The Cannon Fodder Became the Empire's Beloved Omega - Chapter 10

A deathly silence spread across the training ground.

Everyone stared silently at Li Hong, who had collapsed in a sprawled heap, a giant question mark slowly and uniformly forming above their heads. ???

Who could have imagined that Li Hong, widely regarded as one of the top fighters in the entire academy, would be taken down so quickly? He hadn’t even lasted a minute!

Yu Ruan stared blankly at Gu Yu, who looked completely at ease, feeling a bit dazed.

This wasn’t how the plot was supposed to go.

Gu Yu adjusted his collar and stood up from the ground, looking as if nothing had happened. In contrast, Li Hong’s expression was twisted, his clothes disheveled, making him appear utterly disgraced.

Gritting his teeth, Li Hong sat up with a dark expression, glaring fiercely at Gu Yu. “This round doesn’t count. Let’s go again.”

Gu Yu glanced sideways at him but said nothing.

Yu Ruan quickly stepped forward. “Li Hong, you were the one who said you wanted to settle this quickly. Now that the result is out, you refuse to accept it. Isn’t that a bit unfair?”

As these words were spoken, murmurs began to rise around them.

“He lost, so why can’t he just admit defeat? Is Young Master Li trying to dig himself into a deeper hole?”

“Who knows? With his family background and being an Alpha, he can act as arrogantly as he wants. What can anyone else say about it?”

“Well, it seems he’s finally met his match.”

Hearing these hushed discussions, Li Hong’s face darkened as if a storm were brewing.

“You’re the one who benefits from this, so of course you’d speak up for him,” he said coldly to Yu Ruan. “Don’t act so righteous. Do you really think no one can see through your intentions?”

Yu Ruan hesitated, at a loss for words.

If it had been earlier, he might have still held some intention of defending Gu Yu. But after witnessing what had just happened, he genuinely believed that Li Hong was only humiliating himself further.

But the other party clearly had no intention of listening to his advice.

After wrestling with his thoughts for a moment, Yu Ruan swallowed his words. He watched as Li Hong walked up to Gu Yu, wiping the dust from his lips. “So, you’re Gu Yu, right? I wasn’t taking it seriously earlier, which is why you caught me off guard. This time, I’m going all out. You’d better be prepared.”

Gu Yu lifted his eyelids, looked at him, and raised an eyebrow slightly.

Then, lazily, he lowered them again.

Li Hong was instantly infuriated by his indifferent attitude. “What, are you afraid of losing to me? Then again, you seem pretty close to Yu Ruan, so no wonder you’re willing to help him bully Ji Huai. Picking on the weak but fearing the strong, what a fine example you are for us Alphas!”

As the target of the mockery, Gu Yu couldn’t even be bothered to react.

He glanced at Yu Ruan beside him, thought for a few seconds, and then said to Li Hong, “Come on.”

Li Hong furrowed his brows.

“Didn’t you want to compete?” Gu Yu said. “Then let’s have another match.”

Finally getting what he wanted, Li Hong’s expression remained anything but relaxed. His face grew even darker as he reassured a worried-looking Ji Huai, secretly steeling his resolve.

Li Hong wasn’t foolish. From their previous match, he had already begun to suspect that he might not be a match for this Alpha named Gu Yu. Unexpectedly, this guy was far more formidable than he had anticipated.

Where on earth had Yu Ruan met him??

Suppressing his doubts, Li Hong shifted his focus to the impending duel. His plan was to fight with everything he had to reclaim a victory. Everything else could wait until after he won.

He had no intention of losing to some inexplicable person, especially someone he’d never even heard of!

Li Hong took a deep breath and assumed a defensive stance.

He refused to believe that if he didn’t take the initiative to attack, the other party could do anything to him!

The crowd watched the restarted match nervously, unable to help but feel a little anxious at the tense atmosphere in the air.

Yu Ruan was also affected by the tension.

Although he now knew Gu Yu’s capabilities, Li Hong was, after all, the protagonist’s love interest in the original story. A starved camel is still bigger than a horse. Perhaps the plot’s “dim-witted halo” was already on its way, ready to be deployed just as Gu Yu made his move.

If things followed the original plot, Li Hong would switch tactics, focus on defense, wear down Gu Yu’s patience, and then make a desperate counterattack.

Before Yu Ruan could finish mapping out the rest of the scenario, he suddenly saw a figure move. Immediately afterward, a loud “thud” echoed through the air as Li Hong crashed to the ground in a posture that looked excruciatingly painful, reverting to the same state he had been in just minutes before.

Yu Ruan: “…”

This plot is seriously wrong!!!

If not for the different reactions of the people around him, Yu Ruan would have thought time had rewound to a few minutes earlier.

The originally beloved protagonist now looked disheveled and ashen-faced. His lips were split, blood oozing terrifyingly from the wound, making him appear utterly miserable.

Seeing the way Li Hong had fallen, Yu Ruan couldn’t help but wince sympathetically for a second.

So pitiful.

