Chapter 297: A Leaked Act and Looming Crisis

“Xiao Zhang, what’s wrong?”

Picking up his phone, Xie Feiyang glanced at it before turning aside to answer the call.

“President, there’s a problem. Check online! A video of a magic act has surfaced—a cracked version of the entry submitted by Feng Peng and Yue Dong!”

The next moment, a tense voice came through the phone.

“What? A cracked version of their entry? That’s impossible!”

Xie Feiyang’s face froze; he simply couldn’t believe it.

Ever since the Long Kingdom’s ancient color trick was compromised, this issue had been taken very seriously. While the other contestants practiced in solitude, only he and his two assistants knew the details of each entry. And now he was being told that the act had leaked again. “President, I’ll send you the video shortly!”

The voice on the phone sounded utterly dejected—as if all hope had vanished.

“Hurry up and send it over!”

Regaining his focus, Xie Feiyang said anxiously, his mood stripping him of any desire to inspect the contest venue at Mingsha Ge with the others.

“Okay!”

Half an hour later, the entire small courtyard had fallen silent, with Feng Peng and Yue Dong looking utterly dejected.

Plain and simple,

it was because the leaked cracked act was exactly the trick they planned to perform. Although the name differed, the routine was nearly identical—even down to the smallest details.

They had trained relentlessly for over two months for this rare opportunity, only to achieve an unacceptable outcome. “President, what are we going to do now?”

After a long pause,

the other contestants looked at Xie Feiyang with deep concern.

Right now, only the video of the small magic act had leaked. Who knew if cracked versions of the medium and large magic acts might follow in the coming days?

If the later entries are also compromised, how can anyone perform? “There’s no choice but to fight back! I’ll report this situation to the authorities and have them investigate how our entries were leaked!”

Xie Feiyang took a deep breath.

Despite the inner panic, as team leader he couldn’t let his composure slip. More importantly, our star for the large magic act, Ma Qian, still held a slim chance as long as his performance remained unrevealed.

“Fight back? President, this…”

Feng Peng and Yue Dong exchanged a worried glance.

“That’s right. Exposing the trick early only affects audience reaction—it doesn’t impact other scoring elements. As long as we bump our scores above eight in the other areas and the live audience doesn’t catch wind of the video, we might even score higher,” explained Xie Feiyang.

“This…”

Feng Peng and Yue Dong hesitated before finally nodding.

They could only console themselves for the moment. “Don’t lose your nerve. After checking out the venue at Mingsha Ge, you two can brainstorm a few tweaks. Meanwhile, I’ll draw lots to decide the order. If luck is on your side and you’re scheduled last, your scores might soar!”

Xie Feiyang patted them on the shoulder in encouragement.

In a competition like this, opening early is often a disadvantage, as the judges tend to be conservative at first. That’s why the first three draws are notorious for being unlucky. “Alright!”

Time flew, and soon it was noon.

Mingsha Fudi

Inside the Ancient Building Courtyard of H Country, a group gathered together, laughing and chatting.

“What a pity. If we weren’t busy preparing our own acts, the medium and large magic tricks could have been ruined too,” remarked one contestant, reclining confidently in a lounge chair.

It was obvious they were relishing the moment.

“Enough already. Remember our real goal—especially, ensure that the maze, the ‘Walk Through the Painting’, and the ‘Sunlit Golden Light’ act go off without a hitch.”

Nearby,

H Country’s seed contestant, Jin Shanfú, waved his hand.

They had initially planned to crack every act on video, but soon realized that filming cracked versions of the medium and large acts would be too challenging, so they abandoned the idea.

“Don’t worry! We’ve got this under control!”

The pair exchanged a smile.

That morning, they had already inspected the medium magic act’s venue—the plaza in front of Mingsha Ge. With a hint of mist and a maze setup that looked stunning, the ‘Walk Through the Painting’ would also benefit from the ethereal fog.

“Great, then! Once the contest starts, I’ll head to the small island on the east to set up the scene and props,” Jin Shanfú added, nodding.

