This Character is Suspected of Cheating! [Unlimited Flow]

Li Zhan's equipment?

Anything bearing the name "Li Zhan" was equipment forged by Li Zhan during <Top Talent Show>. He was a blacksmith, and the equipment he created was unlike anything else.

So far, He Yu had seen two such items.

One was the broom.

The other was the Federation-famous—Li Zhan's zither.

Destroying one of Li Zhan's creations...

Had blown an entire instance apart?

The livestream had first become unstable...

Only then had it disappeared?

He Yu raised his eyes toward Eugene.

"Did they die from the explosion itself, or because the instance disappeared?"

Eugene thought for a moment before answering confidently,

"They were blown to death."

He Yu nodded, his eyes filled with contemplation.

Zhen Xing looked at him curiously, his phoenix eyes full of confusion.

"What did you discover?"

He Yu shook his head.

"Nothing yet. Just fragments of information. They don't connect together, and I'm not sure they'll be useful."

—In reality, he considered this information extremely important.

—In fact, it had already led him to several associations.

Hearing that, Zhen Xing asked no further questions.

Wanrenzhan's eyes were cold. The mocking smile tugging at the scar on his face made him look particularly ferocious.

His voice carried obvious irritation.

"So in the last instance, all of us got combat stages. Only you and Cheng Zhao got mission instances—which were actually traps meant to kill you."

He looked at He Yu.

"What are you going to do next? If the system insists on killing you, there are countless ways it can screw you over."

He Yu had survived this round.

What about the next?

The thought alone made Wanrenzhan want to start cursing again.

He Yu remained calm.

"We'll deal with each move as it comes."

He could only respond to whatever the system did.

Inside the competition, he had no way of interfering with the system itself.

But every time it made a move...

He would obtain more information.

More clues.

He would move one step closer to uncovering whoever was hiding behind it.

Silence descended once more.

Although it was He Yu's personal crisis...

At this moment, everyone suddenly understood him.

The feeling of being nothing more than meat on someone else's chopping block...

Was utterly unbearable.

They could accept an honorable defeat.

They could not accept being murdered by the rules themselves.

—Break the rules.

—Overturn the system.

Those eight words echoed through everyone's minds again and again.

There was no denying it.

He Yu's speech had already cracked open the doors to their hearts.

The words had engraved themselves into their minds, quietly changing the way they thought.

Perhaps...

One day...

Those eight words would become their slogan.

He Yu capped his pen, closed the notebook, swept his gaze across everyone once more, and said seriously,

"One more question."

"Were there any abnormalities in your instances?"

"What kind of abnormalities?"

Yuan Ze asked in confusion.

He Yu slightly lifted his chin. Wrapped inside the Frost Beast coat, his jawline appeared sharp and smooth. His gaze was calm, his voice completely steady.

"Blue Eyes."

"Did any of you encounter Blue Eyes?"

Everyone: "!!!"

Audience: "!!!"

[Bullet Screen: "HOLY SHIT, what does He Yu mean?!"]

[Bullet Screen: "Is he talking about the Blue Eyes I'm thinking of?! AHHHH official ship crumbs!!"]

[Bullet Screen: "Damn! He Yu really has Blue Eyes on his mind!"]

[Bullet Screen: "Wait... does he mean every instance is supposed to have Blue Eyes?"]

[Bullet Screen: "Something feels off... It doesn't sound like he's talking about the boss... It feels like something else?"]

The Bullet Screen exploded.

The contestants all reacted differently.

Wanrenzhan immediately spoke sourly.

"What do you mean? Don't tell me you actually wanted to meet the boss? Besides, even if there is a boss, it doesn't have to be Blue Eyes."

Looking back over every previous instance...

Blue Eyes had always been the final boss.

Ever since the giant cat in Who Is the Undercover, nobody had been capable of defeating Blue Eyes.

The only reason they had survived was because Blue Eyes had never shown genuine killing intent.

Otherwise...

They would all have died long ago.

Under those circumstances...

Obviously it was better if Blue Eyes never appeared.

Wanrenzhan certainly didn't want to see Blue Eyes.

The guy was incredibly difficult to deal with.

He was practically a bug.

And he was always clinging to He Yu.

Extremely annoying.

He had actually been pleased that Blue Eyes hadn't appeared in the previous instance.

Unfortunately...

He Yu hadn't been in the same instance as him either.

No.

Actually...

It was fortunate He Yu hadn't shared his instance.

Otherwise...

Only one of them would be sitting here now.

Wanrenzhan's thoughts had completely gone off track.

He was being ridiculously jealous.

Everyone else wasn't.

