Chapter 84: Helpless Yet Unreconciled

"Has Number Seven and Number One Hundred arrived?!" The staff’s voice urged once again.

Shen Mei’s lips were so pale they’d lost all color, her clenched palms slick with cold sweat. Her icy gaze locked firmly onto the culprit, Yang Yao.

She couldn't give up—not like this!

"Are you alright? Maybe you shouldn’t compete. Your face is so white." The girl beside Shen Mei, seeing her condition worsen, reached out and held her back from stepping onto the stage.

Shen Mei forced a wan smile, shaking her head at the girl.

Yang Yao’s goal was to keep her from competing. But even so, Shen Mei had to go up. She couldn’t let herself be toyed with like this.

"You..." The girl beside her was still unwilling, trying to persuade her, but Shen Mei, as if her heart were made of iron, ignored her and staggered toward the ring.

Yang Yao saw that Shen Mei could barely stand but insisted on coming up, and sneered disdainfully.

This was the medicine Guo Ting had given her—it was no ordinary drug. Colorless and tasteless, but once consumed, the body would lose all strength; not even the gods could recover for at least an hour. This match was hers for the taking.

It was also what Guo Ting had demanded.

The situation was still divided.

Qin Sheng’s group, Guo Ting’s side, herself, and Qin Mengchun sitting below the stage.

Her side had more candidates in the selection tournament; Qin Sheng’s side would inevitably have fewer.

So Guo Ting chose Yang Yao, and Yang Yao picked her former best friend, Shen Mei.

Shen Mei stood on the stage and signaled she was ready.

"Shen Mei, if you admit defeat now, I might consider letting you off a bit lighter. After all, we were best friends once. Sparing you some pain is a courtesy I owe you," Yang Yao curled her lips, confident in the outcome as she faced the weakened Shen Mei.

Shen Mei bit her lip tightly, forcing herself to focus.

Even with her lips pressed so hard, she couldn’t bring back any color.

Her forehead was beaded with cold sweat. She was barely holding on, and the match hadn’t begun, yet she was already struggling. What should she do?

She didn’t know where to place her hopes.

In her haze, she thought she saw Qin Sheng and the others.

If only she hadn’t insisted on coming alone—would things be different? Would someone be supporting her?

Shen Mei’s brow furrowed as the staff announced the start of the match.

"Five, four, three, two, one... The match begins..."

The instant the words fell, Yang Yao rushed at her, fists clenched, and kicked her in the abdomen.

Shen Mei felt every movement slowed to a crawl. She wanted to dodge, but Yang Yao seemed to anticipate every step ahead.

Yang Yao’s next kick landed again on her stomach.

Yet still, Shen Mei did not fall, nor was she knocked out of the ring.

Perhaps because of her discomfort, the pain seemed dulled; Yang Yao’s blows didn’t hurt as much.

Nothing hurt more than her heart.

Though she and Yang Yao were now estranged, such deep bonds couldn’t be erased so easily. Yet each of Yang Yao’s attacks only made Shen Mei grow colder.

At this point, their friendship was truly over.

Even as she remained at a disadvantage, Shen Mei refused to yield—dodging attacks when she could, enduring them when she couldn’t.

After only a few rounds, both her arms were mottled with bruises.

The audience below began to notice something was wrong.

Shen Mei was always evading, while Yang Yao kept attacking; the disparity was obvious.

Clearly, Shen Mei’s condition was abnormal.

"Is that girl sick? Why is her face so pale?"

"If she’s sick, why is she competing? Isn’t she wasting our time?"

"To get injured for nothing, that’s just sad..."

Murmurs spread through the crowd.

The staff sensed the mood shift and signaled for everyone to quiet down and watch.

"Can the match be paused if she’s sick?" The girl who’d tried to stop Shen Mei couldn’t help but stand and request a pause.

The staff heard her and temporarily suspended the match.

But whether to end it was up to the two competitors.

Shen Mei, struggling physically, stopped fighting.

The moment the match paused, Shen Mei collapsed, unable to control her body.

