AITAMITB Chapter 65

The incident happened in an instant. Zhao Xiaokui only had time to tightly grab the rope hanging the ball. Her head was stuck below, and her feet were above the level.

The camera accurately captured her hand grabbing the rope—delicate and fair, almost instantly turning red, with the joints turning pale.

Shen Zhifei’s hand directly knocked over the teacup on the table.

The people on the field also held their breath.

“Wow—” The host’s breath paused, and it took him a while to regain his language. He commented, “It’s truly a thrilling moment. We can see that Xiaokui just slipped under her feet, directly sliding off the ball. Fortunately, she grabbed the rope in time and didn’t fall. But can she still climb up?”

The pre-broadcast audience was even more nervous than Zhao Xiaokui.

Originally, they were doing their own things while watching the live broadcast to pass the time. At this moment, they couldn’t care less about their tasks, staring at the screen intently, afraid that with a blink of an eye, Zhao Xiaokui would fall from above.

Zhao Xiaokui let out a slight breath, relaxing her body.

The slip of her shoe was unexpected, but the situation was still within her control.

She glanced ahead, where five more balls awaited her to pass. Less than twenty centimeters behind her was the water pool.

Once she completely fell, her attempt to clear the level would be a complete failure.

“The balls are rolling themselves. Can Zhao Xiaokui climb up, or is she planning to give up and use her second chance directly?”

Fortunately, the ropes suspending the balls were fixed on the overhead beam. Zhao Xiaokui, holding the rope, released her legs clinging to the ball and, using the strength of her arms, climbed up from the bottom.

Before the live broadcast, exclamations of “Oh, damn” continued one after another.

The rope was not a steel pole; the latter could at least support the body during climbing, while the former, being inherently soft, was not suitable for climbing at all.

Looking at those slender arms with bulging muscles, the male onlookers collectively got goosebumps, and the female spectators couldn’t suppress their inner excitement, emitting groundhog-like screams.

“Ah, ah, ah, my Xiaokui is too fierce! Quickly check out those little muscles. I don’t allow anyone not to see these muscles!”

“Wu wu wu, just imagine Xiaokui lifting me with these hands. Ah, I’m now her girlfriend fan! I have to call her my husband!”

“Is this really a female celebrity…??? “

Zhao Xiaokui climbed back onto the rolling ball. Facing the approaching safety personnel, she made a thumbs-up gesture. Standing on the ball, she grabbed the rope, and visually measured the distance. Suddenly, she leaped.

Before the third-to-last rolling ball could react, she forcefully kicked off, leaping directly onto the platform connecting the levels, successfully landing in a kneeling position.

She lifted her gaze, locking eyes with the camera in front, revealing a faint smile.

The director behind the monitor keenly picked up on the consecutive gasps.

The sudden slip of her shoes served as a wake-up call for Zhao Xiaokui. After some thought, she decided to kick off her shoes altogether and tread barefoot on the ground.

After confirming that it didn’t affect her movement, she proceeded to the next level.

At first, Zhao Xiaokui thought the initial slip was an isolated incident. However, when her feet lost control and slid uncontrollably for the second time, her brow furrowed imperceptibly.

A mermaid slipping in the water? What kind of joke was this?

If there were a second mermaid in the world, she felt that the other would likely immortalize this incident in ancestral memories to mock her for a lifetime.

Her innate affinity with water made it impossible for her to slip. This seemed more like something was interfering with her body, causing her to make slipping motions.

With increased vigilance, Zhao Xiaokui approached the challenges more cautiously, no longer recklessly charging through as before, only considering speed and neglecting safety.

As the speed decreased, the unexpected coincidences became even more unsettling.

For example, suddenly broken suspension rings, protruding wooden thorns, leaking trampolines…

The production team of “Little Ox Charges Forward” had never experienced such a thrilling shoot. While equipment issues were not uncommon during recordings, they were usually minor problems quickly rectified. However, today, Zhao Xiaokui seemed to be facing one challenge after another, encountering various strange issues. Under the camera’s watchful eye, the situation became increasingly perilous. Anyone unaware might have thought this was a program designed to subtly bring harm to entertainers.

In stark contrast to the consecutive unexpected events, Zhao Xiaokui’s astonishing performance stood out.

Her extraordinary jumping ability, reaction speed, and flexibility… left the audience wide-eyed and amazed.

Someone whispered, “Are the requirements for being an entertainer so high now? Zhao Xiaokui is a singer, right? How is her physical fitness so strong?”

No one but the Night Walkers’ members could answer this question.

Watching Zhao Xiaokui break through one challenge after another, although there was no change on Tao Zijin’s face, tension was building up inside her.

Logically, after using the Stealing Fortune Card, Zhao Xiaokui should have been unable to win the competition. Why was she able to smoothly pass each round?

Tao Zijin couldn’t fathom it.

Usually, when she used the Stealing Fortune Card on someone, various problems would arise on the target’s body. A series of continuous coincidences would ultimately lead to the desired outcome. However, today’s competition was completely different from what she had anticipated.

