CHAPTER 421: CHAPTER 421: OVERCOMING THORNS AND BRAMBLES

Silence.

The whole place was quiet.

Ji You looked at the stupefied audience, curling her lips into a smile and said, "Sorry to have made a spectacle, Jiang Wu was just my 53rd opponent defeated in this online contest. The number is admittedly a bit low, I’ll keep striving, please continue to support me."

Jiang Wu: "..."

Audience: "..."

Ji You: "Thanks for the encouragement."

Jiang Wu: "..."

Audience: "..."

The audience was suffocated for a few seconds, and then Jiang Wu was the first to jump up, clutching her chest, chattering loudly, "Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Rag Queen, that’s enough already! That’s not how you show off, aaaah!!!"

Mad at her too!

It’s one thing for one to show off themselves, but quite another to have someone else do it by stepping on you to get ahead—it’s unbearable.

Hellishly unbearable.

opponents?

What does that even mean?

That number might not sound like much, but considering the rules of this online contest, it’s actually terrifying. What does it represent?

Strength.

Undoubted strength.

But what did the Rag Queen say?

The number is indeed a bit low?

If this isn’t bragging or showing off, then what is it?

The key is, she has the strength to back it up, and you just have to admit it.

Not just Jiang Wu, the person involved, felt suffocated, but the entire live audience was also left gasping for air by Ji You’s nonchalant show-off antics.

Audience A: "Who is this person?!"

Audience B: "Showing off."

Audience C: "Out of this world."

Audience D: "I don’t want to hear her talk anymore..."

Ji You looked at her defeated opponent Jiang Wu and the audience’s reactions, feeling immensely pleased on the inside, but still put on an extremely humble expression on the surface and said: "Please don’t look at me like that, I’ll feel shy."

Audience: "..."

With a face like yours, you’d feel shy?

Keep dreaming!

Go on, keep blowing your own trumpet!

If I believed your ridiculous stories, I’d admit defeat!

While the audience was alternating between speechlessness, Ji You suddenly looked at Jiang Wu, her lips curving into a smile, asking, "Contestant Jiang Wu, with your passion for photography, would you like me to gift you these few photos I have for your collection?"

Jiang Wu: "..."

Sarcasm!

Blatant sarcasm!

Absolutely!

Jiang Wu was so angry her cheeks hurt, especially her gums, aching and itching to the point she wanted to rush forward and punch the person called the Rag Queen to death!

Jiang Wu took a deep breath to compose herself before saying: "Thank you, but I only collect photos of a specific type. I’m not really interested in the ones you have."

"Oh?" Ji You dragged out her tone, arching her eyebrows, a teasing tone in her voice: "Then your collection seems a bit narrow in scope, that’s not good, not good at all."

Jiang Wu gritted her teeth: "It’s none of your business how narrow my collection is! I like it that way! I’m happy!"

Ji You chuckled, waving her hand: "Well then—Contestant Jiang Wu, I look forward to meeting you at the next online contest, I’ll take my leave now."

Jiang Wu: "..."

Audience: "..."

Ji You finished speaking and immediately chose to leave the scene.

"Wait a minute! Explain yourself! What do you mean?" Jiang Wu stomped her feet in anger, only to watch helplessly as the Rag Queen’s figure disappeared from view, "Ahhhhh!!! See you at the next tournament? What do you mean? Are you saying I won’t make it to the finals? As the mighty unsurpassed boss, how could I possibly not make it to the finals? How could that be!"

However—

Ji You flicked her sleeves without leaving a trace behind, and the way she left, her back looking extremely carefree, was just so infuriating that it made people itch with rage.

...

After this match, Ji You looked at the grades the system had given her, and the corners of her mouth couldn’t help but curl up, higher and higher...

At the same time.

In a corner of the internal network, Chu Jiaojiao, Yue Qiyuan, Yue Qiguang, and Shen Changqing sat together, the atmosphere slightly heavy.

After a while.

Yue Qiguang was the first to break the silence, frowning and saying, "You all said that the Rag Queen’s biggest weakness is her physical strength! I don’t quite agree!"

Look at that explosive power—

Look at that ferocity—

Look at that control power—

...

Can someone with really poor physical strength erupt several times in a row, each time causing such a big commotion?

Is that possible?

Don’t kidding me!

Yue Qiguang was somewhat skeptical, and the others couldn’t help but feel a shock in their hearts.

Yue Qiyuan said, "Perhaps, we have really misjudged her. She is an excellent all-around contestant. If we are to face her, we must be fully prepared."

Shen Changqing was silent for a moment, then nodded, "Yeah."

Chu Jiaojiao thought for a while, looked at the people around her, and suddenly said, "Do you know why I always win in fights? Because when I fight, I never target the other person’s weaknesses. Every time, I give it my all, fighting each battle with the resolve to either win or die!"

The outside world always talks about me as an S-level physique talent, but every time Chu Jiaojiao heard it, she just wanted to laugh, because—where are there any real natural-born geniuses?

Are there many people with an S-level physique?

Not many.

But—

Among all the young talents around 18 years old in the Alliance with an S-level physique, there are at least thousands... With so many S-level physiques around, why is Chu Jiaojiao among the best?

Because she is determined! Because she works hard!

And—

Because she’s crazy! Because she’s reckless!

From the moment she knew she would inevitably go to the battlefield one day, to fight for the land under her feet and the people living on it until the day her life ends, Chu Jiaojiao knew she had to fight!

Thus, when she was very young, she understood there was no turning back for her. The only path ahead was full of thorns, and every step she took would pierce her feet until they bled... However, for the sake of duty and obligation, for the sake of hope and tomorrow—she was willing to tackle all obstacles.

After saying that, Chu Jiaojiao, ignoring the silence of the people beside her, added, "The Rag Queen is indeed excellent and powerful, but am I scared of her? Will I back down?"

"No!"

"In combat, I either win! Or I die!"

With that said, silence fell again around them.

Yue Qiguang raised an eyebrow and commented, "Chu Jiaojiao, on this point, I must say I really admire you. But—I don’t think I’m any less than you. The courage to fight and the resolve to risk our lives, I have them too!"

Hearing this, Chu Jiaojiao grinned, her smile mocking, "The only difference between us is that I also use my brains when I fight."

Yue Qiguang: "..."

Yue Qiguang clenched his fist, and Yue Qiyuan, fearing that these two would start fighting or arguing nonstop, hurriedly intervened, "Fighting is a technical skill; let’s discuss more about how to fight with technique in the future, and no quarreling is allowed!"

Chu Jiaojiao courteously fell silent.

Although Yue Qiguang really wanted to challenge Chu Jiaojiao to a duel right then and there, he unfortunately no longer had the qualifications for the contest. At this point, a duel would only be a private invitation to spar...

Boring.

Thus, Yue Qiguang also kept quiet.

In the room, only Shen Changqing had yet to make a sound.