Chapter 737: Breaking Through

“What…?”

Zhang Shan hesitated slightly; he felt that he was receiving too much information at once and couldn’t give a response.

“I wish I had figured this out earlier,” Chu Tianqiu said with a smile, “We can gather all the strong ones together… even if there aren’t many, it doesn’t matter. Since I thought of it… how could Qi Xia not think of it?”

“Mr. Chu… are you saying Zhang Shan isn’t one of our teammates?” Xiao Yanjing looked puzzled at the seemingly deranged person in front of him, “Are you saying he’s from somewhere else?”

“Otherwise, what?” Chu Tianqiu retorted, “If he weren’t this unexpected intruder, why would minor characters like you and Lv Fengxian still be alive?”

“This…” Xiao Yanjing didn’t want to admit it, but Chu Tianqiu was speaking the truth.

“Just the two of you? With ‘Harden’ and ‘Immaculate’—those dime-a-dozen ‘Hui Xiang’ abilities,” Chu Tianqiu slowly removed his coat, “Sorry, even if you offered me your eyeballs, I wouldn’t really want them.”

“You…”

“Zhang Shan.” Chu Tianqiu slowly extended his hand toward Zhang Shan, “Give me your eyeball, and I promise not to harm the three of you.”

“Are you kidding…?” Zhang Shan frowned at Chu Tianqiu, “Considering you did me a favor, I’d let it go if you asked for something else… but what do you mean by asking for someone else’s eyeball?”

After hearing this, Chu Tianqiu’s face turned cold, and he slowly lowered his hand.

“Zhang Shan, why haven’t you woken up yet?” Chu Tianqiu slowly closed his eyes, “In this place, you can discard an eye, a hand, a leg, or even your life without a second thought. Countless people have shattered themselves to pieces just to escape in the end, so why won’t you give me just one eye?”

“Absurd.” Zhang Shan said, “I could shatter myself for everyone’s escape, but there’s no way I’d dig out my own eyeball for you. I think you’ve lost your mind. Chu Tianqiu, before you ‘Hui Xiang’, how about I send you on your way this time?”

“I… haven’t ‘Hui Xiang’?” Chu Tianqiu chuckled, “Zhang Shan, don’t be foolish. Even if you kill me here, I’ll still remember everything.”

“What?” Zhang Shan was stunned, “You…”

Before he could finish, the black sword in the sky locked onto its target. It let out a faint hum and then shot through the air toward Xiao Yanjing.

Lao Lv reacted faster than Zhang Shan, immediately pulling Xiao Yanjing behind him and thrusting out his belly. But when the black sword reached Lao Lv, it seemed to sense something and veered sharply along his skin.

Lao Lv hadn’t even processed what was happening when the black sword was already inches from Xiao Yanjing, its tip less than twenty centimeters away.

Zhang Shan didn’t even turn his head; he reached back abruptly and grabbed the hilt of the Qi Hei Jian with perfect accuracy.

The pitch-black sword trembled wildly, like an eagle with its claws restrained, but it couldn’t advance an inch.

“Chu Tianqiu, you’ve fed me and helped me understand this place these past days, so I don’t want to fight you,” Zhang Shan’s tone grew colder, “But do you really want our lives?”

“I said it before, ‘life’ isn’t important—I just want the eyeball,” Chu Tianqiu replied, “What will it take for you to believe me?”

Zhang Shan gripped the massive sword, a faint killing intent emanating from him: “Show me.”

“Oh? What do you want to see?”

“You said my previous leader sent me here to find a glimmer of hope, and you’re that ‘hope’,” Zhang Shan said gravely, “How can I believe you’re the one?”

“Simple.” Chu Tianqiu nodded, “We’ve all heard the ‘Sheng Xiao’ in the interview room say it—they gathered everyone here just to create a ‘god’, and I will become that ‘god’. Once I have all the divine power, the entire ‘Zhongnian Zhidi’ will lose its purpose.”

“So how do you plan to become that ‘god’?” Zhang Shan stood still, speaking in a low voice, “I know full well that with my own efforts, becoming a ‘god’ or collecting three thousand six hundred ‘Dao’ is just a pipe dream. So if you can show me convincing strength, I’ll hand everything over to you right here. Forget one eyeball—even my heart, I could rip out for you.”

“Zhang Shan… you…” Xiao Yanjing and Lao Lv both looked at him, feeling like he was making a dangerous deal.

Chu Tianqiu nodded after hearing this: “Hearing you say that… I don’t know whether to be happy or sad. It feels like… our relationship has changed?”

“Yes.” Zhang Shan replied, “Before today, I thought we could be friends, so everything I did came from a friend’s perspective. After all, my secrets are something I wouldn’t even tell my parents, only my loyal buddies. But after seeing your behavior today, I’m considering shifting from being your ‘friend’ to your ‘subordinate’, fighting for you across the world. But how can I tell if you’re really a ‘god’ or just another deranged wanderer?”

“Not hard.” Chu Tianqiu said, “If showing you my abilities can regain your trust, I’d be glad to do it.”

Under the watchful eyes of the group, Chu Tianqiu flipped his coat inside out, and a thick, bloody stench immediately filled their nostrils.

Only then did they notice that strings were tied inside the coat, with countless eyeballs hanging from them like strings of candied hawthorn.

These “candied hawthorn” dripped with blood, their lifeless pupils scanning the group.

“This is my ‘battle garb’,” Chu Tianqiu chuckled, then began rummaging through it, “Which one should it be…”

He sifted through the flipped coat carefully, as if selecting from a menu.

Zhang Shan kept a stern face, gripping the Qi Hei Jian tightly; his thoughts were straightforward—if Chu Tianqiu couldn’t produce convincing evidence here, the sword would strike without hesitation.

After all, Chu Tianqiu seemed so deranged—could he really become a ‘god’?

“Ah! Got it!” Chu Tianqiu smiled, “This one’s good, this one has the most.”

Under everyone’s gaze, he plucked out the selected eyeball and casually tossed it into his mouth, chewing a few times before swallowing.

“You…” Zhang Shan’s eyes widened slowly, “Chu Tianqiu… do you realize what you’re doing?”

“Zhang Shan, I want you to fully understand my power.”

Chu Tianqiu slowly closed his eyes, and moments later, a deep bell toll echoed from afar.

“Dong!”

Zhang Shan was slightly startled and muttered to himself, “Chu Tianqiu… you’ve been ‘Hui Xiang’ all along, haven’t you? You’re an experienced ‘Hui Xiang’ user, but what is your ability?”

Chu Tianqiu didn’t answer; he just slowly extended his hand: “Zhang Shan, don’t use ‘Xianfa’.”

As soon as he spoke, Zhang Shan felt a burst of dazzling light erupt from his body, like a vast sea of stars.