Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
Advance chapters available for patrons on Patreon. And a chapter can be sponsored by buying me a ko-fi.
The warm-up match lasted about 20 minutes. Now, it was finally nearing its end.
The members of Groups B and D were already cheering. Because Group A would at most get two more points, and as the first and second place groups, they would definitely become official team members.
Group E, looking at their lone two points, fell into deep self-doubt.
This wasn’t right. It was one thing that Group B had Shang Yufei, but why was the gap between them and the other groups so big?
Could it be—!
A guess suddenly arose in their minds, and they all turned to look at the teacher.
Was it because the weaker members were deliberately placed in Group E, just because among A, B, C, D, E, E was the last?
Noticing the reproachful looks from the team members, the teacher coughed lightly.
“This is a random assignment… You guys, good luck next time.”
On the other side, Groups A and C watched the commotion on the field intently.
It concerned the qualification for the competition, so they had to pay attention.
However, the two teams had different thoughts.
Now, Group B still had two people left on the field, and they were the two with the most points. Although Bai Yue from Group A was also very strong, the rule of “not using pheromones” undoubtedly greatly limited him.
Relying solely on skill, he might not be able to defeat the two from Group B.
Therefore, while still watching the competition, some were happy while others were worried.
The members of Group C felt it wasn’t a big problem, while those from Group A were filled with anxiety.
Someone from Group A shouted, “It’s okay, junior! Just do your best, it’s all the seniors’ fault for not being good enough!”
Before the competition was even over, some people had already begun to comfort Bai Yue, telling him not to take it to heart.
Only Xu Chengdong was different.
After all, he had witnessed countless miracles that Bai Yue had brought him along the way. So this time, even though he was facing those two formidable opponents, he still believed that Bai Yue would not fail.
To avoid distracting Bai Yue, he dared not say it aloud, only daring to shout in his heart, “Go for it!!!”
The sunlight today was somewhat dazzling. It was broad daylight, with not a cloud in the sky, only a brilliant sun hanging high in the sky.
Bai Yue looked at the two opponents, neither of them making a move.
The three of them just stood there in place.
At this point, the team members also felt a little strange.
Logically speaking, there was one from Group A and two from Group B. Shouldn’t teammates discuss and snatch the Group A headband together to quickly finish the match?
But now, forget about discussing, these two from Group B don’t even seem like a team; they didn’t even exchange glances.
Someone couldn’t hold back any longer: “What are you standing there for? Hurry up and go!”
But just one sentence earned him two glares. One was icy cold, the other murderous.
The man immediately fell silent.
Probably because he’d gotten used to being in a group with Shang Yufei these past few days. He dared to yell at that man so loudly; he was guilty.
Bai Yue could understand why Shang Yufei didn’t want to fight.
But why was Mu Sihan hesitating?
The other person never cared about trivial matters. Based on his past understanding of Mu Sihan, he should have rushed forward already. What was he hesitating about?
Noticing the gaze, Mu Sihan paused. After a moment of silence, he turned and walked away.
“Wait, what’s he doing?”
“He went outside the line, is he trying to forfeit?”
“After all, Group B is the undisputed number one, it doesn’t matter if he grabs the bandana or not.”
Mu Sihan ignored him.
He lifted his foot, about to step out of the circle, when he suddenly felt a gust of wind behind him.
Mu Sihan seemed to sense something and subconsciously dodged to the side. He just happened to see a hand brush past his face, fingertips grazing the bandana on his forehead.
Then, what came into view was Bai Yue’s profile.
Light gray pupils turned to the right, his gaze falling on him. When their eyes met, Mu Sihan’s pupils contracted slightly, and he stopped.
Bai Yue smiled: “Almost.”
Seeing that the other was about to forfeit, he planned to grab the bandana before that happened.
After all, only by getting two more points could Group A safely reach base.
Mu Sihan’s dodging action was entirely subconscious.
He first looked outside the circle— the elimination line was only one step away from him.
After his gaze swept past that, it returned to Bai Yue.
Then, seemingly changing his mind, he took another step.
This time, however, he attacked Bai Yue.
