Chapter 794: Verifying Identity

"Hey!" the old man shouted, shielding his eyes from the swirling sand and dust in a panic. "Who are you? Why are you doing this?"

Qi Xia kept pushing the soil down into the pit, thinking that everything was fated. As he had tried to go through the alley in search of the ground ox, he had stumbled upon the old man digging.

Whatever the old man had dug up absolutely could not be spread around—or more precisely, anyone could know about it, except for "Tian Long."

"You're just unlucky," Qi Xia said. "I don't remember much, but this is one thing I do."

Seeing the other person's intention to kill, the old man desperately searched for a way out in the small pit. He piled the sand under his feet against the wall and tried to climb up by stepping on it.

A few minutes later, as soon as he poked his head out, he was struck in the face by an oncoming shovel. He let out a wail and fell back into the pit.

The blow was severe, leaving the old man dizzy and disoriented. His face burned with pain, and everything around him was pitch black; he couldn't even tell if he was lying down or crouching.

But his scream allowed Qi Xia to pinpoint his location. Qi Xia kept throwing dirt onto the old man until he stopped moving entirely.

All the excavated soil nearby was shoveled back into the pit within ten minutes, leveling the ground once more.

Before the kerosene lamp went out, Qi Xia stepped on it, using his feet to flatten the surface even more.

His mind was a bit unsettled.

"Sorry about that," Qi Xia said with a complicated expression. "Dying here doesn't mean much loss, and besides, none of us should be alive anyway... I forgot, I don't even feel 'sadness' anymore."

By the last flicker of the kerosene lamp's light, he looked at the shovel in his hands and said somberly, "But you won't be too lonely. Someone else is buried here with you, and they're worse off—they don't even have a grave."

With that, he turned the shovel around, pressing the metal end against his neck, and thrust it hard.

The kerosene lamp extinguished with a hiss, plunging the alley into dead silence.

A few minutes later, Qi Xia emerged from the alley, a black pearl hovering above his head. As if nothing had happened, he walked away expressionless into the distance.

...

Yan Zhichun and Jiang Ruoxue hurried forward a few steps, the pearls above their heads leading the way, and called out to Lin Geng and Wen Qiaoyun ahead.

Just as the two were about to speak, Jiang Ruoxue stopped them with a gesture.

Before they could say anything, Jiang Ruoxue explained the origin of the black pearls above their heads.

Fortunately, both were quick-witted. After hearing her explanation, they instantly grasped the pearls' danger. Lin Geng had once been killed during the "Tian Ma Shi Ke" and had no desire to relive the sensation of being pierced through the brow.

"I see..." Wen Qiaoyun nodded. "In that case, I suggest we ask some basic questions right now to use up the pearl above our heads."

"That would be ideal," Jiang Ruoxue said. "If I hadn't experienced it once before, we might all die inexplicably during a conversation."

"I agree," Yan Zhichun nodded, then glanced at Lin Geng.

"I have no objections," Lin Geng said.

Seeing everyone agree, Jiang Ruoxue turned to Wen Qiaoyun and said, "You go first."

Wen Qiaoyun nodded and asked Jiang Ruoxue, "Then I'll ask: How many days are in a week?"

Her pearl flew toward Jiang Ruoxue.

"Seven days," Jiang Ruoxue answered.

Bang.

The pearl shattered. Seeing that this method worked, Wen Qiaoyun looked delighted, though the other three showed no emotion.

"My turn," Jiang Ruoxue said.

"Okay," Wen Qiaoyun nodded. "Keep it to simple, everyday questions."

Jiang Ruoxue nodded at Wen Qiaoyun. "Alright. What is 'Chuang Shang Li Lun'?"

As soon as she spoke, the pearl above Jiang Ruoxue's head flew toward Wen Qiaoyun and hovered at her brow.

Yan Zhichun and Lin Geng, standing nearby, grew serious upon hearing the question and quietly watched Wen Qiaoyun.

This was a perfect chance to verify her identity. If she was truly the influential leader from thirty years ago, such a basic question should be easy for her.

Wen Qiaoyun clearly frowned at the question.

They had just agreed on "basic questions," yet this woman had asked something that sounded academic. Wen Qiaoyun was full of doubts.

What was this woman trying to do? Did she want to kill her?

With the pearl at her brow, Wen Qiaoyun didn't dare speak carelessly.

Jiang Ruoxue's action made Wen Qiaoyun lose all goodwill toward her. She stared at the black pearl for a while, swallowed hard, closed her eyes, and answered:

"I don't know."

The simple four words stunned the other three, but before anyone could respond, the black pearl in front of Wen Qiaoyun shattered with a bang.

Realizing she was still alive, Wen Qiaoyun slowly opened her eyes and chuckled. "So saying 'I don't know' works?"

"No..." Jiang Ruoxue frowned. "That just means you really don't know."

"I really don't," Wen Qiaoyun laughed. "That kind of question sounds absurd—most people wouldn't know it, right?"

The other three exchanged glances, each with their own thoughts. At that moment, Jiang Ruoxue looked at Lin Geng, who nodded in understanding.

Wen Qiaoyun thought she had escaped the danger, but then Lin Geng suddenly spoke up.

"Wen Qiaoyun, what were you doing before you came here?"

A fresh pearl drifted from Lin Geng's head and stopped at Wen Qiaoyun's brow.

Now, Wen Qiaoyun felt that the three of them seemed to be working together, trying to extract information from her.

But with the pearl aimed at her like a gun, she not only didn't dare lie but also couldn't speak freely.

The woman had just said that saying "I don't know" worked because it was true, so lying might get her killed on the spot.

"Before coming here... I was just a convenience store cashier," Wen Qiaoyun answered.

Bang.

The second pearl shattered with her flawless response.

"A cashier..." Lin Geng slowly furrowed her brow, knowing the answer was genuine.

The first time she had met Wen Qiaoyun, the woman had lost her senses and was hiding in a convenience store.

Since all the "original inhabitants" mechanically repeated their past lives, she truly was Wen Qiaoyun.

Or perhaps, in the real world, Wen Qiaoyun was just a store clerk.

So, how could someone like that have led the "participants" thirty years ago?