Scoring and Feedback

The Earth Platform was very quiet, apart from the crackling of burning charcoal.

The travelers breathed softly, afraid that any noise might drown out the Clay Figure Monster's instructions. That was why Lin Baici's voice sounded especially jarring.

Whoosh!

Everyone turned to look at Lin Baici.

Lin Baici didn't speak right away. He kept his eyes on the Clay Figure Monster. If it reacted in any way, he wouldn't warn the others again.

The Clay Figure Monster turned to look at Lin Baici. Though its eyeballs were made of clay, they showed unmistakable surprise.

It hadn't expected

Lin Baici to remember every step of firing a clay figure.

"It's time to reduce the charcoal!"

Lin Baici shouted.

"But this monster... this thing didn't give us any instructions?"

The speaker was a man in his thirties with a bald spot and swollen eyes.

"It must have deliberately left that step out!"

Lin Baici explained.

He knew this man. Back in the Waiting Hall, God of Gluttony had commented on the drowsy, hungover drunk, saying he was addicted to alcohol.

Whoosh!

Everyone looked at the Clay Figure Monster.

The Clay Figure Monster suddenly grinned but said nothing.

"Are you sure?"

"How could he be sure? It's not like he memorized every single step, right?"

"But he has no reason to trick us, does he? Besides, he helped everyone earlier!"

The travelers whispered among themselves, unsure what to do. But almost none of them took Lin Baici's words seriously. They waited for the Clay Figure Monster to give its instructions instead.

After all, making a mistake meant death.

"I've said all I can. It's up to you whether you believe me!"

Lin Baici sighed and gave up trying to persuade them.

No wonder God of Gluttony had said the first batch had the highest survival rate. It turned out the Clay Figure Monster would deliberately leave out several steps in the upcoming tests.

If the participants couldn't remember the entire process, they were dead.

"Brother Lin, you can remember when to add or reduce charcoal and when to use the bellows to raise the temperature?"

18D asked curiously.

"Mm!"

Lin Baici nodded.

While the clay figures were being fired, he'd kept checking the time and quietly saying it aloud, using Eidetic Memory to remember everything.

"No wonder you kept checking your watch!"

Ma Yuan suddenly realized.

"Gasp!"

18D sucked in a breath. Wasn't that memory a little too terrifying?

Wait!

If Brother Lin was right, then these people...

This time, the charcoal had to be reduced three times, not once. The Clay Figure Monster hadn't said so, and the travelers hadn't done it. So they were doomed.

Just as the hungover man was about to ask the Clay Figure Monster whether Lin Baici was right, his body suddenly burst into flames.

Like a rack of lamb in an oven, he began visibly drying out, his skin turning charred black.

Black smoke billowed through the air.

"Ah!"

The hungover man screamed. He no longer needed the Clay Figure Monster's instructions to know he should take the charcoal out of the kiln. But it was too late.

The others hurried to act, but it was already too late.

All the travelers in this test had reduced the charcoal too late, ruining the clay figures in the kilns. The damage was reflected onto their own bodies.

They all went up in flames, like human-shaped torches.

The onlookers were horrified and scrambled backward, afraid the flames would spread to them.

Two minutes later, the ground was covered with charred corpses.

One hundred and nineteen people,

all dead.

The air reeked of burning fat and flesh, making everyone sick.

The remaining travelers stared at the horrific scene, then turned to look at Lin Baici.

If those people had listened to him, they probably wouldn't have died.

"Don't just stand there! Hurry up and apply the Red Clay!"

Lin Baici shouted.

Everyone hurried into action.

The corpses strewn across the Earth Platform were terrifying to look at, but the Clay Figure Monster remained as calm as ever. "The rest of you, take your clay figures and wait in front of a kiln!"

Amid the chaos, someone even ran out of their shoes.

With the previous batch's fate fresh in their minds, everyone moved quickly this time.

"Open the kiln!"

"Put the clay figures in!"

"Light the fire!"

The firing began.

The monster strolled around the Earth Platform, inspecting it and casually giving instructions.

As the travelers followed them, they kept glancing at Lin Baici.

"Handsome Guy, if it deliberately leaves out any steps, you'll tell us, right?"

"Stop talking and distracting him! Pay attention to the instructions!"

"Please, God, protect us! Please, God, protect us!"

The travelers were so tense they looked like startled birds.

Fifteen minutes later.

"It's time to lower the heat and reduce the charcoal. Three pieces!"

Lin Baici saw that the Clay Figure Monster hadn't said anything, so he quickly reminded them.

This time, no one hesitated. They immediately took charcoal out of the kiln.

Firing the clay figures took less than thirty minutes, but to the travelers, it felt like a long journey through the eighteenth level of hell.

At last,

when the Clay Figure Monster said, "Remove the charcoal," "Put out the fire," and "Open the kiln," the travelers felt as if they had finally been set free.

A few women were so tense that once they relaxed, they wet themselves.

The travelers wept with joy. As soon as they took their clay figures out of the kilns, they rushed to Lin Baici to thank him.

"Handsome Guy, thank you!"

"Hey, handsome! Let me bow to you!"

"Do you have a girlfriend? I have a daughter who's eight years old and in third grade. She's very pretty!"

