Universe Infinite Canteen-Chapter 671: I Swear

"Do you want to know what’s in the box? I can find someone to check it out for you, although I can’t guarantee they’ll find anything," Yuan Ruonan said.

"No need," Ma Lu waved his hand, speaking casually. "We will know by next week when we win against the Hero."

"Do you feel confident about winning against the Hero ranked fourth?"

"It would be arrogant to say it’s a sure win, as there are always surprises in this world and nothing is certain. But I do feel 90% confident," Ma Lu said modestly.

Although Hou De School currently ranks 89th, this is mainly because Ma Lu hasn’t been short on education points recently and has been focusing on collecting ingredients, thus not challenging other schools for the past two weeks.

However, the growth of Hou De’s students hadn’t stopped; Hou De had also employed Gu Peilun and Sheng Tongwen, two educational luminaries.

Even though one of them was a mole sent by the Hero Group, to avoid revealing their identity too soon, they taught very diligently during classes, even more seriously than other teachers.

Teacher Cao was not shy, and she filled their schedules with classes on their first day.

Gu Peilun only stayed at Hou De for six days but taught 41 classes—almost 7 classes per day—covering 14 high-level talismans. He truly was a model worker among model workers.

What was even more touching was that he hadn’t asked the school for a penny.

Since Gu Peilun left halfway through on his own, not to mention N+1, he didn’t even take the salary for those six days, so Hou De purely took advantage of this situation.

Together with Sheng Tongwen, the two taught a total of thirty-two high-level talismans, jointly helping Hou De make up for its last weakness.

According to Teacher Cao’s evaluation, the real level of Hou De’s students should have been able to break into the top ten by now. There might still be a gap from the Hero, but it shouldn’t be large.

Moreover, Ma Lu had about 90,000 education points on hand, 30,000 of which were left from defeating Heroic Concealment, and the rest mainly came from cleaning up the catastrophe belt and last week’s monthly exam.

Yes, that’s right, according to the school management system’s rules, nurturing students also earned education points.

With a strong push from Enlightenment Cola, the strength of all at Hou De had rapidly improved.

Last week’s school-held monthly exam spoke volumes, and Ma Lu also used the opportunity to recoup about 40,000 education points.

With those 90,000 education points in hand, Principal Ma felt quite confident about defeating the Hero.

Although Yuan Ruonan didn’t understand why Ma Lu was so optimistic, having witnessed him perform miracles more than once, she didn’t say anything else and just remarked, "As long as you have a plan, that’s good."

Ma Lu then took out a 25,000 mAh capacity power bank from his pocket, which he had brought with him this time using Radish Patch.

Ma Lu handed the power bank to Yuan Ruonan and showed her how to use it.

"Like this... Yes, just plug it into the voice recorder, and once it’s charged, the voice recorder can be used again."

Yuan Ruonan accepted the power bank, casting a thoughtful look at Ma Lu, "If I hadn’t helped you tonight, would you have still given this to me? You only gave me a voice recorder initially, maybe you had such thoughts all along."

"Hey, listen to what you’re saying, am I that kind of person?" Ma Lu said discontentedly, "I didn’t interact with you because of your identity or your father. I’ve always seen you as a friend.

"The reason I’m giving it to you now is because each time I visit I can only bring one item. I swear, if I’m lying in this statement I’m willing to be struck by lightning!"

Ma Lu raised his right hand, his sincere expression making Yuan Ruonan feel somewhat embarrassed as she hurriedly explained.

"I’m not doubting you... even if it were a transaction, I could accept it. Of course, this isn’t to say I’m doubting you; it’s just a supposition."

Yuan Ruonan, not often flustered, felt somewhat discomposed, especially when she saw a hint of disappoint in Ma Lu’s eyes, and she repeated, "I’m not doubting you," twice.

Ma Lu waved it off, speaking magnanimously, "It’s okay, given Miss Yuan’s status, you should indeed be more cautious in dealing with others. I can understand."

Yet the more understanding he was, the more ashamed Yuan Ruonan felt.

She thought for a moment then asked, "Is there anything I can help with for next week’s competition? Not because you just gave me the battery but genuinely from a friend’s perspective, I’d like to do more."

"There actually is," Ma Lu said, "My students recently learned several high-level talismans; making these talismans requires some rare materials."

"I can sponsor the school with some supplies," Yuan Ruonan immediately replied.

"That’s not necessary, we do have plenty of advanced talisman-making materials on hand; it’s just that the variety isn’t complete. We could put out some for an exchange, but the Hero side will definitely be keeping an eye on us."

"No problem, I can help you contact other talisman master schools and secretly procure the materials you need," Yuan Ruonan promptly agreed.

"That would be great," Ma Lu said, "I’ll have Teacher Cao write up a list and give it to you."

After discussing their business, Yuan Ruonan had her driver take Ma Lu back to the school.

Ma Lu gathered all teachers and students for a mobilization meeting, announcing the upcoming competition with the Hero.

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Unlike the previous two times, apart from the recently arrived Sheng Tongwen, most teachers and students, instead of feeling fearful, showed an eagerness to try.

Their abundant learning outcomes had brought them confidence, and successive victories over Lingnan and Heroic Concealment had also diminished their awe of those ranked significantly ahead of Hou De School.

Some even regretted that their opponent wasn’t Hero Group; otherwise, winning this battle could propel Hou De to the top of the rankings.

Seeing the students’ high morale and spirited attitude, Principal Ma felt quite gratified.

Yet, while strategy could afford to disdain the opponent, tactically, they still needed to be taken seriously.

After the meeting, Ma Lu kept the teachers and turned to Sheng Tongwen.

"Mr. Sheng, it’s been over a dozen days since you came to our Hou De. How are you finding the work?"

Sheng Tongwen nodded, "Although Hou De doesn’t have many people, it is vibrant. Everyone is striving forward; even students with ordinary aptitude are still diligent and eager to learn, not giving up on themselves.

"The teachers are equally hardworking, studying talismans in the training tower when not teaching. In the past week, almost every day, many came to discuss professional knowledge with me.

"Such a strong academic atmosphere is rarely seen in my lifetime," Sheng Tongwen said, seemingly recalling something, then sighed.

"To be frank, I’ve been a principal myself. When I took over the school, I also had grand ambitions to revitalize my alma mater, but it’s easier said than done. Unfortunately, I still failed."