Notice.
There are ten squads, each with one thousand people.
But unfortunately, or perhaps as if it were destined, Yun Ruoxi was not assigned to the same squad as Lin Zhen.
Instead, the main cast members—though their numbers were completely different from the original story—were still placed together with Lin Zhen in the Third Squad.
This realization made Yun Ruoxi once again aware of the powerful corrective force of the “plot.”
No matter how much she tried to change the story, the moment she paused even slightly, the inertia of the plot would pull the story back to its original path.
This discovery made her momentarily silent and uncomfortably pensive, despite just having been elated from a successful performance.
But she quickly adjusted herself.
Compared to the hardships she had endured so far, this small setback was nothing.
Besides, she was still a secondary character and had already managed to slightly alter the plot.
Once this season ended and her popularity was tallied, if she successfully ranked up to a leading role…
After comforting herself with this kind of “Ah Q-style” self-assurance, Yun Ruoxi glanced at the barrage comments.
She saw that the audience was also complaining about her not being in the same squad as Lin Zhen, which made her mood even more at ease.
As expected, her two earnest performances had already planted the impression of a “female lead” in the viewers’ hearts.
“Zijiu, now you’re really the latecomer.”
She chuckled quietly to herself, then followed the other students assigned to the “Ninth Squad” as soldiers led them away from the plaza back to the dormitories.
***
On the way, Yun Ruoxi continued to focus on the broadcast, gathering intelligence.
Lin Zhen and the main cast were currently in the Third Squad.
This was a squad with below-average combat strength in the original story, destined to suffer during the upcoming squad battles.
However, precisely because of this, Lin Zhen could stand out with his average early strength combined with decent intelligence and practical skills, catching the attention of the higher-ups.
If he were thrown into the First Squad where 0001 belonged, or the Ninth Squad where she was, he would never have smoothly become a leader as in the original story.
“Besides me, the Ninth Squad has six people mentioned in the original story… I’ll need to pay close attention during the upcoming lessons and see if I can recruit them early.”
Yun Ruoxi was silently contemplating when her back was suddenly poked lightly.
Then a familiar childish voice came from behind her:
“Sister! Sister! I’m in the same squad as you!”
Without turning around, she knew exactly who it was and couldn’t help but smile: “What a coincidence, 9993.”
“Yeah! Super coincidental!” The other nodded vigorously, her long yellow braids even swinging against Yun Ruoxi’s back.
But before they could chat further, 9993 and the other students with numbers between 9000 and 10000 were led by soldiers to the familiar 500-person dormitory.
Yun Ruoxi continued forward and arrived at her new dormitory.
It was an eight-person dormitory used only for resting, with no furniture except for beds.
The silver-white ceiling was embedded with cool-toned spotlights; staring at it for too long could even cause dizziness.
This was an intentional arrangement by the battle camp to reduce the amount of time students spent being active in the dormitory.
But seeing that there were two separate bathrooms made Yun Ruoxi quite satisfied.
She greeted the other somewhat reserved roommates proactively.
Because their assigned numbers could change at any time, at Yun Ruoxi’s suggestion, they chose to address each other by nicknames.
Although numbers were their official identifiers, nicknames were also accepted and would not trigger the collar’s detection and subsequent electric shocks.
This was a rule that Lin Zhen had discovered during his probing in the plot, but Yun Ruoxi had already borrowed it ahead of time.
Lin Zhen really was useful.JPG.
“Well… then call me Quèbān,” said a tall girl with faint freckles on her face, still retaining some Caucasian features from Earth’s era.
“Call me Niúnǎi. I love drinking milk the most.”
Hearing this, Yun Ruoxi silently glanced at the other’s chest.
…She really lived up to her name.
Most of the eight roommates’ nicknames were related to their features or preferences, and Yun Ruoxi’s was no exception.
Her nickname was “Blue Hair.”
While they were introducing themselves, she continued to monitor Lin Zhen’s movements.
On the screen, Lin Zhen had just finished showering and was lying on his bed, meticulously reviewing everything that had happened that day.
***
A voiceover came at the right moment, narrating his inner thoughts.
Yun Ruoxi was happy to sneak a peek at the male lead’s mind, so she slipped into the bathroom and listened in while showering.
Unexpectedly, she heard her own name:
“Yun Ruoxi was assigned to the Ninth Squad. There are a few people there who look pretty fierce. She cries so much… I hope she doesn’t get bullied.”
“What do you mean I cry a lot!”
Yun Ruoxi froze, and then saw the barrage comments, causing her breath to hitch:
“Honestly, she really does cry quite a bit, such a little crybaby.”
“Crying is a good thing; it means the little loli is well hydrated (doge).”
“This is just acting, okay? Once I finish establishing my character, I’ll show you what a cool and fierce beauty looks like.”
Yun Ruoxi wiped her body fiercely.
She tossed her clothes into the molecular cleaner; a few seconds later, she took them out, spotless and fresh.
By the time she got dressed and stepped out of the bathroom, Lin Zhen’s review was nearing its end.
This also meant that the entirety of 《Starfall》’s Second Episode had concluded.
Ignoring the crazed viewers in the barrage, she shut off the broadcast and lay back on her bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
“The Third Episode is a transition back, mainly focusing on Lin Zhen’s growth and changes over the next year in the battle camp.”
“I’m not in the Third Squad, so I probably won’t get many scenes… such a pity.”
Yun Ruoxi pouted and summoned the system interface:
【Name: Yun Ruoxi · Yelan】
【Age: 10 years old】
【Fame: Fame (Appearance)】
【Rank: Female Second Lead (Antagonist)】
【Stellar Energy Index: 0 (Bloodline undeveloped)】
【Potential: A (???)】
【Bloodline: Grade A Bloodline (Unawakened) Unknown Bloodline (Unawakened)】
【Physical Attributes: Strength E, Agility B, Willpower S, Constitution B, Mentality B】
【Current Skills: Master-level Acting, Beast Intuition, Pain Shielding】
【Popularity: 71,320】
【Popularity Debt: 100,000】
“Hm, I’ve actually gained nearly 39,000 popularity points?”
A trace of joy flashed across Yun Ruoxi’s face.
With such high popularity, it seemed her previous acting approach had been on the right track.
The audience truly liked characters with room to grow and cute points.
“Keep it up!” she quietly clenched her fist.
At that moment, the room lights suddenly went out.
It was bedtime.
Almost simultaneously, a piercing scream came faintly from afar.
Someone had clearly not gotten into bed on time, triggering the collar’s electric shock punishment.
The battle camp’s rules were extremely strict, and the punishments harsh, all to force the students to quickly learn to obey orders.
These killers didn’t have time to play house with children.
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