Hearing Qin Dingdong’s question, Qi Xia stared at her and said word by word, “I don’t dare say for Chu Tianqiu, but I never doubt myself. Even if my personality has been changed, my life cannot possibly be fake.”

“What…” After hearing this, Qin Dingdong paused slightly, then turned her head to exchange glances with Chen Junnan.

This was obviously a very extreme way of thinking.

No matter how well a person’s mind works, they couldn’t be confident enough to never have doubts about themselves.

Seeing the three people at a loss for words, Qi Xia continued, “Chu Tianqiu probably has the most authority to speak on this matter. What changed in him wasn’t just his ‘temperament,’ but even his ‘abilities.'”

After saying this, he looked at Chen Junnan again and said softly, “Remember when we reunited, how did you introduce Chu Tianqiu to me?”

After hearing this, Chen Junnan carefully recalled and said, “I said he… seven years ago was crying and wailing to carry shoes for the three of us… but when we met today… that bastard had put on airs…”

Qi Xia nodded, extended a finger, and pointed at Chen Junnan, saying, “That’s exactly it. There are far too many suspicious points in that statement.”

“What do you mean?” Chen Junnan asked.

“In your memory, Chu Tianqiu is a nobody,” Qi Xia said, tapping his temple with his finger. “But from my observations, no matter how I look at it, he doesn’t seem to be at an obscure level. He’s not bluffing—he definitely has brainpower that surpasses ordinary people. If that’s the case, why would Chu Tianqiu back then be crying and wailing to carry shoes for the three of us? Are you lying to me?”

“I wouldn’t go so far as to lie to you for that kid Chu Tianqiu,” Chen Junnan replied. “But ‘carrying shoes’ is indeed a bit exaggerated. He was just begging us to take him in.”

“Then why didn’t you feel strange when you saw him again?” Qi Xia asked. “He was obviously different from before.”

“Maybe my head was full of thoughts that he was ‘a petty person who gained power,'” Chen Junnan said. “You smart people can recognize smart people, but a brute like me can’t.”

“You’ve always been biased against him,” Qi Xia said. “But I’ve been observing him all along. Besides this transformation, Chu Tianqiu also changed from being the ‘King of Good People’ to being completely insane. No matter how you think about it, it’s too abnormal. Perhaps, like Qin Dingdong, there’s a trigger for these changes.”

After thinking for a while, Qin Dingdong asked, “What do you think the trigger is?”

“Have you always paid this much attention to Little Chu?” Chen Junnan frowned and said. “Is he very important?”

“I can’t say,” Qi Xia shook his head. “In my memory, I’ve consciously protected many people because they were all useful to me, but I don’t remember ever consciously protecting Chu Tianqiu.”

After hearing this, Chen Junnan thought briefly, “You mean Little Chu reached where he is today entirely on his own.”

“Exactly,” Qi Xia nodded. “I can see the shadows of many people in him. He’s experienced things that many people have experienced, yet none of them have truly defeated him. Moreover, the fact that he can continue to stand here today is enough to demonstrate his strength.”

“What about you?” Qin Dingdong on the side suddenly changed the topic and asked, “Compared to Chu Tianqiu, do you think your life is fake?”

“My life cannot possibly be fake,” Qi Xia said. “I have reasons why I must believe in my life.”

“You’re being far too arbitrary…” Qin Dingdong said.

Chen Junnan seemed to know where the problem lay. The “false life” seemed to have triggered Qi Xia’s defense mechanism, and now he had entered a defensive state again.

This state had appeared many times before, but unfortunately, no one had been able to persuade Qi Xia even once.

Now that Qin Dingdong had brought up “fabricated memories,” perhaps this was the perfect opportunity to probe Qi Xia’s attitude again.

“Old, Old Qi… will you listen to a word of advice from your buddy?” Chen Junnan said. “Whether you believe it or not, at least your buddy won’t lie to you.”

“If you’re going to judge my two lives, I won’t listen to a single word,” Qi Xia said.

“You… aren’t you being too stubborn, kid?” Chen Junnan asked. “You clearly have a vague answer buried in your heart, but you’re unwilling to lift a finger to dig it out.”

“I have no choice,” Qi Xia said. “I can only do this.”

“You can find flaws in anyone’s words… but you’re unwilling to acknowledge the sense of incongruity appearing in yourself,” Chen Junnan said with a frown. “Old Qi, your current state is very strange…”

“Stop talking,” Qi Xia interrupted. “I’ve said it before—my life cannot possibly be fake. Otherwise, nothing makes sense, not even me standing here.”

“What…?”

“Once I dig out that answer, the me standing here will vanish into thin air,” Qi Xia said with a darkened expression. “I’ll immediately become another person, become a walking corpse without goals, without motivation, without direction, and without any fighting spirit. I can’t even be certain whether I’ll still be me.”

Chen Junnan and Qiao Jiajin naturally understood what Qi Xia meant. The two exchanged glances with each other, then silently lowered their heads.

“So not only must I bury this answer, but I also hope you’ll help me bury it together,” Qi Xia said, looking at them with his pair of grayish-white eyes. “Only by firmly pressing this answer down at the bottom of my heart can I possibly save everyone.”

After hearing this, Chen Junnan nodded, but Qin Dingdong clearly didn’t understand what Qi Xia meant, since she couldn’t comprehend “Remaining Thought Peace.”

“Classmate Qi…” Qin Dingdong asked. “Aren’t you even a little curious about what happened to you? For example, why do we have this feeling? For example, why is it the three of us specifically?”

“Not curious,” Qi Xia answered decisively. “I advise you not to be curious either.”

“How can I possibly not be curious…?” Qin Dingdong said with a frown. “Qi Xia, you and I are fundamentally two different types of people. I truly want to return to the real world and continue my own life, but if my life has been fabricated… how are we supposed to go back? Is the life I’m going to return to really my life? If it’s completely fabricated… how exactly am I supposed to continue?”