“You’re playing dirty with me, huh…?” Earth Goat pushed Earth Tiger awkwardly, his face twisted in frustration. “Are you trying to get both of us killed?”
“What’s there to be afraid of?” Earth Tiger said carelessly. “What’s got you so scared? The ‘Heavens’?”
“You—” Earth Goat immediately turned to glance at the door, a sinking feeling in his gut. “Could you keep your voice down?!”
“Whatever,” Earth Tiger shrugged. “I was only planning to drag you into this, but now that Dog’s here, the three of us can go together.”
“Go together my ass!” Earth Dog shot up from his seat. “Are you out of your mind? Since when did I agree to this?”
Seeing the deadly seriousness in Earth Tiger’s expression, he turned to Earth Goat. “What the hell’s wrong with this idiot?”
“Well…” Earth Goat hesitated. “It’s probably because of Goat Bro…”
“What about Goat Bro?” Earth Dog frowned, looking between them. “Isn’t he ‘Heaven Goat’ now? Did he convince you two to rebel?”
“Don’t talk nonsense,” Earth Goat cut in. “This has nothing to do with Goat Bro. It’s just this fool’s own impulsive idea.”
As Earth Goat explained, Earth Dog began to grasp the situation.
“Wait… what?” Earth Dog’s brow furrowed. “You suspect Goat Bro didn’t become ‘Heaven Goat’… but instead turned back into a regular participant?”
“It’s just a theory,” Earth Goat said. “But this idiot’s already ready to rebel based on nothing but a hunch.”
Earth Dog still didn’t get it. “Hold on—Tiger, what’s your deal? If you really think that guy Qi Xia is Goat Bro, shouldn’t you just talk to him?”
“Dammit…” Earth Tiger muttered under his breath. “How the hell am I supposed to talk to him out there? You know how sharp our boss’s ears are. What if he hears?”
“Then you definitely shouldn’t talk about it here!” Earth Dog snapped, then blinked. “Wait—no, you shouldn’t talk about this anywhere! Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“What’s the big deal?” Earth Tiger sneered. “The ‘Heavens’ are no stronger than us physically—they just have some weird abilities. If we commit, rebellion isn’t impossible…”
“No, no, no—” Earth Dog shook his head frantically. “Listen to me, Tiger…”
“Go on.”
“Isn’t the whole point of us becoming ‘Zodiacs’ to survive and escape?”
Earth Dog glanced at Earth Goat. They both had the same goal now—to talk Earth Tiger out of this madness.
“He’s right, Tiger,” Earth Goat nodded. “Your recklessness doesn’t mean we have to follow. Isn’t it better to stay here and climb the ranks? You worked so hard to become an Earth-level—are you really going to throw it all away?”
“Are you two idiots?” Earth Tiger snapped. “We can’t become ‘Heaven-level’! Goat Bro’s case proves it! Even if we kill enough people, even if the ‘Heaven’ spot above us is empty, we’ll just turn back into regular participants!”
“I said it’s just a theory!” Earth Goat was getting desperate. “Tiger, we don’t have absolute proof that Qi Xia is Goat Bro. Remember? Human Snake said he’d verify the guy’s identity…”
“What more verification do we need?” Earth Tiger’s voice rose. “You, me, and that damn Snake all think it’s him! We knew Goat Bro best! What are the odds of a coincidence like this?”
Neither could convince the other, and silence fell between them.
“Hold on…” Earth Dog finally spoke again, his expression shifting. “I don’t even care about the ‘rebellion’ part anymore… You just said ‘we can’t become Heaven-level.’ Is that true?”
Earth Tiger nodded gravely. “Think about it, Dog. In all your years as a ‘Zodiac,’ have you ever seen a single ‘Earth-level’ actually become ‘Heaven-level’?”
“That’s not a fair argument,” Earth Dog countered. “The problem is we’re never around the ‘Heavens.’ How would we know if any ‘Earth-level’ ever succeeded?”
“My brain only works one way!” Earth Tiger declared. “I’ve never seen a single ‘success,’ but I’ve seen one ‘failure.’ So logically, the failure rate is a hundred percent.”
“You—!” Earth Goat was speechless at the sheer idiocy of the logic.
Meanwhile, Earth Dog’s expression had completely changed.
“Tiger… if we really can’t become ‘Heaven-level’… then this is bad,” Earth Dog said slowly, his voice serious. “All these years, I’ve been careful, played by the rules… If there’s no good ending, then what was the point of all the people I killed? What was the point of my effort? Why did I clock in every damn day?”
“Dog, since when did you—?” Earth Goat was stunned. “I never took you for this kind of person…”
“Before, I didn’t care about anything as long as it didn’t affect me. All I wanted was to clock out on time,” Earth Dog shook his head. “But if what Tiger says is true… then I have to reconsider everything.”
“Both of you, calm down…” Earth Goat raised his hands. “I get where you’re coming from now, but can we at least wait?”
“Wait for what?” Earth Tiger asked.
“For Human Snake to confirm Qi Xia’s identity,” Earth Goat said nervously. “We still have a few days, right?”
“What’s the point of a few days?” Earth Tiger scoffed. “If that damn Snake really confirms it, he’ll be dragged into this fight too. But he’s a ‘Human’! Sure, the three of us can’t stand each other, but do you really want him dead?”
“Being a ‘Human’ doesn’t matter…” Earth Goat shook his head. “But just wait a little longer… We need more time…”
“Goat…” Earth Tiger stood up slowly, stepping closer. “You’re acting weird… Isn’t the situation clear? Either agree and we plan this together, or walk away now and pretend tonight never happened. Got it?”
“No,” Earth Goat said firmly, his gaze unsettling. “I won’t leave, and I won’t let you rebel.”
“Oh?” Earth Dog smirked coldly. “So that’s it… You can’t leave, and you won’t agree—which means you’ve got another plan, don’t you?”
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