Chapter 22: The Triumph

Chapter 22: The Triumph

The Baiting Mini-game makes its return at the most unexpected of times.

Finally, the viewers in the live stream room recall that before Chen Moubai played with Qingzhou, he was a professional angler.

"HAHAHA, I've been lurking in Erbai's live stream, fortunate enough to witness the entire fishing spectacle."

"Woah! White Porridge, you two!"

"Even if it's Qingzhou, they can't escape their fate as bait when it comes to Erbai (smokes)."

"No wonder this scene felt so familiar! This is exactly how Erbai and his merry band of friends used to play the bait game in the past!!"

"Erbai, how on earth did you convince Qingzhou to be the bait (wide-eyed)?"

After the baiting mini-game concludes, Pink-haired feels an overall sense of relief, no longer needing to hold back her words, radiating joy from being unshackled, saying, "I was about to burst."

"You stay right here and don't move, let me go help the big fish tidy up its belongings."

"Take a look at him, not much of a physique but he's got plenty of tricks up his sleeve... There goes a man, Qingzhou, let's go say hello first."

He said, "Not everyone is as courteous as Chen Erbai."

Once again, the familiar voice rang in his ears, and Qingzhou followed along to extend greetings.

The outcome of the greeting was an addition of one more head in hand.

They appeared to be four unrelated individuals, contrasting starkly with the previously silent and restrained group.

In gaming competitions, victory hinges not just on skill but also strategy.

Starting from the semi-finals or quarter-finals, Team Porridge realized that if they persisted with their previous style of play, they would certainly be targeted in the finals. Consequently, they opted for a more circuitous approach, aiming to cultivate an image of caution while simultaneously diverting attention away from themselves.

Other teams were likely to scrutinize official recordings and audience analyses of their gameplay after each match. Aware that too much talk could lead to mistakes or even reveal their tactics, the duo decided to minimize verbal communication, keeping exchanges brief and to the point.

Though seemingly illogical, this tactic proved remarkably effective in establishing their conservative persona.

It was so effective, in fact, that it caught everyone off guard—opponents, fans, and even the second team members who found themselves eliminated in the woods. No one anticipated that those playing an ultra-cautious game would suddenly introduce a risky bait-and-switch mini-game, fraught with potential for disaster.

After all, no one could have anticipated that the person wielding the high-powered sniper rifle would be the bait, while the one wandering around with a shoddy rifle was the actual angler.

These two operated with such seamless coordination, it was evident they had practiced this routine countless times in private.

Finally, the viewers caught on.

On the day the semi-finals concluded, Chen Moubai didn't go live, leading them to believe he was sulking in some corner. In reality, he might have already been duo-queueing with Qingzhou, setting their trap.

"What a filthy mind game! Who knew you two, Erbai and Qingzhou, could be so underhanded (not serious)."

"I told you, there's no way Erbai would let the bonus slip away when he's so eager to make money."

"You two even guard against us! It's truly bone-chilling!"

"Erbai is already beyond redemption with his mind games, but Qingzhou, you have such an earnest face, and you're starting to play mind games too!"

"Qingzhou has been completely assimilated by Erbai. You two are quite the match [Sighing Cat Emoji]."

The team in second place was eliminated, while the third-place team surged ahead, racking up several kills, and their points climbed steadily. However, they ended up encountering Bai Zhou's team, who were just passing through and giving a casual greeting.

The Third Squad halted their advance here.

Before even reaching the final circle, most of the players had already been eliminated, leaving Team Porridge as a dominant force on the battlefield, akin to a gang of ruffians, reaping heads wherever they went with their fully-equipped arsenal.

The last enemy hiding in a building was dispatched by a grenade, and the screen transitioned into the victory interface, confirming that Team Porridge had secured the top spot with an utterly dominating score.

In the live-stream chat, the bullet comments could now be reopened. Upon activation, the screen was instantly flooded with colorful donations, the patterns dazzlingly extravagant, momentarily blinding the viewers.

The diligent Erbai began scrolling through the comments, sincerely thanking each donor for their gifts.

With an official large-scale live-stream running in a neighboring channel, tonight's traffic was unusually heavy. The stream began experiencing lag, causing the comments to crawl across the screen slowly before suddenly sliding past at breakneck speed, making it impossible to read them.

Initially leaning close to the computer in an attempt to decipher the comments' content, Chen Bai soon realized his efforts were futile and ceased struggling. Deciding to postpone further identification, he first replied to some of the comments he had managed to catch earlier.

"Tonight's stream will have to be delayed; I need to take care of dinner first."

"…I'll split the prize money with you, friend. This is more painful than being killed myself."

The rewards kept pouring in, but the names of the benefactors and all chat messages had vanished; the screen was frozen, a static image devoid of movement.

Such a lag made streaming impossible, and after a day of relentless typing, Chen Bai's wrists were aching. He said his goodbyes to his companions and promptly ended the broadcast.

As he removed his headphones, the surroundings fell silent, granting his ears a much-needed respite.

It was now half past seven in the evening, an awkward time for meals, with nearby eateries likely closed for business.

The steamed buns he'd purchased that morning, intended as his dinner, had been consumed at noon. Now, he faced two options: contribute to a fast-food restaurant's revenue or cook for himself.

