Chapter 95

Chapter 95

The solo match had begun.

The students who had paid to watch held their breath as Ji Xinghai took a sip of wine and wrote two strokes. Sip, two strokes; sip, two strokes. Using both hands and two pens simultaneously, he wrote with the precision of a robot.

In less than ten minutes, he finished all the wine and all the cards.

"Alright, score it," he said, tossing the two pens aside with a flourish.

Scale: ...

The scale was speechless, feeling exhausted. It wished to apply for a transfer.

Identical answers written by one person, started and finished at the same time, with a time difference controlled within a millisecond—what was the point of scoring if there was no way to determine a winner?

However, transferring was not an option. The ghost holding the light whip, or rather, the inspector, silently watched it.

So the scale had to fulfill its duty and discern the answers. The result was: "Thirty points in thirty minutes, Red side 27 points, time taken ten minutes and twenty-nine seconds; Blue side 27 points, time taken twenty-nine seconds."

It paused, then numbly announced the final result: "Tie."

"Woo, so Ji controlled that student just to achieve a tie?" the watching students realized belatedly.

They thought Ji Xinghai did it to win, but it turned out he did it to verify his doubts. They underestimated him.

"He's amazing, getting twenty-seven out of thirty points. Guessing the type of wine is one thing, but the year and ingredients require real expertise. Is JiuZhou training so comprehensive? No wonder it’s a great nation!"

"...So he drank all that wine and isn't even drunk?" someone commented from an unusual angle.

The wine looked beautiful and tasted even better.

Most of it was high-proof alcohol, and mixing them easily led to intoxication. Ji Xinghai drank double portions, and his untested body was already heating up.

He loosened his collar to cool down.

'Ji Xinghai' was among the spectators. Seeing the open collar revealing flushed skin, it realized the competition scene and items were real, not illusions...

Meaning, they could eat, right?

What if abnormal creatures were involved?

Ji Xinghai glanced to the side. Though he couldn’t possibly see the watching students, it felt like his gaze met someone's.

This pause lasted less than a second before he turned back, unnoticed.

"What happens with a tie?" Ji Xinghai asked directly.

"There is no winner or loser in this match, so no rewards are given, and no contestant is eliminated. It won't count towards the overall standings, but the scores are valid. Contestants can rest for 24 hours before entering the next match."

The scale's calm voice carried a hint of urgency, but Ji Xinghai said good-naturedly, "No problem, I don't need such a long break."

The scale thought, take as much time as you want, just hurry up, next!

"I want to start the second match now," he said, already lifting 'Zhang Ziqing' by the collar. "As the saying goes, don't trouble others twice. Let's stick with him."

"The match is over!"

'Zhang Ziqing' was already in a bad state, and this pushed him over the edge. When he said 'over,' his voice nearly cracked.

"So this is the second match." Ji Xinghai still looked unperturbed. "We verified a tie, but we haven't verified an elimination yet."

'Zhang Ziqing' turned green.

"Besides, what do you have to fear? I should be the one afraid. I know nothing... well, except for wine tasting, which I learned by chance. But for other skills like painting or playing music, I'd be clueless." Ji Xinghai continued persuasively.

"Can't you choose someone else?"

Ji Xinghai immediately turned around: "Judges, someone wants to violate the rules and refuse a challenge. What do you say about that?"

Scale: ...

Now you remember the rules?

"White contestants cannot refuse a challenge invitation," the scale stated.

'Zhang Ziqing' closed his eyes, glaring fiercely at Ji Xinghai through gritted teeth. "Don't get too happy. Last time, I wasn't cautious enough, but not this time. I will challenge you ‘seriously.’”

Ji Xinghai also sobered up, returning to his previous demeanor: "That's exactly what I wanted."

The second match began seamlessly. The previous spectators were kicked out without warning, grumbling as they paid again to re-enter.

More people came to watch this time, almost two-thirds of the total number on both sides.

"Huh, what's this? A corpse exhibition hall?"

"Can you speak properly? Clearly, it's a place for playing with corpses... ugh, sorry, specimens."

A normal specimen display wouldn't be called 'playing,' but these specimens seemed artificially modified, turning real creatures into lifelike fantasy ones.

'Zhang Ziqing' looked at Ji Xinghai across the room: "I will defeat you fairly, in my favorite field."

But Ji Xinghai showed no respect for his opponent, looking around distractedly.

However, 'Zhang Ziqing' had grown and wasn't easily provoked. He looked at the stage he designed and recalled the past: "Isn't this place beautiful?"

The room was filled with corpses preserved in formaldehyde or nailed to walls, illuminated by eerie beams of light.

