Chapter 187: Money Game (24)

Sensing that the distance between their chairs was a little too great, Cheng Zhao dragged his chair right up beside He Yu.

One of them was dressed in filthy rags, while the other wore an immaculate tailcoat. The contrast was almost comical. He Yu looked thoroughly disgusted by Cheng Zhao, turning his head away as if he couldn't bear to look at him.

Cheng Zhao pretended not to notice and leaned in anyway.

“Yuyu, what's this method you were talking about?”

He was practically vibrating with excitement. His eyes sparkled as he stared at He Yu expectantly.

“Are we going to ask the audience for votes together? But... five million votes... that's really hard.”

The previous round's two million votes had already been unbelievable.

Now they needed five million.

In previous seasons, the contestants ranked in the top ten in popularity had always found it relatively easy to reach the semifinals because audience votes were enough.

This season, however, far fewer votes were being cast, while the required amount kept increasing.

It was becoming nearly impossible.

Zhen Xing had somehow gathered two million votes in the previous round, which had already been astonishing.

Five million this round...

Just thinking about it felt inhuman.

Cheng Zhao frowned slightly before suddenly asking,

“How many votes do you have now? I've got 1.1 million. Five million feels impossibly far away.”

He had accumulated those 1.1 million votes from the second elimination round all the way until now.

Every round, a portion of Federation citizens randomly received one voting ticket.

As the number of contestants decreased, it looked as though votes would become more concentrated...

But in reality...

The total number of voting tickets distributed each round was gradually reduced.

At the same time, the requirements kept increasing.

This season seemed especially severe.

At the very least, never before had the first battle round required five million votes.

Cheng Zhao wasn't even sure that, even if he and He Yu asked together, they could reach that number.

Those willing to vote for them already had.

As for the remaining spectators who were still watching from the sidelines...

Unless the two of them could truly move those people...

Those votes would never come.

He Yu remained calm.

“I have 2.2 million.”

Coincidentally...

Exactly twice Cheng Zhao's total.

Cheng Zhao: “???”

He stared at He Yu in disbelief.

“You actually have that many votes?!”

—How the fuck is that scientifically possible?!

Contestants from garbage planets had always been discriminated against.

The audience almost never voted for them.

Yet somehow...

He Yu had accumulated more than two million votes.

Then Cheng Zhao thought it over again.

He Yu had never spent any of his voting tickets.

Moreover...

He'd had countless highlight moments.

Having such a high vote count actually made sense.

If Cheng Zhao himself were watching...

He would vote for He Yu too.

Thinking of that, Cheng Zhao rubbed his hands together excitedly.

“Then let's ask everyone to vote for you. You spend the votes to advance, and I'll advance by winning.”

Realizing that sounded like he was taking advantage of He Yu, he hurriedly added,

“I'll give you all the rewards afterward.”

He grinned from ear to ear, eyebrows dancing as his eyes shone.

He Yu tapped lightly on the tabletop.

Behind his rimless glasses, his eyes slowly closed as he fell into thought.

Several seconds later...

He opened them again.

“If no one else advances by spending voting tickets,” he said decisively, “then getting five million votes isn't impossible.”

He had calculated it carefully.

Advancing through audience votes remained a possibility.

Cheng Zhao's eyes lit up even brighter.

Counting on his fingers, he began analyzing.

“There are only a handful of people capable of getting five million votes.”

“Zhen Xing counts... actually, no. He already spent two million last round. Getting another five million this round would be difficult.”

“Yuan Ze counts. That guy has support from countless ordinary planets.”

“Either Eugene or Gedai might manage it, though I'm not sure Mechanical Planet even has five million votes.”

“Let me think if there's anyone else...”

“Siya counts. She's incredibly popular. There aren't many female contestants, so maybe lots of male viewers would vote for her.”

“Other than them... absolutely nobody can reach five million.”

After finishing his analysis, Cheng Zhao slapped the table.