Qiong frowned deeply as she stared at He Yu.

"You mean..."

"Blue Eyes was supposed to appear?"

He Yu slowly nodded.

Everyone: "!!!"

[Bullet Screen: "AHHHHH So Blue Eyes is actually the same person?!"]

[Bullet Screen: "SCREAMING!! IT'S TRUE LOVE!! MY SHIP IS REAL!!"]

[Bullet Screen: "No, I'm still shipping He Yu with Zhen Xing."]

Eugene sucked in a sharp breath, his voice rising.

"The force standing against the system...

You're saying that's Blue Eyes?"

He Yu said nothing.

But the meaning in his eyes was unmistakable.

Zhen Xing spoke slowly.

"The Blue Eyes we've encountered all seemed different...

But they're actually the same existence?"

Yuan Ze suddenly understood.

"No wonder every world with Blue Eyes couldn't simply be cleared. Blue Eyes is an exception. A special existence. A system bug. Only after He Yu killed Blue Eyes were we able to advance."

The more Siya listened, the worse her headache became.

She grabbed her head, desperately recalling every instance where she'd encountered Blue Eyes.

"I still don't understand."

"What exactly is Blue Eyes?"

"Why can Blue Eyes appear repeatedly?"

"Why are the different Blue Eyes so different from one another?"

"They don't even seem to know each other."

There were simply too many unanswered questions.

Many people couldn't make sense of it.

He Yu shrugged.

"I don't know how he accomplished it."

"But he truly split himself into many separate individuals."

"Those individuals either have no connection..."

"...or they're connected in ways even they themselves don't realize."

Among everyone present, He Yu knew Blue Eyes best.

He possessed more information about Blue Eyes than anyone else.

As for who Blue Eyes actually was...

He Yu didn't answer.

Duan Yuchen's pupils suddenly contracted.

As though realizing something, he leaned forward, eyes wide.

"Blue Eyes is rebelling!"

"The NPC rebellion from the previous season had something to do with Blue Eyes!"

Even if Blue Eyes hadn't personally started the previous NPC rebellion...

There absolutely had to be a connection.

Blue Eyes was fighting the system.

Blue Eyes was connected to the previous NPC rebellion.

Blue Eyes...

Was far more mysterious and important than any of them had imagined.

If He Yu intended to oppose the system...

Then Blue Eyes was an indispensable piece of the puzzle.

No wonder He Yu cared so much about him.

Tang Ke looked completely bewildered.

Frowning tightly, they said,

"That's all speculation."

"There's no evidence connecting Blue Eyes to the previous NPC rebellion."

"Maybe Blue Eyes is simply this season's system bug."

They looked toward He Yu, hoping he would produce solid evidence to refute that possibility.

Instead...

He Yu nodded calmly.

"Correct."

"That possibility can't be ruled out."

Annie looked completely lost.

Scratching their head irritably, they blurted,

"He Yu, just tell {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} us everything you know already."

"Guessing like this is exhausting."

Wanrenzhan nodded vigorously.

—None of them had as many schemes as He Yu.

—None of them were as smart.

—They couldn't analyze any of this.

—Even listening gave them headaches.

—Couldn't he just explain it directly?

Zhen Xing had remained silent the entire time, head lowered as he pondered.

After a long while...

He suddenly looked up.

Shock filled his phoenix eyes.

"Blue Eyes..."

"Is... is it..."

"Is it the answer I'm thinking of?"

His voice carried obvious uncertainty.

His eyes locked tightly onto He Yu's.

He Yu met his gaze.

Then...

Slowly nodded.

Recognition filled his eyes.

Zhen Xing sharply inhaled.

His expression froze.

It looked as though his mind had suffered an enormous impact.

He appeared completely dazed.

Eugene muttered,

"...I think I know too."

The mechanical body with silver hair and black eyes suddenly froze.

Concentric patterns rippled across his pupils.

He had...

Completely crashed.

Bo Jingshan quietly tugged on Ling Buchen's sleeve.

His eyes asked a silent question.

Ling Buchen shook his head and whispered,

"I don't know who it is."

"I'm unfamiliar with important Federation figures."

"But..."

"It must be someone every Federation citizen knows."

"And someone capable of leading hundreds of elite contestants from the previous season into rebellion."

Even the previous season's contestants following an NPC into rebellion had been incredibly strange.

Why would contestants willingly obey an NPC?

If this conclusion had come solely from He Yu's deduction...

Very few people would have believed it.

But Wanrenzhan had personally confirmed it.

It was historical fact.

The details had simply been covered up.

Even Wanrenzhan—the only survivor—knew nothing.

Of course...

