Xia Huna, a student, truly couldn't bear to see Yu Longdu be toyed with by the two staff members. However, Yu Longdu wasn't cooperating. After learning from Xia Huna that the pair were using Pokémon to cheat, he seemed to have found a path to turn the tide. If he disqualified himself and went down, he was confident he could dominate with his own strength.
To ensure his leading position in the Hearthstone industry, Yu Longdu specially asked Xia Huna to be the referee, determined to avenge his past shame. The result was several hours later...
"Don't tell me, your Machamp costume actually looks pretty good, quite realistic..." Xia Huna said with a laugh, taking out his phone to find some amusement for Meng Tianya.
Yu Longdu, resting his chin on his hand, his eyes darting around, muttered, "This makes no sense. I've clearly forbidden Pokémon cheating, why can't I still win?"
Xia Huna finished taking photos and came over to help Yu Longdu remove his Machamp makeup. "Take a look at their ID badges. They're twins. Their level of默契 (moqi - tacit understanding) is basically innate. With a single glance exchanged between them, they can completely decipher the cards in your hand. You still want to play cards?"
Hearing this, Yu Longdu glanced at the chests of the two staff members. Indeed, they were twins. He couldn't help but turn to Xia Huna and complain, "Why didn't you tell me they had this trick earlier?"
Xia Huna stopped pulling at Yu Longdu's wings upon hearing this. "Have some conscience. Didn't I tell you earlier that they were cheating? Why can't you learn to think ahead?"
As he spoke, Xia Huna turned to look at the big screen. Yu Longdu pondered for a moment and followed him. "No, at least help me remove my makeup. I can't reach the papers stuck on my back..."
...
Xia Huna ultimately didn't let Yu Longdu complete the process of evolving from Machamp to human on his own. As he peeled off Yu Longdu's "back armor," he asked, "How is it? Did anything go wrong?"
The staff member who had been watching the big screen nodded. "No, no significant events that would impact the contingency plans have occurred yet."
After understanding the situation, Xia Huna and everyone else continued to watch the live broadcast. Yu Longdu whispered to Xia Huna, "Old Xia, isn't that Voldemort you mentioned near the entrance?"
Xia Huna didn't move, calmly saying, "Close enough, just too low in skill. He's dragging vines to make camouflage and lying on the grass, trying to fool ghosts. I can't find any reason to ignore him, okay?"
Yu Longdu agreed. "Indeed. But it's not easy to have someone like that. At least he knows how to control first-hand intelligence. I just don't know how he'll escape. I think a lot of people will show up before twelve o'clock, and there will definitely be confrontations. This kid will definitely become the first target to get shot."
Xia Huna shook his head. "No, if he dares to do this, someone must be protecting him. Being alone here is a rather stupid choice, especially when one's strength is insufficient."
Yu Longdu thought for a moment. "That's true. If he were alone, he could wait for intelligence and then get it from others."
As they talked, the two continued to watch the video. Not far from the vine-wielding Voldemort, a few people were hiding in a bush, whispering to each other.
"Boss, do we really need to come this early? What time is it now? There are still several hours until twelve o'clock."
"Yeah, if we don't conserve our energy now, what if we fall asleep later?"
The one called "Boss" unceremoniously tapped the heads of his two subordinates. "What do you guys know? This is called catching them off guard. Perhaps Xia Huna doesn't even know we're here. Furthermore, this is also a strategy of waiting for the enemy to tire themselves out. Who knows how many people will show up tonight? We'll have the best terrain here to wait for them."
The two subordinates highly praised the boss's strategy, but all of them overlooked one problem: it was the college entrance examination season. Did they have any idea what they were wearing when they came? Lying in ambush here until midnight, wouldn't you freeze to death? The guy lying on the ground would probably freeze to death before midnight.
Xia Huna and Yu Longdu both knew this. Xia Huna stood up and walked towards the medical team. "The one under the vines by the entrance, pay attention to him. If he really can't hold on, provide urgent medical assistance quickly."
As he spoke, Xia Huna took out his tablet and sent a message to the bracelet of the person lying on the ground: "If you feel you can't hold on, press the red distress button."
The person lying on the ground was staring at the blank notice board by the entrance. When he felt his bracelet vibrate, he lowered his head to look at it. "Distress button? Is this it?"
It was this moment of lowering his head that changed the fate of this student. He accidentally touched it...
