"Referee!"

Xiao Xi turned her head to look at the referee who was still a bit dazed. The referee then suddenly snapped out of it and looked at Xiao Xi with a bit more reverence.

Then, the referee announced Xiao Xi's victory.

Xiao Xi swiftly turned around and walked off the platform with a cold demeanor, heading all the way to the contestants' resting area.

Tie Xuan saw Xiao Xi approaching and couldn't help but step forward to congratulate her.

"Congratulations on making the top thirty-two, Xiao the beautiful! You hid your strength so well; I never expected such terrifying power from someone with such a delicate body."

Tie Xuan sincerely congratulated her, being someone straightforward and without hidden agendas.

"Congratulations."

Li Feng offered his congratulations.

Xiao Xi walked up, whispered something to Li Feng, then turned and walked towards the corridor behind them.

Tie Xuan felt a bit awkward at being so ignored.

Li Feng turned to Tie Xuan: "What are you thinking? Didn't you see her clothes? She doesn't have the time to chat with you."

Tie Xuan, upon hearing this, suddenly realized.

That 'rogue' from the Tang Sect had publicly left Xiao Xi in tattered clothes, exposing her in view.

However, Xiao Xi's stunning display with the Overlord Spear made people instinctively overlook this point, no wonder she walked away so hurriedly.

"Look at me, not noticing these details."

"I'll go check on her," Li Feng said.

"Okay, good. I won't go. It's almost my turn in two rounds."

"Do well, I believe in your ability."

"Hmm!"

Tie Xuan nodded heavily, and Li Feng patted Tie Xuan on the shoulder, swiftly turned and left, taking a turn at the corridor entrance.

He then saw Xiao Xi leaning against the wall.

"What's wrong?"

Li Feng looked at Xiao Xi with concern. Earlier in the contestants' area, Xiao Xi had given Li Feng a look and softly asked him to follow her.

Xiao Xi bit her lip and looked up at Li Feng: "Take me back to the hotel."

"Hmm?"

Before Li Feng could react, Xiao Xi collapsed into his arms. Only then did Li Feng realize something was wrong with Xiao Xi's body; she was exhausted, and it was already an impressive feat for her to have held on this long.

Li Feng looked at Xiao Xi.

It seemed using the Overlord Spear was quite a strain for her; that last move, though unmatched in power, was tough for Xiao Xi, who, after all, was a woman, inherently weaker in physique than men, an unavoidable situation.

If the Overlord Spear were wielded by someone from the Xiang Family Five Tigers, such aftereffects would not occur.

Li Feng picked Xiao Xi up horizontally, directly leaving the Grand Martial Arts Arena. Today's match was only to decide the top thirty-two, with no further matches scheduled.

Having finished his own match, Li Feng naturally had no worries.

Escorting Xiao Xi back to the hotel, Li Feng placed her on the bed in her room and looked at Xiao Xi's hands, already covered in bloody blisters.

And that wasn't all; due to overexertion, her body muscles were overloaded, leading to muscle knots.

"Did you need to push yourself this hard?"

Li Feng looked at Xiao Xi and asked.

"You don't understand."

Xiao Xi shook her head, but her eyes were unusually determined. Given another chance, she would still make the same choice.

"Thank you for bringing me back. You can leave now."

Li Feng looked at the ousting gesture from Xiao Xi but didn't immediately leave. Instead, he reached out towards her arm.

"What are you doing?"

Xiao Xi's eyes widened with surprise.

"Don't overthink. With your muscles knotted, enduring it only leaves hidden injuries. The Martial Arts Tournament isn't over in just one match. Are you going to forfeit the next one? Then what was the point of giving your all in this one?"

"Hmph, don't overthink it yourself."

Xiao Xi bit her cherry lips, stubborn as ever, yet she didn't chase Li Feng away.

Li Feng helped relax her muscles a bit; her use of the Overlord Spear was really a case of killing one thousand enemies at the cost of injuring eight hundred of your own.

After all, the domineering heavy weapon like the Overlord Spear requires a very high physique threshold, and Xiao Xi, weighing barely a hundred pounds with her lithe figure, was bound to injure herself playing with it.

No wonder she had never shown this before.

It wasn't that she didn't want to; rather, using the Overlord Spear was too damaging to the body.

As for why she pushed so hard, perhaps it was due to the sneaky tricks the Tang Sect pulled a few days ago, or maybe there was another underlying reason.

Perhaps, even if not for the Tang Sect, Xiao Xi would still go all out.

"Wait here for a moment. I have some medicinal spirit for injuries. I'll fetch it and apply it, and a massage might help you recover seventy to eighty percent, but don't use that Overlord Spear for now."

"Hmph hmph."

Xiao Xi hummed twice through her dainty nose: "Hurry up, stop being so wordy."

Li Feng turned to fetch the medicinal spirit. Xiao Xi watched him leave, her face blushing, and muttered under her breath: "Just using the chance to take advantage."

Li Feng quickly returned. Though Xiao Xi was unhappy about Li Feng's "taking advantage," deep down, she knew her own situation—exhausted, with muscle strain.

At this moment, if Li Feng really tried something, she could only grit her teeth and bear it.

Moreover, given this condition, it might take at least several days for her to recover.

"Hey, can I really recover seventy to eighty percent by tomorrow? Don't just make up nonsense to take advantage of me. I consider you a friend."

Xiao Xi said while biting her pearly teeth.

Li Feng opened an old jar. This medicinal spirit was concocted by his grandfather; people practicing martial arts inevitably bump into things, and having such a remedy is a must.

"Rest assured, I wouldn't lie to you."

Li Feng was also speechless at Xiao Xi's talk about taking advantage, turning a serious treatment into something suggestive.

Xiao Xi pouted.

"Alright, I trust you this time. Come on." Saying that, Xiao Xi closed her eyes, giving off a defiant vibe, ready to face whatever came.

Li Feng could only chuckle helplessly.

But he didn't hesitate. Given her current injuries, if the muscles weren't massaged immediately to relieve tension, it would take at least ten days to half a month for a full recovery.

Forget standing in the competition tomorrow; even walking would be a problem.

"Bear the pain."

"I won't scream."

Li Feng rolled his eyes...

The ancient medicinal massage isn't like those superficial massages at foot spas or spa centers; it's based on acupoints and meridians, along with muscles and bones.

An expert could make you feel reborn.

When Li Feng studied medicine, his grandfather particularly taught him this, as the old man loved enjoying massages and couldn't sleep well without one for a few hours each day.

Thus, Xiao Xi experienced a baptism akin to a rebirth.

The night flowed like water.

The top thirty-two had all been decided.

Tie Xuan returned to the hotel after finishing all his matches, looking for Li Feng.

"Li Feng, you're here. Where's Xiao Xi?"

"She's injured and resting in the room."

"Injured?"

"Muscle exhaustion."

Li Feng explained.

Tie Xuan exclaimed in understanding and quickly realized what was going on: "No wonder, I was wondering why you two disappeared. How is she now?"

"I applied medicinal spirit on her, so it should ease it a bit. How's your match?"

Tie Xuan grinned.

"Lucky for me, I didn't face anyone too overpowering. Took some effort, but I won anyway."

"Oh, by the way, there might be some changes in tomorrow's match."

Tie Xuan mentioned suddenly.

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