The next morning, Wangyou Media's RV pulled up outside the agency at the break of dawn.
"Whoa," Yue Wen muttered as he stepped out. Looking at the luxurious vehicle, it was as if he could see a Purple Jade Branch waving at him.
Inside were two rows of lengthwise leather seats that felt like oversized sofas. He Caihua was dressed in black training attire; the form-fitting outfit hugged her graceful curves, accentuating her fair skin and striking beauty.
As the door opened, she nodded politely to the two of them.
"Seeing a handsome guy and a pretty girl first thing in the morning really brightens my mood, hehe." Beside her sat A'mei. Sporting a floral shirt and dyed yellow hair, he looked like a neighborhood thug at first glance, but the moment he spoke, he exuded an overwhelmingly feminine air.
Yue Wen was dressed in a black T-shirt and jeans, looking bright and handsome. Zhao Xing'er, meanwhile, wore a loose, long knit sweater paired with a white skirt, revealing half of a slender shoulder and an exquisite collarbone.
Together, they looked just like the leads of a teen drama.
Neither of them had put much thought into their outfits; their looks alone carried their fashion sense across the finish line.
"The company accepted the idea you told me yesterday," He Caihua said, turning to Zhao Xing'er once they boarded. "I just think it's a bit of a shame. In our livestreaming circle, people usually only cover their faces when they're not fit to be seen. You're so pretty—there's really no need to cover up just to add mystery."
Last night, when Zhao Xing'er communicated her mask plan to Wangyou Media, they hadn't raised any major objections. They had merely added a clause to the contract stipulating that if her first face reveal later on was tied to commercial activities, she had to sign with Wangyou Media as well.
After all, at the end of the day, they were only supporting acts. The true star of this livestream was He Caihua, along with Liu Yuanjun and Li Feixia at most. If any of the remaining four went viral, that was certainly a bonus; if not, it wouldn't matter much.
"There are just too many things I have to worry about..." Zhao Xing'er sighed.
"Don't go telling Sister Hua about all that," Yue Wen cautioned her.
He feared that once the media company folks heard the whole story, they wouldn't just drop the idea of signing a contract with Zhao Xing'er—they would report her to the Supernatural Management Bureau and have her locked up.
Her track record was definitely enough for a prison sentence.
"Of course, your own preference comes first. The company won't force you," He Caihua said with a smile. "I can even help you pick out a pretty mask."
Zhao Xing'er flashed a sweet smile. "Thank you, Sister Hua."
The wasteland base built by the media company happened to be in Seventh City, which made things much more convenient; He Caihua was able to pick them up on the way, whereas the other young cultivators had to take the high-speed rail or drive over themselves.
Although Third Realm cultivators could fly by riding the wind, the city had specific regulations under the Flight Management Law forbidding cultivators from flying around willy-nilly.
Even in the loosely monitored suburbs, nobody took off flying over long distances on a whim because it was far too exhausting. It was just like ordinary people in modern society: no one would randomly run for two hours just to get somewhere.
Unless someone was an expert of immense cultivation level whose flight speed far exceeded vehicles, they might take to the air to save time.
Besides, the wind-riding speed of the lower three realms wasn't necessarily faster than a car on the expressway.
The RV drove all the way to the city outskirts, arriving at a private estate built against a mountain. Covering an immense area, it looked lush and green from afar, with towering courtyard walls and numerous sheds built around the perimeter, completely blocking any prying eyes from outside.
This was none other than the wasteland livestream base built by Wangyou Media.
Small wonder they had chosen Jiangcheng City for the pilot program; if they had cordoned off such a massive plot in top-tier metropolises like Longdu City or Tianhai City where land was worth its weight in gold, it would have bankrupted Wangyou Media.
Yet none of the passengers noticed that as the RV slowly rolled into the estate, a jet-black bird perched atop the distant woods suddenly flashed a glint in its eyes.
*Snap.*
...
The vehicle drove deep into the estate and parked in a large open clearing.
