“I thought that was a ‘god’…” Chu Tianqiu interjected, “I spent nearly a decade trying to prove the existence of a being stronger than the Celestial Dragon here. I took countless notes, only to realize there was no such thing.”
“Ten years…” Qi Xia murmured, “I didn’t expect it to take that long.”
“At first, I really wanted to give up,” Chu Tianqiu admitted. “But the ‘Land of the End’ had people like Aunt Tong, who firmly believed in a great ‘Mother Goddess’ here. I wasn’t sure if it was a misdirection or an epiphany for me, so I spent even more time searching for her. Eventually, I even recruited Aunt Tong into ‘Paradise.’ I thought it would bring me closer to the ‘Mother Goddess,’ but I never imagined…”
“But you never imagined the real answer wasn’t the ‘Mother Goddess’…?” Qi Xia ventured cautiously.
“Right,” Chu Tianqiu said. “I tried every method Aunt Tong suggested, but found no evidence of the ‘Mother Goddess.’ I concluded that our constant rebirth here stems from a powerful ‘Echo’…”
“Yet the ‘Mother Goddess’ does exist,” Qi Xia stated.
“What…?” Chu Tianqiu froze, as if hearing the most unbelievable words of his life.
“I’ve seen traces of her. She’s real,” Qi Xia insisted.
“You’re joking…” Chu Tianqiu frowned. “Qi Xia, you’ve lost your mind. I’ve scoured nearly every corner of the ‘Land of the End,’ and there’s no trace of any ‘Mother Goddess.’ And now you claim she exists… Have you completely lost your sanity even before the final stage?”
“I’m not insane,” Qi Xia said calmly. “I once saw her face.”
“You—”
“I even thought you might have seen her too.” Qi Xia pointed at Chu Tianqiu’s coat. “Remember that note of yours? You wrote about someone who gambled to defeat all the ‘Zodiacs,’ and a resplendent goddess descended from the sky to take him away.”
“But that was fabricated…” Chu Tianqiu replied flatly.
“We’re getting off track,” Qi Xia said. “Right now, I don’t want to debate the ‘Mother Goddess’ with you. I just want you to know that I’ve been watching everything you’ve done. You’re the first person in this land to investigate things so thoroughly. You boldly hypothesized the existence of a stronger ‘Echo’ here, but you didn’t know its name is ‘Endless Cycle.’ Yet you sensed it might originate from me.”
Chu Tianqiu frowned, remaining silent. In that moment, he was bombarded with too much information beyond his comprehension, and fragmented memories began flooding in from all directions. He stood there, dazed, trying to process the overwhelming thoughts.
Strangely, in this space, memories seemed to return faster than in the ‘Land of the End.’
“Chu Tianqiu, whether you believe it or not, I’ve always needed someone who truly believes they can become a ‘god’ to board the ‘Train’ with me,” Qi Xia continued. “Remember why the Earth Dragon struck a deal with you?”
Chu Tianqiu stiffened, recalling how the Earth Dragon had approached him shortly after he joined the precursor to ‘Paradise,’ offering a trade. After careful consideration, he agreed, thinking exchanging his eyes for food wasn’t a bad deal.
But why had the Earth Dragon appeared then? Why had it chosen him?
Thanks to the steady supply of food, ‘Paradise’ quickly rose to become the most powerful faction at the time.
The Earth Dragon’s only explanation was that it ‘thought you were suitable.’ But back then, ‘Paradise’ didn’t even have its name yet. How did the Earth Dragon know he was suitable?
“So it wasn’t the Earth Dragon who deemed me suitable… but you?” Chu Tianqiu asked.
“Exactly. So there’s no need for false modesty,” Qi Xia replied. “You’ve always been a strong contender in my eyes—the most suitable candidate for this path. After all, you’ve always felt out of place among others, though not to the extent of the Celestial Dragon and Azure Dragon, who outright disdain ‘mortals’… but fundamentally, it’s the same. To me, that’s the first trait of someone destined to become a ‘god.'”
“But Qi Xia…” Chu Tianqiu said, “I’ve ‘routed’ in the game now. If I can’t survive, how can I go to the ‘Train’ with you?”
“Not necessarily,” Qi Xia countered. “I’ve been reviewing the ‘rules.’ No one ever said ‘routing’ means death. That was just our assumption.”
“Even if that’s true… without a ‘General,’ our team will lose the game, and the entire group will die.”
Qi Xia paused before responding, “If none of your teammates die, will you agree to my request?”
Chu Tianqiu let out a dry laugh. “Qi Xia, are you planning to use ‘Endless Cycle’ to revive all my teammates? Do you really think such a cheap trick would make me willingly serve you?”
“No, of course not,” Qi Xia said. “Chu Tianqiu, at this point, I’ll make one last wager with you. I bet the Azure Dragon will willingly let your entire team go.”
“What…?” Chu Tianqiu asked incredulously. “‘Willingly’…?”
“What I’m about to show you isn’t the power of ‘Endless Cycle,’ but the power of ‘strategy.’ Even someone like the Azure Dragon can be outmaneuvered.” Qi Xia said. “You can wait outside. Everything will be resolved soon.”
Chu Tianqiu stared at Qi Xia, utterly baffled, unable to guess what would happen next.
Meanwhile, the Azure Dragon on the spectator stand was visibly restless.
He could only see Qi Xia half-leaning out the door before going still. After a few seconds, he turned to the Earth Dragon. “Isn’t this against the rules?”
“Technically, no,” the Earth Dragon replied. “Chu Tianqiu is considered ‘routed,’ and Qi Xia is just peeking out. His body is still inside the door. Maybe he’s just saying goodbye to Chu Tianqiu?”
“That’s one long goodbye,” the Azure Dragon muttered. “How much time is left in the game?”
“Only a minute or two,” the Earth Dragon said. “Since Chu Tianqiu’s side no longer has a ‘General,’ Qi Xia will win unless something unexpected happens.”
As they spoke, Qi Xia pulled himself back inside, slipped a hand into his pocket, and gently closed the ‘door.’
With everything settled, he no longer inspected the scattered ‘characters’ on the ground. Instead, he walked straight to the ‘door,’ ready to leave—only to hear another crisp *clatter*.
This time, the sound was unmistakable, far too clear to be an illusion.
Qi Xia crouched down, carefully examining the pile of ‘characters’ he had discarded earlier.
He hadn’t misheard. The pile had moved.
But what could cause the ‘characters’ to move…?
He sifted through them, but they now lay perfectly still, showing no further reaction.
Hearing it once might have been a coincidence—maybe the pile was unstable. But twice? That was no accident.
Qi Xia’s gaze settled on the two ‘Guards’ resting quietly side by side.
If any of these ‘characters’ held a secret, it had to be the ‘Guards.’
He picked up the clumsily crafted ‘Guard’ made by Tian Tian, studying it for a few seconds before shaking it gently. A peculiar thought sprouted in Qi Xia’s mind—
Could it be that Tian Tian’s ‘Guard’ wasn’t hollow… but contained some mechanism inside?
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