With a loud “clang,” You Mingxu and Yin Feng turned their heads as the studio door was shut.

You Mingxu whispered, “Where’s Tuya?”

Yin Feng replied, “Should be outside. Can’t put all our eggs in one basket.”

Even at a time like this, he still had the mood for jokes. However, this arrangement did make You Mingxu feel more at ease—if they got trapped inside the studio, even with those two Punishers outside, she believed that with Tuya’s brute strength, he could break down the door, and take down whoever stood in his way.

At this moment, the lights in the studio dimmed, and everyone gradually fell silent. The female staff member appeared to be around twenty-five or twenty-six years old, wearing a small badge labeled “Assistant Director.” She retreated to the last row of seats with another person, at the highest point in the studio, not far from You Mingxu and the others. You Mingxu heard the Assistant Director speaking into her walkie-talkie: “Director, Director, everything’s ready, preparing for the countdown. Lighting, cameras, and production control standing by.”

You Mingxu turned her gaze toward the stage below, still empty with no host or guests in sight. An ethereal blue light enveloped the stage, creating a dreamlike, surreal atmosphere. You Mingxu even began to doubt—had she and Yin Feng come to a TV show recording to catch the Punishers? What if the Punishers hadn’t come at all and went somewhere else?

Just then, she heard the Assistant Director nearby let out a surprised “Oh?” causing many people to turn their heads.

The Assistant Director pulled out her phone, looking puzzled before answering: “Director? Mm… huh?” She glanced toward the small door leading backstage and replied, “Understood, we’ll come right away.”

You Mingxu and Yin Feng exchanged glances as they watched the Assistant Director hurry down with a staff member, disappearing through that door.

Now there wasn’t a single staff member left in the studio.

After a moment of silence, the audience began buzzing with conversation.

“Why hasn’t it started yet? Wasn’t it supposed to be 8:30? It’s already 8:50.”

“There’s not even a host.”

“Did something happen? Are they canceling the recording?”

“I’m going to post on Weibo about how the TV station can’t even keep to schedule…”

However, You Mingxu looked at the few people she had picked out from the crowd, and her heart skipped a beat, further confirming her suspicions—they showed absolutely no reaction, neither surprised nor restless. No talking, no movement, no looking around, just sitting there silently like black anchors in the sea of people.

You Mingxu’s heart slowly sank.

She grabbed Yin Feng’s hand.

Sensing her thoughts, Yin Feng whispered, “Chen Feng will reach the police station soon.” To gain the police’s understanding and trust and mobilize their forces, they needed to hand over the evidence to Ding Xiongwei in person, and they had concrete proof here.

Just then, Yin Feng’s phone lit up with a message from Tuya:

“There are two security guards outside who’ve locked the studio door from the outside. I just saw that the elevator on this floor is showing an error and can’t be used. Those two guards have also locked the stairwell door and are guarding it with guns. What should I do now?”

Finally showing their hand.

Yin Feng replied: “Don’t do anything, just keep watching.”

He looked up at You Mingxu.

You Mingxu had also seen the message content and didn’t know whether to laugh or be nervous. However, they both saw the calm certainty in each other’s eyes.

Yin Feng messaged Chen Feng: “They’ve made their move, go to Ding Xiongwei immediately.”

Chen Feng quickly replied: “I’m at the police station.”

Yin Feng put down his phone, his expression relaxing. The TV station itself surely hadn’t realized that the situation in this studio had already changed. He didn’t know how long it would take Ding Xiongwei to arrive, but it would be earlier than the Punishers had anticipated. Moreover, with him and You Mingxu inside, Ding Xiongwei wouldn’t be completely in the dark about what was happening in the studio. If necessary, they could coordinate from both inside and outside.

Yin Feng could even picture Ding Xiongwei’s face after their success—trying to maintain his dignity while being forced to thank and apologize to him—and his lips curved slightly.

You Mingxu turned and saw his calm expression and bright eyes, feeling even more admiration for him. In this situation, they had entered the tiger’s den and had become two of the Punishers’ two hundred bargaining chips. Yet Yin Feng remained so composed as if walking on level ground. She also thought about how he had been in such an adverse situation these past few days, condemned by thousands and bearing a bad name, yet had managed to identify the true Punisher leader just from some subtle clues.

