The worse you are, the stronger you become: My summoned beast is a photographer.

Over nine hundred points? Getting that score across three rounds is already pretty good. Many participants stared at Ming Luochen as if he were a demon; the pressure he exuded was even more terrifying than that of a seeded player from a royal aristocratic high school.

"Amos, get back here!" a lion-like orc roared, his mane bristling, his imposing aura brooking no refusal. "Even if you don't get first place, you must get second, or what will become of the school's reputation?"

Amos's face turned ashen, as if he had swallowed a dead fly. He turned away unwillingly and strode back to the competition venue.

The second round was a quick-response competition based on calculations. Many people secretly rejoiced—thankfully, it was divided into four groups, giving them a chance to avoid facing off against that centaur summon.

During the lottery, many orcs clasped their hands together, their lips moving as they chanted various prayers and incantations. No one wanted to be assigned to Ming Luochen's group.

"Great God-King Kudira, I would give up ten years of my brother's life in exchange for not being paired with that human summoned beast!"

"Great Goddess of Wisdom, I'd trade my brother's girlfriend for not being paired with that person!"

Whispers rose and fell, making the judges on stage twitch at the corners of their mouths.

The rules for the second round are as follows: The top sixteen contestants will be divided into groups of four, with two contestants forming smaller groups, and will compete in a buzzer-beater format. There will be two rounds in total, with five questions in each round, and each question is worth 100 points. A correct answer earns 100 points, and a wrong answer deducts 100 points.

Those who make it to the second round are all elites from top-tier private high schools. The top 16 is essentially a ranking duel between the five top-tier private high schools.

"Please welcome Aura, the winner of the first round, to the stage to draw her number first!" the host shouted, his voice echoing through the auditorium.

Aura awkwardly maintained her dignified smile, but inwardly she was thinking—she wasn't number one at all; she was just the one sharpening pencils for number one.

She steeled herself and walked onto the stage, pulling a round ball from the box. The ball was labeled: Fifteen.

"Congratulations to Miss Aura for drawing number 15 and entering the fourth group!" As soon as the host finished speaking, the expressions of the other 15 contestants in the audience changed simultaneously, and their prayers became even more frequent.

Losing would be a huge disgrace to the school. Against any other opponent, even Amos, they could put up a fight. But that humanoid summon is terrifying—the speed at which it answered the question was like solving a physics problem in a second; its calculation ability is probably not weak either. Fighting it would be pure torture.

The examiner noticed the tense expressions on the faces of the contestants below the stage and shook his head with a wry smile: "It seems that a very formidable opponent has emerged this year, making them all afraid."

"You'd be scared too if you tried." Benuna smiled sweetly, her red hair flowing like silk under the light. No one could match her speed in answering questions.

"Oh my god! I'm number 16!"

A hyena-like beastman screamed as if he had seen a ghost, his hand trembled and he dropped the numbered ball on the ground, his heart sinking.

Ming Luochen's lips curled into a strange smile, and he deliberately raised an eyebrow at the hyena beastman number sixteen—you're out of luck.

"Jennifer, don't be afraid." His tutor, Mudd, leaned closer and lowered his voice. "It's a buzzer-beater competition. Each question has one minute to calculate. It's a fair competition." He whispered in Jennifer's ear, "Just keep going, don't let him score. It's okay if you lose points, as long as he can't gain any, we still have hope."

Jennifer nodded solemnly, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes.

As the competition began, the professors from the question-setting team drew questions on the spot and randomly changed the numbers. After the questions were completed, the contestants competed to answer them.

The first three groups were evenly matched, trading blows and keeping the scores very close. Although the questions seemed childish to Ming Luochen—just quadratic equations and factorization—the intense atmosphere of the competition was still quite entertaining. He watched with fascination, finding a kind of enjoyment in watching children fight.

When the fourth group came on stage, Ming Luochen and Aola walked to the front of the stage side by side.

It hasn't even started yet—

"beep!"

Jennifer was so nervous that his finger pressed the buzzer button uncontrollably.

"Hmph." Ming Luochen stared at the stiff-bodied Jennifer and snorted coldly. Clearly, the other party had ill intentions and wanted to use a foul tactic to prevent him from answering the question.

