It was probably Chichi who embodied the phrase, 'The army was defeated before it even started, and the general died before he could achieve anything.'
However, to be fair, the girl wasn't wrong; the mistake was Chichi being too hasty and scaring her Pichu.
The three of them quickly stepped forward to explain their intentions, which cleared up the misunderstanding, but this, in turn, made the girl feel a little embarrassed, apologizing profusely to Chichi.
Clearly, that amount of electricity was nothing to Chichi, especially with a Gardevoir nearby; under Gardevoir's Heal Pulse, Chichi quickly recovered.
The game continued.
After the twists and turns, the four still gained something; at least the girl pointed them in a direction.
“The best food in the Magic City?” The girl considered for a moment before giving an answer, “It should be Eight-Treasure Duck.”
As soon as the answer was given, all four sighed simultaneously.
The girl asked with some confusion, “What? Was I wrong?”
The four sighed in unison again, and Chichi waved his hand, saying, “It’s nothing, you’re very right.”
After bidding farewell to the girl, the four exchanged glances, seeing disdain in each other's eyes.
“No matter what, let’s follow the rules and find a place to eat Eight-Treasure Duck!” Finally, Mu Li stepped forward to manage the process.
Seeing that they couldn't avoid it, the other three chose a nearby Eight-Treasure Duck vendor, and the four of them ordered one portion together.
“I swear, the Eight-Treasure Duck in the Magic City is definitely not this taste,” Chichi complained after eating.
“I also swear, this isn’t Eight-Treasure Duck at all,” Zheng Yun echoed.
Fan Yizhi also strongly agreed, “I’ve never eaten such terrible Eight-Treasure Duck in my life.”
Mu Li: “…What can I do? I’ve never eaten Eight-Treasure Duck either! But honestly, this Eight-Treasure Duck is really bad.”
After quickly dealing with the Eight-Treasure Duck and taking a group photo of the four, they again sought out passersby.
With their previous experience, the four directly abandoned all males and specifically looked for easy-to-talk-to Misses.
To avoid the previous accident from happening again, this time the four started making gestures from a distance to attract the attention of the Misses passing by.
“The best food in the Magic City? Braised pork?” A Miss tentatively replied.
“YES! I knew it!” Fan Yizhi suddenly clenched his fist and shook it, “Miss, your answer is fantastic!”
“Haha? Really?” The Miss showed an awkward smile.
“Sigh, who would like Magic City Braised Pork?” Chichi couldn’t help but sigh.
“Right? Why would anyone like to eat main courses?” Mu Li also complained.
Zheng Yun also sighed, “What a pity, just a little bit off.”
Mu Li and Chichi couldn't help but ask curiously, “What did you write?”
Zheng Yun looked at the two of them warily: “You two say first, then I’ll say.”
Chichi shrugged and said, “I wrote Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs.”
Mu Li also said, “I wrote Magic City Steamed Buns.”
Zheng Yun was a little surprised, but his face still held some doubt.
Mu Li felt a little guilty, secretly glancing at Chichi, and when he saw Chichi had the same expression as him, he instantly understood.
“I wrote Braised Catfish,” Zheng Yun said honestly.
“Catfish?” Mu Li blinked, asking in confusion, “What’s that?”
Chichi explained, “It’s a type of fish, but Zheng Yun, who would like to eat catfish the most?”
After checking in for the Braised Pork, the four found another Miss.
“The best Magic City delicacy is, of course, Braised Catfish!” The Miss said excitedly, “I just love it so much!”
Zheng Yun jumped three feet high: “Yes! I knew it! The best is definitely Braised Catfish!” With that, Zheng Yun and the Miss even high-fived.
Thanks to the Miss, Mu Li also got to taste Braised Catfish for the first time.
It was sweet, sour, and salty, which quite suited Mu Li's taste.
However, after three inquiries, the four's step count directly reached 5000 steps.
