Compensation

Teacher Xu? Is that him?

Luo Jun couldn't help but take another look at the teacher.

I remember during my Subject Two, that Senior Sister Miao was in charge because the examiner Teacher Xu, wasn't there. Oh, it turns out she was the one.

The other teachers, upon hearing this, also began to scrutinize Luo Jun. This candidate's experiences were quite legendary; everyone had heard of them, but most had never seen him. Now, looking at him, he seemed quite ordinary. Could this kid really, with only the second level of the Body Refinement Realm, Counter-kill Foundation Establishment Realm?

"It was him..." A pale, slender hand rose, accompanied by a weak voice. "I was the one who administered the driving test (Subject Three). I even interrogated the candidate who hired the hitman together with Shi Li ..."

With both Yu Qiudi and the dean confirming it, no one else had any reason to doubt it.

So the question is, who exactly removed his student status?

"Such an outstanding candidate, even if their student status is deleted, it should be easy to get the evidence back, right?" The speaker was the chubby teacher Huang Hua, who had interviewed Luo Jun before. "Who would do something so thankless? What good does it do to make things difficult for a student?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Jun glanced at the dean, then raised his shackled hands. "I have a guess about this."

The dean gave Luo Jun a look that said, "You're pretty quick-witted," and nodded, saying, "The person involved will speak!"

Luo Jun stood up. "Teachers, some of you may have heard that I have no connections or background in the Vital Energy Cultivation fortuitous opportunity. Until last year, I was just a poor student. This year, by chance, I came into contact with Yuan Qi and have only been cultivating for a few months. During this time, I have been well-behaved and have not made any enemies. If I had to say that I might have offended anyone, the only possibility I can think of is that during the entrance exam, I killed that prisoner named Wu Youde in order to protect myself!"

As he spoke, he shook the shackles on his hands, looking utterly wronged. "This guy wants nothing more than to kill me. I'm an honest and upright student with good looks and excellent grades, but now, not only have I been ruined by him, unable to continue my studies, but I'm also imprisoned and being held in Confinement Room. I hope the dean and all the teachers can find the real culprit as soon as possible, do justice for me, and clear my name!"

"Oh dear, what won't a person do when they're furious!"

After listening to Luo Jun's analysis, the mentors also made their own guesses.

"Wait a minute, this kid's analysis makes a lot of sense. Looking at it this way, the mole might not actually be in prison!"

Everyone knew Luo Jun was innocent. When Zheng Hu brought the men in that morning, he hadn't planned to handcuff him, but Luo Jun volunteered to wear it. Zheng Hu had wondered if the kid had some strange quirk, but it turned out he was waiting for this.

"I've heard about this too. Apparently, the Northern Prison have been conducting a thorough investigation of their staff for the past few months, but they haven't found anything."

"If there's anyone in the cultivation world who hates me the most, it's definitely this person! Only he has the motive to remove me from the student list!"

Only Zheng Hu, who was standing to the side, glanced at him sideways.

These words came out in tears, the shackles clanking loudly. Several soft-hearted teachers sighed and shook their heads, deeply sympathizing with this student who had been unjustly implicated...

"I think it's unlikely!" It was Teacher Xu who spoke, his face still grim. "Even if that person really is hiding in the academy, they wouldn't resort to such a clumsy method to retaliate against a student, would they?"

The dean also glanced at Luo Jun, recalling the various rumors circulating during the exam. Although his cultivation level wasn't high, he was quick-witted and didn't play by the rules. An interesting young man, no wonder...

The speaker was a burly Giant Man, a professor of Martial Combat Faction named Tie Jingang. He was rough and tough, with extraordinary martial prowess. In terms of the strength of his internal energy, there were few in the entire Zhendan who could compare to him.

After Luo Jun's analysis, everyone's thinking was guided in the direction the dean hoped for.

Luo Jun stood up and gave Song Yi a thumbs up. "Teacher Song truly has Divine Eye; his understanding of issues is so insightful!"

"Only a simple-minded guy like you could do something like this!" Teacher Xu sneered, showing no politeness to his old friend. He was also one of the academy's professors, teaching the Illusion Faction.

"As far as I know, Wu Youde was released by a candidate named Han Yuri. I was present during the interrogation. Han Yuri was also a novice who had only recently begun his cultivation and did not possess the ability to break the Prisoner Collar. He must have been instructed by someone behind the scenes. The fact that this person was willing to go to such lengths to rescue Wu Youde means that their relationship must be extraordinary!"

Although the Confinement Room wasn't free, the living conditions were alright. But looking at this kid, his hair was unkempt, his face unwashed, his clothes wrinkled, and he was even handcuffed—he looked like he'd been abused. It really made me feel sorry for him...

"So, you suspect that the person who wanted to rescue Wu Youde is actually hiding in our academy?" Song Yi asked at just the right moment. "Because they held a grudge against you, they removed your student status?"

"Even if we made a discovery, we couldn't possibly tell anyone. It would be too shameful to reveal a mole within the prison system!"

"I think Professor Tie has a point," Huang Hua said. "The other side has been planning for months since they took him on as a disciple, all to rescue Wu Youde. Their relationship is definitely not ordinary, and it's not impossible for them to seek revenge. Besides, we have no other leads."

At this moment, the dean gently patted the table. "No matter what, this happened within the college, and we must take full responsibility! Starting today, the college will launch a thorough investigation to root out this potential black sheep! If we find him, it will purify our teaching team; if we find nothing, it means our college is without problems, which is also a good thing!"

"Does anyone have any objections? You can raise them now."