He leaned forward until his face was almost touching He Yu's.

“This really does seem possible! So how do we convince the audience to vote?”

He Yu raised one finger and pressed it against Cheng Zhao's forehead, pushing him back.

“Don't come so close.”

After withdrawing his hand, he calmly wiped it with a handkerchief before saying casually,

“Perhaps... we should talk about the fact that you were sent here by the official authorities of District Three.”

“Your government sent you into this competition to carry out a mission.”

“Are they simply abandoning you now?”

Cheng Zhao: “!!!”

The audience: “!!!”

—Holy shit.

What the hell was going on?!

Completely dumbfounded, Cheng Zhao blurted out,

“What are you talking about? Sent by the government? That's not true at all! You're—”

He Yu interrupted him.

“There are things that simply cannot remain hidden.”

“They shouldn't remain hidden.”

“Exposing them publicly is actually better.”

His eyes remained fixed on Cheng Zhao.

“Do you really think it was a coincidence that the two of us ended up in the same battlefield?”

“I've been watching you this entire time.”

“I wanted your information.”

“And I wanted you to survive.”

“But the system's arrangement seems determined to prevent that.”

Cheng Zhao pursed his lips.

His face remained blank, as though he couldn't understand anything He Yu was saying.

He Yu stared directly into his eyes.

“Tell everyone your story.”

“Tell them what you know.”

“The audience will absolutely ensure you advance.”

“Because just like me...”

“They all want to know the truth.”

“The truth hidden by <Top Talent Show>—”

His words stopped abruptly.

At exactly the same instant...

Cheng Zhao's expression changed as well.

His eyes widened suddenly.

Because the system notification rang out.

【Congratulations to Siya of Biological Planet 727 for successfully advancing. Remaining slots: 29/500.】

【Congratulations to Ling Buchen of Blue Star 1234 for successfully advancing. Remaining slots: 28/500.】

—

Cheng Zhao's voice trembled.

“They... weren't in the same battlefield... were they?”

He Yu inhaled deeply.

His expression became grave.

“The announcements were broadcast together.”

“If nothing unexpected happened...”

“They were in the same battlefield.”

He wasn't judging solely because they were announced together.

The real reason was...

He had already seen viewers mention it in the Bullet Screen before.

Ling Buchen and Siya...

Had indeed been in the same battlefield.

Ling Buchen won.

Siya spent five million votes to survive and advance to the next round.

Cheng Zhao's face instantly turned pale.

His fingers clenched tightly.

Unease filled the depths of his eyes as he looked toward He Yu.

He Yu's expression visibly darkened.

His eyes became unfathomable.

Only after a long silence did he finally speak hoarsely.

“Cheng Zhao.”

“Siya spent five million votes to advance.”

“I think... getting another three million votes is now almost impossible.”

Siya alone had consumed five million votes.

The audience's total vote pool had undoubtedly been drained considerably.

Among the remaining viewers...

Some would never vote for them.

Others still supported different contestants.

Trying to gather another three million...

Was simply too difficult.

Cheng Zhao grabbed his messy hair with both hands.

He sounded frustrated.

“So... what do we do now?”

Wait to die?

How could either of them possibly accept that?

He Yu lifted his head.

His gaze looked into the distance.

Or perhaps...

Toward the invisible hand pressing down upon them.

His pale face resembled still water.

His thin lips tightened before slowly curling into a mocking smile.

His hoarse voice overflowed with ridicule.

“Cheng Zhao.”

“The method I thought of before wasn't spending voting tickets.”

“I've thought of another possibility.”

“One that may allow us to advance.”

“There is no winner between us.”

“But...”

“There is no loser either.”

Cheng Zhao looked at him.

At that mocking smile.

He Yu continued,

“Today is the twentieth day.”

“According to my calculations... today is when most battlefields should conclude.”

“This round is a battle phase.”