“You’re all here,”

Just as the group was about to continue, Cui Xiaozhong strode into the courtyard with a cheerful smile, carrying a briefcase.

“Deputy Director!”

At the sight of Cui Xiaozhong entering, everyone quickly stood up.

“The drawing lots results are in! We’re in luck! Aside from the small magic act, both the medium and large acts are scheduled later. With a bit of fortune, we might even score well while toppling Mingsha City!”

After settling down,

Cui Xiaozhong pulled a contest order sheet from his briefcase and handed it out.

“Huh? I’m third?”

One contestant, the H Country performer of the small magic act, stared in disbelief—being third was far from good news for him.

“Don’t worry! Being third doesn’t necessarily mean a disadvantage. Who’s second, anyway?”

Cui Xiaozhong smiled and continued,

“The first two acts are…”

At this, the man quickly glanced at the order sheet once more.

“H Country’s You Gong and Feng Peng?”

“Exactly! You Gong represents the host nation’s act—the one performing Long Kingdom’s traditional ancient color trick. And Feng Peng is the Long Kingdom contestant doing card magic. The Long Kingdom’s ancient color trick has been cracked ages ago—

and didn’t Feng Peng’s video also leak? So the first two acts are unlikely to captivate the judges or the audience. Being third might actually work in your favor scorewise!”

Cui Xiaozhong chuckled warmly.

From his perspective, H Country had been incredibly lucky while Long Kingdom was faring terribly—nearly every major category had them listed first.

“That’s true enough!”

“So, just be ready tomorrow and adjust your performance accordingly!”

“Got it!”

“Now, go grind half a pound of the coffee beans prepared for Mingsha City. They’re in a bowl in the lobby—I sampled them last night, and they’re pretty good.”

“Okay!”

Meanwhile,

at the entrance to the City Gate, in the office of Mingsha Labor’s General Manager,

Luo Peng was sitting at his desk, studying something. A massive blueprint littered with scribbles lay in front of him, nearly illegible.

“Compared to Dino Park, their hottest project is ‘Leap Over the Horizon’. How do we crush that project?”

He rubbed his chin and slowly leaned back in his chair.

Ever since Xu Hao handed him the Mingsha City amusement park project yesterday, his mind had been consumed with it. He even brushed aside Fang Hou’s visit this morning about two film set proposals, passing the matter to Zhu Qiang.

As far as he knew, the ‘Leap Over the Horizon’ project was situated at the far east of the Adventure Island area—the most exciting attraction at Disney, bar none.

Wielding a visual spectacle complete with expansive screens featuring 5D effects and rocking seats, it promised to give viewers a truly immersive experience! “Leap Over the Horizon—why not have visitors ride a novelty mount straight into a fairyland?”

After a pause,

Luo Peng scribbled a sentence on the blueprint, only to quickly cross it out and mutter, “No, riding a mount into a fairyland just sounds too tame—not thrilling enough!”

Knock, knock, knock!

Just as Luo Peng fell into deep thought again, a sudden knock sounded at the door.

“Hmm? Come in!”

With a sigh, Luo Peng put down his pen and said,

“General Zhu just called. He wants you to head to Wudi City immediately!”

At that moment, the office door swung open,

and a staff member announced,

“Wudi City? Brother Hao is looking for me?”

Luo Peng was taken aback.

“It doesn’t seem to involve the leadership. General Zhu didn’t give details—just said you need to go over there!”

“Alright, I got it!”

Nodding, Luo Peng quickly began gathering his things.

About half an hour later,

Luo Peng appeared at the gates of Wudi City. At that moment, Zhu Qiang, Fang Hou, and others were present. When they saw him, they immediately flashed desperate expressions.

“General Zhu, something’s wrong!”

“What’s going on?”

At the sound of that, a chill ran down Luo Peng’s spine.

“The white muntjacs you brought in from outside somehow escaped and wandered over to Mingsha Ge yesterday.”