FLME Ch35: Battle Royale Recording

Beep, beep, beep—

His health bar sounded another warning alarm, dropping all the way down to a precarious two percent.

Releasing the giant dragon, Yu Wen took a step back and slowly drew a deep breath.

His eyelashes lowered slightly, the emotion in his eyes surging and ebbing like rising tides, profoundly moved and melancholic.

The Dragon’s memories consisted primarily of spoken words, with holographic projections serving merely as aids. Even without opening his eyes, simply listening was enough to feel the violent impact of raw emotion.

Experiencing what others experience, living what others live…

Within certain souls lay buried magnificent gems; performing these characters was the process of unearthing those gems.

Even if this was merely a simple variety show script.

Even if the role of the Hero occupied perhaps only two or three sparse pages of notes.

Knowing the ending in advance—a reverse chronicle that opened with a tragedy—struck Yu Wen with an even deeper emotional resonance than Chu Zhiyao ever had.

If one watched a television drama starting from its ending, every ounce of joy and happiness along the way would become inextricably bound to the inevitable outcome. Every shared laugh with the characters would only leave a deeper, more agonizing regret once the curtains fell.

And the greater the regret, the stronger the urge to change it.

Yu Wen turned around and looked back. Light curtains drifted gently through the cavernous hall like scattered stardust, cradling a fleeting moment of warmth that stretched into eternity alongside the celestial river.

His gaze swept across it all, like a lost traveler searching for traces of the past.

Finally, his eyes rested quietly on the Dragon.

“I will win,” he said softly.

Yu Wen picked up his sword and embarked upon his campaign without looking back.

This match, he had to win.

The Demon King’s lingering malice drifted through the castle, omnipresent.

It took Tong Li and the others quite a while to locate the secret chamber Yu Wen had previously entered.

Flanked by dark acrylic partitions, the NPC playing the Demon King drifted to and fro, occasionally lunging forward for a terrifying jumpscare that scared the living daylights out of several guests.

They shoved and nudged one another for a good while before finally pushing forward a representative—Tong Li—to dialogue with the Demon King.

The NPC wore horrifyingly gruesome makeup and lurked behind the partitions, his movements unpredictable. Tong Li felt thoroughly spooked as well, stammering out: “D-Demon King…”

The NPC was profoundly touched, almost wanting to laugh out loud to the heavens. All the sense of achievement he had lost on Yu Wen was restored in full by the guests before him, prompting him to ramp up the scares with even greater enthusiasm.

Piercing shrieks rang out one after another. The more faint-hearted pair, Daniel Lee and Yi Ming, collapsed onto the floor, clutching their heads in tears.

The director was thrilled, pointing at the monitor: “We’ve got the tearjerker moments, and now we’ve got the comedy! Our premiere episode is completely wrapped and ready!”

Once the tension had reached the right heat, the director picked up the walkie-talkie and instructed the NPC to dispense the clues.

The Demon King repeated the monologue he had previously delivered to Yu Wen.

Scrambling and tumbling, the four tumbled out of the corridor in a chaotic mess. Sprawled on the floor, Tong Li tremblingly fished out the previously found Whispers of the Wandering Souls.

Her body felt on the verge of fainting, but her mind remained sharp. Swallowing hard, she said rasply: “The curse… Inside the curse is the line, ‘The Demon King’s castle shall become the world’s most inescapable cage.’ The Dragon claimed this castle, so the ‘Demon King’s Castle’ no longer exists, which means that curse is nullified, right…?”

“Wait!” A spark of inspiration suddenly struck her. Before finding this secret room, the broadcast had given a clue: The Demon King’s lingering malice refuses to disperse… deceiving naive travelers into becoming his blades…

Did the “naive traveler” refer to the Bard?

If the Demon King’s lingering hatred sought a target, wouldn’t the most likely enemy be the Dragon that claimed its fortress and neutralized its curse?

This seemingly had nothing to do with the other guests.

However…

“Xiao Jian is the villain?!” Yi Ming gasped in surprise.

“That’s not the point. The point is that receiving an antagonist role usually comes with substantial perks in game mechanics. He probably doesn’t need to gather all the clues to escape like we do; if he plays his cards right, he could knock out the entire board,” Fan Xiangyang chimed in immediately, thoroughly familiar with the show’s routine tricks.

“No wonder Xiao Jian hasn’t really been searching for clues since earlier.” Daniel Lee frowned thoughtfully. “So… what is his advantage?”

His advantage was that eliminating the soul the Demon King loathed most granted him an immediate escape.

