With such a shocking mismatch in levels, the match naturally became the talk of the academy.
Xu Sanshi was one of the Twin Stars of the Outer Courtyard, after all, so he was bound to attract plenty of attention.
"Have you heard? Senior Tang Ya and Senior Xu Sanshi are going to fight. They even made a bet, and it's escalated to pills."
"Is that true? Are you sure it's Tang Ya, not Bei Bei? Their levels are worlds apart."
"How could I get that wrong? They've already put up a sign at the Duel Arena. Since it's a bet, they needed time to prepare, so they're still promoting it."
Bei Bei happened to be passing by. When he heard that, he stopped in his tracks.
"Ah, excuse me, Junior. Is what you said true?"
The person he'd questioned froze, then sighed helplessly and turned to answer. But halfway through, he saw Bei Bei and his expression changed dramatically.
"Of course! Why would I make that up? Hello, Senior Bei Bei."
"Heh, no need to hold back. Keep going. What happened with Tang Ya?"
"W-well, there's a rumor that Senior Tang Ya went to the Freshman Dormitory to find a junior. They even went into a room together, and when she came out, she'd taken a bath..."
Bei Bei didn't believe Tang Ya would do something like that, but after hearing it, he still felt uneasy. His expression shifted several times.
"All right. Sorry for the trouble, Junior."
Bei Bei wouldn't take his anger out on anyone else. He waved the nervous student away, then decided to see for himself what was going on and why it had come to a fight at the Duel Arena.
And what was that rumor, anyway? It might have been exaggerated, but it couldn't have come from nowhere. There was a good chance she really had spent time with some guy. But aside from him, Tang Ya didn't have any male friends.
Puzzled, Bei Bei headed toward the Duel Arena.
Meanwhile.
At the women's dormitory.
"Senior Nannan! Senior Nannan! Senior Tang Ya is going to fight that suck-up Xu Sanshi, and they've even put something up as a stake!"
Someone rushed in and quickly told Jiang Nannan what she'd heard outside.
"What?"
When Jiang Nannan heard Xu Sanshi was bullying her best friend, her expression changed dramatically.
"Yeah! The person teaming up with Senior Tang Ya is a new junior, not Bei Bei. They were holding hands and seemed really close."
Hearing this, Jiang Nannan calmed down a little and asked, "Did you find out his name?"
"No."
"Then why are you telling me? We need to get to the Duel Arena! If we're late, Yaya will get bullied!"
Jiang Nannan rolled her eyes helplessly, sprang off the bed, and ran out the door.
"Hey, Senior Nannan, wait for me!"
The two people in the lounge had no idea what was going on outside.
Chu Mo massaged Xiao Lu to soothe him. Since he could easily get dirty when he fought, he naturally needed a little comforting.
"Come on, Xiao Lu. When we get up there, go straight for a mental attack. His defenses are only strong on the outside. His mental defense is zero."
Tang Ya leaned closer too. With Chu Mo's reassurance, she wasn't nervous. She was just curious.
"Xiao Mo said earlier that Xiao Lu can launch mental attacks. How does that work? It doesn't look like he can do much damage."
Tang Ya raised a hand to touch Xiao Lu, but he dodged. Her mouth twitched, and she looked a little awkward.
"Mm, Xiao Lu can take on the form of whatever Soul Beast's Spirit Ring he absorbs. He can attack and provide support, too. And he doesn't like being touched by other people."
Chu Mo withdrew his hand and put an arm around Xiao Lu, gently explaining it to Tang Ya.
"Uh... all right. What should I do once we're up there?"
Tang Ya raised her hand, then lowered it without touching him. Since Xiao Lu didn't like it, she wouldn't force him. Instead, she asked what she should do next.
"I'll have Xiao Lu do this, and then you do that..."
After another half hour of rest, the bell announcing the start of the match finally rang. The referee, who was overseeing the event, used his Soul Power to transmit his voice.
"The match begins. Both sides, enter the arena."
Whether it was because Xu Sanshi was one of the Twin Stars or because of all the gossip, the arena was packed with spectators.
"There are so many people."
Chu Mo exclaimed in surprise.
He spotted Wang Dong'er and Huo Yu'er in the crowd, bouncing up and down as they cheered him on.
"Not used to it?"
Tang Ya had spotted them too. She casually waved at them over her shoulder and asked with a smile.
"I just don't really like crowds."
"You'll get used to them."
Xu Sanshi approached with a contemptuous look and spoke casually to Chu Mo.
"Heh, you didn't run away. I underestimated you. I'll go easy on you later."
"Boring."
Chu Mo wasn't about to take pre-match trash talk to heart. He rolled his eyes and couldn't be bothered to respond.
Both sides took their places in the center, while the referee stood off to the side.
"Friendship first, competition second. The bet is the bet, but no one is to take a life. I'll step in at a critical moment, but if I do, the person I save will lose."
After stating the rules, the referee leaped backward and off the platform.
"Both sides, prepare. Summon your Martial Souls and reveal your Spirit Rings."
"Hah!"
Xu Sanshi snorted. Spirit Rings appeared around him—two yellow and one purple. He summoned his Mystic Tortoise Martial Soul, and a shield appeared in his hand.
Spirit Rings appeared around Chu Mo and Tang Ya as well. They both had two yellow and one purple.
"Begin!"
As the referee's voice fell, Chu Mo's eyes narrowed. The purple Spirit Ring around Xiao Lu lit up, and his round body slowly grew. The green domain around him turned purple.
An aura of shadow filled the arena. Black-purple mist concealed Chu Mo and Tang Ya.
"Shadow Escape? Is that why you dared to challenge me?"
Xu Sanshi's expression changed slightly. Two purple Spirit Rings on his body lit up in quick succession as he went on the defensive.
Seeing his opponent just stand there and defend, Chu Mo immediately lost interest. He'd thought Xu Sanshi would have more combat experience and give him a bit of fun.
"Tch, boring. Yaya, stick to the plan. I'll use a mental attack to control him, then you can hit him!"
"Okay!"
"Mental attack!"
Xiao Lu's round body slowly transformed into a butterfly. His wings fluttered, and a white light emerged from the shadow domain, striking Xu Sanshi, who hadn't moved an inch!
A wave of dizziness washed over Xu Sanshi's mind!
Following the plan they'd agreed on, Tang Ya set her Blue Silver Grass in motion. It emerged from the purple-black domain.
"Entanglement."
"Parasitism."
Whoosh!
Remembering her opponent's taunts, Tang Ya unleashed all her pent-up anger on him. As she used her movement technique, a golden Dragon Whisker Needle appeared in her hand.
"Ah!"
The pain jolted Xu Sanshi out of the mental attack's influence.
His face twisted into a knot, and he quickly sucked in a breath.
"Phew..."
"Damn, you're really using Dragon Whisker Needles?"
His purple Spirit Ring lit up again. Xu Sanshi's muscles bulged, but the Blue Silver Grass wrapped around him only tightened, cracks appearing in it.
Seeing her opponent try to fight back from within the domain, Chu Mo directed Xiao Lu once more.
"Mental attack!"
Buzz, buzz, buzz!!!!
"Damn, again?!"
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