Chapter 153

Chapter 153

While Xi Yu was struggling in the game, trying to find a way out, Luo Xi, who had already returned to Yun Tai, was completely engulfed in worry.

He didn't want to win early, but was more concerned about the outcome of the competition.

So, disregarding his exhausted body and the cleaning of the nutrient liquid, he immediately went to the somewhat chaotic corridor to gather information.

Unfortunately, besides Xi Yu, Xu Tu and Bai Qi were also still not free.

The security officer, whom Luo Xi asked, hesitated: "Anyway, you’ve won, just go back and rest. The broadcasters don't have the right to watch the competition. Can't you just wait for the news?"

Luo Xi frowned: "But... I didn’t understand the game this time, and advancing early... feels strange."

The security officer was silent for a moment before asking: "What’s so strange?"

Luo Xi saw that the officer was tight-lipped, so he folded his arms and remained silent.

Perhaps by coincidence, Lin Yuze, who shouldn’t have been here, walked past the corridor. When he saw Luo Xi, he said: "Congratulations, you’re the first to advance."

Luo Xi didn’t understand this person’s purpose or position, so even though he had repeatedly helped Xi Yu, he still found Lin Yuze suspicious.

In fact, the very refined Lin Yuze, as always, was kind and smiled, asking: "Tired? Would you like a cup of coffee?"

Luo Xi realized there was some hidden meaning behind this invitation, nodded, and said: "Sure."

Lin Yuze shook the electronic pass on his wrist: "Come to my office."

The food and supplies provided to the artificial people at Yun Tai were all specially produced by the company, unchanged for years, always the same with no new ideas.

However, in President Lin’s office, there were many personal items he brought with him.

There were coffee beans, and even exquisite, beautiful cups with unfamiliar brand logos from the outside world.

After carefully inspecting the coffee, Luo Xi didn’t drink it but instead put it back on the table: "According to the rules, we can only eat the food designated by the state. I won’t cause you trouble."

Lin Yuze sat down across from him: "I didn’t expect you to be so strict about the rules."

Luo Xi immediately asked: "Why did you call me here?"

Lin Yuze thoughtfully handed him a tissue: "Wipe your face, don’t rush."

Luo Xi took it and hesitantly wiped off the nutrient liquid.

"Actually," Lin Yuze said, delivering unexpected news, "there was a problem with the design of the competition’s segments, so there was a system update in the middle. The planning department changed the rules. Of course, your brains were input with a sleep signal, so you didn’t know about the update."

Luo Xi calmly accepted it: "No wonder... all the setups and information that were laid out before were useless, and the advancement conditions changed mysteriously."

Lin Yuze sighed: "The reasons are uninteresting. The company used inexperienced planners. Anyway, the game producer will be held accountable... But in any case, the competition must continue."

Luo Xi asked: "What about Xi Yu, will it affect his victory?"

Lin Yuze raised an eyebrow: "The newly updated rules are simple. The broadcaster who excels in intelligence and physical strength will win, so there’s no need to worry too much."

In fact, deep down, Luo Xi had strong resistance and disdain for games like this, so whether the design was clever or foolish, he didn’t care much, and he even looked down on asking more.

Lin Yuze still smiled: "Of course, you’ve already advanced to the next round, so this doesn’t affect you. I’m just casually telling you because you seemed confused earlier."

After all, broadcasters are just tools for humans, so whether they know or not, it doesn’t really matter.

Luo Xi replied: "I think changing the rules is absurd. I’m just worried something might happen to Xi Yu and the others."

Lin Yuze smiled faintly: "Changing the rules is for your own good. The previous rules led to many capable people being eliminated."

Luo Xi raised an eyebrow: "Is that really the reason for changing the rules?"

Lin Yuze asked in return: "Is it important to you?"

Luo Xi didn’t want to answer this question anymore and had no desire to continue the conversation, so he stood up and said, "I’ll go rest now."

Lin Yuze shrugged and calmly watched him leave his office.

Would the competition really proceed normally? What exactly did Lin Yuze mean?

After Luo Xi returned to the corridor, he subconsciously glanced at the camera. Just as he was about to throw the tissue away, he unexpectedly noticed English writing on it: "don’t act rashly..."

Luo Xi calmly walked into the bathroom, tossed the tissue into the toilet, and sighed silently. His memory, which had been in a state of confusion and blankness, still had nothing.

[The broadcaster Wang Lou was found vulnerable by Xi Yu and eliminated.]

[There are seven people remaining in the game.]

The announcement sounded emotionlessly, and Xi Yu listened without expression.

Wang Lou had been wearing a green skirt earlier, while Su Ziyan had pointed out that the broadcaster’s disguise was in military green, helping him successfully guess the person’s identity.

Though it was unfortunate to eliminate anyone, Xi Yu bent down to pick up the golden fragments on the ground. He quickly hid in a dark corner of the alley, continuing to piece them together.

Fortunately, this time, a few of the fragments matched, allowing him to form half of a cone shape.

Xi Yu frowned: "What is this?"

No matter what it was, it couldn’t be wrong to finish putting it together. It must be an important item for victory.