From the very beginning, Jian Heng waking up in the banquet hall and having his health bar drain the fastest were all prearranged according to his character profile. Though he bore the greatest risk and the most disadvantageous starting point, once his clues were pieced together, his mechanical advantage far surpassed that of any other guest.

Unfortunately, Xiao Jian had strayed down the wrong path and showed no signs of returning.

He lifted the banquet tablecloth, peering underneath to search for his lost Teacher Yu.

Not under the table. He pulled open a cabinet.

Still nothing. Jian Heng was on the verge of a breakdown: “Where is our Xiao Yu?! Who hid our Xiao Yu away!”

Watching him search frantically for Yu Wen like a mother hen that had lost her chick, the director opened his mouth to speak, stopped, and opened it again.

The assistant director suggested: “Should we feed him another hint…?”

He’s about to veer off into another dimension.

The director looked utterly stressed. “He doesn’t look at them!”

Every guest’s starting information was deliberately vague and misleading to heighten the difficulty. The process of gathering clues required constantly disproving hypotheses and rebuilding deductions. Yet once Jian Heng concluded his guess, he set his mind in stone that Yu Wen was his target. The clues the director deliberately dropped along his path were like winking at a blind man.

Jian Heng tugged at the paintings hanging along the walls, checking whether the production team had plastered his Xiao Yu onto the stone.

Out of the corner of his eye, a dark silhouette flickered. The figure he had been painstakingly searching for stepped out from the second-floor landing.

Jian Heng wept tears of joy. “Not lost! Not lost! Damned production crew, I missed our Xiao Yu so much I couldn’t even eat…”

Yu Wen had long grown accustomed to him putting on theatrical melodrama anywhere and everywhere; Jian Heng was a born comedic talent.

“Hold on.” Yu Wen raised a hand toward him as he lunged forward, gently shoving him aside before walking over to the long dining table and crouching down to feel around the floorboards.

Jian Heng asked curiously: “Xiao Yu, what are you looking for?”

Yu Wen: “A mechanism.”

So Jian Heng followed suit, turning into a floor-crawling goblin beside him.

After feeling around for a bit, Jian Heng asked in hindsight: “What does the mechanism look like?”

Yu Wen’s muffled voice drifted from the opposite side of the table: “No idea.”

Jian Heng: “…” Blind feeling?

Whether it was the clue “You are the center of the event” or the dragon relief directly overhead, all signs pointed to a hidden mechanism in this area. Yu Wen had skipped several game stages along the way and lacked detailed knowledge of certain lore fragments; at this point, he could only rely on the brute-force approach.

After searching for twenty minutes, Yu Wen discovered a switch beneath the rug.

Both men stepped back in unison. The floorboards beneath the dining table slid open smoothly, the ground parting like a crevasse to reveal a ten-meter-wide void from which wisps of dark mist began to rise.

A chanting, resonant broadcast resonated:

“O Hero, have you completed your journey of exploration?”

Yu Wen gave a nod.

“Whoa! Xiao Yu, you figured it all out that fast?!” Jian Heng clapped enthusiastically to show support, praising him warmly: “Incredible!”

Yu Wen’s fingertip gently grazed the back of his right hand. A handkerchief was wrapped securely around it; if unfastened now, it would expose a dangerous, flashing red light indicating a measly one percent.

He was out of time.

Converted into minutes, one percent equated to roughly fourteen minutes, and this one percent was already less than a full segment.

He had to verify his storyline first. If his storyline was correct, then his hypothesized hunting target would be correct as well.

“O Hero, before you lie the mountain ranges. Prove to me that you have awakened.”

Yu Wen pondered for a second, then drew the blade in his hands.

This was the first time the Holy Cross Sword had been unsheathed.

The brilliant, snowy blade flared with sharp radiance, reflecting a cold, chilling gleam. Yu Wen ran his fingers gently along its flat, his fingertips meeting an icy touch.

Jian Heng had no idea what this action signified, but merely watching from the side made him hold his breath involuntarily.

This felt almost like… a coronation.

Such a solemn expression rarely appeared on Yu Wen’s face; at most, he usually looked placid. Yet this single scene allowed Jian Heng to witness an unstoppable, resolute determination on his old friend’s face.

It felt as though, at this very moment, he truly was the Hero.

Yu Wen casually twirled the blade into a flourish.

Thanks to the combat training on the set of Mountain Courtyard, Fenghua, Legend of the Immortal Sect. Rise! Best Actor, he had developed considerable familiarity with swords as props. Chu Zhiyao’s primary weapon was a sword, and Yu Wen had practiced numerous flourishes and combat stances. Though a gap existed between eastern xianxia and western fantasy, this effortless wrist twirl, paired with Yu Wen’s serene, composed posture, struck a bizarre yet wondrous harmony.

