I Have Yet to Become a Doll Today

The moment the countdown began, Tan Xiao could not help but swear.

Zhang Hua quietly observed Shen MO and Tan Xiao before climbing back into the shell without a word.

Out of 19 people, no one died in the second round.

Now, as the third round was about to start, only Shen MO and Tan Xiao were brave enough to risk their lives; the rest of them were hiding in their shells—

They all knew very well that if they could not find the golden ball, they would remain trapped here, even if they weren’t eaten by frogs.

Everyone knew this.

And yet not one dared to come out!

An old man with white temples tumbled out of the shell, his small body landing in the mud, his mouth full of foul-smelling sludge!

He coughed violently, once again imploring the others: “Don’t give up! Cough, cough!… We have 19 people. If each person searches one hole, that’s 19 holes.

The probability of finding the golden ball is very high! Cough, cough, cough!”

Tan Xiao cursed at him: “You old fool, do you have a death wish? Hurry back inside!”

Chang Weicai strained his voice: “With each additional person, our power grows! We cannot be intimidated, we cannot be defeated! As long as we stand together, there is hope!!!”

Tan Xiao, bristling with irritation, walked over and furiously shoved Chang Weicai back into the shell.

“What’s going on with you, old man? Can you stop messing around? Get back in! In, in, in!”

Chang Weicai refused, leaning on the shell, he earnestly told Tan Xiao,

“Xiaotan, everyone must die eventually. I’m old, it’s not a big loss if I die. But I can’t just watch everyone sit and wait for death! Right now we have the advantage with our numbers, we must act swiftly. Otherwise, if we stay here too long, everyone will get tired, hungry, sleepy and lose their strength… then we’ll be even less likely to get out!”

Despite his age, the old man was very clear-headed.

Tan Xiao was so frustrated he thought his head would explode!

He wasn’t afraid of arguments or fights, but he dreaded people who reasoned with him. Even more so when the person was a teacher — someone who could argue with convincing logic until he had no rebuttal!

Chang Weicai continued: “The environment here is hot and humid, putrid smelling; if we stay too long we’ll have problems! Do you know how many parasites live on snails? Do you know how many diseases parasites can cause?

Do you know how troublesome it is when one becomes infected with parasites?

We can’t just wait inside the shell to die!”

Whether they were genuinely persuaded by Chang Weicai or frightened by the talk of parasites, several people started to crawl out from the shells one after another – men and women, young and old, including a group of hoodlums led by Hui.

One among them said, “We don’t want just wait for death, but the ball flies too fast, and there are too many holes where it could be. We really have no idea how to find it.

They’d given their reasons, not really out of a fear of death, but to save face in front of everyone else.

Shen MO calmly said, “I will try to find the final landing point of the golden ball. If everyone searches near there, the probability of finding it will be higher.

After 20 seconds, whether we find it or not, everyone should hide back inside the shell.”

It was the best arrangement.

If they found the ball, everyone would pass the game together.

If they didn’t, hiding inside the shell would keep them alive.

As long as the frog left, they would have hope in the next round of the game.

Everyone exchanged glances, implicitly agreeing to Shen Mo’s plan.

The golden ball in the sky didn’t seem to care about the discussion and arrangement among the people below. It continued the countdown joyfully,

“…5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Haha- the game starts now!”

Bai Youwei had already been placed inside the shell by Shen Mo.

She curled up silently inside the shell, gently touching the interior wall, feeling its vibrations, her mind becoming more peaceful…

She was just hesitating…. Should she tell him?