How Do We Play If This Boss Isn't Nerfed?-Chapter 41: Position-Swapping Blood Battle

"Li Mu! You’re up!"

Sun Qian’s voice was hoarse. He pointed to a boy in the crowd of average build, but whose gaze was exceptionally calm.

Li Mu, ranked 23rd in the grade.

Upon hearing his name, Li Mu’s body visibly stiffened.

He raised his head, glanced at Lin Ye on the stage, then at Sun Qian’s murderous glare. His lips moved, his face a mask of reluctance.

’I know I’m not weak, but then again, neither were Shen Junhao and Wang Hao. I don’t want to take the risk, especially since I’m trying to woo a girl in my class. It would be one thing if I could go up and secure a clean win. But a draw, or worse, a loss to someone from Class 7? My dating prospects for the next six months would be completely shot.’

"Mr. Su, I..."

Li Mu’s hesitation only fueled Sun Qian’s fury.

He pointed at Li Mu and roared, "I told you to go! Did you hear me?! You’re going to disgrace all of Class 1 today!"

The roar echoed throughout the massive training hall, sounding exceptionally harsh.

Everyone was stunned by Sun Qian’s sudden loss of composure.

The usually calm and composed homeroom teacher seemed to have truly lost his temper today.

Just then, however, Chen Meng suddenly spoke up.

"Mr. Su, don’t make things difficult for your student."

"I can see everyone’s tempers are flaring. These little skirmishes are pointless."

"Since the mood is already like this, and all the geniuses from your class are here, why don’t we raise the stakes?"

"How about we go straight to a Positional Blood Battle?"

A Positional Blood Battle!

The moment those three words were spoken, the entire training hall erupted in an uproar!

Looks of astonishment appeared on every student’s face. Even Xv Zhisheng, the homeroom teacher of Class 2 who had been watching from the sidelines, had a change in expression.

The dagger was finally drawn!

He hadn’t brought Lin Ye here today for some friendly spar. This had been his goal from the very beginning!

But Chen Meng ignored everyone else and continued as if speaking to himself.

"I know that according to the rules of the Positional Blood Battle, a challenger can only challenge students ranked within thirty spots above them."

"My student here has been completely focused on his training for the past two months and hasn’t bothered with rankings, so he’s dropped past 80th place."

"But the two students you chose earlier were both ranked in the 30s for the grade, so you’ve already broken the rules."

"How about this? We’ll go by his highest rank of 42nd, which he got after the placement test."

"You call out the students from your class ranked 12th, 11th, and 10th in the grade."

"My student will stay right here on this stage. No rest, no leaving."

"He’ll fight three consecutive matches!"

"A gauntlet match!"

"How about it?"

As soon as he said this, the entire hall was dumbfounded.

Even Lin Ye felt that Mr. Chen might have been a bit too arrogant this time.

’Of course, I have no objections. I came here to complete a mission today, after all. And I’m still a long way from reaching my goal.’

After a brief moment of shock, Sun Qian actually calmed down. He looked at Chen Meng, a cold sneer appearing on his face.

"So that was your plan all along."

"Dream on."

"Why on earth should I agree to your demand?"

That’s right, why should he agree?

It was completely against the rules. He had every reason to refuse.

Just then, a resonant and somewhat playful voice drifted in from the entrance of the training hall.

"How interesting. I think it sounds just fine."

The crowd turned toward the voice.

They saw a man with slightly graying hair, yet hale and full of spirit, walking in from the entrance.

Seeing the newcomer, Sun Qian’s face was a picture of astonishment.

"Prin... Principal! What are you doing here?"

Wang Zhengguo strolled in with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping across the hall before finally landing on Sun Qian.

"I was just passing by and heard you roaring in here, Mr. Su. Quite the booming voice you have."

"I was wondering which underachieving student had made you so angry, so I came in to have a look."

His tone was casual, but it instantly caused beads of cold sweat to break out on Sun Qian’s forehead.

Wang Zhengguo’s gaze went past Sun Qian to meet Chen Meng’s.

Then, his eyes fell upon Lin Ye on the stage, sizing him up with great interest.

"Mengzi, is this the boy you came looking for me for, to apply for that scholarship for him after the last placement test?"

"Battalion Commander, that’s him!"

"This kid is the most talented and best-tempered prospect I’ve found in years!"

The words "Battalion Commander" struck Sun Qian’s mind like a clap of thunder!

He was completely stunned.

’Chen Meng... calls the Principal "Battalion Commander"?!’

In that instant, everything became clear to Sun Qian.

He understood why Chen Meng, a teacher who only managed the lowest-ranked class, could still be in the principal’s good graces.

He understood even more why the principal would make an exception and grant a B-rank incentive to a student Chen Meng had his eye on.

’It all made sense... they used to be superior and subordinate! A life-and-death bond forged on the battlefield!’

Wang Zhengguo turned to Sun Qian, his smile fading slightly.

"Mr. Su, Dongjiang First Middle School was founded on martial principles, and we advocate for building character through them."

"The Positional Blood Battle system was established precisely to motivate these future pillars of our society, to keep them competitive and full of fighting spirit."

"So, do you have some objection to this core system of the school?"

It was a heavy accusation, dropped right on his head.

Sun Qian shuddered and shook his head frantically. "No, not at all! I absolutely support the school’s systems!"

"Good that you don’t."

Wang Zhengguo nodded and continued, "Besides, Mr. Chen is proposing a gauntlet match with no breaks. The one who will suffer the most from stamina drain is his own student."

"Three of your students, well-rested, taking on one opponent in a gauntlet."

"And you’re afraid of that?"

Every one of Wang Zhengguo’s words was like a hammer blow to Sun Qian’s heart, leaving him no room to argue.

He knew he had no way out.

He had to agree, whether he wanted to or not.

"Yes, Principal!"

Sun Qian gritted his teeth, practically squeezing those two words from between them.

A triumphant arc formed at the corner of Chen Meng’s mouth. He called Lin Ye down from the stage and quickly explained in a low voice.

"The Positional Blood Battle is a system our school established in imitation of Dongjiang Experimental Middle School."

"Simply put, the higher your school ranking, the more training resources you can receive each week, and of better quality."

"But lower-ranked students can challenge those in higher positions, and the higher-ranked student is not allowed to refuse."

"If you win, your ranks and resource allocations are swapped on the spot."

Chen Meng clapped Lin Ye on the shoulder, his tone growing serious.

"However, if you lose, all of your training resources for the following week will be forfeited to the victor as spoils of war."

"I took the liberty of lining up the three highest-ranked opponents you can currently challenge. Are you scared?"

Lin Ye shook his head.

After hearing Mr. Chen’s explanation, the confusion in his mind was finally cleared up.

When he first heard the term, it just sounded so cringey and over-the-top.

’I didn’t expect these to be the rules.’

The biggest limitations in a gauntlet match are stamina loss and accumulated injuries.

But for him, who possessed the [Healing out of combat] mechanic, as long as there was a break of more than ten seconds between fights, his condition would rapidly recover.

’In that case, the more people I fight, the more negative emotional value I can collect.’

This was exactly what Lin Ye wanted.