Chapter 41 : Chapter 41
Chapter 41
"I feel like the fight wasn't conclusive."
In the Class S classroom, Zhou Que, who had just finished watching the duel, commented flatly, "If it were me, I wouldn't have given up so easily."
"She already did very well," You Xingluo disagreed, shaking his head. "It was quite graceful and very much in line with the etiquette of a prominent family. Once the details of the match are made public, her reputation will likely improve a lot."
Zhou Que was confused. "What does this have to do with reputation?"
You Xingluo was exasperated by the question, while Shao Huayu sighed heavily and cut in coldly, "Zhou Que, shut up."
Zhou Que was bewildered. "Huh, did I do something wrong?"
"It seems you're the type who won't admit defeat until the very end, Zhou Que." Song Xiaoran suddenly smiled, then changed the subject. "But on this point, I agree with Lu Qingyin's decision."
"Perhaps it's because neither she nor I are good at close combat…"
Song Xiaoran said with mixed feelings, "If our absolute domain is breached, for us, that determines victory or defeat. Even if it's a fluke, the victory should be conceded to the opponent."
"It's just one defeat, not a big deal."
With his final words, Song Xiaoran couldn't help but interject his own subjective opinion. He truly felt that winning or losing a match wasn't a big deal.
Their innate talents had always belonged to them. An ability would never be transferred just because of one defeat. If that was the case, then losing was fine. As long as their ability remained, they could always start over.
Just like he had experienced in the past.
"That's true…" Zhou Que rolled his eyes and pondered, "Then it seems I was taking the match too seriously."
Ji Qing felt a subtle shift in his mood.
Has Zhou Que not thought about the family behind him at all?
He felt that Zhou Que was on a completely different wavelength from You Xingluo and Shao Huayu. Ji Qing recalled the information he knew: he, You Xingluo, and the others were likely on two different development tracks within their respective families.
Perhaps it was because Zhou Que didn't have to inherit the family.
If that was the case, then Shao Huayu’s identity was rather intriguing…
"Alright, class—" Li Xuehua suddenly clapped on the blackboard and asked with a smile, "While you were all talking, may I ask for your opinions on the two contestants?"
Shao Huayu suddenly said, "Teacher, I don't know about Xie Chang’an, but Lu Qingyin won't be coming to Class S. Her violin requires a stable and quiet environment for her to practice."
You Xingluo nodded in agreement.
"It seems you all have figured out your teacher's intentions." Li Xuehua didn't show any embarrassment at being found out. She smiled and said, "But the teacher is only responsible for collecting information. The final decision depends on the school's arrangement."
"Then I suppose there's no need to watch tomorrow's match," Zhou Que said with a sudden straight face. "I've seen Feng Youyou's matches. She's very strong."
Ling You’er, who had yet to speak, nodded repeatedly.
She glanced at Zhou Que gratefully; he had spoken her exact thoughts. At the same time, she was also full of anticipation for Feng Youyou to come to Class S.
Shao Huayu chimed in, "Feng Youyou is indeed formidable. It makes me a little curious about her family background. Her elders must have given her a lot of guidance."
You Xingluo raised his hand. "Teacher, there's no need to discuss Feng Youyou."
It certainly seemed that way for now.
Ji Qing secretly glanced at Song Xiaoran, who had not yet expressed his opinion. Song Xiaoran said nothing, but his silence had already conveyed his view.
Feng Youyou's strength had successfully earned the recognition of everyone in Class S.
Even if Feng Youyou chose not to enter Class S, she was still a respectable opponent and a peer with a promising future. The same logic applied to Lu Qingyin.
"Alright, alright, the teacher understands," Li Xuehua said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
Li Xuehua paused for a moment before getting straight to the point, "Actually, the person the school wants to ask about most is Xie Chang’an. I believe everyone has the same thoughts about Lu Qingyin, so we won't mention that."
"Ah…" Zhou Que was stunned.
Li Xuehua quickly pointed out, "I've noticed that Classmate Zhou Que has mentioned Classmate Xie Chang’an several times. I assume you'd be willing to speak first."
