Qi Xia ran along the road, silently cursing in his mind several times.
He always felt there was something odd about those black threads. They had landed among the crowd right outside the prison before chasing everyone from all directions, causing him to lose contact with Qiao Jiajin, Chen Junnan, and “Cat” almost immediately.
Now, he was running alone through the streets, occasionally spotting other desperate participants in flight. Panic was written all over their faces, and some were covered in blood, as if they had already lost their teammates.
Fresh corpses littered the streets, their deaths bizarre—their skulls remained connected, but their bodies were cleanly sliced apart, resembling open clamps.
As Qi Xia sprinted through an intersection, he glanced back. The black thread chasing him stretched along the road, suspended about one and a half meters above the ground. No matter how far he ran, the trail it left remained hovering in midair.
“This…” Qi Xia stared at the floating black thread behind him. Though it wasn’t fast, a realization struck him.
The danger of the “Pegasus Hour” wasn’t just these chasing threads.
The thought had barely formed when he saw a young man in the distance, fleeing from another black thread, emerge from the opposite side of the intersection.
Perhaps he was too panicked to notice the thread blocking his path—the one that had been pursuing Qi Xia—or perhaps it was simply too thin, barely the width of a hair, making it nearly invisible to the naked eye.
Whatever the case, the young man ran straight into the horizontal thread. Before Qi Xia could even shout a warning, the man’s head slowly slid off his shoulders and dropped to the ground. His body, carried by momentum, took a few more steps before collapsing like a marionette with its strings cut.
The thread chasing the man now intersected with Qi Xia’s, forming a straight, cross-shaped barrier that blocked both roads.
Witnessing this, Qi Xia could already imagine the scene after the “Pegasus Hour” had progressed for over an hour.
Now, not only did he have to outpace the thread behind him, but he also had to be wary of the paths others had taken. If he missed even a single thread suspended in the air, he could die without ever knowing why.
Once a path had been taken by fleeing participants, it could no longer be traversed. This was a one-way escape with no turning back.
The more survivors there were, the more perilous the situation would become.
The routes others had fled through were now death traps, and some hadn’t even stuck to main roads—they might have dashed through dark alleys in desperation. A single misstep could turn him into collateral damage.
Qi Xia kept glancing back at the thread pursuing him. It wasn’t fast—a light jog would keep it at bay—but the real question was how long he could maintain that pace?
This game was unlike any Qi Xia had participated in before. “Intelligence” was useless now; his entire focus was on regulating his breathing.
He sighed deeply. At least he didn’t have to worry about the entire “Cat” team, nor Qiao Jiajin or Chen Junnan. No matter how he looked at it, their chances of survival were higher than his.
“I need to head for open ground…”
Qi Xia set his direction. Continuing through the labyrinthine city would only raise his odds of dying to absurd levels. So he deliberately steered his path, leading his pursuer toward the outskirts.
The “Pegasus Hour” had been underway for nearly ten minutes, and the sound of tolling bells now rang continuously around him. Whether these people’s “Echoes” were triggered by near-death experiences, injuries, or witnessing their teammates’ deaths, they were all forcibly awakening their abilities—and they would vividly remember this “Pegasus Hour” and the state of their own gruesome demise.
After turning a few corners, Qi Xia spotted a five- or six-story building. He didn’t slow down, but from a distance, he noticed Earth Tiger standing at its entrance.
“You—” Earth Tiger, standing in front of his game venue, spotted Qi Xia from afar.
Their eyes met for a brief moment. Qi Xia noticed Earth Tiger’s face was injured—his white fur was stained with crimson blood, and one of his fangs had even been broken.
“My ‘needle’…” Seeing Earth Tiger’s condition, Qi Xia confirmed a suspicion he’d held for a while.
He had theorized that he’d planted “needles” among the Zodiacs, though he hadn’t been entirely sure. But Earth Tiger’s current state bolstered his confidence.
His “needle” was in motion—though it didn’t seem to be going smoothly.
But now wasn’t the time for lengthy conversations with Earth Tiger. Not only was eavesdropping a constant risk, but the “Pegasus Hour” was also closing in.
Earth Tiger scratched his wounded face, then glanced at the black thread behind Qi Xia, finally understanding why business had been so slow today.
“Damn, is this a Heavenly-level event?” He looked up at the sun, smirking bitterly. “I thought this godforsaken place was finally getting cloudy. Didn’t expect them to go this hard.”
“Earth Tiger…” Qi Xia spoke, nearly disrupting his hard-won steady breathing. He quickened his pace, momentarily widening the gap between himself and the thread, before stopping in front of Earth Tiger, panting heavily.
“Goat—” Earth Tiger started to call him, then hesitated, pressing his lips together before saying, “You gonna make it?”
“I’m not sure…” Qi Xia struggled to steady his breath. “A game that targets everyone… feels unfair to me.”
“I…”
Earth Tiger hesitated, unsure how to treat the man before him. This was his “Brother Goat,” yet right now, he was just another participant who might die at any moment. After fumbling for words, he finally spoke:
“I’m doing it.”
“Doing what?” Qi Xia’s gaze turned cold.
“What you once asked of me,” Earth Tiger replied.
That one sentence dispelled all Qi Xia’s doubts.
He couldn’t be certain about the other “needles,” but Earth Tiger was undoubtedly one he had trusted the most in the past.
“But you seem reckless…” Qi Xia stared at Earth Tiger’s injuries. “Is this harder than you expected?”
“Yeah, it’s tough. But—” Earth Tiger wanted to say more but noticed the black thread behind Qi Xia was closing in. “Next time. Just don’t die this round. I’ll be here waiting for you.”
Qi Xia sensed something, turning to see the thread now less than ten meters away.
“Damn it…”
He cursed under his breath, then exchanged a knowing glance with Earth Tiger. With a nod, Qi Xia turned and sprinted off into the distance again.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage