67 Cheating

"What is the meaning of this? The scores can't be equal! Darth Wilkes clearly did a better job than Kael on replicating the features of the objects!" The representative from Cloverleigh City protested loudly.

"Did you hear yourself talking? Kael's replica has moving objects on it! He obviously deserves a 10 for this!" The representative from Fairview City countered with a strong point.

"I think you should be the one hearing yourself talking. Look at how life-like the replica Ice Artifice is! And you only gave a 6? What a joke."

"I'm talking about the replica Prediction Orb here. Could Darth Wilkes create replica moving objects that are so life-like like the dragon and phoenix? One look and we know who's the better one here!"

"Come on. We are looking at the function of the replica object here. Kael was clearly unable to replicate the prediction ability of the Prediction Orb here. That is why no matter how he replicates, it is only worth a 7."

"The same can be said for Darth Wilkes. He can't make the replica exude cold energy. Both sides lost in this manner, so it is unfair for you to give Darth Wilkes a 10 while a 7 for Kael."

"..." The bickering continued for a good five minutes. Kael was observing silently on one side. He could understand the 7 marks given by Cloverleigh and Anchorage Cities. However, Hailford City actually gave an 8, which was pivotal in allowing him to draw with Darth Wilkes.

"Hmm. Perhaps there is more than it meets the eye for Hailford City. Maybe the representative is taking a more objective stance towards this whole issue. For what reasons though?" Hailford City's representation had Kael guessing.

Finally, the representative of Hailford City stepped into the quarrelling.

"Fellow judges, we are all entitled to our own opinions. Maybe we come from different factions, thus we tend to have a more favorable impression of either challenger. However, that is all part and parcel of the judging process as well; in life, it is all about having the right connections as well. Therefore, we can't fault each other too much on the technicalities. Furthermore, from my perspective, we have given fair scores to both parties. At the very least, we didn't give a score that is below 5 for either party. Am I right?"

"That is right. I agree with Hailford City on this issue. I think we should give credence to the scores for both parties and agree on letting the second part of this challenge be the determining factor." Wallie Dawson tried to close the conversation. He was relieved and surprised that Hailford City actually tried to act neutral.

The representative from Cloverleigh City gave the representative from Hailford City a cold and mean look. "Hmph. Since you have already spoken so blatantly, let us move on then." He knew that since Hailford City had spoken out, there was no point in continuing the arguing to force a win for Darth Wilkes.

Wallie Dawson flashed a smile. He then continued. "All right, now that the judges have come to an agreement regarding the draw of the first half of the challenge, let us proceed with the second part of the challenge, which is to compare the weight of the replica to the original object.

Young Master Darth Wilkes. We will test your replica first." Wallie Dawson took the weighing scale which was prepared beforehand and placed it in front of the replica Ice Artifice and the original Ice Artifice.

Darth Wilkes nodded. His confidence was a bit shaken by the initial draw, which he considered as his loss. However, he didn't let it get into his head. He had a strong mentality, and he was very certain that he had estimated the spiritual density of the Ice Artifice very accurately. Hence, there was little room for error here.

At this moment, Kael muttered something under his breath. It was actually an incantation. However, no one noticed what Kael did as everyone was focused on looking at whether the two Ice Artifices' weight would cancel each other out. Thus, Kael's little actions went unnoticed.

Wallie Dawson proceeded to put the original Ice Artifice on the weighing scale. Upon placing the original object, the weighing scale tipped towards one side.

Next, Wallie Dawson gingerly lifted the replica Ice Artifice, which was very fragile, and placed it on top on the other side of the weighing scale.

The weighing scale started tipping back into equilibrium.

When the weighing scale was back at equilibrium, a wide grin was plastered on Darth Wilkes' face.

"I knew it. My estimates are accurate…"

Before Darth Wilkes finished his sentence, the weighing scale tipped right to the other side.

The replica Ice Artifice was actually heavier than the original Ice Artifice!

Darth Wilkes immediately had a frozen expression on his face. The faces of those from Cloverleigh City were extremely ugly as well.

What did the tipping of scales mean when both Ice Artifices were placed on the scale? It meant that Darth Wilkes had essentially given up a win for this challenge! The best possible outcome for him now was for Kael to fail and to end up in a draw!

"How… how the **** did this happen? I clearly had felt the spiritual density of the Ice Artifice perfectly. There shouldn't be any mistakes in the measurement. How…? How can I even think of drawing with this faggot upstart who doesn't know the immensity of the heavens and earth…" Darth Wilkes was murmuring to himself. His true thoughts finally leaked out from his mouth, now that his mental strength had been totally sapped away.

Kael smiled slightly. In fact, he knew that there was nothing wrong with Darth Wilkes' measurement. However, nobody knew that Kael had actually done something behind everyone's backs.

The Ice Artifice was soul-bound to Kael through a special blood ritual where Kael imprinted his own blood essence upon the object. Now that the Ice Artifice had a special bond with Kael, he was able to rely on a few tricks to change the spiritual density of the Ice Artifice.

Kael had increased the flow of spiritual energy in the Ice Artifice, making it spiritually denser than normal. That was why the scales tipped right to the other side.

Yet, no one was able to trace it back to Kael. Everyone thought that it was Darth Wilkes who miscalculated!