Only after repeatedly confirming that Cheng Tian really was all right did Su Han carry the exam papers with him to Sun Yanling's desk.
At the time, Sun Yanling was supervising the class during their exercises. Since the two of them had already been excused, they went straight back to the classroom.
The morning lessons continued, but ten minutes before the last class ended at noon, Sun Yanling checked her watch and put down her book.
"All right, there are ten minutes left before class ends. I have an announcement," Sun Yanling said. "With Pokémon Studies being introduced under the new college entrance exam reforms, the school wants you to properly understand and view your own Pokémon, and strengthen your teamwork and bonds with them. We've decided to replace the practical combat lessons on Wednesday afternoons with weekly community service."
Everyone was puzzled by this announcement.
Weekly community service? What on earth was that?
"Weekly community service means the school will collect requests from nearby residents who are having difficulties, then have you use your Pokémon's abilities to help them."
"You can complete them alone or in teams. You'll receive rewards based on how well you do. I'll post the details in the class group chat at noon, so make sure you read them carefully."
"All right, class dismissed." Sun Yanling left after saying that, but the classroom immediately erupted into heated discussion. "Hey, what kind of rewards do you think the school will give us?" Lin Lin asked.
"Surely not ten pounds of exam papers?" Bai Yun shuddered. "Probably not. I think it'll be things useful for raising Pokémon," Cheng Tian reasoned.
Still, all their discussion got them nowhere, so they headed home.
After returning home and eating lunch, Cheng Tian checked the group messages. The document had already been posted.
Class teacher: Detailed arrangements and precautions for Wednesday afternoon practical activities.word
PE teacher, Teacher Zhou: This afternoon, I'll take everyone to choose their tasks. The afternoon after tomorrow, I'll lead you out for the practical lesson. Please be sure to stay safe. (flower)
Below that was a long chain of acknowledgments.
Cheng Tian opened the document and skimmed the main information. He discovered that the activities used a points-based reward system, and those points could be exchanged for Berries, medicine, some ordinary items, and even common TMs. At that, he couldn't help rubbing his hands together in anticipation.
In his room, Cheng Tian was shopping for TMs online.
After the previous mine collapse, Cheng Tian had realized how important a Protect TM was. Whether it was blocking an attack at a crucial moment in battle or protecting a Trainer or the user in everyday life, Protect was an extremely practical move. He therefore intended to buy one Protect TM for each of his two little companions.
Since almost every Pokémon could learn this move, and it was extremely useful, there were plenty of listings and ample stock online.
One Protect TM cost five thousand, so two cost ten thousand. After buying them, he had two hundred and thirty thousand left in his account. After some thought, Cheng Tian also bought the Grass-type move Grass Knot and a Thunder Wave TM.
Thunder Wave was for Aron to paralyze opponents, while Grass Knot was for Froakie. Used well, that move could also produce unexpected results. Having spent another ten thousand or so, Cheng Tian felt a pang as he looked at his transaction history.
I really need to hurry up and make some money!
The two TMs were soon picked up for delivery and were expected to arrive that afternoon.
After a lovely nap, Cheng Tian went to school that afternoon. Rather than going to the classroom, he headed straight to the sports field.
When he reached the field, Cheng Tian saw that the other three were already there and hurried over. The weather was still scorching, and standing in the sun was miserable. Sweat kept dripping from them.
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Teacher Zhou nodded. "Everyone, follow me."
Bingzhou No. 1 High School had three teaching buildings, one laboratory building, a gymnasium, a sports field, and an administration building.
Teacher Zhou led them toward the administration building. As they entered the lobby, a huge board in front of them caught the students' attention.
"This is the task board. School rules require everyone to take and complete at least one task from here each week. There's no upper limit." Teacher Zhou took out a thick stack of cards. "Come and collect your card when I call your name."
Only after everyone had collected their cards did Teacher Zhou continue. "Each of these cards comes with one hundred starting points. You'll need to put up a certain number of points as a deposit to accept a task. Once you complete it, both the deposit and the reward points will be credited to your card. If you fail the task or exceed the time limit, you'll lose the deposit. Keep that in mind."
"The tasks on this board were posted by nearby residents. The school will authorize you to go out and complete them every Wednesday afternoon. Of course, if you want to earn more points, you can also take tasks in your spare time. Points can be exchanged for all sorts of things. You may choose your tasks now."
The students immediately crowded around the task board. Cheng Tian tried to squeeze through for a while, but found he couldn't get in at all. With no other choice, he went aside to look at the items available for points first.
There were plenty of items. Cheng Tian skipped the things he didn't currently need and started looking at the TMs.
"Low Sweep: 2,700 points"
"Brick Break: 2,980 points"
"Trailblaze: 3,050 points"
Cheng Tian soon spotted a move he wanted. "Chilling Water: 3,010 points"
The TMs here were all fairly good quality, but their prices in points were a little frightening. Over three thousand points?! Cheng Tian felt bitter. Everyone only started with one hundred!
"Cheng Tian, what are you looking at?" Su Han came over and asked curiously. "I'm looking at these TMs. They all cost so many points."
Hearing that, Su Han stood beside him and began looking too, then frowned. Exchanging points for TMs really did require a lot of them. For someone like her, who wasn't short of money, buying TMs herself would be faster than spending time doing tasks to earn points. If the school hadn't required it, she wouldn't have wanted to take these tasks at all.
If Cheng Tian could have heard her thoughts, he would definitely have complained.
Girl, what kind of background do you have? What kind do I have? Can we even compare?
"Hey, A-Tian, I found a pretty good task here!" Bai Yun called to Cheng Tian from the crowd.
"Come on, let's take a look." Hearing that, Cheng Tian quickly brought Su Han over. "Here, right here." Following the direction Bai Yun pointed, Cheng Tian spotted the task.
"Team task: Drive away the pack of Poochyena intimidating pedestrians near Jingxi Road. Required deposit: 350 points. Reward: 200 points. Task requirements: At least three participants. Complete within one week of accepting the task."
"The four of us can pool three hundred and fifty points to take it, then split the reward evenly," Bai Yun said with a grin.
"That's a pretty hefty deposit," Cheng Tian said with a frown. If they couldn't finish the task, those three hundred and fifty points would go down the drain. Besides, dividing the two-hundred-point reward among four people would only give them fifty each.
"Relax. Surely the four of us can handle it?" Bai Yun patted Cheng Tian on the shoulder. Cheng Tian turned to the two girls. "What about you? Do you want to take it?"
"No problem for me!" "We can take it." Hearing that neither girl objected, Cheng Tian finally nodded. "Then let's accept this task."
The four of them went to Teacher Zhou and explained which task they wanted to take. Teacher Zhou nodded. "There's a card reader on the table over there. Enter the task number, then swipe your cards to put down the deposit."
The four pooled three hundred and fifty points and accepted the task. Now they were all penniless. The other students gradually accepted tasks as well, some in groups and some alone. Seeing this, Teacher Zhou said, "Since everyone has accepted a task, let's get ready for PE. Remember, you must prepare thoroughly before attempting your tasks to avoid accidents."
Everyone nodded in understanding.
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