Chapter 440: The Deception
"Putting a gun to my head?" Groundhog asked with a chuckle.
"Yes." Qi Xia smiled back. "Isn't that the case?"
"As men, there are many things in this world that can make us bow our heads," Groundhog said. "We can bow our heads for survival, for our families, for money. We can humble ourselves for any trivial matter. We can burst into tears at the sight of a lonely child on the roadside. But we will never yield under the threat of force—that is what it means to be a man."
Qi Xia nodded after hearing this. "I'm becoming more and more interested in you."
"But this is also the last time," Groundhog said. "I've given up. Even if you put a gun to my head, I won't struggle anymore."
Qi Xia was momentarily unsure how to respond.
If Groundhog truly wanted to die, was there any point in trying to win him over?
"Now that it's come to this... I have one last thing to say," Qi Xia said.
"What?"
"Behind the first room, I placed a kumquat," Qi Xia said. "You still won't die this round. Surrender now and let us out. None of us will die."
"You...?"
Even through the door panel, Groundhog's expression was already turning ugly.
He felt that even at this final moment, he was still being led by the nose by this cold-hearted man. When you were desperate to live, someone told you today was your death day. When you decided to die, he handed the choice back to you.
"Why do you toy with my life...?" Groundhog gritted his teeth. "Is it that amusing to you?"
"No, no, no..." Qi Xia shook his head. "I'm just a liar. Not everything I say is true. But right now... that kumquat is real, and the fact that you can survive is also real."
Qi Xia paused and then continued, "Since you're not afraid of death, there's no need for me to kill you. Let's call it quits here."
Luo Shiyi was taken aback by Qi Xia's words. "Call it quits?"
The others in the room looked at Qi Xia in confusion, feeling as though he had indeed forgotten something.
Groundhog sighed from outside the door. "You and I... can we really call it quits?"
"That decision is up to you," Qi Xia said. "I don't want to lose teammates, and you don't want to die. But the food right now really isn't enough for all six of us to survive. So let's each take a step back and call it quits."
Groundhog pondered for a long time before slowly walking toward the exit and pulling the handle on the wall.
All the doors in the house opened at that moment, and the collars around everyone's necks fell off.
Qi Xia led the four people out of the room and stood face-to-face with Groundhog.
"I admit defeat," Groundhog said. "I'll give you the 'Dao' and the fruit. Leave."
Qi Xia found Groundhog's demeanor quite intriguing. "Groundhog... I have a question for you."
"What?"
Qi Xia pointed behind the door of the first room. "Guess—was there actually a kumquat there?"
Groundhog slowly furrowed his brow, then looked past the group toward the table in the "Mouse Room." There wasn't a single fruit left in that room.
"You..."
At that moment, Groundhog felt that the man before him was terrifyingly formidable. Even under those circumstances, could he still lie without changing his expression?
Seeing Groundhog's expression, Qi Xia stepped forward a few paces, leaned close to his ear, and said, "Remember, I'm a liar."
"Heh..." Groundhog let out a cold laugh, as if putting his mask back on. "Director, your inspection today is over."
He walked to the side of the exit, pulled out a bag of "Dao" from under a table, then went to a box on the wall and took out a bag of fruit. He handed both to Qi Xia.
"Take care, Directors. I won't see you out."
Qi Xia took the two bags, turned around, and handed them to Zhou Liu. He gave Groundhog one last meaningful look. "I'll remember you."
"I'm honored," Groundhog said. "It's best if the Directors die out there. Please don't remember me."
Qi Xia said nothing more, gave the others a glance, and slowly walked out of the house.
"Hey... wait, hold on!" Luo Shiyi felt that Qi Xia had really forgotten something. "You're just leaving like that?"
Qi Xia ignored Luo Shiyi, opened the wooden exit door, and stepped onto the street. The others had no choice but to follow.
Groundhog watched them walk away, then turned back to glance at Room 1, his expression incredibly complex.
...
Qi Xia walked alone down the street, looked up at the sun, and calculated the time. The game had lasted about an hour. All in all, not bad.
"Hey..." Luo Shiyi sidestepped Zhou Liu, Wang Ba, and Qiu Shiliu, planting himself directly in front of Qi Xia.
"What?" Qi Xia frowned at Luo Shiyi.
"Haven't you forgotten something?" Luo Shiyi asked.
"Me?" Qi Xia wore a puzzled expression. "Forgotten what?"
Luo Shiyi couldn't tell whether Qi Xia was genuinely forgetful or pretending, so he had to prompt, "My 'Echo'! Weren't you going to let me 'Echo'?"
"Is that so?" Qi Xia blinked. "Did I promise you that?"
"You..." Luo Shiyi was momentarily speechless. "You can't be serious, right? Wasn't the whole point of bringing us out this time to train? If it's training, don't you need me to 'Echo'?"
"Right," Qi Xia nodded. "It's training. Wang Ba and Qiu Shiliu both 'Echoed.' That should be enough, shouldn't it?"
"Wh-what do you mean 'enough'?" Luo Shiyi raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying they're more useful than me? And here I thought you were someone worth following... but you don't give me any regard at all?"
Qi Xia's lips curled slightly. "I wasn't going to say it... but you forced my hand."
"What...?"
"I do look down on you, 'Forget Sorrow' Luo Shiyi," Qi Xia said. "You lost to us once before. I really don't see the need for you to 'Echo.'... With your qualifications, how dare you say you want to follow me?"
"You... you..."
Qi Xia took a step forward, getting closer to Luo Shiyi, and said each word deliberately: "There was once someone who followed me. With just a few words, he made you writhe in pain until you died. Tell me yourself—what use are you to me?"
*Dong!*
Standing on the street, everyone clearly heard the bell of "Forget Sorrow" tolling, triggered by this crushing defeat.
...
Groundhog lifted his head, listening to the distant chime. He took a deep breath, walked into Room 1, shifted the door, and nervously looked behind it.
Three kumquats lay there.