Li Yuan's heart thumped wildly.
Breaking into the top ten meant First-Class Financial Aid of one hundred thousand Blue Star Coins?
Top five meant Special-Class Financial Aid of five hundred thousand Blue Star Coins?
Blue Star Coins!
If Li Yuan remembered correctly, his aunt, as a middle school teacher, only took home around one hundred thousand Blue Star Coins a year.
As for his uncle, unless he chose to be stationed somewhere dangerous, he only took home several hundred thousand Blue Star Coins a year.
"Teacher, really?" Li Yuan asked instinctively.
It was no wonder he reacted that way.
No matter how mature or composed he was,
he was still only a seventeen-year-old boy. In his understanding, one hundred thousand Blue Star Coins was already a tremendous fortune.
"Why would I lie to you?"
Xu Bo's voice remained icy. "The reward is real, of course. But never mind the top five in the grade—during the January Adjustment Exam, can your Martial Arts Score even break into the top ten?"
Li Yuan calmed down as well.
That was right!
No matter how good the reward was, he had to earn it first.
If it were the top twenty in the grade, Li Yuan believed he still had a chance. But the top ten? The odds really were slim.
The most important reason was Martial Arts Spirituality... students who had awakened their spirituality received a 10% score bonus in their Martial Arts Score. Their advantage was simply too great.
Even if Li Yuan scored 900 points, an Elite Class student only needed a raw score of 820 points for their total score to surpass his.
"The top ten is indeed difficult, but you still have some hope."
"Besides, I fought hard for this with the Principal. Even if you can't break into the top ten, as long as your raw score reaches second in the grade." Xu Bo looked at Li Yuan. "You'll receive some additional aid too. It just definitely won't be as good as financial aid."
"Raw score, second in the grade?" Hope immediately blazed up again in Li Yuan's heart.
In the last final exam, his raw score had already ranked sixth in the grade.
Second in raw score? That was actually more promising than reaching the top ten in total score.
"Thank you, Teacher." Li Yuan spoke from the bottom of his heart. Xu Bo might look cold, but he was warm beneath that icy exterior and treated him extremely well.
"It's late. Go home and rest."
"Once you get to school tomorrow, you'll have permission to use an Independent Martial Arts Room. You'll receive the specific room number tomorrow." Xu Bo waved a hand.
"Yes." Li Yuan nodded and left the office.
He closed the door behind him.
Listening to Li Yuan's faint footsteps recede, a hint of a smile appeared on Xu Bo's cold face. "Aim for the highest, and you'll gain the middle; aim for the middle, and you'll gain the lower; aim for the lower, and you'll gain nothing."
"Kid, don't blame me when you learn the truth later."
Xu Bo had observed Li Yuan for so long that he knew Li Yuan was steady-tempered and diligent in his training.
But Xu Bo understood human nature even better. Only by applying a certain amount of pressure and temptation could he spur out greater motivation.
In short—dangling a carrot!
But the carrot could not be hung too high. If it was beyond reach, it would only discourage someone. That was why Xu Bo had ultimately set Li Yuan the goal of "second in raw score."
"Three goals."
"Kid, as long as you reach the middle goal, you'll have actually achieved the highest one." Xu Bo thought to himself. "I hope you don't disappoint me."
Among the two thousand students in this cohort, Li Yuan was the second to catch his eye.
Wanhua Platinum Mansion, Building Two.
"Muhua, we need to spend twenty thousand Blue Star Coins this month?" Li Yuan was in his room.
His heart felt heavy.
Although his aunt Chen Hui had avoided Li Yuan and quietly spoken with his younger brother Li Muhua in the master bedroom, deliberately not wanting him to hear... Li Yuan's hearing was simply too good now.
Standing in the living room, he had still vaguely caught some of it.
"I need at least thirty thousand a month, Muhua needs nearly thirty thousand too, and Qianqian needs almost twenty thousand, plus our daily expenses..." Li Yuan had calculated this account in his mind more times than he could count.
The family's monthly expenses required at least ninety thousand Blue Star Coins.
In truth, if the three children did not train in martial arts, his uncle and aunt could easily support them with their circumstances... but buying all kinds of supplements and potions to assist martial arts training made the expenses staggering.
"Besides, Qianqian and Muhua aren't like me."