He carefully assembled the fragments, then looked up at the darker sky and the increasingly fierce rain. He decided to abandon the NPC Midnight path and continue searching for the broadcasters who had failed before.

After all, with the meticulous thinking of Ying Zhixing, he would surely ambush him near the dry well. When that time came, it would be more likely for unexpected problems to arise.

Meanwhile, after Su Ziyan and Xi Yu had acknowledged each other, Su Ziyan was both grateful for Xi Yu’s "mercy" and made an effort to find a very hidden small shop to hide.

The paper people, who had once been lively, had become somewhat stiff after the rule change and didn’t pay any attention to his visit.

Su Ziyan circled around to the desolate kitchen and found an empty barrel. He tried to hide with difficulty.

At that moment, very distinct footsteps, familiar to him, came from outside.

Su Ziyan became extremely nervous. Seeing he couldn’t go outside, he had no choice but to blend in with the paper people who were chopping vegetables and pretended to be working.

"I didn't expect things to turn out like this. My identity... seems to have gone unnoticed."

"Hopefully, maybe they are too busy to pay attention. Anyway, now I need to work hard to advance."

"There are only two ways to advance: either drag the game until the end or kill off the remaining broadcasters."

"The latter is difficult. Even though Mu Yuan and Zhou Ze have been eliminated, and Luo Xi is no longer here, Xi Yu and Ying Zhixing are still not easy to deal with."

"Let others try first. We’ll watch and wait."

Su Ziyan was secretly listening to the conversation of two unfamiliar voices in the kitchen, realizing that they were his "loser companions."

But for some reason, despite being in the same camp, he didn’t feel the desire or courage to approach them.

Was it because he feared being excluded again, or was it because he didn’t want to betray Xi Yu?

The answer is probably known only to the heavens.

Fortunately, those two didn’t seem to intend to stay for long. After resting for a moment, they both left.

In fact, Su Ziyan wasn’t clear on how many people had completed the mission, nor did he know who the so-called "group of six" consisted of. However, from what he had heard earlier, he sensed something was off...

If the survivors were Mu Yuan, Zhou Ze, Luo Xi, Xi Yu, and Ying Zhixing, then one was missing...

What exactly was going on? Why did this game seem so confusing?

Su Ziyan looked down at the paper-made hands, not knowing what to do next.

In fact, even if those losers were turned into paper people, traces of their real identities would still appear. And as the paper bodies were destroyed again and again, those traces would become more and more obvious.

Su Ziyan's hair and Wang Lou's clothes clearly demonstrated this.

After Xi Yu figured it out, he specifically sought out a very tall withered tree. Using the dim weather to his advantage, he waited patiently, observing the paper people who occasionally passed by on the road.

Hard work pays off.

He saw two paper people walking together from a distance. Although their movements were equally clumsy and they looked completely ordinary, it was strange how they stuck together without parting.

Xi Yu frowned, carefully analyzing them with his excellent eyesight. He saw that both paper people appeared to be male, but beyond that, there was nothing familiar about them.

Perhaps the identity traces only appeared after the paper bodies had "died"?

Xi Yu remained perfectly still, fearing being noticed, watching those two leave before lightly jumping down from the tree.

Were the genders of the loser paper people real?

Then who, exactly, would remain in the game now?

Ma Ruofei? Zhao Zhusheng?

...

He couldn’t quite guess. Just as he was about to leave, he finally realized something important he had overlooked—there were clearly only five survivors in the end, including Luo Xi, yet why did the system say there were six survivors?

While lost in thought, Xi Yu suddenly felt a chill behind him. He turned around to see—A Gu was charging toward him! Could it be those two losers brought this on?!

He instinctively dodged, of course, not daring to clash with this NPC who had overwhelming combat power. He immediately turned and fled!

However, as the system had set A Gu as a pursuer, his strength was also enhanced. With a long blade in hand, he closely followed, not giving Xi Yu any time to breathe!

Just as Xi Yu was running down a long street, thinking he was about to be caught, a heavy wooden box suddenly fell from the sky and smashed onto A Gu’s head!

While A Gu angrily retaliated with his blade, Xi Yu took the opportunity to rush into an alley, escaping his attack range.

Gasping for breath, wiping the sweat from his forehead, Xi Yu didn’t dare stop.

Just then, Ying Zhixing jumped down from the wall, looking at him with a calm expression: “Aren’t you going to say something to your life-saver?”

Xi Yu took a step back: “How can you say those four words with a straight face?”

Ying Zhixing was unapologetic: “I originally wanted to team up with Mu Yuan because Luo Xi is gone, and he’s more mature and useful than you. But now he’s dead. If you die too, it’ll be difficult for me to handle alone—especially since you’re carrying so many mission items.”

His cold, shameless words really fit his character.

Xi Yu frowned: “So who’s the extra person among the losers?”

Ying Zhixing smiled: “You finally counted them… Maybe it’s Fei Ling, she was the first to die. Maybe it’s Zhao Zhusheng, he was killed by you using privileges after completing the mission. Or maybe it’s someone who triggered a hidden mission, who knows?”

After saying this, he coldly looked at Xi Yu: “No need to dwell on it. Anyway, it’s better to just get rid of those useless people.”