The whole world knew he touched it by accident, Xia Huna, Yu Longdu, and even his companions all knew this kid had touched it by accident, but so what? The medical team didn't care about that. A group of people rushed out and carried him in. Xia Huna walked over and looked at the stunned student, patting his shoulder with great sympathy. "I know, but there's nothing we can do. There are no second chances with this kind of thing."
After speaking, Xia Huna removed the tattered ghillie suit from the student on the stretcher, walked out, and spread it on the ground again. Then, intentionally or unintentionally, he glanced at the bush where people were hiding.
The second phase hadn't even begun, and someone had already ended their exam journey. The most terrifying thing was that this student wouldn't get a single point for this martial arts exam. If it were played according to the old rules, even if they didn't pass the first round, they would still get some points.
Xia Huna watched the medical team take the student away and sighed helplessly. "What a shame. Let's see when Voldemort number two makes his appearance."
Yu Longdu pointed at the screen. "He's already out. Look, isn't that him?"
Xia Huna came to the side of the screen and indeed saw a shadow wriggling on the ground within the screen. Xia Huna nodded and shook his head. "Not bad. At least he knows to use turf. Although I don't know where he got the turf, it's still turf. It's just that this guy isn't watching where he's going. Who's still waiting by the stump for a rabbit?"
The ones Xia Huna referred to as "waiting by the stump" were the teammates of the first unlucky student to be eliminated. They also spotted this crawling student and, without regard for whether anyone was around, jumped out and snatched the student away. The student was confused the moment he was picked up: Who am I? Where am I? What happened to me?
Xia Huna clicked his tongue. "May the examination rules protect you."
Time passed bit by bit. Although Xia Huna and Yu Longdu also paid attention to how their acquaintances were doing, as midnight approached, Xia Huna became increasingly eager to see what would happen in the next few hours.
Xia Huna poured a cup of hot water and held it in his hands. "What time is it now?"
The young man beside him glanced at his phone. "It's already eleven-thirty, less than half an hour left, but there aren't many people."
Xia Huna blew on the surface of the water in his cup. "Why is it strange that there aren't many people? Although everyone knows that whoever gets the information first will have a significant advantage, there are plenty of people in this world who want to be the angler. I just want to see if they have any outstanding moves that could earn them bonus points."
As they were speaking, they saw another person press the distress button on the tablet. Xia Huna sighed and waved his hand. The medical team rushed out and carried away the second Voldemort under the turf. Xia Huna jumped off the platform and looked at the student on the stretcher, shivering all over. He patted his hand. "You did very well. This is not the time or place to use such a method."
Watching the medical team take the second Voldemort away for recuperation, Xia Huna looked outside the gathering point. "Another one down. Fortunately, there are no more hiding like this outside."
Indeed, there were no more Voldemorts outside. In the profound silence, Xia Huna only saw a shadow in the sky, carrying a bright spot, flying towards them.
Xia Huna squinted his eyes, unable to see clearly. So, he directly sent out Rotom from his backpack to scout. Rotom flew up, circled around, and then returned to report to Xia Huna, "My kind, a phone Rotom. And judging by its appearance, that phone seems quite expensive."
Xia Huna stroked his chin. "I see. This is a good method."
The martial arts exam was different from the written exam; mobile phones were allowed. In this secret realm, mobile phones could naturally be carried. The trainer of the Rotom phone likely intended to photograph the rules at night and study them. Fearing that Rotom wouldn't be able to find its way, they even turned on the lights for it to fly.
Xia Huna couldn't help but applaud the idea. "Although it's a bit of a gamble, it's a gamble with a high chance of winning. I can give him a 'good'. If he has any follow-up moves, I wouldn't mind giving him an 'excellent'."
And so it was. A simple phone Rotom was quite risky. It was difficult for many third-year students to find a way to knock down a Rotom on the ground. Even those who could fly might not necessarily be able to defeat Rotom. Even if someone had trained such a Pokémon, they might not dare to act. Based on the intelligence Rotom gathered, it said that the phone was expensive, implying that it must be worth several thousand yuan, considering the cost of tablets and laptops. A high school student who truly broke it would likely not be able to afford it. Even if the attacker had no intention of attacking, Rotom could still play the victim, and what could you do about it?
Therefore, the only gamble in this move was whether there was a rich kid or a fool who had trained a strong enough Pokémon to take down Rotom. However, the difficulty of such a scenario was too high.
As the Rotom phone in the sky slowly approached the gathering point, a staff member beside Xia Huna stood up, walked out of the gathering point, and began posting the rules on the notice board at the entrance. The first major battle was about to begin.