Chapter 582: Chapter 582

The noisy competition venue suddenly quieted down. As one influential figure after another walked in, the scene began to buzz again. Those in the know started introducing their companions to others. These included tycoons from the Imperial Capital and the person in charge of this event.

Some speculated that the young woman, unfamiliar to many, walking beside the Chief Referee must be the president of the Wu City Medicine Association.

As the influential figures took their seats, the members of the Wu City Medicine Association were also guided to the foremost area. To their surprise, this was where the disqualified Fuhai Medicine Association had been seated!

Feeling the intense, envious, and jealous stares from both sides, the pharmacists of the Wu City Medicine Association were also very confused. Everything that happened today seemed too surreal.

The venue for the competition was quite simple, just the previous grounds of the Imperial City Pharmaceutical Association, slightly modified. However, the key was that the venue now housed many valuable medicinal materials, shockingly displayed behind each Medicine Association.

A glance revealed medicinal materials, nearly extinct since the apocalypse. It was clear that those who brought more materials possessed slightly more confidence.

Spotlights suddenly turned on, and various machines whirred to life.

"Silence! Cough, cough! Hello? Hello?" A voice came through the microphone, and a man wearing glasses and holding a microphone walked out from the glare of the lights. He continued as if nothing had happened, "Take your places... Now, I declare that the competition officially starts!" It was as if the several-hours-long prelude to the competition had never occurred, with no explanations whatsoever.

Of course, the presidents of the Medicine Associations and the rest of the staff onsite also dared not speak. They were mindful of the precedent set by the Fuhai Medicine Association.

"Firstly, I am the presenter for this competition, also known as the host. You can call me Xiao Ai. In the upcoming time, I will convey the thoughts of the large online audience watching this competition and clarify any doubts for the audience here. Audience members can vote for the Medicine Association you favor. However, no matter how many votes you cast... Heh, it doesn’t count. This competition will be decided by one Chief Referee and five other judges."

The host moved briskly across the competition grounds, clapping his hands and saying, "Everyone should be clear on the rules by now. Alright, let’s bring on the props!"

The pharmacists from the Wu City Medicine Association, who had just settled into their positions, blinked and quietly asked, "What rules?"

Jing Shu raised her eyebrows. She had been so busy these past few days gathering information about various things that she had completely forgotten to learn the rules. However, she seemed to recall hearing they were supposed to be very simple. Just one word: act.

That was when the props rolled in.

Startlingly, the props were patients carried in on stretchers! There were exactly thirty patients, corresponding to the thirty Medicine Associations, and they arrived quickly. Soon, an old man was placed before Jing Shu, lying on a stretcher, groaning and clutching his stomach. Numerous tubes were inserted into him, their ends leading to sealed bags filled with parasites extracted from his body.

Indeed, the patients on the other stretchers were in similar states, all wailing. Without intervention, they would likely be exsanguinated by the parasites in about ten days.

These intense pains were characteristic of patients whose internal organs were being consumed by parasites.

Things hadn’t been this dramatic during the rehearsals. They hadn’t brought out actual parasite-infected patients then. Oh God, and this was being live-streamed to a massive audience... Though the competition hadn’t been publicized, those tuning in were mostly influential figures from various places.

The thought of medicinal materials potentially agitating the parasites into a frenzy during treatment was unsettling. The faces of the onsite pharmacists darkened. This was not the rule they had been briefed on. During the simulations, they had only been told to present their researched medicinal materials for testing.

"As you all know, this competition aims to select a Medicine Association capable of providing a large quantity of Bodhi materials, or an alternative to them. The selected association will be granted a monopoly on the production of these scarce drugs, with all resources concentrated for this purpose.

Now, please use the medications you’ve prepared over these past few days on the patients. Anesthetics were already largely ineffective for these patients. This round of the competition mainly evaluates the substitutes in terms of pain relief and suppression rates.

Oh, and using Bodhi materials is prohibited in this round."

Jing Shu touched her chin, instantly understanding the significance of the competition. So, the first round was about finding an alternative to Bodhi? From her memories of a past life, it seemed that other than Bodhi, no other antiparasitic or insecticidal drugs were effective against these parasites.

Danai stood slightly trembling next to Jing Shu. She felt a bit dizzy. The judges on the platform had just cast welcoming looks in her direction, and most unbelievably, they had smiled at her. Were today’s tycoons always this approachable? She turned to look at Jing Shu, shaking her head. Jing Shu was the real tycoon here, right?

"Ah? Why is it ? They won’t allow Bodhi in the first round, so what should we use? Many in our Medicine Association who listened to you planted Bodhi. They all wanted to showcase their skills this time."

"President, following your instructions, we experimented with several other medicines these past few days. However, theoretically, they were useless, and in practice, even more so..."

"If that’s the case, we can only try to boost their immunity and hope they can hold on for a few more days on their own."

"What’s the use if it doesn’t provide a complete cure? They’ll still be suffering."

Jing Shu shook her head, then raised her hand and said, "This round, Wu City forfeits!"

The scene burst into an uproar.

"What do you mean, ’forfeits’?"

"Wu City is forfeiting this round? What are they thinking?" Google seaʀᴄh 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩✶𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚✶𝕟𝕖𝕥

"I heard Wu City has a large stockpile of Bodhi, so they aren’t concerned about this round’s focus on alternatives. They’re a strong competitor."

"So what? No matter how much Bodhi they have, it won’t be enough. Besides, Bodhi can only suppress the parasites, not eradicate them. The urgent task now is to find an alternative to Bodhi and replace it."

The old man lying on the ground screamed, "Ah? What about me? It hurts so much! Who can stop this pain? I’d rather die!"

Mocking laughter erupted nearby. "Old Zhou is really miserable! Haha! He came all this way for a trial medication, and they just gave up on him! Ouch, that hurts! Can’t you be gentler?!"

The host, Xiao Ai, nodded, not at all surprised. The large screen scoreboard then showed Wu City’s score for the first round as zero points.

The judges seated on the platform conferred in hushed tones, but they were too far away for anyone to hear what was being said.

The small disturbance quickly subsided. The other Medicine Associations began to work with the professionals, focusing on their tasks and paying no further attention to Wu City.

Meanwhile, Jing Shu quietly gave a few instructions to her team, then sat to one side, ready to watch the show.

Wang Danai nodded excitedly in agreement. Then, she pulled a small black Wanzi from her pocket and fed it to the elderly patient assigned to Wu City.

While the Medicine Associations were busy working up a sweat, an excited voice suddenly announced, "I’m cured! I don’t feel any pain at all! I’m completely healed! Who was mocking me just now?"

"Who’s cured? Is it that old fellow, Old Zhou? He’s cured?"

"Nonsense! Didn’t Old Zhou’s team forfeit the competition?"

The old man, previously on the ground, sprang to his feet, full of vigor. He walked over to the person who had just mocked him and nudged him gently. "Old Yu, after all the years we’ve known each other, you still mocked me! See? I’m cured! Even though they forfeited the competition, they have the antidote! Well? Do you want me to ask them for you?"

"Old Zhou, if you’re cured, of course, I want their help too! I don’t want to be treated here anymore! Damn it, they’ve been tormenting me for ages!"

"I also want treatment from Old Zhou’s Medicine Association!"