Chapter 17 Chapter 17
The huge screen on the stage was broadcasting live performances of all the contestants.
In order not to affect the performance of the players, special cameras attached to the wall are used in the cave, so after the players set off, the audience can still see the situation inside the cave.
At this time, everyone's eyes were fixed on different grids. Some only looked at the contestants they accompanied, some paid attention to the old contestants, and most of them looked around in different grids, closely watching the live performance of the contestants inside, looking for the one who was most likely to win...
There were several newcomers who were climbing with difficulty, while some were climbing very fast but began to hesitate when they encountered a fork in the road. There was also a contestant who had studied the wrong cave before coming and actually got lost inside. He was so angry that he broke down and swore, and his microphone was urgently muted by the staff controlling the live broadcast backstage.
The audience laughed.
The screening of preliminary contestants is not strict, and there are all kinds of people. There are basically some weirdos in every session, and some may even become popular searches. The organizers also intend to attract the attention of netizens with these gimmicks, and will not explicitly prohibit contestants from engaging in some exaggerated behaviors outside the rules.
For example, at this moment, a contestant took off his shirt, panted and twisted his body, and told dirty jokes to the camera...
One spectator couldn’t help but yell, “Mosaic him quickly! I brought my kids here to experience the charm of sports, what the hell are you players doing?”
Of course, this is only a minority. Most of the players have no idea how chaotic the situation outside is. In their eyes, there is only the track in front of them.
Soon, one contestant caught everyone's attention.
"He climbs so fast..."
"Wow! Drilling the hole is so smooth, a boon for people with obsessive compulsive disorder!"
"Eh? Isn't this Mei Kai, the runner-up of last year's hole-drilling competition? This year, he must be here to sprint for the championship."
"It's just the preliminary round. It's child's play for him..."
In the cave, Mei Kai was crawling forward with all his strength. He was crawling desperately with the power of hatred.
Whenever he thought about the people who had bullied him in the past, who were probably looking at him mockingly in the audience, his entire mind was completely overwhelmed by anger.
If you want to win, you must win!
To become strong, to stand on the highest podium...
As long as he becomes stronger and stronger, he will be able to look down on those bastards in front of everyone and get rid of the shame of the past...
The power brought by hatred allowed him to break through the limit of his physical strength, but this limit did not last long.
After turning an uphill slope, the audience suddenly discovered that the fastest climber was getting slower and slower, and even couldn't flexibly cross the obstacles, as if he had completely exhausted his energy...
The other side.
Yumi crawled forward, stroking the structure of the wall.
When he encountered a downhill slope, he would slide down directly after making sure the wall was smooth. In other cases, he would use all four limbs to move forward. The uphill slope was the most tiring. He would sit down to rest after each climb. Sometimes he would take a sip of water provided by the hole in the wall and eat a few biscuits.
Viewers watching the live broadcast said: "Isn't this too leisurely... It's good to conserve energy, but this is not a marathon."
"Looking at the distance, he is now the last one. He may know that he has no chance of ranking and simply gave up."
"This is the first time I've seen someone eating and drinking for free at a competition venue... Oh my god! Why is he putting food on himself..."
"Look how hungry the child is..."
"I can't stand it anymore, change the scene!"
"Supplies are meant for the players, so what's wrong with eating a little? If anyone dares to cut me, I'll fight him!"
"Yeah, I'm so small, how can I have the energy if I don't eat more?"
"Stop arguing! Look! He's running!"
Everyone hurriedly looked at No. 5's live broadcast, and then their eyes widened -
In the dim cave, Yumi stood in front of the fork in the road. He first reached out to try the walls of the cave on both sides, then took out two water bottles from the supply station and threw the bottles in respectively.
There were gurgling sounds coming from both forked caves. One sound stopped quickly, while the other one continued for a long time before gradually becoming unclear.
Yumi decisively chose the latter. As soon as he entered, he ran easily on the gentle downhill slope.
The commentator said: "Player No. 5 used the water bottle at the supply station to measure the road conditions of the two holes and accurately selected the best route! Now Player No. 5 is quickly surpassing the other players..."
At the same time, the route map on the screen showed the situation of the road: it was a cave leading to the end. Although the cave was narrow, there were no uphill slopes or obstacles along the way!
The audience opened their mouths.
The few people who had complained about contestant No. 5's eating not long ago quickly covered their faces and lowered their heads.
My face hurts so much!
At this time, the distance between many contestants in the hole and the finish line was getting closer and closer. The audience felt as if they were in the scene and all became nervous.
Anxius stared at the live grid marked with "5".
Inside the cave.
After Yumi chose the fork in the road, she ran smoothly all the way. Although the road was easy to walk on, the entrance to the cave became much narrower after she ran halfway.
Yumi had to lie down again and crawl forward.
After climbing for a while, he suddenly felt something flash by in his peripheral vision, and turned his head to look over there -
Off the court.
Commentary: "The distance between Yumi, who was originally in last place, and Meikai, who was in first place, is now the same!"
At this moment of intense competition, the audience all consciously quieted down.
They were able to see the route map of the fork in the road through the screen, and they had already determined in their hearts that this little contestant No. 5 would be able to make it out smoothly.
Many people have even shifted their gaze to the exit and are waiting.
