“I originally thought you weren’t crazy, but now I’m not so sure.” Chen Junnan shook his head helplessly. “Haven’t you seen Wei Yang’s farm?”
“I have, but it was just a disguise,” Qin Dingdong replied.
“A disguise?”
“In a place where being crazy makes you safer, why not pretend to be insane?” Qin Dingdong said. “Here, the ones who usually get into trouble are the normal people, right?”
Chen Junnan and Qiao Jiajin exchanged glances, feeling that while the logic was strange, the argument somehow made sense.
“So after learning deception from him for so long, did you find any answers?” Chen Junnan asked again.
“I can only say…” Qin Dingdong shook her head. “I’m a natural-born liar, and I enjoy the process of deception. The more time I spent with Wei Yang, the more I realized my memories of my past life felt fake.”
“No wonder…” Chen Junnan nodded. “No wonder he called you his ‘most beloved disciple.'”
“Wei Yang discovered I was a born swindler—I could grasp the essence of deception effortlessly, drawing inferences from one case to another.” Qin Dingdong smiled wryly. “He probably didn’t know I was already a seasoned con artist. Though I couldn’t scam millions like him, swindling a few thousand to get by was never a problem.”
“Is being a con artist… really that easy?” Chen Junnan frowned.
“I can’t say for sure,” Qin Dingdong sighed. “If it were that easy, why would I end up here? It’s clearly my karma. But once you realize you can make thousands just by sweet-talking, no ordinary job or business will ever satisfy you again.”
“I think I understand now, Sister Dong…” Chen Junnan said gloomily.
“Right.” Qin Dingdong nodded. “That’s why Wei Yang matters to me—I went to him to find a lost version of myself. So tell me, should I follow Wei Yang’s instructions or Qi Xia’s?”
Just then, Qiao Jiajin cleared his throat and asked, “So, pretty lady, was it that farmer guy who told you to stir up trouble?”
“Yes.” Qin Dingdong nodded. “I don’t know what he’s clinging to, but he won’t allow anyone to escape this place. Thinking about it, that might not be such a bad thing. I’m not even sure if the ‘real world’ I’d return to is really mine. Until I figure out my past, I can’t let anyone leave—otherwise, I might be trapped here forever, never solving the mystery of who I really am.”
Chen Junnan could only nod helplessly, acknowledging her reasoning.
But now, a troubling question lingered—can human memories be altered?
If there really was an “echo” here capable of affecting the “past” or even the world beyond the “Land of the End,” how could anyone be sure their memories were real?
He couldn’t help but think of the wife Qi Xia kept mentioning.
A man who never had a wife before now spoke of one constantly—had his memories been tampered with too?
“This complicates things…” Chen Junnan muttered. “Lao Qiao… are we even still ourselves…?”
“What…?” Qiao Jiajin was taken aback.
“I mean… if our memories were altered or our bodies replicated, are we still who we used to be?” Chen Junnan asked, dazed. “If we’re not ourselves anymore, then what are we?”
“Snap out of it, mate… aren’t you overthinking this?” Qiao Jiajin patted Chen Junnan’s shoulder. “Maybe, like you said, this lady’s just exhausted and her memory’s playing tricks on her. How can you be so sure her memories were actually changed?”
Chen Junnan placed a hand on Qiao Jiajin’s shoulder and said seriously, “Lao Qiao, be honest with me. In this hellhole, which do you think is more likely—memory errors or memory tampering?”
“Well…” Qiao Jiajin hesitated. “Even if that’s true… we haven’t seen anyone here whose ability affects ‘memory,’ right? Seems like a tough trick to pull off…”
“Exactly. That’s why we need to ask Lao Qiao.” Chen Junnan said. “Let’s hurry back. It’s ‘Tianshi Hour’ now—people are probably dying en masse again. Not everyone’s as lucky as us to escape danger. We’ll look for Lao Qi while helping others on the way. Those Celestials can’t keep slaughtering people unchecked—we still need our lives for something greater.”
“Got it.” Qiao Jiajin nodded.
Chen Junnan turned back to Qin Dingdong. “Sister Dong, I can’t say whether Wei Yang’s or Lao Qi’s plan suits you better, but I’ll do my best to help you find the answer. Until then, try not to do anything rash.”
After a brief pause, Qin Dingdong agreed.
“Asshole, if you’d talked to me like this earlier, we wouldn’t have argued this long,” she said. “Now get the hell out of here.”
The three of them walked back through the now-stopped downpour, the silent city occasionally pierced by distant screams.
……
Qi Xia had been walking for a while under the black orb hovering above his head, but “Earth Ox” on the map was still some distance away.
He knew “Tianshi Hour” would last at most two hours. If he didn’t reach Earth Ox’s location to confirm their identity, this opportunity would be wasted.
Along the way, many “participants” were in chaos under their own black orbs—some were pierced through the forehead before they even understood what was happening.
Seconds later, they’d wander back from another direction, staring at their own corpses in bewilderment.
Qi Xia avoided these disordered “participants,” taking side alleys to prevent getting entangled in senseless conflicts.
These sun-deprived alleys carried a thicker stench than the streets, the air even tinged with reddish dust.
Assuming he wouldn’t run into others here, he quickened his pace.
After turning a corner, Qi Xia checked the map and headed right.
The moment he stepped into this alley, something felt off—the presence of another person lingered, accompanied by faint, strange noises.
“Is… someone there?”
A hoarse voice echoed from the alley’s depths. Qi Xia froze.
But he knew he’d stumbled into trouble. A tiny black orb floated out of the darkness, stopping right before his forehead.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage