Chapter 87 + 88: An Idol

The earthy yellow sun of the third day once again climbed into the dark red sky. It should have been another day of foul stench and eerie calm, but inside the massage parlor, Lin Qian and Zhang Chenze were in a panic.

This was because Qi Xia was missing.

They searched every corner of the massage parlor, and they could still feel the chill of Qi Xia's blood on the bed as the wind blew over it, yet there was no sign of him.

Deep in the corridor, the indigenous person was still massaging the mummified corpse, which made everything feel deeply unsettling.

Zhang Chenze gazed toward the door, lost in thought.

"He left... just like he said himself, he's tired and has given up."

"No, that can't be?" Lin Qian found it hard to believe. "Maybe he's so worried about us that he went to join the games on his own..."

"The twenty 'Dao' are all right here." Zhang Chenze picked up the small cloth bundle from the bed and waved it at Lin Qian. "Qi Xia didn't take a single 'Dao' with him. How could he participate in the games?"

Lin Qian was at a loss for words, not knowing what to say.

Where could Qi Xia have gone?

He was injured, and without any 'Dao', what could he do dragging that badly wounded body?

"Zhang Lüshi, would you be willing to join the games with me?" Lin Qian steadied herself and said slowly.

"Just the two of us?" Zhang Chenze was slightly taken aback. "Are you sure about this?"

"I'm definitely not as strong as Qi Xia, so we'll try to stick to 'Ren Ji' games. If we win, it's a gain, and if we lose, we won't die. That way, if Qi Xia ever comes back, we'll have enough 'Dao' to welcome him back."

Zhang Chenze thought for a moment and then nodded.

Could Qi Xia come back?

With only seven days left until annihilation, his injuries would only worsen in the coming days, with no chance of recovery.

Would he really come back?

The two packed their things and stepped out of the massage parlor into the fresh sunlight.

...

Qi Xia held a map drawn in blood and staggered down the street.

He had never imagined that losing so much blood would make his hands and feet refuse to obey him. After just over an hour of walking, he was already drenched in sweat.

He glanced down at the map in his hand, knowing it was his last hope.

"Tian Tang Kou."

After three days of probing, Qi Xia had a general understanding of the situation here.

Gathering three thousand six hundred 'Dao' through these games was as difficult as ascending to heaven on the spot.

After all, the rewards from each game were far too scarce.

Even in 'Ren Ji' games, you could only increase your gains by gambling your life against the zodiac signs, but 'Di Ji' games offered no such opportunity—participants faced deadly dangers from the start.

In other words, whether in 'Ren Ji' or 'Di Ji' games, to get significant rewards, you had to be ready to risk your life without hesitation.

The most dangerous game Qi Xia had seen so far was the black bear hunt in Di Niu, and it was only survivable thanks to Qiao Jiajin and Zhang Shan. Otherwise, it would have been certain death.

Yet, even in such perilous circumstances, each person could get at most twenty 'Dao'.

If Qi Xia really wanted to collect 'Dao' by participating in games, he'd have to tackle something as dangerous as the Di Niu game and win one hundred and eighty times in a row while in peak condition.

How many people would die in the process? How many injuries would there be?

What chance did he have of lasting until the end?

Qi Xia had calculated all night and couldn't figure out his odds of survival.

After thinking it through, the only viable option was Tian Tang Kou.

Zhang Shan had once said they saw someone escape from here and even found the escapee's notes, which were now in the hands of the leader, Chu Tianqiu.

Qi Xia followed the map Zhang Shan had left him and finally arrived at the headquarters of Tian Tang Kou around noon.

It was an abandoned school.

The school sign was too dilapidated to tell if it was an elementary or middle school, but he could see the teaching buildings and basketball court in front of him.

A man stood outside the school gate, vigilantly scanning the surroundings.

He wore a sports tank top and had his hair in braids, looking no more than fifteen or sixteen years old.

Qi Xia tightened the bandage on his shoulder and approached the young man.

Seeing someone coming, the young man became more alert and asked,"Liang Ren?"

"Liang Ren?" Qi Xia thought the man's accent was odd, but he just nodded. "I'm a Liang Ren."

"You... need help like that?"

The man not only had a strange accent but also awkward phrasing.

"I..." Qi Xia thought for a moment and said, "I want to see Chu Tianqiu."

"See Chu Ge..." The man furrowed his brow slightly. "May I ask your name?"

