Chapter Ch32.1 - Alive Technology
translator: xiin
editors: apricot & juurensha
Wu Jin woke up, then stood in front of the mirror as he muttered to himself and brushed his teeth.
The youth in the mirror had thin arms and legs, and didn’t show any signs of an increase in muscle ma.s.s at all.
When he stepped out of the washroom, Wu Jin couldn’t help but pull out the remaining piece of XX rabbit milk candy.
There was half an hour before the morning a.s.sembly.
Wu Jin conscientiously did twenty push-ups, then performed frog jumps from one end of the bedroom to the other and back. Finally he pumped iron for a while before opening his mouth with an ‘ah’ sound and swallowing the remaining precious milk candy.
His flexible body was slightly warm from the morning exercise. Wu Jin took a shower, poking his soft belly before stepping out in a good mood.
Wu Jin seemed to be born with an nonathletic physique. His skeleton was narrow, and the lines of his muscles weren’t obvious. Due to long-term dance practice, his body was flexible and symmetrical. Even though there weren’t any visible abdominal muscles, the strength required to execute a somersault or explosive dance movements shouldn’t be underestimated.
––According to his former dance teacher’s evaluation, Wu Jin was born to thrive in the idol industry.
––However, at this time, Wu Jin was sandwiched amongst a group of burly, hairy men with strong physiques and muscle, holding a small white bowl in his hands as he waited in line for breakfast.
The gaze of the auntie in charge of Crosson Show’s canteen brightened, and she swiftly stuffed Wu Jin with a steamed egg yolk custard bun before cheerfully hiding it by covering it with crystal clear white rice.
When it was Caesar’s turn, the spoon made a perfunctory swing through the air and slapped the rice into the bowl, pressing it flat. “Okay, next.”
The canteen was bustling and full of noise.
It was a lot more s.p.a.cious than it was a week ago.
Of the 500 trainees who had originally entered the playoffs, 100 of them had left the base after the elimination match. White Moonlight, R-Code, and other entertainment giants weren’t affected much, but some of the trainees from smaller companies had been nearly wiped out.
Wu Jin nibbled on the egg yolk custard bun. The sweet stuffing leaked out, sending the fragrance of salted egg yolk mixed with b.u.t.ter and milk wafting through the air.
Caesar tilted his head and stared at it for a long time before tugging on Zoe, “How come Little Witch’s bun is different from ours?”
Zoe was engrossed in the course materials, “Stop talking so much nonsense. Eat your bun!”
At nine o’clock sharp, the 400 trainees were finally gathered together at the shooting grounds.
The seats were laid out like a pyramid and lined up from top to bottom. The bright lights acted as a guide as they extended upwards and converged at the top.
Behind the stage, the program producer gestured, and there was a sudden silence. The densely packed seats lit up one after another, and the camera crew made an ‘okay’ gesture––
The virtual screen suddenly opened up.
The second installment of the Crosson Show had officially begun.
The first close-up was reserved for the few contestants ranked at the top.
Wei Yan was steady in the first position, the lights creating a flamboyant halo behind him, and the other nine debut positions at his feet were also high up, giving off a majestic feeling of overlooking the whole world.
Out of the four people from White Moonlight, Zoe was 6th, Caesar 15th, Wu Jin 23rd, and Wen Lin 28th.
After the elimination match, there had been some fine-tuning amongst the different levels––several A-level trainees that Wu Jin knew had been demoted to B-level, and CDE had experienced big changes. Red, the dark horse amongst them, was now shooting for the sky and had received several consecutive endors.e.m.e.nts.
According to the rules of the game, players were unable to advance across levels.
Even if Red’s strength was no less than A-level, at this time, he had only just entered the C-level rankings.
Wu Jin looked up at the debut positions––R-Code Entertainment had one person, Silver Thread Roll had one, Dolma Entertainment had three, White Moonlight had one, Jinyi Entertainment had two, and Azure People’s Entertainment had one.
If he wanted to obtain a debut position––
In the middle of the venue, the program producer had already picked up the microphone and was starting to thank their sponsors. Caesar sat behind Wu Jin, squeezing soy milk out of the bag into his mouth as he watched the sponsor logos on the screen.
“Alive Technology… Main business in long-distance interstellar transportation, bulk cargo transfer… pet connection… is the next compet.i.tion about express delivery?”
