Chapter 1025: The Decisive Person

Chen Jun Nan burst through the door again.

Before he could boast about his bold entrance, he saw Qi Xia finishing up some instructions with Tian Tian.

Tian Tian looked completely bewildered by Qi Xia's ideas.

"Qi Xia... this plan of yours... you..." She furrowed her brow, her face full of confusion. "Your thinking is just too..."

Tian Tian seemed to want to comment on Qi Xia's idea, but the words stuck in her throat like a car crash, and she couldn't get a single one out.

"So, practice it now while you can," Qi Xia said to Tian Tian. "Our chances are limited, maybe just once."

"Okay... I-I know... don't worry..." Tian Tian said "don't worry," but it was clear she wasn't confident at all. "I'll go practice right away..."

"Thank you," Qi Xia said.

"Hmm...?" Tian Tian turned her head, looking at Qi Xia with a blank expression. "What?"

"I said, thank you," Qi Xia repeated.

Those three words not only left Tian Tian baffled but also made Chen Jun Nan pause for a few seconds.

In his memory, Qi Xia rarely said those words to anyone.

"No need..." Tian Tian forced a smile, still reeling from the ridiculous plan. She could only respond, "I haven't done anything yet, so saying 'thank you' is premature. What if it fails..."

"It's not just about this," Qi Xia said. "I've wanted to thank you for a long time, but you never gave me the chance."

"For a long time...?" Tian Tian clearly didn't understand. "Logically, I'm not very capable, so I haven't helped you much..."

"You have, more than you know," Qi Xia said. "I'm afraid this time might be like before—you'll do what you need to and then quietly disappear somewhere. So, I want to say it now."

"This..." Tian Tian nodded as if she half-understood, but didn't know what to say. After a few seconds of silence, she added, "You don't have to be polite... I don't know what I've done, but it's probably no different from this time—it's all voluntary."

After saying that, she seemed to think of something and added, "Even if I were to quietly disappear somewhere, that would be voluntary too."

Qi Xia let out a meaningful sigh, as if resolving some faint inner knot.

"Then I'll head out," Tian Tian said.

"Tian Tian," Qi Xia called softly.

"Hmm...?"

"I want to ask you one last time, seriously," he stepped forward and said gravely. "If there were a chance to start over, would you choose to escape this place and return to your life?"

Tian Tian froze; she clearly hadn't expected Qi Xia to ask that question now.

Her eyes turned vague for a moment, but soon they grew as still as ashes.

"I don't want to..." Tian Tian said softly, opening her mouth. "I probably don't have what you'd call a 'life' anymore."

Qi Xia looked at Tian Tian, a flicker of complex sympathy in his eyes.

"Even if it meant you could start over yourself, you wouldn't choose to go back and see?"

Tian Tian lowered her head, a few strands of hair falling forward to obscure her expression—or perhaps she had no expression at all right then.

Chen Jun Nan fell silent too, sensing the aura emanating from Tian Tian: a complete lack of attachment to the so-called "reality."

Qi Xia and Chen Jun Nan both knew that what was swirling in this girl's mind wasn't hesitation about "whether to return to reality," but rather how to refuse without seeming rude.

In Zhong Yan Zhi Di, there were others like Tian Tian who felt fear toward "reality." But that reluctance was often a facade; after all, everyone there was ultimately trapped with no choices, so they self-deceived by saying they "didn't want to leave."

If given a real choice, most would still hesitate.

From the start, Chen Jun Nan and Qi Xia had never seen that hesitation in Tian Tian—whether she retained her memories or appeared anew, she never missed anything from the real world.

A few seconds later, she spoke: "I'm sorry, but let's focus on winning this game first, no matter what."

Qi Xia was silent for a moment, and any faint hope he had vanished: "Alright then."

Tian Tian nodded, turned around, and opened the door, running into Zhang Lü Shi and Zheng Ying Xiong who were returning.

The three exchanged brief greetings, and Tian Tian entered the room, closing the door behind her to attend to whatever she needed to do.

Zhang Lü Shi and Zheng Ying Xiong were startled when they saw Chen Jun Nan, and they both stepped back half a pace.

"Little brother... this..." Zhang Chen Ze turned to look at Zheng Ying Xiong.

After thinking for a moment, Zheng Ying Xiong said to Chen Jun Nan, "Brother, did you get the 'character'?"

Chen Jun Nan was taken aback, swallowing the words he had been about to say to Qi Xia. He turned back with a serious expression toward Zheng Ying Xiong.

"What happened?" Zheng Ying Xiong asked.

"Damn... that woman even pretends with kids?" Chen Jun Nan said with a face full of disgust. "Zhang Jie, you better let go of his hand. Watch out—he might bite you."

"Huh...?" Zheng Ying Xiong felt like there was a misunderstanding. "No... it's not..."

"Come on, come on," Chen Jun Nan stepped forward. "If you've got the guts, go at me. Where's that arrogant kid? Did you hide him because he couldn't take on adults and went after a child instead?"

"Maybe there's a misunderstanding..." Zhang Chen Ze quickly interjected. "Chen Jun Nan, we just ran into someone impersonating you, and it was Ying Xiong who saw through it. We haven't been separated this whole time, so he's the real one."

"Huh?" Chen Jun Nan was stunned. "That doesn't make sense... Zhang Jie, do you know what this kid just called me? I've known him for days, and I've never heard him call me 'brother'—it's like rain turning into soybean milk, totally off."

"I was testing you," Zheng Ying Xiong said impatiently. "And now you're testing me? I don't know who's more of a handful..."

"You little brat..." Chen Jun Nan sighed. "I'm a bit on edge because of that 'Hua Xing' too. Being cautious isn't wrong, right?"

Qi Xia glanced at Chen Jun Nan and asked quietly, "So, what did you find this time?"

"Oh, right, Lao Qi!" Chen Jun Nan turned away from Zhang Lü Shi and Zheng Ying Xiong, saying, "You won't believe what awesome thing I just pulled off..."

As he spoke, he pulled a "character" from his pocket and held it up in front of Qi Xia.

"Jin."