Chapter 419: Listen to the Question

"You mean..." Tian She's expression momentarily turned flustered, then he furrowed his brow. "That old woman actually dared to deceive me...?"

Seeing his reaction, Qi Xia felt a secret sense of relief in his heart.

Even the Tian had their weaknesses.

The difference between them and the Can Yu Zhe wasn't that great.

Before encountering these Tian Ji, Qi Xia's biggest worry was that these people might be completely united, leaving him with no way to handle such a powerful ironclad team.

But now, it seemed that each Tian had their own independent thoughts, and their relationships weren't harmonious at all.

This was simply fantastic news.

"But I feel like..." Tian She slowly furrowed his brow. "That line you said sounds so familiar... It's like... like someone said it to me before..."

He slowly approached Qi Xia, his sly eyes behind the thick glasses constantly searching for the direction of Qi Xia's pupils.

"Your depths are profound..." Tian She murmured. "Have we... met before?"

"We..." Qi Xia took a deep breath and directly locked eyes with Tian She's pupils. "Probably... not, right?"

In the instant their pupils collided, the information flooding into Tian She was overwhelmingly complex, like a bomb exploding in his mind, making him instantly close his eyes.

"What... what is this...?" Tian She frowned and stepped back two paces, slowly covering his eyes. "Such chaotic thoughts... How many things are you thinking about?"

"I'm just an ordinary Can Yu Zhe..." Qi Xia took a deep breath, shifted his gaze away, and refocused on Tian She's nose as he said, "Every thought I have is about surviving, it's just that this place has nearly driven me mad."

"An ordinary Can Yu Zhe...?" Tian She lifted his eyes to look at Qi Xia. Those pupils had given him an explosive amount of information in an instant, but it was like threads floating in the air—in the chaos, he hadn't grasped a single one. "I-I don't believe an ordinary Can Yu Zhe would have this kind of mindset..."

"Maybe... I've just read a bit more than others?" Qi Xia said.

"Read a bit more...?" This seemed to ignite Tian She's strange competitive spirit. "Are you very knowledgeable?"

"That depends on who I'm comparing myself to," Qi Xia replied.

"What about me?"

"I wouldn't say," Qi Xia shook his head. "Based on guesswork alone, I can't judge how much knowledge you have stored up."

"Then that's simple..." Tian She smiled. "Please listen to the question."

"Hey!" Qian Wu stepped forward, trying to reach out and touch Tian She, but Tian She dodged away. "What gives you the right to test my person? Did you get my permission?"

"Heh..." Tian She chuckled. "Just a friendly exchange of knowledge, a friendly exchange!"

"A question...?" Qi Xia also found it a bit interesting. "What kind of question are you asking?"

Tian She circled around Qian Wu and slowly turned to Qi Xia: "Please tell me, what is the Zhuzi Yuanli?"

Hearing this question, Qi Xia slowly raised the corners of his mouth. Was this the She who loved asking questions so much?

"What are we betting on?" Qi Xia asked.

"What...?"

Now it was Qi Xia's turn to press forward step by step: "The way you're starting this Q&A looks a lot like a You Xi. Since it's a You Xi, how about we make a proper bet? If I answer correctly, what are you willing to pay as the price?"

"The price...?"

This short sentence made Tian She furrow his brow immediately.

This man seemed different from the others.

In the past, whenever he posed a question, all the Can Yu Zhe would frantically search for answers, but he was the first to demand a bet?

"What do you want to bet...?" Tian She asked tentatively.

"If I answer correctly, you die. How about that?" Qi Xia asked.

Tian She slowly broke into a smile after hearing this: "Heh, heheh... What are you thinking? This isn't a Tian She Shi Ke; it's just a little test on my part for Zhao Pin purposes... It's also a special privilege granted to me by Tian Long... Did you really think I'd start a game so easily?"

"Then what's the point?" Qi Xia said again. "If I answer this simple question correctly, what's in it for me?"

"So that means you're quite knowledgeable...?" Tian She laughed. "How about coming to be my assistant...? We could master the most cutting-edge technology in the entire Zhongyan Zhidi..."

"Not interested," Qi Xia replied. "How about this—if I answer correctly, you tell me that method you mentioned earlier... the one about making the Yuan Zhu Min trigger Hui Xiang. What do you say?"

"Hiss..." Tian She rolled his eyes a bit after hearing this, stroked his chin thoughtfully, and said after a moment, "That might be too easy for you. Let's make it three questions. If you can answer all three, I'll share that method with you."

Qi Xia smiled upon hearing this: "But I have to say this first... The questions you ask must have answers."

"Don't worry... I wouldn't stoop to cheating..."

"That's good."

The moment Qi Xia uttered those three words, Tian She felt like he might have underestimated him, but there were so many deceivers in the world—he could just be bluffing.

"If you can't answer the three questions..."

"I'll die," Qi Xia said.

Tian She nodded expressionlessly after hearing that.

Qi Xia thought for a second and answered: "The Zhuzi Yuanli is about how a bamboo plant takes four years to grow just three centimeters. But starting from the fifth year, it grows at a rate of thirty centimeters per day, reaching up to fifteen meters in just six weeks. That's because, in the first four years, the bamboo's roots have already extended hundreds of square meters underground. It's a common principle that encourages people to build a strong foundation before achieving rapid success."

"You..." Tian She wanted to say something after hearing this, but he held his breath and said, "Second question, please listen."

"Go ahead."

"The Ougierui Fazhe...?"

"In a team, if everyone you bring on board is stronger than you, that team will be unbeatable," Qi Xia blurted out without hesitation. "That's the Ougierui Fazhe."

With two questions answered in a row by Qi Xia, Tian She's expression clearly changed.

He had lived longer than most and had painstakingly learned knowledge from books, yet it was being answered in a second—this was something he had never seen in the Zhongyan Zhidi.

"Ask the third one," Qi Xia said in a commanding tone. "The outcome is about to be decided; don't waste time."

"I..." Tian She slowly furrowed his brow. Though he liked knowledgeable people, he liked winning even more.

He had met many in the Zhongyan Zhidi, but none as knowledgeable as the man before him.

As his mind was in turmoil, the image of Zhang Chen Ze slowly floated into his thoughts.

It was also three questions... That woman had beaten him at the last moment?

"Yes... I can't stick to the rules..." Tian She slowly smiled. "This question... will make your death crystal clear."

"Go on."

"When I was still in the real world... Every day before work, I'd go to the breakfast stall downstairs and eat my favorite breakfast, no matter the season, because it was really convenient for me... What was I eating...?"

Hearing this question, Qi Xia's expression slowly showed a hint of contempt.

"Tian She... You've made me look down on you," Qi Xia said. "Asking something like this—does it prove you're smarter than me?"