Chapter 593: A Team of Shortcomings
Earth Horse lay on the ground, screaming in agony, his face twisted in pain. But because his right ankle was pinned to the floor, he didn't dare move an inch.
This scream was unmistakably loud. Everyone in the room looked over, while Lazy Dog and Worker Rat kept their eyes fixed on the door.
With the commotion growing louder and louder, could this really still be kept a secret?
Black Sheep coldly unbuttoned his shirt, loosening his collar to give his neck some relief, then spat a mouthful of bloody saliva onto the ground. "Earth Horse, your little schemes should end here..."
Earth Horse couldn't answer at all; he just lay there writhing and screaming.
Earth Pig, who had been locked in combat with Loss-Maker Tiger, paused at the sight. He turned to look at Black Sheep, furrowing his brow after a few seconds. "Are you fucking crazy...? You severed the tendon of an Earth-tier?"
"Oh... is that so? 'Tendon' and whatnot..." Earth Sheep wore a careless, apologetic expression. "How was I supposed to know that was a tendon? Just an unlucky slip. If needed, I can apologize now."
Seeing such ruthlessness, Earth Pig couldn't help but feel uneasy. One Loss-Maker Tiger was already trouble enough. If that menacing Black Sheep kept looming behind him, how could he walk away from this fight unscathed?
Earth Tiger wiped the blood from his face and stepped forward. "You dwarf pig, scratching people with your nails in a fight—what's the difference between you and a fucking kid?"
Hearing this, everyone in the room looked down at Earth Pig's fingers. He seemed to have deliberately kept his nails long as weapons, and now the gaps between them were filled with white fur and bloody flesh.
"Earth Pig, I have a few words to say," Black Sheep said. "Do you want to give me a moment to explain the situation, or would you prefer we settle this with another round?"
Even as he spoke, Earth Sheep picked up another table leg from the floor, tore it apart, and revealed its sharp end.
Though Earth Pig wasn't afraid of the two men's threats, the situation was indeed tricky. He had two Earth-tiers to deal with right in front of him, while three more Earth-tiers stood by watching the show. When Earth Horse had come to find him, he'd never mentioned so many opponents.
"Dwarf pig, I'm fucking talking to you!" Earth Tiger barked irritably, taking a few steps forward as if he had no intention of stopping.
"Forget it, I'm not fighting anymore," Earth Pig said.
At this, some breathed a sigh of relief, while others grew suspicious.
The whole affair was already spiraling out of control. Earth Pig had come swaggering in to "capture the rebels," and now he was saying he wouldn't fight? How was this supposed to end?
"You came swaggering in here with that Horse, now you say you're not fighting?" Earth Tiger frowned, unable to hide his confusion.
"Yeah... I..." Earth Pig hesitated, then, taking advantage of Earth Tiger's momentary distraction, he kicked him hard in the knee.
A sharp crack rang out. Fortunately, Earth Tiger's lower body was thick and sturdy, so the blow didn't snap his knee outright, but it still caused excruciating pain. He let out a muffled grunt and dropped to one knee.
Without any hesitation, Earth Pig flipped behind Earth Tiger, grabbed him by the chin, and pressed three fingers—nails extended—against his Adam's apple.
The room fell into a dead silence. Earth Sheep, Earth Dog, Earth Rat, and Earth Rabbit all stared blankly at the scene, unsure of what he intended to do.
"Don't get too cocky," Earth Pig sneered. "If any of you try anything funny, I'll crush his throat right now."
He had assumed Earth Tiger was the "ringleader" of this rebellion. If he could take him hostage, he'd have the whole team by the throat. But strangely, none of the people present seemed to react at all.
Earth Sheep blinked and asked, "I... let me get this straight. Are you threatening me with Loss-Maker Tiger's life?"
Hearing this, Earth Pig was momentarily at a loss for words. "What...?"
"Kill him." Earth Sheep tilted his chin at Earth Pig in a gesture. "Don't bother with anything else. Go ahead, kill him first."
"Are you fucking pretending to be all fearless with me...?" Earth Pig frowned. "Aren't you both White Sheep's students?!"
"So what?" Black Sheep shrugged indifferently. "We've both wanted to kill each other for years, but we held back out of courtesy. You're doing me a favor. Stop wasting time, just kill him."
Suddenly, Earth Pig felt isolated. He turned to look at the three bystanders. "You don't care either?! If I kill him, you'll be 'a dragon without a head'!"
The three exchanged glances, utterly unable to relate.
Two of them were meeting Earth Tiger for the first time. The only one who had known Earth Tiger before—Lazy Dog—looked completely unconcerned.
For Lazy Dog, Earth Tiger was just "a zodiac he'd met a few times." They weren't mortal enemies, barely even "friends."
"You... you people..." Earth Pig swept his gaze across them in bewilderment. "What the hell is wrong with your team? This is how you 'rebel'? With all these holes?"
He truly couldn't understand. Everyone said a team should minimize its weaknesses to strengthen its cohesion, but this team was made up entirely of weaknesses.
People talked about the "barrel effect," but these shortcomings had simply formed a "plate."
A dragon without a head, each with their own agenda, indifference to each other's deaths, internal conflicts... What kind of freak show was this?
"Chief Pig, don't talk nonsense!" Earth Rat, who had been silent all along, finally spoke up. "What 'rebellion'? If you want to rebel, don't hurt Earth Tiger—just do it yourself!"
"You... the fuck are you yelling about?" Earth Pig was taken aback.
Earth Rat smirked coldly, pulled the metal table leg out of Earth Horse's ankle—provoking another scream—and slowly pressed it against Earth Horse's throat.
"Chief Pig, there are five of us and only one of you," Earth Rat said with a smile. "If I drive this pipe in, not only will you be convicted of 'rebellion,' but you'll also be guilty of 'zodiac murder.' After all, there are no 'ears' on this 'train.' Our five testimonies are the truth."
"You..." Earth Pig squinted, his eyes darting between the people in the room as if searching for a graceful way out. After a moment of thought, he looked at Earth Horse writhing in pain on the ground. "Fine, but I can't just let this go. You've crippled the man I brought here. You owe me an explanation. Otherwise, I will bring all my students to demand one."