions, then said, "No matter how urgent it is, put it aside for now. Come with me to see Fifth Brother first."
What Qi Xia and the others hadn't expected was that the woman told them to wait at the entrance. She then led all the "Cat" team members into the prison, leaving the three of them plus Zheng Yingxiong standing alone at the gate, as if no one intended to invite them in.
"What's going on, Scammer boy?" Qiao Jiajin scratched his head. "This is..."
"I don't know," Qi Xia said coldly. "I don't understand them."
Officer Li stretched his limbs and said, "I thought it was a criminal gang, but now it seems quite organized."
Qiao Jiajin thought for a moment, then turned back and said, "I have a good idea."
"What idea?" Officer Li asked.
"How about I sneak in?"
"Sneak in...?" Officer Li was taken aback. "Is that necessary?"
"Fist, forget it," Qi Xia said. "Even though they're all injured, there are still a lot of them. Let's be cautious."
"Alright." Qiao Jiajin shrugged and sat down to one side. Before long, he started digging in the sand.
Yingxiong took a cautious step forward, his childish face filled with wariness. "Commoners, I advise you to be careful. The smell inside is very strong."
"Oh?" Qi Xia raised an eyebrow. "Yingxiong, are there 'monsters' inside?"
"No. The smell inside isn't of 'monsters'—it's the strong scent of 'Echo.'"
Qi Xia lowered his head, pondering. The scent of "Echo"?
As he saw it, there were only two possibilities: either the entire "Cat" team had already attained "Echo," or there was a very powerful "Echoer" among them.
But why were they so at ease leaving them at the gate, going to see that "Fifth Brother" first?
Qi Xia mused for a moment and found the situation not too hard to deduce.
Song Qi and his men had gone so far as to break their own hands just to bring him back—obviously, he was important enough. Yet the first thing they did upon returning was to see "Fifth Brother." That could only mean one thing.
The man named Qian Wu might be able to heal them.