Free Web NovelChapter 277: Chapter 272: Failure?
As time passed, the cheers in Fenglan Square gradually died down. The other eight Spirit Selectors who had made it into the top ten retreated to their rest areas below the stage, ready to watch the showdown between the biggest dark horse in history and the three-time reigning King.
Xu Fei cheered relentlessly from below, pumping his fist, not caring that the roar of the crowd drowned out his voice. He only sat down slowly once his throat became hoarse. Wan Xian’Er’s lively eyes reflected Mu Chen’s slender back. Unconsciously, she once again saw his straight, imposing figure overlapping with the image of her father.
Perhaps Wan Xian’Er herself didn’t even realize it. She had lived within her family her whole life, with no close friends and no relatives who treated her with genuine sincerity. She could only rely on her incredibly busy father. Over time, his image in her heart grew taller and more impressive. As the years passed, this admiration for her father blossomed into affection—what is commonly known as an Electra complex. Because of this, no matter who in the family pursued her over the years, and no matter how they tried, Wan Xian’Er would always compare them to her father first. But how could those naive little brats possibly compare to Wan Xianzhong, the man in charge of the entire Ding Palace!
But now, Mu Chen’s figure kept overlapping with her father’s in her eyes—an extremely subtle phenomenon. Thus, Wan Xian’Er found herself involuntarily focusing on Mu Chen. The more she learned about him, the more interested she became. Like the fruit from the Eden Garden, he exuded an air of temptation. It was a dangerous sign.
However, Mu Chen, standing on the high stage, was completely unaware of any of this. Ma Bi was busy provoking him.
"You’re Mu Chen, right? Heh heh. I never would’ve guessed you were hiding your true strength," Ma Bi said, eyeing Mu Chen with a teasing look.
Mu Chen’s expression didn’t change as he said indifferently, "If you have something to say, just say it. Why beat around the bush?"
Ma Bi was taken aback. "How did you know I had something to say?"
Mu Chen sneered, "With your reputation, Ma Bi, there’s absolutely no reason for you to come strike up a conversation with me. If you didn’t have something to say, what, were you going to invite me to dinner?"
Ma Bi burst out laughing. "Looks like you didn’t get this far on luck alone. You’re right, I do have something I want to talk to you about. This Spirit Selection Conference is held the same way every year. Even if you’ve never participated, you must have heard enough about it to be bored."
Mu Chen frowned but said nothing. He instinctively despised the hypocritical Ma Bi. When Ma Bi saw that Mu Chen was ignoring him, he didn’t get angry and simply continued, "How about we play a little game?"
"What game?" Mu Chen asked, shooting Ma Bi a look.
"A very exciting game, of course." Ma Bi twisted the ring on his finger and continued, "As a Spirit Selector, you should know that Spirit Selection is, in essence, a gamble. A high-stakes one. Since we’re gambling, we might as well add some stakes to make it interesting."
’Add some stakes?’ A thought flashed through Mu Chen’s mind. ’He’s like a fat sheep ripe for the shearing. That’s right, Ma Bi must be one of those filthy rich Spirit Selectors. He’s got to have tons of Attribute Spirit Crystals.’ Mu Chen grinned. "Alright. Tell me what kind of stakes you have in mind."
’He took the bait...’ Ma Bi thought with a sly chuckle. "How about this? We’ll wager a single request. Whoever loses the final has to grant the winner one request. How about it?"
Mu Chen hesitated for a moment. Seeing his reaction, Ma Bi quickly explained, "Of course, the request can’t violate any morals or ethics, can’t exceed the loser’s capabilities, and can’t be life-threatening. Sound good?"
Mu Chen thought for a moment. ’I do have a lot of valuable things on me, but I don’t believe for a second that I’ll lose.’ He nodded. "With those conditions, I can agree. But a verbal promise means nothing. You’ll have to announce the wager to the entire square and let the audience act as our witnesses. What’s to stop you from backing out otherwise?"
Ma Bi’s eyebrow twitched. ’So demanding,’ he thought. But when he considered the power of his Pupil Technique, he was certain he wouldn’t lose to some upstart brat who relied on his own Pupil Technique for Spirit Selection.
"Just witnesses? Fine." With that, Ma Bi strode to the center of the stage, raised his hands, and announced in a loud voice, "Citizens of the Imperial Capital, ladies and gentlemen, esteemed nobles! I, Ma Bi, have an announcement to make!"
His voice, infused with a considerable amount of Primordial Power, carried across the entire square. Once everyone fell silent, Ma Bi continued, "A moment ago, my young friend Mu Chen and I decided to play a little game. We’ve added a wager to this Spirit Selection Conference!"
?
As expected, Ma Bi’s words captured everyone’s attention. Down below, Ma Gedan frowned. ’What is that damn kid doing?’ he muttered to himself.
Basking in the attention, Ma Bi continued, "Spirit Selection is, at its core, a gamble! Therefore, young Mu Chen and I have made a bet. If I lose this final round, I will unconditionally grant him one request—provided it is not immoral, not life-threatening, and is within my capabilities. To prevent either of us from going back on our word, young Mu Chen has asked you all to act as witnesses. Are you willing?"
