The zeal and enthusiasm they had when they were counting showed that they were under control, but the last zero threw them off instantly and sent them tumbling from the top all the way to rock bottom. It was as though a pot of cold water was poured over them and there was use telling anyone how bitter they felt.

No one, not even Zhang Yu and Cao Tongtong could predict the sudden turnaround.

Most people could only wonder if it would get more difficult as the question went on, or whether there would be something more demanding toward the end. No one would have expected the question to end with a zero. What kind of question was that?

Pfft!

Xu Wanqing's petite mouth morphed into an "O" shape. Soon after, she could not help herself and burst out laughing. Ye Lingchen was truly someone who did not like to lose.

"You're messing with us?"

Zhang Yu's face soured up immediately and began twitching. He felt humiliated that a math underachiever used a math problem to toy with a math genius like himself. It was practically a stain in his entire life.

"Absolutely not!" Ye Lingchen shook his head solemnly. "I was purely creating a question, but I have to say, the way you did it was amazing!"

Zhang Yu and Cao Tongtong snorted and no longer wanted to speak.

They needed time to relieve their depression.

Finally, those teachers and professors were back to being disinterested after Ye Lingchen's little prank.

The bustling car once again reverted to calmness. It stayed quiet as they made their journey toward the venue.

Capital City Cultural Center occupied a huge area and was divided into several halls. Those halls were specially dedicated to holding various large-scale events, be it literature, mathematics, art, or social events. All of them could be conducted within the cultural center.

It was also the venue of the present competition.

There were already plenty of cars in the cultural center by the time Ye Lingchen and others arrived. Most were buses, and the number of people coming made for a lively scene.

In addition to teachers and students, many parents came from all over the nation to cheer for their children. Those parents all shared something in common—their faces were beaming with pride and they were incredibly proud of their children.

Teachers and students constantly glanced at the cultural center with anxiety, excitement, and anticipation.

Along the way, many professors seemed to know Professor Bai and the others. Many of those professors came over to say hello, in addition to showing off some of their gems.

The crowd entered the hall in an orderly manner. The competition venue was an extremely spacious hall, with 19 competition tables arranged in the middle. The distance between each table was about three meters, just enough space for each of the 38 provinces and cities to continue with the competition.

In the middle of the tables was a large screen used to display questions. Papers and pens were also placed at the forefront of each table for the participants to use as drafts.

Meanwhile, the surrounding areas were resting areas for other players and teachers. The audience was only allowed to be on the second floor, where they would be separated by a glass panel to prevent noise from affecting the competition's proceedings.

Each team sat in their respective zones and watched the competition area in the center. Their faces were all extremely dignified and they were whispering to each other.

Since arriving there, Professor Bai's face became even more petulant. The others had similar expressions too. Their eyes swept across one participant to the other and their mood sank to rock bottom.

"The girl from Xihai Province, could it be the mental arithmetic prodigy, Qiu Luo?" Professor An inhaled sharply and his tone became hoarser.

"Yes, it should be her!" Professor Bai was very solemn. "I remember she made the news when she was still in high school. All these years, Xihai Province hid their talents all too well!"

"Old Bai, look over there!" Professor Tang gestured. "Do you know the boy with glasses?"

"That's..." Professor Bai's pupils contracted sharply and his voice faltered slightly. "...the inventor of the Simple Method, Liu Yuan?!"

"It's him!" Professor Tang nodded affirmatively and smiled bitterly. "I'm afraid it'll be almost impossible to get first place this time."

"Really? He's probably only in his third year, but he's already participating in the competition?" Cao Tongtong blurted out unwittingly.

"It's not odd at all. Liu Yuan's talent in mathematics is too formidable. It's a walk in the park for him to finish a graduate course even though he's in his third year." Professor Bai said, "Every province and city are pulling out all the stops this time!"

In comparison, Capital's team seemed rather miserable and was probably not going to be too enthusiastic in the competition.

"Who's Liu Yuan?" an untimely voice was suddenly heard. Ye Lingchen looked at everyone curiously.

It was clear that everyone was in an unpleasant mood. They had no time to deal with Ye Lingchen and choose to ignore him.

Xu Wanqing said, "Liu Yuan had always been crowned a mathematical genius from elementary school to high school. He achieved first place in everything, whether it was an exam or the Mathematical Olympiad! During high school, he tutored his sister in math and felt that the existing methods were too cumbersome, so he created the Simple Method. Although it can't be regarded as particularly advanced, the efficiency and accuracy of calculation are greatly improved, at least for junior high school students!"

"Amazing, he was able to create a new method." Ye Lingchen nodded. Apparently, there were plenty of mathematical geniuses across the country.

"Look at the one on your front right, the one sitting in the middle of Xihai Province wearing a hat," Xu Wanqing continued speaking to Ye Lingchen.

Ye Lingchen turned his head to look at the young man wearing a hat. He was not participating in any discussion and simply sat there silently with his head down as if the tense atmosphere and the surrounding boisterousness had nothing to do with himself.

Upon laying eyes on him, Ye Lingchen's pupils contracted immediately and he was in shock.

That guy was wearing a green hat!

"His name is Zhou Ran and he's nicknamed the Ten-Finger King!" Xu Wanqing introduced. Even she felt the pressure during that moment.

No one would have thought that the intensity of the competition surpassed all previous editions!

"So, he's the Ten-Finger King?!" Zhang Yu's face seemed amazed. "I heard of him before!"

"Rumors has it that every time he encounters a math problem, his ten fingers will be tapping on the table at lightning speed. The higher the difficulty, the faster the frequency of taps. He doesn't even need to use a pen. All he does is tap the table with all ten fingers and he'll get the answer! Some even believe that he's created a method that can solve math problems with ten fingers! "

Zhang Yu looked at Zhou Ran with a hint of aggression on his face. "I wonder if he's as amazing as the rumors say he is."

Capital, being the metropolis of the nation, naturally attracted the attention of many people. In fact, many provinces and cities come to Capital, and at the end of the day, defeating Capital was a mark of prestige.

As the saying went, a stuck-out nail would usually get hammered down. Capital was certainly one of the main adversaries for everyone there.

"The girl from Capital is probably Cao Tongtong, the one who won the Intellectual Mathematics Program last year. Did they really let her participate?"

"I know that guy next to her. He won the Mathematics Master Award and is highly perceptive when it comes to extremely difficult questions! He's a very strong opponent!"

"I just don't know...that other boy... Who is he?"

...