Chapter 28: Parting Ways

At that moment, Dr. Zhao also stepped out, his expression evasive.

He didn’t seem like he was there to stop anything—more like he had come to lend support.

“There aren’t four ‘daos,’ only three left,” Qi Xia said.

“Three?!” Xiao Ran frowned deeply. “You lost one?”

Qi Xia glanced at Dr. Zhao behind Xiao Ran, his eyes carrying a hint of coldness.

Dr. Zhao seemed to notice Qi Xia’s gaze and reluctantly spoke up.

“Xiao Ran, it wasn’t Qi Xia who lost it. He used one ‘dao’ to trade with that female clerk for a fishhook and fishing line.”

“What…” Xiao Ran’s eyes flickered slightly before she sighed and turned back to Qi Xia. “Fine, trading with the ‘dao’ was your own decision. Now, I want you to return the two that belong to our team.”

“The two that belong to you…?” Qi Xia’s expression darkened.

“Xiao Ran…” Tian Tian, who had been silent until now, suddenly interjected. “That’s not fair. If we’re keeping score, the lost ‘dao’ was spent to save Han Yimo—a member of your team—so it has nothing to do with us.”

“I already said, that was Qi Xia’s own decision to trade. It has nothing to do with our team.”

“Your mother…” Qiao Jiajin took a step forward, his face fierce. His previously imperfect Mandarin completely dissolved into Cantonese. “I’ve never hit a woman, but you’re shameless!”

“Hey… calm down!” Lin Qin stepped forward to hold Qiao Jiajin back. “Those ‘daos’ were won by Qi Xia. Let him decide how to distribute them.”

Qiao Jiajin pressed his lips together indignantly, barely suppressing his anger.

Qi Xia slowly raised a hand to touch his nose before speaking.

“The ‘Human-Dragon’ said these ‘daos’ are both our rewards and our ‘chips’ for participating in the games. Since you’re planning to wait here to die, I won’t give you a single one.”

“What, no more ‘deception,’ just straight-up robbery now?” Xiao Ran sneered in anger. “There’s no lawless land in this world. Think carefully—is this the right thing to do? We even have a cop here!”

Officer Li, hearing the commotion outside, finally stepped out.

The two teams had originally been on good terms, but now, because of this preschool teacher named Xiao Ran, the atmosphere was tense.

“What’s going on?” Officer Li asked Dr. Zhao. “I could hear the noise all the way inside.”

“Nothing… Xiao Ran just had something to say to Qi Xia,” Dr. Zhao replied with an awkward smile.

“She ‘had something to say to me’?” Qi Xia’s expression turned icy. “Dr. Zhao, you’re really something… Are you sure it was Xiao Ran who had something to say to me?”

Qi Xia knew Xiao Ran was just a “gun,” while Dr. Zhao was the real mastermind behind this. With Xiao Ran’s intelligence and courage, she wouldn’t have dared to confront Qi Xia and the others alone without someone egging her on.

Knocking down the opponent’s “gun” might stop the attack, but taking down the person behind it was the only way to end things for good.

“I…” Dr. Zhao hesitated before speaking sheepishly to Qi Xia. “Qi Xia, you might be upset… but those ‘daos’ were won for all of us. We contributed too… You should give us half.”

“Oh?” Qi Xia nodded thoughtfully before replying, “But Dr. Zhao, that’s not what you said last night when we killed Han Yimo together.”

“What?!” Dr. Zhao’s eyes nearly bulged out of his skull. “You—what the hell are you talking about?! When did I ever kill Han Yimo with you?!”

Officer Li and Xiao Ran’s faces instantly paled.

“Wasn’t that what you said?” Qi Xia rubbed his hands nonchalantly. “You told me, ‘That guy’s wounds aren’t even stitched up properly—he’s definitely not going to make it. Fewer people mean fewer burdens. The rest of us will have a better chance of getting out.'”

“Bullshit!!” Dr. Zhao was utterly enraged, veins popping on his forehead. “Are you trying to frame me?! I stopped Han Yimo’s bleeding—his wounds were hard to treat, but I did it! You… you…!”

“Why so angry?” Qi Xia stepped forward and patted Dr. Zhao’s shoulder, addressing Xiao Ran and Officer Li. “Don’t mind me. I’m a liar—everything I just said was made up.”

“You—!” Dr. Zhao’s mouth twisted in fury.

“Do you hate being smeared?” Qi Xia muttered under his breath. “So do I. If you and that woman come after me again, demanding things that don’t belong to you, I’ll make sure you regret it.”

Dr. Zhao was thoroughly shaken by these words, finally realizing that this man was not to be trifled with.

In previous games, Qi Xia had repeatedly lent a helping hand—but that didn’t mean he was a pushover.

Xiao Ran, meanwhile, seemed to have a sudden realization and murmured, “So that’s it… Because you’re a doctor… if someone’s injured, you’d have to take care of them. To get rid of that burden… you killed him…”

“I—”

“How ridiculous,” Qi Xia cut in with a shake of his head. “Xiao Ran, I was just making things up. Don’t believe a word of it.”

But the seed of doubt had already taken root in Xiao Ran’s heart. How could it be so easily uprooted?

“Qi Xia… what kind of act is this? What’s really going on?” Officer Li asked with a frown.

Qi Xia studied the sturdy man before him. His impression of this officer wasn’t bad—he just hoped he wasn’t colluding with the others to covet his ‘daos.’

“Xiao Ran says I should split the ‘daos’ between the two of you. What do you think?” Qi Xia asked.

Officer Li blinked in surprise before shaking his head. “We already tested it—’daos’ can’t be used as currency here. Keeping them is pointless. Besides, you won them fair and square. You should hold onto them.”

“That’s not right!” Xiao Ran protested indignantly. “Those ‘daos’ were bought with our lives!”

Officer Li gave a wry smile. “If you know they were bought with your life, then you should be thanking Qi Xia for saving you.”

“I—”

Xiao Ran was silenced, unable to retort.

Officer Li had a point—without Qi Xia, she would have died in that terrifying room long ago.

Qi Xia nodded silently before pulling out a small sphere from his pocket and tossing it to Officer Li.

Officer Li caught it and turned it over in his palm—a single ‘dao.’

“Huh?” He looked at Qi Xia in confusion. “What’s this for? I’m not joining any games. Giving me a ‘dao’ is useless.”

“Consider it temporary storage,” Qi Xia waved a hand dismissively. “Call it money laundering. That one’s yours—the two I have are now ‘clean.’ So stop bothering me.”

“This…” Officer Li was still puzzled but didn’t know what else to say.

Dr. Zhao and Xiao Ran’s expressions were even more complicated, their minds in turmoil.

After a moment of silence, everyone noticed that Officer Li still hadn’t moved.

“Oi, copper? Something else?” Qiao Jiajin asked.