Xu Xi had no idea that the live stream comments were also pinning their greatest hopes on him.
The tunnel was pitch black, with only the car headlights barely illuminating a small patch of road ahead.
Li Kang had been restless the entire time, and Xu Xi could sense the anxious, irritable energy radiating from him.
They had been driving through the tunnel for over ten minutes now and hadn't encountered anything troublesome yet.
However, Li Kang remained unsettled.
Suddenly, a beam of light appeared ahead, particularly conspicuous within the darkness shrouding the tunnel.
As the two parties gradually drew closer, everyone could see clearly—another black sedan was approaching from the opposite direction. It looked exactly like the car they were driving, complete with markings and a license plate.
Li Kang was clutching the hem of his shirt tightly, his entire body seemingly screaming of danger.
"Watch out!!!"
Following this exclamation, the oncoming sedan crashed straight into them.
Fortunately, Tan Xingyun reacted swiftly, swerving the steering wheel sharply to avoid a direct hit, though they inevitably collided with the stone wall to the side.
All four were wearing seatbelts and weren't seriously injured.
While they were still shaken, they looked over at the other sedan and saw a person stumbling out of it. The familiar face made everyone freeze in place.
It was another Li Kang!
"How is this possible!" Li Kang's face instantly turned deathly pale, and he nearly lost his voice.
The Li Kang from the opposite side shouted, "Stay away from that guy! He's fake!!"
"I'm the real one! He's the fake!" Li Kang inside the car panicked as he looked at his teammates, hoping they would believe him. "Don't believe him! I—I've been with you all along, how could I possibly be fake?"
Xu Xi pressed his back tightly against the car door. He hadn't expected to encounter a scenario of real and fake teammates. He actually wanted to get away from this Li Kang beside him, but unfortunately, the back seat was only so spacious; there wasn't much room to move farther away.
"Don't panic just yet, we never said we didn't believe you," Xu Xiuman comforted him gently.
"Yeah, and the timing of that person's appearance is way too deliberate," Tan Xingyun said calmly, squinting as he carefully scrutinized the other "Li Kang."
Although they hadn't known Li Kang for long and weren't familiar with his personal habits, they had still experienced most of the instance together. Li Kang had never left their sight the entire time, so there was no possibility he had been silently replaced.
It couldn't be that the Li Kang from the very beginning was fake, right?
Xu Xi thought of this as well and felt slightly relieved.
He also leaned toward believing that the Li Kang beside him was real.
"You say the Li Kang with us is fake—do you have any proof?" Tan Xingyun loudly challenged the other "Li Kang."
"Li Kang" looked as if he was on the verge of tears from anxiety. "I—I don't know how to prove it, but he really is fake! Come with me in my car to get out; only my car can drive out of this tunnel!"
Hearing this, Li Kang inside the car brightened up and quickly said, "I can prove I'm real! Ask me anything, I'm sure I can answer everything correctly!"
Tan Xingyun casually asked, "Then when is your birthday?"
Li Kang had expected him to ask about things they had experienced in the instance, so he was caught off guard by the question about his birthday. Still, he blurted out, "June 11th!"
Tan Xingyun nodded and repeated the same question to the other "Li Kang."
"Li Kang" answered just as quickly, "It's June 11th!"
Tan Xingyun then asked, "Then what's your father's name?"
"Li Kang": "..."
He remained silent and did not answer.
Tan Xingyun turned back to ask Li Kang inside the car, "What's your father's name?"
Li Kang said excitedly, "Li Deping! My father's name is Li Deping!"
Tan Xingyun once again posed the same question to the "Li Kang" opposite them.
This time, "Li Kang" quickly replied, "My father's name is Li Deping!"
Li Kang finally realized why Tan Xingyun had asked him about things outside the instance.
In reality, the genuinely unskilled Xu Xi also understood through Tan Xingyun's questioning that the Li Kang beside him was the real one.
Xu Xiuman said, "It seems there's no need to doubt it anymore. Also, did you notice? That person just stands there shouting at us without ever approaching."
"His intention is probably to get us into his car," Tan Xingyun said. After speaking, he glanced at Li Kang, who looked immensely relieved after proving his authenticity, and mentally added the unspoken follow-up thought.
And to abandon this young man.
Xu Xiuman also didn't quite believe the fake Li Kang's claims. "Then let's just leave. Can this car still drive?"
"Yes."
When Tan Xingyun restarted the vehicle, he remained vigilant against the fake Li Kang, fearing he might crash into them again.
But the fake Li Kang just stood there, continuously repeating, "If you don't believe me, you'll die... If you don't believe me, you'll die..."
His chanting was utterly chilling.
No one wanted to engage with him anymore.
After leaving the fake Li Kang and his car far behind, Li Kang's violently pounding heart gradually steadied. The experience had been absolutely nerve-wracking for him.
He didn't even dare imagine what would have happened to him if his teammates hadn't believed him.
Even though everyone seemed friendly, he knew that was only true as long as their own lives weren't threatened.
The tunnel wasn't very long. After distancing themselves from the fake Li Kang, they soon saw the exit.
...
When Xu Xi's senses returned, he heard the words, "My father's name is Li Deping."
He quickly looked over and found himself back at the moment of the confrontation between the real and fake Li Kang.
He was back again.
Why say "again"? Because this was the third time he had returned to this point.
The first time, they had chosen to leave directly. But just as they were about to exit the tunnel, the vehicle suddenly exploded. He only felt a wave of intense heat rushing toward him before he was engulfed by it.