He changed Tiwat

In terms of poetry, the sonnets of the honorary knight Humphrey far surpassed those of the other contestants. If he can maintain the level he displayed in the preliminary rounds, the other contestants' chances of winning are extremely slim. This is why he is considered a top favorite to win, with the bookmakers estimating his chances of winning to be close to 90%.

However, if the competition rules allow the use of famous works by previous bards, then it will not only test the ability to write poetry, but also the extensive reading and excellent memory that cannot be ignored - and among these eighteen contestants, there are indeed several scholars who spend their days in the library!

For example, the Musk sisters—Dr. Edith Musk, a folklorist and a 28-year-old, 32-month-old single woman; and her older sister, Professor Ira Musk, a Hilichurl language researcher who is as popular and educated as a "legal loli" in Mondstadt.

These two sisters are indeed rather average in terms of poetry writing, but in terms of reading volume and memory, they are both at the doctoral level or above.

The other contestants, such as Eileen and Marvin, are all native Mondstadt residents. Their knowledge of Mondstadt bards is undoubtedly much greater than that of Han Fulai, a foreigner from Liyue.

To put it more bluntly, the rules of this "drinking game" were specifically designed for Han Fulai, a foreigner.

This is equivalent to the competition organizing committee officially adjusting the game's balance, making up for the other contestants' shortcomings in poetry writing, and allowing them to compete with Han Fulai on the same starting line.

Ms. Yura, sitting in the audience, almost stood up to protest this unfair rule.

Her gaze fell on Han Fulai on the field, her face filled with worry: "Hey, you 'outsider,' you're being targeted by them!"

Coincidentally, Han Fulai also met Yura's gaze at that moment.

His response was simply a slight smile, indicating that "everything is under control."

That smile reminded Yura of the expression on Han Fulai's face when he was plotting against "Young Master Abe" with her and Abedo in the snow mountain laboratory—in short, it was incredibly irritating.

She suddenly felt that worrying about this person was unnecessary.

After reading out the rules for the final, Wendy plucked the strings once more, using music to silence the discussions among the audience.

"Dear contestants, the rules have now been read aloud. If you have any questions or concerns about the new rules, please feel free to ask the competition's judging panel now. Does anyone have any questions?"

He looked at the circle of contestants on the stage.

Most of the contestants were looking at the "Sir Humphrey" face.

Any player with a slightly sharper mind has already figured out who this rule disadvantages; they all benefit, so of course they won't object. The only one who might object is probably Han Fulai, who said "this update was a balance adjustment."

Han Fulai's smile remained unchanged, as if he hadn't heard Wendy's question.

Wendy nodded. "Since the contestants have no objections, I hereby declare the final round of this year's 'Poetry Recitation' competition officially open! Contestants, please be ready to answer the questions. You can start answering after the judges announce the questions."

All the contestants gripped the handle of the bell.

Wendy drawled, "...Next, please let the judges reveal the keywords for the first round of the 'drinking game' competition..."

Before he could finish speaking, a contestant rang the buzzer to answer the question—it was Han Fulai.

Chapter 270 One Against Seventeen? You Think You're Barbatos?

Barbara, who had just set up the keyword question board, was startled by the ringing of the bell and almost dropped it.

—How come someone answered so quickly?

This is equivalent to Han Fulai pressing the buzzer repeatedly before the questioner has even finished saying "Please listen to the question"...

The other contestants were also stunned: Did this person even have time to read the question?

Well, Han Fulai certainly didn't have time to see the question clearly; he had already rung the bell the moment Barbara raised the sign.

Anyway, whatever the question is, I'll just grab it first.

Wendy just said that once the judges announce the question, everyone can start answering. Barbara holding up the sign was essentially announcing the question, so it naturally entered the answering phase. His timing in ringing the bell at that moment wasn't against the rules. As for the question itself… well, you can see it after you've answered.

Han Fulai then glanced at the question board in Barbara's hand: "Moon".

This is another problem very characteristic of Mondstadt.

