Chapter 436: Begging for Mercy

“Huh?!” Saturday was taken aback. “Y-your theory… is it reliable?”

“I only make the worst-case assumptions,” Qi Xia replied. “But my assumptions are usually accurate.”

“Tsk, so you’re saying Turtle is doomed? What do we do now…?” Saturday frowned.

“I need to contact Luo Shiyi,” Qi Xia said. “We need to know the ‘Cat’s’ movements.”

Saturday quickly nodded in agreement and began mentally calling for Luo Shiyi. She felt like she had overused her telepathic abilities—her head was spinning.

Qi Xia had no visibility inside the “Mouse Room” and could only wait silently. Meanwhile, Qiu Shiliu, standing nearby, didn’t dare interrupt and remained quiet.

After a few dozen seconds, Saturday’s anxious voice came through: “Qi Xia! Tsk, just like you said! The mole is now lingering between doors four and five! Looks like he’s about to make a choice—what do we do?!”

“This…” Qi Xia narrowed his eyes slightly and had an answer within a second. “Alright, tell Turtle to speak up and reveal his location, then make a bet with the mole.”

“R-reveal himself?”

“Yes, do it.”

Saturday hesitated. “Alright, got it.”

Another few dozen seconds passed before Saturday spoke again: “Tsk, seems like we’ve stopped the mole, but Turtle’s position is exposed now. The mole knows he’s in Room Five and is standing right at the door… Will this really work?”

“The mole would’ve figured it out sooner or later—better to expose it ourselves,” Qi Xia said.

“Tsk, so what’s the bet supposed to be? Can it really stop the mole?”

“Tell Turtle to say to the mole: ‘If I can guess the number of fruits in the third room correctly, you’ll let me go. How about it?'”

“Huh?” Saturday was stunned. “That’s it? Tsk, isn’t this a bit too… flippant?”

“Repeat it exactly,” Qi Xia ordered. “Not a single word changed.”

Saturday fell silent, likely relaying the message to Turtle. This time, the wait was longer—almost a full minute before Qi Xia heard her voice again.

“Tsk… That damn mole really doesn’t play by the rules…” Saturday muttered. “This is getting messy…”

“What did he say?” Qi Xia asked.

“Tsk, he said, ‘Boss, you sure love jokes. If I let you go just like that, how could I call myself an Earth-level? How about we change the bet—you guess what fruit is in the third room. If you’re right, I won’t catch you.'” Saturday sounded worried. “We’ve never even been to the third room—how are we supposed to…?”

“Just as I expected,” Qi Xia said. “That first bet was just bait—to make the mole raise the stakes himself and fall into my rhythm.”

“Huh?!” Saturday felt like Qi Xia had shocked her multiple times already. “I-I don’t get it… Tsk, you planned this? But guessing something we’ve never even seen is just too…”

“Tell Turtle to agree,” Qi Xia said. “I’ll make the guess.”

Saturday fell silent again, likely relaying the message to stabilize the situation.

“Alright…” Saturday said nervously. “Y-you guess, I’ll tell him…”

Qi Xia stroked his chin, deep in thought, then looked up with a serious expression. “Papaya.”

Saturday was convinced Qi Xia had lost his mind.

“Tsk… What the hell are you doing?” she asked urgently. “Are you just guessing randomly, or do you actually have a basis? The fruits we’ve seen so far are all common ones, but ‘papaya’? Most people hardly even…”

“The answer is papaya,” Qi Xia stated. “The probability of being correct is over ninety percent. Just relay it to Turtle.”

Saturday hesitated, then went silent again. Qi Xia found a chair and sat down slowly, waiting for the final outcome.

Before long, heavy footsteps echoed outside the “Mouse Room.” Someone was approaching, step by step.

Qi Xia stroked his chin, then stood up and walked to the door to wait.

*Knock knock knock.*

A faint rapping sounded.

Qi Xia stepped forward, leaning close to the wooden door, and uttered a single word: “Speak.”

“Boss,” the mole’s voice came from the other side. “There’s no way that fat guy should’ve guessed that answer.”

“Hard to say,” Qi Xia replied. “My team has no dead weight.”

“You sure love jokes…” The mole let out a muffled, bitter chuckle. “I admit I wasn’t very respectful earlier. Consider this my apology.”

“Oh?” Qi Xia smirked. “And what do you want?”

“My place is a crumbling shack—continuing this shabby game would only humiliate you. Could you perhaps… find another temple to worship at?” The mole’s tone was uncharacteristically humble. “What I mean is, for the remaining rounds, I’ll open all the doors and stop catching mice. Let’s call it mutually beneficial cooperation—end this game together. Do you have any interest in such an arrangement?”

The mole’s words left even Qiu Shiliu, still in the room, utterly baffled.

Though every sentence from this Zodiac was polite, his earlier tone had been laced with mockery and disdain. Now, it was as if he were a completely different person.

Was he… begging for mercy?

Qi Xia scratched his head and replied softly to the door, “But I’m truly sorry—my prepared plans don’t include ‘peacefully finishing the game.’ You’re making this difficult for me.”

The two stood on opposite sides of the door, their expressions equally complex. Every word exchanged felt like another move in a high-stakes game.

“Boss, that’s not very fair of you,” the mole said. “A great man like you shouldn’t hold grudges against small fries like me. Isn’t this a bit… bullying?”

“No need for the pleasantries,” Qi Xia said. “Let me restate my position.”

“Please, go ahead.”

“This game is a joke to me,” Qi Xia said coldly. “It’s the first time I’ve encountered one where you can kill a Zodiac on the spot without even gambling your life. You left such a glaring weakness—you should’ve been prepared for this.”

“Right, right, you’re absolutely correct.”

“So I’m giving you two choices,” Qi Xia declared.

“And what might those be?”

“First—get blown up by that massive collar around your neck.”

“Hah… If I were really going to die, Boss, you wouldn’t just stand by and watch, right?” The mole forced a dry laugh. “We’ve talked for so long—there’s some camaraderie here. You wouldn’t let me die, would you? Right?”

Qi Xia didn’t respond, sending a chill down the mole’s spine.

“Boss… what’s the second option?”

“The second option is ‘rebellion,'” Qi Xia finally said. “You’ll survive today, only to die gloriously later—fighting against Tianlong.”

The mole clenched his fists behind the door but kept his voice light. “Boss… you’re not serious, are you? Are you saying… from the moment I met you, I was already doomed?”