"Survivor": I Want to Withdraw
China Central Television).
When the Xu Xi appeared in the column for Huaguo players, the big screen was immediately flooded with comments from Huaguo IPs, and the few IPs from other countries that managed to break through were completely submerged in the next instant.
Such an unprecedented spectacle surprised both the hosts and the two experts.
"It seems our Huaguo contestant selected this time is exceptionally popular," Jiang Jin said with a hint of surprise. "The density of comments is almost blocking out the camera."
"That's true." Yao Han picked up the conversation, turning to the two special guests opposite her, "I wonder if Professor Lin and Mr. Luo know anything about this contestant? Why is he receiving so much attention?"
In fact, neither of the hosts were on a 2G network. They had seen this player who suddenly appeared out of nowhere and had once speedrunned the first solo Dungeon in less than three minutes, even if they hadn't paid much attention to him.
Pretending not to know someone is just a way to start a conversation.
Luo Zongyun adjusted his glasses and smiled, "Of course, the name Xu Xi, or rather 248, is already a miracle in some ways, after all, he is the world's first player to speedrun Dungeon."
"That's right," Lin Miao added. "I've watched all five of this player's Dungeons. His extremely high intelligence, terrifying mental calculation ability, perfect control over people's hearts, and... a kind of almost 'predictive' reasoning ability—that's my assessment of him."
Jiang Jin then promptly expressed his question, "Prediction?"
"Yes." Lin Miao nodded affirmatively, "Ordinary players 'react,' making the best choice based on the situation at hand, but Xu Xi is different. He seems to be standing on a higher dimension, completely viewing different timelines. When you can see all the possibilities, passing the game becomes inevitable."
"Perhaps some viewers haven't understood Professor Lin Miao's meaning," Luo Zongyun explained with a smile. "To give an analogy, if we compare the Dungeon to a running model, then Xu Xi's steps will only be divided into three: first, deconstructing the model; second, cracking the model's underlying code; and third, constructing a complete 'future model' in his mind and precisely targeting that one and only time point that allows him to pass the level."
"That's really high praise!" Yao Han exclaimed with a perfectly timed expression of amazement.
[... though I don't understand it, I feel it's impressive.]
[So, we're on the first level, regular players are on the second level, Xu Xi is in the atmosphere?]
[Such a simple and straightforward translation, I understand it now.]
[This is a big shot certified by the central government. I don't want any of those little haters still stubbornly insisting that luck is all just luck.]
At this point, the live stream on the big screen had transitioned to a segment where players were interacting with each other.
"The atmosphere among the players doesn't seem very friendly, and they're not inclined to cooperate." Jiang Jin turned to Lin Miao and the other person, "Do you two think there will be opportunities for the players to cooperate in the future?"
Lin Miao answered him almost without hesitation, "It's difficult. Although the players won't have a large-scale conflict for the time being, they are extremely wary of each other. In this life-or-death struggle, 'trust' is a very luxurious thing."
"Not bad." Luo Zongyun nodded. "Unless the Dungeon itself is so difficult that players have no choice but to cooperate."
On the screen, the players disembarked and followed the Production Team to watch the wizard's blessing ceremony.
"Do you two think that Xu Xi, our Huaguo player, will seek cooperation with other players in the future?" Yao Han asked curiously.
"I don't think so," Lin Miao shook his head. "When it comes to absolute intelligence, the benefits of cooperation far outweigh the risks. He's confident enough and certainly capable of going it alone."
The blessing ceremony was forced to be interrupted due to unforeseen circumstances.
"Professor Lin seems to have a lot of confidence in Xu Xi. Do you think Xu Xi will win in this Mixed-Team Competition?"
Lin Miao smiled, "I'm not sure if he'll win, but I believe he won't lose."
At the same time, a young man's clear, crisp voice came from the Livestream Room provided by God Hunt.
"I request to withdraw from the competition."
--
The Production Team was thrown into a state of panic by this unexpected incident.
"What's wrong with the wizard? Could the rumors be true? Is there really something in this Camp...?"
"Don't talk nonsense. What era are we living in? That wizard seemed a bit strange; he might actually have mental problems."
"Alright, alright, where's the doctor? Take him away and see what's wrong." The disheveled man impatiently interrupted the staff's whispers.
Someone asked cautiously, "Director, should we... continue filming?"
"Isn't that obvious?" The slovenly man slapped the other man's head hard. "Isn't that exactly what we came for? Did we record that scene? That's a perfect gimmick, saving us the trouble of making it ourselves."
"Don't worry, director, it's all recorded."
"That's good. Players, come over and change into your prison uniforms." The disheveled man turned and waved to the players.
A prayer inexplicably fails, and the wizard behaves strangely—this is practically a classic horror movie opening.
Xu Xi silently complained.
And these eleven players are like the protagonist group in a horror movie who knowingly goes to the haunted camp despite knowing it's treacherous.
Oh, and there's this Production Team that just won't believe anything, no matter how bizarre it is, and insists on making the main characters do stupid things.
Xu Xi thought for a moment.
He planned to try using Rollbacks more often in this Dungeon, so he didn't necessarily need to follow the "background storyline" now.
Just like playing a game, he now has two choices: one is to knowingly follow the rules of the Camp and enter the Camp to win the Production Team's bullshit five million prize money, and the other is to withdraw from the competition immediately.
Without even thinking twice, Xu Xi chose the second option.
Just as the other ten players were about to go to the disheveled man to change into their prison uniforms, they heard the East Asia Asian-looking Young Man in a Hoodie say in a cold tone, "I request to withdraw from the competition."
"Ha?!"
The ten players immediately looked at Xu Xi with astonishment.
Amidst the surprised, puzzled, and thoughtful gazes of the crowd, Xu Xi remained unfazed and continued speaking to the disheveled man, "I'm a coward. I'm giving up on the five million. I'm withdrawing."
The disheveled man frowned but didn't say anything, "Fine, since you don't want to participate, you don't have to go in. But you'll have to wait until the Production Team's recording is finished before you can leave, since we only have one boat and can't send you back early."
Xu Xi nodded. "No problem."
The disheveled man then looked at the remaining players. "Anyone else want to quit?"
The ten players looked at each other, but ultimately decided to continue participating.
They didn't think that simply withdrawing from the competition would avert danger. While they didn't understand the East Asia player's actions, they were also pondering the young man's intentions.