“Based on how the instances are distributed, every battlefield should produce advancing contestants.”

“Unless...”

“The contestants kill each other.”

He turned back toward Cheng Zhao.

“As long as we both keep our respective 800 billion until tomorrow...”

“As long as neither of us dies...”

“As long as neither of us defeats the other...”

“Then once the system reaches its time limit...”

“We may both advance.”

The system couldn't wait forever for them to determine a winner.

Eventually...

It would have to make a judgment.

Even if it wasn't tomorrow...

It didn't matter.

Of course...

This wasn't purely deduction.

Much of the information came directly from the Bullet Screen.

He Yu felt incredibly fortunate that he could see those messages.

They had truly made understanding and deduction far easier.

—But just like his appearance inside <Top Talent Show>...

Perhaps being able to see the Bullet Screen wasn't a coincidence either.

Of course...

Now wasn't the time to analyze that.

Advancing came first.

Cheng Zhao shook his head with a bitter smile.

“But Siya advanced.”

“That means our battlefield doesn't necessarily need someone to advance.”

“Their battlefield produced two advancing contestants.”

“We...”

“We'll both be eliminated.”

He Yu raised one hand.

His eyes became sharp as blades.

“No.”

“If there's an instance where everyone advances...”

“Then there must also be an instance where everyone dies.”

“I'm betting that one battlefield ended with both contestants dying together.”

Instinctively, Cheng Zhao wanted to ask—

How can you possibly bet on something like that?

What if nobody died together?!

Yet the moment he met He Yu's eyes...

All he saw was absolute certainty.

That certainty somehow passed through He Yu's gaze...

And into Cheng Zhao himself.

He couldn't understand why He Yu was so confident.

Yet the instant their eyes met...

He believed him anyway.

Licking his dry lips, Cheng Zhao asked hoarsely,

“If someone really died together...”

“Then our battlefield would have one available slot?”

He Yu nodded.

His almond-shaped eyes narrowed slightly.

“Exactly.”

“We have one winning position.”

“If we're tied for first place...”

“Then there's a fifty-percent chance...”

“The system lets both of us advance.”

The reason He Yu believed another battlefield had ended in mutual destruction...

Was entirely because of the Bullet Screen.

He had learned yesterday that one battlefield's contestants had died together.

That was precisely why...

Last night...

He had intentionally controlled his score to match Cheng Zhao's 800 billion.

Surpassing Cheng Zhao would have been easy.

Matching him perfectly...

Had been deliberate.

—He wanted to advance.

And he wanted to take Cheng Zhao with him.

More and more...

He Yu felt that seeing the Bullet Screen was an incredibly overpowered ability.

At first...

It hadn't been especially useful.

It merely allowed him to gather more information.

In truth...

He Yu had never depended on it.

Yet as the competition progressed...

It allowed him to learn more and more.

For example...

The true situation of Blue Star and the Universe Federation.

The advancement results of other battlefields.

Those fragments of information couldn't directly help him survive...

But they allowed him to gradually piece together the truth.

That was exactly why He Yu increasingly suspected...

Seeing the Bullet Screen wasn't a coincidence.

After remaining silent for a long time, Cheng Zhao finally spoke.

“So...”

“There's still another fifty-percent possibility...”

“That we'll both be eliminated?”

He Yu nodded.

“Yes.”

Looking calmly at Cheng Zhao, he said,

“Either one of us admits defeat and dies.”

“Or we bet everything...”

“On that fifty percent.”

Their earlier gamble had already proven one thing.

Neither wanted to die.

So...

The only thing left was to wait.

Cheng Zhao closed his eyes slightly.

His thoughts were a tangled mess.

Neither he nor He Yu could surpass the other's wealth.

He Yu's solution...

Was the only solution left.

Unless they somehow obtained enough votes.

But Siya's advancement had already made that impossible.

Besides...

He Yu possessed far more votes than Cheng Zhao.

