“No… it’s not like that…” Xu Liunian pursed his lips, “He’s not what you think…”

“What difference does it make from the results?” Chu Tianqiu smiled bitterly and helplessly, then pulled out a gold ingot from his pocket and tossed it onto the ground in front of Xu Liunian.

“There’s no need to call it a ‘sin.'” Chu Tianqiu narrowed his eyes at Xu Liunian. “In my own deceased twenty-eight years of life, I didn’t even do anything wrong, yet I’ve ended up in such a situation. Tell me… who should I resent?”

“I really don’t know…” Xu Liunian said. “The only thing I can be certain of is that there couldn’t possibly be innocent people on the ‘train’…”

“What makes you so arbitrarily certain?” Chu Tianqiu asked again. “You say we have ‘sin,’ yet don’t know ‘what sin.’ Could it be that you, as ‘gods’ managing ghosts and souls, don’t even need evidence?”

“I told you already… these matters aren’t under my jurisdiction at all… I only handle ‘escorting’…” Xu Liunian said. “Even if you ask me… I really…”

“Driving a person without ‘sin’ to the point of madness—this is your capability.” Chu Tianqiu said in a deep voice. “Tell me… what exactly is worth obeying about your ‘superior’s’ orders?”

“Chu Tianqiu…” Xu Liunian had no idea how to explain, and could only speak in a pleading tone. “He’s really not what you think… He’s really giving everyone a chance…”

“Where is this chance?” Chu Tianqiu asked again. “When your ‘superior’ abandoned this place back then, had anyone already become a ‘god’?”

“This…” After hearing this, Xu Liunian slowly lowered his head. “No…”

“He says he’ll create a ‘god’ so he creates a ‘god’… he says he’ll abandon it so he abandons it…” Chu Tianqiu laughed loudly. “Xu Liunian! On what basis?! Are the tens of thousands of people here really all sinners?! What if there are many people like me here who haven’t committed any wrongs at all?! Do you know how great a sin you’ve committed?”

“Chu Tianqiu!” Xu Liunian interrupted him. “All the departed souls were taken directly from the road to hell. You were originally meant to have your souls scattered!”

“Then we should have been scattered back then!” Chu Tianqiu said. “What exactly are we now?! Everyone says they want to ‘survive,’ but we’re already dead. Everyone says they want to ‘escape,’ but where exactly should we ‘escape’ to? Everyone says they want to become ‘gods,’ but what exactly can we use to fight against those two dragons who are already ‘gods’?! Thinking about it this way is truly ridiculous… Even without those two ‘dragons,’ our fate wouldn’t change at all.”

“But the truth really isn’t like this…” Xu Liunian’s voice grew smaller and smaller, as if even she herself was beginning to waver. “At that time, this space was just complete chaos… In order to give you all a sense of belonging, he specially constructed cities here and created the sky…”

Xu Liunian knew that her position was completely different from Chu Tianqiu’s, and that she probably couldn’t convince him.

After all, from Chu Tianqiu’s perspective, or from any ‘Participant’s’ perspective, this place was a living hell that had only brought them seventy years of painful experiences and endless despair.

“Chu Tianqiu… I understand your feelings.” Xu Liunian said. “I have no way to convince you either, but since we can no longer find the ‘mastermind’ of this place, I can apologize on his behalf.”

“How will you apologize?” Chu Tianqiu asked again. “As you said… by never appearing in the next cycle—is that the ‘apology’?”

“This is the only method I can think of.” Xu Liunian said. “I’m just an ordinary person in the end, and can’t do anything else.”

“I want you to survive.” Chu Tianqiu said. “I want you to go out and ask him what his purpose was in doing this.”

“What…?”

“Aren’t you curious?” Chu Tianqiu said. “No matter how you look at this place, it should have taken great effort to construct. Why was it suddenly abandoned?”

“But Chu Tianqiu…” Xu Liunian took a step forward and said in a low voice, “Time in this place is frozen relative to the outside. No one knows how long has already passed here…”

“Isn’t that perfect then?” Chu Tianqiu said. “That means if this place can truly be escaped from, your ‘superior’ should be standing right outside the door, having just left less than two steps away. All matters can be asked clearly with him.”

After hearing this, Xu Liunian opened her mouth, wanting to refute something, but she knew Chu Tianqiu’s words indeed made sense.

“Chu Tianqiu…” Xu Liunian called out softly. “If you want to leave here… you can only do so through the ‘train.'”

“What…?” Chu Tianqiu was stunned for a moment. “You…?”

“This space is sealed.” Xu Liunian continued. “Only the ‘train’ can shuttle back and forth. Back then, I was able to pilot it to break through space and enter here, and now it can likewise depart.”

“What kind of joke is this…” Chu Tianqiu said, stunned. “You’ve known the method to escape from here all along… but never said anything?”

“Yes.” Xu Liunian nodded. “There are many reasons for this… First, I shouldn’t let anyone here escape, because my ‘superior’s’ order was to kill everyone. Second, the ‘train’ is now completely controlled by the ‘Zodiacs,’ with the twin dragons at the head. Third, the ‘train’ is severely damaged and can no longer be started. Fourth…”

“What’s the fourth?” Chu Tianqiu narrowed his eyes.

“Fourth… I only know the ‘train’ can leave this ‘Land of End,’ but I don’t know where its next destination is.” Xu Liunian said. “Even if we truly can escape from here, we might enter another space… where there might not even be cities, only endless darkness.”

Chu Tianqiu pondered for a long time before finally nodding. “In other words… even if we can fight the ‘Zodiacs’ to mutual destruction, are extremely lucky to seize the ‘train’ from the hands of the ‘gods,’ are again extremely lucky to happen to be able to start it, and are yet again extremely lucky to escape with everyone, we might still charge headlong into another ‘Land of End.'”

“That’s exactly it.” Xu Liunian said. “So I haven’t told anyone about this matter until now.”

“Heh…” Chu Tianqiu shook his head helplessly. “Do you think that just because you don’t say it… no one can guess?”

“What…?”

“Just watch.” Chu Tianqiu said. “I suspect someone has already seen through this answer.”