Next, after the four successively ate Pork Ribs with Rice Cakes, Crab Roe Soup Dumplings, and Fried Prawns, their step count also reached 9500 steps.
“The remaining steps are only enough for one more,” Chichi analyzed.
“Then let’s see who can achieve the final victory,” Mu Li said, not to be outdone.
The two again surrounded a stylishly dressed Miss and continued to ask questions.
“The best food in the Magic City is, of course, Magic City Steamed Buns!”
As soon as these words were spoken, the two immediately fell silent.
Zheng Yun, on the other hand, was quite happy: “A Li, you won! Hahaha, Chichi, Chichi, you have your day too.”
Fan Yizhi was a bit confused: “A Li, did you write Magic City Steamed Buns? What good luck.”
Mu Li couldn’t help but pout, unsure what to say.
Chichi was instantly enraged: “Why Steamed Buns? Isn’t Scallion Oil Noodles the soul of the Magic City?”
Mu Li was also enraged: “Exactly! Why Steamed Buns? Don’t Pan-Fried Buns deserve to represent the Magic City?”
“Eh? Eh?” The Miss was momentarily stunned.
Zheng Yun quickly went up to stop the two, and Fan Yizhi also hurried forward to comfort her: “These two lost the game, and their brains are a bit muddled. Don’t mind them!”
It took a lot of effort to persuade the Miss to leave before the two calmed down.
Mu Li said exasperatedly, “Brother Chichi, didn’t you write Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs?”
Chichi snorted coldly, “Didn’t you write Steamed Buns? She already said it, why aren’t you going to eat and check in?”
Mu Li immediately wanted to cover his face and weep bitterly.
The people in the live stream were already crying with laughter at this plot.
【My heart aches for Mu Li, he was so close to escaping punishment.】
【LOL, let him make things up, and he actually guessed it right.】
【The scariest thing is when my carefully prepared answer can't beat my random guess.】
【This often happens to me during exams; I'd write a random answer, then change it after thinking for a long time, only to find out when the paper is returned that the randomly written answer was correct.】
【Waiting for their punishment.】
…
“Does it have to be this way?” Mu Li looked at the fiery red chicken wings in front of him, his voice trembling slightly.
“Does it really have to be like this?” Chichi looked at the cup of dark, unknown beverage in front of him and couldn’t help but swallow.
Zheng Yun and Fan Yizhi sat in front of them: “You swore yourselves, you have to keep your word.”
Mu Li took a deep breath and shouted, “It’s just extremely spicy chicken wings! I, Mu Li, am not afraid of spice at all!”
With that, he took a bite of the chicken wing in front of him, and the next moment, his face turned red at a visible speed.
“Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey… What is this stuff?” Mu Li felt like he couldn’t even speak, his tongue was so swollen from the spice.
Gardevoir quickly offered him ice water, and after Mu Li drank a cup of ice water in one gulp, he was about to sigh in relief when another wave of spiciness surged up.
“Another cup!” Mu Li quickly shouted.
Gardevoir helplessly offered another cup, and Mu Li again drank it all in one go; repeating this, Mu Li probably gulped down about ten cups of ice water before stopping, and by then, his stomach had swelled up significantly.
After drinking the ice water, Mu Li stuck out his tongue and collapsed onto a nearby sofa, panting heavily.
Seeing Mu Li’s miserable state, Chichi couldn’t help but swallow.
“It’s your turn, don’t dilly-dally. It’s just a drink, isn’t it? You can eat canned herring for meals, are you afraid of this drink?” Zheng Yun encouraged him.
Fan Yizhi also echoed, “Exactly! Mu Li is like that because he’s afraid of spice, but you’re not. Drink it quickly.”
Chichi was stunned, then laughed, “I suddenly feel like what you two said makes a lot of sense. I’ve even eaten canned herring, so what’s this special drink to me?”
