The audience who had seen what actually happened for the first time exploded again after a brief moment of shock—

“Holy shit, holy shit! He Yu’s guts are absolutely insane!!”

“He was gambling with his life. That’s unbelievably ruthless. What normal person could pull something like that off?”

“No wonder he scared Siya. I was scared too! Who would believe that with absolutely nothing in his hands, he’d just bluff his way into ‘killing’ Siya?!”

“Damn, he’s way too good at deceiving people.”

“His acting was so convincing. I instinctively believed him at the time, and it turned out to be a completely useless lighter!!”

“I still didn’t want to believe it. I checked He Yu’s backpack over and over again to confirm it was really just a lighter.”

“He Yu, very good. As expected of you.”

“What I’m curious about is why he targeted Siya first??”

“Siya isn’t weak either. I really don’t understand why he chose her.”

...

On the <Top Talent Show> discussion plaza, topics related to He Yu once again dominated the trending rankings.

The popularity of “Absorbing Stars Technique” had not faded yet and still sat prominently on the front page.

Now “Scaring Away Siya” had appeared as well, occupying the top two discussion spots and triggering debate throughout the entire universe.

At the same time, Larry, the powerful figure who had supported He Yu from the beginning, stepped forward. Just as Qiao had publicly singled out He Yu when the second elimination round began, Larry now tagged Qiao, who had doubted He Yu throughout.

[Qiao, isn’t it time to admit that He Yu is a dazzling gem who has been rubbing Federation elites into the dirt? You were certain he wouldn’t survive this round, yet now he has already cleared the third stage. At this rate, he may very well have a way through the remaining stages too.]

[Now, back to the main point. Many people are wondering why He Yu targeted Siya. Honestly, it’s not difficult to analyze. I’m willing to call He Yu a bug-like existence in the second round.]

[His previous two schemes not only allowed him to obtain the equipment from the first and second stages, they also left everyone else far behind and deprived his teammates of voting rights. That level of planning was practically unbeatable.]

[But many people said there was no way for him to stop the voting this round.]

[That’s right. And He Yu knew that too. So he never intended to stop the voting at all. He guided Wanrenzhan into proposing the group split, then voluntarily joined Wanrenzhan’s group. He led everyone into adopting that grouping method, leaving Siya isolated. Meanwhile, Wanrenzhan became his cover.]

[The first person he was always going to strike at was Siya!]

[Only Siya could reliably provide the required two hundred thousand votes, and Siya dislikes darkness. She showed that the very first time they entered the tunnels. Darkness makes Siya lose her rational judgment, making her the perfect target for He Yu.]

[As for why it had to be Siya, and why the vote count had to reach two hundred thousand... it was all to create an alibi!]

[Advancement triggers an announcement. Death does not. Without an announcement, there’s no way to frame Earlie.]

[Yes, frame Earlie. That must have been part of He Yu’s calculations too.]

[He had already seen on the map that Qiao Yuan and Qiong had joined up. At that point, Earlie was the only person moving alone. He was the best target, and also the best scapegoat.]

[Earlie and Qiong are mortal enemies. Earlie has high combat power and poses a threat to many contestants...]

[Although they gained voting rights this round, under He Yu’s guidance they not only wasted those votes, they also lost a teammate.]

[He Yu is a bug-like existence in this round.]

[And he especially needs to thank one person—Blockhead. Starting today, I refuse to call Wanrenzhan by his name. Only “Blockhead” truly suits him. /smile]

[Finally, I’ll continue looking forward to He Yu’s performance. I hope the contestant who amazed us through three stages won’t perish in the fourth.]

This was the most detailed analysis so far, almost perfectly reconstructing He Yu’s mindset and the entire flow of the match.

People who had been confused immediately understood after reading it.

This time, Qiao only responded with a single sentence—

[Did He Yu really think that far ahead? Don’t exaggerate his abilities. There are still three stages left in this round. Let him survive and win before calling him a bug.]

Federation viewers who had witnessed everything also joined the discussion—

“Honestly, I think He Yu probably thought even more than Larry analyzed. This guy is always full of surprises.”

“Larry’s analysis seems completely right. He Yu is unbelievable!!”

“I agree with Qiao. I think Larry is overestimating him. The result may look like that, but there were probably lots of spontaneous decisions involved. Maybe eliminating Siya was an impulse decision that just happened to work out and frame Earlie.”

“Let’s wait and see. Since Earlie wasn’t the mole, Duan Yuchen and the others are definitely going to become suspicious. The next three stages only get harder. He Yu might not be able to keep this up.”

“Forget everything else. Wanrenzhan absolutely deserves the title of ‘Blockhead’!!”

...

Wanrenzhan had officially earned the title of Blockhead.

He simply didn’t know it yet.

After Earlie exploded into a cloud of blood mist, everyone stood frozen amid the crimson carnage.

It wasn’t because they felt guilty about wrongly accusing Earlie.

This was a deathmatch competition. There was no such thing as fairness or injustice. Everyone here was a mortal enemy.

Earlie himself had slaughtered countless contestants during the preliminary rounds.

What confused them was something else.

How had they gotten it wrong?

Duan Yuchen’s expression darkened.

“If Earlie wasn’t the mole, then we probably missed something important. Did none of you separate from your groups at any point? Did you notice anything unusual about your teammates?”

Everyone shook their heads.

Wanrenzhan recalled that he and He Yu had separated briefly.

But that wasn’t important!

He shook his head.

“Looks like Siya really got driven away by monsters. Seriously, Siya is way too useless. Whatever. A wrong vote is a wrong vote. We’ll keep looking for the mole in the next stage. I refuse to believe they won’t slip up eventually!”

