Earth Ox

"How do we earn 'Dao'?" Qi Xia asked again.

"We found an ox game. From the rules, it sounds like we can earn a lot of 'Dao,' but it takes twenty people to start. We're five short. Do you want to join us?"

"Five short?" Qi Xia paused in surprise. "You've already gathered fifteen people?"

It seemed there really were plenty of participants here.

"That's right." The bespectacled man nodded and pointed into the distance. Sure enough, a sizable crowd had gathered there.

Qi Xia considered it briefly, then nodded. "All right. We'll go take a look."

"Great! I'll head over and wait for you!" The bespectacled man tactfully walked away.

"Hey!" Qiao Jiajin felt something was off. "We're all going over together?! What if they're a violent gang? Are you hoping I'll show off a few moves?"

"They aren't," Qi Xia said. "Each room had nine people at most. Under these circumstances, putting together a gang of over a dozen people would be a stretch. Never mind those strangers-even those of us who came out of the same room don't necessarily trust each other completely."

With that, he glanced at Lin Qin, as though there was more to his words.

Lin Qin looked displeased. She seemed to have no idea why he suspected her. Was it just because she hadn't recognized that "flyer"?

After crossing an old road, the four of them arrived in front of a large building.

Just as the bespectacled man had said, a man wearing a water buffalo mask stood at its entrance.

The participants outside stood in small groups of two or three, deliberately keeping their distance from one another.

Although these people were all strangers, the sight of so many normal people together gave the four of them a faint sense of reassurance they hadn't felt in a long time.

No matter how unappealing these people looked, they were still living, breathing human beings.

"Not bad, Little Glasses!" A middle-aged man clapped the bespectacled man on the shoulder. "You found four people in one go!"

Qi Xia looked at the Bull-Headed Man before him, walked over, and asked, "What are the rules?"

The Bull-Headed Man said flatly, "An ox game. Admission costs one 'Dao' per person, and twenty people are required to begin. Players will be eliminated during the game. When the game ends, each player remaining will receive an amount of 'Dao' equal to the number of players who clear the game."

"An amount of 'Dao' equal to the number who clear it?!" Qi Xia froze. "You mean if twenty people remain at the end, each of those twenty people gets twenty 'Dao'?!"

"Yes."

Qiao Jiajin's jaw dropped as well. "Holy crap! Wouldn't that make us rich in one go?! That's four hundred 'Dao' at once!"

"Could it really be that easy..." Tiantian found it hard to believe. "Hey, Man Ox, you won't welsh on us, will you?"

The Bull-Headed Man fell silent for a moment, then shook his head. "Allow me to correct you. I am not 'Man Ox.'"

"You're not 'Man Ox'?" Tiantian looked at the burly man before her in confusion. "But aren't all of you called 'Man' something?"

"I am 'Earth Ox,'" the Bull-Headed Man said flatly. "If you mistake me for 'Man Ox,' you'll pay dearly for it."

Only then did everyone notice that this "Earth Ox" was indeed different from the Animal Masks they had encountered before. His mask was clean and so lifelike it almost looked like a real ox. His black suit was spotless too, as though it had been specially pressed. When he spoke... even the mouth of his mask seemed to move slightly.

But what was the difference between Man Ox and Earth Ox?

"Earth Ox..." Qi Xia scratched his head, unable to work out the connection. He looked up and asked again, "Earth Ox, what is your game?"

Earth Ox paused briefly. "Pay the admission fee, and you'll learn the details."

"Pay the admission fee..."

Qi Xia's only concern now was that if all four of them joined the game, their previously discussed strategy would become useless.

All four would be entering an unknown game at the same time. The risk was enormous.

But with stakes this high, the risk and reward seemed proportional.

"Liar Boy, what kind of game do you think an 'ox' runs?" Qiao Jiajin asked beside him.

Qi Xia thought for a moment, then answered, "Probably the kind I hate most."

"Oh? There's a kind of game you hate?" Qiao Jiajin immediately perked up. "What is it?"

"Oxen are born to toil in the fields. If I'm right, it should be a test of physical strength." Qi Xia gave Qiao Jiajin an indifferent glance. "It might suit a brute like you better."

"Ha!" Qiao Jiajin rolled up his sleeves, exposing his muscular, tattoo-covered arms. "Finally, my chance to shine... wait, who are you calling a brute?"

Qi Xia shook his head helplessly. "If it weren't for the 'Dao,' I probably wouldn't enter an 'ox' room."

"Don't worry. Call me boss, and I'll clear every ox game for you." Qiao Jiajin grinned mischievously. "Sounds like a good deal, right?"

Qi Xia turned to look at Qiao Jiajin. "You look about my age, twenty-six or twenty-seven at most. Why should I call you 'boss'?"

"If you're putting it that way, we'd better work this out properly!" Qiao Jiajin scratched his head. "What year were you born?"

Qi Xia kept getting the impression that Qiao Jiajin feared absolutely nothing. Even in such an oppressive place, he could still joke around.

"If you've got time for this, you'd be better off warming up," Qi Xia said dismissively. "So you don't get a cramp later."

"Come on." Qiao Jiajin was getting into it. "Just tell me! If you're older than me, I can call you boss!"

"Fine." Unable to fend Qiao Jiajin off, Qi Xia could only sigh. "You first, then. What year were you born?"

"Seventy-nine," Qiao Jiajin said with a chuckle.

"Seventy-nine... is that supposed to be funny?" Qi Xia frowned. "You really will try anything to trick me into calling you 'boss.' I'm done with this conversation."

"Huh? Why?" Qiao Jiajin looked at Qi Xia in confusion. "Just tell me what year you were born. Are you younger than me?"

Tiantian smiled and shook her head nearby. It seemed staying with Qiao Jiajin had been the right choice. His personality helped dispel some of the gloom weighing on everyone's hearts.

Qiao Jiajin called Qi Xia's name a few more times. Finding that Qi Xia was completely ignoring him, he could only shake his head helplessly.

Several minutes passed, but there were still only nineteen people.

It seemed that although there were quite a few participants here, they weren't everywhere. Gathering twenty people in such a short time really was a stretch.

"He's still not here?" the middle-aged man asked Little Glasses beside him. "Did he oversleep?"

"I don't know either. He said this morning that he'd come." Little Glasses scratched his head. "How about I go find someone else on the street?"

"Forget it..." The middle-aged man waved a hand. "We've already got nineteen. Let's wait for him. I don't want to die without knowing why."

Qi Xia, standing a short distance away, caught every word of their conversation.

Die? Qi Xia frowned. What does he mean, die? Can this game kill us?

Before he could figure it out, a languid figure appeared in the distance.

He was bare-chested, revealing a body covered in scars, and wore camouflage trousers. He stretched as he ambled toward them.