The Tiangou seemed to have no choice but to press on. Seeing Yan Zhichun still hesitating, he could only speak up:
“Yan Zhichun, let me be frank… I know you have a connection with Bai Yang. The only thing you need to consider now is… whether you’ll remain blindly loyal to Bai Yang or prioritize the bigger plan. After all, your people have suffered countless losses in this battle… Don’t they deserve an explanation?”
Only then did Yan Zhichun realize that Tiangou knew far more than she thought—he might have been watching her every move.
“Fine…” Yan Zhichun swallowed hard. “Even if I *can* cast ‘Soul Theft’ into this ‘energy storage’… I can’t guarantee it will actually strip others of their sanity. I’ve never tried anything like this before.”
“Don’t you get it?” Tiangou sighed. “All three of you ‘Extremists’ are here. Since you’ve already brought ‘Awakening’ and ‘Causality,’ this isn’t about whether *you* can do it alone. The three of you working together *will* make it happen.”
“The three of us…?” Yan Zhichun froze for a long moment. “You mean… even this lineup was arranged by Qi Xia? That’s ridiculous… The odds of something like this—”
Her voice grew weaker, and she couldn’t help but glance at Zheng Yingxiong.
Zheng Yingxiong seemed to understand her silent question and shook his head. “Sis… He really isn’t lying…”
He thought these words would reassure her, but this time, the situation was different.
Instead of calming her, they made Yan Zhichun realize that even Zheng Yingxiong’s presence might have been part of the plan.
Normally, if Zheng Yingxiong spoke, Yan Zhichun would trust the other party and follow through with the plan.
But now—
Tiangou had mentioned from the start that Qi Xia had instructed him to bring her, Jiang Ruoxue, Lin Qin, and Zheng Yingxiong into the room.
What kind of eerie feeling was this?
The life she had painstakingly built for herself turned out to be nothing more than a carefully orchestrated game by someone else. The realization made her doubt herself all over again.
No… Not just herself.
If she thought about it—
Was Jiang Ruoxue’s appearance really a coincidence?
What about Lin Qin?
Had *anything* in her life in the “Land of the End” ever been real?
…
“She’ll go mad eventually.”
Qi Xia slowly closed his eyes and murmured, “Because she’s *too* smart… There will always be people in this world who believe they’re the only ones awake. But madness comes for those who are doomed. She can’t escape it.”
…
Yan Zhichun turned around and stared at Lin Qin and Jiang Ruoxue behind her for a long time before finally pinpointing the source of her unease.
Come to think of it—
Nearly *all* the prominent figures in the “Extremists” had been personally recruited by Jiang Ruoxue.
Old Sun, Old Deng, Aunt Tong, Xiaoxiao, even that old man who dug holes—all of them. The only exception was Zhou Mo, but even *she* had come from the same room as Jiang Ruoxue.
But what about the people *she* had recruited?
She had never stopped to ask one crucial question—
Who *was* Jiang Ruoxue?
This organization that revered her as its leader, that had fought alongside her all the way to the “Train”—did it really have anything to do with *her*?
If she tried to explain all this with “Causality,” wouldn’t it be too forced?
…
“Zhichun… Your expression looks off,” Jiang Ruoxue stepped forward, her face full of concern. “What’s on your mind? Don’t keep it to yourself. Let’s talk it through together.”
“Shut up…” Yan Zhichun clenched her teeth, her body trembling slightly. “From now on… *No one* gets to dictate what I do…”
“Zhichun…” Jiang Ruoxue exchanged a confused glance with Lin Qin, who also seemed at a loss.
“I don’t need anyone’s advice right now…” Yan Zhichun’s gaze turned icy. “I just need to think for myself…”
She took a step back, as if drawing a line between herself and the others.
“Zhichun… What’s wrong with you?” Jiang Ruoxue frowned. “Don’t let Tiangou get to you… He barely said a few words, how could you—”
“No…” Yan Zhichun shook her head. “This isn’t about a few words… There are *too* many things wrong here…”
The two of them watched Yan Zhichun’s trembling figure but couldn’t find the words to calm her.
“A best friend who *always* shows up at the perfect moment… A long-lost ‘Extremist’ who drops from the sky, just as experienced as me… And a kid who travels all the way from another city to join us, with the ability to *detect lies*… Ha…” Yan Zhichun let out a bitter laugh. “And now, all of us are gathered here, perfectly suited to carry out some grand mission… Am I the only one who finds this *insanely* suspicious?”
“Suspicious…?” A trace of sorrow flickered across Jiang Ruoxue’s face. “Zhichun, after all these years together… You’d call our bond *suspicious*? I get that the coincidences might be hard to swallow, but if I wanted to harm you, why would I wait until now?”
“My heart is filthy,” Yan Zhichun stared straight at Jiang Ruoxue. “From my selfish perspective, I can’t fathom why anyone would help me selflessly for *years* without asking for anything in return. You say it’s my ‘Causality’… But what’s *your* reason for shaping this ‘Causality’? Who’s *really* pulling your strings?”
“I don’t need a reason to shape ‘Causality,'” Jiang Ruoxue answered firmly. “Because my very existence *is* ‘Causality.'”
“I’ve had enough,” Yan Zhichun cut her off with a scowl. “I’ll complete Qi Xia’s final task—but in exchange, from this moment on, *none* of you get to meddle in my life anymore. Living out a life orchestrated by others while deluding myself into thinking I’m in control… That kind of humiliation is unbearable.”
The air grew heavy with silence.
After a long pause, Jiang Ruoxue spoke softly, her voice laced with sadness. “Zhichun, I’ve always said… Whatever you choose, I’ll support you. Even now, you can still wield my ‘Causality’…”
Lin Qin nodded in agreement. “I also have my own reasons for wanting to free this place. Whether you believe I’m ‘Awakening’ or not, I’m joining this mission.”
…
“I’ve given you enough time…” Qi Xia muttered. “The entire ‘Train’ has been dead silent… Do I need to go over there myself?”
As soon as he finished speaking, a faint noise came from the doorway.
By his calculations, this should be the trio—Tian Tian and the others—returning after completing their mission to forge a new “door.” He lifted his head expressionlessly, ready for what came next.
But when he looked toward the entrance, the situation took yet another unexpected turn.
The one who arrived wasn’t who he expected—
It was the “Variable.”
“Kid…” A disheveled old man peeked in, wearing a complicated smile. “Didn’t expect to see *you* in here…”
Qi Xia’s brows furrowed as he studied the old man, silently reassessing the situation.
“Tiangou, I’ll give you two more minutes. If you don’t act by dawn, you won’t survive.”
…
“Damn it…” Tiangou gritted his teeth, though it wasn’t clear who he was cursing. “What’s the difference between you and Tianlong or Qinglong…?”
He raised his head and looked at the three women before him.
Despite the delay, the three of them seemed to have reached some kind of understanding.
Now, they stood together before the workbench.
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