Even though Yi Xing spoke eloquently, some people still looked at him with a hint of distrust. No one wanted to stumble twice in the same place. However, some people did step forward to mediate.
"Alright, alright, there's no need for us to suspect each other. I believe what Yi Xing said; they shouldn't arrange an undercover agent for the final battle," Huang Xiaoming said with a smile. He had been designated by the production team as the Acceleration Captain, so he naturally had to maintain harmony within the team.
"That's right, that's right. If you still don't believe it, just wait until the director comes over and you can ask him directly."
Only then did everyone dispel the suspicion in their eyes. It was merely a lack of suspicion, not complete trust in him. They planned to get a clear answer once Xu Ke arrived.
After about twenty minutes, everyone in the makeup room had finished their styling. Only then did Xu Ke open the door and walk in. Just as he was about to tell them to follow him to the filming location, someone spoke up, interrupting him.
"Director, there shouldn't be any undercover agents this episode, right?"
"The same program effect is only most effective the first time." He didn't directly answer the person's question, but the implicit meaning in his words was that he wouldn't repeat the same trick; it would be meaningless.
His words also brought the Acceleration Team members back to a state of trusting Yi Xing again. Compared to being his opponent, they preferred to be his teammate. Who could refuse a good partner with both physical strength and intelligence?
"Are you all ready? If you are, please hand in your phones!"
Xu Ke waved his hand behind him, and a staff member entered, carrying a tray. As he walked up to each person, another phone would appear on the tray. This was a very normal procedure; contact with the outside world was not allowed during filming, except for some travel variety shows.
After handing in their phones, everyone followed the director to the final filming location. In the center was a huge circular platform, and around its four sides were four corners. Standing on each corner was an unactivated Hunter, and everyone needed to stand on one of these.
The number of participants in the final acceleration race increased from 17 to 20. Xie Na, who was supposed to appear, couldn't make it due to scheduling conflicts, so Shen Mengchen took her place. Almost all the familiar faces were standing there, and there's no need to introduce them one by one.
Ju Jingyi, as usual, went to stand by the person she was most familiar with. In this year's general election, she achieved an excellent second-place finish. Although she didn't come in first, she and her fans had already tried their best, and that throne would definitely be hers next time.
"Once this show ends, what are your future work arrangements? With your ranking, your company should arrange more resources for you, right?" Yi Xing turned his head and asked her.
"I should be going to record a song. After recording, I'll go outside to shoot an MV. This is a benefit for the top three. What about you?"
(Pointing out here, this song is called 'Bitterness and Sweetness.')
"I don't know yet. Someone introduced me to a new job, but whether I'll be chosen, I'm not too sure."
"You definitely will! I believe in you!" Ju Jingyi pretended to be an experienced person and patted the back of the person next to him, giving him some encouragement.
"You're even encouraging me?!"
"What, is that not allowed?!"
"It's allowed, it's allowed."
While the two of them were bantering, those who were particularly curious about the Hunters had already started touching them, feeling the Hunters' abdominal and pectoral muscles, their expressions almost uncontrollable. Someone who didn't know might think they had encountered some pervert.
"Oh, Mengchen, Niangniang, come quickly, this Hunter has the best physique!" Jia Ling exclaimed, stroking him and calling out to the others. She had already touched every Hunter and made a comparison, finding out who was the best one.
"Sister Jia Ling, please be mindful of your image. There are so many people here."
"Everyone, come on!"
Suddenly, a voice filtered through a voice changer came from the sky. It was no longer Xu Ke's loudspeaker announcing the opening rules; it seemed they finally had a budget.
"Attention, Acceleration Team members, welcome to the Ultimate Acceleration Race. This is a dual-time-space travel platform: one is the Song Dynasty, more than 1000 years ago, and the other is the Qin Dynasty, more than 2300 years ago."
"Two major game plot time-spaces are available for everyone to choose from. Now, let's begin the brand new acceleration moment. Please welcome the Acceleration Captain, Huang Xiaoming."
Huang Xiaoming, standing at the front of the team, heard his name called. He rubbed his nose and didn't step forward immediately. Instead, he turned around and asked the team members behind him for their thoughts.
"Do you prefer the Qin Dynasty or the Song Dynasty?"
"Song Dynasty, Song Dynasty."
"Qin Dynasty."
Seeing that both sides were at a stalemate and the argument was getting a bit loud, he spread his arms and loudly declared, "Stop! Listen to me first. Personally, I prefer the Qin Dynasty."
"Then you go with what you like. Anyway, the number of Hunters is the same no matter where we go," Yi Xing immediately expressed support for Huang Xiaoming's words. Continuing the discussion wouldn't yield a result, and it was impossible to satisfy everyone's preferences.
In the entire team, the opinions of the captain and the strategist were undoubtedly the most important. Seeing them on the same front, the team members who wanted to go to the Song Dynasty no longer insisted and all expressed their willingness to follow the arrangement.
After choosing where to go, Xu Ke walked out from the side and led everyone to the actual game venue.
This time, there was no tense and exciting opening game. Yi Xing expressed that he wasn't particularly used to it and quickly walked over to Xu Ke, asking, "How come there isn't even an opening game this time? You haven't run out of ideas, have you?"
"What are you talking about? What do you mean I've run out of ideas? I've taken into account the opinions of the vast number of netizens. They wanted to see an episode without an opening game, to let you all get more familiar with the plot. Don't mistake my good intentions for ill will."
"Sorry!"
Soon after, they arrived at the actual game venue, where the ancient buildings had a unique charm. Xu Ke picked up his loudspeaker again and said,
"Next, you have three minutes to familiarize yourselves with the terrain. The victory coins obtained in this competition will be added to the previous ones and will contribute to charitable causes. Please remember, there is no opting out today. Try your best to survive for as long as possible!"
"Okay!" xN.
"I now declare that you may enter the city!"
With his command, some of the male Acceleration Team members roared with excitement, like monkeys just released from the mountains, and rushed into the vast game venue.
Compared to the winding paths of before, the terrain this time was overly simple. A main road ran directly from the city gate to the innermost part, and this environment significantly increased the difficulty of survival for everyone.