After listening, Qixia remained silent for a long while before speaking, “Let me summarize your point. You’re saying all the ‘Extremists’ want to protect this place, but you don’t.”
“Yes.”
“You plan to take a completely different path from them—to destroy this place.”
“Yes.”
“In that case… why do you still call yourself an ‘Extremist’?” Qixia cast a suspicious glance at Lin Qin. “Your current goal aligns with ‘Paradise’ or any other ‘participants.’ Why not just keep it hidden and be a full-fledged ‘participant’?”
“I couldn’t hide it from you,” Lin Qin said. “When I explained the ‘Madman Theory’ to you, I felt like you saw right through me. Rather than being exposed harshly by you someday, I’d rather tell you the truth myself.”
“Is that so…” Qixia nodded. “I originally thought you weren’t a madman, but it turns out you’re even crazier than the ‘Extremists.'”
“I’m lucid,” Lin Qin continued drinking, her cheeks now flushed. “I majored in psychology in the real world. How could I possibly become a madman…?”
“Then why didn’t you ‘stimulate’ me?” Qixia asked expressionlessly. “If you don’t show your sincerity, how can I cooperate with you?”
“Who said I didn’t try?” Lin Qin sighed. “Every time I touched you, I asked, ‘What are you thinking?’ But your mind was locked—you were always thinking of your wife. You never even noticed my ‘stimulation.'”
Seeing Qixia remain silent, Lin Qin added, “I want to ally with you, Qixia. I have no other way out.”
Hearing this, Qixia fell silent again.
At that moment, one was munching on peanuts while the other sipped beer, chatting as casually as friends.
“You said last time you wanted to return to the real world to confirm something. What was it?”
“I forgot to tell you—that incident changed me.” Lin Qin smiled brightly. “Qixia, you eventually escaped this place. Though you lived miserably, like a walking corpse, you did make it out.”
Qixia paused, then slowly asked, “You’ve seen me in the real world?”
“Not exactly,” Lin Qin chuckled. “I’ve only heard of you. In my timeline, you were in the hospital where my friend worked—completely insane. You kept spouting bizarre theories like ‘The End is Nigh,’ ‘No One Survives,’ and ‘Divine Deception,’ driving everyone in the hospital up the wall.”
Qixia’s expression darkened. “So what you wanted to confirm was…?”
“Whether that person was you.” Lin Qin grinned even wider. “When my friend described that old man, I always felt he resembled you. His logical thinking was incredibly sharp, but sadly, he was insane.”
“Was it me?”
“Most likely.” Lin Qin nodded. “Though that old man had no name and didn’t react to being called ‘Qixia,’ the moment someone whispered ‘Yu Nian’an’ in his ear, he’d completely break down.”
At this, Lin Qin giggled and turned to Qixia. “I had my friend test it multiple times—calling ‘Yu Nian’an’ repeatedly in his ear. The effect was quite amusing.”
*Crack.*
Qixia crushed a peanut in his grip.
“So this is what you meant by me living ‘like a walking corpse, miserably…'” Qixia said despairingly. “You believe that by following me, you’ll find a way to escape…”
“Exactly!” Lin Qin nodded cheerfully. “You didn’t die in 2022 but lived all the way to 2068. Isn’t that the best proof? Seventy-two-year-old grandpa.”
“You don’t understand me.” Qixia shook his head. “If I truly returned to reality but lost Yu Nian’an, there’s no way I’d survive until 2068.”
“So you’re saying… that old man wasn’t you?” Lin Qin grinned, shaking her bottle. “Maybe something in the future forces you to live on, even without Yu Nian’an?”
Qixia stared into Lin Qin’s eyes for a long time before nodding slightly.
A cold smile curled on his lips. “Fine, I’ll join forces with you. Let’s see what this ‘future change’ is.”
So the key to survival here is… *deception*?
Lin Qin smiled back at Qixia. Their exchanged glance sealed an unspoken agreement.
Yun Yao finished singing a song and, amid the crowd’s encore, restarted the same track from the recorder.
Seems she only had one tape.
“Lin Qin, how long have you been wandering here?” Qixia asked casually.
“Do you think my answer would be truthful?” Lin Qin countered.
“I’ll judge its validity based on your response.”
“A long time—longer than you’d imagine.” Lin Qin smirked. “I’m a seasoned ‘Extremist.'”
“Then have you ever seen me before?” Qixia pressed.
“No.” Lin Qin shook her head. “I’ve roamed the ‘Land of Finality’ longer than Chu Tianqiu, yet I’ve never encountered you.”
Qixia frowned slightly. Another unexpected twist.
“This is important to me. I need the truth,” Qixia said, locking eyes with her.
“Truthfully.” Lin Qin nodded. “I know what you’re thinking, so I won’t lie about this. Qixia, for at least seven years, I’ve never heard of someone like you in the ‘Land of Finality.’ As for before that… I’m not even sure if this place existed back then.”
“Seven years?!” Qixia was stunned.
Had he misjudged everything?
Based on ‘White Tiger’s’ words, he assumed he’d wandered here for ages. But *seven years*?
Qixia knew his mind wouldn’t degrade with each cycle. In other words, every time he woke here, he’d inevitably pass the ‘Interview Room.’
If he encountered a ‘Zodiac’ in the city, he’d undoubtedly confront them.
With luck retaining memories, he could’ve turned this place upside down.
He’d have met many, killed many ‘Zodiacs.’
So why hadn’t that happened in seven years?
“Are you saying… in all that time, I never once passed the ‘Interview’?”
His gaze turned icy as he suddenly looked at Lin Qin.
“Then when did you start infiltrating our ‘Interview Room’?” Qixia demanded. “If you’ve never seen me, why sneak in and willingly become my teammate?”
Lin Qin slowly raised her hand, counting on her fingers.
“This is our third encounter,” she said. “First, I saw you in a game—but you died. The second time, I entered the ‘Interview Room.’ This is the third.”
She smiled again. “I’ve never seen someone without any ‘Echo’ repeatedly risk their life against ‘Zodiacs.’ Yet you did. Pity you died in a mundane ‘Earth Rooster’ game.”
“So you’re saying…” Qixia’s expression darkened. “I’ve only been in the ‘Land of Finality’ for three cycles?”
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