Although the Stealing Fortune Card had taken effect, Zhao Xiaokui found a way to solve the problems that arose on her own body. Despite being expected to be eliminated early on, she not only broke through seven rounds, bringing the two teams to a tie, but she also started sprinting towards the eighth round.

The eighth round resembled rock climbing but with a twist. Throughout the level, players needed to be cautious of various traps that could be triggered at any moment.

Luckily, these traps followed a pattern, and as long as one grasped the timing, they were manageable.

Zhao Xiaokui’s agile moves had already filled everyone with confidence. After observing the pattern of the traps for a while, she calculated in her mind and confidently began to navigate the level.

The first half of the journey went smoothly, quickly reaching the midpoint of the level.

This area was also the most challenging. Two large pendulum hammers swung continuously above and below, with only a short gap in the middle to pass through. Timing was crucial here, as being even a second too fast or too slow could result in being knocked off the small platform by the swinging hammers.

Zhao Xiaokui waited for two seconds, carefully choosing the right moment to pass through.

However, one of the pendulum mechanisms seemed to malfunction suddenly, and both pendulums swung towards her at the same time.

“Wow, does the production team have a grudge against Zhao Xiaokui? How many malfunctions have occurred already?”

“I can’t believe it. Just a moment ago, I was thinking this level hasn’t had any issues yet. Take a seat, it’s worth it. Xiaokui can handle it.”

“Zhao Xiaokui is just too awesome…”

After a brief moment of hesitation, Zhao Xiaokui decisively changed her trajectory from moving forward to jumping upward. With a swift push of her hands on the swinging hammers, she propelled herself to the other side.

The pre-broadcast audience expressed their admiration for her agility.

Some even engaged in casual chat:

“Zhao Xiaokui’s skills are wasted on singing. She should be in action films. No need for a stunt double, she can turn her opponents into idiots herself.”

“Xiaokui Flowers are eagerly waiting for her to star in movies or TV dramas. She’s so cool.”

“Attention, directors! This is a rising star in the martial arts scene.”

Having cleared the eighth level, Zhao Xiaokui looked up at the final challenge.

The ninth level was a simple slope with a hanging rope that she could climb upward.

Water cascaded down intermittently from above, but holding on was all she needed to do.

For Zhao Xiaokui, who managed to climb up using only her arms without leveraging her body on the rope back in the fifth level, this was not a problem.

She could already anticipate where a malfunction might occur if there was one.

Grabbing the rope and taking a deep breath, Zhao Xiaokui didn’t hesitate and began to ascend.

Her speed was impressive, and the rope in her hands kept shortening. At this moment, a massive wave suddenly gushed out from the water outlet at the top of the platform, resembling a fountain.

The oncoming spray obscured Zhao Xiaokui’s vision, carrying a powerful force straight toward her.

In the unfortunate turn of events, Zhao Xiaokui could feel it—the rope in her hands had snapped.

Without time to curse the program team, she swiftly reacted. As the huge water spray approached, Zhao Xiaokui decisively lunged towards the side, grabbing onto the protective net. She hooked onto the mesh, securing her position.

The water used by the program team was quite clear, making it easy for the cameras to capture the hemp rope descending with the water flow.

The host was also shocked by this unexpected turn of events. He pressed his earpiece, and after hearing the director’s voice, he exclaimed, “Oh my, the climbing rope actually broke. Can Xiaokui continue climbing upwards? She only has ten seconds left. Let’s count down together—ten, nine…”

Watching the figure constantly washed by the water flow near the safety net, everyone’s hearts tightened.

In her mind, Zhao Xiaokui muttered a curse.

Climbing up using the safety net.

This was undoubtedly the most unforgettable variety show challenge in her life.

Just as the on-site countdown reached one, a figure broke through the continuous water flow, staggeringly ran onto the platform, and pressed the clearance button amid the countdown.

With a long whistle, cheers erupted.

The other host waiting at the finish line approached with a microphone, asking, “Xiaokui, successful clearance. Is there anything you’d like to say?”

Zhao Xiaokui remained silent for a moment before saying, “No words can express it.”

In the live chat:

“Emmmm… Xiaokui isn’t from City F, right?”

“She’s a local in City S, 2333. I don’t think she misspoke.”

“Hahaha, no words… I’d want to swear too if I were her.”

The host awkwardly chuckled. With so many issues with the props on the track, it was indeed a problem with their program team.

However, she, being experienced in various battles, skillfully praised Zhao Xiaokui with a few words of flattery and then smoothly shifted the topic back to the main track.

This time, there was no doubt that the blue team had achieved victory, and it was a crushing victory surpassing over ten levels. Since the debut of “Little Ox Charges Forward,” this was the first time such a situation had occurred.

After all, the physical fitness of amateurs was almost the same, and although the team leader had the privilege of doubling the clearance, the number of celebrities with the ability to pass all levels was still a minority.

At the end of the show, Zhao Xiaokui stood together with a few others, including Tao Zijin.

She pressed her ear.

If she hadn’t misheard, it seemed like a cold electronic voice just said, “Mission failed, punishment begins.”

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