As Xu An stepped onto the arena, an increasing number of women gathered in the stands below, their voices growing louder.
The clamor seemed to drown out the entire arena.
The previously silent crowd, however, began to bubble like boiling water.
Looking at Xu An on the stage, the girls in the stands suddenly felt a sense of mission to confront her.
"How can you calmly participate in the competition? Don't you know about the newly announced notice from the competition?"
Another girl looked around, mustered her courage, and spoke, "Yes, what's the point of you competing now? In the end, you'll just be doing the work for others. You should protest with us."
Countless girls stepped forward, but they all questioned Xu An in unison, asking why she wasn't joining their protest.
It wasn't just Xu An; on this day, almost every female contestant who stepped onto the arena faced similar "condemnation."
Not everyone had a heart as strong as Xu An's, able to endure the criticism from below and continue participating.
Many girls stood on the stage, helpless, their eyes red, not knowing what they had done wrong.
The denunciation from below continued, but the referee's cold voice unceremoniously announced the start.
Xu An's brow didn't even furrow. Almost as soon as the referee's voice fell, she shot out like an arrow released from a bow, "Swoosh—"
As those below were about to speak further, they were stopped.
A round-faced girl with pigtails and timid eyes stepped forward. Though scared, her voice, while trembling, carried an undeniable firmness.
"Sisters, the competition has already started. We shouldn't be condemning the girl on the stage anymore. What if our shouting affects her match?"
Many in the crowd agreed with the round-faced girl's statement. They had come out to protest to express their dissatisfaction with the official's new regulation.
They believed it further squeezed the living space for women.
But they didn't want to affect someone else's competition. If, just in case, the girl on the stage could have won, but lost because of their heckling, wouldn't that be a loss outweighing any gain?
As this thought gained more and more approval, many nodded silently, expressing their agreement.
However, the girl who had initially led the resistance frowned. She glared fiercely at the round-faced girl, then appeased everyone else.
"We are only fighting for our rightful interests. How can we be considered troublemakers?"
"If the积分争夺赛 (score-grabbing competition) really starts, that woman on the stage, even if she wins, won't her points be snatched away directly by a stronger player? We are helping her by doing this, so how can it be considered harming her?"
The leading woman spoke eloquently and persuasively, "Think about it, we are fighting for the rights that the vast majority of women deserve. Even if the one on the stage truly loses the match, it is to pave the way for the rights of all women, and that's nothing. She herself will still benefit in the end."
The conversation below continued. Xu An, who could vaguely hear their dialogue, smirked.
Today's opponent was of a regular level, and she could handle it with relative ease, even having the time to listen to the people below argue.
Wanting to fight for one's own rights was not wrong, but were these people mistaken about the context?
Where were they? This was the apocalypse, a lighthouse, and who would care about so-called "women's rights"?
The match on the stage continued. Xu An was crushing her opponent with an overwhelming victory. The leading girl in the stands noticed that Xu An was not only unaffected but even seemed to be on the verge of winning.
And the girls below also looked shaken. Many felt that what the round-faced girl had said earlier was correct.
While fighting for their own rights, they shouldn't affect others.
The woman realized her influence over these people was dissolving. She glared resentfully at Xu An on the stage, then at the girl in the crowd who had tried to challenge her, gritting her teeth, plotting something unknown.
Just as she was about to shout, she saw Xu An leap high into the air from her spot and charge towards her opponent.
Unlike the initial lukewarm pace, Xu An seemed to have transformed into a different person. Her moves were ruthless and incredibly sharp, with an unprecedented chill emanating from her eyes.
Everyone present felt a chill down their spines. The woman below, who had intended to shout loudly to disrupt Xu An's attention, immediately fell silent, her throat feeling as if it had been stuffed with a block of ice, freezing her speechless.
She felt as if her back was being stared at by a giant python, its tongue flicking, filling her with dread.
As silence descended upon the stands, the battle on the stage became fierce and intense. Xu An's punches carried the force of the wind, hitting her opponent so hard they couldn't defend themselves.
Her opponent, who had initially thought Xu An was just average, now looked at her with newfound respect.
Xu An's match against Zhou Xiong yesterday was the most wagered-upon match, attracting significant attention. The man had his own match yesterday and hadn't witnessed Xu An's fight with Zhou Xiong.
Only after yesterday's draw did he realize he had been matched against Xu An.
His companions had warned him not to underestimate Xu An, calling her a formidable opponent who could defeat Zhou Xiong.
The man had initially dismissed it, thinking Xu An was just lucky.
From the first exchange, he felt as if he was being toyed with, but he shook his head, believing it was just an illusion.
He never expected that Xu An hadn't exerted her full strength from the beginning and was only now truly starting to exert her power.
Hundreds of people in the stands were watching Xu An's leap at this moment, finding her jumping ability astonishing.
Especially the girls who had been clamoring earlier. Seeing Xu An so effortlessly toying with her opponent, they seemed to understand something.
There was no comparison more powerful than one's own strength.
The noise from the crowd gradually subsided. Xu An, through a silent battle, was telling the girls in the stands a lesson.
On the lighthouse, only strength spoke. Any form of protest was futile.
At the same time, it wasn't just the surrounding spectators who were paying attention to this farce in the stands.
The commander who had helped Xu An yesterday was also watching the scene on the arena from not too far away.
"What are you looking at?" a middle-aged man beside him asked his old friend, wondering why he had dragged him out of bed early in the morning to watch a competition.
A hint of a smile appeared on the man's stern face. Perhaps due to not smiling for a long time, his expression was stiff, his smile looking worse than a cry.
"Is that little girl the good prospect you were talking about?" Old Master Qin pointed at Xu An on the stage, his eyes holding a hint of disdain, and sighed.
Chen Xu ignored the disdain in his opponent's words. "This girl is no less than your grandson. And she's grown wild. With even a little systematic training, your grandson wouldn't even stand a chance!"