Chapter 169: Life Tablet

Su Shan reached out and drew a card, with Qi Xia following suit quickly.

The card’s face didn’t matter at all.

Their strategy was already set.

Qi Xia placed a "Handgun" on the table, while Su Shan laid down a "Knife."

Neither of them hid anything, pushing the cards face up.

"Su Shan, I'm 'Gun,' and you're 'Knife,'" Qi Xia said.

Su Shan nodded and replied, "Qi Xia, have you ever fired a gun?"

"Fired a gun?"

"Do you know what model of gun will drop after our cards are played?" Su Shan continued. "And how to load it, or how to release the safety?"

Qi Xia furrowed his brow slightly but didn't answer.

"I'm betting your teammate can't pull the trigger in ten seconds," Su Shan said, feigning composure. "Even if he does manage to fire, it won't kill Zi Chen outright. Ten seconds is too short."

With that, she pulled out another "Handgun," flipped it open, and showed it to Qi Xia.

"As long as Zi Chen is still breathing, I'll get him a 'Handgun' in the next round. That's when we'll decide the winner."

Qi Xia stared into Su Shan's eyes for a long time before saying, "I really hope you don't die here."

"Hah, is that so?" Su Shan let out a cold laugh. "But you've been trying to kill me repeatedly. One of us is definitely going to die here."

"That's not what I meant." Qi Xia scratched his head and said, "How about this—after this game, if you figure things out, you can come find me at the school on the west side."

"What?" Su Shan was slightly taken aback. "After this game?"

"It's complicated to explain." Qi Xia shook his head. "Or maybe you'll never remember me at all."

"Don't change the subject." Su Shan interrupted. "All I see right now is victory or defeat. Let's get started."

Di Ji, after seeing their cards, waved his hand, and the props dropped inside the glass room.

Zi Chen immediately grabbed the knife from the ground and was about to rush forward when a dark gun barrel was already aimed at him.

"Don't move," Zhao Yisheng said.

"You..."

Zi Chen noticed the man in front of him had his shoulder slightly tilted back, arms bent, holding the gun with both hands in a very professional stance.

In Zhao Yisheng's mind, Qi Xia's words echoed repeatedly: "When I play the handgun, make sure it doesn't hit the ground."

The situation was exactly as Qi Xia had predicted.

"This Glock 19 is the same as the one from my shooting course," Zhao Yisheng gritted his teeth and said. "I've got it aimed at your chest. A hit to the human torso has a very low survival rate without medical help."

Zi Chen swallowed hard, sensing that what the other said was probably true.

But now, surrender was out of the question. He moved his lips slightly and forced out four words: "You're bluffing me..."

"You can test that." Zhao Yisheng's hands didn't shake at all as he stared unblinkingly at him. "Put the knife down, and in exchange, I won't fire this round."

"Put it down...?" Zi Chen had been thinking it over—why was the other insisting he drop the knife when he had a gun?

"I'll count to five. If you don't drop the knife, I'll fire right away." Zhao Yisheng paused and began: "Five, four, three, two..."

"There's no way I'll drop it!" Zi Chen shouted. "I'm going to kill you!"

He raised the knife to charge forward, but a cold broadcast voice slowly announced: "Time's up. Please stop your actions."

"What...?" Zi Chen looked up in confusion, realizing the ten seconds had passed.

No matter how much of what the other said was true or false, it had all been a stalling tactic.

But what was the point of stalling?

"Please discard your props."

Zhao Yisheng turned without hesitation and threw the gun into the window. Zi Chen, still puzzled, tossed the knife into the window behind him.

This was the second time he'd gotten a knife, but each time he couldn't use it. The feeling frustrated him immensely.

"Qi Xia, what kind of game are you playing?" Su Shan asked.

"I..." Qi Xia thought for a moment and said, "I'm ready to gamble everything we have on the table with you."

"Gamble everything?"

"If possible, I want to drive you into utter despair," Qi Xia said.

"You're really not right in the head..." Su Shan's hands were trembling slightly; she had no idea what the man in front of her was thinking. "Not only do you want to kill me, but you want me to feel despair too?"

"I..." Qi Xia didn't continue, just nodded.

"Round eight, please draw a card."

Qi Xia drew a card right away and tossed it aside without even looking.

Su Shan slowly drew a card as well. She knew that no matter what the other was planning, this was the best moment to kill him.

Following her strategy, she played a "Handgun."

Qi Xia played a "Knife."

Neither demonstrated their strategy; they both revealed their cards openly.

"The roles are reversed now, Su Shan," Qi Xia said. "This round, you're the one with the gun. What will you do?"

"I'll kill you without a second thought," Su Shan said.

Di Ji waved his hand, and the props for the eighth round dropped.

When Zi Chen saw the gun, he grabbed it as fast as he could and aimed at Zhao Yisheng. But half a second later, cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

The gun in his hand... was too light.

Zhao Yisheng calmly picked up the knife, looked up, and said, "Sorry about this."

As soon as he finished, he charged forward.

"What the hell is this?!" Zi Chen yelled, pulling the trigger. A barely visible stream of water shot from the barrel.

Su Shan's eyes widened slowly; she had never considered this possibility.

In this game, all the "props" were meant for killing—sticks were polished, knives were sharpened—but the "gun" was just a toy?!

In moments, Zhao Yisheng was in front of Zi Chen, swinging the knife and slashing his leg.

"Ah!!" Zi Chen screamed in pain and dropped to his knees, blood gushing from his leg.

He thought he was done for.

But after the slash, Zhao Yisheng didn't follow up. Instead, he stepped back slowly with a serious expression, waiting for the ten seconds to pass before throwing the knife into the window behind him.

Zi Chen gritted his teeth, stood up despite the pain, and tossed the gun away.

"So you all knew the gun was a toy..." Zi Chen muttered to himself. "That's why you had to catch it before it hit the ground... otherwise, I'd hear it's made of plastic."

"You probably don't realize just how terrifying our 'planner' is," Zhao Yisheng sighed slightly. "He directed me to use a squirt gun to make you drop your knife."

At that moment, Su Shan understood the gravity of the situation.

The supposedly most powerful "Life Card" was just useless plastic. Its lethality was even less than that of a rope.

"This rooster actually left me with a false sense of hope in this deck..." Su Shan slowly looked up, feeling like she'd been tricked. "He's toying with me..."

"He's not toying with you." Qi Xia shook his head and pointed to the card. "This card is called 'Life Card,' and it's always labeled 'JOKER'."

"What...?"

"Think about it—the shields in this game are made of wood, so 'Handgun' should be unbeatable." Qi Xia said calmly. "But if there's an unbeatable card, why go through all this scheming and fighting? Whoever draws the 'Gun' wins, and that isn't what 'Di Ji' wants. Look at the cards we have—he wants us to torment each other in a long struggle, so the 'Handgun' is just a prank. Playing this 'Life Card' means no one dies."