Chapter 21

Perhaps because of the reset experience, Xi Yu remained very calm during the training period, while most of the new broadcasters were visibly struggling emotionally.

Some were inexplicably depressed, some were extremely scared, and others were restless.

Their perfectly fine bodies were suddenly overwhelmed with negative emotions, leaving them all feeling defeated, like spirits of the house with no energy to lift.

The next night, Xi Yu was staring blankly at the starlight outside from his bed in the cafeteria when Wu Zhi nervously ran over and said, "Bro, what should I do?"

Xi Yu snapped back to reality.

Wu Zhi, clutching his clothes in frustration, said, "They still haven't told us what the assessment dungeon is about. It probably worse than before. I think without you, I'm definitely doomed."

Xi Yu helplessly replied, "But even the expert broadcasters don't have a clear answer about whether we can team up. You need to prepare more."

Wu Zhi hesitated, finally sighing, "Am I annoying? I'm so nervous I can't even sleep..."

"I understand you." Xi Yu raised his hand and ruffled the short hair of the guy, then chuckled, "Thinking a lot isn't necessarily a bad thing, but if it's all for nothing, you really shouldn't keep dwelling on it. Otherwise, it's like falling into a black hole, where you not only get no answers but end up breaking yourself. Whatever happens in the dungeon isn't scary; broadcasters are all in the same boat. Only by staying calm can you have a better chance than others."

Wu Zhi nodded reluctantly.

Xi Yu added, "I promise you, if we can team up, I'll take you along."

Wu Zhi finally showed a bit of relief, smiling.

Xi Yu was about to say something else when he saw He Yingqi enter the cafeteria, so he said, "Hurry up and eat. I still have something to do."

With that, he quickly stepped away.

In "Blood-red Demon Blade," He Yingqi was the first to be eliminated, and it was somewhat related to Xi Yu's acting, so although they had ultimately won by chance, He Yingqi's state didn't look too great.

He probably didn't expect Xi Yu to take the initiative to greet him, and after a pause, he barely curled his lips into a smile.

Xi Yu was sincere: "I'm sorry, it wasn't intentional to trick you with the antidote, but anyway, you were killed because of me."

He Yingqi lowered his pale eyelids and, after a while, said, "I will help anyone who needs it, it’s not your fault, it's my own problem."

"I just don't want kindness to become a problem!" Xi Yu hurriedly said, then self-deprecatingly added, "Of course, kindness in this company is more precious than anything."

He Yingqi fell silent.Xi Yu hadn't planned to achieve any reconciliation; just speaking his mind had already lightened his heart. His delicate face was about to show a smile when he heard the unexpected experience from the other person.

"I've been reset five times already, this is my fifth time."

He Yingqi didn't seem to be joking.

For Xi Yu, even one reset was an emotional burden he couldn't easily shake off. He couldn't imagine what it would feel like to lose his memory five times repeatedly.

He Yingqi scratched his head in frustration: "Don’t laugh at me, I haven't passed the assessment even once in all five tries, not even getting a broadcaster certificate. This time is my last chance."

What happens to a useless artificial human broadcaster?

Do they serve other industries, get discarded, or become material for human experiments?

Xi Yu’s mind had no information on this, and he couldn’t really imagine it.

He Yingqi himself seemed unaffected: "Don’t look at me like that, I don’t want to win. I just want it to be over soon."

If it were another profession, Xi Yu might have said encouraging words, but now, what could he say? Cheer the other person on to work hard at becoming a clown for human entertainment?

He Yingqi suddenly patted Xi Yu's tense shoulder: "Really, it’s fine. It's just a shame though, for us, death is also a luxury. My fate isn't up to me, and neither is it up to the heavens."

After saying this, he smiled and walked forward with a light laugh.

Xi Yu felt a cold sadness wash over him as he watched He Yingqi leave, his heart full of mixed emotions.

The third day of training would be the last day of freedom for half of the group, as this memory would soon be gone.