Even if they advanced through voting...

It would be He Yu.

Never Cheng Zhao.

If He Yu dared to gamble...

Why shouldn't he?

Opening his eyes again, Cheng Zhao smiled.

“All right.”

“Then let's gamble.”

Both of them possessed 800 billion.

Whenever they acquired industries, the system automatically evaluated them and converted everything into monetary value.

That was how the wealth rankings worked.

They currently stood at 800 billion.

Without unexpected changes...

They would remain at 800 billion.

Industries were only revalued when ownership changed.

Neither dared transfer ownership.

Therefore...

They would remain tied at exactly 800 billion until the instance ended.

Either both lived.

Or both died.

Cheng Zhao wiggled his eyebrows playfully.

“Does this count as living and dying together?”

“Tsk.”

“I've really been blessed.”

“Wanrenzhan must be insanely jealous.”

He Yu glanced at him expressionlessly.

“Oh.”

“Then I suppose I'm rather unfortunate.”

Cheng Zhao: “???”

He grabbed the handkerchief He Yu had been using to wipe his hands.

After wiping his own face with it, he leaned close again.

“Look again.”

“What's wrong with ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) my face?”

“I just haven't cleaned myself up!”

Night had already fallen.

Fortunately, the plaza remained brightly illuminated.

Everything was perfectly visible.

Cheng Zhao really was handsome.

Unfortunately...

His face was simply too dirty.

He Yu turned away in disgust.

Cheng Zhao choked.

After sighing, he touched his own face and said sincerely,

“I'm honestly not ugly.”

“It's just that our season has too many ridiculously attractive people.”

“Especially you.”

His words instantly resonated with the audience.

“That's true. Everyone this season is absurdly good-looking.”

“Last season Wanrenzhan was already considered handsome, but there are plenty of contestants this year who surpass him.”

“Exactly. No need to mention Zhen Xing. He was already incredibly popular back in the Federation. Countless people have crushes on him. Eugene and Gedai too. People from Mechanical Planet are unbelievably handsome, and those two especially.”

“And Yuan Ze. Calling him the number one contestant from the ordinary planets isn't an exaggeration. Duan Yuchen is slightly behind them, but only by comparison. He's still handsome. Zhante is handsome too.”

“As for Blue Star, besides He Yu's unreal face, Bo Jingshan is handsome as well. Qu Wu, Tang Ke, Annie...”

“My god, there are seriously so many handsome guys this season. Hardly anyone looks bad, and each has their own unique charm. Even Wanrenzhan's scarred face has its own appeal.”

...

—

While the audience discussed appearances...

Cheng Zhao sighed.

“Those guys are really lucky.”

“They weren't assigned to the same battlefield as you.”

“Maybe they got paired with someone weaker.”

He Yu glanced at him.

Cheng Zhao coughed awkwardly.

“...I don't mean weaker in combat power.”

Once...

Everyone believed this competition depended solely on combat power.

Then He Yu appeared.

He completely shattered that belief.

The guy had somehow reached this point...

With a combat power of only 2.

And he might even continue advancing.

Even if he couldn't...

Neither could Cheng Zhao.

If He Yu died in this instance...

He would die here as well.

Seeing that the sky had finally grown completely dark, He Yu tilted his head upward.

The plaza lights were bright enough that he had to narrow his eyes to make out the stars scattered across the night sky.

They were beautiful.

—Exactly as beautiful as the stars he had seen that night in Ghost Town together with the ghost Li.

He Yu spoke softly.

“Cheng Zhao.”

“What I said earlier... wasn't actually correct.”

After a pause, he continued slowly,

“It's not a fifty-percent chance of winning...”

“And a fifty-percent chance of losing.”

“It's...”

“A 99.9% chance of losing.”

Cheng Zhao froze.

His pupils contracted sharply.

But almost immediately...

He understood.

He remembered what He Yu had asked earlier.

