It turned out that Xu An and Zhou Haimei were not only not crazy, but their decision to use the积分挑战赛 (jīfēn tiǎozhàn sài -积分 challenge match) was the result of meticulous calculation.
Seeing the staff member still looking at her with disbelief, Zhou Haimei impatiently urged, "Could you please process this quickly? I'm still waiting here!"
In the early stages of the competition, neither Zhou Haimei nor Xu An had used the积分 challenge rule. This wasn't because they were cowards, nor was it out of kindness from Xu An. It was because they had long decided to turn this rule into a loophole in the competition, using it as their ultimate trump card.
From the moment this competition rule was announced, Xu An felt the malice of the person behind it.
However, she did not rashly allow herself to be used as a pawn like those protesting girls. Instead, she waited for this day to use this competition rule to firmly slap the opponent in the face.
Wasn't the person behind the announcement of this rule trying to exploit the natural advantages of males before the finals to seize the advantages belonging to female contestants?
But such a rule, to put it bluntly, was just primitive accumulation before the finals. The more积分 one had, and the higher their ranking, the stronger their strength would become.
No one would be foolish enough to use this rule in the finals. Once it backfired, it would be more loss than gain.
Having competed to this extent, no one wanted to make a mistake at the final hurdle.
If for no other reason, the prize pool alone, with its prize money and various benefits, was enough to make the twenty contestants present fight with all their might.
"Oh..." The staff member's expression was hard to describe.
Admittedly, even as a woman, Zhou Haimei's performance was still outstanding. Coupled with Zhou Haimei's official status, the staff member felt a desire to persuade her.
However, this thought was extinguished as soon as it arose due to the other party's indifferent attitude, and the staff member no longer felt inclined to offer any reminders.
Zhou Haimei's wait was making her impatient. "Is it that difficult to make a match? Why is your efficiency so low? I'm going to complain to the logistics department!"
Upon hearing this, the staff member immediately sped up their actions.
Zhou Haimei was not like Xu An; she wouldn't indulge them. Although she had retreated to a secondary position, she still held a leadership title within the officialdom and would not tolerate someone from the enforcement team challenging her like this.
Indeed, under Zhou Haimei's stern reprimand, the staff member quickly put away their ulterior motives and processed the opponent's information in a few swift moves, handing it over to Zhou Haimei.
The others formed pairs in an orderly fashion, and their draws were completed shortly after.
However, during the latter half of the process, Xu An spotted a man with a familiar back but an unfamiliar face.
The man was tall and slender, with delicate features, giving the impression that if you didn't look closely, you might overlook his presence.
Yet, his aura seemed to create a buffer, separating him from those around him.
In short, he was a strange and contradictory combination.
But when the man reached into his pocket to draw his lot, his pale, sickly fingers caught Xu An's attention, causing her eyes to narrow.
Xu An looked up at the screen. As the man finished drawing his lot, the contestant information was updated, and the words "Chu Yu" appeared prominently on the screen.
This was none other than her reclusive good neighbor!
Chu Yu had never taken off his hood. Xu An didn't recognize him by his face, but his pale, almost sickly skin was deeply etched in her memory.
She hadn't expected his strength to be so formidable, maintaining an undefeated record all the way into the top ten.
But what surprised Xu An the most was that almost everyone present showed a moment of blankness when they saw Chu Yu.
Xu An read an important piece of information from their expressions: like herself, they hadn't paid attention to Chu Yu's existence.
What made this man terrifying was that he could even make others overlook his presence.
After more than a month of competition, the combat characteristics of everyone present were likely thoroughly understood by others.
For instance, Zhou Haimei excelled at hit-and-run tactics. Her slender build was suitable for harassing opponents from a distance, wearing down their stamina before delivering a fatal blow.
However, in close combat, her petite stature presented certain disadvantages.
But this Chu Yu, by making everyone overlook his existence, had prevented anyone from researching his combat weaknesses.
Chu Yu seemed to have also sensed Xu An's gaze. After drawing his lot, he calmly walked down from the stage, looked at Xu An, and greeted her.
"What a coincidence, neighbor. We meet again."
Zhou Haimei frowned, looking at Chu Yu's seemingly unremarkable face. She also had no impression of this contestant.
But hearing him refer to himself as Xu An's neighbor, she immediately recalled that Xu An had asked her to investigate her peculiar hooded neighbor. She immediately connected the two.
Xu An nodded politely, a smile appearing on her face. "Indeed, it's quite a coincidence."
Then, before he could say anything further, she pulled Zhou Haimei away.
As the draw concluded, contestants and onlookers dispersed, all eagerly anticipating the final finals tomorrow.
This competition, which had lasted for a month, was finally coming to a close tomorrow. Concurrently, the officials would announce the list of the expeditionary force and the content of the mission to be undertaken.
The scale of this mission was immense, with many speculating that it would be a joint operation. Not only would people be sent from their current lighthouse, but it was also rumored that the other three lighthouses would also dispatch personnel to execute this mission together.
This news caused an uproar.
When someone mentioned four lighthouses in front of the lighthouse earlier, people hadn't taken it seriously, assuming they were ordinary shelters. However, the reality was completely different from what they had imagined.
They found it hard to imagine what the other three lighthouses looked like.
When Xu An learned that the mission details would be announced directly after the competition ended tomorrow, she had a premonition that the officials were planning something.
But with things having progressed to this point, even knowing something was amiss, she could only brace herself and move forward.
Rat had sent her a file yesterday, which contained information about the mastermind behind Qin Chuan that she had previously requested.
Upon returning home, without even eating, she eagerly opened her communicator to check the information Rat had sent.
The more she read, the deeper Xu An's frown became.
If she wasn't mistaken, the Weng Quan mentioned in the file should be that genius youth from the company of the eldest miss of the Chu family across the way?
But could someone like that really influence someone like Qin Chuan?
Xu An remained skeptical.
At this moment, Xu An didn't know that Xia Jin's existence on the lighthouse was equivalent to a Level One secret order, making it impossible for Rat to find any information about him.
Strictly speaking, apart from Qin Chuan and a very few high-level officials, very few people even knew of Xia Jin's existence. All research projects that required his personal appearance were handled by Weng Quan in his stead.
Not only that, but after the information provided by Rat, Xu An also saw a line of small text.
[Friendly gossip is free of charge. It seems that Miss Chu across from you has an ambiguous past with this Weng Quan. Miss Chu wanted to use a chip developed by her husband to exchange for a life of ease with Weng Quan, but repeatedly failed...]