Chapter 210: The Idle

In the evening, Qi Xia arrived at the school cafeteria with his day's earnings.

He bought five cans and five bottles of water from Tong Yi.

Each item cost one Dao.

Honestly, it was expensive.

If someone didn't participate in the games and only had the initial four Dao from the interview room, they would likely run out of food and water in just two or three days.

Even if they joined those Ren Ji games, how many Dao could an ordinary person earn in a day?

With good luck, maybe three to five.

In Tian Tang Kou, people either starved to death or died in battle—it was an inevitable fate.

As Qi Xia was about to leave, he noticed the canned beer nearby.

He picked up a can and asked about it; this junk actually cost four Dao.

"Ah... I can barely afford to keep going."

...

Qi Xia returned to the classroom with the food and beer. There were already three people there: Han Yi Mo, Lin Geng, and Zhao Yi Sheng.

It seemed that after surviving the initial wave of eliminations in the first few days, the others weren't dying off so easily.

But Han Yi Mo was still a problem.

These past few days, he had either participated in some simple Ren Ji games or just stayed in the classroom staring at the sky.

He wouldn't die easily, but he couldn't cut off his Hui Xiang either.

"I've got some food." Qi Xia placed the cans and bottled water on the table.

The three of them thanked him, and just then, Qiao Jia Jin came back.

His hands and feet were wrapped in thick bandages, but he looked full of energy.

"What's going on?" Qi Xia frowned. "You should be resting in the ward. I'll bring your meal over."

"I say, you little trickster, is this your first day knowing me?" Qiao Jia Jin pulled up a chair and sat down. "This is nothing. Do I need to rest?"

"Suit yourself." Qi Xia shook his head and casually tossed a can of beer over. "I knew you'd recovered. I shouldn't have bought this."

Qiao Jia Jin caught the beer and thought for a few seconds before suddenly acting weak: "Oh... actually, I feel... my head is spinning..."

"Cut it out, stop pretending." Qi Xia sat down next to Qiao Jia Jin and said, "Tell me about today's match. Did you get your Hui Xiang?"

At that, Qiao Jia Jin perked up, gathered everyone together, and recounted everything that had happened today in detail.

The game was full of ups and downs, and at one point, Qiao Jia Jin thought they were going to lose.

Luckily, he and Zhang Shan had activated their Hui Xiang and ultimately defeated the opponents.

After listening to Qiao Jia Jin's story, Qi Xia noticed several points worth noting.

First, could his own Hui Xiang affect other people?

Qi Xia glanced inadvertently at Han Yi Mo. If that condition could be met, Han Yi Mo's ability would jump to a whole new level.

If Zhao Zai could be applied to the enemy, it would be an incredibly lethal ability.

But Han Yi Mo was still quite different from Xiao Xiao.

If Xiao Xiao's Hui Xiang failed, it might just result in injury, but if Han Yi Mo's failed, it would definitely mean death.

Once he realized that, he'd be under immense psychological pressure, which would only increase the failure rate of his Hui Xiang.

Another thing was that man called Luo Shi Yi.

He seemed to be an independent mercenary outside of Ji Dao, and based on Qiao Jia Jin's description, this guy had taken payment and was even willing to sacrifice his life to achieve his goal.

But in Zhong Yan Zhi Di, what kind of reward could make someone go that far?

"Qiao Jia Jin, what did you say his Hui Xiang was called?"

"It's called Bu Zhi Dao Teng." Qiao Jia Jin said confidently.

"Uh..." Qi Xia blinked. "Are you sure that's the name he gave himself?"

"Well..." Qiao Jia Jin smiled awkwardly. "He did introduce himself, but I forgot."

"It's called Wang You." Lin Geng interjected.

"Wang You?" Qiao Jia Jin nodded quickly after hearing it. "Right, that's the one. How did you know?"

"I... I was in front of the display screen at the time and saw it." Lin Geng replied.

Qi Xia silently repeated the two words to himself, finding it a bit strange.

"Wang You means Bu Zhi Dao Teng? That name doesn't really fit."

Qiao Jia Jin recalled what the man had said and added, "It seems like it's more than just forgetting pain. When he introduced himself, he said all unpleasant feelings are blocked."

Hearing that, Qi Xia's expression slowly changed.

"Wang... You?!"

He looked at Lin Geng with surprise, and Lin Geng suddenly thought of something too.

But how was that possible?

Could this person be connected to Qi Xia's Bei Shang?

"Did that person die?" Qi Xia asked.

"Yeah, he's dead." Qiao Jia Jin sighed, looking helpless. "I didn't lay a hand on him, but he died because of me."

Qi Xia thought for a moment, then turned to ask Lin Geng: "Can we find him next time?"

Lin Geng nodded slightly.

"Good..."

"Then there's that stone man." Qiao Jia Jin said. "I have a feeling he's not a bad guy. He might even side with us."

Qi Xia looked at Qiao Jia Jin, finding this situation unexpected.

"Have you recruited a follower?" Qi Xia asked.

"Not a follower, more like a brother." Qiao Jia Jin smiled. "That guy's pretty tough."

"What about Li Xiang Ling?" Qi Xia changed the subject.

"The kung fu girl?"

"What do you think of Li Xiang Ling?" Qi Xia asked.

"Not bad." Qiao Jia Jin nodded. "The kung fu girl is way sharper than I imagined. You know what? She used a stick to take out people—just one stone stick, and in an instant, she knocked down three opponents on the other side. If they hadn't cheated, the kung fu girl would've won right then..."

"But she's going to die." Qi Xia said.

"Yeah, she almost died back then." Qiao Jia Jin nodded. "I risked it to save her, climbing down from that bridge bit by bit... Huh?"

Qi Xia stared intently into Qiao Jia Jin's eyes and repeated: "Li Xiang Ling won't make it through tonight."

"You... what are you talking about?" Qiao Jia Jin was slightly stunned. "I checked the kung fu girl's injuries; she doesn't have anything fatal..."

At that moment, Zhao Yi Sheng and the others also heard Qi Xia's words and couldn't help feeling puzzled.

They were living in Tian Tang Kou, one of the safest places in Zhong Yan Zhi Di—what danger could there be?

Qi Xia sighed and said: "Do you all remember the motto of Tian Tang Kou? Jin Yuan Xun told us very seriously back then that 'Tian Tang Kou doesn't support idlers'. In the days ahead, Li Xiang Ling won't be able to participate in any games; she'll just be recovering in the ward, wasting medicine and food. If I'm not wrong, Tian Tang Kou will probably kill her tonight."

"What... what?" Qiao Jia Jin looked at Qi Xia in confusion. "You little trickster... how could you think of something so terrifying?"

"Because Zhang Shan died mysteriously last time." Qi Xia replied seriously. "Even as the third-in-command of Tian Tang Kou, he was abandoned without a second thought. Li Xiang Ling is just a minor player, so she's even less significant."