Bai Yue didn’t dodge; instead, he met him head-on.
Frankly, it was nearly impossible to snatch the headscarf from both of them unscathed. Therefore, his initial target was Mu Sihan.
He knew that these two couldn’t possibly cooperate peacefully.
Compared to Shang Yufei, he was more familiar with Mu Sihan’s skills. In other words, the chances of him getting the headscarf were greater.
So, rather than facing both of them at once, it was better to eliminate one first!
Both were very fast, and after a collision, they passed each other.
A second later.
Bai Yue landed steadily, a deep red headscarf now in his hand. While Mu Sihan stood behind him, his forehead bare.
Group A had scored a point.
Xu Chengdong was stunned for a second, then burst into an amazing cheer, “One point! Group leader, I knew you could do it!”
The other Group A members also excitedly hugged each other.
Bai Yue glanced at the headscarf in his hand, then turned to look at Mu Sihan. The other person still showed no emotion, merely glancing at him before stepping out of the encirclement.
Was he going easy on him?
Bai Yue lowered his hand.
The headscarf, held in his hand, fluttered in the wind. He then turned to look at Shang Yufei.
The other person hadn’t taken advantage of the situation while he and Mu Sihan were fighting, but had observed from a distance.
Bai Yue tilted his head slightly, then rushed forward.
He was fast, closing the distance in just a few seconds. At the same time, he reached for the headscarf.
In the blink of an eye, his fingers touched it, his fingertips pressed against his forehead—!
The other person didn’t move.
Bai Yue stopped.
Sure enough, Shang Yufei had the same idea.
The crimson headscarf was so close; with just a movement, he could easily take it.
But Bai Yue didn’t do that.
After a half-second pause, he moved his hand away. On the way, his wrist was grabbed.
Shang Yufei frowned: “Not taking it?”
If the “letting the opponent win” tactic had been relatively subtle until now, everyone suddenly understood after this statement.
No wonder. They had expected a epic battle between the three, but the outcome was so easy.
A member of Group C couldn’t help but ask, “Teacher, is this okay?!”
The teacher in charge replied, “Well…”
The rules didn’t explicitly state that it was forbidden.
After all, it concerned official member status, and no one would willingly give up this opportunity. But he truly hadn’t expected this situation.
Bai Yue’s wrist was gripped tightly.
He looked at Shang Yufei. After a moment, he said, “If you’re worried about official member status, there’s no need to worry. Official members only have priority in playing— when the strength is similar.”
In other words, if the competition involved pheromone requirements, even a reserve member had a chance to play to increase the chances of winning.
After speaking, he turned to the teacher outside the arena and said, “Right?”
The teacher hadn’t expected him to see such a loophole and coughed lightly a few times. Indeed, to boost morale, they had exaggerated this right, but the truth was as Bai Yue said.
On the field, one needed to assess the situation carefully, and it was impossible to bench a strong player just because of a nominal title. They were still waiting for this S+ alpha to bring them the trophy.
However, aside from Bai Yue, the strength of Group A and the other teams was indeed not that different. If they didn’t get a top-three finish in this warm-up match, everyone except Bai Yue would most likely still be benched.
Bai Yue understood this, of course.
So, for the sake of the other members of Group A, he must do his best.
But similarly, if he took the headband for nothing, it would be unfair to Group C.
“I told you, we’re not enemies, but comrades.” Bai Yue smiled. “Even though we’re in different groups now, we must work together in the official competition.”
Although he said this to Shang Yufei, it was heard by both Group A and Group C.
They exchanged glances.
“Winning or losing doesn’t matter.” Bai Yue withdrew his wrist.
“Show your true skills, senior.”
Then what happened next almost stunned everyone.
The rules of the warm-up match were clear and straightforward— protect your own headband while stealing others’.
Therefore, the number of headbands you could steal wasn’t entirely equivalent to your skill level.
Often, some people were disqualified before they even had a chance to use their skills.
Plus, with fifty people in one arena, the scene was chaotic, making it impossible to tell who was more skilled.
But now, only two people remained in the empty sand, and their every move was clearly visible.
