Chapter Twelve: Furious Winds and Towering Waves

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The system alert popped up, announcing the mission:

“To save 40 people, your team must simultaneously occupy six challenge sites. Each site presents a different challenge with unique conditions for capture. The game ends the moment one team holds all six sites together, and that team wins.”

With the mission announced, the two teams readied themselves. The production crew handed each group a small island map marking the sites on a virtual screen.

Qiao Le glanced at the basket on Shen Li’s back. “Why are you carrying that?”

“It wasn’t there yesterday. Maybe the production team added it last minute as a prop. It could come in handy.”

Qiao Le scoffed, thinking Shen Li was just putting on a show. He moved away, not wanting to talk further. Shen Li surveyed their surroundings—the island resembled the one from yesterday, save for minor differences.

For instance, on the path here, she had paid special attention to the ground, recalling memories from her past life. The forest trails now had scattered wooden poles and baskets—some intact, some broken. She particularly noticed the beach.

There were small fishing boats docked to the east and west. This was one of the challenge sites. Seeing this, Shen Li understood that the six challenge tasks this time were roughly the same as before. The additional props were for completing the six site challenges.

“We should split up,” Ji Beishu suggested, and Shen Li agreed. “There are six sites and four people. The production wants us to compete against each other, so we should tackle the difficult tasks first and leave the easier ones for last.”

In her previous life, they had done the easy ones first and got stuck on the hardest, most time-consuming task. Shen Li projected the virtual map, pointing to Site 3 marked with a “small fish” icon. “This one probably involves going out to sea to fish. Look over there.”

She gestured toward the nearby fishing boat docked to the east.

“Are you serious?” Qiao Le questioned. “How could we possibly do that? None of us are fishermen. Fishing with nets is way beyond us.”

Behind the monitor, the director enthusiastically explained to Pei Wenxuan, “Mr. Pei, for Site 3’s fishing challenge, I’ve investigated. None of the Black Scandal team grew up in the countryside; they won’t know how to fish. So, we’ll have the tech department release some fish for the Popularity team, and the fish will automatically jump into their nets. The Popularity team will definitely win!”

Pei Wenxuan’s hawk-like eyes fixed on the monitor, a faint smile playing on his lips. “Then I look forward to watching the show you’ve arranged.”

“Of course.” The director patted his beer belly, grinning widely, already dreaming of where to travel once the show ended and the money came in.

“Add a little something extra,” Pei Wenxuan said, leisurely propping his chin, beckoning the tech director with a finger. “Make the sea a bit rougher in their area.”

The tech director nodded. “Understood.” He immediately adjusted parameters on the virtual screen.

Though they couldn’t control real waves, they could simulate fake ones. As long as the boats capsized, it would be genuine enough.

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Jiang Fuya received the director’s notice and quickly suggested to her teammates, “Going out to fish is difficult. Let’s do this task first. They’ll likely get stuck here in the end, so our chances of winning increase.”

Lan Ting and Lu Ziwei had no objections; they understood this task was assigned by the director and Mr. Pei.

They all hoped to gain more fame by participating this time, maybe even connect with capitalists. Stars are like commodities on display, but capitalists hold the true power!

They didn’t want to be puppets controlled by others; they wanted to be the ones pulling the strings.

Working with Pei Wenxuan was the first step into the world of capital.

However, there was one person they needed to keep an eye on: Jiang Nian. Pei’s assignment was to win Jiang Nian over.

They exchanged a glance, and Jiang Fuya caught the signal. She coquettishly approached Jiang Nian, her pale cheeks flushing with a rosy tint that anyone would find irresistible.

“Brother Jiang Nian, I heard you have fishing experience. Could you guide us?” she asked, lowering her gaze slightly, her curled lashes fluttering charmingly.

-- Ahhh, wife, don’t do this; I’ll get jealous!

-- Upstairs, move aside—that’s my wife!

-- Jiang Nian, if you don’t respond, I will! Ahhhh!

-- Jiang Nian, hurry up and reply! Aren’t you mesmerized by her yet? Haha, that’s the power of Ya Ya’s charm!

...

Jiang Nian didn’t glance at Jiang Fuya once. He strode toward another task point. Lu Ziwei’s eyes widened, shouting angrily, “Fuya, he’s talking to you! Can’t you hear?”

A breeze stirred the sand at Jiang Nian’s feet. He looked back, his cold eyes unreadable, lips moving slowly: “No, I won’t.” With that, he pocketed his hands and walked away.

For the first time, Jiang Fuya was so thoroughly ignored. No man had ever treated her like that, and no one had dared to make her lose face!

Jiang Nian, you’ll regret this!

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She swallowed her anger and turned, smiling brightly. “Brother Jiang Nian must have his reasons. Ziwei, Tingting, let’s go.” Lu Ziwei happily followed, quickly urging the lagging Lan Ting to catch up.

“Fuya, don’t be mad. He’s rude and ungrateful,” Lu Ziwei scoffed at Jiang Nian ignoring Jiang Fuya.

That guy didn’t appreciate Fuya’s worth and didn’t deserve her. But this was fine—it meant more time for her to spend with Fuya.

Lan Ting reluctantly followed. She didn’t want to be a third wheel, but she couldn’t disobey Mr. Pei’s orders and had no choice but to keep up.

They set out smoothly to sea to cast their nets. The sea was calm, and the three struck poses like they were shooting a music video, facing the wind and showing their best angles to the cameras. Fans flooded the comment stream, enthusiastically praising their favorites.

After a while, Jiang Fuya received another prompt from the production team. She understood immediately. “Ziwei, Tingting, let’s haul in the net.”

Both teammates nodded in agreement and rose to pull the fishing net. Jiang Fuya gazed toward the opposite sea area, her confident smile radiant.

Shen Li, you can’t beat me, but you can be the stepping stone for my rise—a mere stepping stone.

Her smile grew even brighter, but her eyes darkened with shadow.

Suddenly, fierce winds and towering waves whipped up over the opposite sea area. Except for Bai Qiuya, the entire Black Scandal team was there. Qiao Le screamed in terror, “Ah! Are we going to capsize?”

She hadn’t wanted to board the boat earlier. Two people were enough for fishing, but Shen Li insisted all three were needed to pull the net. Qiao Le rolled her eyes.

With their amateur skills, catching even one fish was lucky. How could they possibly manage the net?

But what happened next left her speechless, even an impatient Ji Beishu was stunned. She blinked at Shen Li’s practiced net-hauling movements.

The girl’s slender arms waved gracefully, casting the fishing net in a beautiful arc into the churning sea, and it was instantly swallowed by the waves.

Ji Beishu looked nervously at the massive undulating waves. “Won’t our net get swept away?”

Shen Li smiled confidently. “Don’t worry. It won’t.”