The crowd was stunned for a moment, then erupted in cheers. "Of course we are!"
That’s right. The citizens of the Fenglan Empire, who loved Spirit Selection, naturally loved a high-stakes wager like this one. A request ’within one’s capabilities’ was a huge deal. It meant that if the winner demanded all of your wealth, you would have to give it to them.
Elder Lin Xiao chuckled. "It’s good for young people to have some fire, but you must know your own limits. Alright, we’ve already delayed long enough. I’ll keep it brief and explain the rules for the final round. The final round will, of course, decide the ultimate winner. But it won’t be as simple as just choosing Spirit Crystal Ores. I must add one more rule! Within the twenty-second time limit, victory will not be decided by the *number* of Original Stones you select, but by the total *value* of the items inside the ones you pick. This returns to the very foundation of what it means to be a Spirit Selector. So, don’t just grab stones blindly. If you waste too much time on inspection, the outcome will not be in your favor."
This completely new rule stunned both Mu Chen and Ma Bi. ’Victory is decided by the value of the contents?’ The thought actually made Mu Chen a little excited. ’Even though the pile of Original Stones has been disturbed, with my speed, I can definitely scan all of them within fifteen seconds. Then I just have to pick out more Rare Attribute Spirit Crystals than Ma Bi to win.’
’Looks like the finals are skewed in my favor.’ The corners of Mu Chen’s mouth lifted into a confident smile.
With that, Elder Lin Xiao waved his hand grandly, looked at Mu Chen and Ma Bi, and roared, "The final round... begins now!"
At Elder Lin Xiao’s signal, both Mu Chen and Ma Bi activated their Pupil Techniques. A low grunt escaped Ma Bi as two lights, one purple and one white, erupted from their eyes.
He wasn’t sure if it was a trick of the light, but when Mu Chen caught a glimpse of Ma Bi’s eyes in his peripheral vision, the hazy sensation from before washed over him again. Moreover, now that they were closer, Mu Chen saw the world before him begin to twist and distort. In the next instant, the countless Original Stones seemed to transform into dancing musical notes, moving all on their own. This bizarre phenomenon caused Mu Chen to instinctively deactivate his Purple Sky Demon Pupils and shoot a strange look at Ma Bi.
Ma Bi’s lips curled into a grin, and he laughed maniacally. "What’s wrong? Your vision getting a little blurry? HAHAHA! Kid, I forgot to tell you! My white Pupil Technique doesn’t just see through things—it also creates illusions! Do you feel like the world around you is about to collapse? This time, you’re guaranteed to lose!" ƒгeewebnovёl.com
Hearing Ma Bi’s voice, Mu Chen’s heart jolted. He finally understood. Ma Bi’s explanation made it all clear—why the other Spirit Selectors who competed against him always inexplicably chose Fake Original Stones. It even explained how that Fifth Grade Spirit Selector had ended up picking a whopping fourteen of them.
"...An Illusion Technique?" Mu Chen let out a dark chuckle. "And who says an Illusion Technique can’t be broken? Purple Sky Demon Pupils, activate!"
The purple glow that had just faded flared up once more in Mu Chen’s eyes. Six ice-blue, crystalline snowflake sigils began to spin rapidly. Under the power of his Purple Sky Demon Pupils, the warped, collapsing space around him melted away like snow and ice, vanishing in an instant without a trace. In its place, the Spirit Crystal Ores appeared, their contents laid bare. But this time, Mu Chen didn’t scan the pile of stones. He had wasted too much time and no longer had enough to examine and memorize all of them.
Instead, Mu Chen focused his gaze directly on that strange Original Stone he had spotted back in the first round. There, nestled inside, was a palm-sized golden crystal. It was a perfect pentagon, and at its center rested a small, red, diamond-shaped crystal. He wasn’t sure if his eyes were playing tricks on him, but upon seeing the red, diamond-shaped crystal, he instinctively perceived it as a human heart.
Or to be more precise, it was like the heart of the golden pentagonal crystal, slowly rotating within it and emitting a faint heat.
"This is...!" Mu Chen’s eyes widened in utter astonishment.
Everyone saw the strange look in Mu Chen’s eyes, but Elder Lin Xiao, standing right in front of him, saw it most clearly. He frowned slightly. He wanted to remind Mu Chen that time was almost up, but he couldn’t play favorites. He had no choice but to announce loudly, "Three seconds remaining!"
"Two seconds!"
The shout, infused with Primordial Power, jolted Mu Chen awake. Without a second thought, his expression grew determined as he snatched the Original Stone with the extremely coarse-looking exterior.
"One second! Time’s up!"
At last, the final round was over. Everyone’s gaze immediately fell upon the long tables belonging to Mu Chen and Ma Bi. To their great disappointment, all of Mu Chen’s supporters slumped dejectedly in their seats. The reason was plain to see: the ratio of Original Stones on their tables was one to fifty. Even if the single stone Mu Chen had grabbed contained two Rare Attribute Spirit Crystals, the gap between him and Ma Bi would still be immense.
"He lost..."
