Joe’s expression darkened.
After a moment, he sprang to his feet with a sudden movement and strode toward the classroom door.
“Fists,” Qi Xia called out. “Where are you going?”
“I’m going to save someone,” Joe replied. “Kung Fu Girl fought alongside me—she’s my comrade.”
“You’re just one person. How do you plan to take on all of Heaven’s Gate alone?” Qi Xia asked.
“I…” Joe hesitated. “Liar, aren’t you with me? I’m not alone. There are two of us.”
“Fine. Since you consider me one of your own, I’ll tell you the plan.” Qi Xia said. “Dr. Zhao, Lin Qin, Han Yimo—this plan needs your cooperation too.”
Hearing this, everyone sat up straight, their expressions solemn.
……
Joe slowly pushed open the door to the ward. Zhang Shan was no longer there—only Li Xiangling remained, flipping through a tattered martial arts novel.
“Joe?” Li Xiangling’s face lit up when she saw him. She closed the book, smoothed her hair, and straightened up. “You’re here?”
“Hey, Kung Fu Girl.” Joe eased himself onto the bed beside her. “What are you reading?”
“Just some cheesy martial arts novel.” She chuckled, handing him the book. “Ever read it?”
Joe glanced at the title and shook his head.
“What’s it about?” he asked casually.
“It’s ridiculous…” Li Xiangling laughed sheepishly. “Some dashing hero who’s handsome and unbeatable, always rescuing damsels in distress. Every woman in the book falls for him, and they all ask him the same question—’Are you married?'”
“Hah.” Joe smirked. He’d never heard of such an absurd story.
“‘Are you married?'” Li Xiangling repeated, grinning. “Isn’t that hilarious, Joe?”
“Yeah, pretty funny. What happens next?”
“‘Are you married?'” she said again.
“Am I—? Wait, what?” He looked up, startled, only to see her cheeks flushing slightly.
Joe bolted upright, his face a picture of shock.
“Wha—? What’s going on?” He fumbled for words, staring at her. “Kung Fu Girl, did I misunderstand something?”
“O-of course!” Li Xiangling forced an awkward laugh, though a hint of disappointment flickered in her eyes. “Joe, I was just telling you about the book! What were you thinking?”
“Oh. Right.” Relieved, he sat back down. “My bad. I misheard.”
“Y-yeah…”
A silence fell between them. After a moment, Li Xiangling glanced out at the pitch-black night and asked, “Joe, why did you come to see me?”
“No reason,” he said, shaking his head. “Someone wants to kill you. I’m here to protect you.”
“Oh, I—wait, what?” She blinked, processing his words. “Someone wants to kill me?!”
“Shh, keep it down.” Joe pressed a finger to his lips. “Kung Fu Girl, do you trust me?”
“…Yeah,” she whispered, nodding cautiously.
“Then just rest easy. As long as I’m here, nothing will happen.”
With that, he stretched out on another bed, looking completely at ease.
The distant chirping of insects filled the quiet room.
The fire slowly died out, but neither of them bothered to relight it. They simply lay in silence on opposite sides of the room.
Li Xiangling couldn’t close her eyes.
She wasn’t worried about being killed—she was too busy wondering what kind of person Joe really was.
Why did someone covered in tattoos not seem the least bit off-putting?
They’d only gone through one game together, yet this strange man had somehow turned her entire world upside down.
“Joe… are you asleep?” she murmured, barely audible.
No response.
Sighing, she shut her eyes, feeling a little foolish.
Time passed. The bonfires throughout the school building gradually dimmed. The rustling sounds outside lulled her into drowsiness.
It was the fourth day in the Land of the End, yet for the first time, she felt safe.
Some time later, she felt an itch on her arm.
Blearily, she opened her eyes—and saw a shadowy figure standing over her, stroking her arm.
Even half-asleep, she knew the only person in the room should be Joe.
But something felt off. She’d touched Joe’s hands before—they were warm. These fingers were icy cold.
“J-Joe?” she whispered.
The shadow didn’t answer, instead continuing to grope her arm as if searching for something.
“Hey…” The colder the hands grew, the more frightened she became. “Who… who are you?”
Before the figure could respond, another shadow suddenly lunged from the darkness, hurling a chair straight at the window.
**CRASH!**
The glass shattered into pieces. The figure looming over Li Xiangling flinched and spun to flee—only to find Joe blocking the doorway.
A second later, beams of light pierced through the broken window.
Someone outside was shining flashlights into the room.
Li Xiangling finally saw the shadow clearly.
It was Chu Tianqiu.
And in his hand was a grimy syringe.
“Tianqiu, what’s the plan?” Joe grinned. “Visiting hours are over, yeah?”
The flashlight-wielders stepped closer.
Chu Tianqiu turned—and his composure cracked.
Yun Yao, Zhang Shan, Qi Xia, Lin Qin, Zhao Haibo, Han Yimo… None of them had been asleep. They’d been lying in wait for him.
“You… you all…”
Before he could speak, Joe bellowed down the hallway: **”HEY, EVERYONE! WE’VE GOT A SITUATION!”**
Within seconds, doors flew open as people rushed out, hastily pulling on clothes.
By the time Chu Tianqiu regained his senses, he was surrounded by the entire Heaven’s Gate.
Qi Xia stepped forward, studying him with a knowing gaze.
“What are you doing?” Qi Xia asked.
“Visiting a patient,” Chu Tianqiu replied smoothly.
“Oh? Forget the fact that it’s the middle of the night—what’s with the syringe?”
“This?” Chu Tianqiu glanced at the syringe. “Just antibiotics. To prevent infection.”
“You might want to think carefully before answering.” Qi Xia pulled a man in a white coat forward. “We’ve got a doctor here.”
Chu Tianqiu’s eyes flickered.
Qi Xia smirked.
Xu Liunian, you’ve set up quite the puzzle this time. How do you plan to solve it?
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