On the other side, the second semifinal had ended. Wu Ruifeng had emerged victorious and was now resting, preserving his strength.
Back on the platform, Zhou Xin realized that this stalemate wasn't in his favor. The longer the fight dragged on, the more star power he'd consume, while Wu Ruifeng would continue to recover his own reserves.
"If I keep this up, I won't have enough star power for the final...even if I win."
With that realization, Zhou Xin suddenly leapt backward, pulling away from Gu Zhen, clearly preparing to use a star skill to end the match.
But Gu Zhen had no intention of letting him.
He shot forward like a shadow, clinging to Zhou Xin like a stubborn leech, weaving around and keeping him too occupied to cast any skills.
"What the hell is with this guy?!" Zhou Xin frustration boiled over.
In response, he activated [Earth Trap], hardening the scales on his back and planting both palms to the ground.
[Earth Star skill – Earth Trap!]
Gu Zhen recognized the danger and instinctively leapt back—but it was already too late.
He'd jumped straight into Zhou Xin trap.
The ground beneath him suddenly softened and then solidified, locking both his legs in place.
Zhou Xin clenched his fists. The earth responded, tightening its grip on Gu Zhen legs.
"This is bad…" Gu Zhen growled, pulling at his legs, but the hardened mud wouldn't budge.
At that moment, Zhou Xin fist turned earthen yellow as he activated Stone Scales again, aiming to end the fight with one blow.
Realizing Zhou Xin was using his defensive ability, Gu Zhen saw his chance.
Gu Zhen mind worked at lightning speed. During the earlier exchanges, he had noticed a key flaw in Zhou Xin defense: the [Stone Scales] could only protect one part of his body at a time.
If he spread it too thin across multiple areas, the star power cost would spike—something Zhou Xin clearly didn't want, since he'd been trying to conserve power for the next round.
This meant Zhou Xin body currently relied only on the innate trait defence of his transformation, with no extra ability protecting it.
Zhou Xin stomped the ground with full force, the shockwave rattling the platform. Even the audience flinched.
Gu Zhen, though calm inside, deliberately faked a panicked expression, tricking Zhou Xin into thinking he'd given up.
On the sidelines, Instructor Xie Yanwen was already preparing to intervene. If Zhou Xin punch landed, Gu Zhen could be seriously injured—maybe even crippled.
"Such a shame," someone in the crowd whispered.
"Still, making it this far is already impressive."
"Pity for Zhou Xin too. If he'd fought Hu Yang instead, this match would've been over ages ago."
The fight was reaching its climax. Zhou Xin massive fist hurtled toward Gu Zhen face like a meteor.
Even if Gu Zhen dodged, Zhou Xin had a follow-up ready. He didn't believe a trapped Gu Zhen could keep evading.
At that moment, Gu Zhen seized the opportunity, assuming a stance with his body lowered and fist at his waist.
'One last desperate shot?' Zhou Xin guessed, but he wasn't concerned. Even if he stood there and took it without defending, there was no way Gu Zhen could break through his defence.
The massive fist shot toward Gu Zhen head.
But Gu Zhen simply tilted his head—dodging it with a hair's breadth of space.
At the same moment, his own fist slammed straight into Zhou Xin exposed abdomen.
Gu Zhen felt his arm go numb from the feedback, the heat searing through his bones.
Zhou Xin eyes went wide. His mind went blank.
He spat out a mouthful of blood, his body flying backward, crashing to the ground and sliding several meters.
He forced his legs out of the hardened earth and lunged forward, raising his other arm—his only usable one now—and brought it down toward Zhou Xin.
But just as the fist was about to connect, a thin water barrier shimmered into existence, halting the strike.
Xie Yanwen had intervened.
"Match over. Winner: Gu Yi!"
Hearing the announcement, Gu Zhen turned and left the platform, heading to find Wang Qinghe for treatment. If he could only use one hand in the next match, it'd be troublesome.
Zhou Xin, still lying on the ground, spat out another two mouthfuls of blood. His thoughts were a mess.
"I lost…I actually lost…to him…"
He wasn't angry about the defeat itself—but rather that he'd lost due to carelessness.
He hadn't even used his full transformation—his ultimate trump card.
And now, the opportunity was gone.
Rage and frustration flooded his chest. He vomited another mouthful of blood and fell unconscious.
In the crowd, the students hadn't even processed what just happened.
"Was it that punch? What star skill was that? Such insane power!"
"No, no, no. I saw Gu Zhen wearing Zhou Xin down with his earlier attacks. Zhou Xin looked fine but was already battered. That punch was just the final blow."
"Nonsense. Zhou Xin clearly got nervous using his star skill, messed it up, and injured himself. That gave Gu Yi the opening."
"Oh? So you think you could beat Gu Yi, huh?"
"W-Well... I wouldn't bully a classmate…"
…....
The crowd debated animatedly, convinced there was more to Gu Zhen victory than met the eye.
Meanwhile, Gu Zhen found Wang Qinghe. Under her treatment, the pain in his arm vanished. Though he couldn't use Iron Fist again, normal combat was fine.
On the other side, Wu Ruifeng was weighing whether to go all-out against Gu Zhen. Winning would be great, but losing would leave him low on star power, risking even second place.
Though Zhou Xin was badly injured, Wang Qinghe treatment could restore him to eighty percent capacity. In peak condition, Wu Ruifeng had a ninety percent chance of beating him.
But in poor condition, he'd lose for sure, likely settling for third.
The difference in rewards wasn't massive—both got to choose a star skills from the academy library. The only gap was the star enhancement potions: second place got seven, while first got ten.
After a moment's thought, Wu Ruifeng made his choice.
"I've come this far…how can I back down now? Even if I end up third, at least I'll know I tried."
Thirty minutes later, the final match began.
Gu Zhen star power hadn't fully recovered—but ninety percent was more than enough.
Both fighters climbed onto the stage, brimming with confidence and determination.
After confirming they were ready, Instructor Xie gave no further delay.
"Final match: Begin!"