"What do you mean?"
Xin Guo asked, looking confused.
Zhuge Heng covered his face with the magazine again. "Don't ask too much about things in society! Your grandfather will definitely understand!"
Xin Guo leaned closer again. "Big Brother! Where's the spatial orb?"
As he was speaking, the space in front of Xin Guo twisted, and then a thumb-sized spatial orb appeared.
Xin Guo carefully put away the spatial orb. "Thank you, Big Brother!"
Zhuge Heng waved his hand. "Remember what I told you, don't forget it!"
"I won't forget!"
After the plane landed, as Xin Guo walked inside, Jiang Xiaocha, who was half a step behind him, suddenly said, "Brother, are you going to visit Old Master Li at Bao'er's house?"
Xin Guo acknowledged her, then realized that Jiang Xiaocha was now homeless. If Jiang Xiaocha went home alone, the house would be empty.
Just as he was about to speak, Jiang Xiaocha continued, "Brother, it's perfect, I also have something to take care of. How about we return to Lan City after you leave the Li family?"
Xin Guo paused slightly, seeming to guess something, but still asked, "Where are you going?"
Jiang Xiaocha looked into Xin Guo's eyes and only uttered two words, "Spark!"
Indeed, it was exactly as Xin Guo had guessed.
Since Jiang Xiaocha had made up her mind, Xin Guo knew there was no need to force her to withdraw from Spark.
Back in his dorm, Xin Guo took a shower, and Zhuge Heng's words flashed through his mind. He immediately searched for the meaning of 'Gongting Yuye Wine'.
The results showed it was a line from a skit centuries ago, which later became an online code for netizens to identify enemy infiltrators.
Xin Guo looked at the search results. Why would Bai Mao Zai use such an old meme as a secret code? Could it be to determine if Xin Guo's grandfather was one of them?
As Xin Guo dried himself, a possibility gradually dawned on him: Old Master Ye, the man behind the Ninth Division, was a staunch Reformist back then, and Xin Guo's grandfather was also a Reformist. Bai Mao Zai and the Church were completely at odds. Xin Guo mused, could it be that Bai Mao Zai wanted to contact Xin Guo's grandfather to continue the unfinished work of the Reformists?
Xin Guo lay back on his bed, took out the phone his grandfather had sent, and found no messages from his grandfather during this period.
Putting on his mental strength training blindfold, Xin Guo continued to hone his mental power. The second level, filled with Lao Se Pi's aura, had been successfully passed. The difficulty coefficient of the third level had increased too much. In the illusion, Xin Guo saw his parents; all the scenes were too real, almost causing Xin Guo to lose his mind.
After waking up, Xin Guo stared at the ceiling. His parents had passed away a long time ago, and many clues still had no leads.
Xin Guo had previously sent a message to Huang Xiue, asking her to look for information about Nili Hall. Official channels were completely blocked, but he could inquire through unofficial means. Figures like Huang Xiue, who operated in the gray areas of society, had many channels for gathering information.
The next day, after waking up, it was time for the awards ceremony.
The top three students in the academy this time were Li Bao'er, Ji Xuance, and Xin Guo.
The unhealthy trend started by Zhang Qiang, claiming that admission scores didn't mean everything, had quieted down for a long time after Yang Haosi was beaten to death by Xin Guo on the Life-and-Death Arena.
Unexpectedly, after the mid-term test results came out, seeing Xin Guo's ranking drop from first to third, a small portion of people began to revive this unhealthy trend.
"Although he is strong, his primary talent is Strength Talent. His weakness has still been exposed! The higher the realm, the more obvious the weakness!"
"He dropped from first to third in the mid-term test. Let's wait and see for the final exam!"
"Is anyone taking bets? I bet he'll drop out of the top ten in the final exam!"
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"Out of the top ten is a bit much, but top five is very stable!"
"But speaking of which, Li Bao'er is really consistent!"
"I feel that Li Bao'er is truly the undisputed number one in Sky Shield Academy this year!"
The discussions were endless, the voices noisy, and the scene was chaotic.
Li Bao'er turned her head to look at the people whispering behind her, her small brows furrowed.
The awards ceremony began, and the noisy sounds below finally quieted down.
New students ranked in the top ten of the academy did not need to submit the god and demon marrow obtained from the God and Demon Ruins. The top three also received additional rewards: the first place received three times the god and demon marrow in their Points Ring, the second place received two times, and the third place received one time.
The first place also received one tenth-tier offensive treasure and one tenth-tier defensive treasure. The second and third places received corresponding lower-tier items.
The students below who were not on the list looked at the top three on stage, their eyes filled with envy and fervor.
But unexpectedly, just as Xu Boshan handed the prize to Li Bao'er, Li Bao'er looked up and said innocently, "Dean, can the first place prize be given to Xin Guo?"
Xu Boshan was stunned for a moment, then smiled kindly, "You are the first place, this is your reward!"
Li Bao'er shook her head, firmly saying, "Without Xin Guo, I wouldn't be first place!"
Xu Boshan turned his head to look at Xin Guo. He knew that Zhuge Heng had asked Xin Guo to aim for a top ten overall ranking before this mid-term test, so he was aware that Xin Guo had held back his strength. He hadn't expected Li Bao'er, this straightforward child, to do something like this in public.
"Bao'er, no matter what, you are first place! Moreover, if you take first place, your grandfather will be happy when you go home for the holidays, won't he?"
"Oh, if my grandfather knew the results were fake, he would definitely be angry, Dean Xu. How about I let my grandfather explain this to you?"
Xu Boshan immediately raised his hand. "No need!"
Clearing his throat, Xu Boshan then smoothed things over, "As expected of a child raised by Old Master Li. Old Master Li has always been unyielding and incorruptible! You have perfectly inherited Old Master Li's virtues! Has everyone seen it? Honesty! It is an excellent virtue, and our classmate Bao'er possesses this golden quality! Classmate Li Bao'er truly has both talent and virtue! I hope everyone will learn from classmate Bao'er in the future!"
Li Bao'er exchanged her prize with Xin Guo, then addressed all the new students below, "I can be fifth on the Dragon-Tiger Rankings because I can only be fifth on the Dragon-Tiger Rankings. Xin Guo can be tenth on the Dragon-Tiger Rankings because Xin Guo wants to be tenth on the Dragon-Tiger Rankings!"
After she finished speaking, there was complete silence below the stage.
Those who had just been praising Li Bao'er and belittling Xin Guo all changed their expressions repeatedly.
They clearly understood that Li Bao'er was speaking up for Xin Guo.
Xin Guo turned his head and stared blankly at Li Bao'er. This cute, innocent girl had said something like that at a crucial moment.
It was a resounding slap in the face to those trashy people below who praised one while stepping on another.
Xu Boshan was also stunned on stage.
After an awkward silence, Xu Boshan finally took over, smoothing things over, "Student Li Bao'er is quite straightforward, which is also an excellent virtue!"
Li Bao'er asked, confused, "Huh? Really? Why does my old man always say I'm missing a screw?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Boshan was once again left awkward on stage.