Success Against All Odds

Producer Li said, "How about we release the footage of the cameraman asking Xiao Ming whether he wanted to withdraw and rest?"

The chief director shook his head. "Not yet. It's only at the bottom of the trending list right now. Let it heat up a little longer and climb a bit higher. Once filming ends, ask Xiao Ming whether he wants to do an interview or a livestream."

"Will he agree?" Producer Li found Xiao Ming's attitude hard to pin down. The last contract discussion had nearly scared him to death.

"Didn't they say he's connected to Film Emperor Qu? Then invite them both. If Film Emperor Qu cares about him, he'll persuade him too. Xiao Ming signed a long-term contract with us. We share glory and ruin."

"Then I'll contact Film Emperor Qu's manager first. Otherwise, that one..." Zhu Fei was infamous for being fierce.

Because of Xiao Ming's hand injury, his mobility and quick thinking in the tasks he continued completing afterward made his fan count shoot up.

[Oh my god! How does Xiao Ming know all this? His reactions are so fast too!]

[Even though Xiao Ming got hurt, his performance is as stable as ever.]

[My Xiao Ming, worthy of the Textbooks.]

[I originally thought xmx refusing to leave after getting hurt for screen time was kind of... you know, but now that I'm seeing this...]

[Some of the people beside him are still standing there dumbly, not knowing what they're doing, while others are already listening to clues and solving the answers.]

[And Xiao Ming doesn't seem to care much whether his name is on the final task result. He only cares whether the task gets completed.]

[He's really perfect for this show.]

[Compared with those people who keep stalling for screentime or whatever, Xiao Ming is so genuine.]

[It feels like he doesn't care much about status either. All he has in his head is task, task, task.]

[It was the same in the first episode. There wasn't a single task he didn't go do.]

[Wasn't there one place?]

[What are you thinking? That place was too far away from him, and he'd already completed a task.]

[When there's a task, he really goes for it. He doesn't even care about his injuries.]

[The production team even censored the wound, but I could still see that bloody mess.]

[It's really terrifying.]

[Although he said on his livestream that it was nothing serious, I always feel like it isn't that simple.]

[The main thing is that the production team made him treat the wound himself. I seriously can't understand it. Even if he knew how to handle it, they shouldn't have made him do it himself. Didn't they have medical staff traveling with them?]

[To put it bluntly, the production team just doesn't care much about him, so they handled it carelessly.]

[If it had been anyone else, gj or qaq, their fans would've destroyed the show.]

[Speaking of Film Emperor Qu, he and Xiao Ming really... I'm crying.]

[Film Emperor Qu is amazing too. It felt like he instantly grasped the key to the task. Only he and Xiao Ming could keep up with each other's train of thought.]

[Crycry Little Magic Fairies, hearts in harmony.]

[Willow in Shadow, Blossom in Light really is... an elite pairing.]

[After finding out xmx was hurt, qaq didn't have even the slightest smile left on his face.]

[But I feel like the two of them are just friends. Although qaq was worried about xmx, it didn't seem like he was paying that much attention.]

[Does pulling xmx away count?]

[Speaking of that, gj really got treated like a tool.]

At the recording site, after Qu An began the challenge, Xiao Ming's right hand stayed clenched with tension.

Qu An moved cleanly and decisively. Xiao Ming remembered that he had specifically learned martial arts for a film, so even the way he vaulted the railings was smooth and fluid.

The obstacles and railings on the course differed greatly from those in a real hurdle race. The height of the railings alone was different.

What set this season apart was that, on top of sprinting at full speed, there were all kinds of different obstacles.

Acceleration required not only the body to run faster, but also the mind to think faster.

When Qu An vaulted railings or went around obstacles, he had already taken in the exact positions of everything and figured out how to handle them.

Some obstacles were too high to vault over and had to be avoided, while others only needed to be stepped over.

The hunter behind him was a national obstacle-course athlete, and after setting off, he quickly began closing in on Qu An.

Seeing the speed at which Qu An and the hunter competed, Pang Ba and Zhong Ka couldn't help exclaiming, "So fast." Even Xiao Ming's palms had started to sweat.

"Qu An's speed is pretty good."

"I feel like I barely saw anything before they were jumping around and got it."

"Really, this scene reminds me of one of his old dramas."

