Mu Qiu was baffled by Cheng Zhirang’s words.
"...You’re really quick to react now, you even got a brain teaser going!"
Cheng Zhirang had a hard time suppressing his laughter on his handsome face.
Then he adjusted the kites on the Bamboo Forest Kite Road, shifting them slightly to block the sunlight on her, making her lie more comfortably.
"You rest first. Bai Shu, watch her, make sure Lin Lian doesn’t come over."
Bai Shu quickly agreed, "Okay."
"Wait a minute! Brother Cheng, did you forget, we’re allies! After the last round, you even asked if we could continue being allies! Now you forget as soon as the game starts?!"
Cheng Zhirang turned to her and said, "There’s nothing I can do. I drew the plunderer in the first round, and now everyone else is my enemy."
Mu Qiu gritted her teeth, "What do you mean there’s nothing you can do!? Even if you’re plunderers, you could show some leniency, right? That way, when Lin Lian and I are plunderers, we can spare you too! You spare me, and I spare you; isn’t that what being allies means?!"
He calmly, yet earnestly explained, "When there is a huge disparity in strength, an alliance is only for exploitation. In this game, our team’s strength clearly exceeds everyone else’s, so we don’t need allies anymore."
"...Heartless jerk! Just you wait. The next round, it’s my turn, and I’ll specifically target you!"
She thought about being pecked by the eagle she raised daily. She usually tricked others, but today she got tricked right at the start!
Cheng Zhirang coughed once, didn’t argue, and set off again along the small bridge and flowing water, continuing to chase others.
Leaving Mu Qiu and Bai Shu staring at each other.
She vented her frustration by pinching Gui Gui Pig twice, and said in a deadpan manner, "I’m definitely going to be caught first."
Bai Shu cautiously corrected her, "It’s not caught, it’s hibernating. You can still be rescued."
"With the situation now, what’s the difference between hibernating and being caught with an immediate five-point deduction? Being caught at the start is just a great humiliation."
Lin Lian probably couldn’t imagine that just two minutes after the countdown ended, his teammate was already hibernating, waiting for him to rescue her from the wolf’s den.
It’s truly disgraceful.
She lay sulkily on the mattress, staring blankly at the Kite Road and the azure sky overhead.
After another minute or two, Bai Shu racked her brain to find a reason to comfort her, only to hear her mumble to herself:
"But lying here so lazily is really enjoyable, the breeze is so cool."
Bai Shu: "..."
Just about to say something, the electronic voice suddenly sounded again.
"Mu Qiu’s hibernation lasts three minutes, triggering the freezing skill."
This sentence repeated three times, leaving Mu Qiu dumbfounded.
"What is this? Freezing skill? Is this Plants vs Zombies here? Ice Shooter, huh?"
Perhaps this sentence had quieted everyone down, the electronic voice paused for a moment and then sounded again, explaining the previous sentence.
"Guests in hibernation without rescue for more than three minutes will automatically trigger the freezing skill. After being rescued, they must remain in a frozen, stiff posture for two minutes and cannot walk or run normally.
The specific walking posture will be decided by the plunderer at the time of rescue. The freezing skill becomes ineffective after two minutes post-rescue.
Since Mu Qiu is the first to trigger this skill, she will receive a friendly bonus of two extra hibernation minutes, making a total of seven minutes waiting for rescue. Please be informed."
Mu Qiu opened her mouth, not knowing what to say.
The show crew is really getting better at this! Adding little tricks everywhere to make things difficult for them!
While complaining in her mind, she quickly racked her brain to think about the trouble this so-called "Freezing Skill" was causing her.
Being rescued means two minutes of stiff limbs, unable to run fast, which undoubtedly burdens the one rescuing her. Plus, during those stiff two minutes, she’s almost certain to be caught again by Bai Shu and the others.
For a proper rescue, the rescuer must drag her mattress to a place where no one can catch up before rescuing. Only then she can safely get through those two minutes.
This is just like the weakness period after a battle, which makes it easy for others to take advantage, leading to a double score deduction!
For instance, if Lin Lian rescues her later, and within those two minutes she’s caught again by Bai Shu, that means she loses two points for hibernation, Lin Lian loses two points for rescuing her, and she loses five points for being captured again.
Too insidious.
She couldn’t care less now, thinking about her few remaining minutes, she shouted loudly, "Lin Lian! Lin Lian! Don’t rescue me here, drag me away first!"
Regardless of whether Lin Lian was nearby, or if the one rescuing her would really be Lin Lian, she just shouted the key points first.
Meanwhile, Lin Lian was running at full speed.
After hearing the electronic voice announce Mu Qiu’s three-minute hibernation, he stopped and then sped back.
He even pulled along Li Yang along the way, discussing an alliance while running.
"Brother Yang, Brother Cheng caught Sister Mu Qiu; our alliance is dissolved. Now you’re alone again, let’s ally, you help me rescue Sister Mu Qiu, and if you hibernate later, I’ll come to save you."
Li Yang kept up with his pace, feeling that what he said felt a bit strange, like—
You help save my mom, and I’ll take care of you for the rest of your life; you’ll have a son to inherit your billion-dollar fortune.
He fell silent, and Lin Lian continued, "Brother Yang, you’re alone now. What if you don’t secure an alliance, and when you hibernate, no one comes to rescue you? Everyone might think someone else will save you, and in the end, no one comes out, you’ll be eliminated."
Goodness, throwing in some subtle threats.
Li Yang rolled his eyes and agreed, "Alright, let’s ally!"
The two beautiful youth soldiers teamed up, with their hair blowing in the wind, revealing their differently colored hairbands.
Their youthful hormones were scattered all around as they ran.
By the time they got back to Kite Road, Mu Qiu’s hibernation time had only one and a half minutes left.
This was Lin Lian’s estimated time.
Bai Shu was standing right next to Mu Qiu, watching them closely.
"Brother Yang, I’ll go rescue Sister Mu Qiu. After all, rescuing her is worth points. Please lure Sister Bai Shu away. With your speed, she can’t catch you."
Li Yang nodded and said alright, rushing out without a pause, pretending to go directly to rescue Mu Qiu.
Bai Shu could tell there was a scheme here, but with someone right in front of her, just within reach, she couldn’t resist trying to catch them.
So she turned and followed Li Yang for a few steps, attempting to catch him.
But Li Yang was like a slippery eel. Just when she was about to catch him, he’d move slightly, creating a flexible distance, leaving her grabbing at nothing.
On the other side, Lin Lian grabbed the strap of Mu Qiu’s mattress and started running, not giving Bai Shu time to react.
Running while dragging someone was indeed exhausting, and his speed slowed down.
Bai Shu wanted to chase, but Li Yang seized the opportunity to come back and harass her. With the huge mattress in the way, she couldn’t see Mu Qiu and the others.
"Come, come, catch me, catch me!"