Joining the Show

Before the show officially began, there was a small activity to determine when the hunters would be released. This episode used a ball-drawing method from the Hunter Box. There were five balls in the box, marked "1," "2," "3," "4," "Release Hunters After One Minute," and a hunter eye symbol.

Drawing a numbered ball would move the Hunter Box forward by the corresponding number of spaces. Each ball was roughly the size of a basketball. Their order was shuffled by a machine, and the draw slot was tightly covered with black cloth to ensure the contestants could not see inside the box. Contestants had to press the shuffle button before drawing a ball, and the ball had to be returned afterward.

Xiao Ming drew second. In terms of randomness, it was neither good nor bad.

The first to draw was Meng Na, the youngest member of the five-person group. The young girl had decent luck and drew the number "2," moving the Hunter Box forward two spaces. After drawing, Meng Na gave a small cheer and ran off.

When it was Xiao Ming's turn, he surprisingly felt nervous. After pressing the button, he began considering the randomness of the balls. He had noticed earlier that the numbers and patterns were not spray-painted on, so he would not be able to identify them by touch.

The balls had rolled three times in total, so the ball marked "2" was no longer near the draw slot. By probability, it was either to the left or right—a fifty-fifty chance. He would gamble on it.

Taking a deep breath, Xiao Ming reached for the ball on the right.

When the words "Release Hunters After One Minute" appeared on the ball, Xiao Ming let out a sigh of relief. The other contestants also scattered to find places to hide.

The starting point and the Pause Room were in the same place, at the intersection of the stadium, training hall, and commercial street. One minute was enough time to cover several hundred meters at a sprint, but they could easily run out of stamina afterward.

Three directions—which way should he go?

On the way here, Xiao Ming had noticed a valve at the intersection, which meant an upcoming mission would probably be related to this place. The stadium was too open and hard to hide in, while the training hall was only slightly better. To be safe, the commercial street was the best option.

Most people thought the same way. Xiao Ming had already decided where to go before drawing the ball, and the moment he saw it, he charged forward.

Perhaps because they had a one-minute buffer, many contestants hid as soon as they entered the commercial street instead of continuing farther in.

After running farther down the street, Xiao Ming discovered that only one person remained beside him: Qu An, the twenty-one-year-old newly crowned Best Actor.

Xiao Ming did not stop until they had nearly reached the end of the commercial street. He ducked into a shop nearby, and Qu An entered the same store, less than two meters away from him.

By modern standards, Xiao Ming was probably socially anxious. Yet paradoxically, he was also afraid of being bored. He could not help turning his gaze toward the Best Actor.

It had to be said that becoming Best Actor required more than solid acting skills; one also needed a good face. Qu An had striking features—thick brows, large eyes, and beautiful facial features. Compared with those pretty idols, he was more the handsome and dashing type.

Xiao Ming had a natural fondness for handsome people because he himself had been described as beautiful ever since childhood. "A beautiful bookworm"—that was how most people described him. The appearance he admired was someone like Qu An, so he could not help glancing at him several more times.

Perhaps Xiao Ming's gaze was too obvious, because Qu An looked over at him with confusion in his eyes.

Xiao Ming could not help blushing. Getting caught sneaking glances was far too embarrassing.

"Why did you choose to hide here? It's quite far from the starting point." Qu An understood the show's routines well. If there was no mission and they stayed too silent, they would not get any screen time. Though he did not know why he had ended up hiding with this rookie, perhaps the other man wanted to follow him for exposure. Still, Qu An did not care much about that.

Under the law of the jungle in the entertainment industry, that was perfectly normal. As long as he did not cause trouble, it was fine.

"The tailor shop on the commercial street is specially marked on the map, which means this place should be a plot point. There will definitely be a mission here—it's only a matter of when. Besides, compared with the other two locations, the commercial street is easier to hide in."

Qu An had only intended to chat casually, but after hearing Xiao Ming's answer, his eyes lit up. It seemed this little rookie might not be following him just to get screen time after all.

Qu An's image in front of the cameras had always been gentle and modest. He always wore a smiling expression, and he was the same now—rather captivating. Xiao Ming quickly looked away and waited for the first mission to be announced.

The hunters had already been released before they reached the end of the street. There were four in total.

When everyone had scattered earlier, some contestants had gone toward the stadium and training hall as well. Therefore, each area had at least one hunter. Unless something unexpected happened, there should be two hunters on the commercial street.

Meanwhile, at the tailor shop at the end of the commercial street, Chang Le and his mother were preparing to leave for the training hall. However, the vehicle originally meant to pick them up had suddenly broken down and been sent for repairs.

The Interstellar Empire's marshal saw the anxious mother and son through remote data. To help them, the marshal released the first mission, placing a sidecar motorcycle beside the tailor shop and setting up a Hunter Box and a gate at the entrance to the commercial street.