Between spending and saving, Pink-haired resolutely chose the latter.

Putting on his coat, he grabbed the two keys that were conveniently placed together at the entrance and left the house.

The only place still open for grocery shopping was the supermarket.

Pushing a cart around the supermarket aisles, he was originally selecting his exclusive bok choy for tonight's dinner when his phone in his pocket vibrated twice. He fished it out and glanced down.

It was a message from his buddy who had just won the big prize with him, asking if he was free to play together tonight.

My buddy, who's been the top streamer on the platform for years, got the inside scoop right away: the tech team was already working on the issue and promised that regular streaming would resume tonight.

Chen Bai flexed his wrist, feeling refreshed after a brief respite, and replied that he should be good to go.

I made the right call coming to the supermarket today.

On his way to checkout after picking up some greens, he spotted low-gluten flour on sale.

So, a bag of flour joined the greens in his cart.

Low-gluten flour is an essential ingredient for making small cakes. As he walked back home through the residential building's stairwell, the man holding the bags remembered something and, as per habit, snapped a photo of the flour, intending to send it to his good neighbor.

Opening the chat window, he noticed that their last conversation was ages ago.

It dawned on Chen Bai that although he had told his good neighbor to keep in touch when they left, reality had been different. His good neighbor had been busy, and so had he with his matches. Most of his casual chats ended up being shared with his buddy, Qingzhou, instead. It had been a long while since he'd sent a message to his good neighbor.

Pausing at his doorstep, he pulled out two keys, while Pink-haired looked up at the pair of doors. In the end, he took out his phone once more to send a text.

He unlocked the door next door.

At the other end of the city, on the film set, the atmosphere shifted from tranquil to bustling.

The actor who had just finished his scene accepted the towel offered by his assistant and casually wiped the sweat from his neck, the veins in his arm bulging with the motion.

The assistant added, "Professor Xu, your phone rang twice earlier."

Xu Sinian sat down and bent over to pick up his phone.

Two new messages awaited him, both sent ten minutes ago. After a quick glance at the messages, he lowered his head to reply.

"Professor Xu, Director Chen wants to discuss something with you."

Just as he finished replying, a production staff member shouted out to him. Xu Sinian put down his phone and turned to his assistant, saying, "Let me know if I receive any messages."

Afterwards, he checked the time and then said it was unnecessary.

At this hour, the other party should already be playing games with friends and wouldn't be checking their messages while gaming.

The assistant was momentarily baffled before agreeing.

Xu Sinian got up and left.

During the break, the director wouldn't disturb anyone resting unless it was truly necessary to discuss something important.

Having meticulously reviewed the footage from the camera, the director felt that the lighting in one scene could be improved upon and wanted to reshoot it.

Today's filming schedule had already been extended into the late hours of the night, and reshooting meant overtime. The scene in question wasn't unusable; it was just that he believed they could do better.

Xu Sinian tersely replied, "Okay."

The director continued, "There's also another matter..."

The not-too-lengthy break ended entirely within the conversation with the director.

Handing the towel draped over his neck to the assistant, Xu Sinian began preparing for the next scene.

Once he started working again, it was over an hour later when he finally had a chance to rest. As soon as he finished acting, the stylists and makeup artists immediately surrounded him.

The assistant stood on the periphery of the crowd, stretching his arm as best he could to hand over his phone, saying, "Professor Xu, you have a message."

Seeing the genuine struggle in the assistant's efforts, Xu Sinian expressed his gratitude and accepted the phone.

"..."

Those around him observed a subtle shift in his expressionless eyes before he lifted his head and announced that he needed to step away for a moment.

Without further ado, he set off, his tall stature and long strides quickly taking him far from the scene, heading in the direction of the production gate.

The people around turned to the assistant, asking curiously, "Is there something going on?"

The assistant, himself clueless about what was happening, was merely an unfeeling conveyor of mobile devices.

—He didn't know, but he could use his initiative to find out.

A group of people subtly shuffled a few steps forward, hoping to catch a glimpse, only to discover that the person had long since vanished.

The sky had already darkened. The film crew was near an industrial park that was just beginning development, and at this time, there were already very few people on the road.

Xu Sinian stepped out of the gate and didn't see anyone at first glance. It wasn't until he heard someone speaking that he looked over and spotted a Pink-haired figure amidst a group of security guards.

The person who was supposed to be on the other side of town, playing games with friends, had also seen him. With a wave of his hand, he took a few quick steps down the stairs.

It was the same manner in which he descended the stairs as on the day they met under the overpass.

Xu Sinian reached out to steady him and asked, "How long have you been waiting here?"

"Not long, your place is quite easy to find."

Pink-haired lifted the box in his hand with a smile and said, "I brought you a super perfect little cake."

Xu Sinian lowered his head and took the box, saying, "Didn't you say you were going to play games with your friends today?"

"I wanted you to taste the freshly baked little cakes."

"You're more important," Pink-haired began to open the sealed box with the help of his Good Samaritan's hand while looking up with a smile, "That's why I canceled my plans."

His clear voice rang out matter-of-factly. The pale gray irises beneath his pink tousled hair reflected the glow of the streetlights, the laughter in his eyes catching Xu Sinian's attention.

The evening breeze seemed to hold its breath for a moment.