Global Collapse

Chapter 490 The Love and Hate Between the First Place Winners
Gu Mian originally thought that the population of this world was quite scarce, which is why she only sent a photographer with a poor appearance to follow her.

But as time went on, Gu Mian realized she was wrong.

The production team only assigned a poor-looking cameraman to accompany him because this cameraman was the most familiar with the terrain. A group of people might easily get lost if they weren't careful.

The photographer, on the other hand, seemed to know the way around the area like the back of his hand, as if he could do it with his eyes closed.

The sun was just beginning to set in the west from its zenith; it was already afternoon.

Although this is not the real world, the sun still rises in the east and sets in the west.

A thick fog had suddenly filled the grove, making it so that Gu Mian could only see within a seven or eight-meter radius. If she got lost in there, it would probably be difficult to find her again.

At first, the photographer was quiet and reserved, but he carried the camera with a fanatical expression and took pictures of Gu Mian's face. The shy Gu Mian would occasionally take the opportunity to pose for the camera at the most perfect angle.

Unfortunately, the photographer didn't notice that Gu Mian had been secretly posing for the camera the whole time. His expression was full of anticipation and enthusiasm, as if he had been waiting for something.

This expression persisted until Gu Mian finished looking at Su Xiaochai's photos and gave her evaluation. After that, the photographer's expression lost its fervor. He seemed to have been hit by something, and his expression was indescribable.

To use a description often used in novels, his face showed three parts embarrassment, two parts astonishment, and five parts disbelief.

Making this expression is difficult, but it should be easier than the original "a face with three parts indifference, two parts sarcasm, and five parts deep affection".

Gu Mian knew the photographer wanted to see his fearful and surprised expression, but years of training had made him very resilient to pressure, and his thought process was usually not on the same line as normal people.

Let alone a complete stranger like Su Xiaochai being thrown into the latrine, even if a fat man were thrown in, Gu Mian would only exclaim, "To be able to move someone so fat, that's amazing!"

Gu Mian's bizarre thought process clearly angered the photographer. The two stared at each other strangely for a while. There was no third person around, and if they were to fight, no one would try to stop them.

If no one intervenes, Gu Mian will definitely take the opportunity to open her guitar bag, and the scenes featuring Gu Mian may disappear from the scene.

Fortunately, the photographer managed to maintain his professionalism and did not lay a hand on the spot, but his face still carried a hint of "you'll get what's coming to you later."

They looked like elementary school students waiting for get out of class to end so they could bully their classmates.

The fat man, who was staring at the TV screen worried about Gu Mian, was unaware that he had already been thrown into a cesspool in Gu Mian's mind. At this moment, he was still sincerely worried about Gu Mian's safety.

Let's leave those aside for now.

The photographer soon rallied when his old-fashioned phone received a message from the production team, a message that Gu Mian couldn't see, which gave him immense confidence.

After the production team sent out the message, they seemed to regain their confidence. When the fat man saw that the camera had switched to Gu Mian, he saw Gu Mian's hand fumbling for the zipper of her guitar bag. His hair stood on end and his back went cold. Fortunately, Gu Mian was just touching the zipper and did not directly pull out the contents of the bag for the cameraman to perform an exclusive rendition.

Seeing this, the fat man breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that the mission was to complete the filming, and if Gu Mian had simply eliminated the photographer, the mission would have been impossible to complete.

Although Gu Mian's way of leaving the instance is different from that of ordinary people, it's still better to leave the photographer behind just to be on the safe side.

But why did the camera switch back to the doctor? The fat man wondered, keeping a watchful eye on the woman under the bed while glancing at the television screen outside the door.

In contrast to the fat man, You Si seemed completely indifferent to his girlfriend, showing no concern whatsoever when the scene of "Accompany Me Next Year" was shown.

Just as the fat man was worrying himself sick over Gu Mian, the male homeowner in front of the TV suddenly turned his neck, his face right in front of them.

The fat man was startled by the sudden turn of his head and could only swallow hard while staring at the male owner's face.

Then he saw the mouth on that face open and close, and the voice reached the fat man's ears: "Although you live in a very poor place, you have watched quite a few of these shows, haven't you?"

Indeed, since its inception, "Transformation" has become a mainstream variety show among the older generation, with its popularity comparable to that of weather forecasts in the real world.

The fat man just didn't understand why the host would ask such a question. Then he heard the mouth continue to speak: "Then you should also know that no matter how difficult the guests are, once they take a walk in this forest, they will become completely desperate and insane. They will beat their chests and bang their heads on the ground, and some will even commit suicide in there. There are already dozens of corpses in there."

His voice was soft, with a hint of amusement, but the fat man felt a chill run down his spine.

Once players enter this forest, will they be driven to utter despair and madness?
Why? The fat man wanted to ask, but he didn't dare to speak. He vaguely felt that something was wrong. What terrifying thing was hidden in the forest that could make the player like this?

Theoretically speaking, players cannot truly despair in a dungeon.

Even if you die in a dungeon, you will be resurrected in real life. So what exactly makes those players like that?

Could it be...

At this moment, the unfortunate player who said "You hit me for collecting debts" still had his collar in Xiao Qiao's hand.

But compared to his friends lying around him in disarray, he was quite lucky to be able to collect his debts.

He shakily looked up at Xiao Qiao, at the face that usually only appeared on television screens, the female star who was unanimously considered a "pretty face" by the public, who smashed them to pieces like a pretty face.

Although the scene was surreal, he was still somewhat curious.

The debt collector moved his neck cautiously and asked, "You're asking me this for someone else's sake, right? Do you have a friend who went into that instance?"

He was also a little puzzled. In his understanding, there was no communication tool in the game that could connect the inside and outside of the instance, but judging from Xiao Qiao's appearance, she was obviously asking for someone else, and she was in a hurry.

"Yes," Xiao Qiao answered him without hesitation.

The debt collectors became even more curious. What kind of powerful friend could make a big star do something so "image-ruining" and even personally beat them up? Could it be that her parents were the ones who entered the "instant kill"...?

Thinking of this, the debt collector blurted out again, "A very important friend?"

Xiao Qiao bent down, her dark eyes staring directly at the other person: "If he can't get out, neither of you will survive."

The debt collector broke out in a cold sweat, inwardly crying out that he had encountered an undeserved disaster today.

Then he heard Xiao Qiao's voice coming from above him: "Is there anything else you should be careful about?"

Even if I tell you, can you still send messages to people in the dungeon?

The debt collector, sweating profusely, said, "There's one more thing to be aware of..."

At this point, his already panicked expression became even more desolate: "The first place winner in that instance... the guest who was sent to the mountains for a transformation, the one chosen by the audience for popularity... I haven't seen him since..."

A voice came from above: "What do you mean?"

The debt collector was sweating profusely: "He...it seems he didn't come out of the instance. Later...later I also met a player who had been into that instance, and he said...their number one player didn't come out either..."

"What I mean is... the most popular guest seems to be trapped in a dungeon forever."

Even guests who are disqualified from filming can leave the instance by committing suicide.

But the most popular person doesn't seem to be like that; suicide is a real death.

Regardless of life or death, they will be forever trapped in the old human world.

(End of this chapter)