Chapter 85: It’s All About the Thrill of Opening a Blind Box

Chapter 85: The Thrill Is All in the Blind Box

The depths of human malice are truly laid bare here.

Then again, they aren’t even human.

In a world where clicks rule everything, even Tianlanxing had its share of shock-value prank shows with no moral limits. What wouldn’t people do to grab viewers' attention?

However, once the authorities decided to vigorously develop the cultural and entertainment industry, they came down hard, implementing strict regulations to clean up the sector.

The entertainment industry’s atmosphere quickly ditched its old toxic ways, becoming healthier.

But even during its worst days, it never got *this* bad.

*History as a mirror reveals rise and fall; people as mirrors show gain and loss.*

"Thank God the government brought down the hammer."

Seeing the state of extraterrestrial entertainment and reflecting on Tianlanxing, Sheng Qingquan felt a flicker of relief.

If left unchecked, could Tianlanxing one day sink this low?

Nothing sadder than the dragon-slayer turning into the dragon.

But there was no time to dwell on it now. After piecing together the truth, Sheng Qingquan thumbed back through the novel.

"We need to find out exactly when that system arrived."

"Nip it in the bud."

Hearing this, everyone shoved their worries aside and focused intently on listening.

"The novel doesn’t specify the exact time the system appeared. However, on the very day it arrived, Gu Hefan went to complete his first daily login task."

"The text mentions the weather was particularly nice that day. Plus, Gu Hefan, a typical nine-to-five office worker, wasn’t about to take a day off just to check whether the system was real or a hallucination—his first login was purely experimental."

"I remember once running into Gu Hefan dragging himself to work while sick, his face red as a tomato. Even then, he insisted on going to the office."

"Someone like him wouldn’t just call in sick to verify the system’s existence."

"Back then, unlike now with the countrywide internet crash holiday, it was likely a weekend. Only then would Gu Hefan have been free to drop everything and go."

Called out like that, Gu Hefan felt a pang of embarrassment. That time had been an accident—he’d thought it was just mild discomfort, not realizing he was running a high fever. He *did* take sick leave, okay?

Still, he had to admit Sheng Qingquan was right. That was just how he was.

Of course, once he confirmed the "Check-in for Riches" system could actually make him wealthy, he’d quit his job without hesitation.

After all, grinding at his job wouldn’t make him rich—only his boss’ pockets grew fatter from his labor.

He wasn’t some mindless drone. Given a choice, he’d never keep selling himself short.

But before that, unless absolutely necessary, he needed the paycheck.

"So, the day the system appeared must’ve been a weekend with clear skies."

Sheng Qingquan whipped out his phone to check the weather forecast.

The weather forecasts on Tianlan Star are much more accurate now than before.

Things like sudden rain after a sunny forecast—well, Sheng Qingquan hasn’t seen that happen again.

So it’s pretty reliable now.

"Today is Friday, and the weather will be nice for the next two days, both cloudy. Barring any surprises, the system will most likely appear this weekend."

"Just not sure whether it’ll be Saturday or Sunday."

"But at least we’ve pinned it down to this weekend."

"Wait!"

Sheng Qingquan suddenly thought of something.

"The system’s got Gu Hefan figured out so well—it must have been observing him secretly for a while. So determining its arrival based solely on when it bound to a host is wrong."

"Chances are, it’s already here on Tianlan Star. Hell, it might’ve already zeroed in on Gu Hefan!"

Yikes!

The idea of that menace lurking in the shadows, watching him, scrutinizing him with a critical eye to assess whether he’d make a suitable clown for entertainment—

Gu Hefan was equal parts furious and creeped out.

As Sheng Qingquan debated whether to draw the system out or bide his time for it to appear in the next couple of days, he kept reading the novel and realized the situation might not be as bad as he’d imagined.

"Later, Gu Hefan also curiously asked the system why it chose him and not someone else."

"The system claimed it had simply popped up near him and, after going online, ran a quick scan. Based on the data feedback, he was the most suitable. So it bound to him."

"The trick to lying is blending truth with lies. Because the most crucial part was concealed."

So Sheng Qingquan had reason to believe:

"About minor stuff like this, the system likely told the truth. At most, it omitted details—like what exactly made Gu Hefan the 'most suitable.' It deliberately misled him."

"Of course, Gu Hefan wouldn’t catch on that his 'suitability' lay in being easy to manipulate and control. With minimal prodding, he’d diligently work in the direction the system wanted, delivering top-tier entertainment for viewers."

"If this is true, then the system’s arrival date probably hasn’t changed. It wouldn’t have come earlier—it’s still most likely to appear in the next two days."

"I nearly overthought this."

"No, I almost didn’t think enough and screwed up."

The idea made Sheng Qingquan shudder.

"Also, from the side stories, when that variety show was choosing a live broadcast location, if no one recommended a suitable spot, the production team would randomly toss the system into a wormhole and let it take its chances. Wherever it landed—as long as the planet had intelligent life—that’d be the pick."

"They were after that blind-box adrenaline rush."

"That’s how Tianlan Star got selected."

This took some edge off their worry. Truth was, they’d been sweating this the entire time.