If he had known the truth...

He would already be dead.

Bo Jingshan nodded and asked no more.

They truly knew very little about the Federation.

Duan Yuchen had overheard their conversation.

He looked at Eugene.

Then at Zhen Xing.

Finally...

His eyes met Qiong's.

Inside her eyes...

He saw admiration.

Understanding.

And anger.

Duan Yuchen: "!"

He jumped to his feet.

"Holy shit?!"

—He understood too.

At present, aside from He Yu himself...

Only Zhen Xing.

Eugene.

Duan Yuchen.

And Qiong...

Appeared to have guessed something.

And all four of them...

Had been utterly shaken by that realization.

Siya frowned.

"Hey."

"Explain it to me."

Zhante sighed.

"...I don't know either."

Yuan Ze asked,

"Can someone tell us?"

"Or is this something that can't be said?"

Gedai's mechanical voice sounded quietly.

"Judging by their reactions..."

"Either it can't be said for now..."

"...or the consequences are too significant."

"They can't say it before they're certain."

Seeing how thoroughly those four had been shocked...

Everyone knew that if the answer were spoken aloud...

Everyone else would be equally stunned.

But this was still only speculation.

A conclusion drawn from He Yu's reactions.

Without certainty...

None of them dared say it.

Gedai understood that perfectly.

Yet he still couldn't help glancing toward Eugene.

He felt deeply dissatisfied.

Why could Eugene figure it out...

While he couldn't?

Tang Ke's instincts were exceptionally sharp.

Shaking their head, they rubbed at the goosebumps suddenly covering their arms.

"Maybe..."

"Not knowing is actually better."

"Cheng Zhao was silenced precisely because he knew."

If they learned the truth...

They might be silenced too.

Everyone still remembered Cheng Zhao's final words before his death.

First—

He Yu's deduction was correct.

Second—

Cheng Zhao wasn't the only one. There were far too many outstanding contestants this season for it to be a coincidence.

Either statement deserved thorough investigation.

But once they uncovered the truth...

The result might not be something they could bear.

They might very well end up sharing Cheng Zhao's fate.

After Tang Ke finished speaking...

Silence filled the area once again.

Only Wanrenzhan still looked utterly unconvinced.

"What exactly do you all know?"

"I participated in the previous season and I still don't know!"

"And you all figured it out?"

He hugged his axe tightly, eyes wide enough to make even the scar across his face seem stunned.

Wanrenzhan truly couldn't understand.

Why did it feel like his brain had been stuffed with paste?

He couldn't figure out anything.

He looked blankly from He Yu...

To the other four.

[Bullet Screen: "...I don't get it either. Can somebody explain?"]

[Bullet Screen: "Their summary meeting completely broke my brain."]

[Bullet Screen: "Seriously, I don't understand. What's special about Blue Eyes? Although Blue Eyes are pretty common... Zhen Xing has blue eyes, star-blue. Wei Bailer and Yuan Ze have blue eyes too, both dark blue. Lots of Federation people have blue eyes."]

[Bullet Screen: "My idol Zhante God also has blue eyes. Blue eyes are extremely common in the Federation."]

[Bullet Screen: "So what exactly did they realize? What is Blue Eyes? Is there some deeper meaning? Another secret we don't know?"]

[Bullet Screen: "HOLY SHIT! The system released an explanation! Go look!"]

At that same moment—

Everyone in the middle of reviewing the previous instances received a system notification.

【After investigation, the first elimination battle was completely fair and impartial. All rules and notifications were built into the system. The production team could not interfere, nor was there any evidence of outside interference.】

【After investigation, no system bugs were detected. Instance assignments were random. Instance types were diverse. Any contestant could enter any instance. Equipment drops were random. No abnormalities were found...】

The notice continued for an entire page.

Endless paragraphs.

Duan Yuchen read every single word aloud.

After finishing...

He stood there stiffly before finally saying,

"So this incredibly long announcement..."

"...really only says one thing."

Wanrenzhan sneered.

"They refuse to admit anything."

A lengthy explanation.

A lengthy announcement.

In the end...

Its meaning could be summarized in a single sentence.

Nothing is wrong.

Stop overthinking.

Everyone's response was identical.

"Heh."

At that moment, He Yu could still see the Bullet Screen.

He saw furious viewers cursing the organizers.

He saw them discussing how to demand answers.

Some of his own fans were desperately worried about his safety, repeatedly urging the competition to be suspended.

Others were inviting more viewers to gather outside the production headquarters and the Royal Palace, vowing not to leave until they received an explanation.

Warmth gradually softened He Yu's expression.

His heart felt unexpectedly warm.

