The Ancient Corpse Refining Method was such an ominous thing. Having it was worse than not having it.
Su Yuan suddenly lost all interest in completing this Affinity Task.
But he couldn't cancel or abandon the task, so he could only leave it there and let things take their course.
Just as Su Yuan was fretting over his new task, the martial arts teacher, Li Ziquan, and the physical education teacher, Zhuge Tie, finally finished arguing.
"Su Yuan, let's not argue with a brute like Teacher Zhuge. I'll take you to lunch."
Li Ziquan pulled Zhuge Tie aside, then gently took Su Yuan by the hand and led him toward the cafeteria.
Zhuge Tie snorted and said,
"Su Yuan, your physical constitution is too mediocre. Your body is the foundation of all athletic performance. You can have my serving of black-horned ox bone soup at lunch. Drink it all later."
With that, he also entered the cafeteria.
Hearing the two teachers' words, Su Yuan suddenly understood.
When Teacher Zhuge had stopped him earlier, he must have already figured out what to do if Su Yuan couldn't get in line at the cafeteria.
He'd take him through the teachers-only line to get food.
Even if Su Yuan really had to run ten laps around the track, he probably wouldn't go hungry.
How thoughtful!
He'd heard that the teachers' meals included plenty of nourishing ingredients that weren't available in the students' meals. He was in for a treat.
Su Yuan thought happily to himself. What a blessing in disguise.
Inside the cafeteria, he was greeted by a bustling crowd. Every food counter was packed, and more than half the tables were occupied.
Su Yuan quickly spotted his dear son, who was still waiting in line for food.
Ha!
Su Yuan grinned triumphantly and strode toward the teachers' line with the two teachers.
Just then, a student walked past him carrying a tray of half-eaten food, then dumped it into a slop bucket nearby.
Seeing this, Su Yuan, who had always cherished food, couldn't help feeling a little sorry for the waste.
And this student wasn't the only one doing it. The slop bucket was already piled high with leftovers.
As he looked at the half-eaten spirit fruit, the half-bun soaking in the slop, and the bones with plenty of meat still clinging to them, a strange idea suddenly popped into Su Yuan's head.
Did this discarded food count as sect resources?
As soon as the thought occurred to him, Su Yuan hurried to the slop bucket, gripped its rim, and silently repeated that he wanted to claim it for himself.
But nothing happened.
Tsk, it seemed the system had classified it as discarded sect resources. He couldn't exploit that loophole.
Just as Su Yuan was feeling disappointed, a hesitant voice sounded behind him:
"Excuse me, could you move aside?"
Su Yuan turned around. A student was about to dump their leftovers, and there was a whole uneaten egg yolk on their tray. It looked pretty appetizing.
There was no way that should be classified as discarded resources.
An idea flashed through Su Yuan's mind. He asked earnestly,
"Hey, I need some leftovers to feed my dog. Could I take yours and deal with them myself? I'll wash the tray clean, too."
"Uh, sure."
Seeing how sincere Su Yuan sounded, the student could only nod and hand over the tray.
The next second, a "ding" rang out in Su Yuan's mind.
[Task Two: Secret Infiltration (In Progress)] [Task Progress: Resources Plundered (1/100)]
"Oh-ho, so I guessed right?"
Su Yuan's heart leaped with joy.
The task progress had only increased by a measly one, but there were five or six hundred students in the cafeteria!
Even if only one in five had leftovers, he could finish the task in one fell swoop!
With that thought, Su Yuan didn't dare miss his chance. He hurriedly asked one of the cafeteria cleaners for a pile of clean trash bags, then brought over several trash cans and lined each one with a bag.
"Su Yuan, what are you doing?"
Zhuge Tie, who had already entered the teachers' line, frowned and asked.
"Teacher, I'm sorry, but I can't eat with you. I have something more important to do now."
After saying that, Su Yuan stood by the slop bucket with the trash cans and waited, his expression solemn.
The two teachers, Li Ziquan and Zhuge Tie, were utterly dumbfounded.
They watched as Su Yuan accepted trays from one student after another who was about to dump their leftovers, then sorted the food on each tray into separate containers. He looked just like... an old man packing up food at a country banquet.
"Hey, over here! Just give me the tray. I'll wash it clean."
"No trouble at all. Thanks for supporting me."
A strange look crossed Zhuge Tie's stern face. Looking at the several trash cans gradually filling up, he couldn't help saying,
"I just heard the kid say he's taking all this food home to feed his dog. What kind of dog eats this much in one meal? A dog demon in the Foundation Establishment Realm?"
Just as the two of them were puzzled, a figure walked into the cafeteria. It was Yue Lin, the homeroom teacher of Senior Class Two.
The two teachers exchanged a glance, then went over to him.
"Teacher Yue, you're Su Yuan's homeroom teacher, right? Do you have any idea what he's doing?"
Li Ziquan pointed at Su Yuan and asked Yue Lin.
Yue Lin froze and looked over at Su Yuan, standing guard by the slop bucket. A storm surged through his heart, and he blurted out,
"Has the boy's condition gotten worse this quickly?"
"What?!"
He'd only shown slight signs of mental abnormality that morning, but by noon he'd become addicted to picking up trash. That seemed like a classic symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
If things progressed further, would he end up going completely mad?
Thinking of all the astonishingly talented students he'd encountered over the course of his teaching career, students who'd gone astray and fallen into madness, Yue Lin couldn't help feeling a pang of sorrow.
Was another young prodigy about to have his wings clipped...? Wait, Su Yuan was only of average talent. He didn't really count as a prodigy.
Then there was no problem.
After his train of thought was briefly interrupted, Yue Lin carefully observed Su Yuan's mental state again, then cleared his throat and said,
"It's also possible that Su Yuan's family isn't well-off, so he's collecting these leftovers to fill his stomach."
Li Ziquan and Zhuge Tie: "..."
Damn, that was even more pitiful and heartbreaking!
Zhuge Tie hesitated for a moment, then said uncertainly,
"Teacher Li and I just invited Su Yuan to eat with us, but he turned us down. He doesn't seem like he's so poor he can't afford food."
Li Ziquan said mournfully,
"Teacher Yue, you're always so pessimistic. Can't you think of a more positive explanation?"
Hearing that, Yue Lin wavered a little and analyzed the situation:
"If we set aside his condition and his family circumstances, there's only one reason left for Su Yuan to do this."
"He must cherish food and hate to see so much of it thrown away, so he's planning to feed it to cats, dogs, tigers, crocodiles, and other little pets."
Li Ziquan and Zhuge Tie: "..."
Well, they were right back where they started.
After a moment of silence, Zhuge Tie said,
"It's not a problem that Su Yuan is collecting leftovers. But I only noticed today: aren't the students throwing away too much food at every meal? It seems like the students these days have it a little too good."
Yue Lin shook his head and said,
"Even so, quite a few students at the school would rather order takeout than eat in the cafeteria. If we impose stricter rules, we might lose half the students who still eat here."
He looked at Su Yuan and sighed,
"There aren't many young people as frugal as Su Yuan anymore."
Just then, a sudden "ding" rang out in Su Yuan's mind.
[Task Progress: Martial Arts Elder Affinity (125/80) Body-Tempering Elder Affinity (65/80)] [Note: Another unknown sect elder's Affinity toward you has increased!]
Su Yuan: "???"
Before you continue