Flexing his wrist, Yu Wen dropped abruptly onto one knee, plunging the longsword firmly into the black mist before him.

The very first action of an awakened Hero should be drawing his blade to cleave through the wicked curse of magic.

“Handsome!” Jian Heng blurted out instinctively in awe. Realizing his voice was a bit too loud and fearing he might disrupt Yu Wen, he lowered his voice to an awed whisper: “Super handsome…”

Yu Wen’s facial features had never quite aligned with traditional heroic sharpness; he looked youthful, pristine, and possessed immense viewer appeal. Yet his physique did not match his boyish face. Standing at 179 centimeters, he was neither short nor exceptionally tall in the entertainment industry, but his neck was slender, his posture impeccably straight, and in a structured costume like the Hero’s regalia, softening his expressions diminished his everyday approachable warmth into a pure, clean elegance.

Especially in this instant: aloof and tranquil, yet carrying the weight of a thunderous strike as he drove the blade steadily into the floor.

That fluid, seamless sequence of movements was stunning enough to leave one dizzy!

Merely watching from the side left Jian Heng marveling, let alone imagining the finished broadcast cut after color grading and soundtrack scoring…

The broadcast announced:

“O Hero, your exploration has concluded.”

This signaled that his storyline had been verified successfully.

Yu Wen exhaled a quiet breath.

Just as he released his grip on the sword, Jian Heng lunged forward, enveloping him in an enthusiastic hug. “Xiao Yu, that was drop-dead gorgeous! It’s so good to see you.”

His express-clear key and health replenishment pack.

Yu Wen blinked, then returned the embrace with apparent emotion. “It’s so good to see you too. I was thinking the exact same thing.”

What a coincidence. In my eyes, you’re also a health replenishment pack.

The Dragon’s memories had mentioned that the vile Bard was slain by the Dragon bearing the Holy Sword in its jaws. The Dragon did not count as a guest and fell outside their closed loop. If the Hero was destined to hunt someone, the Bard who fell beneath the Holy Sword was the most probable candidate.

It had originally been a deduction, but now Yu Wen was roughly ninety percent certain.

“Give me the lute. I’ll play for you.”

The logic was simple: if Jian Heng attacked him and failed the hunt, Jian Heng would be eliminated. Indirectly, that elimination was caused by him, which qualified as a hunt by the Hero.

This was equivalent to a designated prey target—whom he would normally have had to spend precious time approaching and earning trust from—delivering himself right to the doorstep. Not only that, he had rushed over with burning urgency, taken pity on Yu Wen’s remaining fourteen minutes of health, and cleanly slit his own throat.

Yu Wen could only say: Gratitude.

Without Jian Heng, after unlocking the Dragon’s memories and watching his health plummet to two percent, he wouldn’t have possessed such high confidence in successfully escaping.

However, uncertain whether the Hero’s hunt required a physical ritual, it would be best to follow up with a tap from the Holy Sword in a moment.

Never expecting him to be so proactive, Jian Heng felt a mix of gratitude, surprise, and self-reproach.

“Starting right now? You just finished your verification, why not wait a bit longer…”

If I wait any longer, my health bar will flatline, Yu Wen sighed internally.

“It doesn’t matter.” Yu Wen smiled gently. “I have nothing left to do anyway.”

Jian Heng: “Nothing left to do? Do you still have enough health?”

Yu Wen replied serenely: “Not enough. But I haven’t found my prey target, so I decided to throw in the towel.”

The look in Jian Heng’s eyes transformed into sheer pity.

He believed Yu Wen completely. Just like when Yu Wen once claimed to possess a metaphysical constitution where gossip followed wherever he walked, Teacher Jian fell for it hook, line, and sinker once again.

His gaze was overflowing with touched affection, thinking to himself: Good brother, when I claim that gold, I’m splitting half with you.

Members who successfully escaped received pure gold trophies, each featuring distinct styling and intricate craftsmanship; Jian Heng had been drooling over those rewards for ages.

He handed the lute to Yu Wen.

Yu Wen plucked a few test notes. Having not played in years, his fingering was somewhat rusty, yet the notes that resonated remained deep, mellow, and fluid.

Greensleeves was a widely known English folk song with a classical, elegant melody. Paired with the deep, natural resonance of a lute, it exuded a distinctive, melancholic ambiance.

Cradling the instrument, Yu Wen took a seat on the steps.

The central stairs faced the long dining table in the banquet hall. With a simple lift of his eyes, Yu Wen could gaze upon the dragon across the dome.

“…What is it?” Jian Heng asked.

