Chapter 29: The Shocked Xu Bo
Seeing the middle-aged man in the Tang suit ignore them and speak directly with Xu Bo, the faces of several vice principals changed slightly. They couldn't help but turn to look at Xu Bo.
Previously, although they had heard many rumors, they had not seen anything with their own eyes, so they were somewhat skeptical of Xu Bo. Now? There was no more doubt.
Only Principal Tan Zhenlong remained calm. He knew Xu Bo's background best, which is why he had specifically called Xu Bo to the school gate to greet them. The result was as he expected.
"Iron Tower, your hand, I heard..." The middle-aged man in the Tang suit looked at Xu Bo's silver mechanical right arm.
"Old Wan, it's all in the past." Xu Bo waved his hand with a smile. "Today is your first official visit to our school for inspection during your term. Let's talk business first."
"This is Principal Tan." Xu Bo introduced proactively.
"Principal Tan." Palace Master Wan smiled slightly.
"Hall Master Wan, hello. I have long heard of your reputation in the astral realm." Principal Tan slightly bowed and offered his hand.
Principal Tan lowered his posture. As the Hall Master of the Starlight Martial Hall's Guanshan Branch, Hall Master Wan held an extremely high status. This status came from the prestige of the Martial Hall and Hall Master Wan's own strength.
"Principal Tan, let's go into the school." Hall Master Wan smiled. "I just returned from the astral realm, so I'm not familiar with many things. Let's follow the usual routine and first look at the students in the three elite classes."
"Alright."
"Hall Master Wan, this way please. The students in the three elite classes are all waiting in the martial arts classroom." Principal Tan smiled.
A group of people surrounded Hall Master Wan, Principal Tan, and Xu Bo as they entered the school.
...
Two hours later, the group emerged from the elite building, surrounding Hall Master Wan, Principal Tan, and Xu Bo.
"Principal Tan and the teachers have taught well." Hall Master Wan smiled. "The students in the elite classes are excellent, especially the third-year students. I see many who have the potential to get into the five major universities."
"I believe that in a few years, our Guanshan District will see a new batch of martial artists emerge." Hall Master Wan praised.
"Hall Master Wan, you flatter us." Principal Tan smiled. "By the way, is there any student that caught your eye?"
Several vice principals and teachers looked at Hall Master Wan with some expectation.
Why does the Martial Hall conduct inspections?
Essentially, it's to see if any students qualify for early contracts with the Martial Hall. For the school, getting students special recruitment by the Martial Arts Hall is the best outcome, but those numbers are very small.
If students can get early contracts with the Martial Hall, their chances of getting into the five major universities increase significantly, which is also a political achievement for the school leadership.
In fact, why are there only the Starlight Martial Hall and the Starry Sky Martial Hall within China? And why do these two Martial Halls have such great power?
In a sense, these two Martial Halls appear independent but actually have some official nature.
"These students are all excellent, but some things are not for me to decide alone." Hall Master Wan smiled. "When I return, I will have the Martial Hall conduct a comprehensive evaluation of these students. I believe there will be good results."
The school leaders showed some disappointment in their eyes. Apparently, Hall Master Wan did not see any student he immediately favored.
"Hall Master Wan, would you like to take a look at the students in the regular classes?" Principal Tan's smile remained. "There are also some excellent students in the regular classes."
Hall Master Wan smiled but did not speak.
"Principal Tan, the Hall Master has limited time today, and it's getting late." A man in black clothing beside him said softly. "What do you think?"
"Oh, okay. Then we will wait for another opportunity next time." Principal Tan nodded repeatedly.
This was normal. There were too many students in the regular classes, and the probability of becoming martial artists was low... Whether it was the Starlight Martial Hall or the Starry Sky Martial Hall conducting inspections, they rarely went to the regular classes.
After all, inspecting school students is just a small part of the Martial Hall's work.
And there are dozens of middle and high schools in Guanshan District alone. There isn't enough time to look at each one individually, so they mostly check martial arts scores directly.
"Old Wan."
Xu Bo, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up. "I selected a few good seedlings from the regular classes. Would you mind staying a little longer to take a look?"
Everyone looked at Xu Bo.
"Xu..." Principal Tan was about to speak.
"Iron Tower, you think they're good?" Hall Master Wan showed a hint of curiosity and smiled. "Selected from the regular classes? If you think they're good, they probably have some potential. Alright, I'll take a look."
Hall Master Wan was willing, partly to give Xu Bo face.
Secondly, as the new Hall Master, he indeed wanted to make some achievements. But today, the students in the three elite classes had not satisfied him.
