Chapter 197: Chapter 197

Si Yan fought exhilaratingly within the space. When she emerged, she saw the Beastman Snake coiled up beside her, asleep.

She slowly rose, and the Beastman Snake opened his eyes, immediately clinging to her.

Just as Si Yan opened the door, Yin Hong hurried over, his face flushed with excitement. "Si Yan," he exclaimed, "some beastmen have arrived... It’s... it’s the Parrot brothers from Myriad Beasts City!"

"The Parrot brothers?" Si Yan asked curiously.

The Beastman Snake said, "The green-haired one we saw before, that’s a Green Parrot Beastman."

So it was a parrot, no wonder he seemed a bit flamboyant, Si Yan thought.

"The Parrot brothers from Myriad Beasts City!" Yin Hong explained excitedly. "The elder brother is Grey Parrot, and the younger is Green Parrot. Grey Parrot is renowned for his intellect, one of the famous sages in Myriad Beasts City. Green Parrot excels in martial arts and is one of the city’s few Golden Crystal Beastmen. They’re both incredibly formidable! I grew up listening to their stories!"

So the Golden Crystal Beastman she met this morning was a celebrity, Si Yan mused.

When Si Yan descended to the main floor, she saw Grey Parrot and Green Parrot sitting in the tavern, as well as the familiar female Kylin, Bao Lin.

Upon seeing Si Yan, Bao Lin pointed at her and cried out to Grey Parrot, "Uncle Grey, that’s her! She’s Si Yan! That’s her, she claims she knows mathematics! Quickly put her in her place!"

Bao Lin didn’t know why, but she disliked Si Yan on sight, even feeling a vague sense of apprehension and unease. She always felt she should recognize Si Yan, and it likely wasn’t a friendly relationship, though she couldn’t recall the specifics. But she had a strong feeling that she couldn’t let Si Yan overshadow her.

Grey Parrot gave Bao Lin a reassuring smile. "Don’t worry, Young Miss." With that, he took a couple of steps toward Si Yan.

She Ying and She Chuan put down their wine jars and followed Si Yan, with Yin Hong also trailing behind her.

Grey Parrot said, "Mr. Si Yan."

Si Yan responded politely with a nod. "Mr. Grey Parrot."

As a sage, Grey Parrot maintained a humble demeanor. "I’ve heard that Mr. Si Yan is skilled in mathematics?" he asked.

Si Yan replied, "I know a little."

Grey Parrot continued, "I have a mathematical problem. Might I ask for Mr. Si Yan’s guidance?"

Si Yan hadn’t expected the sage Bao Lin had invited to be so polite. "Please, go ahead," she said.

The Delusional Tavern was usually filled with male beastmen buying wine. But with the arrival of Grey Parrot and Green Parrot, a crowd of curious and entertainment-seeking beastmen gradually gathered.

"Look, it’s Mr. Grey Parrot."

"Is that the sage himself?"

"Why has he come here?"

"Haven’t you heard? He’s going to discuss mathematics with that female!"

"Impossible! Mr. Grey Parrot discussing mathematics with a female? You must have misheard!"

"Don’t push, don’t push! I want to see too! Heavens, who is this female? She’s so beautiful!"

"She’s even prettier than the Young Miss of Myriad Beasts City!"

"Yes, she’s so beautiful!"

Bao Lin’s eyelids twitched. Are these beastmen all just a bunch of simple-minded fools obsessed with looks? So what if she’s pretty? Is beauty useful? Does it grant status or position? Does she have powerful backing? Is there someone supporting her? Really, what a bunch of shallow beastmen!

Some beastmen, hearing that the esteemed Grey Parrot was going to engage in a mathematical contest with the female before them, hurried home to invite their own sages to witness the event.

"You guys stay here, I’ll go inform our sage."

"Hold this spot for me! I’m going back to inform our sage; he might want to come and watch!"

Grey Parrot and Si Yan casually took their seats.

Yin Hong knew Si Yan was exceptional. He had even suspected she might be a sage, but he never imagined she would one day be discussing matters face-to-face with a prominent figure like Grey Parrot. It felt like a dream. He was practically floating with excitement as he stood behind Si Yan, his admiration for her surging anew!

Grey Parrot smiled and said, "I’ll ask the question first. Let’s see if Mr. Si Yan can answer."

Si Yan nodded. "Go ahead."

Grey Parrot paused, heightening the tension among the surrounding beastmen. Once everyone had quieted down, ten beastmen of varying builds stepped forward, arranging themselves before Si Yan.

