The Genius Game - Chapter 7

Jian Tanxi: “I never agreed to answer your question. So, I won’t answer this one.”

The clown said helplessly, “Fine.”

Seeing that Jian Tanxi’s last two questions turned out like this, the other teammates were all surprised.

However, Zhang Dayong, Qin Man, and Li Chuxia didn’t say anything, nor did they blame Jian Tanxi.

Huo Zimu broke down: “Jian Tanxi! Are you insane? Do you know how precious those questions were? Why would you ask such stupid questions!”

Jian Tanxi ignored him and instead said to the clown, “I’ve found a way to clear this stage.”

The clown asked, “Oh? What is it?”

Jian Tanxi walked under the clock and tried to reach for it.

However, the clock was very high up, and Jian Tanxi couldn’t reach it.

Even Zhang Dayong, the tallest among them, couldn’t reach it either.

Qin Man asked Jian Tanxi, “You want to get that clock?”

Jian Tanxi nodded, “Yes.”

Qin Man first turned and asked the clown, “Referee, can you help us get that clock?”

The clown said, “What’s wrong with you people? Why do you want to rely on me for everything? If you want the clock, figure it out yourselves.”

So, Qin Man said to Jian Tanxi, “I can let Li Chuxia ride on my shoulders and see if she can reach the clock. Among us, Li Chuxia is relatively light. Although my son is the lightest, he’s not tall enough.”

Jian Tanxi was heavier than Li Chuxia and even shorter, so Li Chuxia was indeed more suitable to retrieve the clock.

However, Jian Tanxi asked Qin Man with some concern, “Sister Qin Man, are you really able to carry an adult?”

Qin Man nodded, “No problem. You might not know, but a mom’s strength is quite impressive.”

Li Chuxia walked over to Qin Man, who crouched down and let Li Chuxia ride on her shoulders.

Then, Qin Man stood up. Li Chuxia, on her shoulders, reached for the clock but still fell a little short.

Zhang Dayong, standing nearby, said, “Let Li Chuxia ride on my shoulders instead. I’m taller.”

Jian Tanxi said, “No, Uncle Zhang, you need to hold onto Huo Zimu to keep him from causing trouble. You’re the only one here who can restrain him. As for the height issue…”

Jian Tanxi looked at the nearby hospital bed and had an idea: “Sister Qin Man, Chuxia, both of you climb onto the hospital bed. With the added height of the bed, you should be able to reach the clock.”

So, Qin Man and Li Chuxia worked together to push the hospital bed over and placed it under the clock.

Then, the two of them pushed Professor Pan Xian aside and climbed onto the hospital bed together.

Qin Man crouched down as before and let Li Chuxia ride on her shoulders.

Then, Qin Man slowly stood up.

Jian Tanxi watched from the side and said, “Be careful, you two.”

Qin Man said, “It’s fine, I can keep steady. Tanxi, hold onto my son and don’t let him cause trouble.”

Little Qu Chen, seeing his mother standing on the hospital bed, indeed ran over to the bed and tried to pull at Qin Man.

Jian Tanxi quickly grabbed Qu Chen to stop him from going over.

The spot where Qin Man was standing was already very small and couldn’t withstand any shaking.

After Qin Man stood up straight, Li Chuxia, on her shoulders, reached out and finally managed to grab the clock.

They took the clock down and handed it to Jian Tanxi.

Jian Tanxi took the clock, feeling very excited.

She didn’t know if her guess was correct, but she had to give it a try.

She directly turned the clock hands in the clock, spinning them a total of 20 times.

Then, Jian Tanxi said to the clown, “Have we cleared the level?”

The clown stared in surprise at Jian Tanxi’s actions, then exclaimed, “Human! You’re so clever! Congratulations, everyone has cleared the level!”

Zhang Dayong, still dazed, asked, “Why have we cleared the level?”

Li Chuxia explained, “Just now, the clown said that after 24 hours, it counts as one day. One full rotation of the clock is 12 hours, two rotations are 24 hours, that’s one day. Sister Tanxi turned the clock 20 times, which means we’ve passed ten days.”

Zhang Dayong muttered, “It’s that simple?”

Li Chuxia nodded, “It’s that simple.”

Zhang Dayong was both shocked and overjoyed, forgetting to hold onto Huo Zimu.

Huo Zimu seized the opportunity to break free from Zhang Dayong, ran to the hospital bed, pulled out the steamed bun from the pillow, and devoured it in one bite, then gulped down the glass of water beside it.

No one stopped him, because everyone knew they would soon be leaving.

The clown announced, “Congratulations on clearing the level. The reward for this stage is that all participants will receive a significant enhancement in physical strength, endurance, and athletic ability, reaching the level of professional athletes. Additionally, you will no longer be prone to hunger, eating one meal will sustain you for ten days, so you won’t have to worry about starving. Furthermore, those who made greater contributions to clearing the level will receive extra rewards.”

“The contributors with greater impact are: Jian Tanxi, Qu Chen, Qin Man, and Li Chuxia.”

Huo Zimu protested, “That’s not fair! Some people didn’t contribute at all to clearing the level! Qu Chen is a fool, he didn’t help in any way! And Professor Pan, he just lay in bed the whole time. Why do they deserve rewards?”

The clown replied, “If it weren’t for little Qu Chen pointing at the clock, how could Jian Tanxi have discovered the method to clear the level so quickly?”

