“What exactly is it?” Yun Yao asked, “What’s so strange about that iron ball?”
“Big star, that damn snake exploited almost every human instinct to survive,” Chen Junnan replied. “When you know an iron ball is about to fall from the sky, where would you instinctively hide?”
Yun Yao thought about it. The first choice would undoubtedly be a corner, but if the corner couldn’t provide cover, the next best option would be to press against the wall.
But according to Chen Junnan’s logic… why was the display screen unharmed?
“I really can’t guess,” Yun Yao shook her head.
“Then let me enlighten you,” Chen Junnan said with a mischievous grin. “I’m probably the only one here who figured it out. The thing falling from the sky may look like a ball, but it’s actually a spiky ‘hollowed-out bun’.”
“Huh?” Yun Yao was stunned. “A… hollowed-out bun?”
Though the answer caught her off guard, it instantly painted a vivid picture in her mind.
“Yep,” Chen Junnan confirmed. “The thing falling from the sky has a small hollowed-out section at the bottom—just enough to spare the display screen.”
“That’s utterly ridiculous…” Despite her words, Yun Yao felt this explanation made a twisted kind of sense.
Earth-level games usually ran multiple times a day. If the equipment had to be repaired each time, it’d be a logistical nightmare. The best solution was to kill without damaging the setup.
“Big star, even if someone desperately wanted to avoid the iron ball, they’d never think to dismantle the display screen and crouch in the center of the room.”
Chen Junnan’s reasoning was sound. How many people, knowing an iron ball was about to drop, would choose to squat in the middle of the room?
This also explained why Earth Snake had blocked the iron ball with the ceiling—so no one could see its true shape.
“So you dismantled the display screen?”
“Yeah. The screen was propped up by a metal pole. I smashed it with a chair. But then another problem arose—if I didn’t vote, I’d break the rules.”
“W-Wait a second,” Yun Yao interrupted. “Even if the bottom of the iron ball is hollowed out like a bun, there’s bound to be some margin of error when it falls. A small display screen might escape destruction, but a human body is much larger. How did you—”
“So I got a little banged up…” Chen Junnan couldn’t suppress his pride. “But that’s not important! The key is I’m a damn genius! I figured out how to switch rooms… *cough*—”
Before he could finish, Chen Junnan erupted into violent coughing—not the usual kind, but something that sounded agonizing.
“A ‘little’ injury? You—just stop talking for now…” Yun Yao sighed. “Chen Junnan, hold on a bit longer. The game will be over in just a few more questions.”
“No…” Chen Junnan steadied his breathing. “The game won’t end unless either I or that old pervert dies here. Even if you all finish, I won’t be able to.”
Yun Yao fell silent, unsure how to respond. Chen Junnan sounded seriously injured, yet he seemed more eager to brag about his exploits than tend to his wounds.
“Fine…” Yun Yao finally relented. “Then… hurry up and tell me, how exactly did you move to another room?”
“Ha!” Chen Junnan sounded thrilled. “Took you long enough to ask! Alright, let me enlighten you.”
What Yun Yao never expected was that while Chen Junnan had been injured when the iron ball fell, he had grabbed onto its spikes when it retracted—letting it carry him up to the ceiling.
According to him, the ceiling space had to be vast enough for such a massive iron ball to move along chains—plenty of room for a person to maneuver.
“Then came my grand performance…” Chen Junnan chuckled. “At first, I tested jumping into a room without a ceiling and triggering ‘Scapegoat’ again. Sure enough, the iron ball followed me.”
“So that’s what you meant by… ‘controlling the iron ball’s landing point regardless of rules’…” Yun Yao was stunned. “You weren’t controlling it—you were making it chase you!”
“Still counts, doesn’t it?”
“Ugh…” Yun Yao knew that if their roles were reversed, she’d never resort to such a reckless tactic.
Each time the iron ball fell, there was a margin of error—it could crush Chen Junnan’s skull at any moment. Yet he kept summoning it above his head.
“Later, I got even bolder,” Chen Junnan coughed again. “If the iron ball could drop when I was in the room… could it kill someone below if I stood on the ceiling?”
“You’re completely insane…” Yun Yao couldn’t hold back her exasperation. “Is this how you always play these games?”
“Yep,” Chen Junnan nodded. “With a brain a hundred times sharper than Old Qiao’s, reflexes ten thousand times faster than Old Qi’s, and my life motto—‘where there’s a will, there’s a way’—what game can’t I win?”
“That’s—that’s such a stretch!” Yun Yao gaped. “You’re just gambling with your life!”
“Exactly!” Chen Junnan grinned. “Big star, now that you know everything, I need your help with something.”
“What…?”
Chen Junnan thought for a moment. “There are only forty-eight questions, and we’re already at thirty. That means the iron ball will drop at most six more times.”
“Right.”
“I want you to help me—use those six drops to smash that old bastard ten thousand times.”
“What do you take me for?” Yun Yao felt like prolonged exposure to Chen Junnan was making her lose her mind. “My ‘Echo’ is ‘Strong Luck,’ not ‘Woodpecker.’ How am I supposed to hit him ten thousand times?”
“But my genius only goes so far…” Chen Junnan admitted. “My strategy’s stuck. That old man’s room has no ceiling—he’ll spot me. Once he does, he’ll figure out my plan.”
“So that’s the issue…” Yun Yao nodded. “To survive, he has options—holding up the iron ball with his hands or dismantling the display to hide in the center, just like you did.”
“Exactly. So what do we do now?” Chen Junnan asked.
Yun Yao closed her eyes. This wasn’t the time to praise Chen Junnan—the most critical step remained.
Earth Snake was still alive.
With only a handful of questions left, how could they maximize those six chances to crush him to death?
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