"Qi Xia."

The young man pondered for a bit, then nodded at Qi Xia and said, "Ge, please wait a moment."

He walked through the school gate, locked it behind him, and hurried toward the teaching building.

In the southernmost classroom on the first floor, a man in a black shirt and glasses was scribbling something on the blackboard.

Nearby, a strikingly beautiful woman sat painting her nails.

"Chu Ge! Yun Yao Jie!" the braided young man called from the doorway.

"Come in," Yun Yao said without looking up, her tone indifferent.

The young man pushed the door open, glanced at the two, bowed, and said to the man in the black shirt, "Chu Ge, there's someone outside who wants to see you like that."

Chu Tianqiu kept writing and asked casually, "What's the name?"

"Qi Xia."

"Qi Xia?" Chu Tianqiu paused his hand and shifted two steps to the left.

He scanned the densely written text on the blackboard for something.

Soon, he found the line.

"Number: 87, Liar, Rain After Spring Bamboo Shoots, Death from the Sky, Cunning Snake."

He drew a horizontal line under that line and then fell into thought.

"What is it?" Yun Yao asked. "Have you heard of this name?"

"This is an extremely formidable figure." Chu Tianqiu smiled. "The three zodiac signs in charge of the 87th interview all had one foot in the 'Di' realm. What kind of game do you think they would design?"

Yun Yao was slightly stunned. "So, it was an interview where everyone died?"

"No." Chu Tianqiu shook his head. "Because this young man named Qi Xia made it so that nine people survived the interview."

"Everyone survived? Is that possible?" Yun Yao lifted her bright eyes to look at Chu Tianqiu, then suddenly realized something. "Qi Xia—isn't that the Liang Ren that Little Glasses has been talking about these past two days?"

The braided young man seemed to understand and nodded. "Chu Ge, I'll bring him in right now like that."

"No..." Chu Tianqiu reached out to stop the young man and said, "Jin Yuanxun, why don't you ask him a question for me."

"A question?"

"Yes." Chu Tianqiu nodded. "Ask that Qi Xia, 'On which day did you arrive?'"

"Ge, but if I ask him, will he understand like that?"

"It doesn't matter. This is a good chance for you to practice your Hanyu." Chu Tianqiu said with a smile.

Though Jin Yuanxun was puzzled, he knew Chu Tianqiu always thought things through carefully, so he just nodded and left.

"I don't get it." Yun Yao blew on her nails to dry them and screwed the cap back on. "You said this Qi Xia is an 'extremely formidable figure,' but you're not planning to bring him under your command?"

Chu Tianqiu smiled slightly. "Yun Yao, this is exactly 'Wang Bu Jian Wang'."

Yunyao found the saying somewhat intriguing. "Wang bu jian Wang? You mean Qixia is as powerful as you?"

"No, he is much stronger than me." Chutianqiu put the chalk back and found a chair to sit down. "It's just that he has had far fewer trials. If we want to use his power, we'll have to wait for the right opportunity."

After leaving the room, Jin Yuanxun glanced at Qixia, who was waiting silently by the door, and his expression turned awkward.

"Does he want to see me?" Qixia asked.

"No..." Jin Yuanxun shook his head. "Ge asked me to ask you a question."

"A question?" Qixia thought for a moment and nodded. "Being cautious is wise. What does he want to ask?"

"May I ask, what day did you arrive here?"

Qixia furrowed his brow, finding it quite strange.

There were so many other questions he could have asked, yet Chutianqiu chose this one?

"I arrived here three days ago."

"Three days ago..." Jin Yuanxun nodded. "Ge, just a moment, I'll go back and report."

Qixia nodded solemnly, but he was already feeling unsteady on his feet.

...

"Three days ago?" Chutianqiu smiled. "Is that what he said?"

"Yes." Jin Yuanxun nodded. "Ah, Ge, we all arrived here three days ago, so it's not surprising... Is there anything else we need to ask?"

"There's no need to bother with him anymore." Chutianqiu said, "He got this one wrong, so we won't give him another chance."

"Ah?" Jin Yuanxun was stunned. "Ge... that person looks badly injured. If we ignore him, he might..."

"Then let him die."

"Uh..." Jin Yuanxun was taken aback. "Ge... you didn't say..."

"It's not the right time yet." Chutianqiu glanced back at Yunyao. "Yunyao, could you see him out for me?"

