Soon, Xiao Wu and Lin Hui both stepped onto the stage, taking their places at opposite ends of the ring.
Xiao Wu pouted. "Lin Hui, I won't go easy on you!"
Lin Hui smiled. "Good. I want to find out which of us is stronger!"
Though Lin Hui said that, the outcome of the match no longer mattered much to him.
As long as he placed in the top three, he would get the Green Wood Liquid. The only difference between first and second place was two Gold Soul Coins.
Money mattered, of course, but Lin Hui didn't care about those two Gold Soul Coins.
Besides, if Lin Hui took first place, he would only draw more attention from the school.
He wanted to grow quietly and develop under the radar.
People only remembered who came in first. Before long, they forgot who came in second.
After all, he had already captured the hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor. The Ultra Ball had blocked most of its aura, but it was always better to play it safe.
The Clear Sky Sect, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Spirit Hall...
All these powers had Titled Douluo among their ranks.
And they were all forces that Lin Hui couldn't afford to provoke at present.
So it was already obvious what Lin Hui should do next.
"Good! I now declare the championship match of the Notting Academy Grand Competition open!" Teacher Li Chun announced loudly.
Seeing his favored student, Lin Hui, make it to the final match was enough to satisfy him.
"Look, look! This will decide the champion of our academy!" the students below cried excitedly.
As soon as the match began, Xiao Wu hurried forward.
"Take this!"
She leaped into the air and swept out with a flying kick, her movements light and nimble.
Her movements were so wide that she ended up directly above Lin Hui. He didn't even need to look up to see the splendid scenery—white, too!
When Xiao Wu realized he'd seen what she'd been hiding, her face instantly flushed red.
"You little pervert! I'll teach you a lesson!"
That was what she said, but her leg had gone limp with embarrassment.
Lin Hui raised one hand to block her leg, only for Xiao Wu's legs to snap together and clamp around his neck.
At Notting Academy, Xiao Wu was practically the school belle. She was also exceptionally supple, and her movements were light as a feather.
Seeing Lin Hui's gaze, Xiao Wu blushed even harder. Her embarrassment left her whole body weak and limp.
This isn't right. I should be angry, so why do I feel this way...? Xiao Wu realized that her emotions were strange.
Even though he'd seen her, she didn't really hate it. It was more like she hated that the timing was wrong...
With Xiao Wu's legs already locked around his neck, Lin Hui knew how formidable her Soft Technique was. He immediately wrapped both arms tightly around her thighs.
Lin Hui blocked Xiao Wu's attack, and the two grappled with each other.
Xiao Wu twisted to the side and put her strength into her waist. Lin Hui could no longer keep his balance and fell to the ground.
Xiao Wu fell with him.
By then, Xiao Wu's skirt had completely blocked Lin Hui's view.
The scene on the ring was Xiao Wu pinning Lin Hui beneath her, her legs locked tightly around his neck. Her skirt had accidentally covered his face, while Lin Hui's hand had reached up to grab something.
Below the stage, Wang Sheng and the other boys wore envious expressions. Some even stared at the scene longingly.
Xiao Wu was both embarrassed and furious.
"You brat! Where are you putting your hand?"
Lin Hui realized what he'd grabbed and immediately pulled his hand back. He spoke at once.
"I forfeit!"
Wang Sheng focused his attention on the match again. "That was only one round? It's already over?"
The teachers watching from the sidelines were also astonished. They'd expected this match to be even more exciting than Lin Hui's earlier fight against Tang San, but it had ended so quickly.
As for the two students' physical contact onstage, Soft Technique was Xiao Wu's unique fighting style, so the teachers didn't read anything else into it.
Although the match had turned out quite differently from what Teacher Li Chun and the others had expected, Li Chun could only announce the result with a helpless sigh.
"Xiao Wu wins!"
"Congratulations to Xiao Wu! She is the champion of the Notting Academy Grand Competition!"
The sixty-year-old teacher hunched over and added regretfully, "What a pity. I was hoping to see Lin Hui's first Soul Skill again, but the match ended before he even used it..."
"But sometimes, catching your opponent off guard is a way to fight, too."
Almost all the academy's teachers thought Lin Hui had lost because he'd let his guard down.
Little did they know, everything had gone according to Lin Hui's plan.
Xiao Wu was still sitting astride Lin Hui's neck, and he was starting to feel like he couldn't breathe.
"Hey, you already won. Aren't you going to let go?"
Xiao Wu's face was bright red. She noticed where she was and immediately sprang to her feet.
"My name isn't 'hey.' It's Xiao Wu!"
"And if you try anything funny again, I won't let you off!"
What about this time?
Did that count as letting me off?
Lin Hui thought to himself.
Lin Hui stood up as well.
"Fine. With a little body like yours, don't think you got the better of me!"
"You—" Xiao Wu was so angry she could barely speak.
Ten minutes later, Teacher Li Chun spoke from the stage again.
"The champion and runner-up have been decided, but we still need to determine third place. Next, Wang Sheng and Tang San, please come out!"
A student below raised his hand.
"Reporting to the teacher, Tang San is still unconscious. I'm afraid he can't come."
Li Chun thought for a moment before replying.
"According to the competition rules, injured students can be given a thirty-minute grace period to appear. If Tang San is still unconscious after thirty minutes, Wang Sheng will be declared the winner."
Most people present knew there was little chance Tang San would wake up within thirty minutes. He was injured that badly, after all.
Still, they had to go through the motions.
Thirty minutes later, Tang San remained unconscious.
"I hereby declare Wang Sheng the third-place winner of this Academy Grand Competition!" Li Chun called out.
"Me?" Wang Sheng pointed at himself in disbelief. "I can't believe I got so lucky this time..."
Wang Sheng had thought he couldn't beat Lin Hui, Xiao Wu, or Tang San—not even Xiao Chenyu, most likely. Now that he'd gotten third place for free, he was overjoyed.
Wang Sheng soon went off to collect his prize, grinning crookedly.
Looking at the three people on the winners' podium, Yu Xiaogang hadn't expected Tang San not even to place third. As teachers and students alike scrutinized him, Yu Xiaogang could only stand there, mortified, wishing he could curl his toes into the ground...