TDU Chapter 230
Chapter 230 Imposter
Qi Xia's brow remained furrowed as his gaze fixed on Chu Tianqiu. After a lengthy pause, he spoke with measured deliberation, "Let me confirm something... Chu Tianqiu, the last time, you orchestrated this entire charade solely to provoke my {Reverberation}, didn’t you?"
"Indeed," Chu Tianqiu nodded.
"So now, you’re playing the role of the ever-devoted admirer, showering me with flattery, all in the hopes that I will unleash my {Reverberation} to assist you," Qi Xia continued.
"Exactly."
"But it seems you've misunderstood a crucial point," Qi Xia's expression tightened as he furrowed his brows. "That was never part of our agreement."
"Oh?" Chu Tianqiu tapped his chin with a thoughtful air. "You are quite right. That particular stipulation was not in the original terms... But surely, you can introduce a new condition in kind. This would ensure the fairness of our arrangement, wouldn't it?"
"Oh...?" Qi Xia's lips curled into a sneer. "Are you absolutely certain of that?"
"Certain."
"Then don’t come to regret it."
"I have no regrets!" Chu Tianqiu’s declaration was unwavering, perhaps too unwavering—his conviction almost unnervingly intense.
"So, Qi Xia," Chu Tianqiu's smile resurfaced, spreading wider. "This time, I offer you nothing but my full {sincerity}. Let us unite our forces!"
"Naturally." Qi Xia nodded with a touch of indifference. "If I had no intention of cooperating with you, would I have come here in the first place?"
"Indeed... Indeed..." Chu Tianqiu nodded in agreement, his smile never fading.
The group had heaped the fallen bodies into a central mound, a grotesque tower of corpses that now numbered nearly sixty. Burying them all was an impossible task—time itself would have to deal with the grim remains.
Yet, the coming days promised no mercy. {Passage to Heaven} would soon be suffused with the most pungent, suffocating stench of {End Point}.
Qi Xia and his teammates wiped the blood from their bodies and made their way to the classroom that was now their designated space.
"Great job, everyone!" Qiao Jiajin said with unflagging energy, addressing the group. "Thanks for helping me move my bodies. Later, I’ll treat you all to some canned food!"
Everyone, however, wasn’t particularly inclined to pay him much attention.
"Fists, come here for a moment," Qi Xia spoke softly, "There is something I need to confirm with you."
"Hmm?" Qiao Jiajin walked over to Qi Xia's side. "What's up, Swindler lad?"
"How did you come back to life?" Qi Xia asked, cutting straight to the point.
"You referring to the {Passage to Heaven Defense Battle}?"
Qi Xia let out a heavy sigh. "You even named this battle?"
"Of course," Qiao Jiajin nodded with solemn seriousness. "With the number of battles I’ve fought, it’d be impossible to keep track without giving them names."
"Alright..." Qi Xia muttered, his tone laced with a hint of resignation. "So, during the {Passage to Heaven Defense Battle}—how did you manage to come back to life?"
"Well, it’s... hard to explain," Qiao Jiajin began, scratching his head. "Every time I think I’ve been killed, I open my eyes and find myself standing nearby. Then I just head straight back to the spot where I died to get my revenge. Though, those guys were pretty strong... it wasn’t easy fighting them with nothing but my bare hands."
Looking at Qiao Jiajin’s bizarre—and seemingly endless—variety of death states, it was easy to imagine the toll this battle had taken on him. Even with his considerable combat prowess, he had perished so many times. What, then, could be said of an ordinary person?
"But..." Qiao Jiajin continued, his brow furrowing slightly in thought, "It seems as though those invaders were more afraid of me than I was of them... I didn’t feel any fear when I was killed. So why were they so terrified?"
Qi Xia paused for a moment before asking, "Back then... during that time... did you see..."
He trailed off, slowly gesturing toward Yu Nian'An, who was standing a little ways off.
"Oh? Are you asking if that gal was there during the {Passage to Heaven Counterattack Battle}?"
"{Passage to Heaven Counterattack Battle}...?" Qi Xia sighed, a trace of exasperation in his tone. "Yes, did you see her there?"