Yu Wen shook his head. Thinking about how the Dragon was left with only a solitary soul made a lingering sorrow swell in his chest.

The Hero’s party was shattered, separated by life and death, their promise of traveling together reduced to an epitaph on a gravestone… It was a grand, tragic banquet. Yet within this tragedy, Yu Wen still wished to leave behind a glimmer of hope.

At the very least, the Hero and the Dragon deserved a reunion.

He strummed the strings.

Fair fingertips danced across the lute strings. Yu Wen’s gaze lowered slightly, fully immersed and focused, as a fluid, melodious tune echoed through the grand hall in an instant.

The lute and the medieval aesthetic were a match made in heaven.

In a daze, Jian Heng felt as though he were gazing upon a cozy tavern bathed in warm, flickering light: the Hero’s party laughing merrily, clinking tankards of ale together, while a wandering bard in the corner recited tales of the road, and the tavern keeper raised a glass from afar to celebrate their safe return…

Snapping back, a pang of guilt washed over him.

I’m about to kill the Hero.

I truly deserve to die.

Tong Li and the other three were frantically piecing together their remaining fragments of lore.

Time was running out, and their storylines remained incomplete.

For instance, Tong Li: how exactly did the Princess die? What was that so-called ‘attempt’ she made right before her death…?

For instance, Yi Ming: what kind of person was the Elf? What drove her to exhaust all her healing magic to save the Dwarf…?

For instance, Daniel Lee: how did the Grand Archmage die specifically…?

For instance, Fan Xiangyang…

A chaotic web of missing threads.

It had only been about five hours since filming began—not particularly slow compared to previous seasons—but the sudden arrival of the ghost birds right at the start had caught them completely flat-footed. Health bars had drained far faster than usual, leaving even the experienced veteran Fan Xiangyang growing anxious.

A faint, muffled announcement crackled outside, sounding distant, likely originating from the banquet hall. None of them looked up, but moments later, the strains of a melody drifted inward.

Burying her head in clues, Yi Ming couldn’t help but pause. “Who has the leisure to play music right now?”

“Crap.” Fan Xiangyang slapped his forehead. “There is only one chance to escape! If someone gathers all their clues and leaves early, the rest of us will be eliminated on the spot!”

Yi Ming let out an uncharacteristically crude swear and bolted toward the door.

Gathering up her voluminous princess skirt, Tong Li puffed and panted as she sprinted after her.

In the time it took Daniel Lee to turn back and grab his magic staff, the room was completely deserted.

Daniel Lee: “…”

Could you guys wait up for me even a little bit?!

The deep, beautiful music continued to resonate. Unbeknownst to Yu Wen, Jian Heng had circled behind him, perching on the step directly above him. Letting out a soft sigh, he placed a hand on Yu Wen’s shoulder.

“Xiao Yu…”

As if deaf to his words, Yu Wen continued playing.

Jian Heng could tell the melody was nearing its conclusion.

He flashed a signal toward the camera in the corner—the hunt gesture.

As the final note faded away, Jian Heng leaned down slightly toward Yu Wen’s ear, his voice thick with guilt and sorrow:

“Forgive me, my friend.”

Cradling the instrument, Yu Wen sat quietly in place.

A voice resonated through the loudspeaker, echoing throughout the entire castle:

“The Bard has failed his hunt. The wandering soul’s time has expired, returning to nothingness…”

Jian Heng: “?”

Yu Wen stared blankly into the empty air. Hearing the expected outcome, a faint smile surfaced on his lips anyway.

“Forgive me, my friend.” He turned around, offering a polite gentleman’s bow and repeating the exact same words right back to Jian Heng.

Then he rose to his feet, preparing to signal the camera.

As long as his health restored past the twenty percent mark, he would meet every single prerequisite for escape—

“Brave warrior, wait—!!” Yi Ming came panting into view, clinging to the second-floor banister and waving frantically at Yu Wen.

Yu Wen turned his head in confusion, realizing what was happening the moment he spotted Tong Li rushing up right behind her—right, there was only one opportunity to escape.

He paused to think.

Catching her breath on the upper landing, Yi Ming rapidly scrambled to formulate her words. Before she could speak, Yu Wen said, “I can wait for you guys, but we need to wrap this up fast. I only have about…”

As he spoke, he untied the handkerchief around the back of his hand, revealing the flashing red light indicating his final three minutes before everyone’s eyes.

Yu Wen fell silent, looking up earnestly: “Can you finish gathering your clues in three minutes?”

Yi Ming’s words caught in her throat.

“Forget it,” Tong Li spoke up suddenly.

