“Hmm?”
Qi Xia was taken aback. He hadn’t expected Lin Qin’s concern to stem from this angle.
“Are you overthinking it?” Qi Xia shook his head. “I hold Xiao An every day until she falls asleep, then I sit at my desk afterward.”
“Oh…” Lin Qin nodded, seemingly relieved. “But doesn’t that exhaust you?”
“I…” Qi Xia hesitated, momentarily at a loss for words. “Lin Qin, you might not understand my line of work. If I let my guard down even for a moment, I could easily plummet into an abyss.”
“Is that so?” Lin Qin responded vaguely, as if only half-comprehending. Then, almost muttering to herself, she added, “Honestly, I’m really curious about you. You seem incredibly sharp, yet you make a living by deceiving people…”
Hearing this, Qi Xia lowered his head silently.
“I don’t want to,” he said. “But it’s the only thing I can do.”
The second night felt even longer than the first.
The pitch-black darkness hung in the air like an old friend reluctant to part ways.
Though Qi Xia and Lin Qin had managed to catch some sleep, by dawn, their bodies ached unbearably.
Dr. Zhao and Xiao Ran, on the other hand, appeared to have stayed awake all night, their eyes fixed alternately on the door and Qi Xia. Their faces were drawn, their dark circles pronounced.
They weren’t just afraid the “insects” outside might break in—they were terrified Qi Xia might raise a black greatsword at daybreak and murder them.
Fortunately, neither scenario came to pass by morning.
“Let’s go,” Qi Xia stretched and said to Lin Qin. “It’s time to start today’s journey.”
A day had passed, and Qi Xia’s earnings remained at zero.
His original daily quota of collecting 360 “Dao” had now escalated to 400.
Based on yesterday’s observations, many games offered higher rewards as their difficulty increased. To meet his target swiftly today, he’d have to engage in several extremely perilous games.
Without bidding farewell to Xiao Ran or Dr. Zhao, the two stood up, picked up the aluminum pot, and stepped outside.
There was no trace of the “insects” left outside. Where had those staggering numbers of monsters vanished to during the day?
Were they all hiding in the nearby buildings?
The air was still foul, but Qi Xia was gradually growing accustomed to the stench of decay.
After exiting, he led Lin Qin past the restaurant across the street and turned right.
Unlike the area where he’d encountered the “Rat Man,” most of the buildings here were shops.
They walked to the end of the street without spotting any signs of human activity.
Now standing at a T-junction, Qi Xia glanced left and right.
If they had come this way, which direction had they taken—left or right?
Qi Xia admitted to himself that he didn’t know Lawyer Zhang or Officer Li well enough to predict their decisions.
Just then, Lin Qin noticed something near the right-hand corner of the wall.
“Qi Xia, look.” She pointed to a spot on the wall where faint markings were visible.
Qi Xia crouched down and saw two crooked symbols—they resembled the numbers “5” and “2,” but could also pass for the letters “S” and “Z.”
“Could this be their doing?” Lin Qin asked, studying the symbols with a puzzled expression.
“Most likely,” Qi Xia nodded. “The ‘Z’ might stand for Lawyer Zhang.”
“What about the ‘S’?” Lin Qin pressed. “If it’s Officer Li, shouldn’t it be ‘L’?”
“I’m not sure either…” He paused, then asked, “Lin Qin, do you remember Officer Li’s full name?”
“Full name…?” Lin Qin thought for a moment before it clicked. “Ah! During the first game, he mentioned his name—Li Shangwu!”
She glanced back at the symbol that could be either an “S” or a “5.”
“So this really was left by them?” Lin Qin mused. “But how did they know we’d come this way?”
Qi Xia was equally perplexed. If they’d intended to leave a message, it should’ve been clearer. The only explanation was that they’d left these symbols as a way to navigate, something only they could decipher.
“Regardless, this direction must lead to someone. Let’s check it out.”
Having decided, the two set off again.
As they walked down the dilapidated street, within twenty minutes, Qi Xia heard loud, chaotic shouting from one of the buildings.
“Damn it! This round doesn’t count! Again!” a man bellowed. “Come at me again if you dare!”
The moment the words left his mouth, he was flung out the door by an immense force and landed hard on the ground.
“Oof… Mother of—” The man rubbed his backside, grumbling curses. “Just you wait…”
Qi Xia took one look at him, and his expression darkened.
The man who’d been thrown out was none other than the short, pudgy middle-aged man they’d met earlier—Old Lü.
Given the city’s size, running into the same person two days in a row was an uncanny coincidence.
Old Lü noticed Qi Xia too. “Eh? You…?”
Then, as if remembering something, he shook his head, stood up, and turned to leave with a scowl.
“Wait—” Qi Xia called out. “Have you seen anyone else around here?”
Old Lü turned back, eyeing Qi Xia with scorn. “Oh? If it isn’t Lord Yama! The life I bought from you hasn’t run out yet—here to collect more money?”
Qi Xia sighed. “I don’t want to argue about the past. I’m looking for my companions. If you can help, I’ll find a way to repay you.”
“Repay?” Old Lü’s eyes gleamed, and he approached with a fake smile. “Fine. Since you’re asking, do me a favor. Make me happy, and I’ll tell you exactly where those two people you’re after are.”
“Two people…? Alright, what do you need?” Qi Xia asked coldly.
Old Lü pointed to the room before them—a Go club.
“Help me go in there and beat that pig at his own game,” Old Lü grinned. “I want him to lose so badly he’s left with nothing.”
“Pig?” Qi Xia turned and saw a grimy, pig-headed man seated inside the Go club.
Before him lay a board with black and white stones, flanked by two empty bowls.
Qi Xia rubbed his nose and turned back to Old Lü. “Old Lü, I’ll help you—but first, answer me honestly. Did you really see other people earlier?”
Old Lü hesitated. “Yeah, I did.”
Qi Xia stepped closer, looming over the pudgy man. “I’ll ask one more time. Did you see anyone else?”
Old Lü faltered, his eyes darting nervously between Qi Xia’s. “I really did…”
“Two people?”
“Yeah.”
“A man and a woman?”
“That’s right…”
“Describe them.”
“Huh?” Old Lü scrambled to recall. “The man was serious, and the woman barely spoke…”
He kept backing away, clearly intimidated by Qi Xia.
He remembered how this man had once pinned Zhang Shan to the ground and beaten him mercilessly—someone not to be trifled with.
After several rounds of interrogation, Qi Xia was satisfied the man wasn’t lying. “Fine. I’ll do it.”
The corner of Lin Qin’s lips twitched upward. “Qi Xia,” she whispered, “do you know psychology?”
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