The moon is a common image in bard's poems and is not particularly unusual in itself, but for the people of Mondstadt, the moon does have a special meaning—Mondstadt was also known in ancient times as the "City of the Moon".

Because "Mondstadt" was originally a compound word, composed of the Old Mongols words for "moon (Mond)" and "city (stadt)".

This is probably because the Cider Lake surrounding Mondstadt reflects the bright moon at night, and Mondstadt shines in the moonlight, making it look like a city built on the moon.

The poets who lived in the City of the Moon naturally left behind many famous poems about the moon.

Using the moon as a theme is indeed very much in line with the habits of Mondstadt bards' poems.

Those aspiring to win the title of "Best Bard of Mondstadt" would naturally do some pre-competition preparation, learning about their opponents, and they had certainly heard of Sir Humphrey's reputation. Even those who hadn't specifically researched him had seen the cheers from the audience when Han Fu came out.

In the eyes of many contestants, Han Fulai is their biggest rival, and his every move naturally attracts a lot of attention.

Seeing Han Fulai answer first, many of the other contestants showed slightly mocking smiles, thinking to themselves that this Liyue person was simply courting death.

In fact, this new competition format called "Drinking Game" has a decisive difference from the previous timed quiz format—the earlier someone answers, the more disadvantaged they are.

In the old format, the advantage of being the first to answer was that you could use up everyone else's answering time, so everyone would try to answer first. But in this new format, contestants take turns answering questions, and they don't share time, so answering first no longer gives you an advantage.

Moreover, because of the new competition format, which is an entertaining "challenge" system, the loser leaves the stage immediately, while the winner must continue to accept challenges in the ring—in other words, the first contestant must win seventeen consecutive matches to achieve final victory.

What is the concept?

One hit for seventeen!

One person has to take on all the contestants and win every single one of them!

And does he even know how difficult it is to do this?

The format of this "drinking game" is to continue until one side runs out of poetry. For example, if a contestant can recite one hundred lines of poetry, then Han Fulai, who is competing against that contestant, must recite one hundred and one lines that are different from the others.

Most of the contestants who made it to the finals are strong individuals who have "read three hundred epic poems by heart." How can you fight against so many of us by yourself? Human attention span is limited. In this kind of intense competition, the mental reaction speed and concentration required are several times greater than usual. No matter how knowledgeable you are, the endless battles will eventually leave you exhausted and confused.

Do you really think you're "Humphrey on par with Barbatos"?

Therefore, most contestants were just going through the motions when they held the bells, and had no intention of actually ringing them so soon.

If possible, they all hope to be the last to perform, so that they can easily win the championship by defeating their opponent in the last round.

Now that Han Fulai, his biggest competitor, has fallen headlong into the trap of the new competition system, most people are secretly pleased.

However, since Han Fulai dared to take the lead, he must have had his reasons.

With a broad smile, he turned his gaze to his opponents on the field, looking at them one by one, as if asking, "Who wants to go first?"

Although the first round champion has not yet been determined, his expression already suggests that he is accepting a challenge from someone of lower rank.

Such a silent provocation is not something everyone can tolerate, and... some contestants simply don't consider the competition format—for example, that martial arts fanatic, Eileen.

The girl, who had a high ponytail just like the ensemble leader, resolutely rang the bell in her hand.

Wendy then clapped her hands.

"The first round of the contest will be between Sir Humphrey and Miss Irene. The keyword is 'moon'! Sir Humphrey, please answer first. Each question has a one-minute time limit for thinking—time begins!"

Lisa, sitting on the judges' panel, lazily turned over a small hourglass on the table.

Almost at the same time Wendy announced the start of the timer, Han Fulai began reciting his first piece for today's final:

"Poets and travelers, know their faces:"

Incomparably radiant, incomparably beautiful.

Just like you.

　The gods once walked on the earth.

Scholars and wise men know what they look like.

The brilliance of stars, the trajectory of the moon.

While reciting the poem, his eyes were not on his opponent, Erin, but on the green-clad bard, Wendy, the host, standing in the center of the arena.

