175: Beat Cao Yuyang

Duan Yao's words left both Gu Xiaoyue and Chu Li stunned.

"What do you mean by 'propose marriage'? Are you out of your mind?"

Looking at her as if she were insane, Chu Li instinctively took a step back, grabbed Gu Xiaoyue, and walked away.

Duan Yao blocked their path once again.

"Let's be blunt. I know your yellow dragon is a God-Rank Pet, just like my pet! Our pets are a perfect match, and our backgrounds are well-matched. If we were to marry, both the Duan Family and the Chu Family could reach new heights. Why not?"

Gu Xiaoyue had thought Duan Yao was a sufficiently carefree person; she hadn't expected her to take the prosperity of the Duan Family as her own personal responsibility.

Chu Li frowned, rolled his eyes at Duan Yao, and said with some helplessness.

"I'm not interested in how the Duan Family is doing. The Chu Family is already doing well enough; there's no need to reach any higher!"

Seeing that Duan Yao was still pestering them relentlessly, Chu Li spoke directly.

"Xiao Yue and I are getting engaged, so give up!"

Duan Yao looked as if she had been struck by lightning, momentarily stunned.

"You aren't even dating, right? How can you be getting engaged? Are you playing me for a fool?!"

She looked incredulous, her eyes seemingly filled with venom as she stared fixedly at Gu Xiaoyue.

Chu Li naturally stepped in front of Gu Xiaoyue, blocking Duan Yao's line of sight.

"The Gu Family Head has already proposed marriage to my grandfather. We're just too young right now, so it hasn't been finalized. If you don't believe me, you can go ask!"

After saying that, he pulled Gu Xiaoyue away, leaving Duan Yao standing there in a daze.

After walking for a while, Gu Xiaoyue made sure they were out of Duan Yao's sight. She gently pulled her hand away from Chu Li's.

Chu Li then spoke cautiously: "Xiao Yue, you aren't angry, right?"

Gu Xiaoyue sighed, "No. I've always used you as a shield before, so now the tables have turned."

Besides, the matter of Gu Yongze going to the Chu Family to propose was a fact. It was just that she never expected Duan Yao to be so direct and propose to Chu Li herself.

After submitting the list to the officials, Gu Xiaoyue and Chu Li took a walk around the Huaqing campus.

Chu Li seemed hesitant to speak, "About the day of the finals—"

"Hmm, it's fine."

Gu Xiaoyue didn't know why Chu Li hadn't been in the right state of mind at the time, but since he didn't say anything, she wouldn't ask.

"The Fire Phoenix is very worried about Qingqing's injuries."

"She's almost fully recovered after resting for these few days. Tell the Fire Phoenix there's no need to worry."

Hearing her answer, Chu Li let out a sigh of relief.

The next morning, the thirty participants of the individual competition arrived at the arena, waiting for the official instructors to distribute the schedule.

Because West River had been disqualified, the Chengbei Academy, which had originally been out of the top ten in the National Competition, happened to rank tenth.

In the round of thirty to fifteen, Gu Xiaoyue's opponent happened to be Cao Yuyang.

Cao Yuyang gave Gu Xiaoyue a resentful look and pursed his lips; it seemed he would have to forfeit directly.

The two stepped onto the arena, and before Cao Yuyang could admit defeat, Gu Xiaoyue proposed to the referee that she wanted to fight Cao Yuyang without pets, engaging in hand-to-hand combat as Beastmasters instead.

This perked Cao Yuyang up, as he did work out occasionally. As a sturdy, strong man, was he really afraid of not being able to beat a frail-looking young woman?

He agreed without hesitation.

"Gu Xiaoyue, what are you thinking, giving me a chance to win? You haven't fallen for me, have you? Although I am handsome and dashing, and you're not too bad looking, I don't like women who are too strong—"

Cao Yuyang held his head high, looking Gu Xiaoyue up and down with disdain.

But before he could finish his smug words, Gu Xiaoyue punched him in the jaw, sending him flying a good seven or eight meters away!

"Cough, cough—pfft!" He coughed twice and spat out a mouthful of blood, which contained two teeth.

"You!—" Cao Yuyang hadn't expected Gu Xiaoyue's punch to be so brutal!

How could he know that Gu Xiaoyue had not only eaten the golden scale fruit to strengthen her body, but had also undergone twelve rounds of physical strengthening! Not to mention that Cao Yuyang didn't have the habit of working out, even most quasi-legendary Beastmasters might not be able to withstand a single hit from her!

He was just about to start cursing, but saw Gu Xiaoyue move in a few quick steps, flash behind him, and put him in a rear-naked choke.

Before Cao Yuyang lost consciousness, Gu Xiaoyue's voice sounded in his ear, as eerie as a ghost. "I won't let you admit defeat so easily."

Her voice was very soft, but clear enough for him to hear perfectly. Before he could even break into a sweat, in just three seconds, Cao Yuyang passed out.

Gu Xiaoyue flicked her hand, and a gust of wind held Cao Yuyang up, making it look as though he were standing in front of her.

Thinking of Cao Yuyang's foul language just now, Gu Xiaoyue felt even angrier. She had originally wanted to teach him a lesson because of his ingrate behavior. Now, her desire to beat him up had reached its peak.

Gu Xiaoyue started slapping Cao Yuyang, swinging left and right—one, two, three... After hitting him a full forty or fifty times, Cao Yuyang's face was already swollen like a pig's head.

Two more teeth fell out, his nose was bleeding profusely, his entire face was beet red, and the finger marks were no longer visible.

The referee was also puzzled; he had already been beaten into a pig's head, so why wasn't he calling for a forfeit?

Gu Xiaoyue shook her hand; slapping him had made her hand go a bit numb. That was about enough; she gave Cao Yuyang two more punches, giving him two black eyes.

Gu Xiaoyue twisted her wrist, dissipating the wind that held Cao Yuyang up. She turned and walked away, and Cao Yuyang collapsed to the ground like a deflated ball.

"Referee, he passed out after I only hit him a few times." Gu Xiaoyue said with an innocent expression.

Cold sweat broke out on the referee's forehead. You call that a few times? That was dozens of times!

He blew the whistle for the end of the match and announced Gu Xiaoyue the winner.

Gu Xiaoyue looked back at Cao Yuyang, who was sprawled on the ground like a pile of mud, and jumped off the arena.

If it were a pet battle, Cao Yuyang definitely would have forfeited directly. That would have meant losing the chance to beat him up, so she suggested hand-to-hand combat; he thought he had a two-percent chance of winning and gladly accepted.

She wasn't doing this to vent for Duan Yao; Duan Yao was capable enough to deal with those who bullied her. It was just that she was currently focused on placing in the National Competition, so she hadn't bothered to quibble with Cao Yuyang and his ilk.

But Gu Xiaoyue hated ingrates! There were too many people around her who benefited from her and still acted smug, or even backstabbed her!

They reminded Gu Xiaoyue of a young couple she had helped back in the apocalypse. After she helped them fight off zombies, they tried to snatch her supplies! Of course, the result was that she killed them back, but that was because she was strong enough. Someone else might not have been so lucky.

Human nature cannot withstand testing, and sometimes it doesn't need to be tested. Some shared experiences are enough to reflect a person's character!

Gu Xiaoyue was no saint; although she harbored a sliver of kindness, she would absolutely not be soft-hearted toward those who wanted to harm her!

Another member of An Huai's team was also beaten up by a Sheng Tao participant because of his arrogant attitude and trash-talking.

Gu Xiaoyue was also puzzled; in the team competition, there was at least Duan Yao to hold things down, but in the individual competition, who gave them the courage to be so smug?