Chapter 927: Winner Takes All

Then it was Yu Nan's turn to ask first. He looked at Bi Zi'ang, who was sitting below him, and after a moment of thought, asked, "Zi'ang, what's your cultivation level now?"

Bi Zi'ang was surrounded by too many dazzling auras; for some time, people around him hadn't known his true cultivation level.

As they belonged to different factions, Yu Nan naturally wanted to take this opportunity to probe.

Even Miss Nan Xun's eyes lit up; clearly, she was also quite curious about this question.

Only Zu An remained unenthusiastic. He didn't care about the other person's cultivation level, as it couldn't be higher than his own anyway.

Bi Zi'ang narrowed his eyes slightly and smiled, saying, "Brother Yu, why don't you come and test it yourself another day?"

Clearly, he didn't want to reveal his true capabilities.

Yu Nan was naturally dissatisfied with his answer and immediately insisted he drink.

Bi Zi'ang also knew his answer wouldn't suffice, so he didn't refuse and drained his cup.

After three cups of wine, a flush appeared on his fair face. Evidently, even with their high cultivation, such strong liquor was hard to endure if they kept drinking.

Next, it was Bi Zi'ang's turn to ask. Under the influence of alcohol, he looked at the beautiful courtesan beside him and said, "Miss Nan Xun, it's my turn to ask a question."

Nan Xun chuckled softly, "Please ask, Young Master Bi. I will answer anything I know, without holding back."

Bi Zi'ang's gaze swept over her in a scrutinizing manner for a moment. "Miss Nan Xun," he asked, "what part of your body are you most satisfied with?"

The atmosphere was growing increasingly heated, and fueled by alcohol, his questions became more aggressive.

Of course, if the other party were a young lady from a good family, he definitely wouldn't ask such a question.

However, considering the other party was a courtesan, such a question wouldn't be excessive; it could even stir her emotions, preventing him from appearing too aloof and making her feel distant and unapproachable.

The men nearby also began to scrutinize her curves, and their own answers popped into their minds:

"Her backside!"

"Big breasts are justice!"

A blush flashed across Nan Xun's face. She thought for a moment and said, "It would probably be my personality."

Such an answer naturally displeased the men, and they began to jeer.

Zu An, however, secretly sighed in admiration. These courtesans truly excelled in song and dance; such an answer addressed the question, yet left no room for fault-finding.

Admiration aside, he still encouraged her to drink. He wanted to see if Nan Xun would inadvertently reveal any flaws under the influence of alcohol.

After three cups of wine, a deeper flush spread across Nan Xun's face, making her appear even more enchanting. This, however, puzzled Zu An, making him wonder if his guess was wrong.

Soon, Nan Xun looked at Zu An with a playful gaze. "Young Master Zu," she said, "it's my turn to ask a question."

This scoundrel had been the most aggressive in urging drinks just now. Now, the tables had turned.

"Please ask, Miss," Zu An said with a relaxed demeanor. He was the one who had played this game the most among them, and he truly didn't believe people's imaginations in this era could come up with any unanswerable questions.

Nan Xun's beautiful eyes fixed on him. "When was the last time you kissed a woman, Young Master," she asked, "and who was it?"

Zu An's expression truly changed. He thought, *I really shouldn't have tempted fate.* He calmly picked up his wine cup and said, "I'll drink."

After saying that, he drained the three cups of wine. He finally understood why Bi Zi'ang and Yu Nan had made those expressions earlier; this wine was indeed strong, even stronger than the vodka he had drunk in his previous life, feeling exactly like pure alcohol.

There were too many cultivators in this world, and people generally had good physiques, so the wine brewed here was naturally different from that in his previous life—it was specifically made for cultivators.

The others were somewhat puzzled. This question wasn't difficult to answer, so why refuse?

One should know that in this era, it was common for men to have multiple wives and concubines; kissing a woman wouldn't make one seem like a scoundrel, but rather charismatic.

If he didn't say, it must be because the woman's identity couldn't be revealed.

The group began to gossip, all speculating about who the woman could be.

Bi Zi'ang frowned and thought, *Could it be my sister?*

But he immediately shook his head, dispelling the absurd thought from his mind.

Zu An looked at Yu Nan and chuckled, "You were laughing quite happily just now, weren't you?"

Yu Nan's expression changed. "Am I not allowed to laugh?" he retorted. "I was just following the rules of the game, and you..."

Zu An interrupted him directly, "Don't worry, I'm also following the rules of the game. For example, it's my turn to ask a question now..."

