Chapter 135: Lin Mo, you didn

"BOOM——!!!"

Countless sharp rock spears shot toward Ye Kong like a torrential rain.

Amid this dense storm of rock spears, explosive fireballs and fiery feathers whirled through the air.

This terrifying barrage of firepower instantly unleashed a towering wave of heat and shockwaves.

Ye Kong didn't even have time to think.

His prized spatial movement technique offered no escape against this all-encompassing, angle-free assault.

The next instant.

A blinding white light erupted skyward.

It was the passive trigger of 【Soul Protection】.

The white light rapidly solidified into a massive light cocoon, enveloping Ye Kong before crashing to the ground.

Xu Wenchang stood at the edge of the arena, his eyelids twitching violently.

Though he had anticipated the outcome, the process… was simply too brutal.

He took a deep breath and announced loudly:

"The match is decided!"

"The winner: Lin Mo!"

Almost the instant the words left his mouth,

Su Director, already standing by, tapped the ground with his toe and vanished in a flash to Ye Kong's side.

Waves of healing spells rained down upon the light cocoon.

…

In the stands.

"Holy shit…"

"Is this Lin Mo's true strength? This firepower coverage… is that even real?!"

"So damn strong… unbelievably strong…"

"Wait, is there even a Level 26 mage with this many skills?"

The students stared, dumbfounded.

They gazed at the figure hovering above the arena, their eyes filled with awe.

If before, they thought Lin Mo's close-range instant kill of Ye Kong was luck or information asymmetry,

then this time,

it was pure, undeniable domination!

A total, hopeless gap in power!

Immediately after,

once the shock faded,

someone slammed his thigh and let out a wail:

"My money!!!!!!"

That cry jolted everyone awake.

"We're done… completely done… my living expenses!"

"Lost again! Lost again! Ye Kong, you idiot! Why couldn't you hold out?!"

"Dirty bookie! Another win for the dirty bookie! This is rigged! I refuse to accept it!"

All faces turned ashen, eyes hollow with despair.

Two bets. Two all-ins.

Thought it was a chance to break even—ended up getting incinerated.

On the other side,

Han Mengqing clutched her tiny, densely scribbled notebook, grinning uncontrollably.

"We're rich… we're really rich now! Hahaha!"

Han Mengqing's eyes sparkled, drool nearly dripping from her lips.

"Slap!"

Han Mengyao struck her sister squarely on the back of the head, without mercy:

"Have you fallen into a money pit? Do we starve you or leave you without clothes? Do you really have to act like a greedy miser?"

Han Mengyao couldn't help but strike out at her sister's pitiful display.

Han Mengqing pouted, defiant:

"It's different!"

"Family money is family money—this is mine, earned by my own skill!"

"Besides, who ever turns down money? This is my hard-earned blood and sweat!"

Han Mengyao sneered, cutting her down coldly:

"Yours? What do you have to do with it?"

"Didn't Lin Mo win this with his own strength? You're just the one collecting cash—how dare you call it blood and sweat?"

Hearing this, Han Mengqing puffed out her chest, indignant:

"Of course it's mine!"

"Without my flawless acting, without my perfect coordination with Lin Mo, could we have pulled off this score?"

"Ha… heh."

Han Mengyao laughed bitterly.

Beside them, Chu Lingxuan stepped in to mediate, speaking softly:

"Enough, Mengyao—don't be angry. Mengqing's just trying to earn extra money to ease the family burden."

…

In the center of the arena,

Under Su Director's powerful healing, the white cocoon slowly dissolved.

Ye Kong's injuries had healed by more than half,

yet he did not rise.

He lay motionless on the cold ground, staring blankly at the sky.

He lost.

Again, he lost.

Since childhood, whether in studies, gaming, or combat, he had never been defeated so utterly.

Never… never rendered so utterly powerless.

That crushing sense of helplessness pressed upon him like a mountain, stealing his breath.

"Why… how could this happen…"

Ye Kong murmured to himself, his mind teetering on collapse.

At that moment,

Lin Mo walked over.

His handsome face blocked out the blinding sunlight.

"Oh, Master Ye?"

"What's this? Is the ground cool? Feeling like a nap?"

Hearing this teasing tone,

Ye Kong pushed himself up, looked at Lin Mo, and forced a bitter smile: "Lin Mo, are you here just to mock me?"

Lin Mo shrugged, clapped Ye Kong's shoulder:

"Nah."

"Winning and losing are part of the game."

"Besides, your continuous air-cutting technique was damn impressive—if I hadn't reacted fast, you'd have landed it."

Lin Mo's words were half-truth, half-flattery.

He simply wanted to spare this proud student some dignity.

Yet,

Ye Kong lifted his head, locking eyes with Lin Mo.

After a pause, he said seriously:

"Landed? Don't joke."

"Lin Mo, I can feel it—your true strength is far beyond this."

"Those skies of rock spears and fireballs… you held back, didn't you?"

"If you'd wanted, you had more than enough firepower to cover me until my Void Stealth ended—I had zero chance to escape your barrage."

Ye Kong was arrogant, but not foolish.

Lin Mo's entire battle had clearly been a game from start to finish.

Only Ye Kong had fought with everything he had.

And even then, he had no chance to fight back.

Lin Mo paused in surprise.

It's true, what you said makes sense.

He had just wanted to test his new skill, so he hadn't continued covering the fire zone.

Ye Kong took a deep breath, let out a bitter laugh, then stood up from the ground.

At that moment,

Wang Dawei ran over and supported Ye Kong:

"Brother Kong! Are you okay?"

Ye Kong pushed away Wang Dawei's hand and straightened his disheveled clothes.

He looked at Lin Mo and smiled carefreely:

"I'm fine."

"I just lost to a monster—no shame in that."

With that said,

Ye Kong's expression turned serious.

"Lin Mo, I've lost fairly and I accept it."

"From today on, you're the squad leader of Long Xu Class."

"I, Ye Kong, accept the loss—any order you give from now on, I will carry out without question!"

Lin Mo looked at the boy who could both take and let go, and a flicker of admiration passed through his eyes.

Though this guy was a bit arrogant, he at least understood the situation.

"Fine."

Lin Mo didn't pretend modesty; he nodded with a smile:

"Then I'll take the role of squad leader for now."

"But don't think you're off the hook—you're my deputy squad leader from now on."

"All the annoying little chores—running errands, organizing things—they're all yours."

"I'm lazy—I only handle fighting."

Hearing this, Ye Kong blinked, then chuckled helplessly:

"You really aren't pulling any punches… Fine, deputy squad leader it is—I'll handle the grunt work."