NOVEL WEB Chapter 124 - The Competition 27
Booker couldn’t pull off an upset; Ye Zhengyan emerged victorious.
Tomorrow, Mai Dongzi will compete against Ye Zhengyan for the championship of the school-level individual competition.
The campus forum was buzzing with excitement, as students from all grades passionately debated whether Mai Dongzi would become the new champion or if Ye Zhengyan would defend his title.
Interestingly, Mai Dongzi noticed that first and third-year students supported her, while second and fourth-year students favored Ye Zhengyan.
“Captain, you can definitely beat Ye Zhengyan, right?” Zhuang Huaiya asked.
“What do you think?” Mai Dongzi shot a sidelong glance at her overconfident cousin.
“Of course, you’re the best, Captain!” Zhuang Huaiya replied, seemingly gaining confidence from her response.
“Captain, do you know Ye Zhengyan well?” Tony asked.
“Not really, I’ve only seen his competition videos from the campus championships,” Mai Dongzi replied.
Today, Ye Zhengyan and Booker had fought for over an hour, and it looked exciting. However, Mai Dongzi could tell both were holding back, likely not wanting her to see Ye Zhengyan’s true strength.
“Ye Zhengyan has been the individual champion of the school-level competition for the past three years,” Tony said.
Mai Dongzi nodded, indicating she was aware; that information was publicly available on the campus forum. Tony clearly had more to say.
“During his freshman year, he defeated a senior from the fourth year, which was quite an upset. Have you seen that battle video?” Tony continued.
Mai Dongzi nodded again. “So you’re saying he has the ability to fight above his level.”
“He also has the trait of getting stronger against stronger opponents, so Captain, you mustn’t give him any time. You need to win as quickly as possible,” Tony concluded.
Mai Dongzi hadn’t known this aspect, and she realized this information would be very useful, meaning she needed to adjust her strategy.
She gave Tony an approving look and then told Zhuang Huaiya, “You should learn more from Tony; he has the best qualities of a commander.”
For a teenager still in the throes of adolescence, that was certainly hard advice to swallow.
But as a cousin who was overwhelmed by his cousin’s immense strength, Zhuang Huaiya felt he had to listen to her. He quickly nodded like a little sycophant, indicating he understood.
This was also why, even if people in the Phantom Team didn’t know their relationship, they wouldn’t see them as a couple; they just didn’t match at all.
In fact, as Mai Dongzi displayed her seemingly boundless abilities, the other members of the Phantom Team had attitudes similar to Zhuang Huaiya’s, just without his overtly sycophantic demeanor.
For the finals of the school-level individual competition, Mai Dongzi was prepared for the instructors from all grades to attend, but she didn’t expect them to bring so many students that the audience area was packed.
Accompanied by Instructor Lan, Mai Dongzi entered the contestants’ lounge, where Ye Zhengyan had already arrived, accompanied by his own instructor.
Seeing Mai Dongzi, Ye Zhengyan’s face lit up with excitement as he said, “I’ve been looking forward to battling you.”
“So have I,” Mai Dongzi smiled back.
It was remarkable that while Instructor Lan looked at Mai Dongzi with concern, Ye Zhengyan’s instructor also cast a similarly worried glance at him.
As the match time approached, Ye Zhengyan made a gentlemanly gesture to let Mai Dongzi go first, and she didn’t refuse, stepping out of the contestants’ lounge ahead of him.
Just as Ye Zhengyan was about to follow her out, his instructor pulled him back, whispering, “Did you see? Classmate Xi’s demeanor is very calm. You need to be careful.”
It seemed this instructor was genuinely concerned; otherwise, he wouldn’t have spoken like that in front of Mai Dongzi and Instructor Lan.
Ye Zhengyan respected this instructor and nodded to indicate he understood.
When the two stepped onto the stage, the audience erupted in cheers, rallying behind their favored contestants. Excitement lit up everyone’s faces as they anticipated a thrilling match.
However, once the two engaged, the atmosphere quickly grew quiet. Mai Dongzi didn’t use her expected psychic skills to attack Ye Zhengyan but instead employed palm techniques against his fist techniques.
Ye Zhengyan’s palm techniques were fierce and rapid, and the speed of their exchange was so fast that most people couldn’t follow it. They only saw Ye Zhengyan continuously attacking while Mai Dongzi kept retreating.
Initially, everyone thought their combat power was evenly matched, but it quickly became apparent that Mai Dongzi was being pressured by Ye Zhengyan’s attacks, seeming unable to counter, and on the verge of defeat.
Students from the fourth year cheered excitedly, while first-year students were silent, and the other grades whispered among themselves.
Gradually, however, people began to notice something was off. While Ye Zhengyan’s attacks were indeed fierce, and he was pressing Mai Dongzi, it didn’t seem like the whole story.
But after exchanging over forty or fifty moves, it became clear that every attack Ye Zhengyan made landed on Mai Dongzi’s palms, with none actually hitting her body, causing no damage.
Although it appeared that Mai Dongzi was being forced to retreat, her movements were deliberate and strategic, circling around the stage in an orderly manner. Ye Zhengyan could not corner her against the barrier.
This rapid fighting was extremely exhausting, and after realizing that his fast-paced attacks couldn’t defeat Mai Dongzi, Ye Zhengyan slowed his offensive speed.
At this point, the audience could see clearly that no matter the angle or force of his attacks, Mai Dongzi was able to block them all. Whenever his fist connected with her palm, she would deftly absorb and redirect the force, neutralizing his strikes.
Regardless of whether Ye Zhengyan’s attacks were swift or slow, Mai Dongzi consistently managed to deflect them at just the right moments, making his strikes feel as if they were hitting cotton—inflicting no damage and not even causing a rebound.
Zhuang Huaiya watched, enthralled, instinctively mimicking the movements with his hands. Mai Dongzi had taught him this technique of soft palm strikes, and after diligently practicing for half a month, he thought he had grasped its essence. Now, seeing his cousin demonstrate it, he realized he had only scratched the surface.
After a series of rapid attacks, Ye Zhengyan found that Mai Dongzi’s seemingly soft and defenseless palm techniques were actually using minimal force to dissolve his attacks.
While lacking in offensive power, this strategy allowed her to conserve her energy while exhausting his. If this continued, he would ultimately find himself at a disadvantage due to fatigue.
Ye Zhengyan could only slow down his attack speed, hoping to find a flaw in her defense. Meanwhile, he would occasionally feint an attack and strike from another angle.
However, Mai Dongzi consistently managed to intercept every one of his moves, never falling for his feints, nor revealing any weaknesses.