Psychological Control

Chapter 99

"You realize that if they catch up with the other squads and tell the others about it. Our image will immediately change to standard villain mode?" When I got the next clue card that should be obtained by completing the roadblock mission, he whispered to me.

"The race is about to enter the second half, and the U-turn meeting we are most worried about has already passed." I do not shy away from using the camera for a second because of the water taxi's strategy of delaying the opponent's time. The photographer who recorded my every move said generously: "After the two policemen left in this round, there are only two rounds of elimination left to reach the final stage."

The implication is that even if other teams know about this and get defensive about us, that's just icing on the cake.Because by the second half of the game, the alignment of all teams will be broken.Because they need to fight for themselves, it doesn't matter whether they have extra defenses against us.

Skip the roadblock task of finding three coffee shops based on the three photos given. Although we are the second to last to arrive at the start point of the roadblock task, we are No.1 at this time.Because other people before have still not been able to complete this roadblock task.

Find a way?In Venice, a place full of narrow alleys with seven turns and eight turns, I have to say that our fast-forward card was used for the right task except for tricking two policemen once.

"Detour missions, frolicking and playing. Frolicking branches, go to a bar that holds a masquerade theme night, get your own mask, and find the one that is exactly the same as the mask in your hand among all the people with masks. If you find the right person, that person will give you the next clue."

After I read this branch, I looked up at Di Lon. He frowned and shook his head slightly to indicate that he was not optimistic about this task.Indeed, the seemingly simpler task descriptions are actually more difficult or time-consuming according to the program arrangement of the extremely fast forward.I then read another detour quest.

"Playing, go to the Rialto Bridge to take a human-powered gondola, and learn the Italian folk songs from the boatman after a round of play, and finally go back to the bridge and sing to the administrator there. If there are no lyrics mistakes, the administrator will Will give the next clue." I blinked and turned to look at Dillon, "Italian folk songs?"

"Don't you happen to know some Italian? Just choose this." With a bit of a sarcastic joke, Dillon made a decision and motioned us to start action.

……

In the end, the water city of Venice ended with two police couples with anger control issues leaving in dismay.The entire competition seems to have entered a more intense situation.

After Venice is Spain, the land of bullfighting.Most of the competition tasks are focused on physical strength. Sam and Dean successfully won the No.1 of this stage, and Zoe and Joseph unfortunately fell to the end.But coincidentally, this stage was a hidden non-elimination stage in The Speedway.

Maybe it was the show crew trying to ease the tension created by my means and strategies in the previous water Venice, or maybe it was to let the contestants take a breather before the big battle.All in all, the two siblings escaped unharmed.

Then they moved to Africa at extreme speed, where the harsh environment eliminated David and Kurt father and son who were finally eliminated due to physical factors.The departure of these two people is exactly the opposite of the previous departure of Tevez and Vera.One makes people feel regretful and hopes that they can fight another round, and the other makes people applaud and feel that they are walking too slowly.

After Africa, we went to Singapore, which is like a garden city, in the last round before the decisive battle.There, Sam and Dean, who were supposed to be the dark horses to win the championship, accidentally fell to the end and were eliminated because they got lost and made mistakes frequently.

Finally, the more than one month-long schedule is coming to an end.

……

Standing before the finish line of this stage in Singapore and ready to start, I took the clue card with yellow background and black lettering from Phil.

"In the final battle, you will go to Las Vegas, the casino city of the United States. After arriving by plane, you need to find the marked vehicles in the airport parking lot, and drive to the DC casino by yourself. There, follow the given Mark forward and find the next quest clue."

The plane is the same plane, which means that the three groups of us have the same starting point on the starting line of the final station.What surprised the program group was that the average age of the finalists in this season was too low.

"Put on the uniform of a casino employee, go to Hall 223, choose a table full of chips, and complete the count of all the chips. When you are sure that you have got the correct number, tell the notary who is waiting. If you The number is correct and will lead to clues to the next location."

The time difference between each team's arrival at the DC casino is hardly more than 5 minutes. James and Sid are the most familiar with this place, because we have never been to Las Vegas with Zoe and Joseph.And they are the only ones who have been here a few times, so it can be said that familiarity with the road has a great advantage.

So the models arrived at the casino first, and by the time Dillon and I rushed into the dressing room, they were already dressed and running down the lobby.Joseph appeared after Dillon and I had changed, and his sister naturally went to the women's changing room on the other side.

"Who has better arithmetic skills and is responsible for larger denomination chips. Dillon, what is 248 times 27 plus 60?" I asked a math problem while tidying up my black vest.The vest on his body seems to be one size smaller, and the waist is so tight that it feels as uncomfortable as the waist of ancient women.

