Chapter 23: Promoted Three Ranks in a Row (Seventh Update)

As soon as Luo Yuan conceded, the Level-Up Device immediately displayed a task completion notification! Together with the thirteen experience points earned from defeating his opponent in a single move, Xin Zhu gained a total of forty-eight experience points today.

Forty-eight experience points—an absolute explosion! Adding the four experience points he already possessed, Xin Zhu now had fifty-two in total. After deducting the one experience point spent on learning "Tiger Subduing Seventy-Two Fists" and the ten points required to reach Martial Disciple Level Five, he was left with forty-one experience points in his Level-Up Device.

Delighted, Xin Zhu thought, "Forty-one experience points—enough to level up four times in a row!"

He didn't care about the so-called rise of Xuyang Academy, nor about the honor of being a martial artist. In his eyes, these were all empty things; only experience points truly mattered.

Having obtained the experience points he desired, Xin Zhu leapt down from the dueling platform.

At that moment, Meng Linglong approached him.

By now, every student at Xuyang Academy knew Meng Linglong's identity—she was the new headmaster. The male students discovered that, in addition to the formidable "Dragon Subduing One Hundred and Eight Palms," they now had another compelling reason to stay.

Just as Xin Zhu was about to leave, Meng Linglong stopped him and said, "Xin, your performance today was outstanding. At the academy's most difficult moment, you stepped forward. On behalf of the school and all faculty and students, I thank you—"

Before Meng Linglong could finish her words of praise, Xin Zhu cut her off, "If you're going to reward me, make it something practical—waive my tuition, board, and lodging fees!"

"Uh..." Today's scene had Meng Linglong prepared with a long, stirring speech to rally the students' morale. Yet, Xin Zhu's single remark took the wind out of her sails.

"What? No? Forget it, then—just pretend I never said anything." Xin Zhu had no intention of lingering and turned to leave the training hall.

"Boss!"

"Xin Zhu, wait for me!"

Gu the Fatty and Meng Chuchu chased after him together.

With Xin Zhu gone, the students in the hall quickly dispersed as well. The male students all rushed toward the library, while the female students hurried off to freshen up, eager to present their most beautiful selves before Xin Zhu. His heroic display had been enough to captivate ninety-nine percent of the academy's female students.

Only Meng Linglong and a few teachers remained in the vast training hall. Luo Hengxing said to Meng Linglong, "Headmaster Meng, if there's nothing else, we'll take our leave now."

"Ah... very well..."

In the immense training hall, the beautiful headmaster of Xuyang Academy found herself left all alone.

"Xin, wait for me!" Meng Chuchu called after Xin Zhu as she chased behind him.

She called for quite a while, but Xin Zhu showed no sign of stopping. In desperation, Meng Chuchu quickened her pace and pleaded, "Uncle Xin, please wait for me, won't you?"

Xin Zhu halted, turned to her, and asked impatiently, "What is it? Don't you know your uncle is busy?"

"Uh..." Xin Zhu's victory today had left Meng Chuchu elated—she had so much she wanted to say to him. But seeing the impatience on his face, she suddenly felt immense pressure, the words stuck in her throat. After a long hesitation, she nervously twisted the hem of her clothes and asked in a soft voice, "Uncle, do you have any lollipops left?"

"Here." With a flick of his wrist, Xin Zhu produced a lollipop, tossed it to her, and turned to leave.

No sooner had he sent Meng Chuchu off than Gu the Fatty caught up with him. "Boss, what martial skill did you just use? Can you teach me?"

Xin Zhu stopped again. He pulled out a silver coin and tossed it to Gu the Fatty. "I used 'Dragon Subduing One Hundred and Eight Palms.' Go study it yourself in the library."

"Heh heh!" Gu the Fatty grinned slyly. "Boss, you can't fool me! I may not have much talent for martial arts, but I do have a good eye. The set of palm techniques you just used is far superior to the library's 'Dragon Subduing One Hundred and Eight Palms.' I know you must have mastered something even more advanced!"

Xin Zhu was surprised by Gu's insight, but saw no reason to hide anything from him. "Go learn the 'Dragon Subduing One Hundred and Eight Palms' first. The technique I use builds on that as a foundation. Once you've mastered it, I'll teach you the advanced forms."

Having been bullied since childhood, Gu the Fatty harbored a deep desire to become strong. Xin Zhu's words ignited that dream, and he immediately ran off toward the library.

By unofficial count, after Xin Zhu defeated Luo Shan and the other four elite students from Luoyang Academy with a single move in the training hall, Xuyang Academy's library experienced an unprecedented surge in attendance. The "Dragon Subduing One Hundred and Eight Palms" was borrowed more times than in the entire previous month combined.

Moreover, the news of Xin Zhu singlehandedly defeating all twelve Luoyang Academy elites quickly spread, elevating Xuyang Academy's reputation to new heights. Word also spread that the academy had transformed Xin Zhu—a "failure" rejected by Luoyang Academy—into a "genius," attracting a flood of prospective students.

Back in his dormitory, Xin Zhu pondered how to allocate his forty-one experience points. He used thirty of them to level up three times in a row, advancing from Martial Disciple Level Five to Level Eight.

With eleven experience points remaining, he could have leveled up once more, but chose not to—he could always do that later.

Through several battles, Xin Zhu had discovered that the Level-Up Device allowed him to learn opponents' martial skills during combat, but this required spending experience points. Therefore, he decided to keep some points in reserve. So long as he had experience points, he could upgrade at any time.

In the days that followed, Xin Zhu devoted himself entirely to that five-star main quest. Once he completed it, he would reach Martial Disciple Level Ten and be ready to break through to the Martial Artist realm!

P.S.: Next chapter at 8 p.m.! Brothers, Bai Cai is working hard—if you have tickets, don't forget to vote!