Temporary High Salary

Over by the long table, Qin Heng's expression began to darken.

He could not hear what Wang Peng had said to the four people in charge, but he could imagine it was nothing good, otherwise their attitudes would not have become so uncertain.

"Qin Heng, what's going on?" Chen Yuan asked quietly.

"I don't know. Let's watch first," Qin Heng replied, his eyes fixed firmly on Wang Peng.

Wang Peng followed Grandmaster Wang Jianming away, then happened to turn back and smile at him, his face full of mockery.

"Damn it..."

Qin Heng punched the long table. Though he held back his strength, the tabletop still shuddered and nearly broke.

"That guy definitely smeared you just now."

Su Kuang said coldly. Though he was somewhat jealous of Qin Heng, Wang Peng's petty, villainous face disgusted him even more than Qin Heng did!

The three people in charge were still discussing.

Shen Biqing of Dragon God Martial Hall said, "If he took divine medicine, forget a hundred thousand or so—even a monthly salary of 3,000 would be a waste."

Huo Wen of Hero Martial Hall looked hesitant. "But we can't determine the outcome based solely on someone else's word."

Shen Biqing said, "Then what? With current medical equipment, divine medicine cannot be detected. We have no way of determining whether he took it."

"But what if he really is a genius? Giving up on him like this would be a tremendous loss for us!"

The two of them each had their own view.

They neither wanted to waste money nor miss out on a promising talent.

Zhong Wanshan of Heavenly Dao Martial Hall did not speak with them. He frowned in thought.

After a while, he picked up a pen, wrote a sentence on the paper, and held it up.

Qin Heng, come to Heavenly Dao Martial Hall. Monthly salary of 120,000 for the first year; after that, it depends on your performance.

"Brother Zhong, are you crazy?!"

Shen Biqing's eyes widened.

Huo Wen also found it unbelievable. "You're making a huge gamble. What if you lose?"

Zhong Wanshan said, "A monthly salary of 120,000 for the first year, then the salary will be determined by his performance in the second year. If he is useless, it will be reduced to the standard for ordinary students. If he is a prodigy, there is no harm in continuing to raise it. At worst, if I lose the bet, I'll be out a little over a million. Even if the Martial Hall refuses to pay, I can cover it myself."

"This..."

The two were both stunned by his decision.

1.44 million a year was no small sum.

And this was only recruiting a student, not taking on a disciple.

Even if he won the bet, he would merely be discovering talent for the Martial Hall. There was no real benefit to Zhong Wanshan himself.

"Fine. Heavenly Dao Martial Hall truly is deep-pocketed. This time, I'm genuinely impressed." Shen Biqing shook her head and withdrew from the competition.

"Same here. Brother Zhong, you really are something, coming up with a way to reset the salary in the second year." Huo Wen stopped bidding as well.

Over by the long table, Qin Heng finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, that bearded man in charge had a good eye and had not been swayed by Wang Peng's words.

A monthly salary of 120,000...

With that amount, he could buy a decent apartment in the New City District within two months.

His parents would finally no longer have to stay shut in at home every day. They could take the elevator downstairs and bask in the sun.

And Ling Xue—she could finally stop working and live a peaceful life.

Qin Heng picked up his pen and wrote his first choice on the back of his Admission Ticket: Heavenly Dao Martial Hall.

He left his second choice blank without filling it in!

After writing it, he nodded to the bearded man. They exchanged a glance, then he stood and headed toward the rest area nearby.

"Qin Heng, you're insane! You have to treat us to a meal today!"

Chen Yuan and Su Kuang went with him to the rest area to wait for the other students to complete their assessments.

Qin Heng said with a smile, "I don't have money right now. Once I get paid, I'll treat you guys to something expensive in the city center!"

Su Kuang curled his lip. "I thought a monthly salary of 7,000 was already amazing. I didn't expect yours to be more than ten times mine."

Chen Yuan sighed. "Yeah, 120,000... My god, even that would be terrifying as an annual salary, yet it's a monthly salary!"

There were many other students in the rest area. Seeing Qin Heng arrive, they all greeted him, hoping to make themselves familiar to him.

A First Assessment result of 928 kilograms was simply too shocking. By now, everyone in Martial God Plaza knew that Test Site No. 3 had produced a monster.

Qin Heng became the center of attention, surrounded by people in the rest area. Countless people came over to strike up conversations.

The assessment continued. The retest candidates from District 7 Slums also stepped up one by one, swinging their fists and leaving behind their results.

The pass rate for retest candidates was nearly 100 percent, because most of them had cultivated the Innate Fetal Breathing Art. Their strength was already nothing like it had been last year.

After Zhou Yan and the others finished their tests and came to the rest area, they heard that Heavenly Dao Martial Hall had offered Qin Heng a monthly salary of 120,000. They were so shocked they could not speak, only muttering, "My freaking god! I work myself to the bone all night at Purple Light Club without rest and only make around 200 yuan. 120,000 a month... Even if I grew ten kidneys, I still couldn't compare!"

Qin Heng could not help laughing. "As a Quasi-Martial Warrior, you should keep yourself clean. Don't let people recognize you as a prostitute after you end up on television."

Zhou Yan said it did not matter. "That's nothing. Who doesn't have some dark history? You used to be a pretty boy too."

Qin Heng: ...

Was this joke never going to end?

Even if it was true, they could not keep bringing it up!

Besides, Fang Lingxue and he were in love with each other. They were seriously dating, not selling his looks to curry favor with some rich older woman. That did not count as being a pretty boy. At most, he was... living off a woman.

There were only twenty-six candidates from District 7 Slums, so they all finished their tests very quickly.

Everyone gathered in the rest area. Coach Yang came over and said, "This time, congratulations are in order for Qin Heng and Su Kuang. Both of you caught Heavenly Dao Martial Hall's eye and were promised high salaries. Your futures are limitless."

Qin Heng said seriously, "It was all thanks to your guidance, Coach Yang. Otherwise, we would not be where we are today!"

Su Kuang said, "That's right, Coach Yang. To thank you, we'll treat you to lunch!"

"Right, right, and us too! Though our results weren't as good as Qin Heng's and Su Kuang's, we still passed. We have to thank you!" Chen Yuan added.

Yang Huai'an looked at Qin Heng and the others' grateful faces, pleased. "The thought is enough. Forget about treating me for now. It won't be too late to thank me after you make something of yourselves. Some students failed their assessments today. If you want to celebrate, arrange something privately. Don't rub salt in their wounds."

"Oh, all right..."

Today was destined to bring joy to some and sorrow to others.

Qin Heng patted the shoulders of two classmates beside him who had not passed and comforted them. "It's fine. You can take it again next year. Look at Senior Brother Zhou Yan—he earns money while training, and he's even gotten fatter."

Jiang RuLong, who had failed the assessment, said gloomily, "Are you saying they should sell themselves like him...?"

Qin Heng scratched his head. "Uh, well..."

Everyone burst into laughter.

"Let's go. We'll head back first."

Coach Yang called out.

Everyone left the test site together.

As they departed, a staff member at the test site said, "The results of your selected preferences will be sent to your respective Trial Martial Halls within three days. After receiving your Admission Notice, please report to your respective Martial Halls within the designated time. A unified physical examination will also be arranged then."