Chapter 20 – The Rescue Within the Storm
The final outdoor episode of the survival challenge was underway—a high-tension sequence meant to capture the emotional exhaustion of the contestants.
The tension was heightened further when a sudden, violent downpour hit the mountain set.
Cameras continued to roll, lightning flashed dangerously close to the exposed rigging, and genuine chaos erupted among the drenched crew and contestants.
Xiao Xi, internally grappling with the total failure of her System and the threat of the anonymous hacker, felt the anxiety tightening her chest.
Then, her System finally flickered back to life, its synthesized voice fragmented, urgent, and barely audible over the roaring rain:
[Danger—Host life at risk—primary variable nearby—protect—disconnecting—]
Before she could process the fragmented warning, a loud, tearing crack echoed through the mountain air.
Part of the poorly secured set—a temporary wooden structure used for the challenge—collapsed under the weight of the water and wind.
Xiao Xi tripped backward on the slick, muddy ground, her balance destroyed, heading straight toward the trajectory of the falling debris.
—and strong arms caught her just in time.
Gu Yanzhou's grip, impossibly strong and steady, tightened around her waist and back, yanking her violently out of the path of danger.
The heavy wooden beams crashed onto the ground inches away, sending splinters and mud flying.
His eyes, usually cold and calculating, were wide and wild with genuine, raw concern. "Are you insane, Xiao Xi?! Why did you freeze?"
"I could ask you the same!" she shot back, her voice shaking, her heart pounding a frantic rhythm against his chest.
"What are you even doing here, Gu Yanzhou?" He wasn't supposed to be near the active set.
Rain drenched them both, plastering her hair to her face, soaking his expensive suit.
The reality cameras, forgotten by the safety team rushing to the scene, continued to roll, capturing the desperate, intimate moment.
A final, decisive chime echoed in her mind:
[System Alert: Affection +15%. High-Risk Heroic Rescue Event.]
[Luck +800 for Heroic Rescue Event.]
[Current Luck: 4800.]
As crew members rushed over, separating them and shouting instructions, Xiao Xi's trembling finally eased only when Gu Yanzhou brushed a wet strand of hair from her face.
His touch was firm yet gentle, and he whispered, his voice intense and low, "Next time, let me be the one to take the fall.
Don't freeze again."
The system flickered faintly one last time before going dark, its last message a confirmation of their irreversible bond:
[Primary variable connection deepening… Host destiny entangled. Final directive locked: Co-dependence.]
And in that moment, shivering in the deluge with his arms around her, Xiao Xi realized the core truth: whatever story she thought she'd entered—the one about a lone survivor and a minor antagonist—it was no longer the same book at all. She was no longer running from fate, but running with him, two reborn souls fighting a system they didn't understand.
The true novel had just begun.