Xu Jintang turned his head and explained, "When I interacted with Yu Wanyao just now, I sensed that her strength and aura were stronger than those of an ordinary Third Tier ability user, so she should currently possess a very strong ability to fight beyond her level."
"Secondly, the Ice and Snow Frenzied Dance just now clearly showed that it wasn't her final form; she definitely still had some power left."
Song Tianqi realized what was going on.
His current mental strength level is only at the Third Tier, the same level as Yu Wanyao, so he naturally cannot accurately sense the other party's strength aura.
However, the class monitor and Sister Shiyi are at a higher level, so their perception will be more accurate.
He patted his chest with relief, "Luckily I was smart enough not to bet with you guys, otherwise I would have been ruined again."
Xu Jintang smiled and continued to look down.
The ten-minute halftime break ended quickly.
The second match began, and this time luck was not on Leikedasi's side. Wei Zixuan only managed to summon a Peak Second Tier monster.
Taking advantage of the situation, Xie Gaoyi unleashed his power and quickly engaged in a fierce battle with Yu Wanyao.
Xu Jintang picked up the thunder fruit beside him and silently put it in his mouth.
"Who do you think will win this match?" Jiang Shiyi suddenly asked.
Xu Jintang chewed the fruit in his mouth for a while, "It seems that Wanyao and the others are still better."
Before the words were even finished, two more members of the Aierteng Military Academy were knocked off the stage.
Having lost its numerical advantage, the Aierteng Military Academy suffered a complete defeat and once again showed signs of decline.
"In the second match, Leikedasi wins," the referee announced again.
Under the best-of-five format, Leikedasi has won two consecutive matches.
If Leikedasi wins just one more game, he will be considered the victor of today's challenge.
The staff at the Aierteng Military Academy immediately tensed up.
In another private lounge, Principal Erten and several other leaders looked grim.
"What happened? They haven't won a single game." Principal Erten looked seriously at Xie Gaoyi's team's instructor.
The teacher looked a bit uneasy. "The children are probably a little nervous. Xie Gaoyi didn't perform to his full potential, and neither did the others."
Principal Erten pursed his lips, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.
"Go and have a good talk with them. The next match is match point; if we lose again, Leikedasi will crush us."
The teacher understood his meaning and quickly nodded, "I'll go and remind them right away."
For them, losing is acceptable, but losing without any dignity is unacceptable.
Even if we only win one game, everyone can accept it.
Chapter 178
Yu Wanyao and her four teammates won two matches in a row, their mood and demeanor naturally relaxed a lot.
Qin Shuxue rested her ankles on the railing, raised her hands high, and began to stretch and relax her body slightly to the side.
In the two matches just now, she didn't put in much effort; most of the time she just used support skills on her teammates from time to time.
But the next match is the match point, and the opponent will definitely go all out.
She also needs to increase the intensity appropriately.
On the other side, Wei Zixuan suddenly took out a delicate, small Inscription Talisman, held it in his palm, clasped his hands together devoutly, closed his eyes, and began to pray. "Bless me to summon a Peak Third Tier demonic beast in the next battle. Bless me to summon..."
Mu Guang and Yan Zitao, standing nearby, remained silent, heads bowed, seemingly deep in thought.
In contrast, the atmosphere in the rest area of the Aierteng Military Academy on the other side was rather somber.
Xie Gaoyi and the other four sat in their respective corners, heads bowed and silent.
Until their coach walked in, "You haven't lost yet, why are you all looking so long-faced?"
Xie Gaoyi was the first to look up.
A hint of guilt crossed his face as he took the blame, saying, "Teacher, it's all my fault."
"Teacher, we also bear some responsibility; it's not the captain's fault," the other team members chimed in.
The instructor, his face stern, continued, "Are you convinced you're destined to lose the third match? While our Aierteng Military Academy may not be the top-ranked academy in the Federation, the five of you are the most outstanding talents handpicked and trained by the academy. If you can't even win a single match against students from Leikedasi, do you think you've lived up to the academy's expectations?"
These words finally brought Xie Gaoyi and the others to their senses.
Xie Gaoyi took a deep breath and straightened his back again. "The teacher is right, we haven't lost yet. We still have a chance in the next game."
"The principal and other leaders, along with all the students in the audience, are watching you." The coach gently patted Xie Gaoyi on the shoulder. "Get back into the game and win next time."
"Yes!" Xie Gaoyi responded loudly.
The ten-minute halftime break ended quickly.
The two teams returned to the stage.
"This is the third match, and also the match point of this challenge. Please get ready." The referee's gaze swept over the players of both teams. "The duel begins now!"
At the command, both teams rushed towards the other side.