Was it really a coincidence that they had entered the same battlefield?

He Yu had only just started investigating him.

Only just questioned his identity in the transit station.

Then suddenly...

The two of them had been placed into the same battlefield to kill each other.

After pressing his lips together for a long time, Cheng Zhao finally asked hoarsely,

“Then why gamble?”

“What exactly are you gambling on?”

Was a 0.1% chance really worth betting on?

This wasn't gambling anymore.

This was...

Waiting obediently for death.

He Yu withdrew his gaze.

Suddenly turning to Cheng Zhao, his eyes became as sharp as blades.

Under the plaza lights, they shone brilliantly.

Within them...

Cheng Zhao could clearly see his own reflection.

His cool voice carried unwavering determination.

“So you're simply going to submit to the rules?”

“When the system's deadline arrives...”

“It'll most likely erase both of us.”

“You'll just accept that?”

“You're willing to sit here waiting to be erased?”

Cheng Zhao's hands slowly clenched into fists.

His eyes remained locked with He Yu's.

He understood.

Earlier...

He Yu had told him there was a fifty-percent chance.

Convincing him to gamble.

Now...

He Yu was telling him that the real probability was only 0.1%.

He was forcing him.

Trying to force him...

To reveal the secret.

After staring silently for a long time, Cheng Zhao lowered his eyes.

“I won't accept my fate.”

“But...”

“I truly don't know anything.”

He Yu looked away again.

His lips curved into a mocking smile.

“You're an excellent spy.”

“No wonder District Three chose you.”

“No matter how hopeless the situation becomes...”

“You still won't say a word.”

Shaking his head, he continued,

“If you keep saying nothing...”

“The rules won't fear anything.”

“When the deadline arrives...”

“Or when dawn comes...”

“The rules will erase us immediately.”

“And that tiny 0.1% chance...”

“Will become zero.”

He wanted Cheng Zhao to reveal everything.

Reveal it live.

Reveal it before the entire universe.

As long as it caused enough uproar...

As long as the entire universe paid attention...

The force behind the scenes would be restrained.

Only then...

Would their microscopic chance of survival increase even slightly.

That...

Was their only hope.

Unfortunately...

No matter what...

Cheng Zhao refused to speak.

Perhaps...

He would rather die.

Perhaps that was his promise to District Three.

His own principles.

Hearing no response beside him, He Yu simply continued speaking to himself.

“If you won't say it...”

“Then I will.”

“At the very least...”

“We have to struggle.”

“We can't just die like this.”

His breathing grew lighter.

His voice softer.

Yet at this moment...

The entire universe held its breath.

Everyone sensed...

They were about to hear a secret capable of overturning everything they knew.

“Cheng Zhao.”

“You were sent here by the government of District Three.”

“My bold guess...”

“Is that this has something to do with last season's NPC rebellion.”

“I don't know what your mission is.”

“I don't know whose side you're on.”

“But I can say one thing for certain.”

“<Top Talent Show> is a confrontation between two opposing sides.”

“One side...”

“Is the Rules.”

“It's <Top Talent Show> itself.”

“It can cover the sky with one hand.”

“It erased every powerful contestant from the previous season.”

“The other side is much weaker.”

“Perhaps incredibly weak.”

“They've been resisting all this time.”

“The NPC rebellion last season...”

“Was carried out by those resisting.”

“The rebel died inside <Top Talent Show>.”

“But perhaps...”

“They never truly died.”

“They're still hiding.”

“Still causing trouble for the hand behind the curtain.”

“I don't know who that hand belongs to.”

“But I have some guesses regarding its purpose.”

“They aren't accurate yet.”

“The force behind the scenes is immensely powerful.”

“It can interfere with the competition.”

“And stir up chaos outside it as well.”

He paused.

Looking into the distance...

Almost as though looking directly into every camera...

He smiled faintly.

“My dear audience...”

“Inside the competition...”