"So handsome, so handsome."

"He's incredible, truly incredible."

"Little Qu is really good."

The Pause Room was nearby, and the people watching the challengers ahead couldn't help crying out in surprise.

Qu An had to avoid the obstacles while staying wary of the hunter behind him, making his movements look particularly awkward. Yet there was also a bit of coolness in that awkwardness.

Spinning and leaping~ He closed his eyes~ The dust and clamor disappeared from sight~ Were you intoxicated yet~ White snow~ Summer night~ He never stopped~

Avoiding obstacles truly wasn't easy. Qu An had already begun panting, while the hunter behind him pressed closer step by step.

When the hunter was only a few steps away from Qu An, Qu An successfully crossed countless obstacles, reached the finish line, and earned a Revival Card.

Zhong Ka said, "Woohoo! Whoa~ That's insane!"

Sweat was already dripping down Qu An's sharply defined face. He was breathing hard, but his face carried the delighted smile of a young man victorious after battle.

"Got it~" Qu An moved close to Xiao Ming and showed him the Revival Card. He looked like an energetic puppy that had fetched a frisbee and was asking for praise. It didn't quite fit his usual image, yet somehow it suited him even better.

When Xiao Ming had watched Qu An's past works before, he had always felt that Qu An's personality didn't match his age. He was overly composed.

In their usual interactions, Qu An was reliable most of the time too, making him seem unlike a male college student. Only now did Qu An seem to have a side that matched his age.

"You were amazing!" Xiao Ming praised him loudly before Qu An even came close. The gloom on Qu An's face finally dispersed by more than half, and the curve of his lips was wider than ever. He looked ridiculously smug and... a little silly.

In truth, neither Qu An's running posture nor the smile on his face could really be called silly, but because it felt so different from his usual self, the contrast made it seem almost absurd.

Ah, he had the cuteness of a large dog. The kind that usually looked friendly, but would turn and run the moment someone actually tried to touch it, only affectionate toward certain people.

To avoid revealing too much about the show, the hunters in the revival challenges did not switch to livestream mode, so viewers could only watch them after the episode aired.

Because it showed a different side of Qu An, this clip also became widely circulated material online.

[For the first time... Anbao looks like a dumb dog.]

[I always thought Qu An should be the kind of animal with a gentle temperament.]

[A little like a golden retriever.]

[How can you compare Qu An to a dog? He's obviously more like a fox.]

[A dumb fox, hahaha.]

[No wonder Qu An rarely goes on variety shows. Turns out he's afraid his persona will collapse /doge.]

[Why did he immediately go show off to xmx after getting a Revival Card? qaq, do you know your persona has collapsed? /crying]

[Fans on the surface: Your persona collapsed. In reality: Running wild, celebrating wildly. #Qu An Finally Became Dumb is already number eleven on the trending list.]

[It's like a dog running toward a cat.]

[Family, who understands? Before this, no matter what fans said, I didn't feel much. But qaq himself refuses to behave.]

[But it has to be said, getting a Revival Card was really impressive.]

Qu An getting the first Revival Card greatly boosted everyone's morale.

Because each round could only be challenged once, Gu Wuping chose the medium mode, where he had a better chance. Because of his large build, the hard mode made it difficult for him to escape countless hunters without bumping into them while being chased.

Gu Wuping had been about to go up when Xiao Ming stopped him. "Brother Wuping, I'll try the mode with lots of hunters first and help wear down this hunter's stamina."

The hunter assigned to chase them was the same across all three modes, and after the previous round, he had returned to the starting point to wait.

They all treated Xiao Ming's chances of getting a Revival Card as just casual fun. After all, his hand was already injured.

But after that fall, Xiao Ming was actually the one who had expended the least stamina.

He still wanted to become the Acceleration King. Only he himself could work to achieve his goal, so Xiao Ming had never intended to rely on anyone else.

After he fell and got hurt, many people had told him to withdraw from filming for now and try again next episode. He had not agreed because he wanted to fight for another chance for himself.

Pies were either made with one's own hands or bought with money earned oneself. They never fell from the sky.

As someone who had been a relentless overachiever since childhood, Xiao Ming also understood best when he needed to seize an opportunity.

When Qu An first saw Xiao Ming get hurt, his first instinct had been to hope Xiao Ming would rest. But after continuing to complete tasks with him, he could sense Xiao Ming's thoughts too.

