Chapter 867: Reptile Appreciation
The first round's No. 73 had already shown everyone present that ordinary people would find it hard to pass. Although the previous task was a black ball mission, the stated 75% danger level was actually a guaranteed death sentence once you entered.
No. 229 said uneasily, "Are you sure you'll take me along? I might not be able to help."
"That doesn't matter." No. 91 player said softly, "Choosing the yellow ball is already helping me."
No. 229 took this to heart, hesitated for a moment, then chose the yellow ball. The No. 91 player opposite also chose the yellow ball.
When the host announced the results, No. 229 visibly relaxed.
But he relaxed too soon.
The yellow ball indeed seemed like the best choice, but when placed between players and ordinary people, a new problem arose—whose standard determined the task difficulty?
"Guests No. 229 and No. 91's task location is the zoo. The task they drew is: Complete the golden-backed lizard breeding record!"
The two fell together, and the projection switched to a yellow sand area. The host gave a brief introduction, "The golden-backed lizard is a lizard variant that lives in desert areas. Because its back is golden and has extremely high medicinal value, it earned this name while also attracting the greed of hunters. Coupled with the golden-backed lizard's low reproductive desire, it has gradually become an endangered species, so people have to help them survive and reproduce."
"Guests No. 229 and No. 91 have entered the breeding area. Their task is to help a pair of golden-backed lizards mate and record the entire process. Of course, this breeding area has eleven males, but only one female. Before completing the record, the first thing to do is catch the lizards..."
Before the host finished speaking, No. 91 player moved instantly, darting five meters away and thrusting his hand sharply into the sand. Then he pulled upward, and a golden-backed lizard appeared in the projection.
No. 229 quickly moved closer. The moment he reached out to catch it, the golden-backed lizard severed his finger—if No. 91 hadn't retreated swiftly, his entire palm would have been cut off!
"It seems Guest No. 229 let his guard down. Although it's 25%, this is a white ball task based on player strength. It's still very dangerous for ordinary people."
Dangerous was an understatement. The next moment, even No. 91 player was attacked. Two lizards hollowed out the ground beneath his feet, causing him to suddenly sink. Two lizards emerged from under the sand dune, one on each side, biting his arms at lightning speed. The captured lizard escaped smoothly, and all three dove back under the sand together—but they didn't go far.
Not only did they not go far, but several small sand ripples appeared in other nearby areas—clearly the remaining golden-backed lizards.
The host laughed heartily, "Golden-backed lizards have low reproductive desire, but they are an exceptionally united group. It seems No. 229 and No. 91 won't be able to complete their task anytime soon. Let's return to the three-color competition."
New numbers appeared on the big screen. Xu Huo also found his teammate—a player.
The other nodded at him but showed no intention of communicating in advance.
Xu Huo didn't approach him either. Instead, he focused on the tasks that would appear next.
The host said the adventure tasks of the three-color competition were designed by children. That should be true. Things like planting flowers and trees, observing animal mating, or visiting some place were all normal childhood experiences. However, the difficulty of the task locations and content had been increased.
So far, ten people had done tasks across all three difficulty levels. The locations included zoos, botanical gardens, museums, and specimen rooms. Locations repeated, but the tasks varied greatly.
"Will we die?" The female couple he had met on the bus were saying goodbye. They were the next pair.
The long-haired woman stroked Xiao Xiao's hair, "Don't be afraid. No matter what happens, we'll be together."
"Can I ask a question now?" Xu Huo raised his hand toward the sky. After the host nodded, he asked, "Can we forfeit during a task? If we forfeit, can we return to the square?"
"Unfortunately, no," the host replied.
"Isn't that obvious? How could they let you forfeit?" the person next to Xu Huo muttered quietly. "Being this cowardly, how can they even be a player!"
Xu Huo ignored him. Not being able to forfeit meant that aside from completing the task, participants had no other way to return to Friendship Garden Square. This clearly prioritized task completion over building friendship between teammates. From this perspective, the "Hello, Goodbye" show's scoring was quite arbitrary.
Not giving specific scoring criteria before the competition seemed like a deliberate attempt to blur this aspect.
If that were the case, there was a high probability that the "friendship" judged by the "Hello, Goodbye" show was not the "pure friendship" required by the game task. In other words, meeting the show's "friendship" criteria might not guarantee passing the game.
Of course, it was also possible that the "friendship" required by the game task didn't cover all aspects of the show.
But from the current situation, it was more likely that the game task difficulty exceeded the show's difficulty.
The female couple began their joint task. They had to assemble a skeletal specimen, retrieving bones from a pool five meters deep filled with piranhas. But the bottom of that pool clearly held more than one skeleton, and the piranha swarm was also a problem.
This was another task that wouldn't be completed anytime soon.
Attention returned to the square. This time, it was Xu Huo and No. 64 player's turn.
The two stood on opposite sides of the big screen without communicating. Xu Huo chose the white ball first.
Players could use props or judge their opponent's choice based on the reactions of those around them. The show didn't prohibit this. That was why several pairs earlier had delayed their choices until the last second of the countdown, enduring torment while guarding against their opponent's underhanded moves.
Xu Huo chose the white ball first, extending an olive branch.
No. 64 player also chose the white ball.
"This is the first pair today to both choose the white ball," the host said, perking up. "I wonder if they can become today's first pair to gain friendship!"
"First, let's see which guest will complete the task... Alright, congratulations to Guest No. 313! You are this round's lucky one!"
Xu Huo smiled and nodded at No. 64.
"Then the location he drew is animals. The task is reptile appreciation. He needs to observe at least three types of living reptiles up close and photograph their bellies."
As the host finished speaking, the square beneath Xu Huo's feet rapidly descended. He fell into a dark chamber, which sped along for about five seconds. When the door opened, he was behind a large tree serving as cover, surrounded by dense jungle.
He didn't expect to be so lucky. The moment his feet touched the ground, a python slithered toward him from the front. He sidestepped, and the "Crimson Sword" appeared in his hand. A flash of sword light passed, and the giant python, which had raised its head high, was cleaved in two. Then he quickly moved away.