“We don't know what's happening outside.”

“So tell me.”

“Has the outside world already changed its cultivation system?”

“The combat power system has problems.”

“It will eventually be replaced by an energy cultivation system.”

“I've already introduced the energy system.”

“I've explained it.”

“I've demonstrated it.”

“Anyone with normal intelligence understands...”

“That the energy system is superior.”

“So...”

“You should all be using it by now.”

“I don't believe the Federation still hasn't figured it out.”

“As long as you've researched it...”

“You'll inevitably adopt it.”

Suddenly...

His tone changed.

That pale face wore a mysterious smile.

He adjusted his rimless glasses with one finger, concealing the sharpness within his eyes.

“But...”

“If the outside world still hasn't adopted the energy system...”

“My dear friends of the Federation...”

“You may be facing exactly the same problem I am.”

“That means...”

“The force behind the curtain doesn't merely control contestants.”

“It doesn't merely manipulate the rebels.”

“It can also manipulate the Federation itself.”

“It creates trouble...”

“For me.”

“And for you.”

Those final words...

Were what He Yu had truly wanted to say all along.

He had already learned from the Bullet Screen that the Federation still hadn't adopted the energy system.

Only now...

Did he ring the alarm.

Boom—

Outside the livestream...

The audience exploded.

The Bullet Screen flooded instantly.

Every social network erupted into chaos.

The great families.

Hidden experts.

Everyone received notifications urging them to open He Yu's livestream immediately.

Beside him...

Cheng Zhao stared at He Yu in complete shock.

His mouth opened.

Not a single word emerged.

Looking back at Cheng Zhao, He Yu smiled faintly.

“I've already said this much.”

“Are you still unwilling to speak?”

“This problem belongs to everyone.”

“To us.”

“And to your people.”

“If the government continues hiding everything from Federation citizens...”

“They'll only make things worse.”

The government wanted to hide the truth.

He Yu had no intention of helping them.

First...

He wanted to survive.

Second...

He wanted Blue Star to survive.

As for the Universe Federation...

He didn't yet understand it.

Nor did he particularly care.

—He intended to expose almost all of these secrets directly to the audience.

The more curious the audience became...

The more restrained the hidden force would be.

The less openly it could erase him.

This instance, <Money Game>, had clearly been designed to kill both him and Cheng Zhao.

If he didn't fight back...

Was he simply supposed to wait for the system to erase him?

Cheng Zhao's expression changed dramatically.

His reaction alone told everyone—

He truly knew something.

Something that absolutely could not be spoken aloud.

He Yu suddenly laughed.

For perhaps the first time, he laughed without restraint.

Afterward, his almond-shaped eyes curved pleasantly...

Though they remained ice cold.

“You won't talk?”

“Then I'll guess.”

“The Federation has hidden many things from its citizens.”

“District Three sent you here.”

“Yet you refuse to reveal anything.”

“Last season's incident was enormous.”

“The Federation kept investigating Wanrenzhan.”

“They treated him as the breakthrough.”

“They even sent him back into the competition.”

“And yet...”

“They never explained anything to Federation citizens.”

He raised one hand.

Loosening the bow tie around his neck...

He tugged it open.

His throat moved gently.

The smile on his lips widened.

His gaze became playful...

Touched by madness.

“So here's my guess.”

“The Federation government made mistakes.”

“They made them together with the force behind the curtain.”

“That's why...”

“You refuse to speak.”

“And that's why...”

“You don't dare speak.”

“As for what mistakes...”

“Let me guess...”

【Ding—The first round of the battle phase is about to conclude!】

【Beginning instance cleanup.】

【Because He Yu and Cheng Zhao possess identical wealth within the <Money Game> instance, a thirty-second time limit has been imposed to determine a winner. After thirty seconds, the contestant with less money will be eliminated. If both possess equal wealth, both will be eliminated!】

【Countdown begins.】

【30...】