bioinnovel Chapter 115 The Subtle Art of Imperial Maneuvering
Chapter 115 The Subtle Art of Imperial Maneuvering
"Youyou, tell me the truth—was the 'Return to Sheath' technique you taught me diluted?"
Faced with Meng Yanqing's aggrieved question, which seemed like she was about to burst into tears at any moment, Xue Youyou quickly realized what was going on after a moment's thought.
As the saying goes, "It is not scarcity that is a concern, but inequality."
This little girl probably noticed that the sheath-returning technique she learned was different from the one she and Lin Feiyan used, and became suspicious. She was jealous and felt that she was being unfair to Lin Feiyan, so she came to confront her.
In fact, what Guanghan Zhan taught Meng Yanqing was not the refined version personally taught by the Moon Goddess, but the standard, unrefined version that all inner disciples of the Moon Goddess Palace studied. Although the basic framework was the same, the exquisite details and nuances were far inferior.
However, Xue Youyou did not shift the blame to Guanghan Zhan, nor did she argue that she had never personally taught Lin Feiyan, claiming that Lin Feiyan was a genius who had accumulated knowledge and skills and figured it out on her own by watching videos.
Xue Youyou met Meng Yanqing's gaze, lowered her voice, and spoke with a reassuring certainty: "Lin Feiyan's foundation is already solid, which is why she was able to get to the top in one step. You're starting from scratch, so naturally you have to take it one step at a time. Once you've mastered this basic version, I can then impart the essence of the advanced version to you. Otherwise, an unstable foundation will leave hidden dangers."
As she spoke, she ignored the muffled groans of dissatisfaction coming from Guanghan Zhan in the pet space, and instead solemnly made a promise to Meng Yanqing.
Looking into Xue Youyou's open and honest eyes, Meng Yanqing was stunned. She realized that she had misunderstood Xue Youyou and immediately felt a little embarrassed.
It turns out that I had been misunderstanding Youyou all along. It was clearly my own lack of effort and inability to keep up with the pace that led me to suspect Youyou of being biased. This behavior is utterly laughable.
Meng Yanqing felt ashamed, her ears turned red, and she lowered her head, her voice barely audible: "I'm sorry, Youyou, it's my fault..."
Xue Youyou reached out and patted her shoulder, chuckled, and adopted a grandmaster's tone, saying, "It's alright. If you have any questions, just say them. Don't keep them bottled up inside and make yourself miserable."
As soon as she finished speaking, Meng Yanqing raised her head, her face still showing shame, but now showing a new hesitation.
She pursed her lips, as if she had made up her mind, and spoke again: "Well... Youyou, actually, there's something else I want to tell you."
"Um?"
Xue Youyou keenly noticed that the moment Meng Yanqing uttered those words, Su Wanrou, Lu Yutang, and Cui Yelan, who had been quietly waiting in the back, all looked up at the same time, their eyes meeting as if they had planned it beforehand.
Xue Youyou's thoughts stirred slightly. It seemed that while she was being invited up on stage by Bao Xiaoxing to provide commentary, her four teammates had been chatting about quite a bit in the break room behind her back.
Just as she was about to hear what these people had to say, Bao Xiaoxing deliberately jogged over and urged, "Lady Bai Xueji, please hurry up and enter the competition pod! You can discuss any tactics you want to share once you're on the map."
Upon hearing this, Xue Youyou and the other four suddenly realized and looked up—their opponents, namely the five members of the Iwao-Kai-Yuan group who had entered the arena at the same time as them, had already all sat in the competition cabin.
After apologizing, Meng Yanqing and the other three quickly walked towards their competition pod.
However, unlike her four teammates who immediately headed towards the combat pod, Xue Youyou suddenly had a bright idea. Instead of rushing off, she rolled her eyes at Bao Xiaoxing and said, "What's the hurry?"
Seeing the smile on Xue Youyou's lips, Bao Xiaoxing was stunned for a moment, then revealed a nostalgic smile.
I know Xue Youyou was referring to the time when the two first met.
At that time, she was a referee, while Xue Youyou was an ordinary player who was just starting out and had not yet made a name for herself.
At that time, she urged Xue Youyou to prepare quickly, and Xue Youyou retorted, which led to their later interaction and fate.
