Chapter 79: Chapter 79: A Little Famous
"Alright, and finally, let’s have this test’s first-place winner, Zhao Chi from Basic Class 4, come up to the stage to receive his award."
Dean Liao Zheng announced loudly.
The entire Grand Hall fell silent.
Everyone was trying to get a good look at the first-place winner.
Zhao Chi had always been a nobody.
The only time he had ever been remotely famous was when his name appeared on the bottom 10 list, which only a handful of people had even noticed.
But as he began to study voraciously, his theoretical understanding improved daily, and he never appeared on the bottom-ranked list again.
In this test, it was as if he had appeared out of nowhere; many people had never even heard his name.
"Oh, so that’s Zhao Chi. I see him in the library all the time."
"I’ve seen him around too, but how did he get so good?"
"Maybe his family is well-off?"
"Definitely not. Forget his immediate family, his entire clan is just ordinary."
"No way, right? He got first place all on his own?"
"Who knows? Maybe he has some kind of Special Talent, or he acquired a Special Race."
"Aren’t the chances of that too slim?"
"He’s not bad looking."
"Not bad? Isn’t he pretty ordinary-looking?"
"I think he’s fine. As long as he’s easy on the eyes."
As Zhao Chi walked step-by-step onto the stage, the chatter below gradually grew louder.
But compared to just a moment ago, the reception for Zhao Chi after he got on stage was much more subdued.
Only Yang Xiong yelled a few times, but this just made his shouts seem more jarring and awkward.
Liao Zheng smiled and said, "We have a new face this time. Zhao Chi, this should be your first time placing in the top 10 of your grade, right?"
Zhao Chi nodded.
Liao Zheng remarked with emotion:
"So, do you all see?"
"Everyone has a chance."
"I’ve heard of Zhao Chi. His fundamentals were poor. But through his own hard work, his grades in theory courses have improved by leaps and bounds."
"His results in this practical combat test are undoubtedly related to his foundational knowledge."
"All you students should spend more time reading. Don’t just focus on practical combat while neglecting theory."
"Alright, this is an awards ceremony for Zhao Chi, so I won’t say any more."
"Instructor Li, please present the award."
CLACK! CLACK! CLACK!
The crisp clacking sound rang out.
Li Ruanyu walked forward, her High Heels clacking with each step.
Everyone’s gaze shifted from Zhao Chi to Li Ruanyu.
Li Ruanyu smiled as she held a silver Treasure Chest, which glittered under the Grand Hall’s lights.
Li Ruanyu gracefully walked up to Zhao Chi.
A strange emotion flickered in her eyes.
Her red lips parted slightly as she smiled. "Congratulations, Zhao Chi. You truly deserve first place. This is your reward. Keep up the good work."
Zhao Chi took the Treasure Chest. "Thank you, Instructor Li."
Li Ruanyu gently stepped aside.
Liao Zheng smiled. "Zhao Chi’s performance was outstanding this time. Is there anything you’d like to say? A few words?"
Zhao Chi had been about to walk off the stage.
’I have to give a speech?’
’I haven’t prepared anything...’
’Still, there’s a universal formula for this: giving thanks. Thanking everyone should be fine.’
Zhao Chi thought for a moment, then said,
"First, I’d like to thank my Chief Instructor, Li Ruanyu. When my State was at its lowest, she never gave up on me. She provided tremendous help in supplementing my foundational knowledge. Thank you, Instructor Li."
Li Ruanyu smiled, tilting her head to look at Zhao Chi.
There was a trace of tenderness in her gaze.
"Next, I also want to thank the president of our Class 4, Lu Yi. Her theoretical knowledge is excellent. Whenever I ran into a problem, I would always ask her first, and she always answered patiently. Thank you, Lu Yi."
The students around Lu Yi all looked at her, and Lu Yi smiled.
"Fuck..." Cao Feng cursed under his breath.
Zhao Chi continued, "And then there’s my friend, Yang Xiong. There’s not much to say, other than to thank him for his constant support."
