Chapter 177: This is a Moving Maze! Fleeing in Panic!

Chapter 177: This is a Moving Maze! Fleeing in Panic!

Behind them, the cameraman followed, jogging with his equipment, making Zhang Lin feel that these foreigners were a bit off.

Sterling, seeing this, didn't hesitate. He immediately led his team down the middle path, knowing the sequence by heart.

They continued through the third intersection, the fourth, and so on.

After smoothly navigating over a dozen intersections, they were stunned to find themselves at a fork with only two paths when they reached the eleventh intersection.

The eleventh intersection was supposed to have four paths: two straight, one to the left, and one to the right.

Now, there were only two paths.

Sterling and his team suddenly realized a serious problem—they had lost their way.

"How could this happen?" one of the Wost members couldn't believe it.

"When did we go wrong?" another asked, frowning.

This was the worst part; they didn't even know when they had lost their way, just that something was off.

Clearly, the maze's properties of increased confusion and reduced exploration intelligence had taken effect.

Sterling and his team had been subtly influenced without realizing it.

"Quick, go back!" Sterling said immediately.

Now, they could only retrace their steps to find a reference point or return to the start to regain their path and continue exploring.

This would waste a lot of time.

The cameraman from "The Brainiest" captured this moment and broadcast it on the screen at the entrance, where the tourists outside could see it.

Zhang Lin and Master Zixu also saw it.

"What's going on? Why are they going back?" Chu Heng asked, surprised.

"They've lost their way. They'll be lost soon. Overconfidence always leads to a fall," Zhang Lin knew exactly what had happened—the maze's property of reducing exploration intelligence had taken effect.

Chu Heng's eyes lit up when he heard this.

The reason for having the "The Brainiest" cameraman follow was that they held the broadcast rights. Naturally, he hoped the broadcast would gain some heat.

Now, the world's top maze experts were lost right from the start, and the key was that they had been so arrogant at the beginning. The more they struggled, the more heat the show would generate.

Moreover, if the world's top experts could get lost so easily, it would prove how formidable the bamboo maze was, which would be beneficial for "The Brainiest" program.

When the time was right, he could have Zhang Lin give "The Brainiest" a bit of a boost, which would add to the show's credibility.

So, he immediately sent a message to the director of "The Brainiest": "The Wost team is lost. Have the cameraman focus on them. The more they struggle, the more heat we'll get."

"Understood!" Director Li Nian replied.

As Zhang Lin had predicted, Sterling and his team retraced their steps through ten intersections and then were completely dumbfounded by what they saw.

They were not at the starting point; instead, they were faced with several path choices again.

Sterling was starting to panic; things were getting out of his control.

Worst of all, they had been so confident, and there were so many journalists around. If they got lost right from the start, it would be broadcast to the world, and they would be humiliated globally.

They had come to this country because of videos on the internet showing people from a certain country easily completing their maze and insulting them as trash.

They were here to clear their name and prove that the people from the other country were the trash.

But now, it seemed they were proving that they were the trash.

The more he thought about it, the more sweat appeared on Sterling's forehead.

The "The Brainiest" cameraman had already received instructions and, seeing the situation, asked teasingly, "What's going on, everyone? Did you get lost and trapped as soon as you entered?"

The cameraman's words were broadcast to the tourists and journalists outside, who were curious if this was true. It was clear that Sterling and his team were floundering like headless flies.

The Wost member who understood Chinese immediately translated the cameraman's words, making Sterling's frustration boil over.

Even if this was the case, couldn't the cameraman just do his job and not announce it?

The cameraman, ignoring Sterling's expression, faithfully carried out his task: "You're supposed to be the world's best maze experts. How could you get lost?"

Sterling's face fell even more when he heard the translation.

Can't this cameraman read the room?

Photographer: "You guys are supposed to be the greatest maze masters, yet you got lost right after entering. Doesn't that mean others might have the same problem? What if someone doesn't get lost as quickly? Does that mean they're better than you?"

Sterling Lar's face darkened as he heard the translation. He glared at the photographer and the translator, his irritation mounting.

Why translate such nonsense to him?

He was about to lose it.

Moreover, if the journalists outside heard the photographer’s words, what would they think? They might start believing that the Vost members were incompetent.

Indeed, the tourists and journalists outside the maze, watching the live broadcast, were beginning to think the same. How could the world's best maze masters get lost so quickly?

Many tourists were eager to give it a try. They had memorized the path map and felt confident they wouldn't get lost as easily.

They believed they could outshine the so-called world's best.

In the Bamboo Forest Maze, Sterling Lar quickened his pace, hoping to lose the photographer. The sight of the camera crew only annoyed him more.

But he soon realized the photographer was in excellent shape and could keep up with them easily.

Photographer: "Guys, didn't we just pass this spot? How did we end up back here? I don't think you'll ever get out this way. You're the best from the United States, come on, think of something."

The translator relayed the message to Sterling Lar again.

"Fk, why did you translate that garbage?" Sterling Lar’s face turned red with anger.

He knew they couldn't go on like this. He stormed over to the photographer and, addressing the camera, said, "The Linyuan Farm is being despicable. They gave out a fake path map to make people memorize it. The real map is designed to get you lost quickly."

"We might have memorized the map incorrectly, but it's impossible for all of us to be wrong. The map is fake. This farm never intended for anyone to win the ten million. They can't handle it!"

The more he spoke, the more convinced he became.

It had to be true.

They weren't incompetent; they had been tricked by the Linyuan Farm, which was why they got lost so quickly.

