Chapter 768: Finding a Way to Die

"Are you talking about Qi Xia...?" Xu Liunian asked, furrowing her brow.

"Who else could it be?" Chu Tianqiu replied. "I saw the answer in his eyes."

"Even if he knows the truth, it's no use," Xu Liunian said. "Just as I said... no one in this place can seize the Liezhen or fight against the Shen. Anything we do is futile."

"Is that so?" Chu Tianqiu nodded noncommittally. "Then we'll just have to wait and see."

After saying that, he gave Xu Liunian a meaningful look and continued, "Xu Liunian, I can let people in this place die without a second thought because I know they'll come back in the next cycle."

Xu Liunian looked at Chu Tianqiu, unsure of what he was trying to convey.

"So I don't want you to disappear completely," Chu Tianqiu said slowly, word by word. "There's no need to push yourself to this extent for your so-called superior. You don't have to leave entirely—just stay here."

Xu Liunian lifted her head slightly, a touch of sadness in her eyes, her emotions complex. She didn't know the meaning behind Chu Tianqiu's actions or whether she should be grateful for his well-intentioned efforts.

"But Chu Tianqiu..." Xu Liunian said, "you still lied. I heard you killed Wen Qiaoyun."

"I..." Chu Tianqiu hesitated for a moment, then turned his head toward the distance.

"You said you kill people because you know they'll always come back," Xu Liunian continued, "but when you killed Wen Qiaoyun, you knew she wouldn't be reborn. We're all living in pain here—so why are you willing to let Wen Qiaoyun be freed but not me?"

"Because you don't deserve it," Chu Tianqiu responded firmly. "Wen Qiaoyun is a victim here, while you're the perpetrator. Your roles aren't equal, so I can't let you die so easily. Even if you did die, I'd pull you back here."

Xu Liunian gave a bitter smile after hearing this. "I understand."

Chu Tianqiu fell silent, glancing down at the school entrance, where a small disturbance seemed to be brewing.

Zhang Shan and Lao Lv were in conversation with a young man, and from the sound of it, they were on the verge of arguing.

Chu Tianqiu turned and walked toward the school entrance.

...

"What the...?" Zhang Shan scratched his head and said, "Kid, we can take you in, but you can't lie to us. After all, you weren't one of our members before, so we have to be careful."

"I really am not lying..." The young man scratched his head, looking puzzled. "There's been a voice in my mind telling me to come here... I don't even know why... It's driving me crazy."

As the two were arguing, Chu Tianqiu approached slowly.

On his way, he ran into Zhao Yisheng, and after a brief chat, they both came over to the young man.

The young man took one look at Chu Tianqiu's appearance and felt as if he had entered some extraordinary place.

"Hello," Chu Tianqiu said with a smile. "I'm the leader here. Who are you looking for?"

The young man appeared to be no more than eighteen or nineteen, equally confused. He glanced timidly at Chu Tianqiu, who was covered in blood, and asked cautiously, "Is this place called Tian Tang Kou?"

"You could say that," Chu Tianqiu answered. "Who sent you here?"

"I... I don't know..." The young man scratched his head, feeling strange about his own state. "Bro, I opened my eyes and found myself standing on the street... There's a voice in my heart telling me I have to come to Tian Tang Kou..."

"What did it tell you to do here?" Chu Tianqiu asked.

"To 'die'," the young man replied. "I have no idea why... But that voice keeps echoing in my mind, making me feel like I'm going insane. I thought coming here might make it stop."

"You're not afraid of death?" Chu Tianqiu asked.

"I am..." The young man nodded. "But bro... honestly, I remember that I've already died."

Chu Tianqiu instantly caught the key point in the young man's words, and the truth of the matter began to surface in his mind.

"Oh...? So you say you've already died, but you're still following that voice to Tian Tang Kou?"

"I don't know if you'll believe me... but that's exactly what happened..." the young man said. "I remember dying in a really terrifying place..."

"I believe you," Chu Tianqiu nodded immediately. "Unbelievable things happen here all the time, so I give everyone the benefit of the doubt at first."

"...Thank you." The young man nodded. "But bro... you all don't seem like violent types..."

Chu Tianqiu chuckled lightly. "Don't worry, trust your subconscious. Your subconscious wants you to die here, so you must have your own way of dying."

"Ah... no... that's not what I meant..."

The people around them were getting confused by what Chu Tianqiu and the young man were saying. Lao Lv quickly stepped forward to smooth things over and asked, "Kid, what's your name?"

"I'm... Cheng Ao Yu," the young man answered.

"Alright, Cheng kid," Lao Lv said. "Come on in and rest for a bit."

As Lao Lv started to lead the young man into the teaching building, Chu Tianqiu called them back.

"Hold on."

"Hmm...?" Cheng Ao Yu turned to look at Chu Tianqiu.

"What's your Hui Xiang?" Chu Tianqiu asked.

"I..." Cheng Ao Yu replied with a slightly embarrassed bitter smile. "My Hui Xiang isn't very useful—it can at most help you have a good dream."

"Don't sell yourself short," Chu Tianqiu said. "Your Hui Xiang can't be more useless than mine."

"I'm just afraid my ability is too weak to help you all..."

"Don't worry." Chu Tianqiu stepped forward and said softly, "If your ability is useful to us, you might die right now."

"Ah...?" Cheng Ao Yu was startled by Chu Tianqiu, feeling like he was still in a dream.

Though there weren't many good people here, it was rare for someone to show such blatant malice right off the bat.

"Being useless is the best thing," Chu Tianqiu said, patting Cheng Ao Yu on the shoulder. "Useless people can live pretty well here."

Cheng Ao Yu swallowed hard and said slowly, "Bro... mine is Ru Meng."

Upon hearing those two words, Chu Tianqiu's pupils trembled slightly. He paused for a few seconds and said, "You call that useless Hui Xiang?"

"Ah...?"

Chu Tianqiu thought for a moment and asked again, "You mentioned you remember dying—do you still recall where?"

Cheng Ao Yu replied a bit timidly, "I don't know if it was a dream... but I think I died in a place with a ground monkey setup..."

"Was it Mei Hua Jian Zhuang or a Du Chang?" Chu Tianqiu asked.

"It was... a Du Chang..."

Chu Tianqiu nodded. "You're lucky—you won't have to die today."

"What...?"

With that, he turned to Zhao Yisheng beside him and said, "I'll give you a map. Help me bring back his eyes."