Hearing this, Yang Xiong got excited again and let out another jarring shout from the audience.
It was a little foolish, but Yang Xiong didn’t care.
"I also want to thank the grade’s Chief Instructor, Saint Monarch You, as well as all the other Chief Instructors and instructors. For my problems in various subjects, every instructor gave me professional guidance. Thank you."
"Finally, thank you to Dean Liao Zheng for shielding us from a lot of unnecessary trouble, allowing us to learn in a relatively peaceful environment. Thank you, Dean Liao."
"Thank you, Eighth Academy."
Zhao Chi nodded at Liao Zheng, indicating that he was finished.
Liao Zheng chuckled. "Zhao Chi, your thank-yous are quite comprehensive. Go back and prepare well this time. If you take first place again, you’ll have to come up with a new speech."
Zhao Chi smiled.
Liao Zheng said, "Congratulations again, Zhao Chi."
This time, the entire hall burst into applause.
After Zhao Chi and Li Ruanyu left the stage, Liao Zheng spoke again:
"That’s all for today’s test. Your Identity as Intern Lords has now been promoted."
"From this day forward, all of you are now Junior Lords."
"Your Lord permissions have been fully unlocked. You can pay taxes remotely, establish Positions, accept quests, wage wars in outer domains, and so on."
"However, your territories have only recently been established. You must act within your capabilities when accepting quests and waging external wars."
"Don’t forget about your weekly classes either."
"Alright, today’s test has concluded successfully. Keep up the good work, everyone. Dismissed!"
The test was finally over.
Zhao Chi had a lot to do.
The first thing was to use his Learning Points to exchange for useful Supplies or items.
Items exchanged with Learning Points, just like the Treasure Chest he had just been awarded, were considered rewards from the academy and were not taxed.
This was a rare opportunity.
Besides Zhao Chi, the nearly 1,000 other Basic Lord Students had the same idea.
The students crowded out of the main doors, all heading toward the logistics department.
But some students also headed toward Zhao Chi.
"Zhao Chi, let’s get acquainted. I’m Zhao Qian from Class 3. We should be related, given our surnames."
"Zhao Chi, Zhao Chi! I’m Sun Li from Class 6. Add me as a friend! We can do quests together if we have the chance."
"Hello, Zhao Chi. I’m Zhou Wu from Class 1. My territory has a lot of stone. If you ever need any, you can look for me."
"Excuse me, you’re Zhao Chi, right? I’m Zheng Wang from Class 10. I specialize in the captive trade. If you have any prisoners, I’ll buy them at a high price. Let’s be friends."
Along the way, Zhao Chi kept accepting friend requests, adding over twenty students from other classes.
These people all had their own strengths.
Zhao Chi saw no reason to refuse and amicably added all of them.
Yang Xiong said from the side, "Zhao Chi, you’ve become a celebrity today. But you should still keep a low profile. Don’t attract the attention of *those* people."
Zhao Chi nodded. "Don’t worry, I understand."
Lu Yi was walking with the other female students from their class. A crowd of students from other classes had also surrounded them.
It seemed like even more people were trying to add Lu Yi as a friend than Zhao Chi.
But Cao Feng drove them all away.
Cao Feng said angrily, "Get lost! What class are you from? And you, get out of here too! Who’s gonna add you as friends?"
Zheng He, Li Ke, and the others also helped drive them away.
Just then, Wang Lie walked over.
Zhao Chi immediately called out to him, "Wang Lie, are you still buying Goblins?"
Wang Lie hesitated. "Of course I want to, but I don’t have much money right now. I won’t have any until the day after tomorrow."
Zhao Chi sent him a list. "No problem. I can give you the Goblins first, and you can pay me the day after tomorrow. How much for 10 Goblins? You pay the tax, ’kay?"
Wang Lie nodded. "Really? That’s great! If I pay the tax, I can only give you 50 Silver Coins. If you agree, we can sign a contract."
"No problem. I’ll send them over once I get back."
"That’s wonderful. Thank you, Zhao Chi."