"Have I mentioned him several times?" Zhou Que was even more dumbfounded.
He looked at his classmates in disbelief, only to see everyone in Class S nodding in deep agreement. Even Ling You’er was nodding her head rapidly.
Completely oblivious, Zhou Que said in shock, "Holy crap— no way?!"
You Xingluo: "It's clear you highly recognize his strength."
Song Xiaoran: "I can tell you really want to fight him again."
"You should be happy now, right?" Shao Huayu's tone was chilly. "After all, after beating Feng Youyou, you'll get to fight him again. You're determined to clear your name this time, right?"
"Brother Huayu—" Zhou Que complained aggrievedly, but Shao Huayu ignored him.
Shao Huayu suddenly looked at Ji Qing and said seriously, "Ji Qing, what do you think?"
Ji Qing paused.
How did the topic suddenly shift to him? On second thought, Ji Qing realized the reason was probably his statement in the school infirmary. Shao Huayu was likely unsure of his thoughts.
So, Ji Qing smiled and said, "I'm indifferent. It all comes down to strength, after all."
"If his strength meets the standard, then of course I'm fine with it." Shao Huayu nodded in agreement, then his tone turned cold as he added, "But I can't imagine the fate of someone without an ability entering a Danger Zone."
"Can the school take responsibility for this?"
Ji Qing understood.
It seemed Shao Huayu was skeptical of Xie Chang’an’s performance in the Danger Zones. This was also quite reasonable, as Xie Chang’an’s fighting style required close combat, and the attacks of Aberrants were bizarre and varied.
Some Aberrants had even evolved skin as hard as armor.
And the members of Class S were just students. No matter how powerful a student was, there was still a certain gap between them and the hunters who roamed the Danger Zones year-round.
Li Xuehua's expression turned serious. "The school will inform them of the risks before their promotion."
"Then there's no problem," Shao Huayu said, lowering his eyes.
As long as he didn't have to protect him, then there was no issue. Shao Huayu was truly unwilling to protect someone he disliked.
"Look on the bright side, Huayu," You Xingluo said, shaking his head in disagreement. "Maybe he'll surprise you? Our standing is based on what our families gave us. We haven't seen the world outside our families."
"One can only hope," Shao Huayu said coldly.
The classroom suddenly fell into a strange silence. Li Xuehua, breaking out in a cold sweat, said, "So, it's all up to the school's arrangement? I've got it."
"But I haven't said anything yet," Zhou Que said blankly, pointing to himself.
"I understand," Song Xiaoran said gently.
Ji Qing just shrugged indifferently. He felt that Li Xuehua had orchestrated this whole thing just to gauge the attitudes of the three people who had previously clashed with Xie Chang’an.
The wasteland was a place where strength was paramount. If one's strength met the requirements, they could naturally be promoted.
But the incident with Xie Chang’an at the beginning of the school year had caused too much of a stir, so the school had to take it into consideration. After all, Song Xiaoran, Shao Huayu, and Zhou Que might all object.
Compared to Xie Chang’an’s unknown combat power, the school would definitely support the opinions of Class S.
But since it was over now… it would truly all depend on strength. A playful curve appeared on Ji Qing's lips. Perhaps I should remind Xie Chang’an to perform better in the team competition.
But that would seem deliberate.
Ji Qing stood up with a calm expression and smiled at the others. "Then I'll be leaving first. The school competition isn't over yet, and worrying about it now won't help."
"It's time to worry about teammates for the team competition," Song Xiaoran sighed in agreement.
"Mmm…" Ling You’er instantly slumped. She hated interacting with people the most, yet her ability was a support type that required cooperation.
Hearing this, Zhou Que grinned. "Good luck, everyone."
Zhou Que’s words clearly indicated he didn't think choosing teammates for the team competition was a difficult task. Ji Qing thought with amusement, They probably don't know yet that Liu Mu has been snatched away.
He really looked forward to their reactions then.
