Chapter 54

What about Gu Han?

Guan Shan suddenly spoke, causing Li Kai to freeze on the spot.

Gu Han is, after all, just a Logistics Soldier.

Although the match just now was won against Jin Li, the Cold Wind Sword surely helped as well.

Without the Cold Wind Sword directly cutting Jin Li's weapon, even if Gu Han won, he could not possibly have won so easily.

Li Kai is unwilling to waste precious heavenly treasures for Gu Han!

"Gu Han is, after all, a squad leader in the Logistics Camp; having an ambitious mindset is a Good Thing."

Li Kai chuckled, appearing to appreciate Gu Han quite a bit,

"He is participating in the Ten Camps Competition; I have no objection."

Guan Shan looked at Li Kai with a half-smile, making Li Kai's scalp tingle.

Only Guan Shan knows that Gu Han's strength might not be inferior to Gu Chen's, and could even surpass it!

He extended his hand toward Li Kai,

"Give me the item, and I will personally have Gu Chen withdraw from the Ten Camps Competition."

Li Kai, with a pained expression, took out a fire pearl from his storage ring,

"The conditions imposed by the Illusion Water Pearl are too many, but this fire pearl is comparable in value to the Illusion Water Pearl."

"And what else?" Guan Shan asked back,

"Fifty Quenching Blood Pills—do you think I can't afford them?"

Li Kai rolled his eyes impatiently, shoved a box into Guan Shan's hand.

After counting, Guan Shan headed toward Gu Chen in the Second Camp.

Li Kai watched Guan Shan's departing back, his eyes filled with Anger.

Guan Shan counted the Quenching Blood Pills in front of so many people, clearly showing he didn't trust him!

"Now it seems this Fellow is also afraid Gu Chen might not secure first place, wanting to secure a sure gain."

At that moment, Du Heng came up beside Li Kai and whispered doubtfully,

"Guan Shan isn't an idiot; having Gu Chen withdraw likely hides other trump cards."

"Why not simply have Gu Han withdraw as well, for extra safety?"

Li Kai rolled his eyes,

"Are you willing to spend this money?"

"If this bunch can't even beat a Logistics Soldier, they might as well be dragged out and buried!"

Du Heng thought it over and also found Li Kai's words reasonable.

It seems he was overly cautious about securing the Second Camp's position.

Soon, under Guan Shan's persuasion, Gu Chen announced his withdrawal from the Ten Camps Competition.

In response, the Second Camp quickly erupted in an uproar.

"Why did Gu Chen suddenly choose to withdraw? He is our Second Camp's sole hope!"

"If he withdraws, won't our Second Camp come away empty-handed this time, with not a single top-ten placement?"

"Sigh, could Gu Chen be afraid—afraid of losing and letting everyone down?"

"Probably not; Gu Chen isn't that sort of person—I heard Coach Guan personally persuaded him to withdraw."

"Sigh, I thought we could finally hold our heads high this time, but now it seems…"

Countless people felt incomprehension and disappointment at Gu Chen's withdrawal.

Although Guan Shan also announced that Gu Chen withdrew because, as a squad leader, he didn't want to give people cause to accuse him of bullying the weak.

They still showed understanding, but did not accept it.

Even if that truly was the reason, after the Ten Camps Competition they still failed to retain the Second Camp's position.

What awaited them would still be a torrent of ridicule.

"Head Instructor, is what we're doing really alright?"

Sensing the crowd's despondency, Deng Li looked at Guan Shan in puzzlement, hoping Guan Shan could answer his doubts.

The other instructors shared similar thoughts.

After great effort we finally managed to hold our heads high, yet now we must give up this opportunity—no one can easily accept this fact.

Guan Shan naturally could also sense everyone's thoughts; he softly comforted,

"Rest assured, I am more worried about losing than you are."

"Even if Gu Chen isn't here this time, first place in the Ten Camps Competition will surely be ours."

Guan Shan's words left Deng Li and a few other instructors staring at each other.

It's not that they distrust Guan Shan, but his words are indeed somewhat hard to believe.

Now it's merely the preliminary round; the other camps' top Combat Soldiers are likewise holding back their strength.

Although Gu Chen's displayed strength can be described as unstoppable.

But even so, before the final moment they dare not say Gu Chen will surely win.

Yet Guan Shan's confidence has already completely surpassed their imagination.

In the crowd of the Second Camp.

Gu Fan and several brothers frowned as they looked at Gu Chen,

"Brother Chen, shouldn't you reconsider this?"

Gu Chen smiled, taking out the fire pearl and Quenching Blood Pills that Guan Shan had given him,

"Coach Guan said this is from Li Kai, the Head Instructor of the Third Camp, who gave me the first-place prize directly to get me to withdraw from the Ten Camps Competition."

Gu Lin's injury had improved considerably, he grinned,

「Instructor Li Kai, to get you, older brother Chen, to withdraw, really went all out。」

「This fire pearl is a fine thing; even among the family's direct descendants, not everyone can possess it。」

While everyone felt happy for Gu Chen, they also worried about the situation at the camp.

Private and public affairs, after all, cannot be mixed together.

「Don't worry, Gu Han is still here。」

Gu Chen also gave a slight smile, full of confidence in Gu Han,

「That's right; if we older brothers don't believe in Gu Han, who will? 」

Gu Fan and the others, hearing this, also reflected on themselves, then promptly expressed their stance, saying they would definitely believe in Gu Han.

During this time, Gu Han had already knocked four opponents off the Martial Arts Platform.

Gu Chen freed up a spot among the top ten, giving others an opportunity.

But there are still three or four Combat Soldiers who have a chance to vie for a top-ten spot.

As for the last two spots, nobody wants to give them up.

「Most of those Gu Han defeated were merely Fifth Stage Martial Trainees, with only one Sixth Stage Martial Trainee。」

「In a war of attrition, Gu Han's stamina must have suffered, but judging by his appearance, he has no intention of stepping down to rest。」

「Compared to fighting the other two, it's obviously more likely to defeat Gu Han。」

Wu Ting, with this in mind, while others hadn't decided yet, quickly jumped onto the Martial Arts Hall to challenge Gu Han.

「I admit your strength is not bad, and I don't want to fight you to the death。」

Wu Ting understood the principle that even when fighting a rabbit, a lion uses full strength; even now he did not let his guard down, but instead wanted to advise Gu Han to withdraw when faced with difficulty,

「As long as you choose to give up, I can give you ten Quenching Blood Pills。」

As long as you make it into the top ten, you are guaranteed to receive twenty Quenching Blood Pills as a reward.

Splitting half of the reward is certainly not stingy.

Gu Han shook his head,

「My goal is the Illusion Water Pearl。」

In other words, he looks down on a mere ten Quenching Blood Pills.

Upon hearing this, Wu Ting's face immediately darkened,

「Since you are so clueless, then let's see the real thing。」