Yue Wen and Zhao Xing'er followed He Caihua and the others out of the vehicle, greeting a vast cluster of connected sheds. Inside were staff members from various departments, including camera operators, editors, directors, hosts, takeout thieves, logistics, security, and so on.
Although it was just a livestream, the scale of preparation rivaled that of a major film crew.
These staff members would also be staying here for three full days. The continuous row of sheds served as both workspace and living quarters, making the whole scene look chaotic. Even though coordinators were running around everywhere, keeping a project of this scale orderly was virtually impossible.
Yue Wen and Zhao Xing'er had never seen anything like this before. As they walked through, they looked around in wonder, finding the spectacle utterly fascinating.
Beyond a tall chain-link fence in the distance, dense foliage stretched as far as the eye could see. Layer upon layer of trees shadowed a deep, quiet valley, from which the occasional roar of a beast echoed, exuding a genuine, palpable aura of the untamed wild.
Venturing through this place might actually build some solid experience for when they eventually set foot in a real wasteland zone.
The group arrived at a central shed where the other two duos were already waiting. The martial brother and sister, Liu Yuanjun and Li Feixia, were still dressed in Taoist robes; the elder brother was quietly meditating with his eyes closed, regulating his breath, while his junior sister sat to the side, giggling silly at her phone.
Hidden Dragon Pool's Su Renxue was wearing a green tracksuit today, carrying a long saber slung across her back, looking every bit like a rebellious high school girl. Ji Yang, with his fiery red hair and black leather jacket, looked around with an arrogant smirk.
"Now that everyone's here, let's go over the livestream procedure. If anything's unclear, just ask. Once the stream goes live, we won't have time to waste," a female director wearing a face mask walked over and addressed the group.
"Our plan for this livestream is that three treasure chests have been placed across this zone. Each chest contains a treasure, and your challenge is to hunt for them. Aside from the three genuine chests containing treasures, we've also placed dozens of decoy chests. Some are empty, some hold basic supplies like food, and some even hide demon beasts..."
"If you find a treasure chest, the treasure is truly yours to keep as a reward; if you don't like it, you can cash it out with us. The livestream ends when all three treasure chests are found. In practice, we'll only place two genuine chests at the start. We won't put the third chest in for you to find until the afternoon of the third day, just so we don't fall short of the required streaming hours."
"As you saw on your way in, this artificial wasteland zone is huge, but you cannot move too fast. Otherwise, our bee camera lenses won't be able to keep up. Just treat this like a real wasteland zone—you're supposed to explore slowly, step by step."
"Make sure you keep your earpieces on properly. If anything unexpected happens, the crew will notify you through the earpieces at any time."
"And now, the most important point..."
The director's expression turned serious. "We have released a large number of demon beasts into this area. To satisfy the audience's imagination, the distribution might be even denser than in a normal wasteland zone. As for their strength, you can rest assured that they are well within your capabilities; we won't play games with your lives. But that is on the condition that you remain fully vigilant and do not drop your guard for a single second."
"These demon beasts were knocked unconscious while throwing themselves against the barrier outside the city defense formation. Though relatively weak, they are exceedingly ferocious. When they see humans, their bloodlust is genuinely triggered."
"If you feel confident, feel free to show off some flashy supernatural powers and sorcery to enhance the viewing experience." With that, she smiled. "After all, each of you will have a dedicated bee camera following you and your own sub-stream channel. If tips come in on your sub-stream, your cut will be higher too."
"Alright, that's everything I need to cover. Any questions?"
The moment the words left her mouth, Yue Wen raised his hand ahead of everyone else. "Can we slay the released demon beasts however we please?"
"Heh, of course," the director replied. "Those are real wasteland demon beasts, and everything works just as it does in the wasteland. Even if you don't attack first, they'll hunt you down."
"If no one has any other questions, you can do some simple makeup and get ready to start streaming! It's going to be hard work over these next three days."
Hard work?
Yue Wen smiled faintly.
A place that paid money, brought fame, and let him slaughter demon beasts at will? Forget three days—he'd happily stay here taking only three days off a month!
Chapter 37