"I awakened the Mind Divine Palace. The relaxation and recuperative effects of the Great Sun Starry Sky Sutra probably equal advanced physical therapy that costs tens of thousands of Blue Star Coins a month." Li Yuan understood this clearly. "But Qianqian and Muhua, especially Muhua..."
"If they want to achieve great things in martial arts, the resources being invested now are still not enough."
"This financial aid is worth fifty thousand Blue Star Coins."
"This weekend, I must reach Gold Rank and 500 points, then get another fifty thousand Blue Star Coins." Li Yuan secretly made up his mind.
As for Teacher Xu Bo's three promises?
On the tram ride home, Li Yuan had calmed down and thought it through.
"Five hundred thousand Blue Star Coins!"
"If I can get it, the family's financial pressure will be eased by more than half at once."
"But top five in the grade?" Just thinking about it made Li Yuan's heart sink to the bottom.
On the way home,
Li Yuan used his Smart Ring Watch to review the rankings from the second-year final exam.
His total Martial Arts Score had been 802 points, sixth in the grade by raw score and twenty-ninth in total score.
The top five students in the grade were all Elite Class students. Every one of them had raw scores above 800, and after bonuses were added... the first-place total score had even reached an astonishing 962.5 points!
"The first in the grade is too formidable. I have no chance."
"Without awakening Martial Arts Spirituality, my raw score is my total score."
"To break into the top five in the grade, my raw score must reach at least 860 points before I'll have even a sliver of hope." Li Yuan thought to himself. "Even for the top ten, I'll probably need a raw score above 840."
A raw score of 840.
In the second-year final exam, that would already have been second in the grade by raw score.
"Work hard."
"By the January Adjustment Exam, strive to get my physical fitness above 410 points, Martial Arts Technique above 375 points, and cultural course above 75 points." Li Yuan set himself targets for all three subjects.
Every single one had to be met.
Only then would he have a faint sliver of hope of reaching the top five in the grade.
In the master bedroom, Chen Hui was on a video call with Li Changzhou.
"Wife, you received the money, right?" Li Changzhou's face looked even darker.
"Mm."
"Don't worry. I'll plan things out properly at home." Aunt Chen Hui nodded. "These five hundred thousand, together with what we already had, will be enough until February or March next year."
"Mm-hm." Li Changzhou smiled. "Don't worry too much, wife. At the end of the year, the company will have another subsidy, and there's my salary too... once Xiao Yuan finishes the National College Entrance Examination, things will get easier."
Chen Hui nodded, then forced a smile, trying to make herself appear more relaxed.
Suddenly.
"Bzzzz~" The other end of the video call abruptly shook. Li Changzhou, who had been sitting in his chair, suddenly shot to his feet.
Bang~ In the video, the half-closed door was smashed open. Faint but enormous explosions could be heard outside.
"Manager Li, hurry! Hurry!" A worker in a uniform, his entire body covered in mud, rushed in urgently and said breathlessly, "The higher-ups told our team to end our break and get up there immediately."
"Alright."
Li Changzhou nodded repeatedly, then turned to Chen Hui on the other side of the call. "Wife, I have to work overtime. I'll call you again later."
Bzz—The video call ended.
"Old Li." A trace of worry appeared on Chen Hui's face, and she quickly shut off her Smart Ring Watch.
She closed her eyes.
When she opened them again, Chen Hui's face had regained its relaxed expression. She walked out of the master bedroom. "Qianqian, Xiaohua, hurry and go to sleep."
"Xiao Yuan, don't stay up too late either."
"Okay, Mom!"
"Got it, Auntie."
The next afternoon.
In the school cafeteria, students ate their meals, occasionally looking up at the news on the giant electronic screen.
"...Last night, fierce conflict once again erupted in Luo Bu Sea, the Level 2 Star Realm in Beijiang Province. Our National Defense Army and the Alliance support forces fought fearlessly..." The news played continuously.
"They're still fighting."
"It hasn't stopped at all lately. I heard quite a few people have died. Some Star Realm Creatures even broke through the defensive line."
"I hope they can hold it." The students murmured softly as they ate.
Li Yuan sat beside Zhou Qi without saying a word. He only occasionally glanced at the news, a trace of worry flickering through his eyes.
(End of Chapter)
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