He felt he could hardly bear to watch, but Li Hong only looked frustrated and dark-faced for a moment before quickly scrambling back to his feet, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. “Again!”

Yu Ruan felt that, at this moment, Li Hong radiated the indomitable spirit typical of a protagonist from a web novel.

Gu Yu lazily lifted his eyelids, not responding. Instead, he turned his head to glance at Yu Ruan.

Yu Ruan couldn’t figure out what he meant by that. Remembering that he himself bore some responsibility for this farce, he guiltily averted his gaze.

Just as the stalemate seemed unbreakable, a cold reprimand suddenly came from the side.

“Enough.”

Everyone turned to look and were surprised to find that it was Lin Han. “This farce ends here. A loss is a loss. Instead of desperately making excuses, you should focus on honing your skills.”

Li Hong’s expression darkened abruptly. He gritted his teeth in frustration, causing the split on his lip to bleed again.

Angrily wiping the blood away, he left a smear of red across his cheek. “I understand.”

“The final exam will now resume as scheduled,” Lin Han said, his tone devoid of any warmth. “Proceed in the order of your assigned numbers.”

As soon as these words were spoken, the noisy training ground fell into an instant silence, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Everyone lined up with long faces, taking their seats in order and preparing for the exam one by one.

Yu Ruan was assigned a spot more than ten places down the list, so he still had quite a while before his test. Seeing Gu Yu casually find a place to sit, he followed him over, intending to express his gratitude.

Perhaps because of the earlier match, a sort of vacuum had formed around Gu Yu, making it convenient for the two of them to talk.

“Thank you for what happened earlier,” he said sincerely. “Even if it was just a casual gesture on your part, you really helped me out.”

Hearing this, Gu Yu lifted his eyelids and studied him for a moment before replying indifferently, “No need.”

Yu Ruan was bewildered.

“What does ‘no need’ mean? No need to thank him? Or that he didn’t need to be so formal?”

He pondered for a moment, thinking the other person probably meant the former.

Perhaps the bowl of ice jelly from yesterday had boosted the other’s favorability, which was why Gu Yu had casually helped him out.

Yu Ruan couldn’t help but sigh inwardly: The heart of a young master is truly as unfathomable as the ocean floor!

So hard to guess.

Before he could think any further, a voice called out from not far away:

“Next up, Yu Ruan, Ji Huai!”

Hearing his name, Yu Ruan jolted. He instinctively looked toward the source of the voice and saw that it was Lin Han’s assistant instructor, signaling for him to come over for the exam.

He quickly said goodbye to Gu Yu beside him and hurried over to the assistant instructor. At the same time, Ji Huai, who had also heard the call, approached and gave him a timid smile.

“Yu Ruan, please go easy on me during today’s exam.”

Ji Huai’s eyes were red, as if he had been crying secretly just moments before. “I’m an Omega, not as resilient as you Alphas. I know I did something terrible to you before, and it must be hard for you to forgive me. But I really…”

He trembled slightly, putting on a fragile and pitiable act.

Instantly, it drew sympathetic gazes from many around them.

The school’s disciplinary notice had just been posted and hadn’t spread widely yet. Aside from Yu Ruan’s classmates, very few people knew the truth. Most of those present were still in the stage of resenting Yu Ruan and pitying Ji Huai, so their looks toward Yu Ruan were naturally hostile.

Keeping his persona in mind, Yu Ruan said, “I won’t mix personal grudges with official matters. Let’s each rely on our own abilities.”

He couldn’t be bothered to explain further.

However, his attitude came across as provocative to those unaware of the truth.

Soon, people around them began to voice their indignation: “As an Alpha, how can you bully an Omega who’s so much weaker than you? Even though I’m not an Alpha, I feel ashamed on your behalf!”

“Look at that smug face of yours, it’s disgusting just to see it!”

“No wonder you’re capable of framing someone. Your heart is truly filthy!”

Insults came one after another, but Yu Ruan remained unfazed. He recalled what he had learned in his previous combat classes and adopted a defensive stance.

His current body was also an Omega, meaning his physique wasn’t much stronger than Ji Huai’s. Even if he wanted to bully the other, he lacked the ability. On the contrary, Ji Huai’s combat skills in the original story weren’t bad, so he needed to be extra cautious.

Yu Ruan pushed aside his thoughts and focused on the person in front of him.

Clearly, Ji Huai’s earlier words were just for show. Seeing the situation turn in his favor, he pursed his lips slightly, hiding the upward curve at the corners.

Yu Ruan kept his eyes fixed on him. Neither of them made the first move.

Time ticked by as they held their breath, intently watching each other’s movements, neither willing to take the first step.

Suddenly, Yu Ruan noticed the other move. Ji Huai shed his earlier timid demeanor and launched an attack.

Here it comes!

His mind sharpened, and he prepared to dodge Ji Huai’s move.

Yu Ruan took a step to the right, instinctively shifting his body sideways. Unexpectedly, Ji Huai, who had attacked first, suddenly halted, his ankle twisting oddly.

Immediately after, there was a dull thud as the petite Omega suddenly collapsed to the ground, squinting in pain.

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