Chapter 741: Gathering Here

"But on this land, there aren't any useless 'hui xiang', are there?" Zhang Shan asked.

"Of course, I've only just realized this myself," Chu Tianqiu laughed. "Maybe my 'hui xiang' isn't the most useless after all... but the most useful. It could let me become the 'god' here."

After thinking for a while, Xiao Yanjing said with a hint of helplessness, "But Mr. Chu... forgive me for being straightforward, you seem incredibly crazy. Can you really reach that stage?"

"My 'hui xiang' destined me to be a madman," Chu Tianqiu said with a grin. "If I'd accepted the settings it gave me earlier, I might have become a god by now."

After saying that, he scanned the group and asked softly, "Will you join me?"

Lao Lv rubbed his face and said, "But Chu, my boy... is 'Tian Tang Kou' still around? I have a feeling this place is done for..."

"It doesn't matter," Chu Tianqiu replied. "'Tian Tang Kou' was never mine to begin with, so let's just consider it returned. Besides, as long as I'm here, I can gather helpers no problem. I just want to know what you've all decided?"

Everyone fell silent, lost in their own thoughts.

Chu Tianqiu had proposed a path that was utterly bizarre.

Ahead lay an abyss, behind a fog.

None of them knew what had happened in the past or what would happen in the future. They only knew that if they refused, they'd keep living here, but if they agreed, they might end up completely destroyed.

Upon careful consideration, it became clear just how absurd Chu Tianqiu's suggestion was.

"Zhang Shan." Seeing no one respond, Chu Tianqiu turned to Zhang Shan. "What do you say?"

"I..." Zhang Shan knew he had already promised to follow Chu Tianqiu, so he couldn't back out now, but he still had a question in his heart. "Can you... tell me about Nie Bei...?"

"Oh, of course." Chu Tianqiu nodded. "Nie Bei was probably from the year 2040, serving in the Chengdu Jun Qu's 'Xi Nan Lie Ying' special forces unit. He was extremely capable in individual combat, smart, and tactically astute. He was also the leader of 'Wo Cheng'."

"You're saying he... led an entire city?" Zhang Shan asked.

"That's right. It might seem unbelievable to you, but that's how it was. Apart from the city we're in, all the others have clear leaders guiding their people forward." Chu Tianqiu said this and sighed slightly. "But as I said, he was also just a 'brief flash'."

"You're saying... he reached that peak?"

"No..." Chu Tianqiu shook his head. "How should I put this..."

He lowered his head and thought for a moment before continuing, "Many years ago, I met Nie Bei and we came up with a plan, so we set out from the same starting point. But later, our paths diverged. First, he was more suited to be a leader than I was; he quickly built up a massive group of nearly ten thousand people, which I couldn't do. Second... he followed that path all the way to the end."

"What path?"

"'Du Sheng Xiao'," Chu Tianqiu answered seriously. "He was a man worthy of respect. I heard that when 'Wo Cheng' fell, the 'Sheng Xiao' on guard there spread the word as if they'd been reborn."

"This..."

Everyone looked shocked, and Xiao Yanjing slowly asked, "Mr. Chu... are you saying that this man named Nie Bei led tens of thousands of people in a constant gamble for their lives against the 'Sheng Xiao'?"

"Yes." Chu Tianqiu nodded. "Is there anyone else here with that kind of courage? In his eyes... this was a war in itself."

"But he failed," Zhang Shan said. "Even if tens of thousands gambled against a hundred 'Sheng Xiao' and couldn't win, what can the few of us do?"

"He did fail," Chu Tianqiu admitted. "But he also showed us something... those 'Sheng Xiao' can feel fear... even the 'Di Ji' ones. And besides..."

Chu Tianqiu turned to Zhang Shan. "I figured out another thing."

"What?" Zhang Shan asked.

"'Bing Li Yun Song'," Chu Tianqiu smiled. "It's quite fascinating—suddenly realizing a strategy from someone who's dead, over a year later. This strategy made me understand even more."

As Chu Tianqiu spoke, he suddenly sensed something odd behind him.

He slowly turned around and saw a slender figure approaching from outside the school gate.

Even from a hundred meters away, they could feel the unusual aura emanating from the person.

No one spoke; they just watched the figure walk toward them step by step.

Han Yi Mo, who had been stunned in place for a while, swallowed and asked, "Chu Tianqiu... do we keep fighting?"

"Fighting...?" Chu Tianqiu turned back with interest to look at Han Yi Mo. "With your 'Qi Hei Jian'?"

Han Yi Mo nodded. "That's all I have."

"Your 'Qi Hei Jian' can only judge the wicked, right?" Chu Tianqiu said, suppressing a laugh. "If I'm not mistaken... that sword won't touch him at all."

"What?" Han Yi Mo looked incredibly at the distant figure. "You're saying that person has no 'sins'...?"

"If you don't believe me, go ahead and try." Chu Tianqiu said. "The only ones who could die here are you and Xiao Yanjing; everyone else is absolutely safe."

"But who is he?" Han Yi Mo glanced at the distant figure.

"He..." Chu Tianqiu said, "is another 'brief flash'."

From afar, Qi Xia spotted the people on the playground, paused for a moment, then continued walking forward with an expressionless face. After a few steps, a strange smile appeared on his lips.

Chen Jun Nan, Qiao Jia Jin, Tian Tian, Zheng Ying Xiong, and Qin Ding Dong had been following Qi Xia from a distance all the way to 'Tian Tang Kou'. They watched as he entered the school gate, and just as they were about to follow, they caught a glimpse of another shadowy figure quickly emerging from the corner of the wall and heading to the gate.

The five of them turned their heads in unison and saw the sneaky figure approaching—it was Qiao Jia Jin.

At that moment, Chen Jun Nan and Tian Tian turned to look at the Qiao Jia Jin beside them, creating an indescribably odd atmosphere.

Before anyone could react, in the blink of an eye, that figure suddenly transformed into Chu Tianqiu.

This "Chu Tianqiu" stood facing the people on the playground from afar, neither speaking nor moving, but it was clear his thoughts were in turmoil, as if he couldn't control his "hui xiang".

In another instant, "Chu Tianqiu" changed again, this time into a young woman.

"Isn't this... changing right in front of us?" Chen Jun Nan said softly as he walked forward. "Xu Da Jie, is this some kind of show-off?"