"Beautiful." Ji Xinghai had already taken a full look around. His light golden eyes narrowed slightly. "For these specimens, you must have killed quite a few animals, right?"

'Zhang Ziqing' smiled, pulling at the corner of his mouth: "You truly understand."

"A life that dies naturally can't compare to one that dies in its prime, with bones and flesh carrying a decadent fragrance."

The surrounding students were shocked. The specimens in this room included not only common insects and small animals but also many protected species. The most prominent was a white tiger cub specimen, which still had a pair of fluffy, snow-white wings.

"This white tiger cub..."

They initially thought it was farmed, but since 'Zhang Ziqing' cared so much about the freshness of the specimens, he would naturally choose wild protected animals, which he would kill alive.

Looking again at the two-winged white tiger, its seemingly soft fur and realistic hunting posture now seemed to carry a hint of blood.

"What do you mean?" Ji Xinghai's question interrupted their thoughts.

"You've seen the specimens here, all made by me using two or even three different animals. From the skeleton to the fur, I did everything myself." After caressing a glass tank containing a giant squid, 'Zhang Ziqing' turned back and said, "I challenge you to a competition in making specimens."

He took out two complete fresh snake corpses: "We don't need to make chimeric specimens; just the simplest ones will do. You can add up to 10% of other materials and finish within an hour. Of course, I know this time isn't enough for processing materials, so the game has a time acceleration option."

Ji Xinghai glanced at the cabinet he pointed to, which contained tweezers, gloves, formaldehyde, and a clock that could adjust time.

Ji Xinghai's expression mirrored those of the onlookers, all a bit puzzled. He pondered for a moment: "Wait a minute. I have no experience in making animal specimens. I need five minutes to familiarize myself."

This answer didn't surprise 'Zhang Ziqing' at all. Who would have such niche knowledge if they weren't interested? A hint of joy flashed in its eyes, but it maintained a polite demeanor: "Of course. And I believe someone as excellent as Ji Xinghai will learn quickly." Quickly, but not to mastery.

"Is Brother Hai in danger?" The audience outside worried.

The Hungry Academy had set up this scenario cleverly. Unable to find Ji Xinghai's weakness, it created an environment where other students would help identify it.

If wine tasting couldn't stump him, then making specimens might. If Zhang Ziqing couldn't, others would. No matter how skilled Ji Xinghai was, he couldn't fight off multiple opponents.

"Why doesn't Brother Hai wait 24 hours before challenging? That would give more preparation time."

"But the other students wouldn't have enough time either. Haven't you noticed? Brother Hai is testing the rules set by the Hungry Academy, from the previous doubts to potential loopholes. The more he finds, the better the students' chances against the replicas."

In reality, Ji Xinghai did most of this for the "game experience," but the audience saw it as selfless sacrifice.

Five minutes passed quickly, just the time to brew a cup of tea. 'Zhang Ziqing' thought Ji Xinghai was ready to start, but he asked: "You've made many animal specimens. Have you ever made specimens of anomalous beings?"

Huh?

Not just 'Zhang Ziqing,' everyone was stunned, not quite understanding the question.

"The White Team can decide the competition content as they wish, but I didn't expect it to be so conventional. Of course, anomalous beings are different from ordinary animals, so making specimens of them feels unusual. But now that the competition content is set..."

Ji Xinghai waved his hand: "Never mind, forget I asked."

'Zhang Ziqing' finally understood what he was trying to do, feeling disdain:

So, you think using unfamiliar anomalous beings as materials can level the playing field. Ha, it's futile. I've tried anomalous beings too, and there's not much difference.

But this will make the outcome clearer.

Thus, 'Zhang Ziqing' pretended to sigh: "I know you're more familiar with anomalous beings... Fine, I said I'd compete fairly."

As soon as it finished speaking, the surroundings changed. The room expanded several times, and two peculiar snake corpses appeared. These snakes, as thin as chopsticks, were covered in bone spines, with one having two heads—clearly anomalous beings.

Ji Xinghai smiled: "So you really can adjust the competition scene freely."

'Zhang Ziqing' sensed something amiss, and the Balance hurriedly intervened: "The White Team cannot change the competition content after setting it. This won't happen again."

"I didn't say anything," Ji Xinghai laughed. "Don't be so nervous."

Balance: Hmph.

"You said the competition content can't be changed, but you didn't say adding elements of anomalous beings wasn't allowed, right? Can we add any anomalous beings?"

The heartless Balance felt a twitch somewhere, but Ji Xinghai acted as if nothing happened: "Since the competition content is set, let's get started. The sooner we finish, the sooner we can eat."

'Zhang Ziqing' wore a stern face. It was supposed to be in control, yet why did it feel like Ji Xinghai was leading the way?!