“Of course… since this is a special question with double the points on the line, naturally, it is slightly more difficult than normal questions. Please listen carefully…” Mr. Yoo raised the question card and read.
“Green Lantern… I believe everyone know that reference.” He took a glance at the camera. “The power source of their green lantern ring is ’will’.”
Then he lifted his head to look at Feng Bujue and continued. “In their universe, the green lantern ring represents will, then… what do the other colors of the lantern rings represent? Please name at least four of them. Your countdown starts now!”
This type of question was not going to defeat Feng Bujue. Even if it was not for gathering inspiration for his writing material, out of pure interest, he had read quite a number of comics. Therefore, he only needed to go through his memory before he came up with the answer. He opened his lips to say, “Hmm… I will answer your question according to the arrangement of colors. Red lantern, rage; orange lantern, avarice; yellow lantern, fear; green lantern, will; indigo lantern, compassion; blue lantern, hope; violet lantern, love; and finally, there is the black lantern, which represents death.”
The audience was silent. Mr. Yoo looked at the answer written on his card, and he too was quiet for several seconds. And then he uttered in a quick and affirmative tone, “You are one hundred percent correct!”
Once again, the sound of thunderous applause erupted among the studio audience.
“Participant No. 1 sure is a knowledgeable person. After three questions, he has already gathered forty points while three of the other participants have got their points reverted back to zero after two rounds. Participant No. 1 is basically in an unlosable position,” Mr. Yoo explained. Then he turned to look at the three special guests. “I wonder if our three special guests have any comments regarding our participant No. 1’s performance today?”
The camera moved to the special guests’ seat. Miss Pride surprised everyone by speaking for the first time that day. She only said a few words.
“Don’t talk to me, fat geek.”
Then she turned her head away with a cold scoff.
Mr. Pestilence collapsed deeper into his seat. His arm that was as thin as a stick held his chin. The skin on his body was so fair that one could see the blood capillaries pulsing underneath the skin. Seated in this pose, it made him look even more fragile than he already did. “Speaking of which… why is there not a color that represents Pestilence?”
The cameraman, a translucent spirit, turned the camera to Hephaestus. The man’s comment was still as strange as before. “Tsk… They are nothing but lanterns and rings that can gather wandering energy. As long as you have enough cyclops, it is easy to mass produce such trinkets…”
“Alright, we thank our special guests for their brilliant comments.” Before the man finished his sentence, Mr. Yoo quickly pulled the focus back. He turned to Xiao Tan and said, “Participant No. 2, please listen carefully. This is question number 10.”
He burned the question card for the previous question and looked at the next card. “Please spell out phenylalanine hydroxylase deficiency accurately in English. Your countdown starts now.”
Just as the ticking sound of the timer started to echo across the studio, Mr. Yoo turned to interact with the studio audience and the viewers at home. “As all of us know, in English, medical terms are a really confusing subject, with those long and hard to memorize terms…”
“Phenylalanine hydroxylase deficiency, also known as PKU,” Xiao Tan replied. For the sake of clarification, he repeated the word again, going through each letter clearly. Mr. Yoo was stunned for several seconds. He used his hand that held the microphone to push up the glasses that sat on the bridge of his nose. His beady eyes widened into saucers as he studied the correct spelling that was printed on the color. “Hmm… Your answer is correct!”
Xiao Tan’s total points rose to ten, and following his correct answer came the applause of the audience.
“Looks like this question has fallen right into Participant No. 2’s professional field, or he has a really command of English?” Mr. Yoo commented in the manner of a question.
“Actually, this is quite simple…”
Before Xiao Tan could finish, Mr. Yoo raised his voice to cover that of Xiao Tan and continued. “And now… Moving on…”
Mr. Yoo once again turned to Passing Rain. “Participant No. 3, now only you and Participant No. 4 are tied at zero points, so this question will be very important.”
“Hmm,” Passing Rain answered detachedly. Based on her attitude, it sounded like she was saying, It’s no big deal.
“Please listen carefully to your question…” Mr. Yoo read from the new question card. He glanced at it and then began. “Please tell me, what does this chemical formula that appears on screen represent? Your countdown starts now!”
As he said so, on the small screen equipped on Passing Rain’s control panel and on the large screen in the middle of the stage, a chemical formula appeared, c6h12o6.
