Liu Jianhong burst into tears as soon as she left the field.
He Tiantian, however, smiled and comforted her, "Jianhong, congratulations on achieving your personal best!"
Suddenly recalling something, He Tiantian leaned into Liu Jianhong’s ear and whispered, "Fourth place at the Asian Games is also an excellent result. Even if you retire in the future, it will qualify you for university!"
"And remember, you’re only nineteen this year, you can still compete in major tournaments. Next time, your performance will only be better!"
Liu Jianhong’s eyes suddenly lit up when she heard He Tiantian’s words. She had been so busy blaming herself, feeling sad, that she had forgotten all this.
She had already surpassed herself and attained a highly regarded result.
Whether she returned to the provincial team or retired, she would now have access to a higher platform.
"There’s more, Jianhong, don’t worry, I will avenge you!"
He Tiantian coldly swept her gaze across the still-rowdy spectator seats, her words filled with a murderous intent.
"Yeah, I believe in you!" Liu Jianhong, who had been teammates with He Tiantian for several months, had long been impressed by He Tiantian’s extraordinary abilities.
In Liu Jianhong’s heart, He Tiantian was an archery prodigy, an unbeaten legend!
No petty tricks from spectators of certain countries could possibly affect He Tiantian’s march towards the Divine Altar.
He Tiantian and Kim Seonmi arrived at the competition field.
The individual archery event at the Asian Games consisted of six rounds.
Each competitor shoots three arrows per round, and the one with the highest total score in three arrows wins, scoring 2 points.
If the scores are tied, each gets 1 point.
Whoever accumulates more points wins.
In the first round, He Tiantian started.
She was calm and composed, settling into her stance and slowly drawing her bowstring.
At that moment, the sound of clapping and cheering erupted in the stadium.
Without looking, one could tell that spectators from a certain country were being "unconscious" again.
The spectators from Hua Country were livid, but since they were the hosts this time, they needed to maintain the demeanor of a great nation. Though seething with anger, they couldn’t say anything out loud.
They could only clench their teeth in silence, maintaining their own quiet, and pray in their hearts: He Tiantian, please don’t be affected.
The television screen showed a close-up of He Tiantian.
She had her bow fully drawn, ready to release the arrow swiftly.
But at the last moment, she seemed to hesitate.
A subtle expression appeared on her face.
"Oh no, our Tiantian isn’t going to be affected, is she?"
Liu Xiuzhi pinched her husband’s arm nervously.
He Jianguo, however, didn’t grimace in pain this time. It was as if he couldn’t feel the pain in his arm at all, his eyes fixated on the screen.
He didn’t speak, but inside he cursed: Damn bastards, can’t beat my daughter fairly, so they resort to these despicable tactics!
"...Tiantian must win! She must!"
He Jianguo didn’t know if he was trying to boost his own morale or to comfort his wife, but he said through gritted teeth.
"Yes, yes, absolutely! Our Tiantian is the most formidable, how could she be affected by those scoundrels?"
Liu Xiuzhi wasn’t sure herself, but He Jianguo’s words still uplifted her.
And while the old couple buoyed each other’s spirits, He Tiantian’s arrow had already flown out.
It wasn’t a clean hit in the center, but it seemed to be on the border between the ten and nine rings.
The audience, both onsite and in front of the TV, let out a collective sigh.
Even the broadcaster seemed disappointed as he said, "It’s not clear whether it’s a nine or ten ring yet, we’ll need to wait for the judge to pull the arrow and check. Let’s consider it a nine ring for now."
After He Tiantian shot her arrow, it was Kim Seonmi’s turn.
With He Tiantian’s apparent slip, breaking the "Full Ring" legend, Kim Seonmi saw a glimmer of hope for victory.
Her tense heart suddenly relaxed, and Kim Seonmi shot a perfect arrow.
"Ten rings! Dead center! Congratulations to Kim Seonmi!" said the announcer, truly embodying the spirit of sports.
Even though it wasn’t a win for his own country’s athlete, he still acknowledged good performance and applauded her excellence.
The audience from that country was even more exuberant, their cheers reaching the skies.
Then it was He Tiantian’s turn again.
The audience from that country seemed to have not yet recovered from the surprise of the last arrow, continuing to clap and shout.
If only there were no subtle hissing among the cheers, their performance would have been perfect.
He Tiantian’s arrow landed again on the border between the ten and nine rings.
Kim Seonmi, however, did not manage a perfect shot to the center but also landed on the border.
On the third arrow, He Tiantian again seemed to skirt the line.
Kim Seonmi, however, scored a nine.
With both sides having pending results, Kim Seonmi and the audience watched anxiously.
On the screen, the judge pulled the arrow and gave a close-up of the target paper.
The result showed all three of He Tiantian’s arrows were tens.
Kim Seonmi’s pending arrow turned out to be a nine.
He Tiantian remained "Tenth Ring He," and Kim Seonmi, who thought she had performed flawlessly, lost the round by two points.
Looking through the telescope at the three black dots just off the border line on He Tiantian’s target paper, Kim Seonmi felt her composure crack.
Suddenly, she had an absurd suspicion: He Tiantian, was she doing this on purpose?!