Chapter Fifty-Four: The Duel Begins
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The great contest was about to erupt, and though it hadn’t even begun, the atmosphere was already searing with intensity. The two faced each other like drawn swords, the air between them charged with strange tension.
Duan Rui gestured toward the two laptops that had just been brought up by the staff, her voice low and steady.
“In that case, since Mr. Fang is also an expert hunter, why don’t we each propose three questions? Whoever answers the fastest and most accurately wins. What do you say?”
At her words, Fang Nian’s expression grew unusually grave. Propping his chin in his hand, he seemed to be wrestling with a difficult decision.
Catching his hesitation, Duan Rui’s lips curled in a hint of scorn.
“What’s wrong? Are you scared?”
Fang Nian was taken aback, then burst into hearty laughter.
“Sister Duan, you really have a sense of humor. What would I have to be afraid of? I’m just thinking that this kind of contest seems a bit dull. Why don’t we raise the stakes a little?”
Duan Rui paused, quickly grasping his meaning.
“All right. What do you want to wager?”
Fang Nian laughed.
“Straightforward! How about this: If I lose, not only will I kneel and apologize to you right here, but for the next three years, wherever I run into you, I’ll kneel and call you ‘Grandmother.’ How’s that?”
His wager drew a burst of laughter from the audience—they hadn’t expected Fang Nian to be so amusing, coming up with such a bet.
Duan Rui didn’t care much about the specifics; as long as she could salvage her pride, it was enough. She agreed without hesitation.
“Fine. It’s settled.”
Fang Nian waved his hand.
“But what if you lose, Sister Duan?”
Duan Rui was momentarily startled. She hadn’t even considered the possibility of losing. Only now, after his words, did she realize the wager went both ways.
“Me, lose? Heh, you name it—I’ll agree.”
Fang Nian inwardly cheered, then replied with calm composure.
“To tell the truth, I’ve been wanting to form a hunting team lately. I know you’re a renowned codebreaker here in District 16. If you lose, would you join my team?”
The crowd was once again thrown into a state of shock and excitement—this contest was turning out to be far more interesting than they’d anticipated.
Duan Rui hesitated for a moment, but her confidence in herself was unshakable. She agreed at once.
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“Deal.”
Fang Nian was overjoyed. He quietly pulled up his system task interface and decisively clicked to accept the mission.
Hell-level difficulty: Form a hunting party, including members with the following professions: Warrior, Story Archivist, Mechanic, and Codebreaker. Overall team rating must be no lower than F-class.
Hell-level mission accepted. Countdown: 120 hours.
Once everything was ready, the atmosphere in the hall gradually quieted. Fang Nian and Duan Rui sat before their respective computers, fingers flying across the keyboards. The competition had officially begun.
……
The office building of District 16 stood at the very heart of the district. At this moment, within the administrative hall, Duan Lenghan—his hair now completely white—finished signing the last development file, set down his fountain pen, and massaged his aching temples.
A man of his age and wealth would, under ordinary circumstances, have long since retired to enjoy life—pursuing his hobbies, perhaps even marrying again. But as a man in a position of power, Duan Lenghan’s life was far from leisurely, the weight of governance pressing down on him, never letting up.
Recovering his focus, Duan Lenghan glanced at the time, then called his secretary from outside the door.
“Liu, has the forum speech finished? I promised Rui I’d host the charity gala afterwards. Arrange the car for me.”
“Yes, sir,” the secretary replied, turning to make the arrangements. Then, as if recalling something, he turned back.
“By the way, sir, the forum called just now. The speech isn’t over yet. It looks like it’ll be a while longer. Should we go now, or would you like to rest first?”
Duan Lenghan was surprised, his aged face showing a trace of confusion.
“Not finished? It’s already this late. Even Rui couldn’t drag things out this long. Has something happened?”
The secretary nodded, explaining.
“Yes, it seems Miss Rui challenged an audience member to a live contest at the end of her speech.”
“What?” Duan Lenghan exclaimed, then immediately broke into hearty laughter.
He knew his granddaughter too well. He could easily guess what would pique her interest—she must have encountered a formidable opponent at the forum, one who didn’t take her seriously, which was why she’d been provoked into this.
The thought intrigued him, and he found himself eager to meet the young upstart who could rile his precious granddaughter.
He rose and said to his secretary,
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“No need to rest. Arrange the car to North City International Hotel right away. I want to see what sort of reckless youth dares challenge her. Besides, you know—Rui isn’t getting any younger. It’s about time we considered her future, eh? Ha ha!”
……
In the grand hall, about thirty minutes had passed before the two contestants stopped almost simultaneously. Duan Rui glanced at Fang Nian, her expression as frosty as ever, and asked,
“Mr. Fang, do you want to go first, or shall I?”
Fang Nian smiled, gesturing graciously.
“Ladies first.”
Duan Rui didn’t stand on ceremony. She immediately projected her first question onto the 3D display.
But the moment the question appeared, the audience was thrown into confusion.
The question was simple: a formula composed of English letters.
Silence.
Many people were at a loss.
“What kind of question is this? What does she want us to solve? Is it arithmetic? But there are no numbers. Is it a letter puzzle? But there are no blanks to fill.”
“Ha! Sister Duan’s imagination really knows no bounds. This is a clever one.”
“Clever? You think you can solve it?”
“Me? Not a chance. But the idea is straightforward—A, B, C, D, E represent five numbers. Together they form a number, and when multiplied by 4, the result is the same digits reversed—EDCBA. See what I mean?”
“Hey, that really is the case. Do you think it’s solvable?”
“No idea. I certainly can’t do it. The trick is, the answer is right there in front of you—but you just can’t find it. Doesn’t that drive you mad?”
……
The audience grew animated, many pulling out pen and paper, trying to solve the problem before Fang Nian could. Yet, more than ten minutes passed and still no one succeeded. The atmosphere quickly grew awkward, tension thick in the air.