Chapter 4436 — A Hidden Escort in Peril
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
"Simple. It depends on when the goods are found. If they cannot last even one stick of incense, the concealment has failed and no points are awarded. Last a full stick, and you earn fifty points; two sticks, seventy; three sticks, one hundred—and that is victory. The maximum score for this round is one hundred points!" Hai Wuliang explained to the crowd.
Only then did the assembly understand, and they found the scoring rather reasonable. A perfect score of one hundred was not especially high, but this round truly carried no danger to speak of, so setting it higher would have been indefensible.
"One more thing. Beyond the regular competition, this round has a special challenge stage. Any agency that lasts the full three sticks and earns the perfect one hundred may, if it wishes a higher score, go further and accept the challenge—namely, to accept a search wager from any other agency of their choosing!" Hai Wuliang suddenly declared in ringing tones.
"A search wager?" Everyone was briefly startled, then their interest kindled at once. With the word 'wager' in it, it was bound to be rousing.
"Precisely. The two challengers each stake one hundred points. The limit is two sticks of incense. If the goods are found, the hundred points the agency previously earned go to the challenger; if they are not found, then the agency gains the challenger's hundred points as well—which is to say, this stage can yield two hundred points in total!" Hai Wuliang coaxed them along, step by step.
At that, the eyes of every agency head lit up. Without question, this final addition to the rules was the true crux of the round.
After the first three rounds, the gap between the agencies—above all between Skysupport at the head and the agencies trailing behind—had already grown considerable. Without such extra challenges, proceeding step by step as before, it would be hard to close that gap before the final showdown arrived.
But now they saw hope. Two hundred points at a single stroke meant that, with good play, to narrow the gap was the least of it—overturning Skysupport in one move would be no wonder at all!
Of course, the precondition was that one's own hidden goods could last the full three sticks of incense; otherwise one would not even qualify to accept a challenge, let alone speak of two hundred points.
"Very well. Those are the rules for this round. Each agency may now begin selecting its contestant and prepare to start," Hai Wuliang announced at last.
The moment the words fell, the agency heads—Qi Wenmo among them—once again found themselves in a quandary over whom to choose.
This round was neither as perilous as the first two, nor as much a trial of men's hearts as the third; yet choosing the right candidate was no less difficult for all that.
"Who among you is willing to volunteer?" Qi Wenmo asked, frowning, his gaze sweeping across each escort's face—and this time he did not, as before, lead off by speaking of rewards.
After all, this contest carried no danger whatsoever, and no reward was needed. Those with the ability would step forward of their own accord; those without it, no reward however great would help. He could hardly do as in the first two rounds and simply declare that anyone who entered the contest, win or lose, would receive fifty thousand spirit jades.
Doing so before had been called shouldering responsibility, showing nerve—it made the men more loyal, made them fight harder!