The winners of the other two matches in the second round were quickly decided.
The Three Little Ones warmed up on the field under everyone's gaze for a long time, finally getting used to the tension of the match.
"Whew, it looks like it's almost our turn."
Ankang saw that the other two fields were being cleared, preparing for a new round of matches.
"Your Highness, with Li Xuan on our side, if we just try our best, we'll definitely win!"
Yuer encouraged her.
Ankang also nodded with a smile.
These two girls had placed the burden of victory entirely on him, Li Xuan shook his head helplessly, and feigned a sigh, "Abusing weak opponents was never my intention, but reality has forced my hand."
However, Li Xuan also knew the saying, 'A tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind.'
Especially since he had heard many people whispering below about how to deal with the Eighth Prince.
The Eighth Prince had previously won a match ostentatiously with the help of A Xiang.
But this also pushed him into the spotlight.
Anyone who wanted to win the final victory had to overcome him.
In particular, the Third Prince, who was at odds with the Eighth Prince, had already started to scheme, and Li Xuan unexpectedly overheard snippets of his plans.
Even in the noisy stadium, Li Xuan, relying on his excellent hearing, could almost clearly capture everyone's conversations and filter them one by one to extract important information.
"It seems I'll have to win discreetly later."
Li Xuan rolled his eyes, revealing a mischievous smile.
For him, winning this Qúc Ju match was not difficult.
Even with the Eighth Prince having A Xiang's help, Li Xuan was confident he could handle it easily.
If he wanted to win discreetly, he would have to pay attention to some details.
Just as Li Xuan was pondering how to do it, the contestants for the third round began to enter the field one after another.
The Sixth Princess, accompanied by two powerful Flower-Clothed Eunuchs, entered the field with an arrogant swagger, standing opposite the Three Little Ones.
"This big-chested girl is so arrogant."
Li Xuan's eye twitched; he couldn't stand the Sixth Princess's arrogant attitude.
The Sixth Princess had never gained an advantage against them, so he didn't know why she was being so arrogant.
Li Xuan involuntarily turned his gaze to the Sixth Princess's ample chest.
"Is it true that big breasts mean no brains?"
"It seems the available nutrition is ultimately limited."
"Can it only nourish one side?"
Just as Li Xuan was seriously contemplating the mysteries of the human body, the match had already begun.
Ankang and the Sixth Princess walked to the center of the field and, under the refereeing of the Flower-Clothed Eunuchs, performed a simple coin toss to choose sides.
The team that didn't win the toss could choose to kick off first.
Ankang successfully won the toss and chose the half of the field they had been warming up on.
After all, they had already gotten used to it for a while, and switching to the other side would require another adjustment.
Although the two teams would switch sides in the second half, Ankang still felt it was important to start the match well.
The Sixth Princess, who lost the toss, snorted coldly.
In her opinion, no matter which side Ankang chose, it wouldn't change the outcome of the match.
On this point, Li Xuan agreed with the Sixth Princess's view.
But the Sixth Princess was simply annoyed that Ankang had managed to win even in such a simple side selection.
It seemed that ever since she failed to defeat Ankang in the Autumn Hunt, she had developed an obsession with winning against Ankang at least once.
The Three Little Ones naturally couldn't understand the Sixth Princess's thoughts, only finding the woman inexplicable.
"Hmph, letting me kick off is the biggest mistake you've made!"
The Sixth Princess stood in position, holding the ball, intending to kick it directly into the goal with one powerful strike as soon as the referee blew the whistle, making the two people and one cat opposite regret it deeply.
Off the field, the First Prince and the Fourth Brother watched the match, appearing very calm.
"Fourth Brother, it shouldn't be a problem for Sixth Sister to defeat Ankang, right?"
"After all, it's a real test of strength; Ankang no longer has any room for trickery."
"I've never heard of Ankang playing Qúc Ju before; she probably just practiced a few kicks these past few days."
The First Prince had already discerned some things from Ankang's warm-up movements.
Although her movements were standard, the unfamiliarity was still undeniable.
After all, ball skills require accumulated time.
"Let's hope so."
To the First Prince's words, the Fourth Brother merely responded thus.
"Oh, Fourth Brother, do you think there will be any surprises?"
The First Prince frowned; he knew his younger brother's intuition was always very accurate.
"Ankang has won every match so far, which time hasn't been surprising?"
The Fourth Brother shook his head, and these words left the First Prince speechless.
Before the Imperial Garden competition began, who could have predicted that this princess, who lived in the Cold Palace and had the lowest sense of presence, would perform so brilliantly?
