And that punch was as if someone had hit the mute button on the school field.
The students, who had been whispering among themselves moments earlier, all turned to look at Huang Sheng, sprawled in the distance, and fell silent.
Even Li Ziquan, who'd had a sense of how strong Su Yuan was, was so stunned by the punch he'd just thrown that her mouth hung open.
Why?
Because Su Yuan was only at Qi Cultivation Level 6, while Huang Sheng was at Qi Cultivation Level 7, and his Physical Body was stronger than Su Yuan's, too.
Even if Su Yuan had miraculously mastered Fury Heart Attack in just a few days, at most he could rely on the mental art's boost and the unique traits of his spiritual meridians to keep Huang Sheng tied up in a hard-fought battle before finally winning.
But the reality had far exceeded Li Ziquan's expectations.
A one-hit kill!
Just like when he'd fought Wu Xingqi, he'd taken down his opponent in a single blow!
And there hadn't been any tricks or fancy techniques to that punch. It had been nothing but absolute, unquestionable power!
After a brief moment of shock, Li Ziquan's face lit up with irrepressible excitement. She studied Su Yuan as if he were a rare treasure.
Had he improved the mental art I taught him?
Li Ziquan murmured to herself:
"If that's really the case, then his talent is simply..."
The students who'd been skeptical of Su Yuan's strength were now thoroughly convinced.
Huang Sheng, a strong contender for the competition championship, had been taken down in a single blow. Who would dare question Su Yuan now?
With True Man Tai Bai's daughter as his backer, the ability to snag a red packet with the crummiest phone around, and strength that surpassed every other competitor, it'd be an affront to heaven itself if Su Yuan didn't become champion!
As for who there could be among them who remained calm, it was Chen Nuoyi.
She tutored Su Yuan every day, so she knew exactly how much his strength had improved.
"Principal Zhang, now that the Martial Arts Competition champion has been decided, shouldn't you say a few words?"
Taihua Tianji smiled faintly.
Zhang Youde nodded, stood, and walked over to Su Yuan. He gave him a gentle pat on the shoulder.
"Good lad. You're Su Yuan, right? I'd never heard your name before. You really were like thunder after a long silence."
"The school won't go back on its word. Since you're the competition champion, you can join the Special Class without taking the entrance exam, and you'll also receive a ten-thousand-yuan scholarship."
As Zhang Youde spoke, a teacher brought over a plaque bearing the words "Scholarship: 10,000 yuan."
"Ten thousand!"
At the figure, Su Yuan couldn't help swallowing hard.
That was no small amount. It was what he'd earn from selling sixteen roast geese, what he'd make from refining a hundred Calming Pills, and what he'd spend on three or four months of living expenses.
Next, the photographer arrived. Su Yuan hurriedly put on the enthusiastic smile he'd honed through day after day of work and stood beside the principal for a photo.
And so the Martial Arts Competition came to a winding close.
Of course, the students had nothing more to do, but for the school, which had to host Taihua Tianji, this was only the beginning.
After the photo, Su Yuan was about to return to the group.
But just then, Taihua Tianji called out to him.
"Su Yuan, as a future member of the Special Class, you'll be one of my students. There are a few things I need to tell you in advance."
Su Yuan gave a slight start, then quickly replied:
"Please go ahead, Teacher Tai Bai."
Taihua Tianji spoke slowly:
"The Special Class, which I'm organizing, has only one goal."
"To take Taihua High School students whose Gaokao scores would normally put them somewhere between the top five hundred and top one thousand in the city, and raise them to the top hundred, or even the top ten."
"As for the best student in the Special Class, I intend to give him a shot at becoming the Gaokao top scorer."
At his words, Su Yuan and the students present were all stunned.
The city's top hundred, even its top ten?
And he planned to train a Gaokao top scorer?!
True Man Tai Bai certainly had a bold way of putting things.
Taihua City might not be a first-tier or top-tier metropolis, but it was still a second-tier city—not some insignificant little place.
Public and private high schools were as numerous as the clouds, and Taihua City's talented students were as plentiful as fish crossing a river.
What kind of school was Taihua High School in Taihua City?
It was merely one of the city's top five key high schools.
You thought being one of the top five was impressive? Heh. Everyone knew there were two schools ranked first in the city, five in the top three, and no fewer than ten in the top five.
Over the years, only one or two Taihua High School students had managed to squeeze into the city's top ten in the Gaokao rankings, and on average, no more than five made it into the top fifty.
Now, back to what Taihua Tianji had just said.
The Special Class would have to have at least thirty students. Going by Taihua Tianji's words, was he planning to claim half the spots in next year's citywide top hundred?
If the education experts at other schools heard that, they'd probably laugh themselves silly.
But...
Think about it calmly. True Man Tai Bai had been famous for years. Surely he wouldn't just be shooting his mouth off.
In other words, he really was confident he could pull it off.
Once Su Yuan and the other students with a chance of making the Special Class realized this, their hearts began pounding uncontrollably.
Especially... the city's top ten!
Based on Taihua City's score cutoffs over the years, only those in the city's top ten could be sure of getting into one of the Ten Great Immortal Dao Academies.
Only ten people in the whole city could get into one of the Ten Greats. Didn't that sound like too few?
Su Yuan had wondered the same thing at first, but after looking it up online, he understood why.
Human civilization on Blue Star had been unified. He wasn't competing against examinees from a single country, as he had in his previous life, but against students from all over the world—more than ten billion people!
Getting into one of the Ten Greats was more than ten times harder than getting into Tsinghua or Peking University in his previous life!
Even Su Yuan, a cheat-level talent, couldn't guarantee he'd catch up with Prodigy Li Zhengxing before the Gaokao.
Studying under True Man Tai Bai was clearly the safer choice.
But why had True Man Tai Bai suddenly brought this up to him?
Confusion stirred in Su Yuan's heart, and Taihua Tianji spoke again:
"But cultivation takes more than hard work and a teacher's guidance. It also needs a great deal of cultivation resources."
"Among students who've achieved outstanding Gaokao results over the years, there have been a few who improved their scores through hard work alone, but they're as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns."
"Even with my guidance, students in the Special Class can't simply sit back and relax. They'll still have to rent external spiritual roots and take the body-tempering pills they need."
"In fact, because I've set a more intensive training regimen, your expenses in those areas will also rise accordingly."
Su Yuan understood. The school and True Man Tai Bai weren't running a charity, after all.
Getting personal guidance from a renowned teacher was already a great deal. What else did he expect, the school to cover every expense from now until the Gaokao?
What next, a free car?
Even so, Su Yuan couldn't help asking cautiously:
"Teacher Tai Bai, are the expenses after joining the Special Class very high?"
Su Yuan asked carefully.
Taihua Tianji nodded slightly.
"For an average family, they're certainly a considerable expense. But I'll also use every connection I have to reduce the Special Class students' costs as much as possible."
"Then exactly how much are we talking?"
"For a student with above-average aptitude, around one million."
"A year?"
"A month."
"Holy crap?!"
Su Yuan was stunned!
But Zhang Youde, standing beside Taihua Tianji, quickly added:
"The school understands that some students are struggling financially. So whether you spend that one million a month or not, as long as your grades are good enough, you can still enter the Special Class."
"And if a Special Class student makes it into the city's top ten, the school won't be stingy. Whatever that student spent while studying in the Special Class, the school will reimburse!"
"And if a Special Class student becomes the city's Gaokao top scorer, the school will refund ten times their total tuition!"
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