Zhang Chenze stared at the opened door for a while, then turned back to look at Chu Tianqiu.

“Can you let go?”

“What?” Chu Tianqiu’s brows furrowed.

“Loving someone… can you let go?” Zhang Chenze asked. “Are you prepared to let Qiaoyun stay there forever?”

Jin Yuanxun outside the door, seeing that their conversation hadn’t ended, retreated a few more steps into the distance.

“Lawyer Zhang.” Chu Tianqiu called out. “You think you’re counseling me, but you don’t realize that the content you’re discussing, I’ve already pondered through countless nights.”

“Is that so…”

“I’m telling you all this today not because I expect you to actually help me with anything.” Chu Tianqiu sighed and said. “I just want you all to understand that here, no one can help me. I can only rely on myself.”

“Then Qiaoyun…”

“During these days of regaining my memories…” Chu Tianqiu shook his head. “You might not know how many times I’ve gone through choices and struggles… How could I not want to live here with Qiaoyun forever? But would that be fair to anyone?”

Chu Tianqiu sighed and said with a bitter smile: “She has no way to continue living… Finding release here is her best destination. I shouldn’t be so selfish, constantly trying to find ways to maintain her life. For her… this is truly unfair.”

The three words “not fair” fell like a resounding weight heavily into Zhang Chenze’s heart.

Yes, keeping Qiaoyun living in confusion… truly wasn’t as good as letting her die.

Her life should have ended the moment she “failed.” Now living in this state was not a blessing for her, but rather a curse.

“So you’ve really decided…?” Zhang Chenze also sighed. “Right now Qiaoyun can still speak to you, she can still look into your eyes and smile, but once you give up, she’ll become a pile of white bones.”

After hearing this, Zhang Chenze nodded and softly said “Pardon the intrusion,” then walked outside and closed the door.

Jin Yuanxun in the distance didn’t disturb her when he saw her come out, only stood stunned for a moment before asking: “Sister, are you alright?”

“I’m fine.” Zhang Chenze nodded. “Thank you for your concern.”

She walked step by step down the corridor, feeling that her thoughts were very chaotic.

Before coming here, she had wanted to seek out a method from Chu Tianqiu to awaken Qiaoyun, but the current situation was completely beyond her expectations.

Never mind that there was simply no way to awaken Qiaoyun—even if she truly could be awakened, would that be fair to her?

She had already suffered so much harm. Should they awaken her again and throw her back into battle?

“What exactly should I do…?” Zhang Chenze sighed with great distress. She only hated that she wasn’t smart enough and couldn’t think of a countermeasure in this situation.

After walking a few steps, Zhang Chenze turned the corridor corner, only to discover a slender girl with ordinary looks standing at the entrance of the teaching building. This figure had been staring at her, making her feel somewhat strange.

Zhang Chenze only felt she had seen this girl once before, but couldn’t remember who exactly she was.

“Lawyer Zhang?” That person asked.

“Yes.” Zhang Chenze nodded. “You are?”

“I’m Xu Liunian.” The girl replied. “Were you looking for me?”

“I…” Zhang Chenze was just about to nod in agreement when she suddenly remembered something. “How do you know?”

“I…” Xu Liunian smiled. “I accidentally overheard when I passed by the door just now, so I prepared to wait for you here.”

“So that’s how it is?” Zhang Chenze nodded.

“What did you need me for?” Xu Liunian asked.

“I…” Zhang Chenze was momentarily at a loss for words. Chu Tianqiu’s earlier words were still wandering through her mind. “I don’t even know if looking for you counts as having business or not… It’s just that there are too many things I can’t figure out…”

“You want to ask me why I turned back into a ‘participant’?”

“Yes…” Zhang Chenze nodded. “I originally came here only to seek an answer, but now…”

“This is indeed something only I could accomplish.” Xu Liunian replied. “You should be able to imagine—if there really was a way to turn ‘natives’ back into ‘participants’… how could this place still have so many ‘natives’? Every day, how many people want their teammates to regain clarity? And how many formidable figures have tried to seek methods of awakening?”

“Yes…” Hearing Xu Liunian also say this, Zhang Chenze nodded blankly. “My thinking was somewhat naive.”

“So is there another possibility…” Xu Liunian slowly drew closer to Zhang Chenze, and the volume of her speech gradually decreased.

“What?”

“We leave the Qiaoyun before our eyes alone… and then create a new Qiaoyun?” The few words Xu Liunian gently uttered were like seductive music, constantly circling in Zhang Chenze’s brain.

“I, I don’t quite understand…” Zhang Chenze looked at Xu Liunian with furrowed brows. “What do you mean by leaving the Qiaoyun before our eyes alone and then creating a new Qiaoyun? Is this a feasible method?”

“For others it might not be…” Xu Liunian lowered her volume again. “But for Qi Xia, it’s feasible.”

“Qi Xia…?”

“You don’t know yet…” Xu Liunian said in a low voice. “Qi Xia’s ‘Echo’ can use subconsciousness to create a person…”

Zhang Chenze’s eyes widened. She kept staring into Xu Liunian’s eyes, her mind rapidly spinning through the meaning of these sentences.

“Xu Liunian… I truly don’t understand ‘Echoes’ very well.” Zhang Chenze said. “But I’ve also seen several people release this kind of transcendent ability… Would someone’s ability be to ‘create a person’?”

“‘Nuwa’ could create people…” Xu Liunian smiled. “Why can’t we ‘Echo’ holders?”

“What?” Zhang Chenze’s brows knitted tightly together. In a certain instant she felt that everyone at ‘Heaven’s Gate’ had gone mad. “Why can we do it just because ‘Nuwa’ can?”

“What ‘Nuwa’ can do… ‘Echo’ holders can do.” Xu Liunian said. “The strategy I’m telling you… concerns the final outcome of this land… Whether or not you can accomplish it, you must remember to keep it secret.”

“But, but why are you telling me such an important plan?” Zhang Chenze asked in confusion.

“Because you can not only gain Qi Xia’s trust, you can also gain Chu Tianqiu’s trust…” Xu Liunian reached out and patted Zhang Chenze’s shoulder. “You came from the same room as Qi Xia, and you once played an important role in Chu Tianqiu’s memories… Neither of them will make things difficult for you.”