“We both bear half the responsibility for this matter.” Qi Xia said indifferently. “Blame me for trusting you too much, and blame you for trusting me too much.”

“Hahaha… brat.” Earth-Serpent laughed as he stood up, his expression exceptionally complex. “Qi Xia, oh Qi Xia, if one isn’t careful when chatting with you, it always feels like every step is a trap you’ve carefully laid.”

“No, this time I’m being sincere.” Qi Xia said. “I bear half the responsibility, so I will save you.”

“Your so-called ‘saving me’ means having me, a wound-covered ‘Earth-level,’ rebel against ‘Heavenly-Serpent’ first and then ‘Heavenly-Dragon.'” Earth-Serpent said. “But Qi Xia, do you know what my own demand is?”

“Tell me.”

“It’s ‘escape.'” Earth-Serpent said. “How exactly are you going to convince someone like this here… to ultimately become your chess piece?”

“I know you want to become a ‘Participant’ again.” Qi Xia nodded. “But that’s unrealistic. Even though I’ve now become a ‘Participant,’ I’m still trying to find a way to ‘escape.’ If this continues, when will it ever end? The upper echelon will always be the upper echelon, and those who are enslaved will always be enslaved. How can we make everyone end all of this?”

“This…”

“We can flee, but we can’t flee forever.” Qi Xia said. “Let’s find a way to leave this place together. Only then can we be forever liberated.”

“Do you really have confidence?” Earth-Serpent said. “I’ve already suffered too much. I’m using my last thread of consciousness to stay lucid… If I don’t believe in my teacher… do you know what I’ll become…?”

Before Qi Xia could answer, he suddenly felt an unusual aura emanating from Earth-Serpent’s body.

A few seconds later, Chen Junnan’s voice came slowly from behind: “This master is even more useless than before…”

Qi Xia slowly turned around to see Chen Junnan’s grief-stricken face, looking like he was about to cry at any moment.

Then came Qiao Jiajin’s voice: “I’ve truly failed Brother Guan…”

And Qi Xia also felt a stabbing pain in his brain at this moment.

“Qi Xia… if my faith completely collapses… the situation won’t be good…” Earth-Serpent said softly. “I will amplify the sorrow in everyone’s hearts, and the sorrow in everyone’s hearts here is already very great. It only takes a tiny bit of momentum to send everyone into a state of collapse.”

After hearing this, Qi Xia turned back around and placed his hand on Earth-Serpent’s shoulder, saying: “You know, the person you trust most has returned. Remember your current state—there will be times when you’ll be needed in the future.”

After hearing this, Earth-Serpent paused for a long time before finally slowly retracting the aura from his body.

The three people who had fallen into sorrow also felt their moods lighten somewhat at this moment.

“I am an eternal bearer of sorrow.” Earth-Serpent said hoarsely. “I hope that one day you can liberate me, brat. I’m boarding this pirate ship.”

“No, you’ve always been on the ship.” Qi Xia said. “Are you ready for what you need to do?”

After listening, Earth-Serpent nodded: “I’ve wanted to do this from the start… As long as ‘Qinglong’ doesn’t interfere, I will definitely kill ‘Heavenly-Serpent’ with my own hands.”

“That’s right.” Qi Xia chuckled softly.

“I’ll cut countless gashes on his body, then stuff countless eyeballs into them, and finally blind them one by one.” Earth-Serpent said with a smile. “That would be satisfying enough… wouldn’t it?”

“As long as you’re happy.” Qi Xia said again.

“Since we’ve talked this far, I also need to tell you a fact.” Earth-Serpent changed his tone. “Brat, the importance of ‘Heavenly-Serpent’ is higher than you imagine.”

“How so?”

“Those mindless ‘Immortal Art users’ under his command only obey his orders and manage the operation of the entire train.” Earth-Serpent said. “Some can conjure food, some can cook food, some can produce fruits and cakes, and some can even use their will to repair rooms and clean. As long as those most powerful ‘Immortal Art users’ are present, the train can maintain stable operation.”

Hearing this, some memory fragments also flashed through Qi Xia’s mind: “Oh?”

“My teacher learned this knowledge from somewhere and implanted ideas into numerous mindless ‘Immortal Art users,’ forming an exceptionally stable assembly line. Whenever the ‘Zodiacs’ go out to work during the day, these ‘Immortal Art users’ begin their actions. In just a few hours, they can not only restore the entire train to its original state but also prepare large quantities of food waiting for their return. Now my teacher is considering building hot springs and entertainment rooms, but he’s still missing a few key ‘Immortal Arts.'”

“This is…” Several images flashed through Qi Xia’s mind, as if he was gradually connecting this matter.

“My teacher says this is the ‘Rainier Effect.'” Earth-Serpent said. “It refers to attracting and retaining talent through a congenial cultural atmosphere. No matter what setbacks or hardships these ‘Zodiacs’ suffer outside, as long as they can return to the ‘train,’ the best service in the ‘Land of the End’ is always waiting for them. This service has even exceeded natural boundaries—even if an entire room is completely destroyed, it will still be restored the next day, not to mention the daily supply of varied delicious food. As long as this treatment spreads, many people will be willing to become ‘Zodiacs’ and work for the upper echelon.”

After listening, Qi Xia didn’t speak, his brows furrowed as he continued contemplating something. The delicacies Earth-Serpent mentioned gradually materialized in Qi Xia’s mind.

Some of those so-called delicacies were tasteless when eaten, mixed with the unique putrid smell of the “Land of the End.”

Some tasted absolutely delicious but provided no feeling of fullness after swallowing.

If asked what the best thing Qi Xia had eaten on the train all this time was… he would probably choose a bag of peanuts.

Earth-Serpent sighed and asked again: “Brat, my teacher, my most important guide all these years, the old thief I want to kill… does he understand management well? Does he even know obscure management knowledge?”

“Unfortunately.” Qi Xia came back to his senses and said. “The ‘Rainier Effect’ isn’t a management term but an economics term. So I believe this effect isn’t for better managing subordinates, but for making subordinates work harder. In the end, it’s just the leadership’s wishful self-satisfaction.”

“Is that so…?” Earth-Serpent smiled bitterly.

“If they can’t provide substantive rewards, simply pursuing work atmosphere and culture is useless.” Qi Xia said. “Do they really think they’re managing a company? Everyone here came in with murderous intent, poor souls wanting to escape with their lives. They’re not 9-to-5 workers earning a fixed salary every day.”