Chapter 32

After those words, everyone was shocked.

Even the rat-person was slightly taken aback.

"Do you... want to bet your life?" the rat-person confirmed.

"Yes," Qi Xia nodded, "I want to bet my life."

The rat-person's throat moved, swallowing, and then said, "Isn't that... unnecessary?"

Her reaction exceeded Qi Xia's expectations.

He thought these animal-masked beings would be willing to bet their lives, but why was she so flustered?

"I, I'm just playing a simple 'search' game, betting your life is too much... and my ticket only requires a 'Dao,' you don't need to bet your life..."

Lin Guo and Qiao Jiajin were also puzzled.

"Can this game... involve betting one's life?" Qiao Jiajin asked with a frown, "But why do you want to bet your life, Qi Xia? Don't we have enough 'Dao'?"

"I remembered what the withered old man said, and I want to try it here," Qi Xia said softly, "From the look on their face, they seem very afraid of me betting my life."

"I know you really want to win," Lin Guo interjected, "But if you bet your life to open a can, what if something goes wrong? What if the 'Dao' isn't inside?"

"I will win," Qi Xia said, then looked up at the rat-person, "I've already placed my bet, can we start?"

The rat-person was silent for a long time before finally trembling and saying, "If you really want to bet your life, then don't regret it... the game starts now."

Qi Xia entered the room.

Just as the rat-person was about to leave and close the door, Qi Xia grabbed her.

This action made the rat-person's whole body stiffen.

Qi Xia, with a blank expression, slowly reached into the rat-person's shirt pocket and pulled out a 'Dao.'

"I found it."

The three people at the door all opened their mouths wide.

Is this...

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...acceptable?

Finding the 'Dao' on the referee the moment the game starts.

Does this really not break the 'rules'?

The rat-person was visibly trembling, looking very afraid.

"If I'm not mistaken, as soon as you close the door, there will be no 'Dao' in this room, right?" Qi Xia asked aggressively.

"How did you know..."

"It's simple," Qi Xia said softly, "Every time you explain the game rules, you have to stand in the room and tell us that 'now' there is a 'Dao' in the room. Your statement is correct, but it's a huge trap."

Seeing the rat-person not respond, Qi Xia continued, "There is indeed a 'Dao' in the room 'now,' but it will soon disappear."

The eyes under the rat-person's mask started to move wildly, and after a long pause, she asked, "Did you bet your life on this bold assumption?"

"Assumption? Of course not," Qi Xia continued, "What truly convinced me was when you declared Tian Tian's game over."

"What?!"

"At the time, the door was closed, and logically, none of us knew what was happening inside. But the moment you opened the door, you told Tian Tian she had failed." Qi Xia shook his head helplessly, "How did you know she hadn't found it?"

"I..."

"The answer is obvious, you knew there couldn't be a 'Dao' in the room."

The rat-person's body shivered slightly.

"And the 'rodent' game was another trap. We all thought rodents are nocturnal and search for targets in the dark, which was Tian Tian's line of thinking. But there are other rodents that keep important things in their mouths, right?"

The rat-person stared at Qi Xia for a long time, knowing she had truly lost.

She paused, then suddenly pushed Qi Xia hard and turned to run.

"Damn!" Qiao Jiajin immediately reached out to grab the rat-person, but she dodged like a real rat.

She ran very fast, dashing down the street.

The four people were at a loss, never expecting the animal-masked beings to run away.

"What's going on... Qi Xia?" Qiao Jiajin helped Qi Xia up from the ground, puzzled, "Why did she run?"

"I don't know," Qi Xia shook his head, but his expression suggested he had an idea.

Could 'betting one's life' mean...

He looked in the direction the rat-person had run, and his eyes widened.

"What's wrong?"

Qi Xia extended his hand, trembling, pointing to the distance.

The three people turned to look and were instantly stunned.

In the air, a floating person blocked the rat-person.

"Damn... is that a terminator...?" Qiao Jiajin's voice trembled, the scene completely beyond his imagination.

The person in the air gently waved his hand, and the rat-person collapsed, seemingly unable to move.

Then, the two disappeared in the distance and reappeared in front of Qi Xia and the others.

This scene, like a god descending, left the four people momentarily speechless.

The person floating in the air was a tall, slender man, naked except for a cloak made of blood-red feathers, with a few feathers in his disheveled long hair. He was moving up and down in the air, like a bird.

The four people were terrified, none daring to speak.

The rat-person was trembling all over, and a sob could be heard under her mask.

"Rat-person, what are you going to do?" the man asked softly, "Were you trying to run away?"

"I... I..." the rat-person trembled, her voice distorted.

"Running away is not allowed," the man slowly landed, gently stroking the rat-person's head, "You need to be good, 'betting one's life' means 'betting one's life.'"

"Lord Zhuque...!" the rat-person cried, "Please spare me...!"

"That's not possible," the man called 'Zhuque' extended his long fingers, tracing the rat-person's mask, "If you make a bet, you must accept the consequences. It's not my fault that the other party wanted to bet your life."

Qi Xia had a sense of foreboding and mustered the courage to speak, "I... I don't want her life, I bet my life just to get more 'Dao.'"

"Oh?" Zhuque raised his eyes to look at Qi Xia, but his hand slowly moved down to the rat-person's pale neck, gripping her like a real rat.

The rat-person trembled stiffly, not daring to speak.

"Is it necessary?" Qi Xia frowned, "I initiated the 'betting one's life,' and now I don't want her life, I just want the 'Dao.' Killing her won't benefit me."

The rat-person, hearing Qi Xia seemingly pleading for her, slowly raised her head, her eyes filled with tears.

Zhuque, hearing Qi Xia's words, slowly withdrew his hand and chuckled.

"Interesting... Rat-person, get up... he's letting you go." He patted the rat-person's back.