The new broadcasters arrived early at the training classroom, but unexpectedly, the person who walked in wasn't Luo Xi. Instead, it was a middle-aged man in a white lab coat. His face was stern and rough, with a high nose and slightly drooping corners of his mouth. Just one glance from him silenced the room, which had been buzzing with a bit of noise.

The person in the white coat was a member of the company's security department, all natural humans, all creators!

— A strange tension spread through the room.

The man's steps were steady, his posture impeccable, and his voice was perfectly authoritative: "Hello, everyone. Today, broadcaster Luo Xi has other tasks, so I'll be substituting. Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Qin Yunshen, head of the security department. I was once a member of the special operations team in the armed police force. I’ve been trusted by the organization to oversee the Yuntai campus and will do my best to protect everyone's safety and the security of the campus. We will have many more opportunities to work together in the future."

Xi Yu looked at him with curiosity, realizing that this person must hold significant power in the Hai Shi Cultural and Entertainment department, and he became more cautious.

But Wu Zhi, still carefree, raised his hand and asked, "Director Qin! Can we team up for tomorrow's assessment or not?"Qin Yunshen silently cast a glance.

Wu Zhi shrank his neck awkwardly.

Unexpectedly, Qin Yunshen said, "If all of you want to team up, I can apply for this rule."

This statement was as impactful as a bomb, and the broadcasters in the classroom couldn't help but excitedly discuss among themselves!

Qin Yunshen continued, "However, teaming up may not necessarily be a good thing. According to last year's statistics, in the beginner’s dungeon, small groups with obvious ties are targeted and eliminated first as hostile entities. You’d better think carefully."

This was true. Xi Yu instantly recalled the attention and hatred brought by Huasheng and Yao Chenna, but then he caught sight of Wu Zhi’s pitiful eyes and couldn't help but laugh, saying, "I’ll definitely do what I promised you."

Wu Zhi immediately beamed, looking as carefree as a perfectly normal teenager.

Xi Yu was embarrassed: Could he really be so trustworthy?

"Alright, let's talk business." Qin Yunshen’s tone grew more serious. "According to the monitoring summary, your performance over the past few days has been quite poor."

Everyone exchanged glances.

Qin Yunshen, with his hands behind his back, raised his voice, "The five basic principles for broadcasters are, of course, the rules stored in your brains, but beyond that, you must also adhere to the rules of the Yuntai campus! First, do not carry grudges from the dungeons into real life. Don't let me see any signs of seeking revenge in the living area due to the game! Secondly, no bribery or attempting to pull in security staff. Whether it’s body transactions, property transactions, or anything else—once discovered, immediate reset! Third, broadcasters who plan to escape will not be reset."

His last few words were suddenly lowered, and they sounded oddly mysterious.

Everyone looked up in surprise.

Qin Yunshen said angrily, "Because any broadcaster suspected of trying to escape from the Yuntai campus will be captured by the military, immediately destroyed, and turned into protein feed! This isn’t personal—it’s the national standard for managing artificial humans! Mu Ran, Hai Tao, Xiang Bei! You three were recorded in full during your conspiracy in the E72 corridor yesterday! Sorry!"

He dropped these words, and immediately, eight military-clad men armed with weapons stormed into the door. In just a few seconds, they bound the three broadcasters who were stunned with fear, and without mercy, they injected syringes into their necks!

The three broadcasters, who were still struggling moments ago, stopped moving after just two seconds of injection.

One of the military men checked his stopwatch and said, "8:17 AM, 08732, 08321, and 08462 have been destroyed. Dissection will begin at 10 o'clock."

The terrifying scene left everyone in shock.

A female broadcaster in the corner suddenly vomited and anxiously covered her mouth.

The military man who announced the news stood up, saluted Qin Yunshen, and immediately dragged the broadcasters slated for execution away.The classroom was deathly silent.

Everyone, who had previously been a bit restless and full of small schemes, was now completely subdued.

