"What's going on?" Liu Qingyan asked curiously, "Weren't you just about to grab it?"

"Yeah, that's how the claw machine works," Lu Zheng explained, "It's not about how accurate you are. The claw isn't tight every time. Depending on the vendor, it tightens maybe once every ten to thirty times."

"So you need to be accurate on that one time to grab the toy." Lin Wan chimed in, "Skill and luck both matter. You must guess how many times the machine has failed before."

Liu Qingyan was stunned, "Isn't that cheating?"

Lu Zheng shrugged, "That's just the rule. But some people have special techniques to grab toys even in this situation."

"What kind of techniques?" Shen Ying asked.

"I don't know," Lu Zheng shook his head, "I've never been into it, and to be honest, I don't really believe it."

"Can I try?" Shen Ying was eager to have a go.

"Sure! But let me top up first," Lu Zheng chuckled.

The group then went to the counter, where Lu Zheng topped up with five hundred yuan. They headed next to the claw machine that had initially caught Liu Qingyan's eye.

"Watch me get it out for you!" Shen Ying smiled, linking arms with Liu Qingyan, swiped the card confidently, and started to operate the joystick.

"Buzz—buzz—buzz—"

With her cultivation, Shen Ying didn't need to check the sides at all. She easily aimed the claw at the easiest toy, pressing the button.

"Clack—"

The claw descended, tightened when it touched the toy, grabbed it, and began lifting. But halfway up, it wobbled, dropping the toy.

Shen Ying, "..."

The girls around her burst into laughter. Lu Zheng shrugged, "Didn't I tell you?"

Shen Ying pouted, "Let's go again!"

She swiped the card again, moved the stick, and pressed the button. Just as the claw lifted the toy mid-air and it was about to slip, an unseen force held it up, preventing it from falling.

When the toy moved to the exit with the claw and it released, the force disappeared, and the toy dropped lightly out.

"Wow! That lady got a toy!"

"Got it, got it! She's so lucky!"

The nearby group of people who were either using or watching the claw machines were just as excited, as if they'd won themselves.

"It's yours!" Shen Ying gently leaned over, took the plush cartoon bunny from the exit, and handed it to Liu Qingyan.

"Hehe, thanks!" Liu Qingyan giggled her thanks.

Raising an eyebrow, Shen Ying noticed a five or six-year-old girl staring enviously at her, smiled gently, squatted down, and asked, "Do you want a toy too?"

The little girl nodded sadly, "My dad's been trying for a long time but hasn't got one yet!"

The father standing next to her was embarrassed, trying to salvage his dignity, "This claw machine's odds are ridiculous!"

The mother offered no support, "The problem is, you're not accurate often either!"

The crowd, "..."

Shen Ying smiled slightly, "Looks like I have some good luck; how about I help you get one?" 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

The little girl's eyes lit up, nodding rapidly and holding up her game card, "I'll swipe the card for you!"

The girl knew not to try the machine that had just released a toy, so decisively moved to a machine where the previous couple hadn't succeeded, "Let's try this one!"

"Alright!"

Shen Ying didn't mind at all, let the girl swipe the card, and easily snagged a rainbow pony.

The onlookers: (=°Д°=)

The little girl: ♪(^∇^*)♪

"Thank you, big sister!" The little girl cheered, took the rainbow pony, and gave Shen Ying a warm hug.

"Uh..." The girl's parents hesitated awkwardly.

"It's your card, I just helped catch it," Shen Ying smiled.

"Thank you! Thank you!" With that clarification, the parents couldn't refuse and hurriedly thanked her.

...

Helping the little girl score a toy from the trap of a tricky claw machine left Shen Ying delighted, eager to catch more toys.

But Lu Zheng held her back, "Catching toys is too flashy. Try the cut-the-rope machine, where the misalignment is less obvious, and timing is more crucial. It gives better odds without needing to use magic to cut the toys off cleanly."

"Oh?" Shen Ying's eyes sparkled with growing interest, "Where is it?"

Lin Wan pointed to the four cut-the-rope machines not far away, "Right there!"

Three of them had a row of five or six toys inside, needing horizontal scissors control. Aligning them gave a better chance of success.

The other machine had just one large toy that only required timing, but the timing was definitely rigged.

"Let's go!"

Shen Ying understood the rules, giggled, swiped a card, jiggled the joystick, pressed and released—snip!

A single cut severed the cord, dropping a toy down.

"Oh yeah!" Shen Ying mimicked the cheering girls she'd seen, then turned to wrap her arms around Lu Zheng, giving him a kiss, drawing the envy of the crowd.

"Do you want to try?" Shen Ying asked the other girls.

"Sure!" Liu Qingyan nodded excitedly, her interest piqued.

Then, the four girls each took turns. Without any magic, they swiped eighteen times and cut down twelve toys, leaving the three machines empty. At last, Lu Zheng stepped in and, with a single snip, cut the biggest Hello Kitty out of the large toy machine.

The attendant's face turned green, not knowing if he should restock.

Meanwhile, the crowd was shocked!

But they were not just amazed by how adept these four stunning girls were at cutting toys down; they were also surprised at how each beauty kissed the plain-looking guy next to them after successfully cutting down a toy!

What was going on?

How exciting!

No problem. Shen Ying took the lead. Si Lingxi and Liu Qingyan didn't care about such mortal opinions. Finally, Lin Wan also refused to be outdone, leaving Lu Zheng no choice but to stand firm.

However, whenever someone tried to take a photo, he'd subtly cast a spell to make them always "accidentally" slip.

So...

Within just a few minutes, seven or eight phones fell, their screens shattered, eliciting cries muffled by the crowd's cheers.