Chapter 1168: Loss of Reason

Qinglong slowly walked out from the front of the train, his eyes fixed on the few remaining Tianji inside the room.

His gaze, filled with killing intent, made everyone lower their heads, unable to meet it. They felt that Qinglong must have overused Xianfa, leaving his body unscathed but his mind severely damaged.

But who could have pushed Qinglong to this extent?

Qinglong slowly approached Tian Shu, reached for the chair beside him, and dragged it out with a loud scrape before sitting down heavily.

"Where is Tian Niu?" he asked.

Tian She started to say something but thought better of it, lowering his head and glancing stealthily at Tian Shu.

Tian Shu's earlier arrogance had been completely shattered by Qinglong's previous strike, and he no longer dared to act defiantly.

At this critical moment, if he told Qinglong that Zhong Rui had been destroyed and Tian Niu had gone to handle it but made a mess of everything, who knew what the consequences would be?

Tian Shu was about to pretend he didn't know when he suddenly noticed a strange issue.

As a Lingwen, how could Qinglong not have heard anything?

Even if the killing of Xuanwu was a contained event and the other side had used some method to block it, the destruction of the giant clock and display screen was a massive incident—even Tian Niu had activated Kuanyin. Why hadn't Qinglong heard it?

Tian Shu cautiously turned back and asked carefully, "Qinglong... where did you come from just now?"

Qinglong didn't answer, only staring at him with bloodshot eyes.

"Do I need to report my itinerary to you?" Qinglong asked.

"No... that's not it..." Tian Shu quickly shook his head.

Although Qinglong hadn't answered, his recent location must have been neither in Taoyuan nor on the Lieche, which was the only way he could have been isolated from all sounds.

Everyone kept their heads down, and no one spoke.

"Did someone come by just now?" Qinglong frowned and asked again.

After all, he sensed that someone had released an Huan Shu at the front of the train, otherwise his memories wouldn't be this confused.

"No..." Tian She said slowly, "It's just been us here..."

"That's strange. If no one came, why are you all like this?" Qinglong spoke again, his voice sending chills through the group.

As soon as he finished, he heard a commotion nearby and turned his ear toward it—the entire Taoyuan was in complete chaos.

"What's going on down there...?" Qinglong turned to look at Tian Gou.

"Well..." Tian Gou, under Qinglong's gaze, had no choice but to break his silence. "While you were outside, I thought you knew... The giant clock and display screen were destroyed, and Xuanwu was killed..."

Tian Gou spilled out the current situation in one breath, and Qinglong's eyes widened in shock.

"What did you say... The giant clock and display screen were destroyed?"

"Yes... And Xuanwu was killed."

"Who destroyed them?" Qinglong asked again.

Tian Gou paused before replying, "The giant clock seems to have been destroyed by an organization called Jidao... But as for Xuanwu, she..."

"Jidao...?" Qinglong narrowed his eyes, pondering for a few seconds. "That apple's mind didn't have this yesterday. How could it happen so suddenly? Something this big—would Jidao just decide on a whim?"

"Apple...?"

Qinglong slowly stood up, thinking over this bizarre matter. The giant clock and display screen had originally been set up by the participants, so their destruction wasn't a big issue—they could just find others with the same abilities to rebuild them next time.

But what was the reason behind all this?

Was it just a spontaneous riot?

"So Tian Niu went to handle this?" Qinglong asked.

"Yes..." Tian Gou nodded.

"She won't be able to handle it," Qinglong said. "But her initiative is commendable. If all Tianji were like her, even if they occasionally challenged me, I wouldn't mind."

Hearing Qinglong's words, Tian Shu kept his head down and said nothing.

"Tian Gou, keep an eye on their movements. I suspect this won't end here," Qinglong turned and added. "Tian She, check if you have any usable Yuan Zhumin on hand, figure out how long it will take to rebuild the giant clock and display screen, and get an identical one built at the original spot as soonTGF as possible."

Tian She, still looking down, asked with a hint of confusion, "Forgive me for speaking bluntly... Does it have to be built in the original spot? We could just put it directly on the Lieche..."

Qinglong immediately reached out, grabbed Tian She's collar, and lifted him almost off the ground.

"What are you saying, Tian She?" Qinglong asked.

"I..."

"How can it only be for us to see?" Qinglong's bloodshot eyes bore into Tian She. "What is most important to us?"

"The most important..."

"The most important thing is to give them hope..." Qinglong said, veins bulging as he forced a serene smile. "Without the giant clock, there's no hope. As the ruler here, how could I bear to see everyone give up, living without purpose? Do you understand this great compassion I have for the world?"

"I... I understand..." Tian She nodded frantically. "I get it all... I'll go tally up the suitable candidates right away..."

"Make it identical."

Qinglong chuckled angrily and pressed his hand on Tian She's glasses, applying light pressure until cracks appeared.

"If there's any slip-up with this, I'll grind these glasses into your eyes. Got it?"

"Yes..." Tian She kept his eyes tightly shut and repeated desperately, "Understood..."

At that moment, Qinglong suddenly remembered something and turned back to Tian Gou. "You said earlier, who died?"

"Ah... I said... Xuanwu died..."

"Oh." Qinglong nodded expressionlessly and continued, "Something as useful as Xuanwu—you go make another one for me. This time, I'll take away all its reason, so it can never defy me for eternity."

Tian She shuddered with his eyes closed and then said, "But without reason... it will definitely be very dangerous..."

"If it's very dangerous, then stay there and die with it," Qinglong replied. "Back then, Bai Hu didn't kill you, and Xuanwu didn't kill you, which means your skills might not be great, but your luck is decent, right?"

"Yes... yes..." Tian She nodded.

"So keep relying on that good luck to wander among the Shen Shou. Get out of here."

Qinglong released his grip, and Tian She stumbled out of the room in a hurry.

Watching him leave, Qinglong turned back to the others. "You'd all better keep your eyes wide open and stay alert for anything that might happen. If this disturbance causes any problems, I'll make all of you pay with your lives."

Everyone was stunned by his words, and no one dared to linger at the round table any longer. They all stood up, bid Qinglong farewell, and scattered to get to work.

Qinglong stood there with a grim expression, trying to regain his composure, but for some reason, strange memories began to flood his mind.

His sanity not only failed to recover—it became even more chaotic.