“Haha!” Chichi laughed heartily, opened his mouth, and poured the entire cup of special drink directly into his stomach.
This was a trick he learned from eating canned herring: as long as it didn't pass his taste buds, he wouldn't feel anything no matter what he ate.
The next moment, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of black liquid, followed by a bitter sensation that went deep into his abdominal cavity, making Chichi involuntarily gag.
But after he gagged, he found that the bitter sensation became even more intense, which made him continue to gag uncontrollably.
Each time he gagged, the bitterness in his mouth intensified, and each intensification made him continue to gag uncontrollably.
The two formed a cycle.
“Haha…” A smug laugh came from Mu Li’s mouth, “Foolish mortal, this is herbal tea I concocted by combining eighty-one special berries. One sip refreshes the mind, two sips make you stand firm. With that whole cup, being able to stand is already a great affirmation of your willpower.”
If his tongue wasn't swollen from the spice at the moment, making him unable to speak clearly, this line would have been quite impactful.
As soon as Mu Li finished speaking, Chichi rolled his eyes and fainted directly.
Zheng Yun and Fan Yizhi were startled and were about to check on Chichi's condition when Mu Li waved his hand and laughed, “It’s fine, it’s good for his body. Just let him sleep it off.”
Hearing Mu Li’s words, the two finally relaxed.
However, they turned back to look at the half-dead Mu Li and the fainted Chichi, and they couldn’t help but feel a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
In the live stream, the bullet comments had already gone wild.
【These two are going to make me die laughing.】
【Why do these two make eating so dramatic?】
【I’m a little curious about the taste of that special herbal tea.】
【Will Chichi be okay?】
【That herbal tea feels like it’ll appear in other variety shows soon.】
…
Fu Peiyao, who had been watching Mu Li's live stream, was now laughing so hard she couldn't straighten up, her fair, almost gleaming small feet kicking in the air, as if proclaiming her owner's excitement.
Fortunately, no one else saw this scene, otherwise, they would surely be surprised: the goddess actually had such a mischievous side.
However, Milotic, who was beside her, had clearly long been accustomed to her trainer's appearance; after a yawn, she slipped into the room.
Fu Peiyao finally managed to stop laughing, then picked up her phone and dialed Mu Qingqing's number.
“Qingqing, did you watch Mu Li’s live stream? It was so funny!” Fu Peiyao couldn't stop laughing again.
“Miss! Could you please look at what time it is now? I’m still recording a show, you know?” Mu Qingqing couldn’t help but complain, “Not only am I recording all night, but I also have to catch the earliest flight back to the Magic City tomorrow morning. Who am I doing all this for?”
Fu Peiyao also stopped laughing, but the mirth in her eyes wouldn’t cease, and she even teared up from laughing: “Alright, I know you’re working hard. I’ll treat you to something delicious tomorrow.”
“Hmph, don’t think that just saying a few nice words is enough. Tomorrow, I’m definitely going to eat Mu Li out of house and home,” Mu Qingqing said, feigning fierceness.
“Eh? Why eat Mu Li out of house and home?” Fu Peiyao asked curiously.
“Because you’re rich! You won’t feel bad eating your own money,” Mu Qingqing explained, “But Mu Li just debuted, how much money can he have? If I eat him out of house and home, won’t you be the one feeling bad in the end?”
Fu Peiyao was stunned, then quickly understood Mu Qingqing’s meaning; a flush suddenly rose to her cheeks, but she retorted, “What does it have to do with me if you eat him out of house and home? I won’t feel bad at all. I’ll only care if my Qingqing eats well and is happy.”
“Oh my, these little sweet words are quite something. Where did you go for advanced studies?” Mu Qingqing’s words were dismissive, but her tone held no hint of disdain. “However, I hope you can be as ‘eloquent’ as you are now when you see Mu Li tomorrow.”
“Hmph, I’m ignoring you. You record your show well, Miss will pick you up tomorrow.”