"Moreover, I'm understanding Ankang less and less."
"I don't even know when she started to become so unfathomable."
The Fourth Brother stared intently at Ankang on the field, speaking from the heart.
He prided himself on knowing the situation in the palace like the back of his hand, yet he had overlooked Ankang.
The Fourth Brother was deeply affected by Ankang's changes during this period.
He could no longer discern when Ankang had begun to lie low, or which of her previous behaviors in front of him were genuine and which were fabricated.
Ankang's changes during this period were simply too significant.
The Fourth Brother racked his brains but could not come up with a reasonable explanation.
And the slightly more reasonable explanation he did come up with made him feel overly horrified.
In the palace, the Fourth Brother could only think of their Emperor Yongyuan as someone with the means and willingness to support Ankang.
But if everything was the Emperor Yongyuan's arrangement…
Even the Fourth Brother dared not dwell on this conjecture.
At this moment, a whistle on the field interrupted the Fourth Brother's thoughts.
On the field, the Sixth Princess, holding the ball, didn't pass much; she immediately swung a slender, toned leg backward, directly above her head, performing a perfect standing split.
Immediately after, the Sixth Princess released the ball from her hand, while simultaneously swinging her leg forward forcefully, sweeping towards the ball with a roar.
Although her Qúc Ju skills were mediocre, with the foundation of an eighth-rank martial artist, she was very proficient in controlling her body.
With a simple movement, she utilized her body weight to unleash maximum power, striking the ball with a muffled thud.
The Sixth Princess's figure bounced slightly forward due to the intense movement, while the distorted ball, kicked with immense force, shot towards the goal like a bolt of lightning.
It was fortunate that the ball used in the match was sturdy; otherwise, an ordinary ball would have been burst by the Sixth Princess.
"Meow, so fierce right from the start?"
Li Xuan yawned, calmly watching the ball.
He didn't want to be like the Eighth Prince, kicking someone to zero points and making them collapse and abandon the match halfway.
Li Xuan thought about controlling the score, so that everyone else would focus their firepower on the Eighth Prince, allowing them to advance discreetly and save some energy.
"Forget it, since you're so serious."
"I'll concede this point."
Li Xuan looked lazy, with no hint of fighting spirit in his eyes; he was practically ready to lie down on the field and scratch his bells like a spectator.
But just as Li Xuan was waiting for the Sixth Princess to score the first point, a figure suddenly flew up into the air, performing the exact same move as the Eighth Prince earlier.
An overhead kick!
With a loud thud, the ball and the figure made contact, immediately changing direction and soaring high into the sky.
"Ah!"
At the same time, a scream rang out, and Ankang, who had blocked the ball, was spun rapidly by the force of the kick, clearly losing control of her body.
When she touched the ball earlier, she barely managed to hook it with her toe, but the power on the ball was so immense that it made her body spin up and down, showing just how powerful it was.
"Your Highness, I'll catch you!"
Yuer said, pulling a ribbon from her sleeve, intending to catch Ankang's body.
While the two teams couldn't have physical contact with each other, contact within the same team was allowed.
Otherwise, the Eighth Prince wouldn't have been able to use his Flower-Clothed Eunuch, Mizi, as leverage earlier.
"Don't mind me!"
"Catch the ball first!"
Ankang was spinning, yet she was still only concerned with the ball.
She had just managed to learn the Eighth Prince's move and block the Sixth Princess's full-power strike, so she naturally didn't want all her effort to go to waste.
After intercepting the ball, if a teammate didn't keep it in play and let it hit the ground, possession would be returned to the opposing team.
Yuer was naturally more concerned about Ankang's safety, but with Ankang's command, she couldn't disobey.
Just as Yuer was in a dilemma, Ankang suddenly used force in the direction of her body's rotation, curling up and shrinking into a ball.
Ankang's body spun faster and faster, but she slowly regained control of her body.
Seeing this, Yuer no longer hesitated, immediately abandoning the idea of catching Ankang, and sprinted towards the ball's landing spot, performing a slide tackle.
Just as the ball was about to hit the ground, Yuer narrowly managed to send it back into the air.
At the same time, Ankang tumbled an unknown number of times in the air, finally landing steadily without even a hint of a stumble.
She was like a gymnast, extending both arms straight forward to control her balance, and slightly bending her knees to absorb the impact of the landing.
"Perfect score!"
Li Xuan excitedly slapped the ground with his tail; if he didn't have a scoreboard, he would have given Ankang a ten.
Ankang and Yuer both delivered a perfect performance in their first encounter.