Sand splashed up, creating a cloud of smoke. The punches and kicks were fierce; the crowd could barely keep up.
They had underestimated Bai Yue’s strength. They hadn’t expected this freshman to be able to fight Shang Yufei to a standstill.
Unfortunately, Bai Yue had a fatal weakness— his strength was too weak.
Against ordinary enemies, he might be able to mask this weakness with speed and fighting skills.
But against enemies of similar or far superior strength, this weakness became fatal.
Therefore, even though he could initially keep up with Shang Yufei’s speed, he was gradually pushed back. Until he was forced back to the elimination line,
Bai Yue quickly glanced back. The elimination line was only a step away from him.
This brief moment of distraction allowed Shang Yufei to seize the opportunity and reach for the headscarf on Bai Yue’s forehead.
Bai Yue reacted in time, grabbing the other’s arm.
In the struggle of strength, he was ultimately no match for Shang Yufei and was pushed to the ground with a thud.
Sand billowed up.
The ground was a sandpit, which cushioned the fall, so he didn’t feel any pain.
But Bai Yue now had no chance to retaliate.
Shang Yufei was on top of him, his knees firmly locked around his thighs.
Bai Yue, on the other hand, held onto Shang Yufei’s arms tightly.
They could even feel each other’s breaths.
The crowd stood outside, watching this stalemate with tense expressions.
Now that Bai Yue’s movements were under control, he would eventually run out of strength. Group A was in a very dangerous situation.
The members clasped their hands in prayer, hoping for a miracle.
However, despite being at a disadvantage, Bai Yue’s expression showed no sign of distress.
Light gray eyes stared directly at Shang Yufei.
“Thank you.”
Shang Yufei was startled, and before he could react, he felt his arms being suddenly pulled down. Then, Bai Yue straightened up.
When he saw that fair and handsome face approaching, Shang Yufei’s breath hitched. The next second, he felt a sharp pain on his forehead.
The sound was so loud that even those watching couldn’t help but rub their foreheads.
Then, Shang Yufei felt a soft touch on his forehead. After that the headscarf was suddenly ripped off, the silky fabric brushing against his cheek, bringing a slightly cool sensation.
Bai Yue spat out the ripped headscarf and lay back down. He smiled at Shang Yufei: “I got it, senior.”
Shang Yufei’s heart skipped a beat.
Outside the arena, when they saw Bai Yue unexpectedly snatch the headscarf, Group A was first stunned, then burst into cheers. They made it into the top three!
The sound also reached Bai Yue’s ears.
He glanced at them, wanting to get up. But Shang Yufei remained on top of him.
Bai Yue raised his hand and patted the other’s forearm.
Shang Yufei seemed to snap out of his daze and got up. He also helped Bai Yue up.
Bai Yue looked at the cheering crowd outside the arena and took off the headscarf from his forehead.
“Thank you for taking this competition seriously.”
Shang Yufei put his hands in his pockets, and when he heard Bai Yue’s words, he clicked his tongue: “What else can I do after you said that?”
Bai Yue raised his hand and reached out to Shang Yufei, as if to touch his forehead. But he stopped halfway.
“You’re red here, are you okay?”
After all, the other party might not have been prepared at all for this attack.
Hearing this, Shang Yufei reached out and touched his forehead. There was still a slight pain. But it wasn’t anything serious.
…Besides, it was Bai Yue who brought it.
He turned his head away: “Hmph, it’s nothing.”
At this moment, the members of Group A, who had learned of the victory, rushed over and surrounded Bai Yue. They loudly proclaimed their excitement.
Xu Chengdong: “Group leader, I knew you could do it!”
“Really, I thought we were going to lose for sure.”
Despite facing first-year students, the upperclassmen on their team didn’t hold back their praise.
Group C’s near-miss was truly disappointing. However, they were willing to accept defeat, and besides, they had taken Bai Yue’s words to heart.
In the inter-school federation’s “battlefield” the day after tomorrow, they must work together to win the championship!
Not far away, Mu Sihan still stood alone in a corner. He seemed surrounded by frost, and no one could approach him.
Watching Bai Yue and Shang Yufei talking, his eyes grew increasingly deep.
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