Wu Zhi was trembling all over, staring at Qin Yunshen’s face as if he were looking at the devil.

Xi Yu suddenly placed his hand gently on his back and whispered, "It’s okay."

Qin Yunshen glanced at the female broadcaster who had made a mess in the classroom and said, "Go call the janitor, what are you waiting for?"

The female broadcaster’s legs were shaking as she almost crawled out of the classroom.

Soon, a round robot made of steel slid into the room and began cleaning diligently.

Qin Yunshen opened the "Work Manual" in front of him and calmly asked, "Where did Luo Xi leave off in these clauses?"

It was still dead silence.

Qin Yunshen frowned, "Are you all dumb? With such a lack of courage, the only thing waiting for you in the live-streaming world is elimination."

Xi Yu, speechless, spoke up: "It’s already finished, Chief Qin. Didn’t you just want to scare everyone by making an example of us? Why keep stepping on us?"

Wu Zhi looked at Xi Yu in despair, realizing his straightforwardness wasn't just aimed at Luo Xi.

Qin Yunshen said with a forced smile, "Oh? You seem pretty calm."

Xi Yu replied, "Because I will work hard to live-stream, level up, and I have no intention of escaping, so your warning doesn't affect me."

Qin Yunshen paused for a moment, raised an eyebrow, and nodded, "Alright, since the training content is already finished, do any of you have questions for me?"

In this situation, who would have any questions?

Unexpectedly, Xi Yu raised his hand again, "Do our bathrooms and restrooms have surveillance cameras? Since artificial humans are somewhat humanoid, we have some image privacy rights."

Qin Yunshen replied, "…Places like that aren’t recorded."

Xi Yu asked, "Other than game content, our personal life footage won’t be broadcast, right?"

Qin Yunshen answered, "No, it won’t."Xi Yu nodded.

Qin Yunshen asked, "That's it? Is that all you're concerned about?"

Xi Yu's expression remained calm, and his gaze at him was no different than how he looked at the cleaning robot.

At this moment, a sneer suddenly came from the door of the classroom.

Luo Xi, the man, appeared out of nowhere.

He leisurely walked in and said, "Things are settled, and I thought I'd come to see the trainees one last time."

Qin Yunshen pursed his lips, and with a forceful presence, disappeared.

Luo Xi intentionally sighed, walked to the holographic projection table, and shook his head, "It seems I’m too familiar-looking, and everything I say goes in one ear and out the other. Still want to escape? If I could escape, why would I stand here playing mother hen to a bunch of cells?"

Everyone: "…………"

Due to Qin Yunshen’s intimidation, Wu Zhi really did feel a reduced distance from Luo Xi and immediately asked, "Has tomorrow’s dungeon been set? What type is it? Will expert streamers be involved?"

"No," Luo Xi said, "The participants are all streamers who need to undergo evaluation. The game each player participates in will never be repeated, and the assessment dungeons are specially customized, so any type could be possible: assassination, escape, survival, adventure, story-based reasoning… anyway, as I said, no type will be favored. It's relatively fair to all types of streamers."

Wu Zhi said gloomily, "But I don’t have much ability."

"Who said that?" Luo Xi chuckled. "I see your look when you cling to powerful people, and it’s quite impressive."

Wu Zhi immediately felt embarrassed.

Xi Yu didn’t pay attention to these idle conversations. He was still reflecting on Qin Yunshen's cruel actions.

Artificial humans are still humans. They shouldn’t be tortured like this.

— No matter what, Xi Yu firmly believed this in his heart.

So, if cost didn’t matter, he really wanted to punch that security department chief in the face, though it wasn’t their fault that such rules existed.

"Alright, if you want to survive in Yun Tai, you need to learn to endure these things," Luo Xi glanced around at the confused new streamers, fully aware that their future, like all artificial humans, was dark, but could only say, "Lastly, let me leave you with one piece of advice: Don’t completely trust anyone in the dungeon, not a single person."

Second Volume: Greedy Inn