Chapter 454: Lian Zhen
In the third round, everyone was preparing to have the tall, slender girl named Feng Shiqi sit on the "Wooden Ox and Gliding Horse."
Although she looked quite tall, her weight was relatively light, making her the most suitable candidate for this round.
But at this moment, Jiajin Qiao felt he had a new idea.
"Astrology girl," Jiajin called out.
"I'm here, bro."
"What's the third round?" He looked at the distant wooden crates and felt that continuing as things were might lead to trouble.
"It should be 'Lian Zhen,'" Eighteen Ning pointed at the third crate in the distance. "This round should be even more dangerous than the last."
"More dangerous than the iron ball?" Jiajin nodded. "What's it made of?"
"I'm not sure," Eighteen Ning shook her head. "But 'Lian Zhen,' as the third star of the Big Dipper, belongs to 'Yin Fire.'"
"Yin Fire...?" Jiajin frowned, then his eyes widened instantly. "Fireball?"
"Well..." Eighteen Ning sighed. "It's possible... but honestly, those mechanisms are all made of wood. How could they possibly shoot fireballs?"
"Is that so..." Jiajin thought for a moment, nodded, and then rubbed his chin.
The chin was indeed a magical thing—the moment he touched it, his mind was filled with stubble.
"Forget it, I won't think about it anymore." Jiajin looked up at everyone and said, "I was originally planning to ride in this round, but now I see that won't work."
"Huh?" Bai Jiu was startled. "You want to ride? Bro Joe, didn't we say earlier that the strongest should ride last?"
"That's the logic, but I feel like something's off." He glanced at the distant iron ball and said to everyone, "The difficulty of this game contradicts our setup. If I'm riding in the last round, I doubt any of you can handle that round's 'ball.'"
After his words, everyone understood Jiajin's point.
It was like the strategy of Tian Ji's horse racing, but they were making the wrong choice.
The difficulty of each round's 'ball' seemed to be skyrocketing. Under these circumstances, could they really let Jiajin ride last?
"But this round still won't work. I need to block the ball," Jiajin said with a grave expression. "A 'fireball' or something like that is just too much for you guys..."
Although he couldn't imagine how a wooden mechanism could shoot fireballs, riding now was definitely not a good idea—these youngsters would die.
"Astrology girl, are there any safer 'balls' in the next few rounds?"
"Yes," Eighteen Ning lowered her head and counted on her fingers. "The fourth star, 'Wen Qu,' belongs to 'Yin Water.' The fifth star, 'Lu Cun,' belongs to 'Ji Earth.' The sixth star, 'Ju Men,' belongs to 'Yin Earth.' Even the last one, 'Tan Lang,' belongs to 'Water and Wood.' None of them sound as dangerous as 'Yin Fire.'"
Jiajin felt he understood. If the next 'Wen Qu' belonged to 'Yin Water,' it would likely shoot an ice ball, just like the first round. This could be a buffer round, not too difficult for everyone.
The best plan now was for him to find a way to counter Lian Zhen's 'Fire,' and let the youngsters handle Wen Qu's 'Water' in the next round.
"Alright, um... Feng?" Jiajin looked at Feng Shiqi. "I can't remember your name. What's your 'Echo'?"
"Ah?" Feng Shiqi seemed a bit socially anxious and gave an awkward smile. "My 'Echo' is 'Flashbang'..."
"Flash girl," Jiajin said decisively. "Now that you mention it, I suddenly find it much easier to remember."
"Well..." Feng Shiqi seemed completely unable to handle Jiajin's cheerful personality and could only nod awkwardly. "Bro Joe, you're right."
"Flash girl, get on the cart first. Everyone else, continue with the previous tactic and move forward." Jiajin twisted his neck. "I don't know what kind of temper 'Lian Zhen' has, but I'll go meet it."
Earlier, Jiajin had single-handedly defeated 'Wu Qu,' so everyone naturally believed in his extraordinary strength. But this time, it was likely a 'fireball'—something you couldn't even touch, so how could he catch it?
Jiajin didn't bother with those questions. He walked up to Lian Zhen while loosening up his muscles.
Taking a closer look, this mechanism was indeed different from the others—it had a darker color.
"'Lian Zhen,' what does your heartbeat sound like...?"
With one hand clenched into a fist and the other open like a palm, Jiajin planted his feet wide, standing sideways, then slowly extended his fingertips forward and gently touched Lian Zhen.
Lian Zhen didn't feel right—its surface was warm to the touch.
"Let's set off!" the people pushing the cart said at the same time.
As the cart slowly moved forward, Jiajin felt Lian Zhen's heartbeat change—it began to rage inside.
Lian Zhen truly lived up to its name—it was as pure and fiery as its title.
"Such an intense heartbeat..." Jiajin's expression grew heavy. For a moment, he really felt like this wooden crate could spew flames. "This is trouble, damn it."
With every passing second, Jiajin felt his fingertips grow hotter.
Just as the cart reached the six-meter mark, a burst of thick smoke erupted from inside Lian Zhen, and a black 'ball' flew out, even streaked with faint red lines.
Jiajin sensed extreme danger and withdrew his hand just before being burned, but the ball was already hurtling toward his face.
He immediately twisted his waist, leaning backward, raising his hands to his ears. Just as the back of his head was about to hit the ground, he used a carp-leap motion, planting his hands behind his head.
Though he dodged the 'Yin Fire,' what about the people pushing the cart?
Without time to think, Jiajin lay flat and kicked out sharply, striking the black-and-red 'ball' with the top of his foot.
*Crack!*
A crisp sound rang out. Jiajin felt a burning sensation on the top of his foot. The material of this ball seemed different from the others as well.
It was more brittle than 'Ice.'
Countless sparks scattered through the air. In an instant, everyone saw thick smoke billowing above Jiajin, black mist spraying everywhere, and a fierce wave of heat pouring out from the shattered black smoke.
"Ah! Damn it!"
Jiajin felt drops of fire land on his body, forcing him to roll around on the ice several times.
"What the hell?!" Jiajin stood up furiously, scratching his hair and pulling out a few embers. "Big Horse Woman! What the hell are you doing?!"
Dema finally revealed a satisfied smile. "What's wrong?"
"Son of a bitch..." Jiajin shouted. "Isn't this just burning coal balls? Is this how you play the game?"
"I warned you earlier," Dema shook her head helplessly. "If you didn't want to die, you should have dodged these balls. It's your own cleverness trying to catch them. What can I do about it?"