Luckily, it was merely exhaustion; she lay quietly on the stage, gazing up at the ceiling.

Her eyes brimmed with unwillingness.

All the self-defense techniques she’d once taught now landed upon her own body. Each ache reminded her of regret.

She could only blame herself for trusting the wrong people.

Shen Mei sighed, her heart emptied of anger and disbelief.

The facts lay before her; she could only accept them.

"Can you continue?" A staff member came over, worried, seeing her sweat-soaked forehead and bloodless lips.

"End the match..."

Just as the staff finished speaking, Shen Mei, as if waking from a dream, struggled to rise and stopped him with a gesture.

"I’m fine. I can continue," she said weakly, her voice barely more than a whisper.

The staff shook his head at her stubbornness and announced the match would proceed.

Yang Yao hadn’t expected Shen Mei to persist even in this state. Any last trace of pity vanished from her heart.

She clenched her fists again, remembering every technique Shen Mei had once taught her.

Now, each move struck her former mentor.

Yang Yao even found some twisted satisfaction.

"At this point, you might as well bow your head, apologize, and I’ll consider going easy on you."

Shen Mei let out a cold laugh. "Is there more? Bring it on. If I could teach you, I can endure whatever comes after."

"Teach me? Wasn’t that your way of showing off?" Yang Yao’s eyes widened, her fury rising. "Everyone knows you’re a taekwondo champion, and you only taught me basic self-defense? Don’t you think that’s unfair?"

Shen Mei stared in shock at Yang Yao’s words.

She was indeed a taekwondo champion, but had never boasted to Yang Yao. She’d taught her simple self-defense so Yang Yao could protect herself if Shen Mei wasn’t around.

Now, that kindness was twisted against her?

At that moment, Shen Mei was thankful she’d distanced herself from Yang Yao. If her good intentions were seen as arrogance, she wanted nothing to do with such a person.

"Enough talk. Show me everything you’ve got." Her gaze was icy as she looked at her former friend. If she hadn’t fallen for Yang Yao’s trick, who knows when she’d have seen her true colors.

"Let’s see if you can handle it," Yang Yao said, launching another attack, kick after kick—all of which Shen Mei evaded.

Yang Yao frowned, unsure how to describe her feelings.

How could Shen Mei, with so little strength, still dodge?

Shen Mei caught the shock in Yang Yao’s eyes, biting back a sneer.

Years of training and real combat gave her plenty of experience; dodging Yang Yao’s attacks was easy, just not as fluid as usual.

"Keep going..." Shen Mei panted, speaking softly to Yang Yao.

To Yang Yao, this was nothing but provocation.

"You may dodge this time, but not the next." Yang Yao struck again, harder than before.

Shen Mei dodged the first two moves, but Yang Yao’s relentless kicks landed, each heavier and more forceful than the last. Yang Yao had no intention of letting Shen Mei leave unscathed.

The final kick hit Shen Mei squarely in the abdomen, and she coughed blood.

Her visible wounds were numerous, blood trickling from her lips.

The staff and spectators felt a pang of sympathy, thinking her suffering was pointless. It was only a match—was it worth risking her life?

She was already ill, taking so many blows; even a healthy person couldn’t endure it.

Under the barrage, Shen Mei spat another mouthful of blood, but even in agony, she refused to let herself fall.

"Shen Mei, you’re as stubborn as ever. Since you insist, I’ll finish this quickly."

With those words, Shen Mei felt herself as weightless as paper, kicked out of the ring by Yang Yao.

She truly couldn’t take anymore…

Her eyelids drooped uncontrollably.

Her arms and legs were drained of all strength…

She felt like a marionette, controlled by everyone but herself, powerless to resist.

She had lost…

Shen Mei reminded herself again of the undeniable defeat, and finally, unable to fight it, slipped into unconsciousness.

On stage and off, only sighs echoed; no one moved to help Shen Mei.

"What are you all standing there for? She’s fainted!" At length, the same girl who cared for Shen Mei shouted angrily at the staff.

Only then did someone rush to aid Shen Mei.