DEM Chapter 47: A Million Needed

That punch was like pressing the mute button on the sports field.

The students, who had been whispering incessantly moments before, now turned their gazes to the sprawled-out Huang Sheng in the distance, falling silent.

Even Li Ziquan, who had some expectations of Su Yuan’s strength, was left slack-jawed by the punch he had just thrown.

Why?

Because Su Yuan was only at the sixth layer of Qi Refining, while Huang Sheng was at the seventh layer, with physical strength surpassing Su Yuan’s.

Even if Su Yuan had miraculously mastered Raging Heart Strike in just a few days, at best, he could rely on the technique’s boost and his unique Abyssal Bloodline to tangle with Huang Sheng before eventually winning.

But reality far exceeded Li Ziquan’s expectations.

A one-hit knockout!

Just like his fight with Wu Xingqi, he had instantly defeated his opponent!

And this punch had no tricks or schemes, only absolute, unquestionable power!

After a brief moment of shock, Li Ziquan’s face lit up with uncontainable excitement, as if she were gazing at a rare treasure while studying Su Yuan.

"The technique I taught him, has he improved it?" Li Ziquan murmured repeatedly. "If that’s true, his talent is simply…"

The onlookers, who had previously doubted Su Yuan, were now thoroughly convinced of his strength.

Huang Sheng, a strong contender for the championship, had been knocked out in one hit. Who else would dare question him?

Backed by True Person Tai Bai’s daughter, able to grab the red envelope with the crappiest phone, and with strength surpassing all other competitors, Su Yuan not being the champion would defy the heavens!

If anyone in the crowd remained calm, it was Chen Nuoyi.

Having tutored Su Yuan daily, she was well aware of how much his strength had grown.

"Principal Zhang, since the Martial Arts Competition champion has emerged, don’t you have a few words to say?" Tai Bai Tianji said with a faint smile.

Zhang Youde nodded, walked up to Su Yuan, and gently patted his shoulder. "Good kid, your name’s Su Yuan, right? I hadn’t heard of you before. Truly, you’ve stayed quiet until you stunned the world with a single strike."

"The school won’t go back on its word. Since you’re the champion, you can join the special advanced class without further testing and receive a ten-thousand-yuan scholarship."

As he spoke, a teacher handed over a plaque inscribed with "Scholarship: 10,000 Yuan."

"Ten thousand!"

Hearing that number, Su Yuan couldn’t help but swallow hard.

It wasn’t a small sum, equivalent to the profit from selling sixteen roasted geese, or refining one hundred Calming Pills, or three to four months of his living expenses.

Next, the photographer arrived, and Su Yuan quickly flashed the warm smile he’d honed through countless part-time jobs, posing for a photo with the principal.

With that, the Martial Arts Competition, after its twists and turns, came to an end.

Of course, while the students were done, for the school hosting Tai Bai Tianji, this was just the beginning.

After the photo, Su Yuan prepared to return to the group.

But at that moment, Tai Bai Tianji called out to him.

"Su Yuan, as a future member of the special advanced class, you’re essentially my student. There are some things I need to tell you in advance."

Su Yuan was slightly taken aback but quickly replied, "Please speak, Teacher Tai Bai."

Tai Bai Tianji said slowly, "The special advanced class, centered around me, has only one goal."

"That is to take Taihua High School students, who would normally rank in the city’s top five hundred or even top thousand in the college entrance exam, and propel them into the city’s top one hundred, or even top ten."

"For the most outstanding student in the special advanced class, I want them to have the qualifications to compete for the top spot in the exam."

At these words, Su Yuan and the surrounding students were stunned.

The city’s top one hundred, or even top ten?

And cultivating a top exam scorer?!

This True Person Tai Bai was talking big.

Taihua City might not be a first-tier or super-tier city, but it was a solid second-tier city, far from insignificant.

In this region, public and private high schools were as numerous as grains of sand, and Taihua City’s prodigies were like carp crossing the river.

What was Taihua High School’s standing in Taihua City?

It was merely one of the top five key high schools.

You think top five sounds impressive? Heh, everyone knows there are two schools tied for first, five in the top three, and over ten in the top five.

Historically, Taihua High School’s students barely had one or two who could crack the city’s top ten in the college entrance exam, with an average of no more than five making the top fifty.

Now, let’s revisit what Tai Bai Tianji just said.

The special advanced class would have at least thirty students, right? From his tone, it sounded like he planned to dominate half the city’s top one hundred spots in next year’s exam?

If other schools’ education experts heard this, they’d probably laugh themselves to death.

But…

Thinking calmly, this True Person Tai Bai had long been famous. Could he really be spouting nonsense?

That meant he was genuinely confident.

Realizing this, Su Yuan and the other students hoping to join the special advanced class felt their hearts pound uncontrollably.

Especially… the city’s top ten!

Based on Taihua City’s historical score cutoffs, only the top ten could reliably secure admission to the top ten immortal academies.

Only ten people from a city could get into the top ten academies, sounds like a small number, right?

Su Yuan had the same question at first, but after looking it up online, he understood why.

Because Blue Star’s human civilization was unified, he wasn’t competing against students from one country like in his previous life, but against tens of billions of people worldwide!

The prestige of getting into a top ten academy was over ten times harder than getting into Qinghua or Beida in his past life!

Even for a cheat-user like Su Yuan, he couldn’t guarantee catching up to prodigies like Li Zhengxing before the college entrance exam.

Studying under True Person Tai Bai was clearly the safer bet.

But why was True Person Tai Bai suddenly bringing this up with him?

Puzzled, Su Yuan listened as Tai Bai Tianji spoke again. "But cultivation, beyond personal diligence and effort, and the guidance of a master, also requires substantial resources to support it."

"Among past students with outstanding exam results, those who improved through sheer hard work alone were rare."

"Even with my guidance, students in the special advanced class aren’t guaranteed success without spending money. You still need to rent external spiritual roots and consume body-refining pills as necessary."

"And because my training regimen is more intense, your expenses in these areas will correspondingly increase."

Su Yuan could understand this. After all, neither the school nor True Person Tai Bai were running a charity.

Getting personal guidance from a master was already generous. Expecting the school to cover all expenses from now until the exam?

What, you want a free ride too?

But even though he understood, Su Yuan couldn’t help but cautiously ask, "Teacher Tai Bai, are the expenses for the special advanced class very high?"

Tai Bai Tianji nodded slightly. "For an average family, it’s indeed a significant cost. But I’ll also leverage all my connections to minimize these expenses for the special advanced class students as much as possible."

"How much exactly?" Su Yuan pressed carefully.

"For a student with above-average aptitude, about a million should do."

"A year?"

"A month."

"What the—?!" Su Yuan was floored.

But then, Principal Zhang, standing beside Tai Bai Tianji, added, "The school understands some students’ difficulties. So, whether you spend the million or not, as long as your grades qualify, you can join the special advanced class."

"And if any special advanced class student manages to rank in the city’s top ten, the school won’t hold back. Whatever you spent during your time in the class, the school will reimburse."

"And if a special advanced class student becomes the city’s top exam scorer, the school will refund all tuition tenfold!"

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