Chapter 742: Xu Liunian's Obsession
Xu Liunian was so startled that she quickly turned around.
She had come to "Heaven's Gate" early in search of someone, only to find that someone inside was already killing indiscriminately. Unable to contend with such overwhelming power, she could only hide nearby.
Just moments ago, she had seen Qi Xia walk inside, and she suddenly changed her mind. She was about to assume a different identity and go speak with him when she noticed that five people were following behind Qi Xia. This completely ruined her plans, leaving her no choice but to deal with the people before her first.
But before she could come up with a new strategy, she suddenly froze, staring at the few people in front of her.
As the saying goes, you can search far and wide but find nothing, only to stumble upon it effortlessly.
The very person she had been yearning to find—Qiao Jiajin—was standing right before her eyes.
"What's wrong, Sister Xu?" Chen Junnan said with a serious expression. "If you want to transform, go ahead. Just pretend we're not here. We're just passing through."
"Qiao Jiajin," Xu Liunian called out. "I have something to tell you."
Qiao Jiajin was momentarily stunned. He turned to glance at Chen Junnan and Tiantian, then finally looked back at Xu Liunian, pointing at himself in confusion. "Me?"
"Yes. Can we talk somewhere in private?" Xu Liunian asked again.
"But I don't really know you," Qiao Jiajin scratched his head. "If there's something you want to say, just say it openly here."
Xu Liunian looked at the people before her: Chen Junnan, Qin Dingdong, Zhang Lijuan, and a little boy she didn't recognize.
Suddenly, she felt that her request was indeed rather unreasonable. No matter how she looked at it, these people were all on the same side, while she had no faction at all. If that was the case... could her final wish even be fulfilled?
"Qiao Jiajin." Xu Liunian stepped forward, her expression earnest. "I have a way to completely liberate this place. If you're willing to help, we can end all of this right here."
"Huh?" Qiao Jiajin was taken aback. "What are you talking about?"
Chen Junnan and Qin Dingdong both darkened their expressions at these words.
The two exchanged a glance, and Qin Dingdong quickly stepped forward, saying to Xu Liunian, "Alright, alright. Our A-Jin knows about it. You should go now, classmate."
Chen Junnan also hastily threw an arm around Qiao Jiajin's shoulders. "Yeah, yeah. Old Qiao, don't mind her. She's just selling something. Let's not listen, okay?"
"Huh...?" Both Qiao Jiajin and Xu Liunian were bewildered.
Seeing the scene suddenly turn chaotic, Xu Liunian grew anxious. She pushed the two aside and said sternly, "You all know this method... but you're keeping it from Qiao Jiajin?"
"We know, we know," Chen Junan said, trying to muddle through. "We're not buying, thanks."
Even as he spoke, he was already pulling Qiao Jiajin away from the scene.
How could he not know the method Xu Liunian was talking about?
Back then, when he and Qin Dingdong had heard Qi Xia utter the words "Endless Cycle" on the rooftop, they had already vaguely sensed something.
The "Land of the End" was like a giant cage, trapping everyone here in an "endless cycle."
If all of this really stemmed from Qi Xia, then a single word from Qiao Jiajin could potentially change everything. But what consequences that might bring was completely unknown.
"What are you people doing...?" Xu Liunian grabbed hold of Chen Junnan. "Do you really want to keep cycling here forever...?"
Chen Junnan slowly stopped in his tracks, turned his head, and said, "Xu Liunian... don't even think about it. No matter what Old Qiao thinks, I'm the first to say no."
"It's just one sentence!!" Xu Liunian shouted. "No matter what... we have to at least try, right?"
Qiao Jiajin was thoroughly confused by the people in front of him. "What sentence?"
"I said no means no," Chen Junnan insisted. "Go do whatever you need to do."
"Why...?" Xu Liunian asked, puzzled. "If we can liberate this place, then everything would be over! None of us would have to keep cycling... The suffering we endure would come to an end. Why won't you even try?"
Qin Dingdong saw how desperate the young woman was and felt a pang of sympathy.
Even though she was begging so earnestly, if things went as she wished, she herself would also be reduced to ashes.
Was there anyone in this world who would beg for an outcome that brought them no benefit?
"Alright..." Chen Junnan nodded. "Since you really want an answer, I'll give you one. First of all, we're not sure that the root of all this is Old Qi, and we're not sure if Old Qiao's 'Nullifier of All Laws' would even work on this."
"So I said we could try—"
"Secondly," Chen Junnan interrupted, "you don't have the right to decide the ending for others. The 'Land of the End' has tens of thousands of people. How can you be sure that all of them are willing to accept being reduced to nothing, willing to accept 'liberation'? What if they don't want to leave? What if they don't want to disappear? What if they actually want to stay here?"
Xu Liunian slowly lowered her head. "It's precisely because they can never retain their memories... that someone who can remember for a long time needs to make the decision for them..."
"But from their perspective, someone who descends from the sky, claiming to act for their good, and then makes them disappear—how is that any different from a villain in a story?"
"But you all know I'm right..." Xu Liunian said. "Isn't my decision the most direct and effective method we have right now?"
Chen Junnan didn't answer. He just looked at her with a complicated expression.
"The real us might have already gotten out..." Xu Liunian said, her voice choked with emotion. "We're just a bunch of copies waiting for liberation... Why should we have to suffer like this...? Why can the other versions of us go out, while we have to suffer here?"
"Stop thinking about it," Chen Junnan said. "Maybe the real us haven't gotten out either. And if we die now, we die for real. Besides, Old Qiao isn't some tool to fulfill your personal wishes. He has his own thoughts."
Hearing this, Xu Liunian fell into a long silence.
After a long while, she slowly raised her head. "Neither of us can convince the other. So let Qiao Jiajin choose for himself. How about that?"
"Oh?"
"Just this once," Xu Liunian said. "This matter ultimately requires his power. If he doesn't agree, I can't succeed no matter what. So as long as he personally refuses me, I'll never bring it up again."
Now that the choice was back in Qiao Jiajin's hands, he looked even more confused.
"What are you guys even talking about? What liberation with just one sentence?" He looked from Chen Junnan to Xu Liunian. "How is this even related to me?"
Chen Junnan thought for a moment, then spoke. "Old Qiao, we suspect that everyone's endless cycling here is all because of Old Qi's 'Endless Cycle.' You have the 'Nullifier of All Laws.' Are you willing to use your power to break this curse of endless reincarnation?"