"Let us welcome our school team members to the arena. Our Linjiang No. 1 High School school team has a long history and glorious achievements, with outstanding graduates entering national key universities every year. Now, let our school team members present a wonderful performance for us."
As the broadcast echoed through the air, enthusiastic cheers erupted from the crowd as the two teams of eight players walked to opposite sides of the competition field. The opposing team consisted of a knight, a warrior, an archer, and an assassin; their own team had two warriors, an assassin, and a healer.
The match was about to begin when the dean snatched the microphone from the host and announced, "Today, we are honored to invite an outstanding graduate of Linjiang No. 1 High School, currently studying at Imperial Capital University, Muxue, to watch our closing ceremony exhibition match. Let us welcome her with warm applause."
Guided by the dean's sweeping gesture, everyone spotted Muxue sitting in the VIP section. Left with no choice, Muxue stood up to acknowledge the crowd. Truly: A beauty of the north, peerless and independent.
All the male students in the audience immediately let out a wave of wolf whistles, driving the atmosphere to a climax.
Seeing that his objective had been achieved, the dean exchanged a knowing glance with Xie Daguang, who was sitting next to Muxue, and the two of them smiled implicitly.
Elevating Muxue's status in this manner was naturally intended to make her hesitant, reducing the probability of her turning the tables to the absolute minimum.
Under such intense public scrutiny, if Muxue dared to use her strength to break the rules, she would be subjected to endless public condemnation.
Standing on the competition field, Mufeng naturally caught sight of Muxue as well. It suddenly dawned on him why Muxue had left that morning without saying goodbye—they were destined to meet again at the school.
Xie Daguang, seated beside Muxue, bore a five-part resemblance to Xie Dahaio. Mufeng easily guessed who he was, and his mind raced as he formed a vague suspicion regarding the purpose behind Xie Dahaio's formation today, though the details still eluded him.
At that moment, Lin Ningyang from the opposing team strode over and swaggered up to Mufeng. "Mufeng, your sister truly lives up to her reputation. I've already accepted you as my brother-in-law. Don't worry, I'll go easy on you later. Hahaha!"
Mufeng looked at him coldly, his gaze as dead as if he were staring at a corpse.
With all preparations now in place, the dean announced the start of the match.
The next instant, Lin Ningyang and the other three charged toward Mufeng, shouting as they ran, "Focus fire on their healer Mufeng first!"
Meanwhile, Xie Dahaio and the other two quickly swarmed around Mufeng, blocking off every possible avenue of retreat while shouting, "Mufeng, don't be afraid! We'll protect you!"
After assessing the situation, Mufeng quickly grasped the intentions of all seven individuals.
"Afraid?"
"Heh!"
He calmly cast a Healing Spell on himself.
It's not that I look down on you lot, but not a single one of you is a mage—how could this possibly scare me?
Yet, since their ultimate objective remained unclear, a thought stirred in Mufeng's mind, and he glanced toward Muxue.
Having extensive combat experience, Muxue had already perceived the malicious intentions of Mufeng's teammates. Anxious, she stood up and looked across the arena.
Beside her, Xie Daguang wore a sinister grin as he muttered something to Muxue, bringing a look of intense fury to her face. She sternly rebuked Xie Daguang while casting another worried glance toward Mufeng.
"So that's how it is!"
"You went to all this trouble just to target me, hoping to use me as leverage against my sister?" Mufeng asked, looking at Xie Dahaio with a cold sneer.
At that moment, Xie Dahaio was nervously pressing against Mufeng's back to prevent him from escaping. Lin Ningyang and the other three were already within arm's reach, about to strike Mufeng.
Everything was going according to plan—except that Mufeng's reaction was far too composed; otherwise, it would have been entirely flawless. Realizing that Mufeng had already figured it out, Xie Dahaio simply dropped the act.
"That's right! Do you really think trash like you is worthy of being friends with me? Everything was done just to deal with your sister! I've had enough of you for a long time. Today, I'm going to break all four of your limbs and make you wish you were dead!"
"Heh!"
Mufeng casually pulled an arrow out of his clothing and tossed it to the ground. He remained completely indifferent as the others hacked and stabbed at him with swords and blades.
For a moment, the only sound was the metallic clanging of weapons striking Mufeng's body. Everyone was dumbstruck, and an eerie silence fell over the entire arena.
Muxue, who had been burning with anger and consumed by anxiety moments before, saw the strange anomaly surrounding Mufeng, and a brilliant light danced in her lovely eyes. She thought to herself: Mufeng actually has this trick up his sleeve, making me worry for nothing. It seems this is his secret, and he even kept it hidden from me.
However, this Xie family dares to plot against me. If I don't teach them a lesson today, every stray cat and dog will think they can scheme against me in the future.
She cast an unfriendly glare at Xie Daguang beside her, who had yet to notice Muxue's change in demeanor and remained staring in shock at the competition field.
In truth, the most shocked people present were the other seven participants in the match. The four opponents had completely forgotten to attack; after several failed strikes, perhaps realizing they were just wasting their effort, they were now trying to figure out their next move.
Unfortunately, Mufeng gave them no time.
"The Xie family has always wanted to get back at me, I get it. Sending you school team members here to put on a show of force while trying to trick me into joining your team, hehehe, I get that too.
What I don't understand is, out of all of you trash, who gave you the courage to pick a fight with me?"
Mufeng swung the sword in his hand and thrust it into Xie Dahaio's thigh.
Caught completely off guard, Xie Dahaio collapsed to the ground with a cry.
Having struck Xie Dahaio, Mufeng didn't stop; he immediately slashed and downed the assassin on his own team.
Seeing that something was terribly wrong, the remaining warrior on his team tried to flee, but his speed couldn't match Mufeng's. He was quickly overtaken and brought down as well.
These actions were completed in a matter of seconds. Mufeng then turned his gaze back to Lin Ningyang's group of four, flashing a smile that revealed two rows of neat white teeth.
Frightened out of their wits, Lin Ningyang and the other three instinctively stepped back a few paces.
Ignoring them entirely, Mufeng proceeded to snap both legs of his team's warrior and assassin, then sauntered leisurely over to Xie Dahaio.
"No, don't come near me!"
Having already guessed what was about to happen, Xie Dahaio screamed in terror. With his legs injured and unable to stand, he could only scramble desperately across the ground with his hands and feet, trying to get away.
Outside the arena, the crowd was already in an uproar, filled with an endless stream of discussions, interspersed with the dean's frantic voice over the loudspeaker.
"Quick! Stop the match! How can there be such a vicious person, even harming his own teammates?"
"We can't stop it! The outcome hasn't been decided yet. According to the rules for Awakeners, as long as there is no immediate danger to life, interfering with the match now will trigger sanctions. No one dares to pull a stunt like that," one of his subordinate teachers immediately argued, deflecting blame.
Unable to sit still any longer, the dean snatched the microphone and shouted, "Mufeng, stop this instant! If you dare make another move, I will permanently mark your academic record with the offense of harming your teammates. As a healer with no teammates in your future, you won't be able to take a single step! Think carefully about my words and don't ruin your entire life!"
"No teammates and I won't be able to take a single step?"
"Heh. Do I need any?"
Mufeng stomped down, shattering Xie Dahaio's kneecap, then leisurely crushed the other kneecap, followed by both arms.
*Crunch!* *Crack!*
The sickening sound of breaking bones echoed continuously.
The dean's frantic voice rang out from the broadcast system: "Mufeng, how can you do this? How dare you?!"