It wasn't just the audience who were anxious; the staff at the Destiny Strategy Bureau were equally tense.
In this Destiny Battle, outside assistance could be provided only once per day, sending a single piece of information to a contestant. But on the first day, this ability was disabled.
In other words, everyone could only sit in their seats and watch, hoping the contestant on screen would notice something unusual on their own.
But could that even happen?
The odds were extremely low. Contestants inside the Destiny Battle couldn't watch live streams, and they had no way of knowing what happened to other contestants before their deaths. They didn't even know if other nations' contestants had perished. The Destiny Battle gave no notifications.
"This is literally a trap designed to kill at first sight!" one reasoning expert complained. Many wished they could contact the contestants directly to pass along crucial information.
As Reina May advanced, everyone's hearts tightened with tension.
"Look, look! She stopped! She's not moving!"
"Could it be—"
Under the prayers in the comment section, Reina May halted beneath a large tree.
Her sky-blue eyes scanned the scene ahead. The dim light did nothing to obscure her vision.
The forest looked much as it had when she arrived, except for one striking difference: the mushrooms.
They were everywhere big and small, blanketing the forest. Their shapes varied wildly, their colors unnaturally vivid. On Blue Star, these would be instantly recognizable as poisonous mushrooms. Most people wouldn't eat them, though few would take the trouble to avoid them entirely.
Poisonous mushrooms were dangerous only if eaten. Who had ever heard of mushrooms capable of killing from afar?
Reina May paused at the edge of the mushroom-filled forest. A familiar sensation stirred within her.
"Parasitic, infectious, controlling. Similar to the fungus that clung to that otherworldly beast, though a different species. Yet it has followed an identical evolutionary path," she murmured, feeling the spores drifting through the air.
Though from another world, these lifeforms had developed nearly identical growth patterns. They were worthy of study perhaps a few samples should be collected and brought back.
With that thought, Reina May stepped into the mushroom territory. She approached a mushroom roughly the size of a cat, crouched slightly, and extended her gloved right hand to touch its cap.
A barely perceptible glimmer flashed at her fingertips. The mushroom's life structure appeared in her mind. Tangled genes began to extend, dissect, compare, and reconstruct themselves.
A faint smile curved Reina May's lips. "Interesting. A near-impossible miracle."
"Huh?"
"What is she saying?"
The viewers in the comment section froze in confusion, then spun into a flurry of bewilderment.
Her words were technical, analytical, evaluative. She didn't sound like a contestant navigating the Destiny Battle she sounded like a scientist studying the product of her own experiment.
Skyler sat in his chair, staring at the scrolling comments, feeling his mind go blank.
General Liu remained silent, deep in thought. He knew more than most, and his mind raced with associations: fungi, otherworldly beasts. Both terms reminded him of past events in Haidu City.
Professor Ma, formerly a biologist, furrowed his brow as he watched the live feed.
"Professor Ma, what do you make of this situation?" Skyler gathered his composure and asked the biologist.
"Ah?" Professor Ma seemed momentarily lost in thought. The question pulled him back. "Which aspect are you asking about?"
"I mean, what do you think of Reina May's last few words?" Skyler clarified.
Similar discussions unfolded in the live stream and at the Strategy Bureau.
"Commander, your thoughts?"
"We've received reports: several contestants entered mushroom territory and died, yet Reina May is unharmed. Clearly, she possesses a secret we don't yet understand," the commander said after a moment of silence.
His gaze swept across the room, noting the pensive expressions on everyone's faces.
At that moment, Eastern Horizon contestant Lin Xueyuan, who had cleared the Destiny Battle seven times, spoke up softly: "I think I know how she did it."
"Look, her difference from the others is that she physically touched the mushrooms herself," Lin Xueyuan said, projecting a replay from her device onto the large screen.
"You're suggesting that for every deadly substance, within ten steps, there must exist its antidote?"
"That's the only explanation," Lin Xueyuan shrugged.
"Isn't that a bit of a rash conclusion?"
"Or could it be Reina May's own ability?"
Whispers of speculation echoed through the conference hall.
"In any case, share this discovery with other countries, but don't overstate it," the deputy commander next to the main commander advised.
No one objected.
"Old Master Qin, share your team's findings," the commander said, raising his hand.
Old Master Qin, a luminary in biology, was a heavyweight in his field, though long retired due to age. Only because this Destiny Battle had no survival limits was he invited to the bureau in person.
"Our observations indicate Reina May is in a forest matching the characteristics of a temperate broadleaf woodland. Nighttime hypothermia is unlikely. Also, as everyone has noted, the vegetation is dense. Animals inhabiting this forest are likely small mostly insects and reptiles," Old Master Qin said, succinctly analyzing the environment.
"Impressive. In biology, Old Master Qin's insight is razor-sharp," someone remarked.
"Not really. I'm simply older and have had more years of study," Qin chuckled. "But my analysis is based on Earth rules; it may not fully apply to another world, so take it as a reference."
He paused, recalling another detail. "By the way, I heard from Xiao Ma that there's a brilliant scholar in biology a true genius. If you could bring him here, he'd be far more useful than my old body."
Xiao Ma referred to Professor Ma Guoxing, who was visiting the live stream. Ma had once been Qin's student, and they met during holidays and reunions. Qin remembered Ma praising an exceptional talent in Eastern Horizon, and it stuck in his mind.
"Oh? Professor Ma holds someone in such high regard? We should invite him to the bureau next time," the commander said. He had some acquaintance with Ma. The former biology professor was known for his determination. He had switched to wilderness survival programs during a boom period when Eastern Horizon lacked a survival expert, earning international ridicule.
"Old Master Qin, you said animals here are likely small. How big could an extreme specimen get?" Lin Xueyuan asked.
"In the Amazon, some bird-eating spiders reach 30 centimeters. The giant centipedes of the Galapagos can reach 46 centimeters. That's probably the upper limit. As for snakes, it's harder to predict this forest could support an anaconda," Qin said, frowning.
"Our contestant hasn't received supply packs. Wouldn't she be in danger if she faced these creatures?"
"Hard to say. But this is mushroom territory. Other creatures probably won't intrude."
Yet, the danger of another world lay in the fact that Earth experience couldn't be applied directly. Soon, Reina May emerged from the mushroom zone, and a flash of bright orange appeared before her.