He Yu nodded in agreement and gave Wanrenzhan an appreciative look.

Wanrenzhan snorted.

His chin instinctively lifted, pride shining in his eyes.

—See?

—This garbage-planet guy had finally started admiring him.

[Bullet Comment: “...I’m speechless about this Blockhead.”]

[Bullet Comment: “He Yu really picked the perfect teammate!!”]

[Bullet Comment: “Everyone relax. As long as Wanrenzhan is around, He Yu will never be exposed. /smile”]

Duan Yuchen still felt that something was wrong.

Before he could figure it out—

He Yu spoke.

“We wasted quite a bit of time in the maze. I wonder if Eugene and the others have caught up yet. Let’s divide Earlie’s equipment and continue to the next stage.”

With a single sentence, He Yu highlighted two critical points.

Eugene’s group might already be approaching.

Their lives could be in danger.

And then there was Earlie’s equipment.

Everyone looked ahead.

Not all of Earlie’s gear had dropped. Some pieces had been transferred away by the system.

Even so, more than a dozen items remained on the ground.

The man had truly possessed countless trump cards.

There were only eight people present.

Each of them could receive one or two pieces.

Everyone’s attention immediately shifted to the equipment.

Casually, He Yu said,

“Duan Yuchen, why don’t you handle the distribution? You understand equipment better than any of us, and everyone should be able to accept your decisions.”

Instantly, the faint suspicion in Duan Yuchen’s mind was temporarily pushed aside.

He nodded and stepped forward.

Duan Yuchen enjoyed the feeling of controlling the overall situation.

Being the one responsible for distribution put him in a good mood, enough to postpone any deeper analysis.

After dividing everything up, he said,

“He Yu chooses first.”

As the person who had contributed the most, He Yu unquestionably deserved first pick.

No one objected.

However, He Yu looked at the pile of equipment with obvious disdain.

—Equipment belonging to a vicious criminal like Earlie held absolutely no appeal for him.

—Especially since almost all of it was combat-oriented.

He Yu had even less interest in that.

He could barely be bothered to look.

Without hesitation, he casually picked up a six-star potion.

It was one of the rewards from the first stage.

Earlie had originally been dissatisfied with receiving it, only cheering up after seeing the equipment He Yu’s group obtained.

Now the potion ended up in He Yu’s hands.

Everyone else stepped forward to choose their shares as well.

Dividing the spoils was a joyful experience.

Ling Buchen was left for last.

He didn’t mind.

After casually storing his equipment, he asked,

“What do you want the potion for? Saving it for later?”

Wanrenzhan glanced over and instinctively mocked him.

“With that pathetic combat power of yours, don’t waste the potion. If a monster actually lands a hit on you, you’ll be dead before you even get a chance to drink it!”

—He wanted that potion too!

—His injuries were severe enough that they might affect his ability to clear the next stage.

Unfortunately, He Yu had taken it first.

What use did this weakling have for a potion?

With only eight combat power, if he got injured, he’d be dead before the bottle even reached his mouth.

To everyone’s surprise, He Yu wasn’t angry.

Instead, he nodded.

“You’re right.”

Then he handed the potion directly to Wanrenzhan.

“You’re badly injured. Use it. After all, those injuries were sustained for the sake of our team.”

—Wanrenzhan absolutely could not die.

—He needed to stay alive and healthy.

Wanrenzhan froze.

After a long pause, he eyed He Yu suspiciously.

“What’s this supposed to mean? You’re giving it to me?”

He Yu nodded.

“Yes. It’s yours.”

Wanrenzhan asked,

“You’re trying to cling to me and get my protection?”

His chin rose instinctively.

“Let me tell you this. Unless you teach me that formation thing and the Absorbing Stars Technique, I’m not protecting you!”

He Yu: “...”

Beside them, Ling Buchen looked envious.

“He Yu, you’re really nice to Wanrenzhan.”

He Yu nodded.

“I should be a little nicer to him.”

—There weren’t many fools left in this competition.

—They were practically an endangered species.

Ling Buchen became even more envious.

Wanrenzhan’s chin rose even higher.

If he had a tail, it would have been sticking straight into the sky by now.

He snatched the potion from He Yu’s hand.

“You’re really giving this to me?”

He Yu sounded impatient.

“Yes. Take it or leave it.”

“I’ll take it!”

Wanrenzhan answered immediately.

He poured the potion straight into his mouth.

The effects were immediate.

His health began recovering.

His injuries healed at a frightening speed.

A smile curled across his lips.

With his chin raised high, he looked down at He Yu from above, his gaze filled with satisfaction.

“Not bad. Since you’re at least sensible enough to recognize greatness, I’ll put in a little effort to protect a weak little rookie like you during the next stage.”

He Yu: “...”

Turning away from everyone, he said,

“Let’s go. Time for the fourth stage.”

—It was better not to talk too much with fools.

—Prolonged exposure could lower one’s IQ.

“Tsk, getting embarrassed now?”

Wanrenzhan immediately followed after He Yu.

At the same time, he shot Ling Buchen a look that clearly said “Get lost.”

His steps were unusually light.

Ling Buchen blinked repeatedly, looking completely confused.

Yet the corners of his lips lifted ever so slightly.

Meanwhile, the bullet comments had already given up—

“Damn it, this Blockhead!!”

“Wanrenzhan, what you accepted wasn’t a potion—it was a pitch-black, shiny, gleaming black pot!!”

(Meaning: he unknowingly took the blame and became He Yu’s perfect scapegoat/cover.)

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