A moment later, everyone who had lost their matches was sent to the infirmary. The winners of the selection were then gathered back in the viewing room.
The six young cultivators sat on either side.
They happened to form three pairs, representing Xuanfeng Temple, Hidden Dragon Pool, and Yue's Cultivation Firm.
Liu Yuanjun and Li Feixia were senior brother and sister. The long-haired, straight-haired girl from Hidden Dragon Pool was named Su Renxue, and the red-haired man in the leather jacket was Ji Yang. Though the girl looked shorter and much younger, she was actually the senior sister.
Then there was Yue's Cultivation Firm. Yue Wen was the owner, and Zhao Xing'er was his assistant.
"Welcome, everyone, to the latest Wasteland Adventure Live Stream project from Wangyou Media." He Caihua stood at the front, her beauty radiant. With a wave of her hand, she brought up the presentation. "Next, I'll walk you through the full livestream plan."
The slide showed a map of the outskirts of City Seven, with a large area of deep green marked out.
The next image showed the area in detail: towering trees dozens of meters tall, dense thickets of thorny brush, eerie clearings littered with unknown bones, and still, ominous black marshes...
There were even scenes of demonic beasts crouched in the trees, hunting.
The young people watched, stunned. The place looked exactly like a real Wasteland Zone. They had all seen at least some of the footage that powerful cultivators had brought back from the Wasteland Zone, so they had a rough idea of what it looked like.
It would certainly fool the livestream audience.
"Our company spent half a year building this lifelike Wasteland Zone on the outskirts of a satellite city. It covers nearly as much ground as a small town, and we've done our best to recreate everything as faithfully as possible," He Caihua said with a smile. "I'm lucky this trial project was set in Jiang City, and that I was chosen to lead it. You're all lucky to have the chance to take part, too."
"We've already filed the necessary paperwork with the Supervision Bureau and received official support. Naturally, we aren't going to deceive the public. We'll make it clear that this is a fully realistic replica of a Wasteland Zone. It's inside the barrier of the City Defense Array, but otherwise it's just like the real thing. In a sense, you can think of it as a variety show."
"Our public promotion plan is to place three treasure chests in this replica Wasteland Zone. I'll lead a group of young cultivators on a three-day search through the dangerous area, and you'll receive a reward for every chest you find. We've already told you about the revenue-sharing plan, too. Whether it's from the official main livestream or your own channels, you'll each get a share of the tips."
As Yue Wen listened, he couldn't help marveling at Wangyou Media's generosity.
Just building a replica Wasteland Zone like this must have cost an incredible amount, to say nothing of the promotional expenses. They'd probably have a hard time making their money back from a single livestream. Still, they had said this was only a trial. If it went well, they would likely have even bigger plans.
For the young people involved, though, this was a great opportunity.
They could make some quick money on the platform the company had created for them. And if they performed well and attracted fans under the spotlight, they could build up their own personal accounts, too.
Just then, A Mei came over with another thick stack of contracts, smiling seductively.
"Everyone who decides to join the project will need to sign this new short-term contract for the three-day livestream. It also states that your personal accounts' commercial operations will be offered to our company first for the next three years. I hope you understand. We're investing a great deal, and if you become popular and then sign with another company, we'll suffer a heavy loss. If you'd rather go home and focus on cultivation without any commercial activity, that won't affect you at all."
Though it was only a three-day contract, it was a hefty stack of paper. Even the replica Wasteland Zone had its share of dangers, so the contract contained plenty of safety measures, along with a great many legal provisions.
The young people present weren't experts in this area, and the paperwork looked like gibberish to them.
Ji Yang looked up and asked, "Can I take it home and have a lawyer look it over before deciding whether to sign?"
"Of course," He Caihua replied with a nod. "Take your time and think it over. Just let me know by noon tomorrow. We're meeting at the company tomorrow afternoon before heading to the site, so I hope this won't delay the livestream."
Yue Wen had no problem with it. He was here to make quick money, and as long as the pay was good, he didn't mind signing a long-term contract or a short one.
But after putting away the contract and standing up, he noticed Zhao Xing'er beside him, eyes lowered as she seemed lost in thought.
Thinking?
That was a rare look for her.
But Zhao Xing'er didn't say anything, and Yue Wen didn't ask.
After they returned to the firm, he left Zhao Xing'er to watch the place and went upstairs to cultivate.
After seeing the Immortal Gate disciples fight, he'd had a few ideas. Compared with those disciples, who had access to abundant resources, he had far too few supernatural techniques.
Dragon Wandering Loose Hand was useless unless he fought at close range. Thunderclap Art and Flash Art were minor techniques, and they weren't much use outside of specific situations. In truth, the only combat technique he could rely on was Sword Control Art.
