Rebirth 09: Starting from taking charge of Running Man on CCTV

The second floor of the Zhuque Tower features a double-height corridor.

Huo Jianhua, along with Liu Shishi and Yuan Hong, jogged along the corridor until they turned the corner at the end, where all three stopped at the same time.

"etc."

Huo Jianhua raised his head, his gaze fixed on the octagonal palace lantern above him.

The palace lanterns hang below the crossbeam in the center of the open corridor, more than four meters above the ground, with the tassels swaying gently in the night breeze.

Between the lantern tassels, a bronze token was tied with a red rope, gleaming with a dark golden luster under the lamplight.

It is engraved with a vermilion bird with outstretched wings.

Complete.

It's not fragments.

Huo Jianhua's breathing paused for a moment.

"The Vermilion Bird Decree!"

Liu Shishi saw it too, and kept her voice very low, but the last syllable still rose in pitch.

Yuan Hong craned his neck for three seconds, then looked back at both sides of the corridor.

"I can't reach it, it's over four meters high."

Wallace Huo was already looking around.

"Find whatever you need, a bamboo pole, a broom, anything will do."

Liu Shishi immediately ran to the end of the corridor, climbed over two corners, and dragged back a bamboo pole used for drying clothes.

It's too short.

I can't reach it.

Yuan Hong peeked down to the first floor.

"There are even longer ones downstairs! Several are standing against the wall!"

Huo Jianhua made a quick decision and shouted downstairs.

"Zhiwei! Tang Yan! Come up and get the bamboo pole! No—you guys stay down here and provide support!"

Huang Zhiwei and Tang Yan were on guard at the edge of the lobby on the first floor when they heard the shouts and immediately ran over.

"What's wrong?"

"The Vermilion Bird Token hangs on the overhead lamp! Complete!"

Wallace Huo leaned over the second-floor railing and pointed downwards, "Use long bamboo poles to poke upwards from below and break the ropes on the lantern tassels!"

Huang Zhiwei turned his head and saw that there were indeed two bamboo poles, each more than three meters long, standing against the wall. They must have been props for the set design.

He handed one to Tang Yan, one in each hand.

"I'll poke you, you get ready to catch it."

Tang Yan nodded, opened her arms, and stood directly under the palace lantern.

On the second floor, Wallace Huo leaned on the railing and directed the operation.

"A little to the left...yes, a little higher...I touched it, I touched it!"

Liu Shishi was so anxious that she kept stamping her feet.

"Hurry, hurry! What if the Running Man cast comes over?"

Yuan Hong stood guard at the stairwell, peering out.

"No one's here right now, hurry!"

Huang Zhiwei raised the bamboo pole to its limit, and the tip of the pole just reached the tassel at the bottom of the palace lantern.

He pushed it hard.

The tassel on the lantern swayed, but the token didn't fall.

"Push harder!"

Wallace Huo got anxious.

Huang Zhiwei gritted his teeth and pushed the bamboo pole upwards a bit, wedging the tip between the red rope holding the token and the lamp stand.

With a forceful flick.

"Smack."

The red string broke.

The bronze token detached from the palace lantern and fell straight down.

Tang Yan reached out to take it.

My fingertips touched the edge of the token.

I didn't catch it.

The token slipped through her fingers, struck the bluestone floor with a "clink," bounced, and rolled toward the center of the hall.

"Quick, pick it up!"

Huo Jianhua's voice cracked.

Tang Yan turned around and chased after her.

Huang Zhiwei threw away the bamboo pole and strode over.

But they were all a step too late.

Because at the very second the token landed, three figures stepped into the main entrance of the hall.

Shen Teng, Chen He, Baby.

The three men had come to search the lobby on the first floor. The moment they pushed the door open, a shiny copper plate fell from the sky, bounced twice on the ground, and rolled to a spot three meters away from Shen Teng's feet.

Shen Teng's eyes widened instantly.

He saw the design on the token.

Suzaku.

The complete Vermilion Bird.

My brain was 0.3 seconds faster than my body.

But this time, my body actually kept up.

Shen Teng was launched like a spring, sliding and leaping forward, his whole body flying sideways.

Tang Yan's hand was only halfway out.

Huang Zhiwei had just taken his second step.

Shen Teng had already laid himself on the ground, his hands tightly protecting the token, curled up like a mother hen protecting her chicks.

"Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine!"

Chen He reacted extremely quickly, rushing forward in three steps and throwing himself on Shen Teng, covering him with his entire body.

"Don't touch him! Nobody touch him!"

Baby stood at the door, covering her mouth with both hands, her eyes wide open.

Tang Yan stood there, stunned, her hand still outstretched.

Huang Zhiwei stopped and looked at the human flesh sandwich on the ground, his brows furrowing.

On the second floor, Huo Jianhua leaned on the railing with both hands, his face ashen.

"What's going on?!"

Liu Shishi peeked down and gasped.

"The Running Man cast members have been snatched away!"

"Charge!"

Huo Jianhua turned and ran towards the stairs, with Yuan Hong and Liu Shishi following closely behind.

Shen Teng lay on the ground, clutching the token tightly in his hand, his face pressed against the cold bluestone slab, panting heavily.

"I can't take it anymore... I've used up all the exercise I've ever done in my life..."

Chen He lay on his back and turned to call out to Baby.

"Baby! Go get someone! Quickly!"

Baby turned and ran.

Footsteps came from all directions.

In less than a minute, the remaining members of the Running Man cast arrived.

Li Chen was the first to rush into the hall. When he saw Shen Teng and Chen He on the ground, he stood in front of them without saying a word, arms crossed, like a wall.

Zheng Kai rushed in through the side door, followed closely by Wang Baoqiang.

Deng arrived last, standing on the outermost edge of the line.

At almost the same time, Wallace Huo, along with Yuan Hong and Liu Shishi, rushed down the stairs and met up with Huang Zhiwei and Tang Yan on the first floor.

The two groups of people stood facing each other in the center of the lobby on the first floor.

They were separated by less than five meters.

Shen Teng finally got up from the ground, dusted off his clothes, raised the Vermilion Bird Token high, and waved it at the Immortal Sword Team.

"Sorry everyone, first come, first served."

Huo Jianhua stared at the token, his chest heaving slightly.

Then his gaze swept across the Running Man team's formation and locked onto Brother Hu standing behind Li Chen.

"There's one more thing."

Huo Jianhua's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear.

He raised his hand and pointed at Brother Hu.

"He's an undercover agent for the Running Man team."

The hall fell silent for a moment.

Brother Hu stood still, his expression unchanged.

Huo Jianhua continued.

"He's the one who just tore off Yang Mi's name tag, and he also took the White Tiger Token. Everyone, stay away from him."

The remaining four members of the Sword and Fairy team all turned their attention to Brother Hu.

Tang Yan took half a step back.

Liu Shishi bit her lip.

Hu Ge was silent for two seconds, then laughed.

That smile was gentle, calm, and even carried a hint of relief.

"Brother Hua has a really sharp eye."

He spread his hands, speaking in a relaxed tone as if he were talking about the weather.

"There's nothing I can do; I have no choice."

After saying that, he walked towards the Running Man team's camp and stood next to Li Chen.

Li Chen patted his shoulder without saying anything, but a smile appeared on his lips.

Zheng Kai muttered something under his breath.

"Brother Hu, you're amazing."

The atmosphere on the Running Man cast's side instantly became high-spirited.

Eight people against five people.

The Vermilion Bird Token is in hand.

Hu Ge is back in the team.

It was a complete rout no matter how you looked at it.