Chapter 639: Sober

“Hah.” Earth Monkey let out a dry laugh before slowly turning his head to look at Qi Xia.

“As long as it’s a secret I know, you can ask,” Qi Xia said coldly. “I promise I’ll tell you everything without holding back—no lies.”

“Oh…?” Earth Monkey nodded. “For you, I only have one question… one that’s been weighing on me for a long time.”

“I’m all ears.”

“Do you really want to leave?”

The short question plunged into Qi Xia’s mind like a stone, making him feel as if he were once again enveloped in thick fog.

“What…?”

“Do you really want to leave?” Earth Monkey repeated, his tone shifting, no longer friendly, but more like an interrogation.

“I… how could I not want to leave?”

Earth Monkey slowly stood up, his aged eyes filled with weariness as he stared at Qi Xia and asked, word by word, “Tell me, do you really want to leave or not?”

Qi Xia met Earth Monkey’s gaze, pausing for a long moment before exhaling a single word: “Yes.”

Hearing the answer, Earth Monkey’s dim, old eyes flickered, impossible to tell what he was thinking.

After a long silence, he finally spoke again. “I’ll… tentatively believe you’re telling the truth.”

“Of course…” Qi Xia narrowed his eyes and nodded. “How could I possibly lie about this…?”

Earth Monkey sat back in his chair and let out a deep sigh before saying, “Your turn. What do you want to ask me?”

All eyes turned to Qi Xia, but just as he was about to speak, he froze.

Fog.

His mind was filled with nothing but fog.

The question he had just thought of had already vanished into the mist.

“Wait… just a second…” Qi Xia pressed a hand to his forehead, feeling panic for the first time.

It was an unprecedented terror. If his mind was clouded by fog, it meant the one thing he could rely on was gone.

A flesh-and-blood body, powerless strength, and a mind shrouded in mist to challenge this city of chaos—this was the most helpless he had ever been.

“What? No question?” Earth Monkey looked at Qi Xia, puzzled.

Qi Xia didn’t respond, only repeatedly tapping his forehead, trying to clear his mind.

“If he has no question… do any of you?” Earth Monkey glanced at the others.

Chen Junnan and Qiao Jiazhen both looked at Qi Xia with concern. This was clearly his chance to ask a question, but now they saw his body trembling.

He seemed afraid.

“If no one has any questions—”

Before Earth Monkey could finish, Zheng Yingxiong’s small nose twitched, and his eyes suddenly widened. “Uncle, I have a question.”

Hearing this, Qi Xia sharply turned his head as if grabbing onto a lifeline.

“You…” Earth Monkey frowned slightly, eyeing the seven- or eight-year-old boy. “You have a question?”

“Mm!” Zheng Yingxiong nodded, then turned to the others. “Brothers and sisters, can I ask?”

“This…” Tian Tian hesitated, silently seeking help from the rest.

“Ask,” Qi Xia said decisively. “Say whatever question you have.”

“Okay!” Zheng Yingxiong agreed, then sniffed and raised his revealed card, “Frost’s Descent,” before turning to Earth Monkey. “Uncle, what day is ‘Frost’s Descent’?”

Tian Tian and Xiao Cheng beside him gasped, feeling like Zheng Yingxiong had just ruined everything.

Shouldn’t the question have been about Earth Monkey’s hand card?

“You want to know what day ‘Frost’s Descent’ is…?” Earth Monkey confirmed.

“Yep.”

Earth Monkey thought for a few seconds before answering, “The twenty-third of September.”

Qi Xia’s eyes widened slightly. Zheng Yingxiong had just done him an enormous favor—this was exactly the question he had wanted to ask but couldn’t recall.

Earth Monkey’s four simple words instantly opened a path in his mind.

“The twenty-third of September”—that was the lunar calendar’s expression.

Were they comparing the lunar dates of each festival?

No…

Qi Xia frowned again. Something still didn’t add up, but his mind…

He slowly lifted his head, scanning the room until his gaze landed on the wooden box on the table.

He couldn’t stand this state of himself any longer.

That wooden box had originally held the “Lunar Phases” cards, now empty, but Earth Monkey hadn’t taken it away, leaving it in the center of the table.

Qi Xia stood, gripping the box with one hand. Earth Monkey’s expression darkened, and he rose as well.

Whether he thought Qi Xia was about to attack or damage the game props, he kept his eyes locked on him.

Ignoring him, Qi Xia turned the box in his hand, aligning its corner with his forehead. Then, under everyone’s shocked gazes, he smashed it against his own head.

A dull *thud* echoed as a patch of flesh visibly tore from Qi Xia’s forehead. Half a second later, crimson blood surged down like a runaway horse, covering half his face.

“Oi… what the hell are you doing, liar…?”

Qiao Jiazhen also stood, stunned by the unexpected move. If he’d anticipated it, he might’ve stopped it.

Standing to Qi Xia’s right, he could feel the sheer force behind the blow—enough to stir the air.

“Still not enough…” Qi Xia ignored the blood streaming down his face, narrowing his eyes in thought before settling on another idea.

He sat back down, placing his right hand palm-down on the table, fingers splayed. Then, gripping the box, he smashed it onto his pinky finger.

Qiao Jiazhen lunged to block it, but Qi Xia was too fast. The box landed squarely before he could intervene.

A heavy *thud* resounded, and both Qi Xia and Earth Monkey’s expressions shifted.

Earth Monkey’s gaze remained fixed on Qi Xia—but not out of concern for him. He seemed worried about the box.

Gritting his teeth, Qi Xia lifted the box, revealing his reddened pinky.

Blood seeped from under the nail, the entire finger rapidly darkening from red to purple. The impact had been brutal.

“Good…” Qi Xia let out a bitter laugh, wiping cold sweat from his brow. “I can think clearly about a lot of things now.”

He slowly raised his head, his gaze now sharp. Scattered memories were reassembling in his mind, but before he could organize them, his attention was drawn back to the box in his hand.

It was strange.

This box was strange.

It was lighter than he’d expected.

Though made of wood, it didn’t feel solid—likely hollow.