Meeting Before the Exchange Competition

Training building, meeting room.

There were less than two days left until the Exchange Competition. The school team's guidance teacher, Wang Yongfeng, had called everyone over.

The purpose was to discuss their pre-match strategy.

Ye Li sat beside the main seat, his eyes half-closed.

Not far away, Liu Yangde, Shen Lian, and several others wore exceptionally ugly expressions, as though their faces were covered by a layer of iron-gray gloom.

Their gazes darted toward the young man from time to time, covert and cautious, occasionally meeting one another's.

Yet every time their eyes met, a deep fear seemed to seep through—and the object of that fear was precisely that calm, handsome young man.

Clearly, the experiences of the past week had given them a preliminary understanding of Ye Li's strength.

Other than Jiang Qingzhu, no one on the entire school team was his match...

In her seat, Shen Lian gritted her silver teeth and clenched her hands into fists.

She could not help looking at Jiang Qingzhu, who was likewise seated beside the main seat, and a trace of irritation rose in her heart.

Shen Lian had heard two days ago that Jiang Qingzhu had sought Ye Li out for a talk.

Originally, she had hoped Jiang Qingzhu would attack Ye Li over her complaint that day, achieving her goal of driving the tiger to devour the wolf.

Who would have thought that several days had passed, yet Ye Li was still full of life and vigor, without the slightest sign of having suffered a setback.

This showed that Jiang Qingzhu had not believed the rumors she had spread at all.

Damn Ye Li—was there really no one who could teach him a lesson? Shen Lian was incomparably agitated inside.

But she no longer had even a shred of courage to trouble Ye Li, so she could only let the matter drop for now.

At that moment, Wang Yongfeng rose from the main seat.

"Our opponent in this Exchange Competition is Qingshan First High School in Qingshan City."

He first glanced at Ye Li and Jiang Qingzhu on either side of the main seat, then said with a smile,

"Many of you are no strangers to the captain of their school team. Her name is Tang Yao. Not only is she the Young Sect Master of the Qingshan Sword Pavilion, she is also a well-known young martial artist in Qingshan City.

"Her Martial Arts Level is Second-Tier Level Six, two levels higher than Jiang Qingzhu's. Her Martial Arts Talent is B-Grade [True Self Sword Heart]. As the name suggests, she excels at swordsmanship.

"I hear she is confident and proud by nature, the unquestioned pillar of Qingshan First High School.

"She can be considered the only truly troublesome opponent on this trip."

"According to the lineup they provided, this Tang Yao will also be appearing as their final trump card." Wang Yongfeng's smile faded, and his words carried several degrees more warning.

Yet after hearing his explanation, Ye Li's eyes lit up.

It could not be helped. The thought of trampling a confident, proud Sword Dao girl beneath his feet truly piqued his interest.

Other than him, everyone else looked grave.

Taking in everyone's reactions, Wang Yongfeng nodded slightly.

A Second-Tier Level Six martial artist was already a Martial Science Student with a rather high level among the Martial Arts High Schools of Ying Province.

Many substitute members of Martial Arts University school teams were only at this level as well.

However, Wang Yongfeng was not overly worried.

Because in his view, Ye Li and Jiang Qingzhu together would definitely be able to trade out the Young Sect Master of the Sword Pavilion.

Among Qingshan First High School's remaining six members, four were First-Tier Level Seven, two were First-Tier Level Eight, and one was at the First-Tier Peak.

On their side, even counting Shen Lian, who had been demoted to a substitute, their overall strength was still considerably greater.

If nothing unexpected happened, this was basically a guaranteed victory.

Luckily, they had gained Ye Li. What had originally been an uphill battle had instantly become a favorable match...

"The winning side in this event will receive one million Hanxia Coin and one Qi and Blood Pill for each official member."

Bracing himself against the table, Wang Yongfeng continued,

"Substitutes will receive two hundred thousand Hanxia Coin, but no Qi and Blood Pill."

"What did you say?!"

Upon hearing that, Shen Lian could no longer remain seated. She shot to her feet and glared furiously at Wang Yongfeng.

"Substitutes only get two hundred thousand Hanxia Coin? Why? Are you sending us off like beggars?!"

The reason she broke down was very simple.

After all, Ye Li had just forcefully snatched away her status as an official team member.

Originally, Shen Lian had thought that she would be graduating soon anyway, so losing that status did not seem like much of a loss. That was why she had reluctantly accepted it in the end.