She was truly impressed by Xue Youyou.
It was just a round of 16 to 8, but this guy managed to make it feel like a solemn farewell, and then suddenly pulled this flashback to make her cry.
All I can say is that it fits her stereotypical image of Xue Youyou perfectly.
Bao Xiaoxing raised his hand, pretending to wipe away non-existent tears, and replied in a tender tone, "Boss, please don't mess things up!"
Xue Youyou stretched out her right hand and gave her a thumbs up.
Then, maintaining that pose, she turned gracefully and strode towards the competition cabin.
In that instant when her back was to everyone, Xue Youyou's lips curled up almost imperceptibly, revealing a sly expression of someone who had "planned everything perfectly."
Champion Appearance +1
Soon, all ten contestants entered the competition chamber. The final round of sixteen to eight was about to begin—
This year's dark horse, Lanzhiyuan Team 1, will face off against last year's top eight, Iwaoyuan Team 1, personally led by the Ten Heavenly King "Zhenyue Ant" Beichenfeng.
The curtain rises officially!
【Blue Garden I VS Rock Armor Garden I】
[Map being randomly generated...]
[Random Results: Obsidian Forge, Burial Grounds, Meteorite Crystal Pit]
[Please remove one map from each player's inventory.]
Lan Zhiyuan drew Group H, No. 1, and they got to choose first.
Xue Youyou disabled the "Obsidian Furnace" without any hesitation.
The so-called Obsidian Furnace is located inside a volcano, a confined space. Forcibly summoning the Yuki-onna under these circumstances involves a problem of spatial overlap. Yuki-onna is almost certain that when the Yuki-onna creates the volcano, she will be crushed along with it.
This has happened countless times in ranked matches.
Although she always managed to win by dying slower than the opposing beast tamer, this was a competition, and Xue Youyou didn't want to take that risk.
Of the remaining two areas, "Burial Wilderness" and "Crystal Pit of Meteorite," the latter is a terrain that Rock Armor Institute excels at, but after weighing the options, we can only choose the lesser of two evils.
Meng Yanqing and the other three had no objection to Xue Youyou's decision and trusted her completely.
It's okay if you don't understand; everything has its own deeper meaning.
[Blue Garden I, select to disable Obsidian Furnace]
As Xue Youyou had predicted, the Rock Armor Institute almost instantly banned "Burial Wilderness," leaving "Heavenly Meteor Crystal Pit," which was their biggest advantage, untouched.
[Iwak Armor Institute I, Select to disable Burial Wilderness]
The final battle map has been confirmed as: Meteorite Crystal Pit.
[Please select your battle pets.]
On the battle pet interface, Xue Youyou unsurprisingly locked onto the Divine Era Snow Woman.
Firstly, Guanghan Zhan is currently in a state of self-isolation. Secondly, the Divine Snow Woman has reached level 64, having accumulated a full 54 layers of snow, making her a more reliable force to maintain order.
As for the battle pet pens that are displayed to everyone—
Xue Youyou lightly tapped her fingertip and chose the most basic form.
【Blue Orchid Courtyard I, Snowy Serenity - Juvenile Stage · Species · Snowflakes】
[Blue Orchid Courtyard I, Meng Yanqing - Complete Form Weapon Type - Thousand-Leaf Immortal-Slaying Lotus]
【Blue Orchid Courtyard I, Su Wanrou – Complete Form, Biological Species, Dream-Weaving Fox】
[Blue Orchid Courtyard I, Cui Yelan - Complete Form, Cursed Species, Death Knell Feather Master]
【Blue Orchid Courtyard I, Deer Yutang – Complete Form, Species, Green Bag Tang Fairy】
【VS】
【Iwakuriin I, Hokushin Peak - Complete Form, Species, Zhenyue Ant】
【Rock Armor Academy I, Lu Lingbi – Complete Form, Biological Species, Crystal Armor Colossus】
【Iwakari Institute I, Yue Yanshu – Complete Form, Species, Ancient Rock Dragon】
【Iwakami-in I, Li Qinggui – Complete Form, Elemental Species, Obsidian Mother】
【Iwakuriin I, Qu Xuangui - Complete Form, Cursed Species, Gargoyle】