“Kings do not meet?” Yun Yao found this statement rather interesting. “Are you saying that person called Qi Xia… is even as formidable as you?”

“No, he’s far more powerful than me.” Chu Tianqiu put the chalk back and found a chair to sit down. “It’s just that he’s endured too little tempering. To borrow his strength, we still need to wait for the right opportunity.”

After Jin Yuanxun went outside, he looked at Qi Xia, who was silently waiting at the entrance, his expression somewhat awkward.

“Is he ready to see me?” Qi Xia asked.

“No…” Jin Yuanxun shook his head. “Brother Chu asked me to ask you a question like that.”

“A question?” Qi Xia thought for a moment and nodded. “Being cautious is right. What does he want to ask?”

“May I ask, which day did you arrive here?”

Qi Xia furrowed his brow, feeling quite puzzled.

There were clearly many questions that could be asked, yet Chu Tianqiu specifically asked about this?

“I arrived here three days ago.”

“Three days ago…” Jin Yuanxun nodded. “Brother, wait a moment, I’ll go relay this.”

Qi Xia nodded with a serious expression, but he could barely stand anymore.

…

“Three days ago?” Chu Tianqiu smiled. “That’s what he said?”

“Yes.” Jin Yuanxun nodded. “Ah, brother, we all came here three days ago, so it’s not strange like that… Do you need to ask anything else?”

“No need to pay him any more attention.” Chu Tianqiu said. “This time he answered wrong, so we don’t need to give him another chance.”

“Huh?” Jin Yuanxun was startled. “Brother… that person looks like he’s seriously injured like that. If we don’t pay attention to him, it’s very possible…”

“Then let him die.”

“Uh…” Jin Yuanxun was taken aback. “Brother… didn’t you say…”

“It’s not the right time yet.” Chu Tianqiu turned to look at Yun Yao. “Yun Yao, help me see him off.”

“Alright, understood.”

Yun Yao stretched and stood up, walking toward the door.

“Damn… Brother, if we want to escape, shouldn’t we borrow the strength of powerful people like that?” Jin Yuanxun looked completely bewildered. “If that man is really so capable, why not let him join?”

“He must join us, just not now.” Chu Tianqiu said with a smile. “Right now, Qi Xia is like a wounded snake. He hates everything here. He wants to survive and wants to escape. In this state, he cannot join ‘Heaven’s Mouth,’ and we cannot regard him as a teammate either.”

Jin Yuanxun was stunned for a long time, nodding in seeming understanding.

After walking just a few steps outside, Yun Yao saw Qi Xia standing outside the courtyard. Half of his clothing was completely covered in blood, looking quite terrifying.

“Qi Xia?” Yun Yao asked.

“Yes.” Qi Xia nodded.

“Let me ask you, if the first part of a seven-digit password is ‘YMWDH,’ what should the last two digits be?”

“‘MS.'” Qi Xia answered without hesitation. “Are all you ‘Heaven’s Mouth’ people this boring?”

“Really?” Yun Yao was stunned. “You figured it out in just one second?”

“The English words for ‘year, month, week, day, hour’—calculated by length of time, the last two digits must be the initial letters of ‘minute’ and ‘second.'” Qi Xia said. “Is this ‘Heaven’s Mouth’s’ interview?”

“Not exactly, just my personal test.” Yun Yao smiled sweetly. “I really like smart people. To crack this password, we lost a teammate.”

“Then that shows ‘Heaven’s Mouth’ is nothing special.” Qi Xia replied.

“No, it’s just that my level is too poor.” Yun Yao shook her head, correcting him. “If Chu Tianqiu came forward, he probably would only need one second to crack it too.”

“So when can I see Chu Tianqiu?” Qi Xia asked. “He’s already made me wait twenty minutes.”

“You won’t be able to see him.” Yun Yao smiled brightly, her eyes curved as she answered. “You didn’t pass the ‘interview,’ so ‘Heaven’s Mouth’ doesn’t plan to accept you either.”

After hearing this, Qi Xia revealed an expression of disbelief.

“That means the first question was the interview.” He stared at Yun Yao. “I answered that question wrong?”

“I don’t know about that.” Yun Yao pouted. “Chu Tianqiu said you were wrong, so you were wrong.”

“I understand.” Qi Xia nodded, turned around, and prepared to leave.

“Hey!” Yun Yao called out. “Although ‘Heaven’s Mouth’ doesn’t plan to accept you, I really like you! I really like helping down-and-out handsome guys. Do you want to stay as my ‘scandal boyfriend’? I believe Chu Tianqiu wouldn’t refuse either.”

Qi Xia turned back to glance at Yun Yao, his expression carrying a hint of mockery. “I appreciate the thought.”

“So cold.” Yun Yao scratched her head and pulled out a bottle of mineral water from behind her. “Here, take this. Let’s be friends?”

Seeing the plastic bottle in Yun Yao’s hand, Qi Xia swallowed.

He hadn’t had water for nearly a day.

“I’ll owe you for this bottle of water.” Qi Xia reached out to take it, twisted off the cap, closed his eyes, and drank all the water in one gulp.

With his serious injuries now, even if the other party had poisoned it, there was nothing to fear.

“So sweet…” Qi Xia exhaled. “Looks like I’ve been lacking water for too long.”

“The reason it’s so sweet is because I took a sip from this bottle already, you know.” Yun Yao revealed a meaningful smile. “Now we’ve basically had an ‘indirect kiss,’ right?”

“Thank you for the water. I’ll repay you if I get the chance.” Qi Xia casually tossed the bottle on the ground and turned to leave.

Watching Qi Xia’s retreating figure, Yun Yao felt somewhat annoyed. “How rude. A popular idol personally showed interest and got rejected.”

“He left?” Chu Tianqiu appeared behind Yun Yao and asked.

“Left.”

“Did he give up?”

“His expression didn’t look like he gave up. Instead, it looked like he made some kind of resolution.” Yun Yao shook her head. “This person is truly remarkable. I’m going to fall for him.”

“Oh? Two days ago you liked me, and now you’re already moving on so quickly?” Chu Tianqiu smiled bitterly. “I really can’t figure you out.”

“Don’t try to guess an idol’s thoughts.” Yun Yao shrugged. “Looking forward to the next time I meet Qi Xia.”

The two left the main gate, and the dilapidated campus returned to silence once more.

The young man named Jin Yuanxun returned to his post at the entrance, once again cautiously watching the surroundings, as if nothing had happened.

Qi Xia found a crumbling wall, sat down to rest for half an hour, then stood up again and walked forward along the road.

Through this indirect meeting with Chu Tianqiu, he became even clearer about the “rules” of this hellish place.

The situation was probably far more complex than he had imagined.

Now he had only one thought left—to go see the edge of the city.

If there was any way to escape from here, it must be at the edge.