Xiao Ming wanted the championship. He wanted to win it on his own. That was why Qu An had grabbed Xiao Ming the moment the hunter appeared earlier.

I don't really like seeing the kid look disappointed, Qu An thought.

Xiao Ming would only give up after he had truly given it everything and found he couldn't do it. Unexpected incidents or passing scenery had never caused him to lose sight of his final direction.

Qu An only wondered what Xiao Ming wanted now, after the program ended.

He couldn't guess. He thought perhaps Xiao Ming himself didn't know either, and Qu An would be one of the countless passing sights before Xiao Ming found his final goal.

A trace of unwillingness broke through the soil in his heart and spread as it grew. He didn't know where it would ultimately rush toward. That was probably something for the future.

Qu An only felt that Xiao Ming had become a very important friend to him. Even though they had not known each other long, people on the same wavelength could resonate at any second after meeting.

"You can do it. Don't be nervous." Before Xiao Ming went up, Qu An patted his shoulder and spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear.

Xiao Ming turned to look at Qu An and nodded solemnly, one side of his ear turning a little red. No one had ever said something like that to him. His usual expressionlessness always made people mistakenly think he would never feel nervous or afraid, so no one ever used such a comforting tone to tell him, "You can do it. Don't be nervous."

So this was what having a friend felt like.

He had a friend too.

The people in the Pause Room and the others were rather relaxed about it. They had not considered the possibility of Xiao Ming getting one, because he had only just been injured.

"So many hunters."

"This feels completely impossible to dodge. There are too many hunters, especially in that section at the back. You still have to dodge the one chasing you."

"Did Xiao Ming hurt his hand?"

"Ah, seems like it. Safety first, then."

The people in the Pause Room shouted toward them, "Safety first!"

Xiao Ming heard them and made an OK gesture with his uninjured right hand.

The obstacles had been removed. More than a dozen hunters appeared on the field. Basically, touching any one of them meant losing.

The distance between each hunter was around one meter, and some stood even closer together.

His right hand squeezed his left palm. His left hand could not quite straighten now, though it was only a little short.

Let's try. How would I know if I don't give it a shot?

The most favorable thing about this challenge for Xiao Ming was that his body was flexible and his balance was good, so he still had a chance.

The first few hunters were farther apart from one another, making it much easier for Xiao Ming to circle around them.

The hunter chasing him from behind was getting closer and closer. The gaps between the hunters ahead were now less than a meter, and sharp intakes of breath could already be heard nearby.

Xiao Ming was focused on dodging and did not notice.

The hunter behind him was only about two meters away. There were two waiting hunters ahead, and the gap between them made it likely that he would hit one.

But the hunters needed time to react. If Xiao Ming was fast enough, it was possible to dodge past them, because the final hunter was less than a meter from the finish line.

Xiao Ming charged forward in one burst. His hand brushed against the second-to-last hunter's arm, but the other person seemed to lag by half a second before reaching out to catch him. Xiao Ming, meanwhile, had already burst through the finish line.

"Ah! Little brother, you're incredible!" Zhong Ka couldn't help clapping hard. It had been far too cool.

The Pause Room heard Zhong Ka's voice and knew the result too. A group of people cried out and applauded, making the scene incredibly lively.

"So handsome!"

"So fast and nimble."

"Xiao Ming is insanely cool!"

Someone shouted that, and cries of "Xiao Ming" rose one after another. Qu An was walking over to find Xiao Ming when he heard it, and an odd discomfort lodged in his throat, making his brows furrow on their own.

[Xiao Ming succeeded in the hardest mode, First Kill!]

[He succeeded after triggering the hunter, Double Kill!]

[His hand was still injured, Triple Kill!]

[Xiao Ming, so awesome!]

[Insanely cool, insanely cool!]

[Not even the heavens themselves could stop me from liking Xiao Ming!]

[Xiao Ming really won big this round, even though Film Emperor Qu also got a Revival Card.]

[But that was 1v3. He had no chance of winning at all.]

[The acceleration team members in the Pause Room had their eyes light up, hahaha.]

[They look like they've seen their savior. Why is this so funny?]

[Qu An too, really. He was the first one to go over. I'll dig in first /food]