He truly was the man she had chosen.

Thus, in this perilous environment, both of them felt a sense of satisfaction.

At this moment, someone walked out from backstage.

You Mingxu had watched several episodes of this show and recognized him as the host. He wore a blue suit, and his makeup was undoubtedly refined and exquisite, looking as handsome as he did on TV. However, his expression seemed somewhat uneasy, and whether it was too much powder or not, his face appeared pale, his gaze unfocused.

You Mingxu was taken aback.

In previous episodes, this host had always appeared composed and professional, never showing this side.

The host wasn’t holding a prompter, and when he walked to center stage, he nearly stumbled and fell. Many audience members laughed, but he didn’t smile at all, nor did he say anything to ease the atmosphere.

Everyone was watching him.

The host picked up the microphone and said, “Welcome, welcome everyone to today’s show, I’m your host, Zhou Ke.”

Scattered applause echoed from below, probably due to dissatisfaction with the host’s nervousness. The host seemed oblivious. He looked up at a large, automated camera directly in front of him.

You Mingxu’s brows furrowed slightly.

Why did it seem like the host was about to cry?

Her gaze turned toward the small door leading backstage.

The Assistant Director who had been called in by the Director earlier hadn’t come back out.

The host stammered as he continued, “I have good news for everyone. Today we’ve adjusted the show’s format and will be interacting with all our live audience and TV viewers in a completely new way. It will be very interesting. But everyone must listen carefully to the rules I’m about to announce, watch the actors’ performance carefully, and participate in the interaction. Otherwise, there will be severe punishments for everyone…”

The audience below started whispering among themselves.

The host, having received some unknown instructions from someone, became more flustered hearing the commotion below. His expression suddenly showed a reckless fury: “Everyone is quiet! You must maintain silence! Otherwise… otherwise the recording quality will be affected!”

The audience was stunned.

But they did quiet down.

However, many people’s looks toward the host had turned disapproving.

“What are they going to do?” You Mingxu whispered in Yin Feng’s ear.

Yin Feng answered, “Let’s watch the performance first.”

You Mingxu suddenly understood.

Right, the host had just mentioned a performance. She hadn’t expected it to be a literal performance rather than a figure of speech. Various guesses flashed through You Mingxu’s mind, even wondering if the Punishers’ performance would involve playing with the audience’s safety. But in the studio alone, there were probably five Punishers lying in wait. They could only watch and wait.

However, Yin Feng said, “The performance will have special meaning, or it’s a trap they’ve set for the audience. Watch carefully.”

A trap? You Mingxu hadn’t thought of that, but she nodded.

Meanwhile, in the same building, several main station leaders had been alerted.

The production department rushed to report, but they couldn’t clearly explain what was happening upstairs. They only knew that the elevator was broken and couldn’t go up, and the floor’s door was locked from the inside, with no response to knocking. And they couldn’t contact the director, assistant director, or host.

However, on the display screen before them, the live broadcast from upstairs continued.

Watching the host’s severely compromised performance and hearing him speak words completely different from the script, the Station Director’s face darkened: “What is he saying? What new show format? And what performance? Wasn’t the planned content supposed to be the same as previous episodes?”

The Production Chief also looked worried: “Yes, we don’t know what happened, he’s talking nonsense up there, and now we can’t get up there or contact anyone. Director, what should we do?”

The Station Director pondered for a moment, staring at the host’s pale face on the display screen. Experience showed its worth as his expression suddenly changed: “This is bad! Something’s happened up there! Someone’s playing tricks, criminals might have broken in and taken control of the 50th floor!”

Everyone present was shocked—they knew something was wrong but hadn’t considered criminal activity.

The Station Director made a quick decision: “Call the police immediately!”

Someone went to dial 110, while others exchanged worried glances. The Production Chief asked again, “Then… should we cut the live broadcast and switch to other content, maybe replay a TV series?”

The Station Director looked at the screen again—the host had left the stage, and all the lights had dimmed, but no one knew what would happen next. The Station Director felt a spark of curiosity, while his eyes flashed with insight as he said, “No, let’s watch for now. After all, we’re not completely certain. Be ready to cut it at any moment.”