Zhou Liu, who was nearby, noticed Qi Xia’s unusual behavior and approached with a hint of concern, asking, “Tsk, Qi Xia, are you alright?”
Qi Xia held his forehead and turned to her with a cold expression. “I… have a bit of a headache.”
“A headache…?” Qiu Shiliu and Luo Shiyi nearby also glanced in Qi Xia’s direction. “Are you hurt?”
“It’s nothing.” Qi Xia shook his head and asked Zhou Liu, who was standing a short distance away, “At first, I thought something was blocking my thoughts, but now I suspect there might be something growing inside my brain…”
“This…” Bai Jiu looked at Qi Xia with worry. “You didn’t have something like a brain tumor before coming here, did you?”
“A brain tumor…?” Qi Xia froze for a moment but quickly dismissed the absurd idea. Though his memories in the “Land of the End” were fragmented, his memories from the real world remained intact. He had never suffered from any brain disease—how could he possibly have a brain tumor?
Changing the subject, he turned to Zhou Liu. “Zhou Liu, does Qian Wu’s healing ability have any limitations?”
“Tsk, what do you mean?”
Qi Xia paused before asking, “If my head were to be cut open right now… could he bring me back to life?”
The others around him found his words baffling. The situation was already chaotic enough, with many injured, yet Qi Xia wanted to cut open his own skull now?
“Why?” Bai Jiu blinked in confusion. “What’s the point of cutting open your own head when you’re perfectly fine?”
“As I said, I feel like there’s something inside my brain…” Qi Xia answered honestly. “I want you to help me open my skull… take out my brain, and let me see what’s there.”
Zhou Liu and Bai Jiu exchanged glances, thinking Qi Xia might have lost his mind.
“Tsk, that’s nearly impossible,” Zhou Liu said. “Fifth Brother’s ability isn’t as powerful as you think. Besides, the moment your skull is cut open, you’ll die. No one can bring you back.”
“Is that so…” Qi Xia’s gaze grew colder. “What a shame… I really wanted to see for myself what’s inside my brain that’s been causing this pain…”
“But do you even understand brain anatomy?” Bai Jiu asked. “Even if you could hold your own brain and examine it… would you be able to diagnose the problem?”
“I…” Qi Xia suddenly realized something. “You mean… if I want to know what’s wrong with my brain, I should find a ‘neurosurgeon’…”
“If you know a ‘neurosurgeon,’ that would be ideal,” Bai Jiu nodded with a smile. “Just die first, then let the neurosurgeon dissect your brain. Wouldn’t everything become clear? They could write it down or preserve the memory to tell you later.”
Qi Xia thought it over carefully. To dissect his own brain, he would have to sacrifice his life no matter what.
If he wanted answers, he’d have to wait for the next cycle.
“In that case… the best approach is to find Dr. Zhao before the ‘End’ arrives on the tenth day and ask for his help…” Qi Xia murmured to himself. “What kind of coincidence is this…? Out of the ten people in the initial room, one just happened to be a ‘neurosurgeon’…”
Narrowing his eyes, Qi Xia pondered the situation. Dr. Zhao had always been at “Paradise.” Though somewhat timid, his “Echo” ability was formidable, making him a likely recruit for Chu Tianqiu. If he had indeed joined “Paradise,” would he still be willing to cooperate?
“What a hassle…” Qi Xia slowly lowered his hand from his forehead. The headache had faded, leaving behind only an icy, desolate expression. “This damned place… Why do I have to deal with so much…?”
A doubt crept into his mind. If he were gone from the “Land of the End,” would all the other “participants” just flail helplessly like rabbits caught by hunters, surrendering in despair?
Were “strong individuals” really that rare?
At that thought, three words surfaced in Qi Xia’s mind.
**Wen Qiaoyun.**
According to Di Ma, this woman named Wen Qiaoyun was incredibly powerful—yet she kept failing, over and over.
Someone so formidable, yet he had never heard of her in the Land of the End. Wasn’t that strange?
But then again, hadn’t he himself been failing repeatedly?
“A person… as strong as me?” Qi Xia narrowed his eyes skeptically. The idea seemed hard to believe. If someone that powerful had been active in the “Land of the End,” she would have been a faction leader by now. Yet neither Qian Wu, Chu Tianqiu, Lin Qin, Chen Junnan, nor anyone else with preserved memories had ever mentioned Wen Qiaoyun.
If Wen Qiaoyun was stronger than him, it would mean she was utterly insane—otherwise, it was hard to imagine a rational, clear-minded woman earning his genuine respect.
But if she were crazier than him or Chu Tianqiu, she’d be no different from the native inhabitants, hardly capable of such power.
“This is a ‘Catch-22’… Only a madman could achieve it, but the one who achieves it can’t be mad.”
Qi Xia quickly pieced it together. If Di Ma wasn’t lying, then there must have once been an extraordinarily powerful woman named Wen Qiaoyun in this land.
But since she hadn’t appeared in a long time, she had likely either failed completely, gone insane, or become a native. There were no traces of her existence left.
Given that Di Ma’s memories spanned over twenty years, Wen Qiaoyun’s time must have been even further in the past.
A bold speculation: If no one was lying and Wen Qiaoyun truly was that strong, could she have been a faction leader from twenty years ago—or even earlier?
At this thought, Qi Xia’s lips curled slightly.
“If this Wen Qiaoyun really was a leader from over twenty years ago… then things get even stranger…” His gaze turned scornful, as if he had found a needle hidden in plain sight on an iron plate. Though it blended in, from another angle, it stood out glaringly.
Yes, a shift in perspective made the needle impossible to miss.
“More than twenty years have passed… Di Ma, why do you still mention her so often?” Qi Xia stroked his chin, unraveling the hidden thread until it lay bare before him. “Haven’t you encountered any other strong individuals in all these years? Haven’t you witnessed how powerful I once was?”
Qi Xia chuckled softly. “Interesting… Di Ma, are you doing this on purpose?”
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