Dan Min’s every move was a killer technique honed in past arena fights.
Li Qiao had been seriously injured by her, and the subsequent attacks would surely expose weaknesses.
Dan Min didn’t just want to defeat Li Qiao; she wanted her life.
Just as Dan Min had anticipated, Li Qiao’s actions were indeed limited due to the severe injury to her flank ribs.
Even if the audience couldn’t tell, the strength of her left-handed punches was obviously much weaker than before.
Dan Min’s attacks grew more and more ferocious; within minutes of exchanging blows, Li Qiao had taken three punches from her.
With a "bang," the slender figure staggered backward, crashing into the iron fencing of the ring.
Li Qiao nearly rebounded onto the ground due to the inertia, but she managed to steady herself by gripping the gaps in the wire mesh with her fingers.
Li San and Luoyu, among others, called out her name anxiously from below the stage.
Back against the wire mesh, Li Qiao gasped a few times, pursed her lips, lifted her head, and slowly, a trace of blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.
She didn’t turn around, not wanting her third brother and Shang Yu to see her spitting blood.
Li Qiao wiped the blood with the back of her hand, cleared her throat, and the light in her eyes grew even more intense than before.
"Li Qiao, if you kneel and admit defeat, I might consider sparing your life," Dan Min said.
In fact, Dan Min wasn’t as composed as she appeared to be; she had several bruises, and the corner of her eye was swollen.
Just now, her knee had also been kicked by Li Qiao; if it weren’t for the iron knee pads, her kneecap would have probably been shattered.
At that moment, swallowing the taste of iron in her throat, with the corners of her mouth curved upwards, Li Qiao, using the rebound force of the wire mesh, charged toward Dan Min again.
As the adrenaline surged, the pain in her body could almost be ignored.
Kneel and admit defeat?
Her teacher had taught her all the combat techniques but never taught her how to surrender.
The sudden burst of determination from Li Qiao not only secretly alarmed Dan Min but also ignited her desire to win.
She would take Li Qiao’s life tonight, without fail.
In terms of physical prowess, Dan Min was indeed slightly superior.
But she didn’t know that Li Qiao was better at attacking the mind and using tactics.
Just now, she had taken three punches and seemed to be continuously pushed back by Dan Min.
In the hard-to-determine battle, once the opponent suddenly seemed to be at a disadvantage, Dan Min, proud as she was, would inevitably think she had secured the victory.
And the more she wanted to win, the harder and faster her strikes became, and thus the more likely she was to reveal her vulnerabilities.
That’s the moment Li Qiao was waiting for.
So, when she gritted her teeth to withstand Dan Min’s elbow strike and pretended to retreat, upon seeing Dan Min’s cold smile of anticipated victory, Li Qiao unexpectedly launched a counterattack.
She twirled her body, forcefully stepped on Dan Min’s knee with her left foot, leapt up using it as a prop, and delivered a powerful knee to her temple.
That was one of the human body’s most vulnerable spots.
In the previous exchange of blows, both of them had aimed for the other’s temple but had been guarded, neither succeeding.
This time, enduring the agony of her compounded injuries, Li Qiao succeeded in her surprise attack.
Dan Min’s sturdy figure couldn’t stop retreating until she crashed into the wire mesh; she wanted to strike back, but everything before her went dark.
Then, the recoil force of the wire mesh caused Dan Min to stagger and fall to the ground.
The fight wasn’t over yet.
A blow to the temple would only cause temporary unconsciousness.
Li Qiao wanted to ensure that Dan Min couldn’t stand up again tonight, that she would never look at Shang Yu again.
So, kneeling on one knee on the ground, she punched fiercely at Dan Min’s left eye, and then, her right eye didn’t escape either.
These eyes had looked at someone they shouldn’t have seen.
By now, Dan Min had regained consciousness, but the excruciating pain in both eyes made her scream uncontrollably.
She could be injured, but her eyes couldn’t be destroyed.
Because Dan Min suddenly remembered, it was also in this ring that she had once blinded a challenger.
But she was the Female Fist King of the Underground Boxing Gym, losing her eyes meant losing her stage.
Impossible! Absolutely impossible!
In an instant, Dan Min was ready to counter-attack, but just then, Li Qiao’s leg pressed timely against her chest.
She tried to bend her leg to flip Li Qiao over, but her temple was met with another punch.
A ringing sound started in her ears, accompanied by her consciousness gradually dissipating.
Dan Min completely lost the chance to fight back.
Soon, Li Qiao, grinding her teeth, landed three more punches on Dan Min’s face.
That was the hidden trouble she had suffered from before.
Dan Min’s nasal bone was broken again, with splatters of blood scattering all over the ring.
Before she lost consciousness, Li Qiao leaned down and whispered hoarsely in her ear, "How could he fancy someone as weak as you? He will only be mine, and you, are unworthy."
Li Qiao returned the mocking words Dan Min had said to her, word for word.
At the moment, Dan Min’s lips moved as if she wanted to speak, but after taking several blows to the head, she couldn’t utter a single word.
Li Qiao coldly glanced at her, then slowly pushed herself up from the ground, struggling to stand.
One lying down, one standing, the winner was clear.
Countless spotlights fell on Li Qiao, making her pale face shine like snow.
She stood still in the center of the ring, hair disheveled, blood on her lips, but her dark eyes still shone bright and clear.
Cheers erupted from the crowd, acclaiming such a rare close combat between female fighters.
Tonight, the ruler of the ring had changed.
The undefeated myth of the Female Fist King was toppled by the Border Seven Son’s Li Qiao.
At this moment, it was already past nine o’clock.
The referee stepped onto the ring and called for Dan Min for a long time, so long it had exceeded the decision time.
No one in the audience urged him, after all, ninety-nine percent had bet on Dan Min’s victory.
After a while, the referee had to face reality, casting a gloomy look at Li Qiao before finally stepping forward to raise her hand.
The host snapped back to reality and tightly grasped the microphone, his voice trembling as he announced the result of the match, "Congratulations, the challenger of the female boxing match, Li Qiao wins—"
Before long, the iron door of the ring opened, and Li Qiao, with a straight back, walked down the steps one by one.
Cheers passed by her ears, along with the laments of those whose bets had failed.
But Li Qiao didn’t look at anyone, facing the gaze of all the spectators, she slowly walked toward the backstage corridor of the boxing gym.
That retreating figure seemed fragile and delicate, yet as if it contained endless strength.
Li Qiao, her name was destined to stir up another frenzy in the Underground Boxing Gym.
However, at the moment she moved away from the audience, Li Qiao leaned against the wall and vomited a mouthful of blood.
Behind her, rapid footsteps approached, and her figure collapsed backward.
A pair of hands, caught her.
The familiar scent of ebony dispelled the blood smell on her, and Li Qiao lay in his arms, her voice as faint as a mosquito, "Hold me tight, I can’t stand anymore."
This ring match, she had won by a narrow margin, and she was badly injured.
At that moment, Shang Yu held her, his muscles taut and knotted.
He was clearly restraining his strength, yet he kept wanting to tighten his hold, as the girl in his arms had a face full of injuries, and the blood at her mouth was shockingly severe.
Li San and the others quickly surrounded them, each with anxious expressions, "Qiaoqiao, how are you?"
Shang Yu carried her in his arms, his cheek pressed against her sweat-damp face, his voice as rough as a tightly drawn string, "Tell me, where does it hurt?"
Li Qiao lay on his shoulder, not answering his question but instead whispered softly, "Li San, get some people over. I’ve injured Dan Min, and there’s another tough fight coming."