"Good, Teacher Xu, lead the way." Principal Tan smiled.
"Yes, this way." Xu Bo led the way.
...
"Today, Teacher Xu Bo asked me to come here and specifically told me not to go anywhere else. Why?" Li Yuan wondered, glancing at the other three students.
Two were second-year students, and one was a first-year student. They didn't know each other well.
Including Li Yuan, there were only four of them in this martial arts classroom.
Suddenly.
"Hmm?" Li Yuan's ears twitched. He heard noise coming from the end of the corridor.
It was Teacher Xu Bo's voice.
"Hall Master Wan?" Li Yuan heard a title in the voices.
Before he could think more, Xu Bo, Hall Master Wan, Principal Tan, and a group of people entered the martial arts classroom.
Facing such a scene, the other three students were visibly nervous, but Li Yuan, who had been prepared, remained the calmest.
"Hall Master Wan, is he from the Starry Sky Martial Hall or the Starlight Martial Hall?" Li Yuan's peripheral vision fell on the middle-aged man in the Tang suit, and a string of text messages appeared in his view.
[Target character, life level exceeds detection limit (current detection limit is 16.9).]
The man stood at the front, his outfit the most distinctive, clearly indicating his high status.
Moreover, just one look at the middle-aged man in the Tang suit gave Li Yuan an intense sense of danger, especially his eyes, which seemed calm but felt as sharp as blades, making one instinctively want to look away.
"What a powerful martial artist. He might be even stronger than Teacher Xu." Li Yuan was secretly amazed.
His spiritual palace panel's detection ability consumed his mental energy every time it was used, making him feel fatigued after multiple uses, similar to experiencing a large number of virtual battles. Therefore, Li Yuan rarely used it in daily life.
"Hall Master of the Martial Hall? Accompanied by the principal and Teacher Xu? What is he here for?" Thoughts raced through Li Yuan's mind.
At the same time, Li Yuan and the other three students greeted in unison, "Principal, Teacher Xu."
"Teacher Xu."
As for the vice principals? Li Yuan and the others only recognized their faces and knew they were school leaders but didn't know their names, so they naturally didn't address them.
"Alright."
"Listen up, this is a very important opportunity for you today. Show all your physical fitness and martial arts skills," Xu Bo said solemnly. "Xiong Yifan, you go first for the physical fitness tests."
The three tests referred to the life blood detection, punch strength test, and burst speed test.
Immediately.
The first-year student stepped into the life blood detection range...
Hall Master Wan did not pay much attention to the first-year student. Instead, he seemed to sense something, his gaze involuntarily falling on Li Yuan, and he asked softly, "Iron Tower, what's this student's name?"
Xu Bo noticed Hall Master Wan's gaze and said, "His name is Li Yuan. Old Wan, do you think he's promising?"
"Li Yuan?" Hall Master Wan's eyes flickered as if recalling something, and he smiled. "Let's take a look first, no rush."
"Yes." Xu Bo nodded.
Soon.
The three first and second-year students finished their tests. Their physical fitness data were all above average in their respective grade elite classes.
However, that was all, not enough to change Hall Master Wan's mind.
In the end, everyone's attention turned to Li Yuan.
"Is he Li Yuan?"
"I've heard of him."
"His martial arts skills seem pretty good."
"But he hasn't awakened his martial arts spirituality in his third year of high school. It's unlikely he'll get an early contract." The school leaders whispered among themselves. They didn't know that Li Yuan had made it onto the Blue Star Youth List, but they had heard his name.
After defeating Lin Lanyue in a virtual battle, Li Yuan became a minor celebrity in the school.
"Li Yuan, go ahead," Xu Bo said solemnly. "Take it seriously and show all your strength."
Of the four students selected from the regular classes, Xu Bo valued Li Yuan the most.
Or rather, in his eyes, Li Yuan had the best chance of getting an early contract with the Martial Hall.
"Yes."
Li Yuan nodded and stepped directly onto the silver circular floor in the center of the martial arts classroom. This area was both the skill testing zone and the life blood detection range.
Whoosh!
A red light shot out, enveloping Li Yuan's body.
Three seconds later.
The screen at the back of the classroom displayed data—"Li Yuan (student), physical fitness: 6.9 (last test: 6.5)."
"Historical data: September 5: 6.5."
"Historical data: June 25: 6.0."
...
"6.9? An increase of 0.4 in just over a month?" Xu Bo's eyes showed a hint of surprise as he looked at Li Yuan in shock.
"Interesting." Hall Master Wan smiled.