Cultivating through increasing my stats in America-Chapter 97 - 96 If You Cant Beat Them You Hang
Chapter 97: Chapter 96: If You Can’t Beat Them, You Hang?
Chapter 97: Chapter 96: If You Can’t Beat Them, You Hang?
The several small obstacles along the way had almost no effect on Li Ang, taking him less than six seconds to complete the fifty-meter descent.
Now, he was facing the only challenging checkpoint left before the finish line.
In front of him was a stone sphere weighing over six hundred pounds, bound with iron chains. Unlike the first round, this time he was not to break the stone but to drag it to a designated spot.
This challenge required full-body strength and was incredibly draining.
Especially at the start, the static friction of an object is usually greater than the friction once it’s moving.
Luckily, Li Ang started early enough that, after dragging the chain nearly parallel to the ground, the stone sphere finally began to move.
What followed was primarily locking the chains with his hands and then pulling with the strength of his legs.
Worried that his arms and grip strength were not enough, Li Ang tied the chain around his waist and played to the advantage of his leg strength, finally picking up speed as well.
By the time Baines finally reached this stage, Li Ang had already dragged the stone halfway.
But this time, catching up was not going to be that easy for him.
He found that even with all his might, his speed was just barely keeping pace with Li Ang’s, and if faster, it was by a very limited margin.
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Baines roared, pushing his body to the limit, but still lagged behind Li Ang to reach the final stand.
In the last step, there was almost no chance of a turnaround.
Li Ang took the hammer, shattered the stone slab, found a large key inside, and inserted it into the ultimate champion’s podium, securing his final victory.
At this moment, Baines had just picked up the hammer; he looked bewildered, unsure where to strike.
“So, let’s congratulate Li Ang for winning this edition of the ‘Titan’ title!”
Dwayne Johnson announced the result of the competition in an elevated voice.
Just as the whole audience was cheering along, a discordant voice suddenly erupted on the stage.
“I protest, there must be a fix in this competition!”
Baines fiercely threw the hammer to the ground and shouted.
Suddenly, the whole venue fell silent.
The director urgently contacted the producer on whether to cut this segment from the broadcast.
Though the show emphasized authenticity with its live broadcast format,
they allowed for a ten-minute delay to give some leeway for unexpected events.
Big issues couldn’t be changed, but small troubles could still be dealt with.
However, the director’s lips suddenly curved into a smile, “Listen, Les, lock the camera on Baines’ face. Let’s hear what he has to say!”
“Accidents” that occur during live broadcasts are, to a good extent, not accidents at all but deliberately arranged for the sake of program effects.
The [Titan Game] production team, aiming to play it as real as possible, had actually not scripted much.
Even if they wanted to control which contestants advanced, there was no need for any underhanded tactics; arranging suitable opponents was sufficient.
In reality, it was Baines who had been “arranged” by the production team. According to their initial plan, the title of “Titan” for this episode was reserved for him, with all the other competitors’ physical strength at least one notch lower than his.
But no one expected Li Ang, the dark horse, to emerge out of nowhere.
However, the show’s director was clearly not opposed to this unexpected development; the authentic effect of the show was a wave of popularity they wouldn’t want to miss.
The sudden change left Dwayne Johnson somewhat at a loss.
But soon, he heard the director’s voice in his earpiece, instructing him to go along with Baines and continue.
“I think the props I used were not the same weight as his, otherwise, he couldn’t have completed the task faster than me!”
Baines’s eyes were bloodshot with anger, and even though speaking out might offend the production team, it would certainly benefit him personally.
His accusation caused an uproar among the audience.
“I knew it! That Asian guy looks so much weaker than Baines, how could he possibly push and pull heavy objects as quickly as Baines did?”
“I noticed something off about his previous victories but never said anything.”
“So it was cheating after all. I had two Chinese classmates in college who were punished for cheating on an exam.”
However, with so many spectators present, there were voices of doubt and, naturally, voices of support.
“Baines is really shaming football players. Losing is losing, why blame it on external conditions?”
“I don’t think there’s anything abnormal here. Even though Baines is strong enough, let’s not forget that Li Ang also has the strength of a professional cyclist. His leg strength is definitely not something ordinary people can match.”
Sheila and Catina in the audience went without saying; they completely believed in Li Ang.
Li Ang had no prior relationship with the production team, and they couldn’t think of any reason why the production team would help Li Ang.
After Baines had spoken, now all the spectators were waiting for the show organizers and Li Ang to respond.
Li Ang, for his part, was in no hurry at all. Baines had questioned the fairness of the competition, and although the production team wanted to hype things up, if they really couldn’t prove their fairness, the show’s popularity would plummet. So the ones who should be anxious were them.
Li Ang remained calm and even took the time to check what metal his medal was made of.
On the other side, after repeatedly confirming with the production team and ensuring there were no actions that compromised the balance of the game, Dwayne Johnson regained his confidence.
Although he was the host of the show, in fact, there were many details he was unaware of. His primary role was promotional.
“Mr. Baines, as an adult, you are responsible for whatever you say. If you can’t prove the issue you’re talking about right now, we can sue you for defamation,” Johnson said, expressing himself with a joking tone toward the end.
Being a star, he wasn’t really suited to play the ‘good cop’ here, but with no one else on stage, he had no choice.
“I want to run Li Ang’s course again. Even though I’ve rested a bit, my current energy level certainly isn’t as high as it was at the beginning. If I can push the barriers faster than before, that will prove there’s a problem with his course,” Baines stated emphatically.
At his words, the crowd’s emotions were quickly stirred.
Naturally, these people loved a good spectacle and wouldn’t mind seeing the two competitors go at it again.
