Chapter 6: Efficiency of Experience Gain x The Second Test
"Gon, Kurapika, over there…"
Luo Lin pointed to the edge of the crowd.
Over there, Leorio was leaning against a large tree with a confused look on his face, touching his injured cheek while staring at the sky.
"Leorio!"
Gon and Kurapika quickly ran over.
"Gon, Kurapika."
Leorio smiled when he saw his two friends approaching, but then winced as the movement pulled at the wound on his face.
"It hurts!"
Leorio rubbed his right cheek with a bewildered expression.
"Why am I injured? And I can't seem to remember what happened after we entered the wetlands."
"Uh…"
Seeing Leorio's confusion, Gon and Kurapika blinked at each other, silently deciding not to tell him what had happened earlier.
As for Luo Lin…
After pointing Gon and Kurapika in the right direction, he didn't follow them.
The main characters were bonding—there was no reason for him to get involved.
Finding a random corner, Luo Lin once again summoned his system panel.
[Level 100 God System]
[Name: Luo Lin]
[Level: 1 (14/1000)]
[Vitality: 1]
[Spirit: 1]
[World: Hunter x Hunter]
"Fourteen experience points…"
Luo Lin stared at the experience value behind his level, deep in thought.
He had been checking his system panel frequently throughout the journey.
During the first part of the test, he had gained eight experience points.
On the stairs, he had earned two more.
Finally, he had gained four points during the run through the Visca Wetlands.
"If this system really works by gaining experience through training, then the intensity of the training must affect the rate of experience gain!"
Luo Lin had a hypothesis in mind.
After all, if it really took ten kilometers of running to gain one point of experience, there was no way the stair climb had been twenty kilometers long.
So, the only explanation was that climbing stairs was more intense than regular running, which resulted in more experience.
The same applied to the Visca Wetlands.
Although the total distance covered wasn't even thirty kilometers, he had gained four experience points.
Since killing monsters didn't yield experience, the higher intensity of running through the forest compared to normal running was likely the reason for the increased gain.
"The more intense the training, the more experience I earn…
If that's the case, maybe gaining the thousand experience points needed to level up won't be so hard after all!"
Luo Lin's lips curled into a slight smile.
Finally, some good news from the system.
"Thank you for your hard work, candidates. This is the venue for the second exam—Biscayne Park!
Well, goodbye, and good luck to you all!"
Examiner Satotsu addressed the candidates before marching off into the forest in his strange gait.
But after entering the forest, Satotsu didn't actually leave.
Instead, he found a nice tree to climb and pulled out a monocular to watch the second test from afar.
"If the examiners for the second test are Menchi and Buhara, let's hope nothing goes wrong!"
Satotsu sighed to himself.
After Satotsu left, the previously closed gates of the second test venue slowly opened.
Inside the park, the first thing the candidates saw was row after row of neatly arranged stoves, which left many of them momentarily stunned.
But they soon recovered and entered the park.
"Welcome, candidates! I am Menchi, the examiner for the second test!"
At the far end of the park, in front of a building, a woman with a curvaceous figure and rather bold attire sat on a sofa.
Behind her was a huge, burly man with a kind face.
"I'm Buhara, the other examiner!"
As soon as Buhara finished speaking, a loud rumbling noise echoed through the park.
"Buhara, you're already hungry?"
Menchi glanced up at her companion with a teasing smile.
"Yeah, I'm starving!"
Buhara rubbed his belly, looking pitiful.
"In that case…"
Menchi turned to the candidates with a smile.
"The second test will be cooking!"
"Cooking?"
"Making food?"
Many candidates were stunned.
Although the presence of the stoves had given them some idea of what the test might involve, hearing it confirmed left them baffled.
After all, this was supposed to be the Hunter Exam—what did cooking have to do with anything?
"Why is the test about cooking?"
One candidate couldn't help but shout.
"Why cooking?"
Menchi tilted her head slightly, then smiled proudly.
"If you're asking why, it's because we're Gourmet Hunters, of course!"
However…
"Gourmet Hunters…"
"Hunting, huh?
I guess it fits!"
"Haha—"
A wave of laughter spread through the group of candidates.
"Haha, Miss Gourmet Hunter, so what dish do we have to make?"
Another candidate called out, though the mocking tone in his voice was hard to miss.
"Bunch of idiots—"
Luo Lin rubbed his forehead, watching as most of the candidates broke out in laughter.
He was speechless.
He had known this would happen, but he still didn't get it.
Even if they thought it was funny, how could they laugh at the examiner who held their fate in her hands?
Did these candidates have no emotional intelligence?
On stage, Menchi's face was already filled with displeasure, while Buhara stepped forward and loudly declared,
"The designated ingredient for the cooking test is pork.
Any dish made from pigs living in the Biscayne Forest is acceptable."
"As long as we say it's delicious, you pass.
The test will end when we're full.
Now, the second test begins!"
Buhara announced.
The moment his voice fell, all the candidates bolted toward the forest.
Though they had been laughing earlier, none of them were foolish enough to take this lightly.
Buhara had clearly stated that the test would end once they were full.
And while Buhara himself looked like a big eater, there were still nearly 150 candidates.
It seemed impossible that he could eat over 100 dishes.
"So, the goal of this test is to see who finishes cooking first!"
Many of the candidates had this thought in mind as they sprinted into the forest, suddenly full of motivation.