Chapter 416: He Who Is Skilled in War
“Wh—what?!”
“I’ve been lying all along, little master.” Chen Junnan’s expression looked as if he had completely let go. “I used to never be able to figure this out, so I kept taking the blame on myself. But ever since I heard that you became a ‘Zodiac,’ everything clicked…”
“You mean… this was something you did for me?”
“That’s right.” Chen Junnan nodded. “You gave me this task alone right before you disappeared. You said to me, ‘Chen Junnan, if one day I fail in a life-or-death gamble with an Earth-level Zodiac, no matter what you have to do, lock everyone in the room. The longer the better—ideally until every single Zodiac has been replaced once.’”
Upon hearing this, Qi Xia reached up and rubbed his chin.
Now this was getting interesting.
The plans… weren’t they all connected?
Qi Xia slowly raised his head, as if he could see a version of himself from the past standing before him.
That version was just like him now—rubbing his chin, eyes fixed on the ground, silently pondering something.
“Think about it… you really did do a lot…” Qi Xia said to him.
Yu Nian’an, the needle among the “Zodiacs,” the “Cat” team, the room hidden for seven years, and… “Endless Growth.”
“Just what were you trying to make me do…?” Qi Xia frowned at the phantom before him. “How utterly desperate could that situation have been… for you to lay out such an endless road? Did you realize that escaping wasn’t possible in ten days… not even in ten years?”
“So…” Qian Wu turned to look at Qi Xia. “What exactly are you planning to do next? Take us to kill ‘Xuanwu’… or try to meet the ‘Earth-level’ Zodiac?”
“First, we deal with the ‘Zodiac’ issue.” Qi Xia said. “I’ll move through the various game venues and try to unite all the ‘Earth-level’ ones.”
“Will it go that smoothly?”
“It won’t be too hard.” Qi Xia shook his head. “The ‘needle’ I planted should work alongside me. From what I know, all the ‘Zodiacs’ might meet up at night. So I’ll handle the daytime work, and the ‘needle’ will handle the nighttime work. This progress should be much faster than I expect.”
“But you yourself said it—‘Earth-level Zodiacs’ are all shrewd bastards. Every one of them has killed; their hands are stained with blood. There’s no way you can convince them with just a few words.”
“Yes.” Qi Xia said in a low voice. “But don’t forget, we are ‘participants.’ We have our own methods.”
“You mean…?”
“I’ll gamble with them for their lives.” Qi Xia said. “Once the ‘herd effect’ kicks in—once one person dies because of ‘refusing to cooperate’—the remaining ‘Zodiacs’ will avoid that path. When at least half of the Earth-level ‘Zodiacs’ have joined us, this high wall will collapse on its own.”
“Gamble for their lives…?”
After hearing this, Qian Wu slowly furrowed his brow.
The method wasn’t impossible, but it was too risky.
“Do you have experience gambling with ‘Earth-level’ Zodiacs?”
Qi Xia thought for a moment and said, “Half an experience. I initiated a life-or-death gamble that time, but the game was never decided.”
“Then you got lucky.” Qian Wu said.
“Lucky, huh…” Qi Xia nodded. “Maybe.”
“Do you know what happens if you ‘lose the life-or-death gamble’?”
“I have some idea.” Qi Xia nodded. “I’d lose my rationality.”
“Yes. The ruler here seems to want to punish everyone who thinks they’re too clever…” Qian Wu said with a touch of gloom. “In other words… the more brilliant people who can stand up to the ‘Zodiacs,’ the more likely they are to end up as natives.”
“But have you ever considered that these so-called ‘brilliant people’ lose because they’re not as strong as they think?”
Qian Wu sighed helplessly and said, “Qi Xia, while I believe you have the ability to gamble an ‘Earth-level’ to death, have you thought about how fragile an army built on ‘threats’ can be?”
“Oh?”
“You can threaten them… but so can ‘Tianlong’…” Qian Wu’s expression grew darker. “If we fight alongside these unstable elements, it’s hard to imagine our final outcome.”
“You’re overthinking it.” Qi Xia said. “Even *The Art of War* says: ‘He who is skilled in war does not conscript troops twice, nor transport provisions three times. He uses his own resources for weapons and obtains provisions from the enemy, so the army’s food is sufficient.’”
“I haven’t read much.” Qian Wu shook his head. “What does that mean?”
“It means when you fight, you don’t have to keep using your own country’s troops and supplies. Even if you win, you’ll constantly consume your own national strength. You can obtain troops and supplies from the enemy.”
Hearing this, Qian Wu felt that his thinking truly was on a different level from this man’s.
“So… you already consider this a ‘war’? You plan to draw troops from the enemy side?”
“Yes.” Qi Xia said. “If the ‘Earth-level Zodiacs’ really do go to war with ‘Tianlong,’ wouldn’t that be a wonderful thing?”
Before Qian Wu could say anything more, Shi Jiu, who had been standing nearby, suddenly frowned. He paused, turned, and said, “Fifth Brother, Sixth Sister sent a message. Something’s up.”
Qian Wu nodded upon hearing this, then turned back and waved at the others. The “silence” of this conversation was over, and their discussion came to an abrupt halt.
“What’s wrong…?”
“Some ‘big shot’ is coming.” Shi Jiu said.
“A ‘big shot’…?” Qian Wu looked solemn and nodded. “Tianma and Tianhu are here?”
“Doesn’t seem like it. It’s a man.” Shi Jiu said. “But not sure exactly who… anyway, not an ordinary person.”
“I’ll go take a look.” Qian Wu said.
“I’ll go too.” Qi Xia added.
Just as he was about to stand up, Qian Wu reached out and pressed his shoulder. In an instant, Qian Wu’s figure swelled up, making him look no different from Qi Xia.
“Qi Xia… it might be a ‘Tian.’”
“I know, that’s why I have to go.” Qi Xia nodded. “I’ve never interacted with a ‘Tian’ before. This is a perfect opportunity.”
Qian Wu kept his hand on Qi Xia’s shoulder, feeling uneasy about this. “But Qi Xia… you were a ‘Zodiac.’ Aren’t you afraid they’ll recognize you?”
“If I’m going to meet a ‘Tian’… then at least I’m an ‘Earth-level.’” Qi Xia said. “But an ‘Earth-level’ wears an animal head. I don’t think the ‘Tians’ know what I originally looked like.”
“But every ‘Tian’ has their own ability… you’re taking a big risk.” Qian Wu said.
“Then let me go too.” Qiao Jiajin stood up and stretched. “You guys keep talking about ‘Tians’ this and ‘Tians’ that. I want to see for myself—since we’re all human, what’s the difference between me and them?”
Qi Xia turned to look at Qiao Jiajin, then lowered his head in thought.
If the ability of a “Divine Beast” is “Resonance,” then what is the ability of a “Tian-level”?
If all their abilities were “Resonance,” would “Breaker of All Laws” work?
“Alright.” Qi Xia nodded. “Then let me and Fist go take a look. Chen Junnan, you know a lot of people, so stay out of sight for now to avoid unnecessary trouble. Officer Li, you all wait here. There’s some risk, but if something happens, you’ll have a chance to maneuver.”