Xiao Ming's phone rang, and he immediately took it out to check.

Mission 1 Released

A gate and a Hunter Box have been placed at the entrance to the commercial street. When 75 minutes remain in the game, the gate will close and a hunter will be released. To stop this, contestants must go to the tailor shop on the commercial street and use the sidecar motorcycle to take Chang Le there. Use Chang Le's palm print verification to stop the gate from closing.

The tailor shop was directly across from the store where Xiao Ming and Qu An were hiding. Xiao Ming poked his head out for a look and, sure enough, saw an anxiously waiting mother and son beside a sidecar motorcycle.

After reading the mission, Xiao Ming began interpreting it. "So we need to drive the sidecar motorcycle and get Chang Le to the gate before the remaining time reaches seventy-five minutes, then have him scan his palm. Otherwise, our available area will shrink drastically, and there'll be another hunter on the commercial street."

"That's right." Qu An looked at Xiao Ming with a smile in his eyes, his gaze filled with approval.

"Then, Brother Qu, shall we do the mission together?" Xiao Ming had thought long and hard about how to address Qu An. Based on the little he had crammed about the entertainment industry, calling someone "teacher" was probably too formal for this show. Although Qu An was even a year younger than him, "Brother" was the most appropriate choice.

"Let's go."

Qu An had heard people say that this kid only knew how to act and was not good at adapting. Looking at him now, though, he was not that foolish.

Xiao Ming thought that as the junior, if he hid behind Qu An and caused the other man to be caught first when a hunter came, he would probably be infamous online forever. So he took the lead and rushed forward.

He himself did not care much, but it would be another matter if his researcher parents found out. Xiao Ming cared quite a bit about what his parents thought.

He had not accomplished much in his studies, so he could not fall too far behind in other areas either.

Without Xiao Ming realizing it, his obsessive drive to excel began stirring again.

Perhaps because there were too many contestants near the entrance to the commercial street, the hunters did not seem to have arrived yet. Xiao Ming looked around, then rushed across the street. After confirming it was safe, he waved Qu An over.

Seeing the contestants who had suddenly appeared, Chang Le's mother asked, "Are you here to help my son? We were just about to head to the stadium."

"Yes, ma'am. Please come with us."

The sidecar could seat three people. Chang Le sat in the side seat, while his mother said she would go over later.

The sidecar had few gears and a very low speed. There were operating instructions beside it, so it was easy to handle. It was probably designed to make things easier for the contestants.

"Brother Qu, can you ride a motorcycle?"

"I can. I'll drive. You sit behind me." Qu An had once played a motorcycle racer in a drama and had specifically trained for the role. Something like this, which was practically a child's toy, was far too easy for him.

"Okay."

Xiao Ming sat behind him, suddenly unsure where to put his hands. The sidecar abruptly lurched forward, and the inertia made Xiao Ming fall forward. He could not help grabbing Qu An around the waist.

The moment he realized what he had done, he immediately let go. "Sorry, Brother Qu."

"It's fine." The instant the other man had suddenly hugged him, Qu An thought he caught a faint floral scent. He did not know whether it was just his imagination.

What they had not expected was that the sidecar was absurdly slow. It really moved at about the same speed as a child's motorcycle.

Just then, several other contestants rushed over. Seeing the motorcycle's speed, they could not help commenting.

"No way, this sidecar is way too slow! When are you ever going to get there at this rate?"

Thank you for saying exactly what I was thinking.

As more people gathered, Xiao Ming felt that continuing to sit in the back was somewhat inappropriate. With everyone around them talking at once, he worried Qu An would not hear him, so he leaned closer and said he wanted to get off.

"Brother Qu, this bike is a little slow. I'll get off. It'll probably be faster if I run."

The person behind him was not that close, but Qu An could still feel a faint stream of air brush against his ear, making it itch.

Qu An agreed and stopped the bike to let Xiao Ming get off. The vehicle did seem to become a little faster.

At that moment, their phones suddenly rang. "Lin Xiang has been captured by a hunter. Remaining contestants: 15."

"Oh my god, how did Brother Xiang get caught so quickly? It hasn't even been five minutes since the start!"

"Wasn't Brother Xiang right behind us just now?"

"That hunter might be nearby. Everyone, be careful." Xiao Ming reminded them, then walked a few steps farther ahead to check the situation. Based on the distance he had traveled earlier, they should have covered less than two-thirds of the way to their destination.

A black figure suddenly entered his line of sight. Xiao Ming immediately ran back. "There's a hunter! Everyone, hide first!"

The group immediately scattered. Xiao Ming sprinted into a shop beside them. Qu An was slightly slower because he had to get off the motorcycle, so he entered the same shop as Xiao Ming.