Sterling Lar's voice sounded almost like a roar in his agitated state. The tourists watching the live broadcast were curious about what he was saying, but not everyone understood English.

Fortunately, the English-speaking translator relayed the message, and everyone understood what Sterling Lar had said.

This caused a commotion among the tourists.

"The Linyuan Farm's path map is fake?"

"That's impossible. The Linyuan Farm wouldn't need to resort to such tricks, would they?"

"But there’s ten million at stake!"

"..."

Some voices of doubt began to rise.

Lin Muxue immediately reported the situation to Zhang Lin: "Mr. Zhang, the Vost members are trying to shift the blame. They’re incompetent and want to pin it on us!"

Zhang Lin hadn’t expected them to suspect a setup.

He called over the Bamboo Forest Maze’s supervisor and instructed, "Change the path in the first area."

The supervisor nodded and took out a walkie-talkie, relaying the order: "Change the path in the first area."

The Bamboo Forest Maze’s employees were all recruited through the game, as only game-recruited employees could operate without being affected by the maze’s properties. Key control points in the Bagua formation were manned by these game-recruited employees.

With a single command, the employees at these control points would activate the changes, altering the paths in the respective areas.

Even if someone were an expert in Bagua and the I Ching, and managed to figure out the variables, the paths could be changed at any moment, making it impossible to navigate.

Sterling Lar, after venting his frustration to the camera, turned to the others with renewed determination. "We’ve been tricked. This isn’t a reflection of our incompetence. When we get out, we’ll come back and solve this maze. We can’t let this despicable farm win."

The others nodded in agreement.

Even without cheating, as the best maze experts from the United States, they couldn't be so incompetent as to get lost right away. They had definitely been tricked.

But just then, they heard movement around them.

Sterling Lar instinctively looked in the direction of the sound and was shocked to see a flower bed moving, along with a vine wall. They watched in disbelief as the path in front of them vanished, replaced by a new one.

With this change, the paths around them were completely transformed.

"Shifting maze... This... This is impossible..." Sterling Lar exclaimed in disbelief.

The others also looked grim:

"Are you saying the path wasn't a lie?"

"It's the path that keeps changing!"

"How can anyone possibly get out of this?"

"..."

Not only were they shocked, but when the commotion began, the cameraman immediately focused his lens on the scene, capturing the shocking changes in the paths.

So, the tourists and reporters watching the live broadcast outside also wore expressions of disbelief.

The tourists, in particular, were completely dumbfounded.

If the paths of this Eight Trigram Array can change, then all their efforts to memorize them were in vain.

"Do I have to do this? I spent the whole night memorizing!"

"Are you kidding me? I thought memorizing the path would get me 10 million!"

"I knew the Liyuan Farm bamboo maze wouldn't be so simple."

"This also shows that the Liyuan Farm isn't cheating; the maze is genuinely difficult."

"But who can tell me how to solve such a maze?"

"..."

For a moment, the tourists' cries of despair filled the air. They had spent so much time memorizing the path, only to be told that it was useless, and they had no idea how to navigate the bamboo maze.

Inside the bamboo maze.

After leading his team for a while longer, Sterling Lar finally realized there was no way they could complete the maze. The mental, emotional, and physical strain had pushed them to their breaking point.

" Sterling Lar, this isn't working. We should go out!"

"Yeah, we've been going in circles. Everything looks the same now!"

"I'm getting dizzy and can't tell the difference anymore."

"..."

Even though Sterling Lar was reluctant to admit it, he knew they had no choice but to give up. They continued walking and found the path marked as the safe exit, leading them out of the maze and back to the outside.

They soon saw the exit.

Instinctively, Sterling Lar quickened his pace, wanting to sneak away. This had been a humiliating experience, and he knew they had made a complete fool of themselves.

But when they emerged from the exit, they were met by reporters in long coats and short robes, who had been waiting for them.

The cameraman from "The Brain" had been following them, and the reporters outside had seen it. Lin Muxue had immediately informed the reporters of the exit's location so they could capture the Woster Organization members' disheveled appearance and get the first-hand scoop.

"Mr. Sterling Lar, how do you feel right now?"

"As the first person to enter the maze and get lost so quickly, do you have any advice to share?"

"Mr. Sterling Lar, do you think your performance lives up to the title of the most skilled maze expert in the United States?"

"..."

Each question was a sharp stab, and the already devastated Sterling Lar remained silent, hurriedly pushing through the reporters and fleeing with his team.

Indeed, it was a hasty retreat, as even after pushing through, the reporters continued to follow.

The Woster Organization members fled back to the parking lot and got into their cars, finally breathing a sigh of relief.

But at that moment, Dekker's voice came through their earpieces, urgent and desperate: "Sterling Lar, something's happened. Someone live-streamed your entry into the maze to the United States, and now everyone is criticizing us, saying we've disgraced the country."

"Moreover, those who were planning to fund our maze project have backed out, and some are even calling us frauds and threatening to sue us."

"Ah..." Sterling Lar felt his honor and wealth slipping away as he was pushed to the brink, collapsing into his seat.

The Woster Organization members were also left feeling drained and powerless.

How could they have created such a maze?

As the Woster Organization members fled, the crowd in front of the bamboo maze, including the contestants from "The Brain" and the tourists, were eager to give it a try. Even though they knew memorizing the path was useless, they still wanted to attempt it. How could they not?

So, it wasn't long before it was the "The Brain" contestants' turn to enter the maze.

Zhang Lin could predict the outcome, so he lost interest and decided to return to his office. Suddenly, he looked at the game in his mind.

It was finally complete!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end