“Yes,” Aries replied.
“But let’s say, for the sake of argument, that we actually manage to board the ‘train,’ find the ‘Black Sheep,’ and the ‘Black Sheep’ doesn’t kill us. And by sheer luck, we manage to kill the ‘Beetle’ and save the ‘Ants’… Then what?”
“That’s the easiest part,” Aries said. “Everyone who survives should focus on escaping. By then, you’ll likely encounter many ‘allies’ on the ‘train’—whether they’re ‘Earth-level’ or ‘Human-level.’ As long as you locate them, quickly hide in their rooms, wait for the chaos to pass, and then find a way to leave the ‘train.'”
Right… The plan sounds solid. It seems Aries has planted many ‘needles’…
“But how many of us will actually survive?” I said gloomily. “How many do you think will make it out?”
“I can’t predict everything that will happen,” Aries replied. “After all, this plan requires seamless coordination. If one link fails, the entire chain is affected.”
“Brother Aries, I really don’t have the confidence to lead a group of ordinary people onto the ‘train,’ kill a ‘Heaven-level,’ and then escape unscathed…”
“There’s no need for such self-doubt.” Aries placed a hand on my shoulder—the first time I could remember him touching me.
“What?”
“You are ‘Soul Snatcher,'” Aries said. “None of the ‘Zodiacs’ here are immune to ‘Echoes.’ If your conviction is strong enough and you can control the ‘Beetle’ immediately, victory might only take an instant.”
He’s right… But I’ve never used my ‘Soul Snatcher’ ability against such a high-level enemy before.
“You can use the remaining time to train your ‘Soul Snatcher’ and strengthen your ‘conviction,'” Aries said. “You must see lives as worthless and your allies as mere pebbles. No matter how many die or how many allies you lose, your ‘conviction’ must never waver. Otherwise, destruction is all that awaits you.”
So, from now on, I’ll have to keep participating in ‘Earth-level’ games, using ‘Echoes’ to kill other ‘participants’ as much as possible. Otherwise, I’ll never toughen up, and I’ll never be able to treat lives as expendable.
“What about the ‘Ants’?” I asked. “After we save them… where do we take them?”
“Take them?” Aries shook his head. “No need. Just restore their mobility and let them run free. That alone will be a tremendous help to me.”
“What?” I blinked. “We save them… just so they can wander the ‘train’ freely? What’s the point of saving them then?”
“To have them search for the ‘Eyes,’ of course.”
A faint, chilling smirk curled at the corner of Aries’ lips.
“Search for the ‘Eyes’…?”
“There are many ‘Eyes’ waiting to be found…” Aries continued, still smirking. “Since they’ll be able to move but won’t be able to return to the ‘Earth,’ they’ll have no choice but to search for ‘Eyes’ on the ‘train’… That’s the best possible outcome…”
I felt like I was losing sight of Aries again. His words were becoming harder to grasp.
“You’ll rarely see such a goal-oriented ‘army,'” Aries told me. “This will all be the result of your efforts.”
How should I put this…? I joined Aries to become stronger, and just as he promised, he gave me wisdom.
I thought I’d have a chance to protect myself, to withdraw safely when danger arose and stay out of harm’s way.
But now it seems there’s no such path.
Even if I sense danger, I’ll already be on the ‘train’… How am I supposed to escape then?
“The latter half of the plan is too vague,” I said. “You say we’ll see many allies on the ‘train’ and hide in their rooms until we can leave. But who exactly are these ‘allies’? What’s the method for exiting the ‘train’? If there really is an exit, shouldn’t we be rushing toward it? What’s the point of hiding in rooms?”
Aries stared at me in silence for a long moment before finally uttering a single word: “Oh?”
I didn’t understand what that ‘Oh’ meant…
Judging by his microexpressions, it seemed like he was saying, “You actually thought of that,” or maybe, “I didn’t expect you to see through this.”
“Brother Aries,” I gathered my thoughts and continued, “If you truly want us to escape the ‘train,’ the best time would be the moment we kill the ‘Beetle.’ That’s when the ‘Ants’ scatter, your allies appear, and chaos erupts on the ‘train.’ That’s our only window to flee. But if we hide in ‘rooms’ and wait for order to be restored… where are we supposed to run then?”
I expected Aries to answer, but he fell silent again for several seconds.
“Yan Zhichun, if you want to, then escape the moment the ‘Beetle’ is killed,” he said flatly. “I’m just laying out the path I’ve planned, but you don’t have to follow it. Whether you run, commit suicide, or even put on masks and become ‘Zodiacs’—it’s entirely up to you.”
“What…?”
Such a meticulously crafted plan, yet the ending is this… arbitrary?
“I can’t guarantee the ‘permanent safety’ of everyone in your organization,” Aries added. “But you’ll need to find a way to hide. Once everything is settled, I’ll come for you.”
Alright… This isn’t our ending. It’s the ‘Extremists’’ ending.
After all, the ‘Extremists’ serve their purpose once they protect the area, destroy the giant clock and screens, and kill the ‘Beetle.’ From Aries’ perspective, they’ve outlived their usefulness and can be discarded at any time.
But I can’t abandon them.
Though I’ve never met many of the ‘Extremists,’ as Jiang Ruoxue put it, I carry their ‘karma.’ The fact that they became ‘Extremists,’ stormed the ‘train,’ and died at the hands of the ‘Zodiacs’—it’s all because of me.
So I’ll personally decide their ending.
I’ll adopt the first half of Aries’ plan, but the latter half needs adjustments.
“This is the plan I’ve set for you and your organization,” Aries said. “Remember, if I disappear in two or three years, do everything you can to find me—no matter how long it takes. If I’ve retained my memories, execute the plan. If I haven’t, help me recover them.”
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