—Whether or not they could actually help him...

—As long as they wanted to help...

—As long as they were willing to act for his sake...

That alone made him feel satisfied.

Putting away his notebook and pen, He Yu suddenly stood.

His expression was gentle.

His voice remained calm.

"The break should be ending soon."

"Everyone, prepare yourselves."

"After the next instance ends..."

"We'll continue summarizing."

His gaze swept across the crowd before finally stopping on Qiong.

"Can we talk?"

Qiong paused briefly.

Then nodded.

"Okay."

She stood up and walked away with He Yu.

After thinking for a moment...

Zhen Xing and Ling Buchen also rose and followed.

Wanrenzhan shouted,

"Hey! He Yu didn't invite you two!"

Eugene silently followed as well.

Looking back at Wanrenzhan, he said with obvious disdain,

"Idiot."

"He never said it was going to be a private conversation."

Wanrenzhan: "..."

He immediately jumped up.

Seeing Duan Yuchen following as well, he hurried after them.

—Why should everyone else get to listen except him?

—

Thus...

A small group gathered in one corner.

Moments ago, it had been a meeting of all five hundred contestants.

Now...

It had become a small discussion group.

He Yu and Qiong stood at its center.

Zhen Xing.

Ling Buchen.

Bo Jingshan.

Eugene.

Wanrenzhan.

Duan Yuchen.

They all became spectators.

He Yu said nothing about them following.

Clearly...

The topic wasn't especially confidential.

Qiong asked,

"Should we turn off the livestream?"

[Bullet Screen: "NO!! We want to hear too!!"]

[Bullet Screen: "NOOOO! Every time secrets come up they turn it off! Don't do that!"]

He Yu shook his head.

"No need."

"The audience deserves to know more."

"In fact..."

"We need their help."

"After all, we're trapped inside the competition."

"Our influence over the outside Federation is limited."

[Bullet Screen: "!!!"]

[Bullet Screen: "AHHHH He God! We won't let you down!"]

[Bullet Screen: "Damn it, loving He Yu feels so reassuring. I'm already outside the Royal Palace. If the King doesn't come out, we're not leaving!"]

He Yu looked deeply into Qiong's eyes before continuing.

"Of course."

"If you're uncomfortable with it..."

"We can turn it off."

Qiong froze.

Why was he asking whether she minded?

He Yu's gaze carried hidden meaning.

"I'm going to ask about the details of your previous instance."

If Qiong didn't want the audience to know...

The livestream could be turned off.

Her pupils shook violently.

Taking a deep breath, she replied hoarsely,

"No need."

"The audience already knows."

After a pause, she asked,

"Why do you specifically want to ask about my previous instance?"

He Yu answered with certainty,

"Because your reaction during the discussion was wrong."

"And because you deliberately avoided talking about your instance."

"I could tell it wasn't because there was nothing to say."

"It was because you didn't want to say it."

Qiong opened her mouth.

After a long silence...

"He Yu..."

"You're frighteningly smart."

"Nothing can be hidden from you."

He Yu smiled faintly.

"In our current situation..."

"We need someone smart."

"Don't we?"

"You're smart too."

"You already know what I want to ask."

"And you know what you should tell me."

Qiong was extremely intelligent.

She was powerful.

Versatile.

Among this season's contestants...

Many possessed both strength and intelligence.

Ever since Dawn Training School...

He Yu had never concealed his admiration for Qiong.

Back during Who Is the Undercover...

She had been one of the teammates he personally wanted.

She came from the same discriminated-against Chaos Planet.

Like He Yu...

She had shattered the audience's preconceived notions and earned both recognition and admiration.

So He Yu skipped all unnecessary probing.

He went straight to the point.

Qiong didn't pretend to misunderstand.

Lowering her gaze, she remained silent for quite a while before calmly speaking.

"My opponent in the previous instance..."

"...was Qiao Yuan."

He Yu froze.

He had been the last contestant to enter the transfer station.

By then...

Every other instance's livestream had already ended.

He naturally hadn't seen who everyone else's opponents were.

Qiao Yuan...

He knew him.

They had even shared two instances together.

In Who Is the Undercover...

They had been teammates.

Qiao Yuan had been the person Qiong personally invited during the team-selection phase.

Inside that instance...

The trust between them had been absolute.

It wasn't trust born from the competition.

It came from the bottom of their hearts.

Which meant...

The two of them had known each other long before entering the competition.

Looking at Qiong's current expression...

He Yu suddenly asked,

"How strong was Qiao Yuan?"

Qiong didn't answer directly.

Instead, she smiled bitterly.