Things have come to this point, and no one can voice their opinions.

Next, the meeting decided on the punishment for Luo Jun. Although Luo Jun was wrong to forcibly enter the academy, there were reasons for it. He was only given an internal warning, which would be automatically revoked if he did not violate any rules within a month.

Meanwhile, to compensate Luo Jun for the losses caused by the college's mismanagement, the college waived all of Luo Jun Jun's tuition and fees during his time at the college. In addition, considering that Luo Jun's personal circumstances were relatively difficult, the college also applied for the highest amount of financial aid for him. Finally, the college also gave him a guaranteed admission spot for Otherworld Internship.

In simple terms, this Otherworld Internship involves organizing students to enter another world to experience the work of explorers in advance, thereby increasing their experience and knowledge. The Otherworld Internship is organized annually at the end of the year. The destination for the Ningdong Academy's Otherworld Internship is usually the nearby [Martial World]. However, for safety and management reasons, not all students can participate; the number of participants each year will not exceed double digits.

This is why you see so many students coming from the main internship program in the Savage Wilderness. These students are basically those who failed to get internships at their own academy and came to the Savage Wilderness for training because of its more lenient entry requirements.

As for the selection of interns each year, it is determined through a multi-faceted assessment of students, regardless of their year of study. The most important factor is, of course, their own abilities.

So although theoretically first-year students have internship opportunities, they basically can't compete with the upperclassmen. Those who can participate in the Otherworld Internship in their first year of school are either scions of prestigious families or geniuses who were already somewhat famous before entering school. In most people's eyes, someone like Luo Jun might not even be able to participate by his senior year.

Well, how to put it? Other students would probably be incredibly excited and grateful, but Luo Jun, who had already experienced the Savage Wilderness, felt slightly disappointed. But then he thought, this is still a school, after all. Rewards like those from the Wildlands Hunter Guild, which readily give away money and equipment, seem unrealistic...

Just as Luo Jun was pondering whether to take the opportunity to make some more demands, he suddenly noticed Song Yi sitting opposite him and gave him a wink. Luo Jun's eyes lit up, and he understood immediately.

His case was finished. The next meeting would focus on how to conduct the internal investigation. This had nothing to do with Luo Jun. Zheng Hu removed his shackles and arranged for someone to take him to his dormitory to check in.

Not long after leaving the conference room, Song Yi chased after him, temporarily dismissing the staff member leading him. He pulled Luo Jun to the corner of the stairs, used his energy to create a soundproof barrier, and then opened the Hundred Treasure Box, taking out a palm-sized receipt.

Luo Jun's eyes lit up. If it could be taken out of the Hundred Treasure Box, it must be a treasure.

"The decision made at the meeting is the college's official compensation to you, it's a bit of a formality." Song Yi smiled and handed over the receipt, "This is the dean's personal apology and gratitude to you."

As expected, I was right; the dean is indeed a highly respected figure.

There was no need for him to feign reluctance in front of Song Yi; he simply reached out and took it, obtaining the information with a single sweep of his energy.

Name: Merit Certificate

Grade: Common

Description: Merit Certificate officially recognized by the Yuan Cultivation Society are issued to employees who have made contributions as proof of their merits, and can be redeemed for privileges and rewards.

Function 1: Records information about this item, and this information cannot be changed.

Function 2: Infinite Stacking: This item can be stacked infinitely in the Hundred Treasure Box, and no matter how many are stacked, they only occupy one space.

Note: We will not let down any comrade who has made contributions to the organization!

A voucher, similar to Wildlands Coin? Luo Jun glanced at the denomination; it recorded a Grade A merit, which shouldn't be low.

Luo Jun looked at Song Yi.

"These are the Dean's Merit Certificate." Song Yi noticed Luo Jun's confusion and smiled, "Merit vouchers are tiered like Chaos Mission Merit Certificate, divided into Class A, Class B, Class C, Class D, and Special grades. Different grades can be exchanged for different things. If we quantify them using some general rewards, the exchange rate between each grade of merit is three to one. That is to say, one Grade A merit is roughly equivalent to three Tier B merits, nine Grade C merits, or twenty-seven Grade D merits."

"However, some rewards and privileges can only be redeemed with high-level achievements. In such cases, no matter how many Tier B there are, they may not be as valuable as one Rank A achievement."

It sounded impressive, but Luo Jun still had no idea what it meant.

"Let me put it this way," Song Yi sighed, "If you use it to apply for equipment from the Yuan Cultivation Society, a Grade A merit can at least be exchanged for an Epic Treasure Item, and there might even be some left over... Of course, those who can achieve Grade A merit are all First-class Expert, and they might care more about other things than exchanging for a Noble Phantasm. You can look up the specifics yourself when you have the opportunity to exchange at the Yuan Cultivation Society."

Epic Treasure Item? That's pretty impressive!

Luo Jun was somewhat surprised, then became wary. Although he had no shortage of Epic-level, his public image was still that of a poor student who had only recently come into contact with Yuan Qi. Was it a bit of an overreaction to use this to bribe me?

"Don't worry," Song Yi said with a smile. "I can tell you've already guessed it; the dean deleted your student record. Using this to expose the mole within the academy is only one of the reasons."

"Another reason?" Luo Jun's eyes darted around. "A test for me?"

"That's part of it too. I didn't explain it to you so clearly yesterday because I wanted to see how you would react... You are indeed very clever, and have a good temperament..." As he spoke, Song Yi nodded.

"It's no wonder that Old Yuan values you so highly."

(End of this chapter)