On the screen, the running man lay down and crawled because the entrance of the cave became narrow, but as he was crawling, he suddenly stopped by touching the wall.
The audience was puzzled: "What's going on? Keep going!"
On the screen, the little man turned his head and his face was directly facing the camera on the wall. He seemed to be checking something. One of his eyes moved closer, and in an instant, only one big eye was left on the entire screen...
Just as the audience held their breath, the big eye quickly moved away and was replaced by another one.
A second later, the boy's muttering in fear could be heard on the big screen: "There seems to be... a snake in here..."
? !
The whole audience was in an uproar.
Although snakes are not scary to the Sna people who have various monster forms, this is a competition venue and some snakes are poisonous. When the players are competing, there are unavoidable snakes on the track. The picture is unbearable to think about!
Some audience members have already screamed:
"What's wrong with you organizers? This is outrageous! Hurry up and rescue him! Look how small he is! The snake will eat him!"
"Hurry up!"
Some people even rushed onto the stage.
He was a tall man wearing sunglasses.
And the "cheerleaders" from not long ago also followed them onto the stage.
When the host found that something was wrong with Yumi, he urgently checked all the internal surveillance. Now he has discovered the whole story, but before he can deal with it, he sees a group of people going to the cave regardless of the obstruction. They are aggressive and even exude an overwhelming pressure that no one can cope with...
He and the staff hurriedly stopped the group of people, turned on the intercom in time, connected to the machine of No. 5, and explained loudly: "Hello, contestant No. 5! I am the host, please don't panic, that is not a snake, but the tail of the contestant next to you! He entered the narrow passage, and when he couldn't maintain his human form, he directly restored his body and moved forward. There happened to be a crystal between the two of your caves, so you can see his tail, don't be afraid, he is just a contestant, and he will never enter your cave!"
This sentence was said particularly loudly, and it was obviously also an explanation to the audience.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Anxius was already furious. His face became extremely scary in the shadows. He grabbed the intercom and said, "I'll be there right now."
Yumi was very scared at first. Fear of snakes was one reason, but mainly because the tail of the snake opposite the crystal looked huge, as if it could swallow him in one bite... But after hearing the host's explanation, his fear disappeared.
But when he heard what Ansius said, he became anxious again: "No!"
He said these two words too quickly. People in a narrow space cannot exert strength, and breathing is not smooth. The hastily uttered syllables become sticky, and to others it sounds like: "Ice..."
Antheus' pupils shrank.
Yumi seemed to be really afraid that he would come over, and shook her head and said "No" again. If someone came in during the competition, the contestant's competition would be terminated.
He took a deep breath, immediately pulled off the headband on his head and covered his eyes - if he couldn't see, he could overcome the association with snakes.
In the narrow cave, vision is no longer necessary at this time; all that is needed is the ultimate speed.
Outside the field, Anxius stood stiffly in place, his eyes moving upwards, staring at the blindfolded figure who was crawling with all his might.
On the screen, the little thing that was still trembling a second ago began to move. He crawled forward quickly, faster and faster, more and more flexibly, just like a rolling ball. No one knew where the strength came from, but suddenly he rushed forward...
Ansius's clenched fists were shaking slightly, and his thin lips were tight.
Every time the little man on the screen moved, he felt like he was getting an electric shock.
Carl was shocked when he saw this scene.
If you don’t know, you would think that the prince is preparing for war.
...No, His Highness Ansius was clearly very calm when he was ready for battle!
At this moment, the audience was extremely quiet.
They stared at box number five on the screen, not daring to blink.
A few seconds later, two small goat horns suddenly appeared at the exit of the cave at the end...
Yumi struggled to get out of his hole. He didn't even bother to wipe the sweat off his eyes. He took off the headband on his eyes and slid down the slide to the finish line.
The applause was thunderous.
All kinds of noise mixed together.
Yumi stood up in a daze, his headband had hung around his neck like a small scarf. He didn't care about anything else, he stepped across the finish line, panting, and stood at attention.
The big screens on all sides suddenly lit up, and a transition scene appeared to congratulate the contestant for winning the championship: a celebrity spokesperson for Yuanqixing was dancing happily, and after the dance, she smiled and lifted her skirt to perform a princess salute.
Yumi didn't know where to go. In a panic, she saw her number mentioned on the screen. She immediately followed suit, pulled up her gray pants, and bowed her head slightly towards the audience.
The audience was silent for a moment, and then it got out of control.
“Aaaaaa——”
"So cute! I, I, I need an emergency heart pill..."
"I was just here to take a look, why did you suddenly make me cry?"
"Oh my God..."
…
Yumi began to tiptoe and look around, searching for the figures of Ansius and his men, and then her body became lighter and she was lifted up high from behind.
He turned around hurriedly and met a pair of golden eyes.
At this time, the second place also came out.
It's Mei Kai.
Dragging the crocodile's tail, Mei Kai walked across the finish line exhausted. When he looked up and saw the number five being lifted up in front of him, he slowly stopped, as if he couldn't react to what was happening.
Amid the huge commotion, a staff member in the corner suddenly shouted on a walkie-talkie: "Something is wrong with contestant No. 17... He seems to be stuck inside! Request rescue!"
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