"What did you say? Crime reserves?" Stark froze when he heard Bai Ye's question.
"Yeah. Crime reserves. How many death row inmates around the world are still awaiting execution?" Bai Ye asked.
"Roughly… seventy thousand," Stark replied, immediately having J.A.R.V.I.S. pull up the data.
Recently, because Bai Ye had suddenly declared he wanted to overhaul crime issues and made examples out of a batch of offenders, the number of unexecuted criminals was currently quite high.
"Seventy thousand death row inmates, huh? That's a bit too few," Bai Ye clicked his tongue in mild dissatisfaction.
"What exactly are you trying to do?" Stark asked uneasily.
"Nothing much. Just planning to use the remaining crime reserves to stage a live-streamed battle royale. They're going to die anyway, so might as well entertain the public."
Bai Ye spoke casually, but the words made cold sweat run down Stark's back.
Before Stark could respond, Bai Ye finalized it: "It's settled. Three days from now, we'll hold an all-category Criminal Championship."
"Groups of one thousand. They'll compete in sports, games, competitive events, art, literature, cooking, singing, and so on."
"After all, Li Bai said, 'Heaven has endowed me with talents for a purpose.' No matter how trash those death row inmates are, they should have at least one skill worth being proud of."
"Each category is limited to a thousand participants. Seventy thousand people across seventy categories. The 999 losers in each category will be executed by firing squad on the spot. The one winner will stand out and receive my pardon—death sentence commuted to life imprisonment, with the possibility of further sentence reduction."
"What exactly are you trying to achieve…" Stark said through clenched teeth.
Although his tone was firm, he felt a shameful stirring of excitement inside.
After all, he used to be a world-famous playboy who lived for thrills, and Bai Ye's proposal hit right at his… core.
A death competition—losers perish, winners pardoned. Gambling with life itself was inherently adrenaline-pumping. If turned into a movie, it would be a blockbuster.
And the participants were all death row inmates, already destined for execution. Winning even meant a reduction to life imprisonment. That greatly lessened the moral burden.
Audience: We get to watch criminals slaughter each other? What a deal!Criminals: I got in for killing people—if I kill more, I can get out? What a deal!
This game was insanely thrilling. Stark could already imagine the public reaction once the news broke.
"What am I trying to do? Just bored and looking for something to do," Bai Ye said in an almost hypnotic tone. "Don't tell me you're not tempted. I don't believe it."
Stark: …
Seeing Stark's guilty silence, Bai Ye smiled. "Alright. Just pass this on to Kingpin and let him handle it."
With complicated emotions, Stark slowly nodded. "Fine. I'll inform Kingpin."
Hearing the phone hang up, Stark suppressed his pounding heart, trying not to get too excited.
A minute later, Kingpin, vacationing by the seaside, received the news and shot up from his lounge chair.
"Mr. Bai wants us to handle it? No problem at all! I'll notify Rodriguez right away. Three days, right? Fine. I'll have those superpowered people carve out several arenas in Antarctica."
"Only criminals? Their strength might not be enough. They probably won't even blow up many buildings. Mr. Bai might find it boring."
"How about I have Bullseye and the others kill a few people, commit crimes, and then stuff them in to raise the overall combat quality and ceiling?"
"…Not allowed? What a pity… Alright, understood. Leave everything to the two of us. Oh, and we'll need your AI to help out then—have it act as the referee."
Hanging up excitedly, Kingpin nudged Rodriguez, who was sunbathing beside him. "Get up. We've got work. Mr. Bai's orders."
Rodriguez scrambled up, face full of loyalty. "Mr. Bai's orders? When did they come?"
"Just now. A big one—Global Criminal Death League."
…
Late at night, inside a prison in the Southern Hemisphere, a middle-aged man in black-and-white prison clothes, with a scruffy beard, sat in a corner.
Clang!
The iron door was yanked open, and an officer walked in. "Yaris, your ability is electromagnetic propulsion, right?"
"What is it?" Yaris' voice was hoarse. He didn't even bother lifting his head.
Facing imminent death, he had lost all will to live and didn't want to deal with anyone.
"I heard your electromagnetic propulsion can bring down a building in one strike. If not for Professor X's mental control, you would've almost escaped the encirclement." The officer received only silence in response.
Unbothered, he smiled. "Want to live? There's an opportunity for you to survive."
"What do you mean?"
As expected, Yaris' head snapped up, eyes filled with desire for life.
The officer said nothing, grabbed a stack of forms, infused them with internal energy, and threw them toward him.
The papers, sharp as blades from the energy, were caught casually by Yaris. In the dim room, he read them without difficulty.
[Global Criminal Death Competition]
Superpower Division Championship □
Conventional Division Gun Battle Competition □
Death Rally Racing □…
I Am a Singer □
Chess □
Dance □
Painting □…
"What is this?" Yaris asked.
"That individual plans to hold a multidimensional competition among prisoners. Winners get their death sentence commuted to life."
Seeing Yaris' eyes light up, the officer continued, "With your strength, you have a strong chance to win the Superpower Division. Don't disappoint me."
Yaris didn't let the news overwhelm him. "Why are you so enthusiastic? Is this beneficial to you too?"
"Of course. The winning region will receive massive resource support from President Kingpin for the next three years. Promotion channels will also widen. This is a blessing for an entire region."
"There are over two hundred regions worldwide, but only seventy-something winner slots. Given the strength of criminals from those five major regions, they'll probably take more than half the slots. We have to step up."
"So next, we'll give you comprehensive special training. With your ability, taking first place isn't impossible."
"After receiving the pardon, you'll be awarded our Outstanding Criminal Medal."
"Though it won't directly free you, if you perform well afterward, life can be reduced to ten years, ten to three, three to juvenile status—then you're out."
-----------------------
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