Then, the two girls looked at the ball, which was back in the air, and called out in unison:
"Li Xuan, it's your turn!"
Li Xuan instantly stood on his hind legs, infected by their enthusiasm, and suddenly became full of fighting spirit.
"I was going to play it cool, but it seems I can't."
Li Xuan smiled helplessly, but his smile was full of indulgence.
"Since that's the case, I won't hold back either!"
Li Xuan suddenly lifted one of his two hind legs that were supporting him on the ground.
That strong, powerful hind leg pointed high into the sky, exactly mimicking the Sixth Princess's earlier movement.
"What!?"
"They're letting a cat shoot!?"
The Sixth Princess felt humiliated and was filled with uncontrollable rage.
But her earlier shot being blocked by Ankang had already made her angry enough.
Now, seeing Li Xuan imitate her movement to kick the ball, she found it even more absurd.
"Ankang must have taught it, deliberately making this cat humiliate me."
The Sixth Princess didn't take Li Xuan's shot seriously; in her opinion, it was already miraculous enough that a cat could imitate her movements.
As for how powerful the shot could be, she hadn't considered it at all.
Seeing their mistress getting angry, the two Flower-Clothed Eunuchs behind the Sixth Princess silently stepped forward, intending to get the ball and help the Sixth Princess organize the next attack.
They also didn't think that the Little Cat, which barely reached their knees when standing, could pose any threat.
Most people in the audience shared this thought; no one had any expectations for Li Xuan's attack, only watching in wonder as this Little Black Cat could imitate the Sixth Princess's movements, which was novel enough for them.
But the Eighth Prince on the sidelines watched with extreme seriousness, not daring to blink.
In his previous encounters, he had vaguely sensed Li Xuan's uniqueness, but had never been able to confirm it himself.
If the Eighth Prince hadn't had A Xiang's reaction as a reference, he probably would have found it difficult to notice.
But after several times, finding that A Xiang was particularly uncomfortable in front of Li Xuan, he began to pay attention to this Little Black Cat that Ankang kept.
And now, he seemed to be getting an answer.
In a corner of the Imperial Garden, Chief Steward Shang and Zhao Feng were watching the match.
Seeing Li Xuan raise his leg so seriously, Chief Steward Shang couldn't help but nudge his adopted son with his elbow.
"Go, don't let Li Xuan cause a fatality."
Zhao Feng walked away, but muttered, "It won't be that bad, will it?"
But he was used to obeying his godfather's words; though he said so, his steps were not slow at all.
Chief Steward Shang silently shook his head, without much further explanation.
Just as everyone reacted differently, the ball slowly descended in front of Li Xuan.
Li Xuan watched the ball drop in front of him, and his highly raised hind leg swept forward fiercely, just like the Sixth Princess.
At this moment, the Sixth Princess and her two Flower-Clothed Eunuchs, who were facing this ball, suddenly stiffened, feeling as if their hearts had skipped a beat.
When their heartbeats resumed, the ball had already disappeared from their sight.
Li Xuan's hind leg also extended straight forward, his cat paw pointing directly at the Fengliu Eye opposite.
The Sixth Princess seemed to see a strange smile on this cat's face, and as she was feeling surprised and uncertain, she noticed a few strands of her hair falling to the ground, neatly broken at the roots.
"This is…"
"My hair?"
The Sixth Princess looked at the hair on the ground and instinctively touched her temple, realizing that her meticulously tied hair was somehow a bit messy.
Bang!
A muffled thud.
Everyone's attention was drawn.
Behind the Sixth Princess's Fengliu Eye, Zhao Feng's figure floated down from the air, holding the remnants of the ball in his hand.
If he hadn't stopped this ball just now, who knows where it would have shot in the palace.
"Point valid, play continues."
Zhao Feng said coldly, glaring at Li Xuan in secret.
Instantly, the stadium erupted in an uproar.
"What the hell kind of heaven-defying Little Cat is that!?"
In the stands, Li Xiong was the first to shout, and his imperial mother immediately pinched his lips, making him shut up again.
Li Xiong's imperial mother, with one hand on her forehead, deeply buried her head in her lap, while her free hand firmly pinched her mischievous son's mouth, making him pucker up like a freshly caught culter fish.
The mischievous child seemed to have grown accustomed to it, obediently shutting his mouth without resisting.
But his eyes were fixed on the Little Cat on the field, full of curiosity.
Meanwhile, the First Prince and the Fourth Brother exchanged a silent glance, muttering:
"A rare beast!?"