[Is this some kind of kid fight? What are they doing?]
[The scorching weather does make one lose their senses. To some extent, it's rather impressive that they even know they are fighting right now.]
[Not necessarily... Look at Daniel, he's biting everyone on the field.]
[Haha, Qin Huaibei pulled him away but ended up getting bitten several times himself.]
[Is Chloe still conscious?]
[Not sure, she's fighting with Qu Yan.]
Chloe's mind was a bit hazy too. The blistering sun shone on her, causing beads of salty sweat to stream into her eyes every time she swung her broadsword, stinging her eyeballs painfully.
Luckily, her heightened senses allowed her to fight with her eyes closed.
Qu Yan's combat skills were quite good, but too regimented.
Not that she was weak, but compared to Chloe, she lacked a certain sneaky mischievousness.
After being kicked several times, Qu Yan sighed, "Now I know why they say you fight dirty - you really are a little rascal."
Chloe looked back at her innocently.
The scene was utter chaos.
But gradually, the Lanxicha Military Academy started to lose their edge.
In the end, only Feng Xi remained standing from the entire Lanxicha team.
He grappled with Anderson, blood trickling down from his temple.
Anderson's injuries were no less severe, with a long gash running from his shoulder down his arm.
Amid the melee, Chloe pinned Qu Yan to the ground, the tip of her broadsword pressed against Qu Yan's throat, immobilizing her.
Chloe gasped for breath, then said, "Sorry, sis, bear with me for a bit."
Qu Yan didn't reply, using her legs to sweep the sword away from her neck. She grabbed Chloe's wrist and shoulder with one hand, lifting her up before slamming her back down.
In that instant, Chloe wrapped her legs around Qu Yan's waist, using the momentum to bring Qu Yan crashing down too.
Dust flew everywhere, covering their faces.
In the tussle, Chloe glanced towards the distant flagpole, a glimmer of light flashing through her muddled mind.
...They were all fighting, could she sneak off and capture the flag while they were distracted?
As soon as the thought occurred to her, Qu Yan's longsword came slashing down.
Chloe instinctively dodged backwards, swinging her broadsword to knock Qu Yan's sword flying.
But soon after, the longsword flew back into Qu Yan's palm of its own accord.
Their fight grew increasingly intense, yet Chloe subtly maneuvered them ever closer to the flagpole.
In the next moment, Qu Yan raised her sword to strike at Chloe's buzzer, but Chloe's eyes flashed as she spun away.
As she twisted, the hand holding her broadsword swung back in a wide arc.
By now they were right next to the flagpole, and Chloe's broadsword cleaved straight through the flag as it arced behind her.
"Swish," the flag fell to the ground, immediately followed by a mechanical synthetic voice booming from the sky:
[Congratulations to the First Military Academy for winning this competition.]
[Congratulations to the First Military Academy for winning this competition.]
The voice repeated the announcement five times, deafeningly loud.
The battle on the Volcanic Planet ground to a halt.
Feng Xi looked up in disbelief, his face covered in blood.
Chloe stood before the flagpole, the picture of innocence.
After a moment's pause, she hid a smile behind her lips. "Ah? How did the flag get cut down?"
Qu Yan: "..."
Not far away, Qin Huaibei clamped his hand over the delirious, biting Daniel's mouth, equally bewildered. "We haven't even decided the winner yet, how did they win?"
"Isn't this a bit unfair?"
Katherine wiped her arrows, raising an eyebrow as she exchanged a glance with Chloe. "But the flag has been captured, the outcome is clear."
A massive spatial vortex appeared in the sky, waiting for everyone to pass through and return to the other side of the Volcanic Planet.
At the same time, comments flooded the viewing screen:
[I'm sure Chloe did it on purpose!]
[Despicable! Shameless! Cunning! So clever, I love it!]
[This is the definition of winning without fighting.]
[Chloe was herding Qu Yan toward the flagpole the whole fight, clearly she had this planned.]
[Tsk, so crafty at such a young age, imagine how sly she'll be when she's older.]
Unfortunately, no matter how boldly the audience commented on the screen, those on the battlefield couldn't see any of it.
As Anderson stood up, he kicked Feng Xi again. Feng Xi retaliated by stabbing Anderson with his sword.
The group then passed through the spatial vortex and exited the arena.
The First Military Academy remained the champion, with Lanxicha taking second place.
Besides earning points for slaying ferocious beasts, they had also gained a huge amount by eliminating the Brut Military Academy.
Tagar came in third.
The ranking stunned everyone.
Lanxicha, the unheralded newcomer academy, had not only defeated Sasley but also overwhelmed Tagar in points, placing just behind the First Academy.
It was as if the established military academy hierarchy had been reshuffled.
Some busybodies had already started digging into Lanxicha's background, spreading rumors online.
...
Back outside the arena, Chloe glanced over at the Sasley Military Academy students being reprimanded by their instructor.
Fuen hung his head low, seeming to sense Chloe's gaze as he looked up briefly before lowering his head again.
Chloe turned to Qin Huaibei, saying, "Look at them, being knocked out by the newbies, how pathetic."
Overhearing her, the Sasley instructor's fist clenched tighter, not daring to talk back as he berated his students even louder.
Seeing this, Chloe snorted and led her team toward Ren Yunying.
Now that she saw Chloe, Ren Yunying felt a mix of love and hate.
She glanced around to ensure no other academies were nearby before leaning in to ask in a hushed voice, "Tell me, did you deliberately cut down the flag?"
Chloe blinked innocently. "Ah? What do you mean, Instructor?"
Seeing Chloe refusing to admit it, Ren Yunying patted her approvingly on the shoulder. "Good, keep it up. No matter who asks, stick to that answer."
Chloe: "I really don't know what you mean, Instructor."
Ren Yunying: "..."
Realizing this could go on forever, she changed the subject, glancing at the bloodied Anderson and disheveled Daniel before calling Katherine over to treat Anderson's wounds.
As for Daniel, Ren Yunying personally dragged Qin Huaibei away to get changed.
She then approached Daniel and smacked him on the head. "I told you to fight, not bite people. Are you feeling itchy?"
The still-dazed Daniel looked up at her, his teeth tingling.
Seeing this, Chloe quickly retrieved a muzzle from her mustard ring, the one she had used before, and put it on Daniel, patting her chest assuringly.
"Don't worry, Instructor, he'll be fine now."
