After a long silence among the many “Zodiacs,” Earth Tiger began to grow restless.
“You, girl, how can you spout such nonsense without batting an eye?” He rubbed his massive head and said, “I find this hard to believe. Your game could actually kill Qi Xia?”
“What’s the big deal?” Earth Chicken glanced at the burly men in front of her, a hint of something unspoken in her tone. “Is it really so rare for a ‘participant’ to die in an ‘Earth-level’ game?”
Earth Rat furrowed his brows at this, exchanging a look with Earth Tiger before speaking up. “Chicken Leader, it’s not that we don’t trust you… but you’re saying that man died in your game? That’s genuinely surprising. About when did this happen?”
“Almost a month ago,” Earth Chicken replied after a moment of thought. “What’s the deal? Is this Qi Xia guy really that important?”
The few in the room who knew Qi Xia naturally found this suspicious.
None of their own games had ever been able to stump Qi Xia, let alone kill him—he hadn’t even lost a single “Dao.” Yet this Earth Chicken managed to kill him outright?
“Girl, what kind of game was yours?” Earth Tiger asked.
“I’m Earth Chicken—my game is naturally ‘Conflict,'” she retorted irritably. “You’re Earth Tiger, aren’t you? How do you not even know that?”
“Of course I damn well know it’s ‘Conflict,'” Earth Tiger muttered, frowning. “But what’s the actual content? How did Qi Xia end up dead in your hands?”
“It’s ‘One-on-One.'” Earth Chicken smirked. “My game is probably the simplest in all of ‘Terminal Land.’ Anyone who enters the arena fights another one-on-one—until death.”
“Uh…?” Earth Tiger was baffled. “That counts as a ‘game’…?”
“Why wouldn’t it?” she said. “I remember it pretty clearly. That Qi Xia guy came in with a tattooed man to play, and in the end, Qi Xia died.”
“Tattooed…?” Earth Tiger suddenly recalled something.
In his own “Narrow Escape” game, there had been a tattooed man who stood out—likely someone close to Qi Xia.
But that guy actually killed Qi Xia himself…?
Did Qi Xia really have no chance of winning at the time?
Earth Tiger shook his head. He knew that was unlikely. If Qi Xia died, it was probably by his own choice—otherwise, he would’ve had a hundred ways to avoid death.
“So… that’s all you remember about this Qi Xia guy?” Earth Tiger pressed.
“Yeah, what else should I remember?” Earth Chicken eyed him suspiciously. “What exactly are you trying to say?”
No one in the room knew how to respond. Earth Rat, however, rolled his eyes and spoke up. “I think we’re asking the wrong question here… Chicken Leader, let me ask you this—do you know ‘White Sheep’?”
“White…?” Earth Chicken’s brow slowly furrowed, her expression turning slightly uneasy. “Which ‘White Sheep’?”
The others exchanged glances—this was the breakthrough they’d been waiting for.
There were only two “Sheep” above Earth-level on this train. How could anyone ask “which one”?
“Chicken Leader, drop the act. We’re all in this together now,” Earth Rat stepped forward and whispered. “What has White Sheep Leader told you? Were you two close before?”
“I…” Earth Chicken slowly raised her feather-covered hand to cover her sharp beak, then let out a mischievous giggle, her eyes crinkling with amusement.
“What the…?” Earth Tiger was completely lost. “Girl, that smile of yours is kinda scary… Don’t you dare slander my Sheep Bro like this…”
“Pfft—who’s slandering him?” Earth Chicken continued grinning slyly. “Don’t you think White Sheep is kinda… handsome?”
“Huh…?” The room collectively froze.
“I was totally smitten… hehe…” After laughing, she quickly cleared her throat and regained her composure. “But wait—no one was supposed to know I had a crush on him. Who told you? Why bring this up now?”
“C-Crush…?” Earth Tiger rubbed his head, realizing things were spiraling out of control. “Hold on, girl… No one asked about your crush…”
“Then what *are* you asking?”
Earth Chicken blinked, her long lashes and dark avian eyes lending her an oddly adorable look.
“Well…”
Earth Tiger struggled to phrase it. The real problem was this:
If this girl had truly stumbled into the room by accident, should they really tell her about their “rebellion”?
“Let me put it this way…” Earth Tiger spoke slowly, enunciating each word. “Girl, do you think… Qi Xia and White Sheep… look alike?”
“Huh…? That Qi Xia was kinda handsome too, but he was just a participant… Wait—”
Earth Chicken froze for a long moment before squeezing out a sentence:
“Are you, you deadbeat straight guy, trying to set me up with someone?”
The room collectively facepalmed. This already-flawed alliance was somehow digging its own grave deeper.
This girl clearly didn’t care about “rebellion” at all—all she saw were handsome men.
Earth Tiger pursed his lips, thought for a while, then grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds from the table. “Hey, girl, want some seeds?”
“Like hell I do.” Earth Chicken stood up slowly and addressed the group. “I came here to warn you. If you keep causing disturbances, I *will* report you to Earth Dragon.”
Earth Tiger tossed the seeds to Earth Rabbit beside him, his mood exceptionally complicated.
He was starting to think White Sheep had miscalculated—
This girl joining them wouldn’t bring any new plans to the table. Besides, she hadn’t even agreed to join them.
Could that so-called “neighbor” be someone else…?
Black Sheep, who had been silently observing the whole time, stroked his chin.
Something was off. There was a hole in the logic.
Just as Earth Chicken was about to leave, Black Sheep called out, “Wait.”
“What now?” She turned, puzzled.
“I just remembered something.” Black Sheep stepped forward, his gaze sharp. “Qi Xia once won a large amount of ‘Dao’ in my game. Worried about being robbed, he had a tattooed man come to my venue to collect it for him. At the time, I noticed something interesting.”
“Oh? And? Should I feel sorry for you?” Earth Chicken retorted.
“No, but *I* should feel sorry for *you*.” Black Sheep smirked. “Next time you lie, make sure there isn’t a ‘Sheep’ around.”
“Oh? I lied?” Earth Chicken crossed her arms, grinning. “Dare I ask, oh mighty Black Sheep, *where* did I lie?”
After three seconds of silence, Black Sheep asked:
“If only the ‘tattooed man’ and Qi Xia participated in your game… how would *you* know his name was Qi Xia?”
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