The director always loved to drag out those suspenseful pauses at critical moments when announcing results.
Shao Yuye clenched his fist, his palm slick with sweat.
Damn.
He hadn’t been this nervous since debut night!
Everyone else was curious too.
“Who is it? Director, just say it already!”
There was basically no suspense about first place, it had to be between Shao Yuye and Qi Luozhou.
Compared to Shao Yuye’s confidence and determination, Qi Luozhou looked exceptionally calm. His lashes were lowered slightly, hands loosely clasped together, his left fingers tapping absentmindedly on the back of his right hand.
“I bet it’s God Zhou!”
Jin Xiaoyu was still annoyed about Shao Yuye guarding against her earlier and said angrily, “Seriously, I just want to see Brother Ye lose once!”
Unfortunately, the director called out : “Shao Yuye.”
Shao Yuye beamed. “That’s great!”
Damn.
What kind of gods were his fans?!
Before he could even enjoy it, the director immediately added another line:
“—Who do you think first place will be?!”
“…………”
The entire venue fell silent.
Jiang Yuan let out a helpless laugh and patted Shao Yuye on the shoulder in consolation.
“Looks like first place is probably God Zhou then.”
“I know this routine. Didn’t the director pull the same trick when announcing teams this morning?”
“Pfft.”
Jin Xiaoyu laughed gleefully at his misfortune.
Shao Yuye gritted his teeth and glared at the director, “If it’s not me, who else could it be?!”
That was way too arrogant!
No one in the room dared to even breathe.
Only Shen Wanwan was smiling brightly.
—Idiot Brother.
Seeing the atmosphere reach its peak, the director laughed.
“Correct!
“Congratulations, you’ve won the popularity king for day one at this stop, and you’ll receive an item card!”
Holy crap.
Happiness came way too suddenly.
The emotional roller coaster left Shao Yuye almost doubting himself.
“So, have you finally caught your breath this time?” he asked.
The director wiped his brow. “…Yes, I have.”
Over there, the staff brought out the big prize wheel.
As if it had read Shao Yuye’s mind, the Partner Swap card was clearly listed on it!
At this moment, the previously relaxed Qi Luozhou suddenly paused, turning his head to look toward the wheel.
Burning with fighting spirit, Shao Yuye spun it hard.
As the wheel spun, Shen Wanwan couldn’t help but close her eyes.
Five seconds later, a staff member shouted excitedly:
“Congratulations! You’ve won the Ultra-Rare Progress Reset Card!”
Shao Yuye : “……”
Jin Xiaoyu exclaimed enviously, “Damn, that card is an instant kill!”
If it landed in the hands of the last-place team, it would be a true super weapon—slay gods if gods block you, slay Buddhas if Buddhas block you! Whoever you want at the bottom stays at the bottom!
Yet the card she desperately wanted was treated like trash by the very person who got it.
Shao Yuye’s shoulders slumped as he waved his hand listlessly.
“So lame.”
What rotten luck.
For a moment, his vengeful instincts kicked in and he wanted to throw the card to Qi Luozhou’s team just to spite him.
But the problem was…
His sister was currently on Qi Luozhou’s team too.
Holding this so-called god-tier card, Shao Yuye was so angry his chest hurt.
After voting closed, fans online were also closely watching to see who the final popularity king would be.
Qi Luozhou and Shao Yuye’s rankings had been extremely close.
But there were more ‘Petty Revenge Duo’ casual fans, and Shao Yuye had actively asked for votes. Casual viewers tossed in a few bullets of support and each gave him a vote.
When the show’s official Weibo announced that the first night’s popularity king was Shao Yuye, the ‘Yu Yu’s were ecstatic!
[Aaaaah, Brother Ye, charge!!!]
[So does that mean we’ll see the ‘Petty Revenge Duo’ reunited tomorrow? So happy!]
[Director team, hurry up and release the livestream, I want to see smug Brother Ye being happy!]
Meanwhile, the ‘Xiao Chuan’s failed to keep Qi Luozhou in first place and were deeply disappointed.