Jian Tanxi nodded and said, “Exactly. It was because Qu Chen pointed at the clock that I suspected the key to clearing the level lay with it. I thought that if little Chen kept pointing at the clock, it wasn’t because he was afraid of the clock’s sound, but because he had figured out the method, turning the clock hands. He just couldn’t speak to express it.”

The clown confirmed, “That’s right. I said before, every participant is a genius.”

Upon hearing that Qu Chen was the first to think of the method to clear the level, Qin Man was both delighted and surprised. She excitedly hugged Qu Chen and praised him a few times.

Huo Zimu argued, “What about Professor Pan? He just lay there and won without doing anything! He was in bed the entire level!”

The clown responded, “Without Professor Pan’s hospital bed, how would you have reached that clock?”

“Well… we could have stacked people higher. If two people weren’t enough, we could have used three.”

The clown retorted, “These women aren’t that strong. None of them could carry two people at once.”

“Then Zhang Dayong and I could have carried two people! If I had been the one to do it, my contribution would have been significant too!”

The clown said, “Unfortunately, you weren’t willing to do that. You constantly scoffed at your teammates’ plans and even tried to undermine them. To prevent you from causing trouble, Zhang Dayong, the strongest among you, had to hold you back and couldn’t participate in retrieving the clock.”

“I…”

Huo Zimu wanted to say more, but nothing came out.

Li Chuxia asked the clown, “If we hadn’t thought of turning the clock hands, was there another way to clear the level?”

The clown: “Of course there is. For example, you could eat your teammate’s flesh to survive the ten days, as long as the teammate being carved has enough meat and sufficient physical strength to endure the wounds and survive for ten days. However, this method has a low success rate, as few people can withstand being carved for ten consecutive days without dying.”

Huo Zimu grew excited again: “That’s exactly the method I thought of! Then I should receive an extra reward too!”

The clown said: “But you didn’t adopt this method, so you made no contribution.”

Huo Zimu: “…”

Huo Zimu was furious but had no recourse.

He pointed at the clown and then looked at the others, saying, “You all teamed up with this clown to set me up!”

Jian Tanxi said with exasperation, “Don’t say that. We don’t have that capability. I wish we were in cahoots with the clown, but we’re not. Otherwise, I could have the clown return the other Earthlings.”

The clown announced: “Clever humans, the rewards have been distributed! Your physical abilities have been greatly enhanced! Feel it now!”

Jian Tanxi suddenly felt much more energetic and stronger. Moreover, her hunger had lessened, and she no longer felt like eating. She tried jumping and found she could leap two meters high.

Li Chuxia attempted a long jump and managed to cover three meters.

Zhang Dayong said to Jian Tanxi and Li Chuxia, “You two girls, try standing on my palms.”

Jian Tanxi stood on Zhang Dayong’s left hand, and Li Chuxia stood on his right hand.

Zhang Dayong effortlessly lifted both girls and said happily, “My strength has really increased several times! I never had this much strength before!”

He crouched down and placed Jian Tanxi and Li Chuxia back on the ground.

Qin Man also lifted her son, Qu Chen, with one hand.

Qu Chen found it amusing and kept walking back and forth between Qin Man’s left and right hands.

Qin Man showed no sign of strain and appeared completely at ease.

Only Huo Zimu remained alone on the side, with no one to help him test his physical abilities. He had to jump in place by himself and discovered he could leap over two meters high. He was delighted but had no one to share his joy with, as no one was paying attention to him.

The clown approached Huo Zimu and said, “Well, well, Huo Zimu, no one cares about you. You’re the real clown here.”

Huo Zimu: “Get lost!”

The clown drifted away and floated over to Jian Tanxi.

Then, he said to Jian Tanxi and the others, “Now, the distribution of extra rewards begins. Jian Tanxi, Qu Chen, Qin Man, and Li Chuxia, the four of you will receive an opaque bag containing your prizes for this round.”

“The types and quantities of the prizes will be announced in your minds; others will not hear. Please take good care of your prize bags. If they are snatched or stolen, this referee will not be responsible.”

After he finished speaking, a gray bag appeared in the hands of Jian Tanxi, Qu Chen, Qin Man, and Li Chuxia.

The bags were not large, and the contents inside were likely small.

Jian Tanxi and the others immediately hid their bags in their pockets.

Only the young Qu Chen, who understood nothing, wanted to open the bag on the spot and eat whatever was inside.

Qin Man quickly took Qu Chen’s gray bag and kept it for herself.

At that moment, a mechanical voice echoed in Jian Tanxi’s mind: “Congratulations, player Jian Tanxi, for receiving an additional reward: one Soul-Returning Pill, capable of reviving the dead; three Healing Pills, which can instantly cure any injury or illness with no usage restrictions. You may use them on yourself or others. Please keep these items safe, as we are not responsible for any loss.”

Jian Tanxi felt delighted inwardly, but her expression remained calm, making it impossible for others to discern whether her reward was good or bad.

Qin Man and Li Chuxia both had joy in their eyes, indicating that their rewards were also favorable.

Qu Chen shook his head in confusion, seemingly puzzled as to why a voice had appeared in his mind.

Just then, Qin Man addressed the clown: “My son cannot speak or read. He doesn’t know what he received and can’t tell me. Could you inform me directly?”

The clown replied, “No. Each person’s reward can only be heard by themselves.”