Chapter 671: Final Kill Card

"Are you absolutely insane...?" Di Hou asked, dumbfounded.

"I've never been normal," Qi Xia replied. "Di Hou, are you in or out?"

"Do you even know what 'pledge your life until death' means?" Di Hou countered. "Who in their right mind would agree to a bet like that?!"

Qi Xia slowly raised a hand and wiped the fresh blood from his forehead. "Then I'll give you another way out. If you think the stakes are unfair, you can back out."

Hearing those words, Di Hou felt his mind reel with confusion.

He leaned back in his chair, his corpulent body trembling slightly, a single thought dominating his mind—

Qi Xia was truly terrifying... completely unlike the person he remembered, a stark contrast.

He had initially thought Qi Xia had simply matured since their last meeting, but now it seemed this wasn't maturity at all—it was evolution.

Qi Xia mentioning "giving another way out" instantly threw Di Hou's state of mind into complete disarray. So, was that previous "way out" also part of the plan?

No... no, that wasn't the real issue. The problem was...

It sounded exactly like "bluffing"!

What did "if you think it's unfair, you can back out" even mean?

In a game like this, throwing out such ridiculous stakes almost always meant trying to force the other person to fold. On top of that, Qi Xia was openly and verbally urging him to concede.

It was a textbook-level bluff, straight out of the rulebook.

But could someone like Qi Xia make such a basic mistake?

Di Hou felt completely lost trying to read Qi Xia's mind. The tale of "crying wolf" had unfolded in this game countless times, and now they were at another crossroads. Should he believe it this time or not?

"I've guessed wrong every single time..." Di Hou thought to himself. "Even with bad luck, I should get it right once, shouldn't I?"

With that in mind, Di Hou slowly lifted his head, took a deep breath, and said gravely, "Qi Xia, I'll give you one chance. If you concede now, I only want two lives. You can take the other four and leave."

This offered Qi Xia a new option. If he was genuinely bluffing, he'd likely accept, as failing a bluff meant all six would perish here. But backing out now would only cost two lives.

To Di Hou's surprise, Qi Xia shook his head firmly and said, "There's no way I would concede. If anyone's conceding, it's you."

"Damn it..."

The dilemma landed squarely back in Di Hou's lap, making his head spin.

He flipped over his hidden card, which was marked with the words "Laba."

Everyone's hands were busted, so what gave Qi Xia the nerve to...

In just a few seconds, Di Hou's thoughts became clear.

Yes, what gave Qi Xia the confidence to brag with a busted hand?!

Had he really seen through Di Hou's final hidden card?

"But even if he has, I won't lose..."

After a long internal struggle, Di Hou looked up and said softly, "I'm in."

Those two words caused Qi Xia's eyes to widen slowly. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," Di Hou nodded. "I don't think you can beat me. Once the cards are revealed, you'll have to serve me for life."

Qi Xia slowly stood up, but as his mouth opened, he suddenly swayed towards Chen Jun Nan on his right. Chen Jun Nan quickly reached out to steady him.

"You old fool, Qi... don't you know your own condition? Don't get up, for crying out loud."

Qi Xia nodded weakly, sat back down, and said, "Di Hou, you really should back out."

"Ha!" Di Hou seemed to gain some confidence from those words and said firmly, "I'm not backing out. I want to see how your 'Zhongyuan' is going to beat mine?!"

"You knew about that too?" Qi Xia asked in return.

"Qi Xia, this is where it stops."

Di Hou reached for his hidden card and slammed it onto the table, revealing its face.

"Laba."

"Laba Festival..." Qi Xia gave a bitter smile. "I miss the Laba congee from back home. Di Hou, after this round, could you at least get my team something to eat?"

"Are you not seeing the cards?" Di Hou said. "I've got 'Laba,' and you've got 'Zhongyuan.' We're both busted!"

"Is that so...?"

Qi Xia placed his hidden card on the table and flipped it over, revealing something even stranger.

"Daxue," the eighth day of the eleventh lunar month.

Seeing that card, Di Hou stared with wide, bewildered eyes, his lips trembling as he slowly uttered, "How... exactly did you switch the card?"

"I didn't switch it," Qi Xia said. "This has been my card all along."

He turned the "Daxue" card over to show Di Hou the back, where a red flower stained with blood had been smeared over countless times, leaving a unique mark.

"This..." Di Hou's dry, yellow eyes remained wide open, his face filled with disbelief.

The entire round felt like a dream, with everything that had happened leaving him utterly perplexed.

"Even if it's 'Daxue,' that's still 'one-one-eight'—you're busted!" Di Hou said. "Your other two cards add up to 'twelve points,' and this one is 'ten points,' totaling 'twenty-two points'!"

Di Hou pushed his cards forward. "And all mine add up to 'twenty-one points.' I said at the start, if both bust, you lose!"

Qi Xia shook his head expressionlessly. "Di Hou, I truly wish you had backed out on your own instead of acting so stubbornly."

"What..."

"I told you, I saw through both your hidden cards, but you didn't believe me," Qi Xia sighed. "And I just advised you to back out—we could all just stay alive. But you went ahead with your 'pledge your life until death.' Why couldn't you trust me just once?"

"You absolute..."

Di Hou sprang to his feet, his entire body beginning to tremble. Only now did he finally believe that Qi Xia had seen through everything from the beginning.

When Di Hou thought Qi Xia was still the old Qi Xia, he pulled off deceptions one after another. When Di Hou thought he was a deceiver, he started telling the truth.

His strategy was just like the rules of "Shuo Wang Yue"—impossible to predict.

Qi Xia pushed his "Chu Xi" and "Daxue" forward and said calmly, "These two add up to 'sixteen points.' For this comparison, I'm not using the community cards."