"I wasn't much earlier than you in reaching the transfer station."

"I was the 499th contestant to advance."

"As for Qiao Yuan..."

"...he never took any of the resources from the previous instance."

The 499th.

If the fighting hadn't been so intense...

If neither side had been able to kill the other...

Or rather...

If someone hadn't been completely unable to strike the final blow...

[Bullet Screen: "I watched the livestream! Qiao Yuan not only refused to take resources, he helped Qiong gather them! He helped her grow stronger so she had time to cultivate!"]

[Bullet Screen: "Yeah! Then he simply waited for Qiong to kill him."]

[Bullet Screen: "God... I'm going to cry. Qiao Yuan smiled at Qiong when he died and even comforted her. They're definitely lovers."]

[Bullet Screen: "What's going on with this season? Less killing, more cooperation... and now it's making me cry too."]

He Yu understood.

His lips pressed tightly together.

He hadn't been able to save Cheng Zhao.

Watching Cheng Zhao die had already left him feeling miserable.

He could only imagine...

How much worse Qiong must have felt.

Qiao Yuan had never competed against her.

The moment they entered the same instance...

He had made Qiong the priority.

Helping her advance.

Helping her accumulate resources for the future.

After a long silence...

He Yu spoke softly.

"I'm sorry."

Qiong shook her head.

"You don't need to apologize."

"I should have told you myself."

Hearing that...

He Yu suddenly looked straight at her.

Their eyes met.

The sorrow had already disappeared from Qiong's gaze.

Just like He Yu...

She was a rational person.

She understood that grief solved nothing.

It was better to turn grief into strength.

She should have told him?

He Yu's fingers twitched slightly.

His eyes narrowed.

He looked deeply into Qiong's unwavering gaze.

He understood.

When Qiong said she should have told him...

She meant that what she'd said contained important information.

Something she wanted He Yu to understand...

Without saying it outright.

The relationship between Qiao Yuan and Qiong was absolutely not what the audience believed.

They were definitely not lovers.

Thinking back to their interactions during Who Is the Undercover...

Qiao Yuan...

Was Qiong's subordinate.

Or rather...

He existed to support her.

They both came from Chaos Planet.

They were both exceptionally powerful.

If they had known each other before entering the competition...

And shared such a close relationship...

There was almost no chance they would have entered the competition together.

This was a contest where only one person could survive.

If they couldn't bear to lose each other...

They would never have entered together.

One of them had always been destined to die.

Yet they still came.

Which meant...

Qiao Yuan had entered solely to assist Qiong.

Qiao Yuan had a special mission.

Then...

What about Qiong?

Cheng Zhao had said...

He wasn't the only spy.

There were agents from other districts.

Other planets.

Chaos Planet might well have been involved too.

Qiong possessed extraordinary abilities.

They were also incredibly practical.

Her background...

Was certainly far from ordinary.

Wanrenzhan looked completely confused.

"What are you two doing?"

"Why did everyone suddenly stop talking?"

Zhen Xing and Eugene both rolled their eyes at him.

Duan Yuchen sighed.

"It's fine if you don't understand."

"As long as the two of them do."

Wanrenzhan: "..."

—Damn it.

—I always feel completely out of place around these people.

[Bullet Screen: "HAHAHA, Wanrenzhan, just accept your fate. If you're not smart, stop trying to join the smart people."]

[Bullet Screen: "I'm dying. I don't understand these two either, but seeing Wanrenzhan fail to understand makes me happy."]

[Bullet Screen: "They're just staring at each other without saying anything. What's going on? Seeing who loses composure first?"]

Neither of them spoke.

Yet...

They seemed to have told each other everything.

—This was how smart people communicated.

He Yu reassessed Qiong once again.

He replayed every interaction they'd ever had in previous instances.

Then reviewed every reaction she'd shown during the discussion earlier.

Like Duan Yuchen.

Like Zhen Xing.

Like Eugene.

She had also figured out Blue Eyes.

Admiration.

Understanding.

Anger.

Those emotions had all appeared in her eyes.

A sharp light flashed through He Yu's gaze.

His piercing eyes locked onto hers as he asked his final question.

"Qiong."

"You already know who Blue Eyes is."

Wanrenzhan: "???"

Hadn't they already established that?

Qiong and the other three had deduced Blue Eyes' identity from He Yu's reasoning.

Why was He Yu asking the same question again?

[Bullet Screen: "Doesn't He Yu already know Qiong guessed it? What's going on?"]

[Bullet Screen: "I give up... I'll just wait for the next instance... qaq"]

He Yu deliberately asked again.

Qiong deliberately answered with equal seriousness.

"Yes."

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