Those Classmates who Suddenly Disappeared
Chapter 971: There’s Something Fishy Behind

Chapter 971: Chapter 971: There’s Something Fishy Behind

Gu Fan took a deep breath, and under the horrified stares of the onlookers, he threw caution to the wind and strode forward with a ferocious momentum, throwing his punches and exerting all his strength.

At this moment, Iron Arm Fist Gu Tong was unable to stand up, his movements hindered, and could only block passively, unable to fight back. His heart was filled with extreme fury—after all, he was a First-rate Expert. To be defeated by Gu Fan was an utter humiliation.

"No, I won’t accept this, roll aside!" Iron Arm Fist roared and managed to stand up with great effort, his aura escalating as if poised for a desperate counterattack.

Just as everyone was about to cheer for Iron Arm Fist Gu Tong, they saw his legs go weak, and he knelt on one knee.

"Don’t, brother, please stay strong." Most of the crowd was extremely anxious; they saw Gu Fan’s punch land on Iron Arm Fist Gu Tong’s face, sending him flying out of the arena.

The moment Gu Fan was announced the winner, most of the spectators felt a chill from head to foot, realizing the extent of their losses.

Gu Fan didn’t pay attention to what everyone was thinking. He clenched his fist, raised it high to signal his victory, then smiled contentedly before collapsing, as he too was at the end of his tether.

Mo Yun rushed up to check on Gu Fan’s injuries and, finding them not severe, finally exhaled in relief.

With the end of this round of the Martial Arts Competition, the spectators dispersed, many of whom had suffered great losses, leaving with expressions of dejection, remorse, and even the urge to punch someone.

Lu Bei and Jin Yi also left, yet they couldn’t help but look back at Gu Fan. Lu Bei felt that Gu Fan’s victory wasn’t as simple as superior strength or exploiting the opponent’s weakness; perhaps there was something amiss.

In a corner, another pair of eyes observed Gu Fan—it was the bookie of this bet, who showed a satisfied smile: "This kid didn’t let me down, very good, extremely good."

Afterward, the bookie left quietly, having made a hefty profit, and was overjoyed beyond words.

Moments later, in a bamboo grove, Lord Xiong and Mo Yun took turns channeling Genuin-Qi into Gu Fan to help him recover from his injuries more quickly, while also feeling relieved that his wounds weren’t severe enough to affect the next match.

"Kid, not bad, I didn’t expect you to have such dumb luck," although Lord Xiong’s words were somewhat unpleasant, they were indeed a fact.

Gu Fan responded with a wry smile and a shake of his head: "Indeed, my luck is really good. It seems that someone used this Martial Arts Competition to bet on their own terms. Since most were betting on my loss, certain individuals, for their own benefit, would have done everything possible to ensure my victory."

"Exactly, to make your victory look more plausible, a group of people came to advise you on Martial Arts, revealing Iron Arm Fist Gu Tong’s weaknesses. Thus, when you entered the arena, nobody could accuse you of cheating," Mo Yun’s words highlighted the brilliance of the people behind the scenes.

Lord Xiong sighed: "It’s a pity that many people can’t see through this, still betting on your loss, only to end up losing everything."

"It must be the work of the bookie, no doubt. I didn’t expect him to arrange everything to achieve his ends, even suspecting that Iron Arm Fist Gu Tong was also at the bookie’s behest, throwing the match under orders," Gu Fan reflected on his fight with Iron Arm Fist Gu Tong, noting that although Gu Tong seemed to exert effort, he always held back a bit, giving Gu Fan a chance to escape.

Lord Xiong patted Gu Fan’s shoulder: "Alright, don’t think too much about it. Since you’ve won and we’re aware someone is manipulating the competition, let’s use that knowledge to our advantage."

Considering this, Gu Fan rested his chin on his hand and began to ponder strenuously: "The goal of coming here is to seize the seat of the Martial Arts Alliance Leader, but how can we use the bookie to achieve that?"

Mo Yun suggested: "As long as there are more people betting against Gu Fan in subsequent matches, the bookie will certainly go all out to ensure Gu Fan’s victory, just like this time."

To this, Gu Fan shook his head: "That’s not necessarily the case. If no bets are placed in the later matches related to me, then the bookie’s losses won’t be significant, and there would be no point in going to great lengths to help me."

Lord Xiong added: "Moreover, if Gu Fan keeps winning, that will raise suspicions. If I were the bookie, I wouldn’t continue to rig the matches related to Gu Fan. Besides, these competitions involve many matches—losses in one place could be recouped in another. The bookie can do many things; assuming we can leverage the bookie seems a bit unlikely."

Gu Fan agreed with what Lord Xiong had said and then thought of something crucial—to leverage the bookie, they first had to figure out how much he had lost and how much he had won.

The first round of the Martial Arts Competition, with thirty-two matches, was almost over. As expected, most of the prominent martial artists who directly qualified won directly, and those who had advanced from the Sub-level Martial Arts Competition mainly failed.

Logically, since everything went as expected, the bookie should have made losses, but the reality was different.

Initially, the first few matches went as expected, with direct qualifiers winning and making many people a profit.

Then Jin Yi’s unexpected success made many lose what they had gained, effectively amounting to nothing.

Subsequent matches saw everyone betting cautiously, afraid another dark horse like Jin Yi might appear, leading to conservative bets even when outcomes matched expectations. The resulting wins were modest, well within the bookie’s capacity to absorb.

It was not until Gu Fan faced Iron Arm Fist Gu Tong that the dynamic changed. Gu Fan’s poor performance in the Sub-level Martial Arts Competition led many to believe in his certain defeat, resulting in heavy bets against him.

Under the bookie’s secret manipulation, Gu Fan’s victory came as a shock, and many bettors suffered greatly, granting the bookie a substantial windfall.

In the remaining matches, scarred by previous experiences, though outcomes were as predicted, people were hesitant to wager heavily, dreading dark horses like Jin Yi and Gu Fan. Therefore, the bookie didn’t incur significant additional losses. By this account, the bookie earned a fortune from the first round’s thirty-two matches.

"My God, such a huge gambling game—who on earth is the bookie with the ability to pull it off?" Gu Fan suddenly veered in this direction of thought, surprising Lord Xiong and Mo Yun, who sensed someone else behind the bookie.

However, based on current clues, they had no idea who had such capabilities. Gu Fan decided not to expend more thought on this and focused on healing, readying for the next match.

Watching Gu Fan’s serious demeanor, Lord Xiong was filled with doubt, unable to understand why someone with such poor martial arts skills would aspire to claim the Martial Arts Alliance Leader’s seat. What was this kid planning, and what secrets did he harbor?