Qi Xia’s single statement nearly caused Man-Snake to lose his balance in his seat.

“This afternoon,” “incite how many human-level participants,” “remove their masks together.”

Each of these three segments left Man-Snake feeling utterly astonished, and now they had been strung together into a complete sentence.

“Wait… I have far too many questions…” Man-Snake said after calming his emotions. “Is the timeline really this tight? We’re taking action this afternoon?”

“We might not even be able to wait until afternoon,” Qi Xia said, looking at the “door” through which he had entered. “Once a plan involves too many people, variables will increase accordingly.”

Man-Snake quickly thought through the current situation—everything seemed to be happening so fast.

Just like how he was still in his room last night reading the problem book when suddenly someone slipped a letter through the crack of his door, and then he came here to become a “referee.” Before he could even confirm whether he could survive this game, he had immediately confirmed Qi Xia’s identity.

Before everything in his mind could be digested, he had already been swept into another, even greater mystery.

“This afternoon… inciting those ‘Zodiacs’…” Man-Snake scratched at the foul-smelling mask on his face. “I do have some friends, but the timeline is too tight. I’m not sure if they’ll agree to do this.”

“They will,” Qi Xia said. “This isn’t a difficult task, because at that time, someone will be responsible for fighting Zhu Que to the death, and you only need to continuously remove your masks to shake Zhu Que’s conviction.”

“Wait a moment… shake his conviction?” Man-Snake was startled. “We only need to shake his conviction…?”

“That’s right.” Qi Xia nodded. “It sounds difficult to understand, but the actual situation is just like this. Whenever a ‘Zodiac’ breaks the rules, Zhu Que will immediately sense it and then go to handle it; otherwise, he’ll be punished by Qinglong and Heavenly-Dragon. That’s the principle, right?”

“Yes…” Man-Snake agreed.

“If people continuously ‘violate the rules’ in the distance while Zhu Que is fighting to the death, he will inevitably become distracted. After all, if he doesn’t handle it immediately, he himself will face catastrophic disaster,” Qi Xia continued. “Although it seems like insignificant help, in the battle between humans and this kind of demigod, it’s absolutely crucial.”

“I see…” Man-Snake seemed to understand everything. “No wonder you said we’ve been swept into the torrent of killing Zhu Que, and also said we’re supporters…”

“But… there are two problems,” Man-Snake said. “First, I might die in this game and won’t even survive until this afternoon… Second, the ears outside aren’t just ‘Qinglong’s.’ How can I possibly bypass all surveillance to convey this information…?”

“Then let’s solve them one by one,” Qi Xia said.

“Solve them…”

“Did Qinglong promise you anything?” Qi Xia asked. “Kill how many people, and then you can survive this game?”

“Just one…” Man-Snake said in a low voice. “As long as I kill one person, not only can I survive, I can even be promoted to ‘Earth-level.'”

“Kill one person and you can become ‘Earth-level’…” Qi Xia narrowed his eyes. “Do you believe it?”

“I…” After hearing this, Man-Snake gave another bitter laugh. “Do I believe it or not…? I really don’t know what to do anymore… Qi Xia, do you know? Brother Yang once said that if I could solve the hundred difficult problems in this book, he would come back to help me become Earth-level.”

“I know.”

Man-Snake reached out and patted the book on the table. “Although I haven’t solved these hundred difficult problems, I’ve read them countless times. I treat them as Brother Yang’s diary, never thinking about the answers.”

Qi Xia remained silent, staring intently at Man-Snake’s eyes.

“After I’ve read them countless times, an opportunity to become ‘Earth-level’ appeared before me, and then I saw you,” Man-Snake said, his expression growing increasingly complicated. “Just now, I had a moment of joy… thinking that Brother Yang had really returned, that he still remembered his promise to me. Although I didn’t solve these difficult problems, because I’ve read them countless times, he came back to help me become ‘Earth-level,’ and we would eat at the same table again. But very quickly I fell into sadness again, because he is he, and you are you.”

Qi Xia hadn’t expected Man-Snake to harbor such profound internal conflict that he didn’t know where to begin consoling him.

“I’m very happy that Brother Yang didn’t encounter danger and didn’t return here alone just for a worthless person like me,” Man-Snake said after choking up. “But tell me… has Brother Yang disappeared from this world? Will I never see him again?”

The room became as quiet as if the entire space had sunk into the deep sea. Neither of them spoke a word.

After a while, Qi Xia finally nodded. “Yes, you won’t see him again.”

“So tell me, should I believe or not believe…?”

Man-Snake picked up the book from the table, seeming to want to say something, but his fingers suddenly went limp, and the book fell back onto the table.

“Brother Yang promised to make me ‘Earth-level,’ and I believed him, but Brother Yang will never come back,” Man-Snake continued. “Now Qinglong promises to make me ‘Earth-level’—should I believe him or not?”

After hearing this, Qi Xia reached out and gently stroked his forehead.

Perhaps to Earth-Tiger and Earth-Sheep, Man-Snake was actually the most sentimental one among the three.

His emotions were more delicate than Earth-Tiger’s and Earth-Sheep’s, and his feelings toward Baiyang were even more pure. This so-called purity was difficult to erase even when the object was changed to Qi Xia.

He only recognized Baiyang as his teacher.

He acknowledged that Qi Xia was not Baiyang, and Baiyang was not Qi Xia—this way of thinking completely aligned with Baiyang’s own.

That’s why before Baiyang left, he specifically entrusted this message to him.

Some images flashed through Qi Xia’s mind—scenes on the dim, oppressive train where every time Earth-Tiger and Earth-Sheep quarreled fiercely, Man-Snake would grin and play peacemaker between them.

He not only cheered up Man-Mouse but also mediated among everyone, maintaining the relationships in this small family.

Now, without Man-Snake mediating between Earth-Sheep and Earth-Tiger, they must be quarreling incessantly every day, constantly saying “I’ll kill you,” right?

For Man-Snake now, Baiyang was dead, Man-Mouse was dead, and everyone was scattered everywhere. The entire family, along with Man-Snake’s state of mind, was completely shattered.

As the only “human-level” participant among the three, even if he had thousands of strengths, he had nowhere to apply them.

In this state of extreme grief, Qinglong had extended the olive branch of “Earth-level.”

Qi Xia quickly sorted through the threads of this matter. For Man-Snake, he had no choice but to believe this proposal. Because only if he killed one person here and was promoted to “Earth-level” would everything get better.

At that time, he could stand proudly beside Earth-Tiger and Earth-Sheep, becoming true family.