Passing Rain thought about it for a while before giving her answer. “Glucose.”
“Your answer is correct!” Mr. Yoo announced. Another cheer travelled through the crowd.
“Looks like all of our participants are very impressive. I wonder, will we move onto the next round, or whill this part of the quiz end at this next question?” Mr. Yoo turned to the direction of Laughing Soul.
“Hey! Are you hinting at the fact that this question might cause my total to lower to minus ten points?” Laughing Soul narrowed her eyes as she stared at the fat host. “Even if my total drops to minus ten, I still have the chance to redeem myself in the next round, right?”
“Haha… the reason I said something like that is because…” Mr. Yoo raised the next question card in his hand. “This twelfth question is another special question.”
Surprised gasps came from the audience.
“Please listen to your question carefully!” Mr. Yoo read from the question card. “Please name three players who won the title of Mr. European Footballer of the Year in the twentieth century. I don’t need their full names, but the nationalities of the three players cannot be repeated. Your countdown starts now!”
Laughing Soul pouted once more, and she looked like she was tricked.
“This is a question about sports. It is probably very easy for our male participants. I believe if this question was given to either Participant No. 1 or No. 2, it would basically be a free win question, and the twenty points would be given away for free. Unfortunately, it is the female participant who has drawn this question,” Mr. Yoo said. “You have thirty seconds left.”
“Franz Beckenbauer and Michel Platini.” Laughing Soul surprised everyone by giving two answers.
“And… you’re right,” Mr. Yoo commented. “Very interesting… These two names that Participant No. 4 gave were not only spectacular footballers—they moved to become officials in the latter stages of their career.”
“Ronaldo!” The name seemed to have suddenly struck Laughing Soul, and she uttered it without giving it much thought.
“Participant No. 4, if you don’t mind me asking… why do you think a Brazilian would have would have taken home the title of European Footballer of the Year?” Mr. Yoo asked with a smile.
“Huh? He’s a Brazilian?” Laughing Soul asked with genuine surprise.
“Erm… Since you do not know much about him, why would you give his name as the answer?” Mr. Yoo asked.
“Because in my memory, a lot of football players have this name, so I thought… perhaps one of them won this title of something footballer of the year,” Laughing Soul replied with a laugh.
“Er…” Mr. Yoo hummed. “Fine, no matter what, your answers for this question… are correct!”
The audience clapped, and Laughing Soul’s points shot up to twenty.
“Alright, ladies and gentlemen, and those who refuse to identify as either,” Mr. Yoo said in an excited tone, “we will end the first section of Death Quiz soon. There are still four questions remaining, but let’s first take a look at our four participants’ scores.”
“Participant No. 1 is well ahead with forty points. Participant No. 2 has ten points, and he still looks so nervous. The cool and collected Participant No. 3 also has ten points. With immense luck showing during her special question, currently Participant No. 4 has twenty points.” As Mr. Yoo mentioned each player’s name, the camera panned toward them one after another.
“Now… if there are no upsets, the participants who will enter the coliseum will be selected from among participant No. 2, 3, or 4.” Mr. Yoo started to work up the hype in the studio. “Now, please hold your breath and get ready because we are entering the last round, the last four questions!”
He turned to Feng Bujue and lifted the cards.
“This question…” He paused for effect. “… is not a special question.”
“You mean, even if I get this wrong, it will not affect the scores?” Feng Bujue asked back.
“Indeed, but I have to remind you, the participant who is placed first after every round will be rewarded with a very mysterious advantage as we move into the later part of the game.” Mr. Yoo’s hand that held the card had its index finger extended out, making the ’1’ sign.
“An advantage you say…” Feng Bujue said in an interested tone. “In any case… ask your question.”
“Please listen to your question carefully!” Mr. Yoo said. “The question is… ’And the will therein lieth, which dieth not. Who knoweth the mysteries of the will, with its vigor? For God is but a great will pervading all things by nature of its intentness. Man doth not yield himself to the angels, nor unto death utterly, save only through the weakness of his feeble will.’ Where does this particular excerpt come from? Your countdown starts now!”
“Humph… No wonder this is the last round, the question itself is filled with trap…” Feng Bujue huffed coldly. From how he acted, it seemed like he already knew the answer. “This is an excerpt adopted from Joseph Glanvill at the start of Ligeia. It uses this to reflect the overall central message of the short story.”
