Chapter 1238: Climbing the Ladder

Seeing Tian She casually pull up a chair and sit in front of her, lost in thought, Xiao Ran only felt her anger grow.

“You just sit down like that?” Xiao Ran asked.

“Hmm…?” Tian She didn’t understand her meaning. “Am I in your way?”

“Attitude!” Xiao Ran snapped. “It’s all about your attitude! First, I’m a guest visiting your room. Second, I represent Qinglong, here to deliver orders to you. By all logic, you should have offered me the chair first.”

Tian She stared into Xiao Ran’s eyes for a long moment, finding the situation genuinely perplexing.

Because this woman truly believed what she was saying—she wasn’t bluffing, nor did she show any sign of guilt from lying.

Tian She had read countless minds, but this one was uniquely baffling. Though she had lied earlier, she now inexplicably began acting in perfect alignment with her words, making it impossible for him to pin her down.

“I don’t—I mean, I don’t have the habit of yielding like that,” Tian She replied vaguely. “Just take a seat yourself.”

With a huff, Xiao Ran dragged over a chair and sat down, crossing her legs and folding her arms.

“Alright, report to me,” she said.

“Report…?”

“Yes, tell me what you ‘Celestials’ have been doing to upset Qinglong so much?” Xiao Ran frowned. “We’re all on the same side now. To deal with those ‘rebels’ out there, we need to stand united.”

“Oh, I was just—wait… ‘rebels’?”

Tian She paused, quickly scanning Xiao Ran’s gaze for the information he needed.

What he found was even more bizarre than he’d imagined.

So-called ‘rebels’—in this woman’s memory, they were just a group of newly freed ‘natives.’

With Zhuque dead, many ‘natives’ regained their senses, and then some old conman figure had goaded them into boarding the ‘train’ in a daze.

That was the ‘rebellion’…

As absurd as it was, these people shouldn’t have warranted Qinglong’s attention—a few ‘Terrestrials’ could’ve handled them easily.

This ragtag mob would scatter after a handful were killed—they lacked the conviction to fight or a clear goal to die for.

The only real issue was recreating Zhuque alongside the replicated Xuanwu.

“So you saw people ‘rebelling’…” Tian She adjusted his glasses, eyeing Xiao Ran skeptically. “Then you ran to Qinglong to tattle… and he assigned you to me?”

“Good guess,” Xiao Ran smirked. “Now you see why Qinglong values me so much?”

Truthfully, Tian She didn’t.

Given Qinglong’s temperament, he should’ve torn this woman apart on the spot.

Yet here she was, alive and well—how was that possible? Surviving Qinglong with this attitude was nothing short of miraculous.

Wait… no.

After some thought, Tian She realized Qinglong must’ve already known about the ‘rebellion’ on the train. Even if he’d been too distracted to notice, Tiangou would’ve reported it by now.

So Qinglong sending this woman to him wasn’t because of her ‘tip-off’—it had to be something else.

“Your ‘immortal technique’…” Tian She hesitated. “I mean… your ‘Echo’—what is it?”

Since he hadn’t detected anything about an ‘Echo’ in Xiao Ran’s mind, he had to ask directly.

If this woman was scattered, insignificant, and self-important, yet Qinglong still sent her here, her ‘Echo’ must compensate for all those flaws.

“‘Echo’…?” Xiao Ran’s eyes darted briefly before she regained composure. “Why ask that? You’re supposed to follow my orders, not interrogate me. Want me to report you to Qinglong right now?”

Tian She fell silent again.

Because once more, she wasn’t lying.

She genuinely intended to ‘praise’ him to Qinglong with embellishments, even picturing Qinglong confronting him in her mind.

If she didn’t have an absolute trump card… why would she be this confident?

“Just do your job,” Xiao Ran muttered, picking at her grimy nails—days with Dishe had left her filthy, dirt caked under her nails.

“But what exactly am I supposed to do…?” Tian She asked, having found no orders in her memories.

“Oh, right.” Xiao Ran looked up. “First order: tell the other active ‘Celestials’ to mobilize the ‘Terrestrials’ and suppress the rebels. Then return here—I’ll be waiting.”

As she spoke, Tian She kept scrutinizing her eyes, confirming she wasn’t lying—this truly was Qinglong’s command.

No time to waste; he had to alert the other ‘Celestials’ immediately.

Tian She realized his mind-reading wasn’t flawless—if the person wasn’t actively thinking about something, he couldn’t detect it.

At least he hadn’t delayed Qinglong’s orders too long.

“Next time, say this sooner,” Tian She muttered before turning to leave.

Watching her command take effect, Xiao Ran smiled, sitting alone in Tian She’s room.

This was far better than she’d imagined.

Though the room reeked and was just as filthy, Tian She at least seemed cleaner than that foul Dishe.

Now, she’d gone from a mere ‘participant’ to someone who could command ‘Celestials’—the feeling was intoxicating.

Reflecting on her journey through this wretched place, it had been a rollercoaster of setbacks.

First, she’d pinned hopes on a neurologist, planning to leverage his connections for money and influence—only to find him useless, unable to even stand up for her. Then she’d set her sights on Qi Xia, whom others treated as a leader. Getting close to him would’ve meant power over the rest—but that too failed.

Whether in ‘Paradise Port,’ as a ‘Zodiac,’ or among the ‘natives,’ her good fortune never lasted. Just as she neared success, someone always ruined it.

But now, everything had changed.

She’d climbed to the top—aligned with the most powerful figure here: Qinglong.