Chapter 55

Linping was startled by Qixia's actions and hurriedly stepped forward to hold him back: "Qixia... calm down..."

She couldn't understand why Qixia, who was usually so composed, had suddenly become so agitated.

Qixia still didn't let go. He tightly grabbed Doctor Zhao's collar and gritted his teeth, saying, "How can I calm down? Do you know how many people I've seen die in front of me today?!"

Linping lowered her head silently after hearing this.

Indeed, from the beginning with the "rat-man" to the end with Qiaojiajin and Tian Tian, they had experienced too many moments of near-death.

"No wonder..." Qixia continued, "No wonder your first reaction when you heard someone enter was to hit with a board... You knew that Officer Li and Lawyer Zhang wouldn't come back, right?"

Doctor Zhao's face showed a hint of panic: "No... Qixia, listen to me, I had no choice. They really wanted to go to their deaths..."

"Go to their deaths?" Qixia snorted coldly, "You've never stepped out of this room, so you know nothing about it. Officer Li must have talked to the ox-head across the street. He found out that the game here doesn't lead to death but instead offers a chance to get the 'Way.' That's why he left with Lawyer Zhang."

"Huh?" Doctor Zhao looked puzzled, clearly hearing this news for the first time, "Not fatal? How can that be?"

Xiaoran, who had just climbed up from the ground, wiped the mud off his face and turned back angrily: "Zhao Haibo! What are you standing there for?! They're bullying us!"

"But... but I..." Doctor Zhao's face didn't look good.

"Useless!" Xiaoran shouted in frustration, "How can you be so useless?!"

Qixia looked at Xiaoran, then at Doctor Zhao, and suddenly felt a sense of despair.

Did he have time to tangle with these two?

Thinking about this, he silently let go.

Qixia was now completely lost.

Where would Officer Li and Lawyer Zhang go?

Did they see any of the "Zodiac" characters starting with the character for "earth"?

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Did they participate in the life-or-death game?

Are they still alive?

Rustle, rustle, rustle, rustle.

The sound of insects outside the door became more chaotic, as if a cricket was perched outside, preventing anyone from calming down to think.

"Qixia, what should we do?" Linping asked with a sad look.

Qixia looked up and asked Doctor Zhao, "Did they say where they were going?"

He still held a glimmer of hope.

Officer Li was cautious; if he really left, he should have left a clue.

"No..." Doctor Zhao shook his head, "But I saw them go right down the street after participating in the ox-head's game across the street..."

"Right?" Qixia looked at the dark sky outside, calculating in his mind.

Officer Li wouldn't have gone too far; he just wanted to get away from these two.

After all, he had told him that he hoped to meet again one day to exchange information.

If so, he should still be active in the area, possibly in the nearest "game room" besides the restaurant across the street.

With a general direction in mind, Qixia felt more confident.

Although it was dark, he really didn't want to stay with these two any longer.

So he picked up a stick from inside the room, slowly walked to Han Yimo's corpse, and whispered, "Brother, even in death, you can't rest in peace. I'm sorry."

"What are you doing now?" Xiaoran asked irritably.

Qixia didn't answer. He tore a piece of cloth from Han Yimo's body, wrapped it around the top of the stick, and then smeared some dry dirt on the stick.

After doing this, he walked to the fire inside the room and lit the side with the cloth, making a simple torch.

"Linping, I'm going to look for them," Qixia said. "I don't know if it's dangerous outside, but I don't want to stay here. Do you want to wait until dawn? I'll come back for you whether I find them or not."

Linping turned to look at Xiaoran and the others, then shook her head: "No, I'll go with you."

With that, she picked up the pot containing the bear meat and stood beside Qixia.

"What is this..." Doctor Zhao finally noticed the old aluminum pot, his eyes gleaming.

"This is..." Linping paused, then shook her head, "Nothing."

"Is it food?!" Doctor Zhao stepped forward immediately, "You found food?"

Xiaoran's face also changed: "There's something to eat?"

Their eyes no longer looked human but rather like those of starving beasts.

Qixia pulled Linping behind him, standing between them, and said slowly, "Sorry, this isn't for you."

"Qixia... Qixia..." Doctor Zhao stammered, "Xia Ge... We were a bit too much earlier, don't take it to heart."

"Right..." Xiaoran tried to force a smile, "Who doesn't argue? Besides, you're a man, would you really be angry with a woman? We were just joking earlier..."

"Exactly, exactly..." Doctor Zhao and Xiaoran echoed, "There's plenty in that pot, we'll just have a little, we won't finish it all..."

Qixia's face darkened again, saying, "The contents of this pot were earned by Qiaojiajin at great risk. You can ask him; if he agrees, I have no objections."

Hearing this, Xiaoran's expression changed. After a moment's pause, she lunged directly at the pot.

Qixia had anticipated this move and could only sigh in frustration, reaching out to stop her.

"So, no more 'tricking,' now it's 'stealing'?" Qixia said with a hint of sarcasm, "There's no 'lawless land' in this world. I advise you to think carefully; your team originally had a police officer."

"You..."

Qixia snorted, pushed Xiaoran away, and walked out the door with the torch. Linping followed closely behind.

Xiaoran and Doctor Zhao now realized what it meant for a "cooked duck to fly away."

The pot with its faint aroma was right in front of them, but they couldn't even touch it.

"Don't go!" Xiaoran shouted and rushed out the door after Qixia.

Outside, the world was pitch black except for the dim firelight and the sound of insects.

What Xiaoran didn't expect was that Qixia and Linping were now standing quietly three steps away from her, their backs to her, motionless.

"Huh?"

A few seconds later, she saw Qixia and Linping slowly take another step back.

"Hey, what's wrong with you?" Xiaoran asked.

Linping turned her head like a robot, her eyes filled with fear. She put a finger to her lips, signaling for silence.

"Are you crazy?" Xiaoran said irritably, "If you want to go, go! Leave the pot!"

As she said this, Xiaoran felt something was off.

Qixia's torch illuminated a small area, and in the dim light, something seemed to be moving.

The next second, Xiaoran saw what was in the light, her eyes widening in terror.

Right in front of Qixia was a man so emaciated he was barely human, his body pale and naked.

He was on all fours, his legs supporting him from behind, crawling in an extremely awkward position.

On his gaunt face, two hollow eye sockets were visible, and his mouth was puckered, making a sound:

"Rustle, rustle—"

"Rustle, rustle—"