“Even if you’re as invincible as you claim… what does it matter?” The Earth Rabbit lowered its head, staring at the severed head in Jiang Shi’s hands. “I’ll go kill your teammates one by one right now… What can you do to stop me with that wrecked body of yours?”
“You…” Jiang Shi finally showed a flicker of panic upon hearing this. “You damn rabbit demon, aren’t you getting too bold? Isn’t this against your own game rules? You’re in this room but haven’t killed me… Doesn’t that break the rules?”
“Break the rules…?” The Earth Rabbit shook its head. “I never said I had to kill everyone in the room. I only said, ‘I’ll take direct action.'”
“‘Take action’…?”
“Now I’ve acted, and you’ve been reduced to this half-dead state.” The Earth Rabbit took a few slow steps forward, standing shoulder to shoulder with the diminutive Jiang Shi. “Your head’s off, your legs are broken—what else can you do? If you’ve got the guts, come kill me. Otherwise, I’ll go kill the others.”
Jiang Shi’s lips trembled slightly. It was the first time he’d ever felt so disregarded.
But the Zodiac Games weren’t the same as the Cat’s battlefield. These Zodiacs, who were even more monstrous than him, followed only their own rules. Most of the time, the Zodiacs didn’t distinguish between “life and death” but between “victory and defeat.” As long as everything stayed within the rules, the Earth Rabbit’s actions were justified.
The Earth Rabbit took a few more steps forward, stopping at the door, facing Chen Jun’nan through the barrier.
A cold sweat trickled down Chen Jun’nan’s forehead. This was probably the worst situation they could face—the Earth Rabbit was ignoring Jiang Shi in the room and would begin its pursuit in the next round.
“Going to lock the door?” the Earth Rabbit taunted. “You’ve got so many people… Aren’t you going to lock it to keep me out?”
Chen Jun’nan frowned, deep in thought. Right now, locking the door was undeniably the right choice. Otherwise, the Earth Rabbit could move twice next turn and catch up to the fleeing group.
But if someone chose to “lock the door,” that person wouldn’t be able to move this turn. The next turn, the Earth Rabbit would “unlock” and “open” the door, leaving the locked-in player with slim chances of survival.
All things considered, they’d have to sacrifice one teammate to lock the door.
Just as Chen Jun’nan hesitated, he saw Jiang Shi slowly dragging himself behind the Earth Rabbit, raising his sword. Before the rabbit could react, Jiang Shi swung down with all his might.
“Stop!”
*Whoosh!*
“Ah!” The Earth Rabbit let out a sharp cry, then instinctively lashed out, sending Jiang Shi flying.
The sword and head went spinning in opposite directions. If not for the witnesses, anyone would’ve thought Jiang Shi was the one who’d been hurt.
But Jiang Shi had only one arm to strike with, and his small stature made the attack feeble. The ambush merely sliced open the Earth Rabbit’s suit, leaving a shallow gash on its back.
“You brat… I spared you, and you still want to die…?” The Earth Rabbit stormed forward in fury, unsure whether to confront the head or the body, so it stood between the two.
“Cough, cough…” Jiang Shi’s head coughed weakly. His head and body seemed strangely connected—though separated, every reaction from his body affected his head. “Rabbit demon, I told you I want to die… If you don’t kill me today, I’ll keep chasing you with this sword…”
The Earth Rabbit sneered, stepping toward Jiang Shi’s body. “Now that you’ve lost your ‘protective charm’… what can you even do?”
With that, it raised its foot and stomped down hard on Jiang Shi’s broken knee.
“AAAAAHHH!!”
Jiang Shi’s childlike voice shrieked in agony until it grew hoarse.
“Teach you to act up!” The Earth Rabbit ground its foot into Jiang Shi’s knee like extinguishing a cigarette. “You want to die…? I’ll make you wish you were dead…”
“Hey!!” Chen Jun’nan’s expression darkened as he moved forward, ready to confront the Earth Rabbit.
“What?” The Earth Rabbit turned with a cold smirk, its yellowed buck teeth protruding grotesquely. “Feeling sorry for your teammate?”
Chen Jun’nan scowled. “We’re still human. What you’re torturing is a *kid*… If I were some muscle-bound, cold-blooded spicy rabbit head, maybe I wouldn’t care either.”
“What did you just say—?”
“Let the kid go. Come kill me instead.” Chen Jun’nan forced a grin. “I’m way easier to kill…”
“Oh…?” The Earth Rabbit stomped on Jiang Shi’s knee one last time, ensuring he couldn’t stand, before turning back to Chen Jun’nan. “You have *no* idea how badly I want to kill you.”
Before replying, Chen Jun’nan glanced at Jiang Shi’s head. The boy was on the verge of passing out from pain.
“Of course I know… I’ve always been the most punchable guy around…” Chen Jun’nan chuckled dryly through the doorframe. “Hey… can I just walk in there and let you kill me now?”
“Sadly, no…” The Earth Rabbit feigned regret. “It’s not your turn… If you enter another room out of turn… that’s a foul…”
“Oh…?” Chen Jun’nan smirked again, scratching his ear. “My ears must be acting up today… Didn’t quite catch that…”
“What?”
“So… if it’s not your turn, but you move into another room… that’s a foul?”
“Exactly.” The Earth Rabbit nodded. “Is that rule unclear?”
“Crystal clear…” Chen Jun’nan edged half a step closer. “But there’s one more thing I’d like to ask for a friend.”
“Ask?”
“Yeah.” A sly grin played on Chen Jun’nan’s lips. “Hey, Rabbit Bastard… ever thought about *rebelling*?”
The Earth Rabbit’s head twitched slightly at his words. Its expression shifted before settling into a mocking smile.
“You… want *me* to rebel?” Its three-lip mouth stretched wide, revealing yellowed teeth. “Ha… haha. Ridiculous.”
“What’s so funny?”
The Earth Rabbit shook its head, its cold red eyes locking onto Chen Jun’nan’s. “Is this supposed to be a ‘negotiation’?”
“More or less.” Chen Jun’nan nodded. “To be precise, my friend wants to negotiate.”
“I’ve never seen a negotiation so unbalanced.” The Earth Rabbit stepped back, shrugging off its pristine black suit to reveal a fitted navy-blue shirt, accentuating its muscular frame. “If I’m not mistaken… in two or three minutes, I’ll have beaten all of you to death. *Now* you think of negotiating?”
“Oh? That’s how you see it?” Chen Jun’nan replied ambiguously. “No wonder you find it funny.”
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