“A test…?”
Han Yimo and Qiao Jiajin were both stunned at the same time and asked, “What test?”
“Hey!” Chen Junnan shook his head and stared at Han Yimo with a smile. “You just need to know it yourself, kid. Don’t tell anyone else, okay?”
After hearing this, Qiao Jiajin felt something was off. “Brother Nan, why are you keeping things from me?”
“How could I possibly keep things from you? I’m just messing with Little Han. Don’t believe it,” Chen Junnan said with a bitter smile.
“Oh? Really?”
After hearing this, Han Yimo couldn’t help but feel moved. He hadn’t expected that even at such a moment, Chen Junnan would still help conceal things for him. He could only secretly resolve in his heart that this time he would definitely withstand the test and not disappoint Chen Junnan’s expectations.
Qiao Jiajin helped Chen Junnan sit down by the wall. When he raised his head, he discovered that their own display screen had already been smashed, and his mouth instantly gaped open.
“Man…” he said in shock. “What are we going to do?! How did this thing break?!”
“Things are indeed a bit troublesome…” Chen Junnan said, enduring the pain on his body. “Not only did they invade here and smash our display screen, but we’re also surrounded. Those kids made a defensive line outside, and we might not be able to break through.”
“Where’s the Liar?!” Qiao Jiajin asked again.
“Old Qi is trapped in a game and can’t get out for a while,” Chen Junnan answered. “How about you, Old Qiao… do your injuries still hurt?”
“My injuries… speaking of which, it’s really miraculous, Brother Nan!” Qiao Jiajin looked at his hands and feet. “It seems there are only some bruises left, and they don’t really hurt anymore!”
“Good… that’s good then…”
“What’s going on exactly?” Qiao Jiajin thought for a moment and suddenly widened his eyes. “Ah! I know… could it be because the owner of this body ‘doesn’t know pain’? Being beaten like this and not feeling pain—that’s really impressive…”
“What are you talking about?”
“Nothing, nothing…” Chen Junnan hurriedly shook his head.
“Pull yourself together, Brother Nan!” Seeing Chen Junnan in a daze, Qiao Jiajin slapped him on the back. This slap nearly sent Chen Junnan off completely. “At such a critical moment, we need to find a way to win the game even with the screen broken!”
“Okay… okay… let this master rest for a bit… I’ll go once my ribs don’t hurt so much.”
After Chen Junnan finished speaking, he turned his head to look at Qiao Jiajin again and discovered that although Qiao Jiajin was acting tough saying “it doesn’t hurt,” his hands and feet were trembling.
One could only say that compared to the excruciating pain earlier—painful enough to lose consciousness—Qiao Jiajin considered this “not painful.”
His own “Scapegoat” had shared about a small half of the pain and suffering, and he already couldn’t stand. How could Qiao Jiajin possibly be perfectly fine?
“Old Qiao, are you really okay?” Chen Junnan asked.
“I’ve already woken up—what could be wrong?”
“In any case, don’t push yourself too hard, kid. Rest when you need to rest,” Chen Junnan said. “Being able to take down Zhang Shan is already a very good result.”
“Speaking of the big guy… how is he?” Qiao Jiajin asked tentatively.
“He…”
Chen Junnan paused. When he passed through the “river channel” earlier, he had gone to check. Zhang Shan no longer had any vital signs. His breathing and heartbeat had both stopped, and even his pulse was completely still.
“He’s been temporarily liberated,” Chen Junnan answered euphemistically.
“I see…” Qiao Jiajin’s eyes dimmed for a moment.
“Don’t think about it. We’ll meet again.”
“I hope we will. I promised him I would take him to see a broader world.”
After hearing this sentence, Chen Junnan couldn’t help but feel somewhat sad.
Now that Zhang Shan had closed his eyes, had he already seen a broader world?
What one saw when opening their eyes in this kind of place—where was any “reality” in that… It was just a huge cage that could trap countless lives.
…
When Qi Xia and Yan Zhichun walked from the “Shen” character room to the “river channel,” Yan Zhichun’s complexion had already turned completely pale.
Such a simple password-guessing game—
Each person sets a four-digit password that only they can see, then takes turns guessing the numbers in the other person’s hand.
Each round, one tells the opponent how many digits they guessed correctly in position and how many digits they guessed correctly in size. The person who can guess the opponent’s number first wins.
Since Yan Zhichun had already played one game with Zhang Chenze, she immediately requested that the referee increase each person’s password to six digits.