[Ahhh what do we do? Is Shen Wanwan going to be snatched back by Shao Yuye?!]
[But it’s not a big deal. Worst case, they just go back to the original teams. God Zhou with Jiang Yuan, and ‘Petty Revenge Duo’ as a team…]
[Wait, why are you guys getting led astray by those fish snacks too? Do you seriously believe Shao Yuye’s terrible luck—his infamous bad hand—could actually draw the swap card in one try?]
Whether a swap happened or not would only be known once the livestream aired.
Fans from both sides tossed and turned all night. As soon as the livestream started the next day, they rushed eagerly into the stream.
When they saw Shen Wanwan standing with Qi Luozhou, still wearing the pink team uniform, the ‘Yu Yu’s were confused:
[Why is WanZhou still in a team?]
[Oh, do they announce the swap first and then change uniforms?]
[Director, I urge you to be kind. This kind of suspense really isn’t fun!]
Until someone timidly typed:
[Um… is there a chance that Shao Yuye didn’t manage to spin the swap card at all?]
[…………]
The bullet comments instantly fell into an eerie silence.
Thinking about Brother Ye’s historically awful luck… yeah, that really was possible.
When Shao Yuye appeared on camera wearing the blue team uniform, countless ‘Yu Yu’s spat blood in despair.
[Brother Ye… Brother Ye… we really overestimated your luck. The production team only said you’d get a chance to draw an item card, they never said you’d actually draw a good one!]
Yet Shao Yuye was still fired up, and during the trash-talk segment he coolly tossed a line at Qi Luozhou: “Time is on my side!”
The barrage fell into collective silence.
[……]
[………………]
[Brother Ye, how about… we just accept it.]
[Your luck… really is something else.]
Shao Yuye and Jiang Yuan were already at level 10.
The fastest progress on the field so far.
A full three levels ahead of second place—Shen Wanwan and Qi Luozhou.
Just yesterday alone, they’d accumulated quite a few item cards.
But as Shao Yuye looked at those cards, he only shook his head, unimpressed, and sighed gloomily:
“We still haven’t cleared enough levels.
“Let’s set a small goal for today, charge through another ten stages!”
Jiang Yuan had been drinking water nearby. Hearing that overflowing enthusiasm, he let out a *pfft* and sprayed it out.
The stream of water traced a neat arc through the air.
Clutching his chest and coughing, Jiang Yuan wheezed.
—I’m dying here!
A fired-up Shao Yuye is not human!
“*Cough cough*… isn’t ten levels a bit too much?”
Seeing his partner starting to waver, Shao Yuye narrowed his eyes and extended his right arm toward Jiang Yuan.
“Certain!”
Having been thoroughly brainwashed by him yesterday, Jiang Yuan almost reflexively reached out as well: “Victory!”
Only after completing the gesture did he regret it. “This is so stupid!”
The barrage exploded with laughter:
[First thing every morning: give yourself a pep talk!]
[Hahaha Jiang Yuan, honestly, you really dote on him.]
[Jiang Yuan is so versatile, he vibes well with literally everyone!]
As they chatted, the two passed by a small wooden hut.
Jiang Yuan glanced at it and hesitated. “Could this be a hidden level…?”
Shao Yuye casually glanced at the hut. It didn’t seem anything special.
But since Jiang Yuan mentioned it, he gestured for him to go ahead.
“Let’s check it out.”
On the other side, Shen Wanwan and Qi Luozhou were also heading toward level 7.
Level 7’s game was simple: by a small lake, toss a ball high into the air, then clamp the small ball with your knees.
If the guest managed to catch the ball between their knees, it counted as clearing the stage.
Actually, clamping it wasn’t hard. The difficulty lay in controlling one’s balance.
If your center of gravity wavered during the movement, it was easy to fall straight into the lake.
After the staff finished explaining the rules and handed the ball to Shen Wanwan and Qi Luozhou, the two didn’t seem eager to start right away.
Shen Wanwan’s attention was drawn to a transparent greenhouse not far away.
