"Isn't that part of the school's teaching resources? We have to pay for it?"
"Doesn't the school have to buy it? You expect us to just give it to you for nothing? Who do you think you are?!"
Qin Fangyang's years of calm were shattered by Zuo Xiaoduo in a single day. For the first time in his life, he felt the urge to beat a student.
"Oh..." Zuo Xiaoduo looked miserable. At the thought of having to fork over another huge sum, every bit of flesh on his body began to ache. For a moment, he could barely breathe. Swallowing, he asked, "Mr. Qin... how much is the tuition?"
Qin Fangyang lowered his head and stared at the desktop, saying glumly, "One hundred thousand Star Yuan per semester. Plus fifty Low-Grade Star Soul Stones."
Zuo Xiaoduo jumped as though jabbed with a needle, his shrill voice like the yowl of a cat whose tail had been stepped on. "One hundred thousand! That much? You're eating people alive!! Is this an academy or a racket?!"
Qin Fangyang's face darkened. "..."
Zuo Xiaoduo bristled with righteous indignation. "I've done the calculations carefully. Based on each Martial Warrior's cultivation expenses, even a whole year..."
Bang!
Unable to stand it any longer, Qin Fangyang sent Zuo Xiaoduo out the door with a kick.
"If you don't bring it tomorrow, you're not coming to class!"
The door slammed shut with a crash!
He really did not want to keep arguing nonsense with this brat!
I've finally seen through him. This brat is the sort who'll fight tooth and nail to take advantage of others and die before taking a loss. He's happy to collect money, but asking him to pay is practically asking for his life!
"His parents aren't merchants, are they?!" Qin Fangyang fumed. "How did they raise such a... creature!"
"What a rip-off!"
"What an absolute rip-off!"
Walking home, Zuo Xiaoduo was still fuming, muttering to himself.
"This is an utter rip-off!"
"What kind of world is this..."
"They're eating people alive without even spitting out the bones!"
Zuo Xiaoduo kept grumbling.
"A year in the Martial Disciple class only costs five thousand Star Yuan, but a single semester in the Martial Warrior class actually costs a hundred thousand! And they charge another fifty Low-Grade Star Soul Stones on top! Why don't they just rob people! Is this even a school anymore? Is this still a school for nurturing talent...? Even bandits aren't as ruthless as you..."
"Wait, that's not right. Xiao Nian never spent a penny on school or cultivation all the way from childhood until now... and she often finds good stuff, too. Why don't I get that kind of treatment...?"
Zuo Xiaoduo seethed with indignation.
"My family just spent a million. Where would we get another hundred thousand?"
Zuo Xiaoduo's guts twisted into a hundred knots of worry.
"My private stash... even counting everything I have at home and elsewhere, it only adds up to seven thousand and twenty... where am I supposed to get the money?"
He turned it over and over in his mind but could find no solution. Stamping his foot and gritting his teeth, Zuo Xiaoduo tilted his head back and sighed to the heavens. "A genius like me actually has to pay tuition... shouldn't they be giving me a scholarship? What a rip-off, what an absolute rip-off..."
He rounded a street corner.
The main street lay ahead.
Although it was already dusk, there were still quite a few people on the street.
A girl with a pink bag slung across her body was fiddling with her phone, leaning against a lamppost and staring at the screen in rapt attention. A smile appeared at the corners of her lips from time to time.
Amid the hurried footsteps of the passing crowd, she seemed especially still.
Was she chatting with someone?
Zuo Xiaoduo instinctively appraised her. "Not tall enough... too flat, her skin's too dark, and... acne?... Her hair's too short, not straight, split ends. Her neck isn't all that long... calves are too thick, average butt, can't see clearly underneath..."
"But her boyfriend's pretty good-looking. Tall and straight-backed, a somewhat handsome face, and quite considerate, too, sneaking up to her so quietly. You can tell at a glance he's a good man... huh? Boyfriend? No... holy shit, that's a thief!"
Chapter 22: Benefactor, Fate Has Brought Us Together
Zuo Xiaoduo was startled.
The young man crept up to the girl, deftly took out a razor blade, silently sliced open the little pink bag, and gently drew out...
A wallet?!
Then he turned around and walked straight toward Zuo Xiaoduo as though nothing had happened.
He had plainly seen Zuo Xiaoduo, and knew that Zuo Xiaoduo had witnessed everything he had done, yet he strolled straight over with a swagger, brazen and unafraid.
Behind him, the girl holding her phone continued to smile foolishly, completely oblivious.
They were about to brush past each other.
Zuo Xiaoduo instinctively moved to step forward and stop him.
A thief! With my inborn sense of justice, how could I tolerate a creature like that? This is the perfect opportunity to carry out heaven's justice, rob the rich, and help the poor!
Just as he was about to step forward, his eyes suddenly lit up.
Huh?
Face reading!
Here's a customer.
Here comes a chance to earn Fortune Points...
Seeing that Zuo Xiaoduo made no move, the young man grew bolder still. He snorted and was about to walk past.
Smack!
Zuo Xiaoduo shot out a hand and seized the young man by the collar, studying his face over and over with a solemn, worried, world-weary gaze.
His eyes swept back and forth.
The young man said, "You... what are you doing?"
Why is this guy's grip so strong? Is he a martial artist?
Zuo Xiaoduo let out a long sigh. "Amitabha, blessings, blessings, Boundless Heavenly Venerable... benefactor, your facial signs don't look very good to me."
The young man froze, then snapped, "Let go! What nonsense are you talking about?"
Zuo Xiaoduo's face was full of compassion for the suffering of the world. "Benefactor, your facial signs are unfavorable. Black energy coils around you, and ill fortune surges over your crown. I see that today... a dire baleful influence hangs over your head. I fear you may suffer a bloody calamity."
The young man said, "???"
Zuo Xiaoduo said earnestly, "Come, come, our meeting is itself a fated opportunity. Let this humble Taoist read your face and help resolve this for you. I'll dispel this dire baleful influence as much as possible, and naturally, all will be most auspicious. It won't take much. You need only offer a thousand yuan as a karmic donation."
The young man struggled a few times but could not break free. His expression slowly turned vicious as he stared at Zuo Xiaoduo and threatened in a low voice, "Are you going to let go or not?!"