Grey Parrot said, "Mr. Si Yan, please listen to the question. There are ten beastmen. The first beastman holds one beast hide, the second holds two, the third holds three, and so on, until the tenth beastman, who holds ten. Now, please calculate, how many beast hides do these ten beastmen possess in total?"

As he finished speaking, the ten beastmen each displayed their hides, holding from one to ten respectively, as per Grey Parrot’s instructions.

Grey Parrot said, "This might be a little difficult, Mr. Si Yan. You can take your time to think."

Si Yan glanced at the setup, then looked at Grey Parrot. Almost without pausing, she answered, "Fifty-five hides." This text is hosted at novèlfire.net

Hearing Si Yan blurt out the answer without a moment’s thought, many of the beastmen sneered. Typical female, some thought. Such a difficult question, and she doesn’t even think it through, just blurts out a number. It’s definitely a wild guess, it must be wrong. What a waste of time coming here. I thought we’d see a real contest, but this is just a joke.

Bao Lin jeered, "Si Yan, if you can’t do it, just say so! No one will laugh at you. But it’s wrong to just spout nonsense!"

Si Yan looked at Bao Lin. "Am I speaking nonsense?"

Si Yan said, "Young Miss, you can count, can’t you? There are ten beastmen right here, each holding hides. Why don’t you count them and see if there are indeed fifty-five?"

Seeing her confidence, Bao Lin was momentarily stunned. Could Si Yan actually know how to calculate it? And figure it out so quickly? Impossible!

"You don’t need to tell me! I was going to count them anyway!" Bao Lin retorted.

With that, not only Bao Lin but many of the other beastmen began to count meticulously.

However, before they could finish counting, Grey Parrot’s composed expression shattered. He lost his composure and exclaimed, "Master Si Yan! How did you calculate that?!"

Grey Parrot’s stunned reaction shocked everyone. The beastmen thought, No way, it can’t be! The number she casually stated couldn’t possibly be correct!

Yet, the further they counted, the more astonished they became, their initial disbelief turning into a growing sense of shock.

"Fifty-three, fifty-four, fifty-five..."

"Fifty-five hides! Heavens, it really is fifty-five! How did she calculate it?"

"Good heavens, does she really know arithmetic? Could she be a sage?!"

"Impossible, she’s just a female!"

"Females are always fond of eating and averse to work; they never like to use their brains!"

"How could a female possibly be a sage?!"

"But she calculated it, she really did!"

"Heavens, how did she do it?!"

Bao Lin was dumbfounded. This Si Yan... it’s one thing for her to know arithmetic, but to solve such a difficult problem from Mr. Grey Parrot in an instant? No, that’s impossible!

Si Yan looked at the dumbfounded beastmen. In my original world, this was just an arithmetic problem for elementary school students. The solution was obvious at a glance.

While everyone was reeling from shock, a few sages and their apprentices from nearby also hurried over, drawn by the commotion. Upon hearing the beastmen who had remained recount Grey Parrot’s question and Si Yan’s answer, they too were astonished.

Si Yan said calmly, "Mr. Grey Parrot, this problem is actually quite simple, and there are many ways to solve it. I’ll explain one common method."

Grey Parrot was visibly excited, his hands trembling slightly. "Mr. Si Yan, please, do tell."

Si Yan explained, "You can pair the first beastman with the ninth. They have ten hides together. The second with the eighth also makes ten. The third with the seventh makes ten, and the fourth with the sixth makes another ten. That’s four pairs, each totaling ten hides. Then, consider the tenth beastman who has ten hides by himself—that’s a fifth set of ten. Finally, you have the fifth beastman holding five hides separately. So, five tens plus five makes fifty-five hides in total."

Grey Parrot pondered for a moment, then his eyes lit up with sudden understanding. He said respectfully, "I see! Mr. Si Yan, you are truly impressive."

Si Yan then turned the tables. "Mr. Grey Parrot, if we extend this, suppose there are one hundred beastmen. The first has one hide, the second has two, the third has three, and so on, up to the hundredth beastman who has one hundred hides. In that case, how many hides would all these beastmen have in total?"

Grey Parrot was stunned speechless.

Si Yan smiled slightly and took a sip of water.

Bao Lin watched the triumphant Si Yan, growing frantic. I wanted her to be humiliated, not to steal the spotlight! She shouted, "Si Yan! I bet you don’t know the answer either! You’re just posing a problem that no one can solve to show off!"