However, Qi Xia directly proposed guessing with ten-digit passwords, then within an extremely short time made Yan Zhichun lose utterly and completely.
He not only deduced truth from falsehood based on his opponent’s micro-expressions but could also guide the opponent’s thinking through rhetoric and suggestion. Yan Zhichun knew she had lost fair and square.
“Is this your purpose?” Qi Xia held the “Stone” character he had won from Yan Zhichun, his expression not particularly happy. “As my opponent, to compete with me openly and honorably, then lose to me in the game.”
“Originally I wanted to become your teammate to see your methods,” Yan Zhichun said. “Unfortunately, I was selected by Chu Tianqiu and could only become your opponent.”
“I don’t think this password-guessing game could let you see my true capabilities,” Qi Xia said again. “Although you lost, you’re not convinced, right?”
“Right.” Yan Zhichun nodded straightforwardly. “I admit you are indeed smarter than me, but I also admit there are many people in this world who are smarter than me. I submit to Brother Yang… not just because he’s smarter than me.”
“I will let you see my methods,” Qi Xia said. “After you go back, if you see Chu Tianqiu, tell him I’ll wait for him at the ‘river channel,’ and I’ll personally hand him a defeat here.”
“What…?” Yan Zhichun was stunned. “Qi Xia, will Chu Tianqiu agree to come to the ‘river channel’ to meet you?”
“He will. He has no choice. Tell him that this time I’m betting all the ‘characters’ our team currently has, and he must do the same,” Qi Xia said. “I need to go back now to reassure my teammates and also wait for your news.”
“Reassure teammates…?”
Yan Zhichun didn’t understand the meaning. She only saw Qi Xia carrying the “Stone” character he had won from her and turning to leave the “river channel.”
Watching Qi Xia’s departing figure, she couldn’t help but sigh. As long as this person existed… no game at this venue could possibly stop him.
Long-accumulated memories, experience, and sufficient knowledge allowed him to defeat anyone here. Would Chu Tianqiu really have a chance of winning?
Yan Zhichun thought carefully. To defeat Qi Xia, one couldn’t use conventional means. Either directly use force, or guide Qi Xia to break the rules, or go smash the opponent’s display screen.
Only these three paths could possibly lead to that slim chance of victory.
When Yan Zhichun returned to the “staging area,” she discovered Chu Tianqiu standing there alone, staring at the screen.
Seeing Chu Tianqiu’s back seeming somewhat dazed, an ominous premonition arose in Yan Zhichun’s heart. She hurried forward to check the display screen.
Fortunately, what she was worried about hadn’t happened. The display screen hadn’t shattered and was still sitting there intact.
Just as she was about to say something to Chu Tianqiu, she discovered a very strange line of text on the display screen.
“Black side’s seventh creation failed, final score reduced by seven.”
“What… what does this mean?” Yan Zhichun asked in shock.
Chu Tianqiu’s expression was extremely grave. “It means… someone on our side attempted to create a ‘character’ seven times, and all seven attempts failed.”
“Seven times…?” Yan Zhichun’s face changed. “Who would be so reckless? Don’t they know that failed creations result in point deductions?”
“There’s only one person who would do this,” Chu Tianqiu said slowly. “Qi Xia.”
“Qi Xia?!” Yan Zhichun was stunned. “But Qi Xia is on the Red side… how could he cause us to lose points?”
Chu Tianqiu was silent for a moment, then suddenly understood. “He used our mole.”
“What…?”
“Han Yimo,” Chu Tianqiu said. “Qi Xia discovered Han Yimo is our mole, so he deliberately gave him ‘characters’ and had him attempt to create words. Each failed attempt deducts one point from our score.”
Yan Zhichun felt a chill run down her spine. “So cunning… he’s using our own mole against us…”
“Not only that,” Chu Tianqiu’s expression became even darker. “He just sent you to deliver a message to me, challenging me to a decisive battle at the ‘river channel’ with all our ‘characters’ on the line. This is to prevent me from having time to stop Han Yimo from continuing to lose points for us.”
“Then what do we do?” Yan Zhichun asked anxiously.
“We have no choice,” Chu Tianqiu said. “I must go to the ‘river channel.’ Otherwise, by the time Han Yimo finishes wasting all our points, we’ll have already lost.”
He turned to look at Yan Zhichun, his eyes filled with a fierce determination. “Tell everyone to prepare. This time, I’m going all in.”