Chapter 215 Scheme of Three

Chu Tianqiu and Yun Yao were seated in a sedan, racing down the road at breakneck speed.

"Chu Tianqiu... what are you doing?" Yun Yao asked, her voice tinged with confusion and frustration. "Didn’t you see that {Passage to Heaven} is under attack?!"

"I’m well aware," Chu Tianqiu replied, his hands tightly gripping the steering wheel as his eyes remained fixed on the road ahead. "But staying would be futile. Their objective is clear—to {massacre all of Passage to Heaven}. If we remain, we’ll only be throwing our lives away."

"You…" Yun Yao was momentarily stunned. "How do you know all of this?"

"Ah, of course," Chu Tianqiu said, a smile playing at the corner of his lips. "This evening, as Xu Liunian, Qi Xia, and I each pursued our own goals and crafted our separate plans, I never anticipated that all three of us would feign being deceived, each entangling our schemes within one another. Now, those schemes have seamlessly intertwined—it's truly impressive..."

Yun Yao remained in a daze, still struggling to process what she had just heard. Xu Liunian had truly returned? Not only had she come back, but it seemed she had orchestrated something as well?

“What does this all mean?” Yun Yao asked. “What are the objectives of the three of you?”

Chu Tianqiu took a moment to reflect, his expression thoughtful before he answered. “As for my goal, it’s simple enough—I intend for Qi Xia to obtain his {Reverberation}. As for Xu Liunian’s… goal…” He trailed off, pausing in contemplation. “I can’t say for certain, but it seems like she’s trying to prove something to someone, or perhaps she wants to eliminate me…. When she asked me to take the lead and kill Li Xiangling tonight, I sensed something amiss.”

“What?” Yun Yao’s eyes widened in disbelief. “She asked you to personally kill Li Xiangling?”

Chu Tianqiu let out a dark chuckle, his gaze narrowing with a knowing glint. “I mulled it over for a while and something didn’t sit right, so I swapped the cyanide for antibiotics.” He smirked. “It seems caution really is the best course. Xu Liunian, that devious woman, actually dared to turn her twisted schemes on me.”

Yun Yao fell silent for a moment before asking, “Then what is Qi Xia’s objective?”

“That one’s even trickier to unravel…” Chu Tianqiu said, his hand resting casually on the steering wheel as he stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Perhaps Qi Xia is seeking another ally to collaborate with? If tonight’s {scheme} was something Qi Xia orchestrated for Xu Liunian, then everything would fall into place…”

Though Yun Yao was seated in the enclosed car, a chill seemed to seep into her bones. The three of them, without knowing what decisions the others would make, had all set their own traps.

“You say you want Qi Xia to obtain his {Reverberation}… so what’s the stratagem you’ve employed?” Yun Yao asked.

“It’s the {massacre all of Passage to Heaven},” Chu Tianqiu answered nonchalantly.

“What…?” Yun Yao’s eyes gradually widened in realization. “Those attackers… they were arranged by you?”

“Indeed, and it came at a steep cost,” Chu Tianqiu nodded. “Tonight, Cats are in motion—no one in Passage to Heaven will be spared.”

“Chu Tianqiu, are you insane?!” Yun Yao exclaimed, her eyes wide in disbelief. “More than half of the people at {Passage to Heaven} haven’t obtained their {Reverberation}!”

“Yun Yao, I’m not insane. I’ve merely been enlightened,” Chu Tianqiu said, his lips curling into a chilling smile. “Those people have already died countless times—another death would hardly matter. But Qi Xia is different. His abilities are formidable, but his mental state is fragile. I expect that after three or five more cycles, he’ll lose his sanity completely, and there will be no hope left for him to attain his {Reverberation}.”

Yun Yao frowned but remained silent.

“So, I’m racing against time,” Chu Tianqiu continued with a chuckle. “No more than three cycles—I must find the trigger for Qi Xia’s {Reverberation}.” His grin deepened. “I was so wrong before… I always believed that Qi Xia’s {Reverberation} would be sparked by {sorrow}. But after reviewing all the records, I realized there’s another state he’s never experienced!”

“What is it…?” Yun Yao asked cautiously.

“It’s the feeling of {peace (安; An)}, {satisfaction}, and {happiness}! Hahahaha!”

Chu Tianqiu laughed wildly as he barreled through the road, crushing mole crickets beneath his wheels, and in an instant, the windshield was splattered with blood.

Yun Yao slowly widened her eyes as she listened. “I understand now… So that's why you left Li Xiangling there… You’re gambling with the lives of everyone at {Passage to Heaven}…”

“Hahahaha!” Chu Tianqiu’s laughter echoed. “Li Xiangling’s {Reverberation} is so weak... Yet it’s at this moment that it can unleash tremendous power! Her trigger—{witnessing conflagration}—has already been set. What comes next is witnessing Qi Xia’s {Reverberation} in action!”

“Then… where are you taking me?”

“Of course, to the display screen,” Chu Tianqiu remarked, turning on the wipers, spreading the blood evenly across the glass.

“You purposely paired yourself up with me…to ensure you can leave {Passage to Heaven} safely.” Yun Yao said slowly. “But to erase the traces of what you’ve done today… you plan to kill me, don’t you?”

“You’re underestimating me, Yun Yao.” Chu Tianqiu shook his head. “Killing you would be meaningless. What I fear is losing my sanity and seeing illusions on the screen. That’s why I need you—the sanest person in {Passage to Heaven}—to stay with me.”

The two arrived at the plaza, and Chu Tianqiu switched on the high beams, illuminating a large area around them.

The screen was covered with a dense cluster of words.

Chu Tianqiu squinted for a long while before finally breaking into a smile. “See, Yun Yao, I did it. Li Xiangling didn’t disappoint me.”

The final line on the screen read: “I heard the reverberation of {Soul Manifestation}.”

“Wonderful...wonderful!!” Chu Tianqiu cried out, his voice filled with elation.

But in the next instant, a wave of sorrow suddenly washed over him. He hunched over, and within moments, he began to retch violently.

“Cough…cough…” Chu Tianqiu vomited for a long time before finally exhaling deeply and wiping his mouth. “As expected... was tonight’s dinner not exquisite enough?”

Yun Yao shuddered, her gaze locking onto something in Chu Tianqiu’s vomit—a human fingernail.

…

Li Xiangling sat in the classroom, listening to the sounds of chaos and slaughter outside, slowly breaking into a cold sweat. Unpleasant memories began to resurface.

“Qi... Qi ge...” she called weakly. “Find a chance to escape... You don’t need to worry about me.”

Qi Xia remained quietly observing through the crack in the door, then softly spoke, “Don’t misunderstand. I didn’t stay behind to protect you. Trying to escape now would be no different than walking to your own death.”

A shadow of deep concern crossed his face. Not long after Qiao Jiajin had left, a deafening explosion reverberated through the first floor. Qi Xia stood frozen, unsure of what to do next.

The person who had driven off earlier was most likely Chu Tianqiu, which meant it was highly probable that he had orchestrated this ambush. He was willing to abandon the entire {Passage to Heaven} team, but for what purpose?

Qi Xia couldn’t figure it out.

Given the situation, his only option was to completely defy Chu Tianqiu’s plans and do everything in his power to thwart the other's objectives.

He had been told to stay inside the sickroom, so Qi Xia swiftly relocated.