Chapter 1265: Snake's Smile

Tian She scrambled up from the ground as if he had seen a ghost, hurrying over to the side of the black hole and peering outside while holding onto the wall. His expression was one of utter despair.

"Damn it..." Tian She said with a trembling voice, "Do you know what you've done?"

"Of course..." Bai She replied, looking down. "Anyway, my life is on a countdown now. I might as well take someone down with me, ha ha..."

Tian She's mind raced. He knew that killing Bai She at this point would serve no purpose, but he had never imagined anyone would resort to such an attack method.

So, was he dead... or still alive?

Being unable to return to the "Liezhe" meant he would never appear before anyone else again. Even if he survived, what would it matter?

"Damn it..." Tian She clutched his hair, "Stay calm... Stay calm... Think of a way..."

"Ha ha ha ha!" Bai She seemed to have slipped into a daze from excessive blood loss, but he still laughed as he said, "Tian She... I know you too well... You can't create a 'Men'... You can't go back..."

Tian She turned his head angrily toward Bai She, realizing the situation was becoming truly dire. Even if someone on the "Liezhe" opened the door to his room, they would only see emptiness inside, making any rescue impossible.

The "Liezhe" was still the "Liezhe," but they had derailed.

"You...!!" Tian She walked over to Bai She, grabbed him by the neck, and lifted him up, his face full of rage as he said, "I told you we could talk! You can have whatever you want!! Why did it have to come to this? What are we supposed to do next?"

"Next..." Bai She forced out the words from his throat, "I'll slowly die, and you can spend eternity here with that woman. How does that sound?"

Bai She's words sent a chill through Tian She's entire body.

Spend eternity here with that woman?

He had never heard of a punishment more terrifying than that.

He knew he wouldn't age or starve to death; it was entirely possible that he would linger on endlessly in this place, barely surviving alongside her.

A wave of profound sorrow washed over Tian She, making him tremble uncontrollably.

"You look so sad, ha ha ha ha ha..." Bai She said, his neck still gripped, yet his expression oddly relaxed.

He knew he had won.

This time, he had not only won the battle but also his life.

As Tian She held Bai She's neck and took a step toward the void, intending to throw him in, Xiao Ran spoke up.

"Don't!" she called out. "Don't kill him yet! Wait!"

Tian She paused, clinging to a thread of reason as he turned back to her: "...Wait for what?"

"That door isn't destroyed; it just fell outside!" Xiao Ran said. "We can make him go get it back!"

Tian She let out a bitter laugh after hearing this.

It seemed the sins he had committed in his life were truly too great, forcing him to share his final days with a woman like this.

Make Bai She go get the door back?

Never mind the immense difficulty of finding a single door in that infinite expanse outside—even if Bai She found it, what reason would he have to bring it back? He could destroy it or even escape on his own.

Why did this woman act as if she could control everything?

Did she think a simple threat like "I'll report to Qing Long" could manipulate someone who no longer wanted to live?

Tian She lowered his head in sorrow, his hands relaxing as he dropped Bai She to the ground.

He felt that no matter what he did, it would be futile. This room would forever hold only Bai She's corpse, some mindless "Jiaju," and that mad woman with the enlarged hand.

All he could do was hope that this floating room might one day drift toward a door that could lead to escape, anywhere at all—he just didn't want to be alone here with "Qiong Qi."

"At least I have my books..." Tian She said with a bitter smile. "I have my favorite books with me... As long as I read them over and over, one day I'll surpass Bai Yang and find a way out..."

Before he could finish, Tian She's eyes were drawn to a strange book on the ground.

The patterns and text layout on it were familiar, but the open page had been damaged by something, with a long gash scratched across it.

Tian She walked over with a pang of heartache, gently picking up the book and looking at the cover. It was his treasured "Boyi Lun."

"Damn it... Damn it!!" Tian She stammered, his lips trembling. "How could this happen? Who destroyed my book?!"

Xiao Ran heard this and opened her mouth but didn't dare speak.

How could Tian She not figure it out?

For all this time, only Xiao Ran had been alone in his room.

"Who destroyed my book?" Tian She asked again, glaring at Xiao Ran.

"So what if the book is destroyed?" Xiao Ran said dismissively. "It's just a book. Instead of worrying about that, you should think about how to change my hand back. Qing Long will be shocked when he sees me like this."

"You idiot..." Tian She gritted his teeth, his pent-up resentment finally boiling over.

Everything had escalated to this point because of this foolish and arrogant "Qiong Qi."

Ever since she appeared, things had gone strangely wrong, yet she showed no remorse whatsoever.

Even if he stepped back and thought about it—if she weren't in this room, would Bai She have chosen to remove that door?

At that moment, Tian Gou's warning echoed in Tian She's ears:

"Don't bother with any 'new Xuanwu,' and don't listen to her sweet talk. The moment you get back to your room, kill her—maybe then you can still be saved, or maybe..."

"Ha... Ha ha..." Tian She laughed bitterly. "How ridiculous... In the end, I didn't trust my closest ally, Tian Gou, and instead believed Qing Long and you... Ha ha ha!"

Tian She laughed so hard he doubled over, tears forming in the corners of his eyes. Bai She lifted his head to look at him, unsure of what he was thinking.

"Qing Long... Ha ha ha... Damn it..."

With a strange smile, Tian She scanned his "Jiaju." The one responsible for "Jiajie" had already been run through the throat by a piece of wood and was lifeless, cutting off all possible ways out.

He approached a standing "Jiaju" in the corner, which always wore an eyepatch. Tian She removed the eyepatch, pointed at Xiao Ran, and handed the "Jiaju" some paper and a pen.

The "Jiaju" paused for a moment, stared at Xiao Ran, and began silently writing on the paper:

"Ju Hua," "Bao Shan," "Yue Qian," "Ying Hua."

After writing those four "Huixiang," the "Jiaju" hesitated briefly before adding two more words—

"Huo Shui."

"Ha ha..." Tian She laughed bitterly as he looked at the lines of text, seeming completely unhinged.

He crumpled the paper into a ball, then turned back to Xiao Ran and said:

"'Qiong Qi'... I've changed my mind. I'll prepare the 'Yue Qian' for you properly, so you can go back and report to Qing Long."

Xiao Ran heard this and smiled.

"Ha... Well, that's more like it. You should have done that from the start."

The scene grew increasingly bizarre, with Xiao Ran laughing, Tian She laughing, and even Bai She laughing beside them.