Chapter 87 Kings' Paths Never Cross
The dust-tinted sun emerged again in the crimson sky on the third day, heralding yet another day of foul stench and eerie tranquility. Yet, inside the massage parlor, Lin Qin and Zhang Chenze were in a state of panic—Qi Xia had vanished. They searched every corner of the establishment, the remnants of Qi Xia's chilled blood on the bed, yet his presence eluded them entirely.
At the end of the corridor, the indigenous inhabitant continued to massage the lifeless body, an unsettling sight that heightened their unease.
"He's gone…" Zhang Chenze murmured, staring out toward the door, eyes clouded with a forlorn yearning. "Just like he said, he was tired and chose to give up."
"No, that’s impossible!" Lin Qin protested, disbelief written across her face. "He might have been too worried about us and decided to engage in a game on his own..."
"All twenty {Dào} are right here." Zhang Chenze picked up the small cloth pouch from the bed and waved it in front of Lin Qin. "Qi Xia didn’t take a single {Dào} with him. How can he participate in games?"
Lin Qin found herself momentarily speechless, unsure of how to respond.
Where could Qi Xia possibly be? In his current condition, injured and without any {Dào}, what could he accomplish while dragging around this heavily wounded body?
"Lawyer Zhang, would you be willing to join me in a game?" Lin Qin steadied her nerves and spoke slowly.
"I’m definitely not as strong as Qi Xia," she replied, "so we should only choose to participate in {Mortal-grade} games. If we win, it’s a gain; if we lose, we won’t lose our lives. If Qi Xia returns one day, we’ll have enough {Dào} to welcome him back."
Zhang Chenze pondered for a moment before nodding.
Could Qi Xia really return?
With only seven days left until annihilation, Qi Xia's injuries would only worsen in the coming days, making a full recovery impossible.
Could he truly come back?
The two packed their belongings and stepped out of the massage parlor, facing the bright new sun.
Qi Xia staggered down the street, clutching a map drawn with blood. He had never anticipated that losing so much blood would leave his limbs unresponsive; after just over an hour of walking, he was already drenched in sweat. Glancing down at the map in his hand, he realized this was his last hope.
After three days of exploration, Qi Xia had a general understanding of the situation here. Gathering three thousand six hundred {Dào} from these games was akin to reaching for the heavens—it seemed nearly impossible. The rewards from each game were exceedingly scarce. Even though one could potentially increase profits in {Mortal-grade} games by staking their lives against the Earthly Branches, there were no such opportunities in {Terrestrial-grade} games where participants faced lethal dangers during the gameplay. In other words, whether in {Mortal-grade} or {Terrestrial-grade} games, to gain significant rewards, one had to risk their life without hesitation.
The most perilous game Qi Xia had encountered so far was Terrestrial Ox’s hunt of the black bear. Without the presence of Qiao Jiajin and Zhang Shan, it would have been certain death. Yet, despite the danger, each participant could earn a maximum of only twenty {Dào}.
If Qi Xia truly intended to gather {Dào} by participating in the games, he would have to endure one hundred eighty consecutive rounds, each as perilous as Terrestrial Ox's game, achieving {perfect victory} every single time. The death toll during such a venture would be unfathomable, and the injuries, countless. What hope did he have of surviving until the very end?
After a night of futile calculations, he still couldn't determine his likelihood of survival. The more he pondered, the clearer it became that {Passage to Heaven} was his best option. Zhang Shan had once mentioned that they had seen someone escape this place and even found the diary of the {escapee}, which was now in the hands of their leader, Chu Tianqiu (楚天秋).
Following the map Zhang Shan had left behind, Qi Xia pressed onward and finally arrived at the headquarters of {Passage to Heaven} at noon. It was an abandoned school. The school's signboard had decayed to the point where Qi Xia couldn't tell if it had once been an elementary or a middle school; all he could see were the school buildings and the basketball court.
An adolescent stood outside the gate, vigilantly scanning the surroundings. Dressed in an athletic jersey and sporting braided hair, he appeared to be no older than sixteen.
Qi Xia tightened the bandage on his shoulder and approached the adolescent. As he drew nearer, the adolescent heightened his vigilance and asked, "Common person?"
"Common person?" Qi Xia found the adolescent's accent peculiar, but he nodded nonetheless. "I am a common person."
"Do you... need help nayang?" The adolescent not only had a strange accent but also spoke with unusual grammar.
"I..." Qi Xia pondered for a moment before speaking. "I want to see Chu Tianqiu."
"You want to see Chu ge?…" The adolescent furrowed his brow slightly. "May I ask your name?"
After a moment of thought, the adolescent nodded at Qi Xia and said, "Please wait here, ge." He stepped through the school gate and locked the door behind him before quickly making his way toward one of the buildings.
Inside the classroom at the southernmost end of the first floor, a man dressed in a black shirt and wearing glasses was busily writing something on the blackboard. Not far from him sat a stunningly beautiful woman applying nail polish.
"Chu ge! Yun Yao jie!" called the adolescent at the door.
"Come in," Yun Yao(云瑶) replied without looking up, her tone indifferent.
The adolescent pushed the door open, glanced at the two inside, then bowed slightly, addressing the man in the black shirt. "Chu ge, there’s someone outside who wants to see you nayang."
Chu Tianqiu continued writing as he casually asked, "What’s their name?"
"Qi Xia?" Chu Tianqiu halted his movements, taking a couple of steps to the left. He began searching through the dense scrawl on the blackboard.
Soon, he found a particular line: {Serial Number 87; Liar, Bamboo Shoots After Rain, Collapse of Heaven, Deceitful Snake.}
Chu Tianqiu drew a horizontal line beneath that entry and began to ponder.
"What’s wrong?" Yun Yao asked, her attention now on him. "Have you heard that name before?"
"He’s quite a formidable figure," Chu Tianqiu replied with a faint smile. "The three Earthly Branches overseeing probation 87 are all nearing the {Terrestrial} threshold. Can you imagine the games they would devise?"
Yun Yao blinked in surprise. "Then wouldn’t that probation be a complete wipe out?"
"Incorrect," Chu Tianqiu shook his head. "Due to the existence of {Qi Xia}, all nine managed to survive this round of probation."
"Everyone survived? Is that even possible?" Yun Yao looked at Chu Tianqiu with wide eyes, suddenly recalling something. "{Qi Xia}—wasn’t he the common person that Specs has been endlessly talking about?"
The adolescent with braids seemed to grasp the situation, nodding as he said, "Chu ge, I’ll bring him in now nayang."
"No—" Chu Tianqiu raised a hand to stop him, adding, "Kim Wonhun(金元勋), can you ask him a question for me?"
Chu Tianqiu nodded. "Ask Qi Xia, {When did you arrive?}"
"Ge, but what if he doesn’t understand the question nayang?"
"No matter. You can use this opportunity to practice your Chinese," Chu Tianqiu replied with a smile.
Though Kim Wonhun felt a bit uncertain, he knew Chu Tianqiu always acted after careful deliberations, so he nodded and stepped outside.
"I don’t understand," Yun Yao said as she blew at her fingernails. "You just said that Qi Xia is {a formidable figure}, yet you don’t plan to recruit him?"
Chu Tianqiu smiled faintly. "Yun Yao, that’s exactly what we mean by {kings' paths never cross}."