I wake to discover that I am stranded more than a thousand meters above the ground, standing on the top of a stone pillar that rises through the clouds. I have no memory of how I reached it, no obvious route down, and no idea whether anyone else is nearby. The impossible location turns a simple question—how do I get home?—into a test of observation and survival. As I search the pillar for clues, I begin to suspect that arriving here was not an accident and that the sky around me is hiding an even larger mystery.
Chapter 14: What a Small World
A masked woman emerged from the coffee shop next door and addressed the group seated at the table. Standing on either side of her were two bodyguards in black suits—tall and burly—with one hand hidden inside their jackets; it was unclear whether they were holding guns. No one spoke; everyone looked quietly at the masked woman. For the actors on stage, the director is someone you simply cannot offend. Because, in a sense, she holds the power over every actor’s life and death! For example, if the plot requires one or more extras to “meet their end,” and in the director’s eyes, extras are all interchangeable—it makes no difference who ends up as a wax figure—but if the director takes a dislike to you and designates you as the one to “meet your end” in that scene, you’ll just have to accept your fate. To be turned into a wax figure, you can only be rescued if a relative or friend helps pay off the outstanding debt. If you have no relatives here, or if you’ve behaved so poorly on set that you’ve alienated everyone and no friends are willing to help rescue you, you’ll have no choice but to remain quietly in the wax museum as a beautiful wax figure. The cost of saving a friend who’s been turned into a wax figure is simply too high. That cost is enough to bring a thousand-meter-high platform all the way down to the ground—it goes without saying what a normal person would choose. As Gao Fei said, even if he paid a huge price to save his girlfriend, who knows if she’ll do something stupid again during her next performance? So, saving a friend who’s turned into a wax figure is a false dilemma. “This scene of yours is a car crash scene, and those two…” The director pointed to the man and woman wearing large sunglasses at the round table: “They’re the leads in this car crash scene. They’re playing a couple who got into an argument in the car. The male lead got so angry that he sped up to over a hundred yards per hour, while the six of you are extras—extras who just happen to be crossing the street.” “Unfortunately, the car is speeding straight toward you as you cross the street. As long as one of you dies, the car crash scene is considered a success.” “What we’re filming is the tragic yet beautiful moment when the car collides with the people. We’re using this scene to warn people just how terrible car accidents are—and to emphasize that you must never drive while angry.” “If any of the extras unfortunately end up looking like wax figures in the process, it’s an honor—at least it demonstrates the value of their existence.” “Drones on set will capture the entire process from all angles.” “If the footage is spectacular enough, one of the shots might be selected for the poster. If it’s chosen for the poster, everyone will receive an extra 5 points as a reward. Those who demonstrate exceptional acting skills or on-the-spot performance will receive additional rewards.” “All extras present, please wait for my instructions regarding when to stand up and when to cross the street. I will provide specific requirements regarding your walking speed while crossing.” “Follow only the instructions I give you through your headsets. Anyone who violates my instructions during the shoot will be dismissed from the set.” “Dismissal will result in a one-time deduction of 1,000 points.” “You now have ten minutes to discuss the plot. In ten minutes, we’ll officially start filming this car crash scene!” After the director finished speaking, he handed each person a small Bluetooth earbud, then turned and walked into the nearby café, leaving the eight actors gathered around the round table. “One in eight chance of getting killed and turned into a wax figure—I hope it’s not me,” Gao Fei muttered under his breath to Li Teng. “Doesn’t the fate of the six of us extras rest entirely in the hands of that man and woman? To be precise, doesn’t it rest on the steering wheel held by that guy in sunglasses?” Li Teng whispered back to Gao Fei. “Yeah, sigh! Nothing we can do about it. They’re clearly veteran actors who’ve survived countless performances—at the very least, they’re special extras, right? What can we do? We’re just newbies,” Gao Fei sighed. “Are there different levels for actors?” Li Teng knew absolutely nothing about this industry. “Yeah, in a full-scale