Trembling At A High Altitude

The hotel had double rooms.

Extras were arranged in double rooms, while Minor Special Engagements got single rooms.

The higher the level of the single room, the more complete the facilities.

Just like last time, Li Teng and Gao Fei shared a room, while Du Qing and Huang Xun shared another.

Anna had a single room, Elsa and Bunny Girl shared one.

History always has astonishing similarities. Liu Huang, due to his involvement in provocation, was detained.

"How come you are back in the room?" Gao Fei and Li Teng chatted.

"Where else could I sleep if not here?"

"Didn't you take a rest in the director's room?" Gao Fei laughed.

"I wanted to, but it didn't work out." Li Teng was quite candid.

"Probably because Film and Television City rules don't permit it, they might restrict the relationships between directors and actors to keep things from getting too close, otherwise, the directors couldn't be fair and impartial... But, you know, directors are also human, it's impossible for them to treat every actor equally." Gao Fei expressed his understanding.

"Maybe." Li Teng felt that Gao Fei made some sense.

"Did you manage to find out any useful information? Don't worry if it's not convenient to say." Gao Fei naturally wanted to learn more about Film and Television City.

"Just one thing, I found out these directors aren't native to Film and Television City, but were also taken from the real world. Most of them were involved in jobs like screenwriting, directing, and writing. They have certain experiences, and when they came here, they weren't placed on the top of a pillar; instead, they went straight to something like a director's academy." Li Teng didn't keep this from Gao Fei.

"Oh, I see. If I had known this before, I would have pursued that path back in the real world, even if just being an internet writer, so that when I came here, I wouldn't end up as just an ordinary actor, suffering on top of the pillar." Gao Fei sighed.

"True, those writers from the real world have it good; once here, they at least get to be junior directors. We, the readers, only have our fate atop the stone pillar, having to start from the extras and slowly work our way up, truly unfair." Li Teng also sighed.

"Did you have any strange adventures on top of the pillar this time?" Gao Fei was very interested in Li Teng's experiences on the pillar... hearing about how miserable Li Teng was would make his own misfortunes seem trivial and boost his confidence to persevere.

"This time? Humph! I encountered a group of armed helicopters engaging in aerial combat around my pillar, bullets 'whooshing' past me and shredding my bed to pieces. Then either a helicopter or missile hit the pillar, causing it to shake violently, and my ruined bed also disappeared, leaving only three broken legs." Li Teng became angry just thinking about this experience.

"That really happened? Armed helicopters in aerial combat? The bed disappeared? That's... that's... too inconceivable!" Gao Fei's eyes widened, unable to believe Li Teng's ordeal.

"Don't believe me? Do I need to lie?"

"No, wouldn't the pillar break from all that shaking?" Gao Fei still couldn't believe it.

"Do you think a thousand-meter-high pillar that thin could stand without high-tech materials, even if nothing hit it? That pillar is extraordinarily tough; this isn't the first time it has shaken violently while I was on it." Li Teng didn't even know how to explain it to Gao Fei anymore.

"Then... with all that shaking, didn't you fall off?" Gao Fei still had many doubts, as he had never experienced it himself and found Li Teng's stories too incredible.

"Several times I nearly fell, only holding onto the bed legs kept me from falling. But if next time I'm asleep and something hits the pillar causing it to shake, I might really go down." Li Teng was still quite worried about this, but worrying couldn't help; he couldn't just not sleep on top of the pillar.

"You don't even have a bed; how can you sleep?" Gao Fei, realizing that Li Teng wasn't lying, couldn't help but sympathize with him.

"I was lying on top of the stone pillar, where there was nothing at all. On sunny days, the sun would burn my butt so hot I could barely sit, and when it snowed, there wasn't even a plank to block it. I almost died again this time—caught a cold, got shot, hurt my back, got a virus infection, suffered sepsis... That black-hearted doctor scammed me out of 999 points again. If I hadn't killed him, I couldn't have managed to survive here," Li Teng said with a look of unbearable recollection.

"Indeed, pushed to your extent, one can only fight with their back against the wall. It's just a pity that you were sent to the Hell Mode Theater Troupe again," Gao Fei grew even more sympathetic toward Li Teng.

What kind of ordeal was this? Who had Li Teng offended to be tortured into such a ghastly state?

"I don't know what the plot will be tomorrow; Last time I survived by pure luck, and I guess I won't be so lucky this time," Li Teng was quite disheartened.

"Don't say that, brother. You give all of us the impression that you fear nothing; no matter the difficulties, you would easily solve them with your wisdom. Don't speak such disheartening words. We believe in you, and you should believe in yourself. You will definitely make it through tomorrow. If someone as capable as you gives up, how can the rest of us keep going?" Gao Fei consoled Li Teng.

"I hope tomorrow's Hell Mode isn't a dead end but leaves some room for hope," Li Teng could only wish for that.

"I've realized that these directors or scriptwriters, when they craft the scripts, actually leave a way out for every character that might die, just like the first scene. Why didn't the director stop you from taking the high stool? It's very likely that this was a lifeline they reserved in the plot for us extras, allowing us, who face certain death, to turn the tables through our own efforts! You found that lifeline, and that's why you survived," Gao Fei analyzed for Li Teng.

"In the following scenes, any actor who received a lunch box still had a way out, just like today. If Liu Huang had refused to confess, he wouldn't have died."

"My feeling is that Film and Television City, when reviewing these directors' scripts, ensures that all plots are a trap, but no actor in any of the scripts is doomed. If you are smart enough, like you, even in Hell Mode, as long as you can find the hidden way out, there's hope to survive," Gao Fei analyzed for Li Teng.

"Maybe," Li Teng responded ambiguously, but he actually quite agreed with Gao Fei's view.

…

The next day.

After breakfast, a hidden speaker in the street broadcasted the director's voice, instructing everyone to gather in the hotel lobby, especially Li Teng and Anna, to get ready to depart for the Hell Theater Troupe once again.

The others hurried over, including Liu Huang, who was guarded by two security guards on each side.

The director was still dragging a suitcase, looking like she was ready for a long journey.

Before a new director took over, she was still responsible for this troupe, so she led Li Teng and Anna to today's Hell Mode performance.

"Come back safely!" Elsa wished them well.

"Make sure to come back together!" Gao Fei also expressed his wishes.

The Bunny Girl didn't say anything; she was just quietly observing. Since she had no real connection with these people, she had no feelings about the life or death of Li Teng and Anna.

The only thought in her mind was that Li Teng had consumed so much of her stuff, owing her a favor. If he just died like that, it would really be a bad deal for her.

"Haha, Hell Mode! I know you love it, good luck!" Huang Xun was definitely taking delight in their misfortune.

"Even if the guild asks me to stay in this troupe next time, I won't stay. It's real suffering here! This time, I was even severely tortured! Anna is a sadist! Li Teng is an unkillable cockroach, I better not oppose people like them. If I can't fight them, I'll avoid them," Du Qing muttered softly.

"Hell Mode! May you all die together! The more miserable, the better!" Liu Huang cursed them.

A bus stopped outside the hotel entrance, and under the director's urging, Li Teng and Anna followed the director onto the bus.

After waving goodbye to everyone, the driver started the vehicle and drove out of everyone's sight.