Derek Su was the first to sign up for this round, so naturally, he was the first to get a hammer.
When Richard Cheng saw Derek Su, his eyes lit up. He immediately raised his hand and called out to the host, "I'm smashing ten!"
The host was stunned.
Weren't they supposed to stick to three?
Why had this guy changed his mind again?
Richard Cheng didn't care what the host thought. He walked up to Derek Su with a grin. "Mr. Su, you took the Imperial Scale last time. Me smashing seven more golden eggs than you today isn't too much, right?"
Derek Su turned and gave him a strange look.
These rich guys and their weird competitive streak…
Even if he smashed seven more eggs, it wouldn't change the fact that he was just unlucky.
"Of course, go ahead," Derek Su said with a casual smile.
But Richard Cheng was fired up. Today, he wasn't doing this for anything else but pride.
If he couldn't beat Derek Su at getting Mecha Girls, he could at least win at smashing eggs.
After all, he was someone who'd gotten a purple module from just three eggs.
Theoretically, getting three purples—or even a gold—from ten eggs wasn't too much to ask, right?
What he didn't know was that there weren't any gold modules in these at all. Purple was the highest tier.
Derek Su didn't go straight for the [Heart of Rock] module he wanted most.
Even though he had already seen through the trick behind this golden egg event, he still wanted to test it himself and confirm whether there were any hidden manipulations.
So he walked directly toward one of the purple modules, raised his hammer, and prepared to strike.
The host froze.
What was this guy doing, going straight for a purple module?
He absolutely couldn't let Derek Su take it like that.
The best outcome for a purple module was for it to be taken by one of their planted insiders.
But the insider couldn't go first. If the purple module appeared right away, anyone paying attention would know something was off. And once the purple module was gone, the rest of the crowd wouldn't keep spending money.
So the optimal strategy was to delay it as long as possible, waiting until most of the golden eggs were gone before letting the insider step in and "luckily" win it.
The host immediately swapped the purple module with the blue one beside it.
Derek Su's lips twitched slightly. Out of the corner of his eye, he gave the host a subtle glance.
Then his hammer shifted to the adjacent golden egg.
The host froze again, cold sweat forming on his forehead.
What's with this guy hesitating over a golden egg?
Doesn't he know this kind of thing requires speed and decisiveness?
He quickly swapped the purple module with a white one above it.
Hesitating, huh?
Then you can smash a white one instead!
But Derek Su simply moved his hammer again, closely tracking the purple module's position, still pretending to hesitate.
At this point, it was clear the host could swap modules not just left and right, but up and down, front and back as well.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, the information panel for the purple module suddenly disappeared, shrinking beneath the table, and a blue module's panel rose in its place.
Derek Su slowly formed a question mark in his mind.
What the hell?!
They can even do that?!
Good thing he tested it first. Otherwise, if the host pulled the same trick when he went for the [Heart of Rock], wouldn't that have been a complete waste?
The swapping speed was incredibly fast.
And since all the packaging looked identical, he knew it was a purple module, but others wouldn't.
There was no way for him to expose the host's shameless behavior unless he could reveal the swap at the exact moment the hammer struck.
At this point, Derek Su had a clear understanding of the situation.
He stopped switching targets and brought the hammer down, cracking open a golden egg and taking a blue module.
The host finally let out a breath, a sly smile creeping onto his face.
"I almost thought you had X-ray vision," he muttered.
That had been way too bizarre. Derek Su had been tracking the purple module as if he could see through everything.
Now that he'd ended up with a blue module, the host was convinced it had all been coincidence.
Meanwhile, Richard Cheng had already smashed five golden eggs.
Two white modules and three blue ones. His face had turned green.
But when he saw Derek Su also get a blue module, his mood improved again.
At least everyone was equally unlucky. Nothing embarrassing about that.
And he already had one purple module under his belt!
So far, he wasn't losing money.
This time, Derek Su's target was the [Heart of Rock].
Its golden egg was positioned in the far right corner. He walked straight over and stopped in front of it, and the host's heart immediately tensed.
What's this guy up to? Is he targeting the purple module again?
The host muttered to himself, starting to suspect something was off about Derek Su.
Then he saw Derek Su's hammer hovering over the golden egg next to the purple module.
Oh. That's fine.
False alarm.
But the moment the hammer came down—
"Oops, my hand slipped~"
His wrist twisted in an odd angle, and the hammer struck the neighboring golden egg.
Crack.
The golden egg split open, revealing the [Heart of Rock] right in front of him.
There was no time for the host to switch it out.
He could only watch helplessly as Derek Su reached out and took their purple module.
If he remembered correctly, the purple module inside that egg was indeed Heart of Rock. It was an excellent module focused on Stability and Impact Resistance. But since most Mecha Girls prioritized Acceleration and Cornering, modules like this didn't sell well and were often used in events.
Still, if sold normally, it would be worth seven to eight million.
A chill ran down the host's spine.
Earlier, giving a purple module to Richard Cheng had been a calculated move. The boss would praise him for being clever.
But this? Letting Derek Su get the Heart of Rock?
That was a full-blown incident. The boss would skin him alive.
He couldn't afford another mistake today…
The host took a deep breath and forced a smile.
"Congratulations, sir, on obtaining one of our purple modules. Turning a small bet into a big win. You can still smash another golden egg."
Richard Cheng's expression changed when he saw Derek Su pull a purple module.
Damn. He'd been outplayed.
They were back on equal footing.
He turned to the host. "I want to smash thirty."
He had already finished the ten earlier. All blue and white.
"Um, Mr. Richard, that's… not really within the rules," the host said awkwardly. "How about this—you come to our shop later, and we'll set up a special round just for you. You can smash a hundred if you want."
This was still an event, after all.
If someone really smashed thirty, their reputation would take a hit.
"Do you think I'm negotiating with you?" Richard Cheng sneered, shaking his finger. "No, no, no. This is an order. I am smashing thirty. Butler, go get thirty hammers. You and the bodyguards each take one. I want them all opened at once."
He refused to believe it.
Today, he was definitely getting a second purple module.
"Mr. Richard, please, let's talk this through—don't do this!"
The host was practically on the verge of tears.
He could already see dissatisfaction showing on the faces of the surrounding drivers and Mecha Girls.
Losing money on the event was one thing. Ruining their reputation was another.
Would they even be able to run this event again in the future?
But with no power or backing, how could he possibly stop Richard Cheng?
Amid the growing chaos,
Derek Su had already quietly set his sights on another purple module.
...
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