Caesar laughed loudly and filled their surroundings with cheerful, soy milk scented air.
That remotely controlled camera lens slowly panned over the scene.
Thin Fire, who was smiling at the camera, seemed to sense something as he narrowed his eyes at Caesar. Caesar looked back without showing any weakness, and conveniently took the opportunity to block Wu Jin from the d.a.m.ned flirt’s view––
Thin Fire paused. It was unclear what he was thinking as he looked away angrily.
On the stage, nearly 20 minutes worth of advertising ended, and they finally came to the main topic.
“In the second elimination match two weeks from now, the 400 players will form 100 teams. Teammates of all levels will select their own teammates based on the a.s.sessment score for their desired position. This match is sponsored by Alive Technology, and the company’s latest research and development in central control technology for transportation and dispatch has been approved for a Federal Cla.s.s II patent…”
Wu Jin quickly wrote down the key words, but the program producer glossed over it quickly:
“After the elimination match, the first episode of the Crosson Show will begin broadcasting. The top five teams will partic.i.p.ate in the event and interact with the vast number of fans…”
“Additionally, a notification has already been issued. The results of the voting for ‘Fan’s Most Antic.i.p.ated Program Benefits’ has been announced, and the most popular benefit was to have ‘all contestants perform this season’s Crosson Show theme song together and release an MV’. The income from the MV will be donated to the Federal XX Public Welfare Foundation. All contestants need to become familiar with the basic moves within two weeks. After the elimination match, instructor Ying Xiangxiang will organize group practice…”
With a crunch, Caesar’s soy milk bag crumpled in his hand.
Even when the opening ceremony ended, the group of contestants were still s.p.a.ced out, their expressions both sorrowful and anxious. The only exception was Thin Fire, who looked a little delighted as he began to livestream on the spot––
“Singing? Dancing?” Caesar shouted discontentedly, “Who voted for this d.a.m.n thing? It must’ve been Silver Thread Roll’s water army that did this. Who the h.e.l.l doesn’t know that that d.a.m.ned pervert does this during his live stream every day? We’re all proper survival show trainees, who else would think up something like this?”
Former main dancer of a boy group Wu Jin blinked and modestly lowered his head in embarra.s.sment.
Caesar didn’t notice, “No way. I want to write a protest in blood. Zoe, let’s do it together…”
Zoe looked over coolly, “There’s a way for you to avoid dancing.”
Caesar: “There is?!”
“Be eliminated before the rehearsal for the theme song.” Zoe no longer paid attention to him and turned to Wu Jin, “Let’s go and look at the grounds for the next match.”
The second elimination match was to be held 7 kilometers away from the North Tower and covered an area of 6 hectares. Alive Technology’s logo was outside, and it seemed that they had excavated very deeply for the foundation. The outside was covered with blackout plastic material, and there wasn’t a single trace of a clue to be found.
Around the match grounds were a number of other trainees who were pretending to take a walk as they looked around.
“Transportation, dispatch.” Wu Jin pulled out two key words from his notes.
Zoe thought about it, “Could there be a maze down there?”
Wu Jin squinted as he pondered for a moment. All the information he had on hand came together, forming a rough picture in his mind.
7 hectares was about the size of a medium farm.
The match grounds were to be held underground in low light.
Alive Technology’s main patent lay in central control for transportation––there had to be cargo transportation devices in the compet.i.tion grounds. It could be a conveyor belt, elevator, or even the most basic pulley device, and all the machines would operate according to certain rules, providing a.s.sistance or forming obstacles during a fight…
“What are the courses this week?” Wu Jin asked.
Zoe looked down at the schedule and frowned, “Shooting, tactical evasion, biology… and social psychology.”
The courses held before the elimination match were bound to be related to the content of the compet.i.tion.
Biology was quite easy to understand. Interstellar monsters were an eternal cla.s.sic presence in the games. Because of how booming and lucrative the entertainment industry was, a steady stream of highly aggressive species were sent to the compet.i.tion arenas every year.
Social psychology… seemed to stand out quite abruptly amongst the large number of courses.
“The first cla.s.s is in 15 minutes.” Zoe kicked Caesar, who was trying to dig into the ground and find clues, “Go back and check it out first.”