He found this poem during his three-day break in a miscellaneous poetry collection at a bookstore in Mondstadt. It was a collection of works by wandering bards who roamed the streets and alleys of Mondstadt—and the author of this poem was listed as "Venti".

"Oh?" Wendy was both surprised and delighted.

In his mind, he continued the poem for Han Fulai:

"The world has also lost its brilliance."

Alone, while praying

Their whispers can no longer be heard.

The world was filled with joy back then.

The gods vanished that day.

But I didn't care at all.

"I still have you."

Strictly speaking, "I Still Have You" is not a "masterpiece by a senior poet." After all, it is a new poem that Wendy wrote for the traveler Ying after meeting her. It was sung to the residents in Mondstadt Fountain Square. Chronologically speaking, it should be classified as "modern poetry."

But this is, after all, a new work by the 2,600-year-old "God of Poetry"!

Han Fulai began by reciting Wendy's work, which was, of course, a tribute to this "god of poetry."

Hmm, this kid's pretty quick-witted. Wendy turned to Eileen with a smile: "Miss Eileen, it's your turn to answer."

Chapter 271 Only enough to cover a million Liyue warriors, the first to translate Mondstadt poetry [4k5]

Eileen is no ordinary player to be able to stand on this field.

Although the general public's impression of this martial arts fanatic girl is only that she is always practicing swordsmanship, in reality, practicing swordsmanship is just one of Irene's efforts to get closer to her idol—her idol is the biological sister of the "Mondstadt idol" on the stage, the young "Dandelion Knight", the acting captain, Jyn Gunnhildr.

In fact, all her training plans were designed based on the piano.

Whether it's hairstyle, attire, or even the swordsmanship practiced... everything is an imitation based on that Qin troupe leader.

Besides practicing martial arts, she also never neglected spiritual cultivation.

As a member of a knightly family, Jean received martial arts training from a young age, as well as education in literature, art, and etiquette. Eileen followed suit; although her father, Herman, couldn't afford tutors for her academic subjects, he could still afford to buy her books for self-study.

As a result, Eileen read a great deal of literature—including many famous works by bards.

"So we'll go no more a-roving

Okay, we won't roam together anymore.

So late into the night,

To while away this deep night,

Though the heart still be as loving,

Although this heart is still infatuated,

And the moon still be as bright.

Even though the moonlight was still so bright.

— Here, Eileen is reciting a famous work by the "Wandering Band" from a thousand years ago, a bard poem titled "We No Longer Wander Together," written by a musician whose stage name was George Gordon.

This wandering poet came from the foreign land of Fontaine, but stayed in Mondstadt after meeting a commoner girl, intending to marry the girl he loved.

However, the girl was unfortunately chosen by the nobles to be the "Badminton Festival Princess," and was cruelly tortured. The lovers could not be together in the end... So the indignant poet joined the "Wandering Earth Orchestra" to sing in rebellion.

George Gordon left behind a wealth of brilliant poems and created many well-known masterpieces during his short life.

The poet used a romantic approach to incorporate his experiences of wandering, his sympathy for the people, his passion for the revolution, as well as his love and lamentation into his poems, which are hailed by the people of Mondstadt as "lyrical epics".

Since the poems written by this "wandering band" hero mostly praised the rebels who overthrew aristocratic rule, Jyn, as the Knight of Favonius, naturally had a strong affinity for the poems of this wandering poet. And Irene, who idolized Jyn, mostly memorized the works of this George Gordon.

Although Han Fulai didn't know Qin and Eileen's preferences, he hadn't wasted his three days of preparation. He had also read a lot of the famous works of the "Wandering Orchestra" during these days—and memorizing was his specialty as a Chinese literature major.

Before Wendy could even give a signal, Han Fulai had already continued the next part:

“For the sword outwears its sheath,

Because a sharp sword can wear through its scabbard.

And the soul outwears the breast,

The soul has also worn down the chest considerably.

And the heart must pause to breathe,

This heart, it needs to stop and breathe.

And love itself has rest.

Love also needs a break.

Though the night was made for loving,

Although the night falls for love,

And the day returns too soon.

Soon, very soon it will be daytime again.