Chapter 1262: 全面開戰

"You can die in peace," Tian Tu said. "The feeling of not being able to breathe is agony, isn't it?"

"Why...?" Di Tu asked, lowering his head. "You've said yourself that you slept for decades before waking up... So why do you want to kill?"

"Waking up?" Tian Tu smirked. "Did you actually believe that? Or maybe you've got it all wrong? This place is the real nightmare."

"Nightmare...?" Di Tu clutched his chest and slowly narrowed his eyes.

"Do you think this is a dream, or that the real world is the dream?" Tian Tu pointed at Di Tu's ear and said, "Tell me yourself—which is more likely for a freak with a rabbit head and human body to appear in: the real world or a dream?"

Di Tu paused slightly at that, reaching up to touch his cheek.

It was all so dreamlike.

Here, there were people who could use xian fa, beings with animal heads and human bodies, people who could resurrect after death, and even those who were like insects.

But unfortunately, this world had no such terrifying nightmares.

Every person's pain and suffering was unique and real.

"So, killing a monster in a nightmare... What's wrong with that?" Tian Tu asked again.

Only then did Di Tu realize that Tian Tu harbored no personal grudge against him; instead, she had the kind of madness unique to the zhong yan zhi di.

"But your hand turned to iron," Di Tu said through gritted teeth. "If this is just a nightmare you've recently had, how did you know your hand could turn to metal?"

"You..."

Tian Tu's expression revealed that she knew a lot, but she refused to admit it.

"Do you think Tian Long and Qing Long have been haunting your nightmares all along?" Di Tu asked, still clutching his chest. "Do you believe your nightmares are suppressed by those two...? We're clearly giving you a chance for 'eternal liberation,' yet you're lost in illusions."

"Yes, but Tian Long can let me see my family—can you?" Tian Tu replied. "Even if the 'rebels' succeed, it's just shattering the tian ji to return to the dream of reality. Why shouldn't I kill you?"

"I was naive..." Di Tu said with a bitter smile. "So you understand everything... And here I was, still trying to convince you."

"That's right, don't be foolish. Your head is worth another beautiful dream for me," Tian Tu laughed. "A genuine 'rebel,' right?"

"Unfortunately..." Di Tu said gravely.

"I pity you too," Tian Tu nodded. "Such a strong man, yet I pierced your lung."

"The one I pity is you." Di Tu slowly stood up, as if nothing had happened, and looked up at Tian Tu. His face was calm, showing no sign that he had stopped breathing.

Tian Tu frowned slightly. "You..."

"Thanks to my teammates, I was one of the first to realize that 'breathing isn't necessary here at all,'" Di Tu said, stretching his muscles. "Fighting a tian ji is tough, but I've got no mental pressure now. Someone like you deserves to die."

...

Bai She felt a strong sense of unease as he watched Tian She beg for mercy.

Though he had never fought Tian She, the other had "mind reading," so how could he be afraid?

His doubts were clearly transmitted to Tian She's mind, and Tian She quickly added, "It's true! You've probably noticed—everything I've done from the start has been to save my own skin... After all, Qing Long could kill me at any moment. Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger, as the saying goes, right?"

Bai She still narrowed his eyes. He knew Tian She all too well; he was indeed trying to survive, but in this situation, the most effective way wasn't to beg—it was to kill him.

Xiao Ran watched the scene with a sly smile, already planning how to report it to Qing Long.

A tian ji like Tian She groveling to a di ji—Qing Long would never forgive him.

"You..." Tian She realized Bai She wasn't listening and hurriedly said, "It's really true. I don't know how to make you believe me... How about I transplant a 'mind reading' ability to you right now?"

"I don't want to read your filthy mind."

Bai She turned away and locked the door.

"Tian She, you treated me like an animal to toy with. Even if you knelt before me and kowtowed until your head was bloody, I would never forgive you."

"Damn it..." Tian She gritted his teeth. "Are you really ready to drag us both down here?"

"Yes." Bai She turned, adopting a combat stance. "I came here with no intention of leaving. Either I die here, or we both do."

"Just for those 'rebels'... You're willing to throw away your life?!"

"I'm killing you for myself, not for anyone else." Bai She took a deep breath and said, "This is the first time in my battered life that I've chosen to fight back. It means everything to me. If I don't act now, I'll be defeated by my own life forever."

"You'll die." Tian She said coldly, "You've clung to life this long—what reason do you have to throw it away?"

"It doesn't matter. For me now, death isn't frightening." Bai She shook his head. "Even if I die, I've won my life."

Tian She knew there was no escaping it now. Just as he thought, these people never accepted oppression—they always rose as self-righteous "rebels."

But if they had the power to rebel, they wouldn't have been oppressed in the first place.

He glanced at Xiao Ran; the situation was getting tricky. His initial plea for peace was only to protect Qiong Qi.

Though the initial modifications were complete, he hadn't yet let Qing Long take her sanity. She had too many chaotic thoughts, making her hard to control.

Besides, she had just gained those eyeballs, and the functions and triggers of each xian fa were still unknown. How could she fulfill Qiong Qi's duties?

If Bai She noticed this and chose not to attack him but to kill Qiong Qi instead, Qing Long would find out, and he'd still die.

So, in this predicament, who would want to fight a mad Bai She?

Tian She had to survive this battle and protect Xiao Ran at all costs.

"Your eyes are full of complexity." Bai She frowned and said, "My dear teacher, though I don't have 'mind reading,' I can clearly sense you're troubled."

"Your thoughts are so pure..." Tian She replied, "All you have in your head is killing me. But is that even possible?"

Bai She wasn't sure if he could kill Tian She alone, but at least he had his plan to drag them both down.

"Whether I can succeed or not, I can try."