He deliberately drew out his words, his gaze constantly sweeping over Yu Nan, making the other man's skin crawl as if waiting for the executioner's blade.

"Do you have any birthmarks?" he asked. "Where are they located, and what shape are they?"

Yu Nan's face instantly changed. He did indeed have birthmarks, but for people of their high status, bodily privacy was a closely guarded secret, mainly to prevent impersonation and so on.

Even if there was no impersonation, having such private information known by others was embarrassing enough.

Left with no choice, he could only drink. After three cups of "Shining Sky Burn," his vision became somewhat blurry. The alcohol was truly potent.

That damn Zu An; it was truly a disadvantage to be sitting below him.

Left with no choice, he vented his anger on Bi Zi'ang. "What's the most embarrassing thing you've ever done in your life?" he asked.

Bi Zi'ang's expression also changed. For people who valued their reputation so much, how could they possibly reveal such embarrassing incidents to others?

Moreover, after all these years, he had painstakingly cultivated the persona of a favored son of destiny, which couldn't crumble due to such minor details.

Left with no choice, he could only drink.

Unwittingly, the questions grew increasingly personal and daring, and the frequency of drinking increased.

They even had to use their cultivation to suppress the effects of the alcohol. Unfortunately, the wine in this world was specially brewed and was effective even on cultivators; even if they could suppress a certain amount of intoxication, they would still succumb if they drank beyond their limit.

After a few rounds, it was Zu An's turn again.

Seeing the other party's mischievous smile, Yu Nan's face changed, knowing he couldn't possibly answer the question.

But he had already drunk too much, and if he drank more, he might throw up on the spot.

As a young master from a noble family and a handsome man who always paid attention to his image, how could he allow such a thing to happen?

He suddenly had an idea. "That's right," he said, "I remember this game is called Truth or Dare. This time, I won't choose 'truth,' I'll choose 'dare.'"

Zu An chuckled, thinking, *Blind student, you finally found the key point!*

He had originally wanted to lead these guys in this direction, but if he suggested it himself, the others would become fully wary and might not agree to a dare. If they chose it themselves, it was different.

Zu An laughed heartily, "Since Young Master Yu chose 'dare,' don't tell me later that you're afraid to do what I ask."

Although he knew Zu An was provoking him, in front of Nan Xun and Bi Zi'ang, Yu Nan was unwilling to admit defeat. "Hmph," he scoffed, "why don't you go ask around? I, Yu, have always been a man of my word."

"That's good then," Zu An said, glancing at him. "The dare I want you to do is 'go home now.'"

Yu Nan: "???"

Bi Zi'ang was first stunned for a few seconds, then he couldn't help but clap his hands and burst into laughter. "Brilliant, brilliant!" he exclaimed.

Nan Xun also struggled to suppress her laughter.

"This is too much!" Yu Nan's anger surged.

This so-called dare seemed very simple, but it was highly insulting.

Just think, if others would rather give up bothering you than let you stay, doesn't that prove you're unwelcome here? Or that everyone thinks you're superfluous?

The mysterious woman secretly listening next door also let out a giggle. If not for the special enchantment array in the room, her laughter would probably have exposed her presence.

But she truly couldn't hold it in. That fellow Zu An was simply too devious; she could perfectly imagine Yu Nan's furious face at that moment.

Seeing that things were about to turn ugly, Nan Xun, who was outside, quickly came out to mediate:

"Young Master Zu," she said, "this request is indeed a bit difficult to fulfill. Perhaps you could change it?"

Zu An looked troubled. "What if Young Master Yu gets upset again and refuses to do it after I change it?" he asked.

Yu Nan snorted, "Do you take me for a three-year-old child? As long as it's not such an unreasonable request, I will naturally do it."

Zu An said with a smile, "You said that just now too."

Yu Nan's breath hitched. "You were trying to eliminate me with that," he explained. "That's not something a gentleman would do, so of course I refused."

If he had meekly gone home as requested, it would have meant being eliminated from the competition for Nan Xun.

The courtesan herself was secondary now; the key was who would win in the end.

If he could win the beauty, the face he lost to Zu An would be completely recovered, and people would only see it as a delightful tale.

If he lost this time, especially to Zu An and Bi Zi'ang, it would be a devastating blow to his reputation.

"Alright, for Miss Nan Xun's sake, I'll change the dare," Zu An said, gesturing for Nan Xun to bring paper and a brush. "But if you refuse again this time, I'll have nothing more to say."

Nan Xun thought he was going to write a poem again, her eyes lit up, and she quickly brought the paper and brush.