Originally thought that he would not get an answer, at most he would get a blank stare.But five seconds after I asked, Dillon suddenly replied: "Six thousand seven hundred and fifty six."

I stopped suddenly under my feet. Under his suspicious gaze, it took me a while to explain in embarrassment: "I just asked casually, and I don't know what the answer is. So I calculated it impromptu after you answered, okay It seems that it is indeed about 700..."

Dillon looked at me helplessly, then pinched my waist carelessly, and I raised my hand to slap me. "Then I'll take care of the denominations above one hundred first, and after I've calculated the big numbers, I'll help you calculate the small denominations."

I shrugged and continued to walk quickly to the destination hall, and then said: "No, I will be in charge of sorting first. I dare say they must have piled up all kinds of chips. Take it out and make a good calculation..."

This kind of roadblock task, which is like a child's puzzle game, turns out to be the most patience and concentration test.James and Sid, who arrived first, unexpectedly made two consecutive miscalculations.

And although Dillon and I slowed down deliberately for the sake of accuracy, we still passed the notary's notarization and got the next clue when they started counting for the third time.When we got to the parking lot to pick up the car, Zoe and Joseph followed us out.

The first task distanced us from a team, and our next clue was a pack of tissues given by the notary.Based on the hotel name on the tissue, it was obvious that our next destination was the Marvel Hotel.

Because the name of the hotel was only stated on the paper towel, we still panicked after arriving at the hotel, and finally saw a red arrow on a yellow background with a speeding forward sign in the corner of the hotel lobby.The arrow led us to the back door, where two cranes were parked.

"Wow, the job of wiping glass at high altitude?" This was Joseph's usual teasing voice.Following us into the hotel lobby, Zoe and Joseph, who were not left behind by accident, spent almost no time looking for the markers, and followed us to see the clue box in the center of the hotel's back garden.

"Change the light bulbs on the light board on the top of the hotel. After the change, you need to tell the staff on the side with you how many light bulbs have been changed in total." I opened the clue card I took out from the box, and the simple task description , but the end of the line.When I looked back, Dillon had rushed to the side of the two cranes that would not be exposed to the setting sun.

They all put on protective measures in a hurry, and then stepped on the crane to signal ascension.Even Zoe, who kept talking about her fear of heights, stepped onto the crane without the slightest hesitation.

"Each person counts the light bulbs they have replaced, and finally adds up the numbers after the replacement. Counting together while changing will slow down our speed." When the crane was almost under the light board, I began to put on work gloves Dillon suggested.

Dillon hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "Although there is one less chance to confirm each other, if you think so, it is indeed a way to speed up work efficiency."

Nearly an hour of bending over to take the light bulb, getting up and twisting the light bulb.When I felt that my waist was about to be strained, I finally twisted the last light bulb.At this time, the sun had already set, and the sky began to turn dark blue, but it was not dark because of the neon lights of Las Vegas that never sleep.

"I twisted 98 times." I flicked my hands and lifted the gloves, and said to him panting unevenly while holding my waist.

"My side is one hundred and six, which adds up to two hundred and four bulbs." After knowing my number, Dillon turned around and said directly to the staff who had been waiting for us for a long time.The follow-up photographer who also stood aside and took pictures of the whole process, quickly turned around and turned the camera lens to the past.

"Correct." The uncle, who obviously does this in his usual job, told us that the answer was correct without thinking.Then he handed out the next blazing clue card from his hand.

Then the crane began to lower back to the ground. When our crane was halfway down, I noticed that Zoe and Joseph's crane also moved, and they began to lower their height.

"Go to Lewis Road, where you will take a helicopter to your final terminal! But before the helicopter pilot takes you to the terminal, you need to look for the speeding forward sign above the Las Vegas night sky. Neon sign." When I said 'but', my throat stopped, and I was completely helpless when I saw the content behind.

"Another mission has been added..." I looked at Dillon helplessly, and found that his eyes had been shining since he heard that he could take the long-lost helicopter. "Okay, after you find the correct light sign, tell the staff in the co-pilot seat. If it is correct, the plane will stop circling over the city and take you to your destination."

"But!" Another turning point, I helplessly looked at this clue description that was countless times longer than the introduction of changing a light bulb, and it was almost like a chemistry problem. "The plane will only take you to the sky above the destination, and then the contestants need to...parachute to the terminal on the ground..."

I visibly felt my face wrinkle up. It was not a pleasant feeling for me to give up my wealth and life to another person.Even if the other party is a licensed professional skydiver.

"Bitter melon face." I saw Dillon's hand lift up and pinch my earlobe. "Relax, I have a USPA skydiving license. If you don't want someone else to bring it, just the two of us will do it together."

"Okay," I said with a slap on the back of his hand, "In that case, I will leave my wealth and life and the chance to win the grand prize here to you."