production, newcomers start as extras, then move on to minor supporting extras, followed by regular cast members, mid-level supporting actors, major supporting actors, supporting roles, lead roles, and finally Best Actor or Best Actress. For small scenes like the one in our show, as long as those two are one rank higher than us—even if they’re only at the minor supporting level—they can still play the lead roles in this scene,” Gao Fei replied to Li Teng. “So this hierarchy really does exist across all dimensions,” Li Teng remarked, not at all surprised. Besides, there was no point in complaining about it. For those two to be the leads in this scene, they must have naturally gone through life-and-death struggles in the previous scenes—whether it was a few, a dozen, or even dozens of them. In the real world, if you aren’t the child of a wealthy or powerful family but still want to rise above others, you have to work harder than everyone else. At least here, there’s no unfair advantage for the children of the wealthy or powerful. “Bro, you’re the lead actor! I really wouldn’t have guessed it! It’s such a stroke of luck to run into you right after arriving here!” A young man in his twenties, wearing glasses, looked at the man in sunglasses beside him with eager and envious eyes peering through his lenses. When this young man in glasses first arrived on the island, he was just as clueless as Li Teng. He’d been so thoroughly tricked by the man in sunglasses at a wax museum that he’d literally wet himself out of fear, and after that, he’d sworn allegiance to the man in sunglasses as his “big brother.” “I’m the future Best Actor. There’s definitely a benefit in hanging out with me.” The man in sunglasses took off his sunglasses and patted the bespectacled young man on the shoulder. When Li Teng saw the face revealed beneath the sunglasses, he couldn’t help but furrow his brow. It was actually someone he knew! To run into him here of all places? Someone must have looked up the actors’ profiles and arranged this on purpose—otherwise, it just doesn’t make sense. “Best Actor? You? You’re just a minor extra. You’re lucky to even be on set—what’s there to brag about?” the woman in sunglasses said to the man in sunglasses with utter disdain. They weren’t the leads in this show, *Dead End Rush*; to the show’s true leads, these two were, at best, mere extras. Of course, in this small car-crash scene, they were indeed the “leads” compared to Li Teng, Gao Fei, and the other extras. “Brag? What do I have to brag about? To them, I’m the star right now! I’m God! And I control all of their fates!” The man in sunglasses was a bit annoyed by the woman’s attitude; he put his sunglasses back on and snorted coldly. Hearing the man in sunglasses say this, the extras all looked a bit uncomfortable. Li Teng even deliberately lowered his head, pretending to drink coffee, using the rim of his cup to hide most of his face. Inside, he was cursing under his breath the whole time. The man in sunglasses was right—indeed, the fates of these six extras now lay entirely in his hands. Once filming officially began, the six extras would cross the wide street in front of them one by one, following the instructions in their earpieces. Their speed would be strictly regulated—neither too fast nor too slow—and their movements would be completely beyond their own control. Meanwhile, the man in sunglasses would be driving a sports car, barreling toward them at over a hundred yards per hour. All he needed to do was take out one extra, and the scene would be wrapped. As for who gets hit and who doesn’t—it’s entirely up to him! Although it’s just acting—the actor who gets hit won’t actually die—they’re guaranteed to end up as a wax figure. Unless they have a balance of 1,000 points in their account, they can avoid being turned into a wax figure by having 1,000 points deducted. But who would keep a thousand points sitting in their account? Wouldn’t you hurry up and make the stone pillar disappear before making a run for it? If the guy in sunglasses recognized Li Teng, Li Teng could guess with his eyes closed who the guy would choose to hit once filming started. Unless, for the guy in sunglasses, there’s someone among the extras here who he hates even more than Li Teng. But that was simply impossible. Facing such a situation right in the first scene, Li Teng could only lament inwardly at his truly terrible luck. “Hahahaha… Don’t be afraid, everyone. I’m actually a very gentle and kind person. There isn’t much time left before we start filming, so now each of you say a few words—introduce yourselves and say something that’ll make me happy. Only then can I finally decide which one of you I’ll run over with my car later.” The man in sunglasses noticed the change in the six extras’ expressions and laughed smugly a few times.