But now, she had suddenly been told that she had not only lost a full eight hundred thousand Hanxia Coin, but also a Qi and Blood Pill—something priceless on the market and remarkably effective for First-Tier Martial Artists!

How could she possibly not break down over that?

Shen Lian's mood instantly plunged to rock bottom. Thinking of the series of heavy blows Ye Li had dealt her recently, a thick wave of grievance and fury surged through her heart!

She had spent two and a half years on the school team, always diligent and working hard in competitions.

Even so, the prize money from every competition she had participated in over those two and a half years combined did not amount to this much!

And Ye Li—this childhood sweetheart she had always regarded as a tool—not only had taken away her place on the school team and brutally beaten her boyfriend, but had also transformed himself into a prized treasure in the school's eyes!

"...Student Shen Lian, aren't you getting a little anxious?"

Faced with Shen Lian's anger, Wang Yongfeng lightly pushed up his glasses and patiently explained,

"Your teacher hasn't finished speaking yet."

"...Please continue." Shen Lian calmed down slightly and sat back down.

Wang Yongfeng cleared his throat and stated,

"Besides the rewards mentioned above, the student with the most outstanding performance in this Exchange Competition will also receive a treasure jointly provided by the two cities!"

After saying that, he looked at Shen Lian and smiled. "Additionally, this reward has nothing to do with substitutes either."

At that moment, Shen Lian's psychological defenses completely collapsed.

"Ye Li!"

She directly shoved aside her chair and glared furiously at the young man not far away, roaring with righteous indignation,

"If you have even the slightest conscience left, give me back those eight hundred thousand Hanxia Coin and the Qi and Blood Pill!"

No matter how one listened to it, her tone carried an aggressive, overbearing edge.

Her overbearing posture left Liu Yangde and his little lackeys beside him utterly dumbfounded.

This Shen Lian... had she always been this brave?

Did she not know that Ye Li could punch her to death now?!

"..."

Ye Li opened his eyes and calmly looked at her, his gaze neither sorrowful nor joyful.

Only a few days had passed, and she had already forgotten the lesson from last time.

But that was his fault as well. He had been too gentle, allowing her to recover enough to speak so soon.

She even still had the chance to receive two hundred thousand Hanxia Coin.

"Are you mute? I'm talking to you! You ungrateful bastard—I treated you so well before!"

Shen Lian seemed to have recovered the feeling she once had. The more she spoke, the bolder she became. "I'm telling you, Ye Li, the school only values your talent right now!"

"If you didn't have this strength, do you think the school would let someone with such a foul reputation join the school team?!"

As she spoke, mist welled in her eyes. She glared straight at Ye Li, looking exceptionally wronged.

"..."

Jiang Qingzhu raised her eyes toward Shen Lian. She did not care about her own reputation, but that did not mean she did not care about Ye Li's.

A faint ice-blue light flickered in those clear eyes, and the temperature around her began to plummet layer by layer.

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Hearing this, Wang Yongfeng frowned. "Shen Lian, don't say things that are groundless!"

He could not bear to hear anyone driving a wedge between Ye Li and the school.

The potential the young man had displayed was so terrifying that the school's higher-ups were racking their brains for ways to make him feel a greater sense of belonging toward Linhai First High School.

Then this damned Shen Lian had jumped out to wildly stir up trouble.

A blaze of anger shot up within Wang Yongfeng.

If not for the fact that Shen Lian was still a substitute on the school team, he would have wanted to throw her out directly!

"What? Am I wrong?"

Shen Lian glared at Ye Li, having long since thrown her fear of him beyond the nine heavens.

She sneered. "The entire school knows that Ye Li is a scoundrel who loves fighting, bullies his classmates, and causes trouble."

"At least I didn't waste my efforts publicizing his heroic deeds in the school team."

"Ye Li, in Linhai First High School now, you're a rat everyone wants to beat!"

Just then, Shen Lian suddenly saw a trace of viciousness flash through Ye Li's black eyes... As though he had found the rat that had been wreaking havoc in the rice jar all day, there was no pity in his eyes whatsoever—only pure, boundless killing intent!

The next second, the young man chuckled softly.

At the same time, his entire aura abruptly changed, and a familiar pressure instantly descended upon Shen Lian's heart.

The air in the meeting room suddenly became oppressive.

Shen Lian immediately realized that she had gotten carried away.

Her entire body felt as though it had fallen into an icy abyss, a thin layer of cold sweat seeping from her smooth, delicate back.

As the owner of those black eyes slowly rose to his feet,

Shen Lian's heart, which had originally been fairly steady, began pounding wildly!