“So, your answer is Joseph…” Mr. Yoo heard the answer in Feng Bujue’s explanation.
“But!” Feng Bujue cut him off and pointed at Mr. Yoo. “But… Ligeia’s author is Edgar Allan Poe. One mustn’t place too much trust in the words of a drunkard.
“Glanvill is a famed monotheist, and that is why Poe chose him. Actually, the above excerpt is written by Poe himself. He wrote these sentences and then attached them with a dash and included Glanvill’s name to create the impression that he was using another writer’s idea that came before him, but in reality… it was Poe’s writing.”
“So… your answer is?” Mr. Yoo asked for confirmation.
“Undeniably, the answer is Edgar Allan Poe,” Feng Bujue said.
“Your answer is correct!” With a wave of Mr. Yoo’s hand, the question card burned, and cheers and applause came from the audience.
“Phew…” Mr. Yoo sighed. “Participant No. 1 has answered all four questions correctly from the first section, and it even includes one special question. With his current total of fifty points, it is basically confirmed that he will be in first place going into the second round.”
He turned to Xiao Tan. “But what about Participant No. 2?”
Xiao Tan was already breaking out in cold sweat, and he laughed drily. “Ha… ha ha… I’ve already made the preparation to enter that so-called coliseum…”
“Is that so? Hue hue hue…” Mr. Yoo chuckled. “But it is true that the questions for this last round will be more difficult, so… please listen carefully!
“We all know… there is a fictional character known as Kick-Ass. When he is not donning the superhero costume to fight crime, he is actually a student. The question is, what is the name of this student?” Mr. Yoo put down the question card and turned to look at Xiao Tan. “Your countdown starts now!”
Xiao Tan was stumped after he heard the question. He was one who was not used to hiding his real emotions, so from his facial expression… it was clear that he did not know the answer.
“Hmm…” Xiao Tan had seen this movie before. In fact, he had seen it more than once, but for some reason, the name of the main character refused to come to him.
“You have thirty seconds left.” As Mr. Yoo reminded him, he continued to chat to work up the audience. “Ah, with a glance at Participant No. 1, I know that he must know the answer. Unfortunately, this is not his turn to answer.”
The sound effect of the ticking time continued, but it did not help to jog Xiao Tan’s memory.
“You have fifteen seconds left.”
“Fine, I don’t know the answer.” Xiao Tan could not bear to shoulder this overly nervous atmosphere. Before the time ended, he announced his surrender. Boos echoed from the audience.
“It is with regret that I announce the score of Participant No. 2 has once again returned to zero, and he is currently the participant with the lowest score,” Mr. Yoo said as he moved to Passing Rain’s panel. “Participant No. 3, if you answer this question correctly, you will be safe. As long as Participant No. 4 does not run into yet another special question, even if she gets her question wrong, the result will not change. In other words… this fifteenth question will most likely decide the result of the first section.”
“Hmm.” Passing Rain’s reaction was similar to how she reacted during the previous round.
Mr. Yoo’s lips twitched twice. He had said so many things, but the girl still gave him very little to work with. Regardless, there was nothing that he could do about it, so he lifted his question card. “Hmm… The question is, in the legend of… ten layers of King of Hell, who are the kings for the second layer, fifth layer, and tenth layer? Your countdown…”
“Jiang Chu King, Yan Luo King, and Lun Zhuang King.” Passing Rain gave the answer before Mr. Yoo even finished.
“Your answer is correct!” Mr. Yoo burned the question card.
The audience clapped, and at the same time, the intuitive cameraman turned the camera to Xiao Tan, and he obtained a close-up of a pouty, saddened face.
Mr. Yoo returned to the middle of the stage and faced Laughing Soul. Looking at the last question card in his hand, he said, “This sixteenth question…”
He purposely paused for around ten seconds.
“… is…”
It felt like the man had to pause every time a word tumbled out of his mouth.
“Another special question!”
A heavy silence instantly fell over the audience.
“Now, Participant No. 4, Laughing Soul’s score is twenty points,” Mr. Yoo explained. “If she answers this question incorrectly, her score will drop down to zero.”
His way of speech was meant to draw in the audience’s attention. “Looks like… we’re never going to know the result until the last moment.”
“Hey, fatty, if both our scores are zero, who will enter the coliseum?” Laughing Soul asked from her seat.
