At this moment, Dr. Zhao also stepped out, his expression evasive.


    Judging by his demeanor, he didn’t seem to be here to stop the confrontation but rather to support it.


    “There’s no fourth ‘Dao,’ only three left,” Qi Xia said.


    “Three?!” Xiao Ran frowned. “Did you lose one?”


    Qi Xia glanced at Dr. Zhao behind Xiao Ran, his gaze carrying a hint of cold sharpness.


    Dr. Zhao seemed to notice Qi Xia’s look and had no choice but to explain,“Xiao Ran, it wasn’t Qi Xia who lost it. He used one of the ‘Dao’ to trade with that female shop assistant for a fishing hook and line.”


    “What…” Xiao Ran’s eyes flickered slightly before she sighed and turned back to Qi Xia.“Fine, it’s your choice to trade a ‘Dao,’ but now I want you to return the two that belong to our team.”


    “The two that belong to you?” Qi Xia’s expression turned cold.


    “Xiao Ran…” Sweetie, who had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke up.“You can’t say it like that. If we really want to be precise, the one that was lost was used to save Han Yimo from your team. It has nothing to do with us.”


    “I’ve said it before—that was Qi Xia’s own decision, and it has nothing to do with our team.”


    “You old hag…” Qiao Jiajin took a step forward, his face fierce. His previously imperfect Mandarin completely switched to Cantonese.“I never hit women, but you’re truly shameless!”


    “Hey… calm down!” Lin Qin stepped up to hold Qiao Jiajin back.“Qi Xia won those ‘Dao,’ so he should decide how to distribute them.”


    Qiao Jiajin pursed his lips in frustration, forcing himself to suppress his anger.


    Qi Xia slowly reached up and rubbed his nose before speaking,“The ‘Dragon of Man’ said that these ‘Dao’ are both our rewards and our chips for participating in the game. You plan to stay here and wait for death, so I’m not giving you a single one.”


    “What, no more tricks—you’re just going to rob us instead?” Xiao Ran sneered.“There’s no such thing as a lawless place. I suggest you think carefully—is this really the right thing to do? We have a policeman here, you know!”


    At that moment, Officer Li also stepped outside, having heard the commotion.


    The two teams had no real conflict before, yet now, because of this woman named Xiao Ran, tensions had reached a breaking point.


    “What’s going on?” Officer Li asked Dr. Zhao. “I could hear the argument from inside.”


    “It’s nothing… Xiao Ran just has something to say to Qi Xia.” Dr. Zhao forced a smile awkwardly.


    “She has something to say to me?” Qi Xia’s expression turned icy.“Dr. Zhao, you’re quite something… Are you sure it’s Xiao Ran who wants to talk to me?”


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    Qi Xia knew that Xiao Ran was merely a gun—the real mastermind behind this was Dr. Zhao.After all, with Xiao Ran’s level of intelligence and courage, there was no way she would confront him like this unless someone had pushed her into it.


    Disarming the gun might stop the immediate attack, but eliminating the shooter was the only way to end it for good.


    “I…” Dr. Zhao hesitated for a moment, then awkwardly said to Qi Xia,“Qi Xia, you might not like it… but those ‘Dao’ were won for all of us. We contributed too… so it’s only fair that you give us half.”


    “Is that so?” Qi Xia nodded thoughtfully before replying,“But Dr. Zhao, last night, when you and I killed Han Yimo together, you weren’t saying that, were you?”


    “What?!” Dr. Zhao’s eyes widened in shock.“You—what the hell are you talking about?! When did I ever kill Han Yimo with you?!”


    Officer Li and Xiao Ran’s faces instantly changed.


    “Wasn’t it you who said,” Qi Xia continued casually, rubbing his hands together,‘That guy’s wounds aren’t even stitched up—he won’t survive. Losing one person means one less burden, and the rest of us will have a better chance of getting out alive’?”


    “B*llsh*t!!” Dr. Zhao was completely enraged, veins bulging on his forehead.“You’re trying to frame me?! Sure, Han Yimo’s wounds were bad, but I stopped the bleeding…! You… you…”


    “What’s got you so worked up?” Qi Xia took a step forward and patted Dr. Zhao’s shoulder before turning to Xiao Ran and Officer Li.“Don’t mind him—I’m a liar. I just made all of that up.”


    “You…!” Dr. Zhao was so furious that his mouth twisted.


    “You hate being falsely accused, don’t you?” Qi Xia lowered his voice.“Well, I hate it too. If you and that woman keep bothering me for something that doesn’t belong to you, I will teach you a lesson.”


    Dr. Zhao was terrified by this and finally realized that the man in front of him was no pushover.


    In past games, Qi Xia had helped others time and time again, but that didn’t mean he could be taken advantage of.


    Xiao Ran also seemed to come to a realization, mumbling to herself,“So that’s it… Because you’re a doctor… if there’s an injured person, you’re forced to care for them… so you killed him to get rid of the burden…”


    “I—”


    “How could that be possible?” Qi Xia interrupted before Dr. Zhao could say anything.“Xiao Ran, I was just making things up—you really shouldn’t believe me.”


    But once a seed of doubt was planted, it wouldn’t be so easily removed.


    “Qi Xia… What kind of game are you playing? What really happened?” Officer Li frowned.


    Qi Xia looked at the strong-built officer. He had a decent impression of him and only hoped he wasn’t siding with the others to take his ‘Dao.’


    “Xiao Ran says I should hand over my ‘Dao’ to you two. What do you think?” Qi Xia asked.


    Officer Li was momentarily stunned before shaking his head.“We’ve already tested it—‘Dao’ can’t be used as currency here, and keeping them is pointless. Besides, you won them yourself, so you should keep them.”


    “That’s ridiculous!” Xiao Ran protested, her voice rising.“Those ‘Dao’ were bought with our lives!”


    Officer Li sighed bitterly.“If you know those ‘Dao’ were won with your lives, then you should be even more grateful that Qi Xia once saved yours.”


    “I…”


    Xiao Ran was speechless.


    After all, what Officer Li said wasn’t wrong—if not for Qi Xia, she would have died in that terrifying room long ago.


    Qi Xia silently nodded, then took a small sphere from his pocket and tossed it to Officer Li.


    Officer Li caught it and flipped it over in his hand, realizing it was a ‘Dao.’


    “Huh?” He looked at Qi Xia in confusion.“What’s this for? I’m not going to participate in the game—this is useless to me.”


    “Just think of it as a deposit with you.” Qi Xia waved dismissively.“Consider it money laundering. With that one in your hands, the two I’m holding are ‘clean,’ and the rest of you can stop bothering me.”


    “This…” Officer Li still seemed unsure, but he didn’t know what else to say.


    Dr. Zhao and Xiao Ran’s expressions grew even more complicated, their emotions a tangled mess.


    The group waited for a moment, noticing that Officer Li was still standing there, unmoving.


    “Hey, cop—got something else to say?” Qiao Jiajin asked.