"Sure, I understand."

Yunyao stretched lazily and stood up, heading toward the door.

"A Xi... Ge, if we want to escape, shouldn't we use the power of someone strong like him?" Jin Yuanxun looked puzzled. "If that man is really that powerful, why not let him join?"

"He will join us, just not right now." Chutianqiu smiled. "Right now, Qixia is like a wounded snake. He resents everything here; he wants to survive and escape. In this state, he can't join 'Tiandao Kou', and we can't treat him as a teammate."

Jin Yuanxun stood there stunned for a while, nodding as if he half-understood.

Yunyao hadn't gone far when she spotted Qixia standing in the courtyard. Half of his clothes were soaked in fresh blood, making for a frightening sight.

"Qixia?" Yunyao asked.

"Yes." Qixia nodded.

"Let me ask you—if the first half of a seven-digit code is 'YMWDH', what should the last two digits be?"

"'MS'." Qixia answered without hesitation. "Are you people from 'Tiandao Kou' all this bored?"

"Really? You figured it out in just a second?" Yunyao was surprised.

"In English, 'year, month, week, day, hour'—based on length of time, the last two must be the first letters of 'minute, second'." Qixia said. "Is this some kind of 'Tiandao Kou' interview?"

"Not exactly, just my personal test." Yunyao smiled charmingly. "I like smart people. To crack this code, we lost a teammate."

"That just shows 'Tiandao Kou' isn't all that great." Qixia replied.

"No, it's just that I'm not skilled enough." Yunyao shook her head in correction. "If Chutianqiu handled it, he'd probably crack it in a second too."

"So when can I see Chutianqiu?" Qixia asked. "He's kept me waiting for twenty minutes already."

"You won't be seeing him." Yunyao replied with a bright smile, her eyes curving. "You didn't pass the interview, so 'Tiandao Kou' won't accept you."

Qixia showed a hint of disbelief.

"That means the first question was the interview." He stared at Yunyao. "And I got it wrong?"

"I don't know." Yunyao pouted. "If Chutianqiu says it's wrong, then it's wrong."

"I see." Qixia nodded and turned to leave.

"Hey!" Yunyao called out. "Even though 'Tiandao Kou' won't take you, I like you. I enjoy helping handsome guys down on their luck. How about staying as my 'rumored boyfriend'? I bet Chutianqiu wouldn't object."

Qixia turned back and glanced at Yunyao, his expression tinged with mockery. "I'll pass."

"How cold." Yunyao scratched her head and pulled a bottle of mineral water from behind her. "Here, take this. Let's be friends?"

Seeing the plastic bottle in Yunyao's hand, Qixia swallowed hard.

He hadn't had water in nearly a day.

"This bottle of water means I owe you one." Qixia reached out, took it, twisted off the cap, closed his eyes, and drank it all in one go.

In his wounded state, even if it were poisoned, there was nothing to fear.

"So sweet..." Qixia exhaled. "I must have been dehydrated for too long."

"The reason it's so sweet is because I took a sip from it first." Yunyao flashed a meaningful smile. "So now we've had an indirect kiss, right?"

"Thanks for the water. I'll pay you back if I get the chance." Qixia tossed the bottle on the ground and walked away.

Watching Qixia's retreating figure, Yunyao felt a bit annoyed. "So rude. Even a popular idol like me gets rejected."

"He's gone?" Chutianqiu appeared behind Yunyao and asked.

"Gone."

"Has he given up?"

"Doesn't seem like it. He looks more like he's made some kind of decision." Yunyao shook her head. "This guy is really something. I think I'm starting to like him."

"Oh? You were into me just two days ago, and now you're switching so fast?" Chutianqiu gave a bitter smile. "I really can't figure you out."

"Don't try to guess an idol's thoughts." Yunyao shrugged. "I'm looking forward to the next time I see Qixia."

The two of them left through the gate, and the rundown school campus fell silent once more.

The young man named Jin Yuanxun stood back at the door, cautiously scanning the surroundings as if nothing had happened.

Qixia found a cracked wall, sat down to rest for half an hour, then got up again and continued walking along the road.

After this indirect encounter with Chutianqiu, he had a clearer understanding of the "rules" of this ghost place.

The situation was probably more complicated than he had imagined.

Now, he had only one thought left: to reach the edge of the city.

If there was any way to escape, it had to be there.