This match was more intense than the previous two. Less than a minute into the game, the two sides had already exchanged more than ten rounds.
While hiding in the back, Wei Zixuan crouched down and began summoning demonic beasts, taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention to him.
The ancient stone gate slowly opened.
A colossal creature emerged from it, and the entire arena began to tremble and shake at its appearance.
"This is..." Xie Gaoyi's pupils contracted slightly, " Peak Third Tier demonic beast, a mammoth."
A colossal mammoth, as tall as two people, charged towards them, swinging its long trunk.
The snow-white ivory shimmered faintly in the light.
"Captain! Watch out!" a teammate behind him suddenly shouted.
Xie Gaoyi snapped out of his daze and quickly retreated.
The mammoth had already charged forward, its trunk raised high, emitting a buzzing sound.
Rings of gray light emerged one after another from the elephant's trunk.
Xie Gaoyi reacted, his gaze calmed, he gripped the gun with both hands, raised it high, aimed at the mammoth opposite him, and pulled the trigger more than a dozen times in succession.
The deafening explosions continued to ring out.
Xie Gaoyi was pushed to the edge of the ring and braked hard with his feet.
His face was tense as he stared intently at the mammoth ahead, his grip on the mechanical gun tightening slightly.
It seems we have no choice but to fight to the death in this battle.
The other team members felt a chill run down their spines when they saw the mammoth.
This match was already at match point, and they're still being put under so much pressure.
"Everyone, attack the mammoth with me!" Xie Gaoyi shouted immediately after temporarily forcing the mammoth back.
The team members scattered in other positions all turned their heads.
Without the slightest hesitation, the crowd quickly surrounded Xie Gaoyi.
At the same time, Yu Wanyao and the other four quickly gathered together.
The mammoth stood at the forefront, its trunk raised high, staring menacingly at the other side.
"Captain, Xie Gaoyi is hiding at the back of the group. He seems to have some kind of killer move. Should we take him out first?" Wei Zixuan was sitting on the mammoth, with a wide field of vision, and could see the situation on the other side.
Yu Wanyao frowned.
Her biggest worry was Xie Gaoyi was on the other side.
Because you can sense that the opponent hasn't used their full strength yet, and might be hiding some powerful move.
"Could we bypass his teammates' defenses and attack Xie Gaoyi directly?" Yu Wanyao asked, looking up.
Wei Zixuan stared at the opposite side, thinking for a while, "It seems unlikely. His teammates look like they're ready to die; it feels like they'll fight to the death to stop us."
Qin Shuxue and Mu Guang turned to look.
Mu Guang's face still wore that signature gentle smile. "Then let's take care of his teammates first."
As soon as he finished speaking, he raised his hand first and controlled Xiaoshan Cauldron to attack the opponent.
Meanwhile, in the private lounge above.
A knock suddenly sounded on the door of the private room where Xu Jintang and the others were.
Zhuang Silin turned her head and looked towards the door. "Come in."
The door was pushed open.
Principal Erten appeared at the door, smiling warmly as he greeted everyone, "Sorry to bother you all, I came early to congratulate you since the match has reached match point."
Zhuang Silin quickly stood up. "Principal, you're speaking too soon. The duel isn't over yet, and congratulations are premature."
Xu Jintang, with great tact, stood up and offered the seat behind him, saying, "Why don't you sit here and watch, Principal? The duel probably won't be over for a while."
Principal Erten finally noticed her, smiling as he looked over. "Thank you very much."
It was probably Xu Jintang's act of offering his seat that caught Principal Erten's attention.
The principal suddenly shifted the topic to Xu Jintang, "Speaking of which, in previous years, the Leikedasi Challenge Tournament never included a substitute team. Why is it that this year... it's suddenly changed?"
As he said this, his probing gaze fell on Xu Jintang.
Zhuang Silin was prepared and immediately explained, "Because I heard that Clifford's 100% winning percentage last year annoyed many military academies. We were worried about something unexpected happening this year, so we prepared an extra reserve team."
Principal Erten paused for a moment, then smiled helplessly, "Sigh, judging from Teacher Zhuang's tone, we're probably doomed to lose today."
Zhuang Silin didn't respond to that, but simply turned around and went back to her seat.
When Principal Erten entered, the others felt embarrassed to remain seated and stood up to move closer to Xu Jintang.
Principal Erten looked at Xu Jintang with great interest. "The five of you who made it to the substitute positions must be just as good as the five on the regular team, right?"
Xu Jintang scratched his head modestly and waved his hand, "So-so, my skills are just average."
The others exchanged glances and echoed the same sentiment, "So-so."
Principal Erten knew, of course, that these were just their modest words.
He smiled and didn't continue.
The atmosphere in the private room returned to quiet.