Zu An quickly wrote a passage on the paper. Nan Xun watched him and couldn't help but marvel that while his poems were excellent, his calligraphy was quite poor.

But as she read what he had written, her expression grew increasingly strange, as if she were desperately holding back something.

Both Yu Nan and Bi Zi'ang were curious about what he had written, but maintaining their dignity, they didn't crowd around to look like Nan Xun, pretending to be composed.

"Alright, Young Master Yu, just do as it says here," Zu An said, handing the paper slip over after finishing.

Yu Nan pretended to be at ease as he took it, but once it was in his hand, he eagerly read it.

Soon, he began to tremble all over. "Villain, villain!" he cursed.

Yu Nan's rage soared to new heights.

It turned out the paper instructed him to sit on Bi Zi'ang's lap and say the following: "Hmph! It's all your fault! You didn't even try to comfort me! I really want to cry, *pounding your chest*, you big bad guy!!! *baa QAQ* *pounding your chest!* You're so annoying! *whimpering* I want a hug... Hmph, I'll hit your chest with my little fists!!! *pouts* You big bad guy, I'll beat you to death!"

Bi Zi'ang curiously leaned closer. Yu Nan's face changed, and he quickly crumpled the paper into a ball, thinking, *If he saw it, he'd surely die laughing.*

Zu An said with a half-smile, "Young Master Yu just swore he would definitely complete it. What's wrong now?"

Yu Nan's face alternated between red and white. "How can I possibly do such an absurd thing!" he exclaimed.

Zu An dropped his smile. "That's strange," he said. "Is it still called a dare if there's no difficulty? Might as well play house. Young Master Yu, if you can't handle it, don't play."

Bi Zi'ang, not understanding why, also chimed in, "He has a point. Brother Yu is usually quite a gentleman. Why are you losing your noble family's demeanor repeatedly today?"

Yu Nan was so angry he almost cursed out loud. *This idiot is still chiming in,* he thought. *If you knew I was supposed to sit on your lap, you'd be disgusted to death.*

Thinking of that disgusting scene, he too felt a shiver down his spine.

"I'll drink!" Yu Nan's face darkened. Even though he felt he was close to getting drunk, he still chose to drink.

After three more cups of "Shining Sky Burn," he felt his stomach churning, as if he might vomit at any moment.

The game continued, but after the recent lesson, no one dared to easily choose 'dare' again.

After a few more rounds, Yu Nan finally couldn't hold on anymore. At this point, he had to choose 'dare' again.

Zu An, smiling, pulled out the paper slip he had thrown aside earlier. It was still the same dare.

Earlier, Yu Nan would certainly have refused, but now he truly couldn't drink anymore. With alcohol consuming his mind, he was so drunk that little reason remained. Bi Zi'ang, that fellow, was also kicking him while he was down. He felt a rush of blood and simply threw caution to the wind.

"If it has to be done, then it will be done! Is there anything I, Yu, dare not do?" So he stood up directly and, to Bi Zi'ang's astonishment, sat on his lap, pounding his chest and wailing, "Hmph! It's all your fault! You didn't even try to comfort me! I really want to cry, *pounding your chest*, you big bad guy!!! *baa QAQ* *pounding your chest!* You're so annoying! *whimpering* I want a hug... Hmph, I'll hit your chest with my little fists!!! *pouts* You big bad guy, I'll beat you to death!"

Zu An quietly put away the sound-recording stone he had prepared earlier. At the same time, he felt a bit of admiration, wondering, *Could this Yu Nan really have that preference? His coquettish tone and expression were simply too convincing.*

Bi Zi'ang, on the other side, was utterly dumbfounded. "..."

He never expected such a bizarre development, so much so that he didn't react at first.

When he finally came to his senses, he quickly pushed the other man away. He wanted to scold him, but thinking of how they had just embraced, a wave of nausea washed over him, and he couldn't help but lean over and dry heave.

Influenced by him, the drunk Yu Nan could no longer hold it in and began to vomit bile beside him.

The two were close, and smelling the vomit, Bi Zi'ang finally couldn't bear it either. With his alcohol-induced nausea surging, he also started to genuinely vomit.

Although the mysterious woman secretly listening next door couldn't smell it, she instinctively fanned the air in front of her nose. Her maid couldn't help but complain, "That Zu fellow is truly disgusting."

The mysterious woman was both exasperated and amused. She never expected him to reduce two of the capital's most desired bachelors, dream lovers in the eyes of countless young women, to such a pathetic state.