Sure, Tianlan Star was called remote, but judging by how often it’s been discovered, calling it 'remote'? Even if people said it, nobody really bought it.

Everyone was low-key terrified Tianlan Star’s coordinates would leak.

Even with their location hidden, people still keep showing up. If it were exposed, no one could even imagine Tianlanxing's fate.

Might as well forget about resting—Tianlanxing barely gets a moment to breathe. There’s a new crisis every day. Before they can deal with one crisis, another hits.

Even if Sheng Qingquan had the prophecy book and could foresee everything, he still couldn’t save them all fast enough.

Now that they know it was all random, although everyone feels it’s unlucky for Tianlanxing to be chosen by that trash system, at least they don’t have to live in constant fear.

Worst case, once the system shows up and binds, I’ll just slack off and skip every task.

Gu Hefan made up his mind.

He’d noticed that after checking in a few times and successfully getting rich, once he had enough money, he no longer wanted to continue signing in. At that time, the system didn’t use extreme measures like erasure or electric shocks to threaten him.

Instead, it pushed pleas for sick children onto his homepage, touching his heart and making him voluntarily continue working.

Did it not want to, or could it not?

If it simply couldn’t punish the host at all...

Then things would be much easier. It’d just be a waiting game—who’d crack first!

He just wouldn’t sign in—not even once. To hell with that disgusting show’s ratings!

If things got too unbearable, the system would probably unbind and leave on its own.

Gu Hefan thought it through well, but he soon realized this wouldn’t work. Even if the system had no other means and couldn’t force him to complete tasks, it could still unbind and choose a new host.

A new host wouldn’t have a clue, and the same events would unfold.

Besides, was the system really powerless to kill the host?

Probably not!

Thinking of this, Gu Hefan lowered his gaze to the drink bottle in his hand. Even though it was nearly empty, making it light as air, at that moment, it felt as heavy as a thousand pounds. He couldn’t help but feel down.

“We can’t let the system bind to a host.”

Sheng Qingquan noticed that the system had some survival instincts.

“In the final chapters of the novel, after Gu Hefan realized something was wrong, he proactively reported the system to the authorities.”

“At that time, he’d grown a bit twisted. He felt that since Tianlanxing was already in such a state—regardless of whether order could be restored or what it would look like—he was determined to use the government’s might to make the system pay for what it had done.”

“By then, Gu Hefan had already written off his own life. If necessary, he was ready to perish together with the system.”

“But once the system realized what Gu Hefan had done, it immediately detached from his body and chose to unbind.”

“After unbinding, the system gained a physical form. To escape, it hijacked nearby electronics, causing them to explode, and fled amidst the chaos.”

“At that scene, there weren’t many electronic devices nearby. The blasts weren’t deadly—just noisy enough to create a diversion.”

“Moreover, almost no one believed Gu Hefan’s words. After all, the idea of a ‘system’ sounded like fiction addiction. That’s how the system managed to escape.”

“Had even one person believed the system truly existed, it wouldn’t have gotten away so easily.”

“Even so, one staff member reflexively reached out and nearly caught it.”

“It must be said, the system’s successful escape back then was partly luck.”

"Under those circumstances, it didn’t choose a more effective approach. Or did it just not want to?"

"Clearly, it couldn’t!"

"It has some self-preservation ability, but it’s limited. After making such a massive blunder, very few people have the guts to admit it and take responsibility—so rare their show may have never seen one before."

"Most people, after messing up, duck responsibility out of fear, telling themselves that since no one noticed, it’s not their problem. As they play innocent, the system can calmly detach itself."

"My guess? When they designed the system, they didn’t bother giving it proper self-defense skills."

Reading this, a plan slowly began forming in Sheng Qingquan’s mind.

"This system was created purely for entertainment. It’s not exactly top-tier. Taking it down shouldn’t be hard."

"But simply destroying the system would barely affect the show’s producers or its audience—just a small loss, no big deal."

"Without Tianlanxing, they’d just move on to another planet."

"The number of victims would only keep growing."

Just stewing in resentment was unbearable—not just for Sheng Qingquan, but for the staff as well.

"So, can we hit back a little?"

"At the very least, we should get some payback and blow off steam while curbing their actions."

Given the chance, who wouldn’t want to retaliate?

Hearing this, though no one openly looked at Sheng Qingquan, their eyes lit up with anticipation.

So, what exactly was the plan?

Everyone was on the edge of their seats, hoping Sheng Qingquan would reveal the full plan. But at this critical moment, he went radio silent.

He simply went home.

Left in suspense, the others couldn’t even enjoy their meals.

"Last time I got jerked around like this was when I was dumb enough to fall for a player," someone couldn’t help but grumble.

There was nothing to do but wait.

Hours later, when his thoughts finally came through again, they learned that Sheng Qingquan had hopped in his mech and headed to the capital to hash things out with the big boss.

The only good news was that the trip paid off.

After some back-and-forth, the capital approved Sheng Qingquan’s plan and promised to go all in.

As a result, the internet, which was originally scheduled to gradually come back online tonight, got pushed back.