Chapter 103 The Reconfigured Team
"Qi ge, what took you so long?" Xiao Ran asked with a smile, clearly waiting for him.
Qi Xia ignored her and walked towards the rest of the group in the distance.
"Qi ge, wait for me!"
The doors lining the corridor gradually swung open, revealing numerous bloodied figures of Earthly Branches. They stood eerily still by the threshold, reminiscent of Mortal Snake.
Noticing Qi Xia had caught up, Officer Li leaned in closer and whispered, "What do you plan to do?"
"I’m not sure yet. What about you?"
Officer Li pondered for a moment, his expression complex. "At this moment, I feel quite shaken, completely unsure of where to go."
"Shaken?" Lin Qin, curious about their hushed conversation, stepped closer to the two. She gently covered her mouth and nose and asked, "Strange—did you two know each other prior to arriving here?"
Lin Qin studied Qi Xia for a long time, yet she couldn’t discern if he was lying.
Officer Li didn’t respond, his gaze fixed ahead as he continued walking.
After walking for a long time, the group gradually spotted a distant light. Standing there was Mortal Dragon, wearing an exceedingly grotesque mask. "Hello, I am Mortal Dragon."
His appearance startled those who were seeing him {for the first time}.
"Don't be anxious, everyone. Your {trial} has reached its conclusion," Mortal Dragon reassured, "I'm not here to impose a new {trial}, just to offer you all some advice."
Qiao Jiajin cast him an impatient glance and asked, "What advice?"
"Ten days. You have ten days to rectify all of this," Mortal Dragon pronounced slowly. "If you fail to attain three thousand six hundred {Dào} within that time, your world as you know it will be annihilated, and everything before your eyes will perish alongside you. You have passed four tests— {Liar}, {Bamboo Shoots After Rain}, {Collapse of Heaven}, and {Two Medications}. This is your reward and also your {stakes}."
He retrieved four lustrous golden orbs from his pocket and presented them to Officer Li, who stood at the forefront of the group.
"What are these?" Xiao Ran asked, her curiosity piqued. "They look so strange…" She reached out to take a {Dào}, noticing that the outer layer was white while the inner layer was golden, resembling a three-dimensional boiled egg, and it had an oddly springy texture when squeezed.
"These are {Dào}!" Mortal Dragon exclaimed joyfully, waving his hands. "With three thousand six hundred {Dào}, there will be salvation!"
Doctor Zhao pondered for a moment before asking, "How do we obtain that many {Dào}?"
"Participate in games!" Mortal Dragon replied. "In this city, games abound; as long as you possess sufficient strength, you are destined to attain {Dào}."
"You mean we have to actively participate in these deadly games?" Doctor Zhao exclaimed, struggling to comprehend. "What kind of lunatics are you?"
"We are not lunatics; we merely wish to strive for survival," Mortal Dragon said softly, a hint of despondency in his voice. "Don't you all wish to live?"
At his question, silence fell over the crowd.
Qi Xia stepped forward, asking, "Mortal Dragon, once we gather three thousand six hundred {Dào}, what happens next?"
"Next?" Mortal Dragon appeared visibly taken aback, as though the prospect of such a question had never crossed his mind; he found himself momentarily rendered speechless.
"Yes, do we need to surrender the three thousand six hundred {Dàos} to someone?" Qi Xia pressed further. "Or are we required to transport them to a designated location?"
"Uh…" Mortal Dragon pondered for a long moment before finally saying, "If I’m not mistaken, once you gather three thousand six hundred {Dào}, someone will naturally come to find you."
"What do you mean by {if I’m not mistaken}?" Qi Xia asked incredulously. "Are you implying that you have no idea what to do after we collect them?"
"Indeed, I don’t know," Mortal Dragon admitted candidly. "All I know is that everything you do here is being monitored, so the next steps will become clear once you gather them."
Qi Xia furrowed his brow, coming to the unsettling realization that although the masked figure before him bore the title of {Dragon}, he was merely a {Mortal}, suggesting a limited understanding of the complexities at play.
"It’s reassuring that you all have so many {questions}…" Mortal Dragon’s tone remained forlorn. "Having questions shows you are still quite lucid. I hope you can stay this lucid forever…"
"Let’s go," Qi Xia said, no longer regarding Mortal Dragon as he turned to address the group.
Everyone nodded and carefully navigated around Mortal Dragon, stepping out of the corridor one by one.
Qi Xia recalled that after their last exit, the building behind them had vanished mysteriously. So this time, he made a point to glance back immediately after stepping outside, and Officer Li also caught on, turning around as well.
The two were met with a solitary {door}.
Though once more in the empty plaza, an ominous door loomed behind them, serving as a threshold to another realm. Mortal Dragon stood within that shadowy space, his melancholic gaze fixed upon them, as though a thousand unspoken words lingered just beyond his lips.
Before long, Qi Xia's eyes widened in disbelief as he witnessed the door slowly shrink, vanishing entirely within mere seconds.
"Huh?" Tian Tian soon noticed the bizarre situation and exclaimed, "Where's the door we came through?"
At her words, everyone turned around, utterly bewildered by the scene unfolding before them. They found themselves in a vast plaza, with pathways branching off in every direction, their backs to a large electronic display and an imposing copper bell. The screen flickered to life, revealing a single ominous message: "I hear the reverberation of {Beckoned Calamity}."
Confused and uncertain, the group found themselves at a loss for what to do next or where to go.
"I’m going to collect more {Dào}," Qi Xia announced resolutely, "but I need a few teammates."
"Wait, what?" Doctor Zhao exclaimed, his shock evident. "Are you serious? You actually want to participate in those games? We just managed to get out; shouldn’t we be prioritizing our own escape?"
"Don’t worry; you can focus on that," Qi Xia replied. "Is anyone willing to join me?"
Qiao Jiajin, after a moment of thought with his chin in hand, remarked, "Count me in. You have brains, I have strength, so let's team up?"
"Excellent," Qi Xia nodded. "Anyone else?"
Observing Qiao Jiajin's decision to join, Tian Tian contemplated for a while. She surveyed the lawyer, officer, educator, and physician at her side, then looked back at Qiao Jiajin and Qi Xia, and finally said, "In that case… I’ll join too."
Qi Xia recognized this familiar scene but was unsure how to advise her, so he simply nodded in agreement.
After a prolonged moment of contemplation, Lin Qin slowly approached. "May I join as well?"
At this point, Qi Xia felt a bit conflicted. He hadn’t expected the team composition to mirror the last instance. While he believed in Lin Qin and Tian Tian, he hoped that this time, the team would include Officer Li and Han Yimo for greater strategic benefit.
The presence of four men, each endowed with individual skills, notably bolstered their chances of prevailing in the games. Especially considering the presence of {Judgment’s Domain}, the inclusion of Tian Tian and Lin Qin could lead them into unforeseen dangers.
Before Qi Xia could voice his thoughts, Xiao Ran suddenly stepped forward. "Qi ge~, you’re sooo powerful… Do you think you can take me along too?"
"No," Qi Xia replied firmly.