The central computer had to process an enormous amount of data in an instant, causing the control system to lag — something no one had anticipated.
"When you came to my haunted house for a challenge, I gave you smiley-face service and explained everything in full detail. Now I'm here at your place to give it a shot, and the machines break before I've even started. On top of that, your designer just shoved me." Chen Ge pointed at Qingming, who was standing beside the control console. "I'm not the type to hold grudges, so I'll let that little thing slide. All I want to know is: how long is this going to take?"
As Chen Ge tossed out his snide remarks, he wandered around with his phone in hand as though he'd returned to his own home. The Virtual Future staff watched him with barely contained fury.
"This situation is your fault to begin with," snapped a fellow visitor who was supposed to enter alongside him, his face dark and his tone ice-cold.
"How can you possibly blame me?" Chen Ge grabbed a nearby staff member and pointed his phone camera right at him. "Brother, just look at it from the theme park's perspective — was that my fault just now? No pressure, just speak your mind in front of a few hundred thousand viewers."
"You… it really can't be blamed on you. Our park didn't think things through carefully enough. Please bear with us for a moment, Mr. Chen." The staff member seemed afraid he wouldn't be able to control his expression and, forcing the words out, immediately bolted.
Chen Ge wanted to say something more, but he noticed that every Virtual Future employee who spotted him approaching promptly found an excuse to leave, refusing to even meet his eyes.
The lights inside the venue flickered continuously. The control console was still unusable, displaying a "Data Loading" prompt.
Visitors were streaming out of all three entrances, and the park staff stood nearby, apologizing profusely over and over.
"The scenes are still being merged. You'll need to wait for a while," Qingming said, his expression grim. He retrieved seven black wristbands from the service counter. "Might as well use this time to explain the rules properly."
He handed a black wristband to each visitor. "These wristbands display your heart rate and body temperature. If your heart rate exceeds a certain threshold, our people will escort you out. So no matter what you encounter, do not take off the wristband."
"After you log in with the account you just created, the wristband will activate. Each activation randomly assigns you a profession. Different professions come with different abilities. Using your abilities wisely will help you complete the task more easily."
Once Qingming finished, all of the visitors activated their wristbands.
"My profession is detective?" A bespectacled man studied his wristband. "Every time I enter a new scene, the wristband will send me a message telling me the location of one clue inside."
"I'm a doctor. If a teammate's heart rate exceeds the threshold, I can use my ability to prevent them from being forcibly taken out by staff. This ability can only be used once — it's really helpful for clearing the scenario, but also a little dangerous." Standing behind the glasses-wearing man was a woman with long black hair who looked very much like an office professional. The other visitors spoke to her in subdued voices, seemingly a bit intimidated.
"I'm a doctor too."
"What a coincidence — me too."
Three of the female visitors had been assigned the doctor profession. By this point Chen Ge had already figured it out — so-called random professions were most likely prearranged.
The doctor ability could be used on teammates. If someone collapsed from terror, having a doctor around meant staff wouldn't come to drag them out.
"They want to scare me into a breakdown three times." Chen Ge glanced down at his own profession. His movements had not gone unnoticed by the other visitors.
"Hey, what's your profession?" The bespectacled man asked curiously.