"No," Qiao Jiajin shook his head. "After Kung Fu gal and I successfully defended the fort, we searched for all the survivors within {Passage to Heaven}, but we never came across her."
At this, Qi Xia felt a sharp pang of unease stir within him. He couldn’t help but wonder if the Yu Nian'An standing before him was, in fact, a manifestation of his own {Reverberation}.
But now, it seemed she was not something he had created. Could she truly be the original?
Yet, why would the original suddenly appear in their probation room?
"Back then, Doctor lad, Buff lou, and a few others who I don’t know the names of survived. Only six of us in total," Qiao Jiajin said. "Writer lad died, Psychologist died, and all the other members of {Passage to Heaven} died. This {Passage to Heaven Safeguard Battle} ended in a disastrous loss."
"Passage to Heaven Defense Safeguard Battle..." Qi Xia stared intently into Qiao Jiajin's eyes, unable to hold himself back any longer. "Fists, promise me—no more spontaneous naming from now on."
After exchanging a few more words with Qiao Jiajin, Qi Xia finally turned and moved toward Yu Nian'An’s side.
At that moment, Yu Nian'An stood frozen, her gaze lost in the vastness of the sky, her thoughts seemingly adrift.
"An, are you alright?" Qi Xia’s voice broke through her reverie.
"I… I don’t know," Yu Nian'An replied, shaking her head slowly. "Xia, this place feels so strange. Are you sure this isn’t a dream?"
"I’d rather it were a dream," Qi Xia muttered, his tone tinged with a hint of frustration. He took her hand gently and guided her to sit beside him. "An, do you remember how you ended up here?"
"How did I get here?" Yu Nian'An’s brow furrowed as she thought for a moment. "I find that quite strange, as well, actually..."
"Oh?"
"I’ve been here for about four or five days... The people I’ve encountered are all strange, the air reeks, the sky is an eerie red... And—"
"Wait a moment..." Qi Xia's eyes slowly widened.
"What’s wrong?"
"How long did you just say... you’ve been here?" Qi Xia’s voice dropped to a tense whisper.
"Four or five days," Yu Nian'An answered, confused.
Another thunderclap seemed to strike Qi Xia’s mind, the revelation jolting him to his core.
Fake—yet another fake!
"The reason I suddenly appeared beside you..." Yu Nian'An hesitated, as if searching for the right words. "It seems to be connected to a strange figure."
Qi Xia remained silent, leaving Yu Nian'An to continue her own account.
"This person appeared to have some kind of special ability. About three days ago, she took my hand and said, {You must understand, as long as your lover appears, you will definitely be able to see him}. She repeated those words five or six times, and I honestly thought she wasn’t quite right in the head."
Qi Xia’s brow furrowed, his thoughts racing. So this imposter Yu Nian'An had been brought here through the influence of some other individual's {Reverberation}.
She was indeed a product of his previous {Reverberation}.
But she hadn't appeared at {Passage to Heaven}. Instead, she had wandered through {End Point}, where she encountered a certain {Reverberatee}. For reasons that remained unclear, this {Reverberatee} had chosen to assist her, granting her the chance to {meet her lover}.
And so, when Qi Xia arrived, this substitute for Yu Nian'An had manifested alongside him.
It all clicked into place now, and with it came a chilling realization—this Yu Nian'An, a creation of his own {Reverberation}, would not vanish with the {End}— in other words, she was not considered a {Participant}.
"Xia, what's wrong?" Yu Nian'An noticed Qi Xia’s strange behavior. "Why are you being so quiet?"
Having confirmed that the Yu Nian'An before him was nothing more than an imposter, Qi Xia found himself with little to say to her. His heart belonged to the real Yu Nian'An, not this mere replica.
"It’s nothing." Qi Xia shook his head dismissively, his expression hardening into one of indifference.
"That’s a relief..." Yu Nian'An forced a faint smile. "By the way, Xia, something really strange happened yesterday at noon. I watched so many people turn to dust right before my eyes. At that moment, I thought I would never see you again."
