When everyone reacted, the girl who took the lead immediately became the target of public criticism.
Many participating girls were in a panic, looking at Xu An with expressions that seemed to seek help.
"What do we do now?"
"I've already won one match. I prepared for a long time for this competition, and I don't want to give up like this."
"Yeah, I don't want to give up either. I've already won two consecutive matches."
"......."
They whispered among themselves, then shifted their gaze to Xu An.
A girl walked out from the crowd, her face flushed, looking timidly at Xu An's impassive face.
"What should we do now? Can you help us?"
Behind the girl, people kept chiming in. They seemed to have found a backbone, looking at Xu An with earnest eyes.
As Xu An was frowning, Zhou Haimei's voice came from a distance, and Xu An's frown slowly relaxed.
"An'an, why haven't you finished yet?"
Zhou Haimei looked at the crowd surrounding Xu An, a hint of displeasure flashing across her face.
She was all too familiar with this situation. After all, these brainless fools, who were easily incited and used as shields, were not unique to Xu An's situation.
She had encountered many hecklers from the audience during her own matches, but she had always managed to curse them away.
She didn't expect these people to be so pervasive, causing trouble even for Xu An.
It was as if...
The more Zhou Haimei thought about it, the more shocked she became!
It was as if someone was deliberately instigating gender conflict on the lighthouse!
Just as she was about to speak, someone else spoke before her, preempting her.
The woman who led the protest looked resentfully at the approaching Zhou Haimei and Xu An, making a final desperate struggle.
She yelled at Xu An, "You're amazing, but how long can you be amazing? Did you think I led the sisters to protest for myself? No! I did it for everyone!"
"You are a thorough egoist. Because you are powerful alone, you don't care about anyone else's life or death?"
Not everyone in the crowd was stupid. Many heard a hint of forced moral blackmail in the woman's words.
"What? Are you saying you're doing this to help these people behind you?"
"Of course! You are the one who is inhuman, selfish, and greedy!"
Xu An found it amusing. Looking at the woman's ferocious face, she was genuinely curious how someone could lie and even believe it themselves.
"Since you are so selfless, why is your protest sign demanding a reorganization of the competition format? Competitions between female contestants, with corresponding slots?"
The woman's tone faltered, "This is for everyone's good. Our combat strength is inherently inferior to men, so we should indeed compete separately, girls against girls."
"Oh, then you are truly 'sacrificing yourself for others'." Xu An's words were loaded with meaning, her implied message being obvious.
This woman was clearly nakedly promoting internal competition among women.
If the competition format were indeed reorganized for women to compete against each other, those women who were capable of competing with men would be forced into "internal competition."
While the woman was hysterically protesting, Xu An lost the patience to engage with her.
"I wonder if you've ever heard a saying,"
The woman said angrily, "Speak quickly!"
Xu An smiled coldly, "When the apocalypse comes, kill the saints first!"
This statement indeed stunned the woman. Some of her accomplices in the crowd quickly pulled her away, and they slunk away from the crowd.
However, Xu An had already deeply imprinted these faces in her memory.
Looking at the group of girls who had not yet left and were still staring at her, Xu An was too lazy to waste any more words on them.
"What are you still standing here for? Go home and train, do what you need to do. Please stay away from me, thank you."
Xu An's unreserved dismissal made these girls feel embarrassed. They exchanged sheepish glances, dispersed listlessly, and melted back into the crowd, disappearing.
"You're still too kind. You shouldn't have been nice to these people."
Xu An remained noncommittal but asked an unrelated question.
"Mei-jie, is someone instigating things behind the scenes?"
Such a low-level divisive tactic, anyone with a brain would figure it out quickly.
Zhou Haimei nodded, praising Xu An while a chill flickered in her eyes.
Looking at Zhou Haimei's expression, Xu An also guessed that this protest must have been planned by someone. As for Zhou Haimei's comment about kindness?
She lowered her head and smiled. She was not kind at all. She clearly remembered those few people in her heart.
......
As the competition progressed, Xu An and Zhou Haimei's rankings also soared. As of now, Xu An was ranked 18th, and Zhou Haimei was 15th.
Tomorrow would be the selection round for the top 20.
As the matches advanced, the competition was no longer just about simple fistfights; the events became increasingly varied.
Equestrian, shooting, firearm disassembly, and so on...
No one is perfect, and there's always someone better. During this period, Xu An benefited greatly from Zhou Haimei's prior training. Although she lost some matches, her overall ranking remained high.
As the rankings drew closer, the contestants who made it this far were all exceptional individuals.
One day, after a match, Zhou Haimei came to pull Xu An along to draw lots.
As the number of participants decreased, the possibility of them becoming opponents grew larger.
Fortunately, Xu An and Zhou Haimei had not yet encountered each other.
"But honestly, I really want to have another match with you. You were deliberately holding back during our previous competition, weren't you?" Xu An asked, smiling at Zhou Haimei.
"It wasn't exactly holding back, but rather testing your potential. However, I truly felt a sense of immediate kinship with you."
Zhou Haimei answered candidly, without any reservations. Not only Xu An but Zhou Haimei herself was amazed by Xu An's significant transformation in just one month.
She also wanted to have a no-holds-barred match with Xu An, to see how far Xu An had grown.
Upon arriving at the lot-drawing venue, it was already crowded with many participants who had qualified for the current stage of the competition.
However, there were few individuals as close as Xu An and Zhou Haimei.
Today's friends could very well become tomorrow's enemies.
During this past month, it wasn't uncommon for so-called "friends" to stab their allies in the back on the arena.
Learning from the lessons of those before them, everyone maintained a suitable distance from those around them.
People like Xu An and Zhou Haimei, walking arm in arm to the lot drawing, were a sight no one had witnessed before.