Chapter 20: AV Star Factory (4)
Hearing the broadcast, Ji Ning looked at the clock on the wall. It was already 5:45.
Song Weiyang, whose head was still buried between Ji Ning's legs, knew they were out of time too. His handsome brows furrowed. They had only just started, and he was still hard.
With an unhappy look, he retrieved his underwear scattered on the bed and, supporting Ji Ning's slender, fair legs, helped her put them on.
Seeing him fuss over her with a sullen face, Ji Ning couldn't help but let out a "pfft" of laughter.
Song Weiyang lifted his eyes, smiling as he shot her a glance, and gently tickled the sole of her foot with his fingers.
Ji Ning twitched from the tickle and twisted away, laughing. Fortunately, Song Weiyang wasn't really teasing her; after tickling her foot, he finished putting her underwear on.
She then put her bra back on, slipped into her dress, and casually tidied her disheveled hair.
The two walked out the door shoulder to shoulder, just as two people emerged from the neighboring pink door. It was Player No. 8 and Player No. 3, who had teamed up.
Perhaps because No. 8 was still resentful over failing to form a team with Ji Ning, when the two pairs met, he snorted through his nostrils, refused to spare them a direct glance, and walked ahead with his arm around No. 3's waist.
Ji Ning and Song Weiyang exchanged a look and shook their heads helplessly.
Where there was competition, harmony between players was impossible. Song Weiyang had seen plenty of this and couldn't care less.
He took Ji Ning's hand and quietly consoled her. "Don't let it bother us. We just need to get first place."
"Okay!" Ji Ning hadn't really taken it to heart either, but her originally good mood had been soured by that sidelong glare from No. 8.
Going down the stairs in the middle of the dormitory to the first floor, straight ahead was the so-called "canteen." A serving counter had been set up on the concrete floor, with dozens of tables and chairs arranged in the space.
Probably to keep the contestants in shape, the meal trays set out contained nothing but broccoli and eggs, all plainly boiled. It was tragically vegetarian.
While getting their food, Ji Ning heard Song Weiyang beside her suck in a sharp breath and couldn't help but laugh quietly.
Men were carnivores, especially young men. For Song Weiyang to eat vegetarian was more horrifying than any horror game.
The two found a corner to sit down. Ji Ning cracked her boiled egg, peeled off half the shell, and handed it to Song Weiyang. "You can have this egg."
Song Weiyang was chewing broccoli with a wooden expression, as if gnawing on tree bark. Seeing the tender white egg Ji Ning offered, he waved it off. "It's so little. You eat it yourself, no need to give it to me."
"You eat it. If you have no energy, how will we get first place?" Ji Ning took his hand, pressed the egg into his palm, then speared a floret of broccoli from his tray and put it on her own. "A trade, one for one. It's only fair."
Song Weiyang's ever-smiling eyes froze for a moment. His hand holding the egg didn't know what to do.
He watched Ji Ning lower her head, revealing only the exquisite line of her jaw, and the light in his eyes gradually deepened.
Ji Ning had no idea how much this casual gesture had touched Song Weiyang. She was looking around, observing the others' team formations.
Because Song Weiyang had been first to pick a teammate, she had followed him into the room without knowing the subsequent situation.
Now all twelve players were present. Besides No. 3 and No. 8, whom they had already met, the remaining teams were No. 1 and No. 2, No. 4 and No. 5, No. 9 and No. 11, and No. 10 and No. 12.
Except for one pair that still seemed unfamiliar, the other five pairs—including Ji Ning and Song Weiyang themselves—had already grown familiar with each other.
While Ji Ning observed the others, they were also observing her side.
Especially the female player No. 3, who was paired with No. 8.
She had a gorgeous, alluring appearance, with an hourglass figure that was perfectly proportioned. She was a sexy, stunning beauty. Seated with No. 8, they actually matched quite well.
But perhaps because, although the first two pairs could both pass the instance, the system prompt indicated the reward between second place and first place differed by seventy points. So, even though both of these people were formidable, the man having his eye on Ji Ning and the woman having her eye on Song Weiyang, undercurrents were already stirring before the competition even began.
The carefree Song Weiyang paid no mind to these gazes. After finishing his dinner and rinsing his mouth with water, he leaned next to Ji Ning, propping his head up to watch her.
When they played Werewolf, him watching her like this was to probe; now, it was because he never tired of looking, liking her more with every glance.
Ji Ning felt so watched she could barely eat. She asked him, "What is it?"
Song Weiyang raised his brows in a grin. "I've already figured out our strategy."
After dinner, the 12 contestants were led by men in black to the shooting location—a lighting studio built from panels, with a bed, sofa, and rug placed in the center.
"You will determine your shooting order by drawing lots. The cover photos you produce will be transmitted to the judges for scoring in that order. The lowest-scoring contestant will be the last place and eliminated." The man in black loudly announced the rules for the first round's photo assessment.
The players instantly felt alarm bells ringing in their minds.
With such rules, the drawing order became particularly crucial. The later one went, the more disadvantageous the position. Especially concerning creative elements like poses: if someone ahead used them, and a later person did something similar, the judges would already be experiencing aesthetic fatigue and would definitely not give high scores.
Just as Ji Ning was worrying about this, Song Weiyang squeezed her hand. "Sister, let me draw the lot, so you don't have to bear the pressure. Though I don't have good luck with these things."
Ji Ning herself also had bad luck. She didn't dare draw, afraid she'd get the sixth spot. With Song Weiyang stepping up proactively, her pressure eased considerably.
"Alright, you go draw. Don't feel pressured either. Any spot is fine."
Subsequently, a man in black brought a small black box containing small balls wrapped with order slips. Six contestants stepped forward to each take a ball and walked back to their partners to open them.
Song Weiyang opened the ball, unrolled the slip, and glanced at it himself first. "Uh-oh."
His tone didn't sound like it was good news, but his expression remained that same easygoing look.
Then he showed the slip to Ji Ning. It clearly read "5."
Livestream comments:
"Hahaha, Song Weiyang's luck is just too terrible."
"Talks big but falls short. Might as well have let Ji Ning draw it."
"Ranked this far back, their team is in serious danger."
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