"This bastard...."
Shen Xiao had wanted to teach Hao Xian a lesson for a long time.
Since the beginning of the semester, that man had constantly used his position as Vice Chairman of the Club to nitpick and find fault with him.
Back then, Shen Xiao was too busy chasing missions.
But now, when this bastard dared to lay a hand on Lu Qingyue, there was no longer any reason to hold back.
Because she is my future wife—!!
"Today, I'm going to sting you until you look like a piece of charcoal!" Shen Xiao murmured coldly.
"Hurry up! Chairman Hao, show this arrogant brat who's boss!" one of the club members shouted, trying to heat up the atmosphere.
Meanwhile, Ma Zheng, who had just put his stinky shoes back on, joined the shouting from the sidelines with a suspiciously high level of enthusiasm.
"Crush him, Senior Shen!"
"With all my luck, I'll bet my soul, my body, and my shoes!"
Ding!
[Received Favorability from Ma Zheng. Fate Ticket +0.05]
Senior Shen, don't be mad at me, okay!
I swear I'm on your side!
I just really want to see that 'Dog Hao' get beaten up! Ma Zheng thought gleefully.
The tension in the arena reached its peak.
The spectators in the stands, most of whom had been victims of Hao Xian's rigid "discipline," now collectively cheered in support of Shen Xiao.
One of the club officials even spoke up.
"Chairman, just accept the challenge."
"School rules are still rules."
"The Dean will surely support you if this is to uphold the club's dignity—!!"
Hao Xian finally stepped into the ring with a dark expression.
He felt cornered.
If he refused now, his reputation would be ruined forever because of that shoe incident.
"Shen Xiao, just so you know, I've just broken through to the peak of Rank 2. Are you sure you still want to challenge me?" Hao Xian asked haughtily.
"I just remember there was a Rank 2 coward who beat a girl who isn't even Rank 1 until she was covered in blood. I wonder who that was?" Shen Xiao shot back, glancing toward Lu Qingyue, who sat weakly at the edge of the arena.
Hao Xian growled in rage.
"Enough! Today I will make you regret your arrogance!"
"Since you agree, let's begin."
"Are there any additional conditions?" Shen Xiao asked casually.
"Only serious injuries are permitted, no killing!" Hao Xian set the terms.
Even though he hated Shen Xiao, he knew that killing the rank-one genius would get him expelled from the academy.
"And one more thing... no surrendering within the first ten minutes!"
Shen Xiao gave a thin smile, a smile that made the hair on Ma Zheng's neck stand up.
"Agreed."
"Don't regret your words later."
"Let's make a bet," challenged one of the club members.
Shen Xiao nodded.
"I've been waiting for this—! What's the wager?"
Hao Xian, feeling that he couldn't look poor in public, pulled out his savings.
"Five Spirit Stones!"
"Only five?" Shen Xiao laughed mockingly.
"At least put up twenty!"
"If people find out the Vice Chairman of the Club is only betting five stones, they'll think you're a beggar."
"I'll bet a hundred Spirit Stones; you only need to put up twenty."
Hao Xian gasped.
Twenty Spirit Stones was more than a month's worth of his income.
But under the pressure of the cheering crowd, he was forced to agree for the sake of his pride.
START!
The moment the referee gave the signal, everyone expected to see a balanced clash of muscles between two strength-type users.
However, reality turned out to be a one-sided slaughter.
THWACK!
THUD!
CRACK!
Within mere seconds, Hao Xian was already floored.
"Pffftt—"
Shen Xiao moved with absurd speed.
Twenty punches and ten elbow strikes landed squarely on Hao Xian's body before the man could even activate his spiritual defense.
The tables had turned 180 degrees.
Lu Qingyue, who had just been thrashed, now watched as her tormentor was being trampled by Shen Xiao.
Shen Xiao glanced toward Lu Qingyue.
His goal was to make the girl happy.
If Qingyue didn't smile, it meant his punches weren't hard enough.
Seeing Hao Xian starting to drink a recovery potion to get back up, Shen Xiao realized something.
If I just hit him, it's too boring.
I need something more... entertaining.
Suddenly, blue sparks appeared in Shen Xiao's palm.
"Wait... ELECTRICITY?!" the crowd in the stands screamed.
"Aren't they both strength types? Since when did Shen Xiao have the lightning element?!"
A small bolt of lightning, its power adjusted not to kill but to provide maximum pain, shot from Shen Xiao's hand.
ZAPPP!
"AAAAAAAGGGHHH!"
Hao Xian shrieked like a slaughtered pig.
His body convulsed on the floor.
His neat hair turned into a scorched afro and began to fall out, his face turned pitch black like charcoal, and thin wisps of smoke escaped his nostrils.
ZAPPP—!
Another sting landed.
Hao Xian let out another strange sound that made the spectators hold back their laughter.
Ding!
[Received Favorability from Lu Qingyue. Reward: 100 Fate Tickets!]
Shen Xiao's eyes lit up.
It worked!
It turned out Lu Qingyue didn't want to see Hao Xian die.
She wanted to see this bastard utterly humiliated!
Shen Xiao saw Lu Qingyue sitting in the distance, covering her mouth, trying to hold back a laugh—though she failed because her eyes crinkled with happiness.
That sight stood in stark contrast to her bruised and battered face.
Still not enough, Shen Xiao thought.
She still looks like she's in pain from her injuries.
Shen Xiao felt a pang of guilt.
He should have given the recovery potion to Lu Qingyue first.
But on the other hand, his rage toward Hao Xian flared up again.
"Because of you, Lu Qingyue has to endure the pain even longer!" Shen Xiao growled.
ZAPPP—!
ZAPPP—!
While continuing to sting the miserable Hao Xian, Shen Xiao planned to use the tickets he had just received to pull a high-level recovery potion for Qingyue.
To him, a single bottle of potion worth 100 tickets was the best investment.
"Hao Xian, take this! This is for the wound on her arm! This is for her ribs!"
"And this... for making my teammate cry!"
The sound of Hao Xian's screams echoed throughout the arena, accompanying the stifled laughter of the students he had oppressed for so long.
In Shen Xiao's eyes, every scream was a gold coin falling from the sky.