133: Off the field

Just then, a commotion broke out in the crowd below as two pale-faced individuals, with blood still staining the corners of their mouths, were escorted over by others.

When they had first suddenly vomited blood, it had caused a disturbance among the surrounding Imperial Capital Beast Taming University students, who assumed they had been targeted by a scheme from another school.

Especially when the second person vomited blood, the atmosphere grew tense to the extreme. It seemed as if a fight might break out at any moment with the two closest schools, Green Dragon and Vermilion Bird Beast Taming University, leaving the latter schools completely bewildered.

But now, it was clear that everyone already knew the reason why they were vomiting blood.

Xue Yu waved his hand, and the two were taken away for questioning.

He also said in a heavy voice, "After this Grand Competition, I will resign from my position as principal and provide you all with appropriate compensation."

"But Liu Yao, I can only say I'm sorry for now. The Grand Competition has already reached this stage, and since there is no concrete evidence to prove anything, there is no such thing as restarting!"

"You..." Liu Yao wanted to say more, but he was held back by the other two principals.

Only Lin Xi, from who knows where, had pulled out the lounge chair he used to sleep on back at the school. He lay on it, watching the farce before him with great interest.

Closest to him was Xu Yao, who was focusing intently on Su Ze.

"Girl, this kid is about to make it into the finals. Do you think he can win?" Lin Xi asked, pouring a mouthful of wine into his mouth.

"I believe in Brother Su Ze; he will definitely be fine," Xu Yao said, nodding.

Lin Xi smiled and nodded as well, then changed the subject. "By the way, it seems you've already contracted your second beast, right?"

"Yes, Brother Su Ze prepared it for me." She then summoned the small Mermaid to show Lin Xi.

"A Gold-rank Mermaid... This kid, he only has eyes for platinum-level or higher monsters for himself, yet the second beast he prepared for his woman is only Gold-rank!" Lin Xi said dissatisfiedly.

Xu Yao's face immediately turned red, and she whispered, "Teacher Lin Xi... I am not Brother Su Ze's woman..."

"No need to say more, I understand. Take these."

Lin Xi reached into his own shadow and pulled out several items, tossing them into Xu Yao's hands. They were a crystal-clear, tear-shaped gem and a massive monster beast crystal core.

The Mermaid became instantly excited upon seeing these two items, reaching her small hands out of the water sphere surrounding her toward Xu Yao.

Seeing this, Xu Yao hesitated. "This is..."

"These are the tears of a Merman Lord and her monster beast crystal core. I got them from a Deputy General Commander of the Dark Guards back when I was messing around in Fusang. I don't know if she's woken up yet after ten-plus years... Anyway, I'm giving these to you," Lin Xi explained.

"Teacher Lin Xi, isn't this too precious..." Spoil of war taken from a Deputy General Commander of the Fusang Dark Guards—the level was likely unimaginably high. Xu Yao felt the items in her hands were very heavy.

"If I give them to you, take them. They're useless to me. By the way, there are two growth paths for Mermaids: one leans toward the Water element, and the other toward the Mental element. The former has no future; let me tell you how to cultivate the latter..."

...At this time, up above, Su Ze had arrived in front of Xue Yuhe, but she still showed no reaction.

She just kept retreating in avoidance until she reached the edge of the branch.

Thus, Su Ze simply raised his hand and gave a gentle push, sending the despair-stricken Xue Yuhe falling down.

Perhaps she was thinking about how much impact her actions had caused her family; she didn't even struggle anymore, closing her eyes and letting her body fall.

Her beast was no exception. Having lost its master's command and being heavily injured, it no longer resisted and was directly snatched up by the Golden Feather Phoenix Bird's sharp talons and thrown down.

As she was about to hit the ground, a teacher who had been prepared beforehand came forward to catch her.

However, Xue Yuhe suddenly turned fierce, using an attack from her beast that had not yet undergone Weaponization to force the teacher back, allowing herself to continue falling.

"Let it be... it's all over..."

Just as she was about to hit the ground, there was another sound of wind beside her. Xue Yuhe opened her eyes, wanting to force the person back again.

But what she saw was her grandfather. In her momentary daze, Xue Yu had already caught her.

"Grandpa... you..."

Before she could finish her sentence, she was slapped by Xue Yu.

With tears in the corners of her eyes, Xue Yuhe covered her swollen cheek and looked at Xue Yu, hearing him say: "Your actions have brought shame upon the entire family. You think you can just die and be done with it? When we go back, go to the ancestral hall and kneel to admit your mistake!"

She lowered her head and didn't speak, then felt a large hand stroking the top of her head as he said, "Grandpa will go with you. I've pushed you too hard these past few years. How could the honor of a family as large as the Xue Family be placed solely on the shoulders of a little girl like you?"

"Besides, even nations cannot last forever, let alone a family. Forget it, forget it..."

"Did Grandpa's slap hurt just now?"

"Yes..."

"That slap wasn't for anything else but because you actually wanted to end your own life. This Old man is still counting on helping you raise your children."

"Yes..." Xue Yuhe blushed.

"Let me see your face. Oh, how is it already swollen? It's all Grandpa's fault for hitting so hard..."

As the two passed by White Tiger Beast Taming University, they encountered a wave of hostile gazes. Xue Yuhe steeled herself and walked through those gazes to stand before Luo Xingyu, while Xue Yu stood where he was and waited.

Wang Zi hurriedly blocked the way in front of Luo Xingyu. "You won by cheating, what else do you want? I'm telling you, Su Ze, whom you couldn't even beat while cheating, is my buddy..."

Before he could finish, he was pushed aside from behind by Luo Xingyu. Her body was wrapped in many bandages, but she still sat up and asked, "Is there something?"

"I've come to apologize to you... Whatever compensation you need, just say it, and I will do my best to satisfy it," Xue Yuhe said with her head lowered, which was as good as admitting she had used improper means.

Luo Xingyu said, "There's no need for an apology. Even if I had beaten you, I would have ended up just like you. I'm not a match for any of the remaining three, and I wouldn't have won the championship. Other rankings don't matter to me."

"Besides, you've also reminded me that such special combat methods exist, and I must guard against them in future battles."

At this time, Wang Zi squeezed in again and said, "Xingyu, we can't just let it go. She must apologize and compensate, otherwise your injuries were suffered for nothing!"

"I told you to call me Senior! Forget it, if it's about compensation, you can discuss it with Wang Zi; he's the expert in that area." Seeing that Wang Zi wanted to say more, Luo Xingyu quickly pushed him in front of Xue Yuhe.

Meanwhile, on the tree, Su Ze was recovering his already minimally depleted stamina while paying attention to the other battlefield.

The situation there seemed a bit different from what he had imagined.