She offered Yu Wen an easy, relaxed smile, spreading her hands. “Our storylines still have massive gaps. If you give up your escape to buy us time, it’s possible all of us might escape together, but don’t forget: the wandering souls lingered here for so long just to wait for you to awaken. If the rest of us escape while you end up trapped here, I don’t think that’s the ending this story deserves. If it were her, she would want you to leave even more.”

Tong Li didn’t elaborate on who “she” was, but in that fleeting instant, everyone understood who she meant.

If it were the Princess, she would definitely want you to leave.

“‘The wandering souls lingered…'” Yu Wen murmured the words softly.

He hadn’t known this detail, but the moment Tong Li mentioned it, he grasped it immediately—and understood why his clue had been: You are the center of the event.

Because these lingering souls and the dragon across the dome had all remained behind for his sake.

He was the beating heart of this castle.

Yi Ming fell silent for two seconds, then burst into a sudden laugh. With her wig clinging to her sweat-sheened forehead, she waved at Yu Wen: “Next match I’m sticking with you to win that gold back! Let’s let this one slide. The Elf wishes you smooth travels. Teacher Yu, go on ahead.”

Holding his magic staff, Daniel Lee stood at the head of the stairs, smiling gently. The calm, composed Grand Archmage seemed to materialize into reality at that very moment.

He said, “O Hero, do not linger. March forward.”

“Go on, Xiao Yu, the three minutes are almost up.” A voice drifted from behind. Yu Wen turned around to see Fan Xiangyang seated on the steps, the veteran MC’s voice carrying a warm smile and an anchoring, resolute strength: “Walk forward, and don’t look back.”

Yu Wen suddenly didn’t know what to say.

For a brief, unprompted moment, he thought of a screenshot his boss had shared in the group chat—a featured comment beneath one of his trending searches: “Even in an entertainment industry you aren’t familiar with, please continue to shine bright.”

That comment had startled him at the time. Though he hadn’t poured his entire soul into the job, he felt he had never slacked off in his duties; yet someone had seen through his detachment and unfamiliarity with the industry at a single glance.

He had thought his dedication to this job was already sincere enough.

Yet perhaps… the true magic of the entertainment industry was only now unfolding before his eyes.

After a long silence, Yu Wen said nothing at all. He simply raised the sword in his hand and offered a bright, radiant smile.

Just like the Hero making a solemn vow: I will continue forward; please rest in peace.

The cast members waved back in reply.

Jian Heng stood watching with complete bewilderment, entirely unable to parse their interaction. Yet finding it rather touching, he stepped forward cooperatively, preparing to give Yu Wen a parting embrace: “Teacher Yu…”

Yu Wen flashed the hunt gesture, snatched up the longsword embedded in the floor, and cleanly drew it across Jian Heng’s waist.

The specialized fabric made contact with the blade edge, oozing a crimson liquid resembling fresh blood.

Jian Heng: “?”

“The Hero has successfully completed his hunt; health restored.”

No matter how far off track Teacher Jian had wandered, he snapped to his senses at that moment.

He felt profound regret, suspecting that his final dying words would be bleeped out by the production team.

Because what he said was: “Fuck.”

The broadcast continued:

“O Hero awakened from the mountain ranges, carry the wills of your companions and continue your campaign…”

The tightly sealed castle gates slowly swung open. Yu Wen walked to the threshold as sunlight spilled through the widening gap—first a solitary beam, then a cascading expanse of brilliant sunshine enveloping his entire figure.

Sheathing his blade, Yu Wen turned back around and pointed the tip of his scabbard toward the stained-glass carving across the dome.

“Guests are requested to clear the main hall,” the speaker warned.

Three minutes later, the stained glass fractured inch by inch, fine, crystalline shards showering down from midair. The dragon’s soul sealed within the glass began to awaken, drifting ethereal as morning mist.

A holographic black dragon materialized before Yu Wen, lowering its head affectionately toward him as if waiting for a gentle touch.

Yu Wen stroked its horn lightly and smiled.

“My friend.”

“Novice instance concluded. Clear count: One player.

“Yu Wen, Registration Number: xyum667. Your novice gift package has been bound. Please select your clear reward—

“Apologies, registration numbers cannot be deregistered, and the game cannot be exited.

“Please select your clear reward—

“‘Wandering Soul Mode’ selected. Description: ‘Wandering Soul Mode,’ a veteran player mode with the ultimate objective of resurrecting lingering souls. Form a team with four other players; the higher the party’s survival rate per mission, the higher the player points awarded. High scores aid in achieving the ultimate objective.

“The second instance is about to commence. Season Ultimate Mission: Resurrect the wandering souls and reform the Hero’s party.

“Welcome to… Battle Royale.”