Answering all questions correctly in the second round will earn you 1000 points. If your opponent plays dirty and deliberately answers first, wasting their chance, your score will be caught up. Amos already has over 300 points, and with all his second-round answers correct, he currently has over 1300 points. I only have a little over 900, so I need to get at least four questions right to keep first place. The third round also has a total score of 1000 points, so I can't afford to be careless.

Ming Luochen didn't speak, but he understood his wife perfectly: [Wife, just grab the button and answer first! It's up to you!]

【No problem.】Aura perked up, her amber eyes fixed on the referee's hand, her fighting spirit instantly tightening.

The moment the referee uttered the first word, Aura's sharp fighting instincts were ignited—she pressed the buzzer almost instantly.

"So fast!" Jennifer was a beat too slow and slammed her fist on the table in regret.

"Ignorant." Ming Luochen burst out laughing at his opponent's exasperated expression. A liberal arts student trying to outrun his wife, who was naturally athletic? It was utterly humiliating.

Aura was overjoyed; her innate skill was a speed boost, which would finally be of help to Ming Luochen.

"Ola, what's the result? You only have one minute to answer." The host noticed the slightly awkward atmosphere but didn't say anything more.

"76".

"Correct answer! 100 points!" the host shouted excitedly, as if he himself had answered correctly.

The professors on the question-setting team looked at Aura with shining eyes, as if they had discovered a rare treasure—to be able to solve this problem so quickly was simply genius.

"Next question!" the host's voice rose. "A shop sells magic crystals, each costing 12 gold coins to purchase. Market research shows that if the selling price is set at 20 gold coins, 40 crystals can be sold daily; for every 1 gold coin increase in the selling price, daily sales decrease by 2 crystals. What selling price will maximize daily profit—"

"Beep!" Jennifer answered again, her voice filled with desperate urgency, "It's three!"

"I'm sorry, Jennifer, the question isn't finished yet, you've violated the rules once." The host's tone carried a hint of sympathy. "Ms. Aura will answer now." He paused, then read the question again, "At what price will the daily profit be maximized? What is the maximum profit? Ms. Aura, please answer."

Aura remained silent. She was waiting for Ming Luochen's mental calculation results.

[Damn, he's not even going to act anymore, is he?]

Two seconds later, Ming Luochen gave the answer in his mind.

Aura's eyes lit up, and she answered crisply, "The daily profit is maximized when the selling price is set at 36 gold coins, with a maximum profit of 392 gold coins!"

"Correct answer! Congratulations, Miss Aura, on getting another 100 points!" The host's voice trembled.

"Damn it!" Jennifer gritted her teeth in anger. If this continued, not only would she get zero points, but she would also make Aura's score higher and higher.

Amos sat in the audience, utterly shocked—a problem solved in a flash? What kind of monster was he? If this continued, he feared he would never obtain the Life-Reviving Jade Milk. His face grim, he whispered to Muld, "What's going on? How can he still score points?"

Mude was also frustrated. Who knew that the centaur would react so quickly and always manage to seize the opportunity to answer the questions?

The professors on the stage were all dumbfounded.

"Is this the god of wisdom? How can he solve such a complex calculation problem in an instant!" An old professor pushed up his glasses, his hands trembling.

"How about we give you an even harder one?" Another old professor was intrigued and wanted to bring out the problem that had troubled him for many years to see if this human summoned beast could solve it.

"That's not a good idea. This is a competition; it's unfair to him," the professor next to him quickly advised. "How about... you ask him for advice privately after the competition?"

"That's all we can do." The old professor suppressed his impulse, but his gaze remained fixed on Ming Luochen, as if he were looking at a living miracle.

As the last question ended, Jennifer's heart died.

He watched as Ming Luochen and Aura answered all ten questions correctly, one after another, while he himself had no power to resist.

"Congratulations, Aura—" the host drawled, his voice filled with emotion, "The winner of Group Four, Aura from Pudi Yale Noble Academy!"

The audience erupted in applause, but it was mixed with a complex mix of emotions—astonishment, envy, fear, and resignation.

Ming Luochen stood on the stage, his expression calm, but the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned.