Chapter 176: Yun Yao's Doubt

Chu Tianqiu had chosen the participants for the battle, and Qiao Jiajin, Lin Qing, and Han Yimo happened to push the door open and walk in.

They hadn't expected to find more than ten people sitting in the room, and they were startled.

“What's going on?”Qiao Jiajin scanned the room, his gaze settling on Qi Xia, and he hurried over to him, saying, “Deceitful kid, did you hear that? The bell rang three times in a row!”

“Yes, I heard it.”Qi Xia nodded. “We're all gathered here because of that.”

“You're Qiao Jiajin, right?”Zhang Shan walked over slowly with Li Xiangling and said, “Tomorrow, the three of us will team up for a 'Si Sha Lei' game.”

“What?”Qiao Jiajin was a bit confused. “Why aren't I allowed to bring my 'Da Nao' along? That could be dangerous…”

“Da Nao?”Zhang Shan was taken aback. “Who's your 'Da Nao'?”

Qiao Jiajin pointed his thumb at Qi Xia beside him and said, “I've teamed up with the Deceitful kid. He's my 'Da Nao'.”

“Interesting.”Zhang Shan smiled and nodded. “If he's the 'Da Nao', then what are you?”

Qiao Jiajin thought for a moment and replied, “If I have to say… I'm his 'Quan Tou'.”

“That fits.”Zhang Shan nodded. “Now that your 'Da Nao' is in danger, whether we can resolve it depends on how hard your 'Quan Tou' can strike.”

“Huh?”Qiao Jiajin turned to look at Qi Xia. “Deceitful kid, have you been beaten up?”

“It's a lot more complicated than that.”Qi Xia said, “Tomorrow's Si Sha game involves me, but I can't participate. You'll have to help me out.”

“Help you? That's easy.”Qiao Jiajin stretched lazily. “So, 'Si Sha' means the opponents are 'people', right?”

“Exactly.”

“Don't worry, I can handle it.”

Seeing this, Chu Tianqiu nodded as well. “Since we've finished selecting, and Qiao Jiajin is back, then…”

“Wait a minute…”Yun Yao slowly raised her hand.

“What is it?”Chu Tianqiu asked.

“I'm going to ask boldly—who among these three has 'Hui Xiang'?”

The three exchanged glances, their expressions uneasy.

“Chu Tianqiu…”Yun Yao felt something was off. “None of these three has 'Hui Xiang' right now.”

After saying that, she looked at Chu Tianqiu suspiciously.

“What kind of arrangement is this?”Yun Yao thought the strategy was very strange. “I told you… the other side is 'Ji Dao', three genuine 'Hui Xiang Zhe'.”

“This…”Chu Tianqiu hesitated for a moment. “It's fine. I believe in these three.”

“Be-believe?!”Yun Yao thought she had misheard. “Tianqiu… what are you saying? You're assigning these three just because you believe in them? Isn't there any other strategy?”

Zhang Shan sensed the atmosphere was a bit awkward, so he patted Yun Yao on the shoulder and said, “It's okay. I think Chu Tianqiu must have his reasons. Besides, games involving fighting and Si Sha aren't a big deal for me.”

With someone backing him up, Chu Tianqiu relaxed and said, “In that case, let's wrap up the meeting. You three should get to know each other, since you'll be teammates tomorrow.”

“You three, don't leave yet.”Qi Xia said quietly to Yun Yao, Zhang Shan, and Li Xiangling. “There's something I want to brief you on.”

The three nodded silently.

Once the others had left the room one by one, Yun Yao couldn't hold back any longer.

“Zhang Shan, don't you think Chu Tianqiu is acting really strange?!”She looked furious. “Yesterday, his strategy got Jin Yuanxun and Xiao Yanjing killed, and today he's sending you three to face the 'Hui Xiang Zhe'… And it's not just this time—he was weird last time too…”

Zhang Shan gave a bitter smile and said, “Yun Yao, don't forget. I didn't have 'Hui Xiang' last time either, so I don't remember what Chu Tianqiu was originally like.”

“This…”Yun Yao looked around and realized that among everyone present, only she seemed to know the original Chu Tianqiu. She had a lot to say but couldn't get it out, feeling frustrated.

In her memory, Chu Tianqiu's strategies had always been “steady and reliable.” He never came up with reckless plans like this.

The reason so many people in this round of “Tian Tang Kou” had lost their memories was because in the previous round, Chu Tianqiu had arranged for everyone to participate in games in a nearly suicidal manner during the final days.

From Yun Yao's perspective, in every round, following Chu Tianqiu's arrangements meant that eight or nine out of ten people in “Tian Tang Kou” could gain “Hui Xiang,” since he knew exactly what triggered it for each person.

But what on earth had happened in the previous round?

Why had Chu Tianqiu suddenly changed his strategy?

Was there some change she didn't know about?

“Wait…”

Yun Yao slowly turned to look at Qi Xia.

Come to think of it… the biggest change in the previous round was Qi Xia.

Qi Xia had come to visit Chu Tianqiu, but Chu Tianqiu had refused to see him. The next day, Chu Tianqiu was like a completely different person.

“What on earth is going on…?”

Yun Yao felt like she had stumbled upon something terrifying, but she couldn't quite grasp the answer.

Meanwhile, the others ignored Yun Yao and were chatting casually.

Zhang Shan crossed his arms and said, “Let's introduce ourselves. What are you two good at?”

He sized up Qiao Jiajin and asked, “You look like you've trained before, kid.”

Qiao Jiajin nodded. “Big guy, not only have I trained, but I'm pretty skilled at it.”

“Oh?”Zhang Shan perked up. “I've done some Sanda myself. What do you practice?”

Qiao Jiajin extended his hand and started counting on his fingers: “Boxing, Sanda, wrestling, Judo, Wing Chun, Muay Thai, Qin Na, Taiji, Jeet Kune Do, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu…”

“Stop, stop, stop…”Zhang Shan waved his hand to interrupt. “Who asked about the categories? I meant, what specific one do you practice?”

“I've done them all.”Qiao Jiajin said confidently.

“All of them…”Zhang Shan was stunned. “Come on, you have to draw the line with bragging. You're not that old—how could you have practiced so many?”

Qi Xia scratched his head and exchanged a glance with Lin Qing.

Only the two of them knew how astonishing this was, because what Qiao Jiajin said was actually true.

His expression was completely straightforward, with no sign of deception.

“I've been training for over ten years.”Qiao Jiajin said. “Just picked up the basics of each.”

“You…”Zhang Shan was at a loss for words again. No wonder they had almost gotten the short end of the stick when they tried to restrain him before. “So, how long do you train every day?”

“Since I was eleven, nonstop. As long as I have one hand that can move, I'm practicing punches.”

Zhang Shan swallowed hard and asked, “Have you had real fights?”

“Before coming here, I was in fights every day without fail.”Qiao Jiajin answered calmly.