The travelers crowded around Lin Baici. They weren't only thanking him; they also wanted to get on friendly terms with him so he'd save them first if he had to rescue anyone.

[That young mother who said she had an eight-year-old daughter is fair-skinned, beautiful, and curvy. She'd be quite a treat. You should consider her!]

Lin Baici heard this and glanced over.

The woman was covered in mud, her face exhausted and disheveled. There was no trace of her former charm.

[Of course, the best source of milk is still Xia Hongyao. I recommend buying the finest fruits, vegetables, and grains and feeding her with care.]

[You reap what you sow. Don't be afraid of the trouble!]

[A bottle of milk a day keeps a man strong!]

"Can you say something useful for once?"

Lin Baici wanted to know how to take down the Clay Figure Monster.

"Very good. Now for the final step: the scoring and feedback round!"

The Clay Figure Monster announced loudly. "Who's willing to go first?"

The travelers looked at one another, wary. In the end, they all looked toward Lin Baici.

Lin Baici remained unmoved.

"Since no one's stepping forward, I'll choose someone myself."

The Clay Figure Monster clearly had no patience. It pointed at someone. "You, come forward!"

The unlucky person it chose was a middle-aged man.

He immediately looked at Lin Baici in panic and begged for help. "Handsome Guy, help me?"

"Hurry up, or I'll give you zero points!" the Clay Figure Monster urged.

The middle-aged man didn't dare delay. He hurried over to the Clay Figure Monster and, when it held out its hand, nervously handed over the clay figure he'd fired.

"The facial features are unclear, and it's missing an eyebrow and an ear."

"The arms and legs are uneven!"

"It was overfired, and its body is covered in cracks!"

The Clay Figure Monster listed seven flaws in one breath, then shook its head in disappointment. It had lost interest in commenting on the figure any further.

"Trash that offends the eyes. Zero points!"

The Clay Figure Monster finished speaking and smashed the clay figure to the ground.

Crash!

The figure shattered into pieces.

The middle-aged man let out a scream and collapsed. It was as if he'd fallen from the top of a skyscraper. Blood sprayed from his body, his bones shattered, and he lay twisted beyond recognition.

The travelers trembled and backed away, trying to hide behind one another. Their own clay figures had the same flaws the Clay Figure Monster had pointed out.

If they were chosen, they'd be as good as dead.

"You, come here!"

The Clay Figure Monster picked someone else.

"Buddy, think of something quick!"

The unlucky traveler pleaded with Lin Baici, treating him as his last lifeline.

[You're next. Go up!]

[Remember, after the monster finishes its critique and tells you to leave, smash the clay figure in your hands immediately! Otherwise, this thing will come to life later and try to steal your heart!]

"It's not over yet?"

Lin Baici was shocked. He'd thought that once the Clay Figure Monster finished its critique, they'd clear the God's Taboo Game. He hadn't expected to have to fight the clay figure he'd made.

What a rip-off.

As expected, with Rule Pollution at level 5.0, the survival rate was extremely low.

The middle-aged man had scored forty points, which wasn't a passing grade.

When the Clay Figure Monster smashed the clay figure, the middle-aged man gritted his teeth and launched a desperate attack. But he didn't even get close to the monster before it slapped his head to pieces.

"Next!"

The Clay Figure Monster acted as if it had just swatted a mosquito. Without a care, it raised its right hand and prepared to choose someone else.

"I'll go!"

Lin Baici raised his right hand.

Whoosh!

Everyone looked over, their faces full of shock.

"Little Lin, have you figured something out?"

Xia Hongyao looked excited.

Ma Yuan and 18D looked hopeful too.

"I'll try it first. If I survive, do what I do!"

With that, Lin Baici walked toward the Clay Figure Monster.

"Brother Lin, there's no need to risk your life. Let someone else go first!"

18D urged him in a low voice. "Everyone here is desperate to survive. They'll be willing to try your method."

"I'll go."

Lin Baici smiled.

"Little Lin, let me!"

Xia Hongyao grabbed Lin Baici. "You've helped me so much. It's my turn to step up. I'm the team leader, after all. If the sky falls, I have to hold it up. I can't let a Team Member take the risk!"

"..."

Lin Baici was stunned. He could tell Xia Hongyao meant every word.

[She's sincere. What a noble soul! Just look at the fragrance she gives off. It's so tempting!]

[I want to eat her.]

[Steaming would be best!]

God of Gluttony's voice was thick with longing.

"Don't worry. I've always had pretty good luck!"

Xia Hongyao patted Lin Baici on the shoulder, took the Clay Figure, and walked toward the Clay Figure Monster.

Smack!

Lin Baici grabbed her arm.

"Don't mess around!"

Lin Baici didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but he was also a little touched.

This girl with the high ponytail—

She was good people!

"Just wait here, all of you!"

Under everyone's gaze, Lin Baici walked toward the Clay Figure Monster.

He wasn't nervous or afraid, nor did he have the grim resolve of someone with their back to the wall. Instead, his expression was calm, as if he weren't about to face a terrifying monster that had killed countless people, but an old, lame dog scavenging for food in a trash heap.

"What guts!"

Ma Yuan praised him inwardly.