Ji Qing pushed open the door with a calm expression, and in the instant the door was closing, he saw a slight curve appear at the corner of You Xingluo's lips.
Excellent, now I'm looking forward to it even more.
It was well known that Shao Huayu and You Xingluo's relationship was unusual, but unfortunately, they would probably only realize what had happened after Zhou Que's match was over.
***
The match between Zhou Que and Feng Youyou was the next morning.
Ji Qing had practically just slept and woken up to the time of the match. He rubbed his tired eyelids and pulled out the chair by his desk to sit down.
At this moment, Ji Qing was in his dorm room.
He hadn't received any messages from Xie Chang’an yesterday. Xie Chang’an was probably sulking in some corner. After all, the Tang Saber that had been with him for years had shattered, so his mood was likely not good.
Considering that he was the one who had made the request, Ji Qing planned to find a way to get the saber repaired for him. But mentioning it now would also seem deliberate. It would be better to wait until after Xie Chang’an's individual competition was over.
The terminal soon displayed the live feed of the match.
Zhou Que walked towards the ring, yawning. Even though he knew a tough battle awaited him the next day, he still hadn't been able to sleep last night.
He was simply too excited.
The spectator area was already packed with people, and even some teachers had come to watch. Feng Youyou stood on the stage, waving from afar to someone in the spectator area.
Ji Qing took a closer look and saw that it was the senior from the News Club.
Feng Youyou and she seem to be on good terms, Ji Qing thought. From the information about Feng Youyou he had gotten from the manga, the senior had likely helped her a lot.
The referee was the same one from yesterday.
After both contestants had arrived on the stage, he asked about their respective situations as per custom. Feng Youyou quickly retrieved her long spear from under the stage.
Ji Qing was momentarily stunned.
Zhou Que on the stage was equally stunned. Seeing this, Feng Youyou scratched her head in embarrassment. "Sorry about this, Classmate Zhou. My close combat isn't as good as yours, so I have to rely on a weapon."
"It's… it's fine," Zhou Que said in a strange tone.
But after a moment, he couldn't help but ask curiously, "Are you skilled with many weapons?"
"No," Feng Youyou shrugged with feigned regret. "I've only learned a bit of spearmanship, just to be able to deal with enemies who are good at close combat in the future."
"Oh," Zhou Que was no longer surprised.
He had also learned to use firearms like sniper rifles and submachine guns to deal with attacks from similar weapons in the future. All he could say was that Xie Chang’an was truly an exception.
The referee asked, "Are both contestants ready now?"
Feng Youyou: "Ready."
Zhou Que: "Me too…"
But halfway through his sentence, Zhou Que couldn't help but recall the painful experience of his duel with Xie Chang’an. He checked his special gloves with a heavy heart, then said calmly, "I'm ready too."
So the referee blew his whistle. "Both contestants are in position! The match is about to begin!"
The world suddenly fell silent, and the expressions of both contestants became solemn at the same time. When facing an opponent he admired, Zhou Que didn't mind giving them the utmost respect.
And Feng Youyou gripped the long spear in her hands tightly.
"Ready—Begin!"
The moment the words fell, the resonant clang of blade and spear sounded in the center of the ring. The instant her sneak attack failed, Feng Youyou immediately used the wind to flip to the other end of the ring.
The distance between the two instantly widened.
At this moment, their positions were reversed, and they faced each other just as they had at the start of the match. Without words, without pause, the second and third clashes came.
It seems the long spear is to prevent me from restraining her.
As Zhou Que moved along the edge of the ring, he analyzed the situation: This is indeed a good method. My duel with Xie Chang’an was lost because of this.
But… a smirk appeared on Zhou Que’s lips.
Flames suddenly ignited from his palm. The surrounding air distorted strangely due to the high temperature, and only Zhou Que's crimson eyes burned as hot as the flames.
"I've already thought of a countermeasure!"
Zhou Que said this arrogantly, then attacked his opponent once more. Since you don't plan on letting me get close, then you can talk to the high temperature of this ring!