A thud came from next door. It turned out that Yu Nan, being extremely drunk and having vented his emotions, experienced such extreme emotional swings that his body's protective mechanism made him faint.

Nan Xun quickly found maids to help Yu Nan go down to rest. Meanwhile, the establishment would arrange for someone to attend to him.

No one had expected one person to be eliminated in such a manner, but Bi Zi'ang couldn't feel happy at all. His gaze towards Zu An was extremely strange. At this moment, he felt a little regret; Yu Nan had been taken out, and now he would have to face this guy directly. *Who knew what kind of tricks he would pull next?*

With one person down, the game naturally couldn't continue. Nan Xun had the banquet removed and all the mess cleaned up.

In his previous life, it would have been difficult to clean up so quickly, but this was a world of cultivation. With wind and water elemental cultivators, it was quickly cleaned spotless.

At this point, Nan Xun addressed Zu An and Bi Zi'ang, "Thank you, young masters, for your generosity. Given my status, I originally had no right to test either of you. Alas, one woman cannot serve two husbands, so I had to resort to this last measure. I hope you both understand."

Bi Zi'ang said indifferently, "No matter."

Zu An, meanwhile, smiled and pointed out the window. "It's best to hurry up," he said. "Otherwise, if every round takes as long and is as exhausting as before, it'll be dawn, and there won't be time for anything else."

Bi Zi'ang secretly cursed him for being vulgar in his heart, but he shared the same thought. Being chosen by a courtesan for so long, his patience was almost at its limit.

Nan Xun's face flushed slightly. "No, it won't be like that," she said. "This time, we'll have a result very quickly."

With that, she clapped her hands. Soon, new maids emerged carrying a flower basket filled with many beautiful petals.

Nan Xun took the flower basket and said softly, "To thank you both, young masters, for your kindness, I will perform a dance for you. Midway through, I will scatter the petals from the basket into the air. Whoever first states the total number of petals will win. If neither of you guesses correctly, the one whose answer is closest to the correct number will win."

"Additionally," she continued, "to prevent one from using another's answer as a reference, if there are identical answers, the one who spoke first will be considered the winner. Do either of you young masters have any objections?"

Bi Zi'ang smiled, "Miss Nan Xun, this assessment is quite elegant. I naturally have no objections."

He understood in his heart. The first round relied on family background and wealth, the second round tested literary talent, and the third and most important round would naturally test cultivation.

In this aspect, he was quite confident.

Zu An also smiled, "I don't either."

"Very well, young masters, please prepare yourselves," Nan Xun said. After she finished speaking, she began to dance, holding the flower basket.

They had already witnessed her exquisite dance in the main hall. Now, watching from up close, they could better appreciate her body's graceful contours and captivating curves.

However, Bi Zi'ang at this moment had no time to admire her figure; instead, his eyes were fixed on the flower basket in her hand.

As expected, it wasn't long before Nan Xun, amidst a dance move, tossed the flower basket in her hand upwards. A rain of petals descended from the sky, bathing her entirely, making her look as beautiful and ethereal as a flower fairy.

A gleam flickered in Bi Zi'ang's eyes. Then he was the first to answer, "There are a total of 2047 petals!"

He didn't even ask Nan Xun to confirm the answer, but confidently looked at Zu An. "My apologies, Brother Zu," he said, "my Heaven-Sorrowing Sword technique primarily tests one's eyesight. In its early stages, I had to pierce every falling petal with a single sword stroke. Therefore, I have an advantage when counting petals."

His attitude was impeccable, appearing polite, truly befitting a renowned young master of the capital.

However, mentioning his advantage now, instead of before the competition, gave a feeling of insincerity.

Zu An, however, smiled. "My answer is different from yours," he said. "There are a total of 2048 petals."

Nan Xun nodded, "Indeed, the correct number is 2048 petals."

The smile on Bi Zi'ang's face immediately froze. He instantly said in a low voice, "Impossible! There's no way I could have miscounted!"

He had absolute confidence in his eyesight. He had counted all of them before they touched the ground.

Zu An walked over to Nan Xun and plucked a petal from her beautiful hair. "There's still one here," he said. "Miss Nan Xun just said 'all the petals,' not just 'the petals that fell to the ground,' didn't she?"

Nan Xun was surprised. "Indeed," she said. "I tried my best to avoid the petals just now, but I didn't expect one to land on me."

Zu An smiled faintly. In truth, he had secretly used a wisp of vital energy to embed a petal in her hair moments before. He had done it just in case, never expecting it would actually be needed.

Bi Zi'ang's face turned pale. He never expected to lose because of this!