Chapter 356: Their Path
Su Shan, Lin Qin, Qin Dingdong, and Zhang Chenze walked out of a "Human-level" game venue, each of them looking somewhat exhausted.
"Little Shan, I say... are we done for today?" Qin Dingdong stretched her neck and said to Su Shan, who was at the front of the group. "Today was all about intelligence and speed—are you forcing us to do special training?"
"But it's still not enough..." Su Shan muttered to herself. "Is it really like what Qi Xia said—that we have to abandon some of our humanity and become more insane to succeed?"
"What did you say?" Zhang Chenze asked from the side.
"I mean... we might need even harsher 'games.'" Su Shan shook her head. "You're all very smart. These 'Human-level' games are way too easy for our team."
Lin Qin thought for a moment after hearing this and asked, "Are you really going to participate in 'Earth-level'?"
"Yes." Su Shan nodded.
Qin Dingdong blinked and looked up at the sky. "It's almost evening now. Are you sure you want to join an 'Earth-level' game right now?"
"Both of you..." Su Shan looked at Qin Dingdong and Lin Qin. "You two should be seniors, so you've already 'Echoed,' right?"
Lawyer Zhang frowned beside her. "'Echo'?"
Qin Dingdong and Lin Qin had naturally seen much of the world before; both of them wore slightly indifferent expressions.
"You led us through five 'Human-level' games today just to force yourself to 'Echo'?" Lin Qin asked.
"Yes." Su Shan nodded. "And I've also discovered... 'Dao' doesn't seem that hard to earn."
"You're smarter than most people, so it's not hard for you." Lin Qin nodded. "But even if you win every 'Human-level' game, you probably can't gather three thousand six hundred of them in ten days."
"Is that so...?" Su Shan said ambiguously. "But I have a feeling that I'll find a way to collect three thousand six hundred 'Dao' in a short period of time."
Lin Qin sighed after hearing this. "I advise you not to do that."
"Don't...?"
"Don't misunderstand." Lin Qin shook her head. "I'm just concerned for your safety."
"Is it that dangerous?" Su Shan thought for a moment. "From what I've observed, 'Human-level' games don't endanger your life."
"I'll just say this much." Lin Qin said. "Try not to make a big show of collecting three thousand six hundred 'Dao.' If you really have to do it, then don't trust anyone from 'The End Land,' and do it all in secret."
"What...?"
Hearing this, Qin Dingdong also looked at Lin Qin warily. Lin Qin returned her gaze, and they fell into a silent understanding.
"Everyone," Zhang Chenze said, "should we find a place to rest first?"
Su Shan looked at her and said, "I want to take a gamble."
"Take a gamble?" The others looked at her.
Su Shan extended a finger and pointed at the winding street in front of them. "Let's follow this road all the way out onto the main street. If we happen to run into an 'Earth-level Zodiac,' that's our fate, and we'll join his game."
"Little Shan..." Qin Dingdong shook her head. "You call 'running into an Earth-level Zodiac' 'fate'?"
"Maybe it's not your 'fate,' but it is mine." Su Shan said. "I have to thank Qi Xia. He showed me a way to retain my memories. If he hadn't pulled me out of the river of reincarnation, I'd probably still be fighting alone with a bunch of deadweight teammates."
"So what?" Lin Qin asked.
"So I have to find a way to 'Echo' as soon as possible, or I'll be at a disadvantage again." After saying this, Su Shan looked at Qin Dingdong and asked, "By the way, Dingdong, you said before that you and I used to be close. What exactly is my 'Echo' ability?"
"Huh?" Qin Dingdong was taken aback. "Little Shan, you obviously 'Echoed' last time, but you don't know your ability?"
"That's right." Su Shan nodded. "Last time, Qi Xia's methods were too clever. Within less than a minute of my 'Echo,' I was dead."
"Oh, that..." Qin Dingdong gave a wry smile. "We really were good friends back then, always seeing each other every day... but I honestly don't know what your 'Echo' is."
"Hmm...?" Su Shan was a former policewoman, so she quickly spotted a logical loophole in Qin Dingdong's words. "So you're saying that even though I don't remember you, I could still maintain a 'close friend' relationship with you...?"
"Well... yes..." Qin Dingdong laughed a little awkwardly. "I would go find you every time and introduce myself to you."
"Then why did you stop looking for me later?" Su Shan pressed.
"I..."
Seeing Qin Dingdong hesitate, Su Shan smiled naturally. This wasn't an interrogation, after all—no need to make things too tense. "I'm just joking with you. We've been together for almost a day now, so I obviously know you're my good friend."
"Oh, really?" Qin Dingdong breathed a sigh of relief. "You scared me just now."
Lin Qin watched the two of them with interest. She knew that Qin Dingdong's most skilled move was to make herself seem like a fraud full of holes, but her deceptions were often hidden among those very flaws.
The more you thought you'd caught her slip-up, the more likely you were to fall into her trap.
And as for whether Su Shan had seen through Qin Dingdong's little scheme, she didn't show it. She just told everyone to pull themselves together and set off again.
In today's five "Human-level games," Su Shan had performed brilliantly. She seemed to be deliberately approaching Qi Xia's way of thinking—her ideas were unusually offbeat, and she often made bets that made others frown.
Like right now, she was about to rely on "fate" to find an "Earth-level."
Not to mention this small street—even if you deliberately searched for an "Earth-level," if your luck was bad, it could take hours.
But fate is sometimes like that—it never follows your wishes.
When everyone saw the extremely thin dog-headed man crouching silently at the corner, their expressions changed.
His attire was slightly different from other "Earth-levels." He was bare-chested, wearing his suit jacket directly on his skin. Now he revealed his muscular, dog-fur-covered abdomen and sat lazily on the ground.
"Is that an 'Earth Dog'?" Qin Dingdong whispered.
Lin Qin suddenly remembered the first time she had actually teamed up with Qi Xia to play a game—it had been an Earth Dog's "Messenger" game.
But this Earth Dog looked different from the previous one. It was a short-haired brown hunting dog of an unknown breed, looking especially lean and capable.
"Uh..." The Earth Dog was startled. He looked at the four women standing before him and said expressionlessly, "Ladies, not a good time...? It's almost closing time."