“Er… Fatty…” Mr. Yoo’s face darkened. “Fine, that sounds like it was meant for me…”
He would have to admit it no matter what. It was only him and the spirit cameraman on the middle of the stage. If they placed the cameraman on the scale, he would probably weigh no more than twenty-one grams.
“Hmm… If there’s a situation where both participants are number one, then we have add an additional question, and the quickest to answer will be the winner.” Mr. Yoo cleared his throat to hide his embarrassment. “If there are two participants who have the lowest score, both participants will enter the coliseum together.”
“Oh?” Laughing Soul smiled brightly. “In that case… I volunteer to surrender this question.”
The audience drew a sharp breath collectively while Mr. Yoo maintained a wordless smile.
From the side, Feng Bujue raised his thumb at Laughing Soul. He was complimenting her for making the suitable strategy considering the situation, and the compliment was for a sense of friendship and camaraderie.
Xiao Tan was so overwhelmed with appreciation that he almost cried. No matter what that coliseum was, tackling it with a friend was much easier than doing it alone. It made him feel much better.
“You chose to surrender without even hearing the question… Looks like I don’t even ask for your confirmation.” Mr. Yoo flashed a meaningful smile. “Then… please, off we go to the coliseum!”
Once he finished, Xiao Tan and Laughing Soul’s seats spun, and they lowered. They dropped into the black space underneath the floor. The two were once again pulled away by this shapeless force, and they returned to the slide, moving at a high speed toward an unknown location.
The screen inside the studio changed. The screen showed an expansive desert-scape. Soon after, in this picture of rolling sand, Xiao Tan dropped down from the sky, landing quite ungracefully. Several seconds later, Laughing Soul dropped from the sky. She landed on her two feet on Xiao Tan’s stomach, acquiring a safe landing.
“So, who shall be the first executioner who will grace us with their presence at the coliseum today?” Mr. Yoo said. “Even though neither of our participants today belong to any form of a higher existence, but… when they are struggling on the verge of death, even the lowest form of organism will give us a good show.”
He used his high voice to work up the spirit of the audience. “Who or what will be given this bloody responsibility? Who will have the luxury of facing two of our participants today?”
He walked closer and looked into the camera. The music in the studio also turned intense.
Suddenly, Mr. Yoo’s expression shifted, and he continued in a very rapid voice. “Before that, to the friends who are watching our program, you can still join us and interact with us by clicking the link provided below, by sending us messages, by logging into our official website to participate in the many activities like guessing the final victor to win fabulous prizes! Prizes sponsored by Thriller Box, exquisite presents that total up to one thousand Ghost Coins! Want to trade, Thriller Box! Want to win prizes, watch Death Quiz! Thank you for your love and support!”
“Hey! Can you not go into advertisements at such a crucial moment‽” Feng Bujue yelled in protest.
“Hue hue… Looks like our Participant No. 1 is a bit anxious.” Mr. Yoo smiled. “But before I announce the first executioner we have at the coliseum for today, let’s turn to our three special guests to hear what they have to say about our participants’ performance during the first section, and let’s hear if they have any predictions about the identity of our first executioner.”
The camera once again panned to Miss Pride. She looked condescendingly at Fatty Yoo, who stood quite a distance away, and said, “Will you go find a quiet corner and kill yourself if I provide some comments?”
“Why would you have a request like that? Do you look down on me to such a degree?” Mr. Yoo replied while wiping away his sweat. “But… unfortunately, I don’t think I’ll be able to fulfill your request.”
“Humph…” Thus, Pride stopped talking.
Then, the camera turned directly to Hephaestus. The cameraman seemed to have realized that it was the best solution to have Mr. Pestilence, who had given relatively normal comments, speak last.
“Will the executioner be a cyclops?” Hephaestus’s comment was equally useless.
“If it is, you should find a quiet corner and go kill yourself!” Fatty Yoo grumbled.
Finally, the camera turned to Mr. Pestilence. He faced Mr. Yoo and slowly began. “The participants’ performance in the first round basically shows what they are respectively more specialized in. Participant No. 1 stood apart during this phase. He possesses eclectic knowledge. And with regards to the executioner… There is not much mystery for me… Cough, cough… After all, I am one of the horsemen. I naturally know what inhabits this piece of desert, so… I’ll leave the unveiling of the mystery to the host.”