Inside were all fake flowers, yet every single one lay wilted and drooping on the ground.
When she withdrew her gaze, she realized Qi Luozhou was looking in the same direction.
Shen Wanwan: “Go over there?”
Qi Luozhou nodded.
“Okay.”
After walking closer, they discovered there was also a wooden door inside the greenhouse.
There were no NPCs around to explain anything, but beside the door was a circular button, like a doorbell.
Shen Wanwan reached out and pressed it. The next second, the door opened silently before them.
Inside was a long corridor. Portrait oil paintings of human heads hung all around, while candle-like lights flickered inside their lampshades. In the dim light, a cold and eerie aura seeped through…
At the same time, a gentle female voice came from a hidden speaker above them—
“Only adventurers filled with a spirit of challenge can open this door.
“Clear the challenge to receive a grand reward. Once you enter, there will be no exit. If you fail to clear it, you will be trapped inside.
“Do you wish to enter?”
This was unmistakably hidden level narration.
Qi Luozhou looked at Shen Wanwan. “Do we go in?”
Shen Wanwan nodded. “Seems like an escape-room type.”
They continued inward. Almost the moment they stepped fully inside, the glass door automatically closed behind them, accompanied by a clear *click* of the lock engaging.
The room fell instantly silent, making their footsteps echo sharply as they moved forward.
The strands of hair falling along Shen Wanwan’s cheeks were lifted by a sudden chilly breeze. At the same time, the candle lights seemed to be blown by the wind as well, causing the dim shadows in the room to sway.
[Wow, this hidden level looks huge!]
[Did the production team really put effort into this? Looking forward to it!]
[So exciting! I peeked at the other stream, Shao Yuye’s team seems to have entered here too!]
[Am I the only one who’s scared? I need the barrage to protect me, wuwuwu!]
In the darkness, faint hissing sounds rang out from time to time. And then, suddenly, the flickering lights went out.
[AHHHH! That’s terrifying!]
The suddenly dimming lights plunged everything into darkness. Shen Wanwan felt the person beside her pause in his movement; in the dark, Qi Luozhou tried to reach for her hand.
At that very moment, a shrill scream rang out from Shen Wanwan’s left.
She turned her head, and her gaze met, head-on, a ghastly face that suddenly lunged out from a picture frame.
The ‘ghost’ looked ferocious—eyes blood-red, a long tongue dangling, pupils rolled back, face deathly pale like paper.
The camera cut to an extreme close-up, and the barrage instantly erupted into wails of terror:
[Holy shit! That scared me to death!]
[Aaaah, director, are you trying to kill us?! You nearly gave me a heart attack!]
Yet the two people on screen showed almost no reaction.
Shen Wanwan stared expressionlessly at the ‘ghost.’ Finding it rather amusing, she even reached out and tugged on its long tongue.
Qi Luozhou froze where he was, watching her move, then broke into a speechless laugh.
The ‘ghost,’ seemingly feeling provoked, let out another “Aah,” and shook violently, as if determined to swallow her whole—
Shen Wanwan grabbed the fake tongue with a hint of disdain, as though she wanted to shove his head back into the frame.
Who would’ve thought that with that tug, she’d actually pull the tongue right off.
Both of them froze for a moment. The atmosphere visibly turned awkward.
“……”
“……???”
[Hahahahaha! What kind of quality is this tongue?!]
[Shen Wanwan is kind of amazing. I thought someone as delicate as her would scream and hide in God Zhou’s arms.]
[Ahem, ahem—she’s just physically delicate and can’t do heavy labor. That doesn’t mean she’s timid, okay!]
Shen Wanwan choked a little, then silently stuck the tongue back onto the ‘ghost.’
Probably sensing that he’d failed to scare her, the person felt somewhat defeated inside. Out of kindness, she comforted him with a couple of words: “You’re really scary!”
Qi Luozhou, who had been silent at her side, also nodded cooperatively, his smiling eyes curved. Where was even the slightest trace of fright?!
The staff member playing the ghost: “……”
—Thanks. Wow, I really felt mocked!