Before, when he took the occasional job and dealt with a few minor evil spirits, things were never too complicated. A single use of Sword Control Art was enough.
But lately, whenever he faced a more complicated fight, he felt that his methods were too limited. The Wasteland Adventure might be fake, but Wangyou Media would still be bringing in demonic beasts. It wasn't entirely without danger.
He planned to buy another supernatural technique from Big Dragon.
Of course, the main reason he wanted to spend money was never that he lacked anything. It was that he had money in his pocket.
After what he'd gained beneath the Tiger Head Gang's hideout, Yue Wen's savings of Demon Suppressing Coins had now passed one hundred. Ever since then, he'd been thinking about saving up for another powerful technique.
He sank his Spiritual Sense and slipped into the space where the black-and-gold palace stood.
Wang Dalong sat high on the enormous throne. He slowly opened his eyes. "You've been coming by a lot lately."
"Heh." Yue Wen smiled. "I've had a good few days. I'd like to buy another supernatural technique."
"What kind do you want? I'll give you some options," Big Dragon said.
"Today I saw someone use a technique that let them hide their body in the shadows and shift from place to place. It was incredibly nimble," Yue Wen said. "I want something similar—something that can help me dodge and, preferably, work with attacks, too. It'd be useful in complicated surroundings."
"An Escape Technique that can be combined with attacks?" Big Dragon listened to his description. The golden flames in its eyes flickered faster as it considered.
A moment later, it raised its long neck and let out a high-pitched dragon roar. "Haaah—"
As the dragon's words reached Yue Wen's ears, a mass of complex information appeared in his mind. He sorted through it and began to read.
It was an introduction to three Cultivation Methods.
They came with written and spoken explanations, and even what looked like video demonstrations, complete with moving images.
"First: Maze Tracking Art."
"This is a pure stealth technique. It lets the user merge with the light and shadow of their surroundings as they move, going completely unnoticed..."
A deep voice sounded beside Yue Wen's ear. It wasn't Big Dragon's voice, and he had no idea who had recorded the narration.
At the same time, moving images unfolded in his mind.
They showed a primeval forest, tangled and chaotic, with many demonic beasts lurking nearby. Their roars sounded startlingly real.
Yue Wen watched for a while but didn't notice anything change, so he asked, "Where's the technique demonstration? There's nothing here."
As if answering him, the narration said, "The user has already activated Maze Tracking Art and crossed the entire forest, while the foolish beasts remain completely unaware..."
"Wait, what?" Yue Wen scratched his head.
He hadn't seen a thing. And somehow he felt like he'd just been insulted.
The scene changed to a street lined with tall buildings, with traffic and pedestrians rushing past.
The voice continued, "Even on a busy street crowded with pedestrians, the user remains completely undetected..."
Yue Wen stared hard for a long while and still couldn't spot anything. "I know Maze Tracking Art is a technique for hiding yourself, but if you don't show me what it looks like before and after you use it, how am I supposed to know you haven't just picked some random documentary and tried to fool me?"
The narrator droned on, "The user has already crossed the entire street and was even struck by an out-of-control bus, while the feeble pedestrians remain completely unaware..."
"You got hit by a bus, too? The bus doesn't care about your techniques, does it?" Yue Wen covered his face. "And why do I feel like you're insulting me again?"
The scene changed once more, this time to a room with smooth white steel walls on all sides. Stacks of neatly arranged cash sat in the middle.
"Even after leaving a complex environment for the monochromatic interior of a bank vault, no one can detect the user's whereabouts..." the narrator said.
Compared to the forest and the street, the vault was certainly a simpler environment. By rights, it should have been harder to hide there. Any slight flaw in the illusion would be easy to spot.
So Yue Wen watched even more carefully, but still couldn't see anything change. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the piles of cash in the middle slowly shrinking.
Every few seconds, an entire stack of bills vanished.
"I can't find where the hell you are, but I can see you committing a crime!" Yue Wen shouted.
The scene changed again. The sound of splashing water filled the air, and a naked figure was just barely visible through the mist nearby.
Of course, the important parts were pixelated.
The narrator began, "After escaping—er, leaving the vault, our user enters someone else's bathroom, an equally simple environment, and still moves as freely as a fish in water, completely undetected. And this technique will only cost you sixty Demon Suppressing Coins. Isn't that a great deal?"
"Enough already! Did you really have to prepare so many demonstration scenes? And if you had to show a bathroom, couldn't you use your own?" Yue Wen cursed. "This technique clearly wasn't made for respectable people!"
Before you continue