148: Chapter 148 Settling the Bill

Medical team stretchers shuttled through the corridor.

"Make way, please make way! We have a mental breakdown case here!"

Two medical staff hurried past, carrying a stretcher.

Lying on the stretcher was none other than the leader of the exchange students, the once-arrogant Half-step Grandmaster, Li Hanyi.

At this moment, there wasn't the slightest trace of a Sword Immortal's bearing left in him.

His originally handsome and aloof face was now swollen like an over-fermented purple sweet potato bun. His eyes stared vacantly at the ceiling, and he mumbled incoherently:

"Impossible... my sword... my points... all fake... all an illusion..."

Lin Fan moved swiftly, stepping forward in one stride to directly block the path of the stretcher.

"Wait."

The two medical staff paused, taken aback. Looking at the smiling young man before them, they instinctively halted.

"Student, the injured requires urgent treatment."

"I know, I know. I'll just say two words, won't delay saving lives."

Lin Fan bent down, bringing his smiling face right up to Li Hanyi's.

Li Hanyi, whose gaze had been unfocused, saw that face and his pupils contracted violently. His body jerked as if electrocuted, and a gurgling sound escaped his throat.

This was a severe stress reaction.

Lin Fan showed not a shred of awareness that he was the culprit. Instead, with a concerned expression, he patted the back of Li Hanyi's uninjured hand.

"Young Master Li, although the match was interrupted, our accounts are still clear."

"Once you've recovered, remember to take on more missions, earn more points."

"The Myriad Treasures Pavilion welcomes your patronage at any time."

"After all, high-quality clients like you, who possess both strength and the willingness to go bankrupt just to support a small business, are rare these days."

"Pfft—"

Li Hanyi, who had originally only suffered mental trauma, heard these words. Rage surged, and a mouthful of old blood sprayed out. His eyes rolled back, and this time, he completely lost consciousness.

"Oh dear, it seems Young Master Li got a bit too excited."

Lin Fan straightened up, waving innocently at the stunned medical staff.

"Hurry and take him away. Don't delay his treatment."

"Remember to prescribe him some blood pressure medication. Young people have such fiery tempers."

Having sent off his biggest debtor, Lin Fan turned around, his gaze sweeping across the entire scene.

The students who had shouted "Brother Fan, save me!" in the canyon earlier now met Lin Fan's eyes and shrank their necks one by one, like primary school students being called out by their homeroom teacher.

"Qin Feng."

Lin Fan snapped his fingers.

"Here!"

Qin Feng scurried over, still holding that signature briefcase, his face flushed with excitement.

Although the final battle had ended unexpectedly, the feeling of controlling the entire field and manipulating a group of geniuses had been even more exhilarating than achieving a breakthrough himself.

"Bring out the QR code."

Lin Fan found a comfortable position leaning against the railing. A nail clipper had somehow appeared in his hand, and he began meticulously trimming his nails.

"Esteemed patrons."

"Although the exercise ended prematurely due to force majeure..."

"However."

"The Myriad Treasures Pavilion's service principle is: A promise made is a promise kept. No credit extended."

"Those who purchased the rescue package, those who bought bear attack insurance, and those who promised half their points to save their lives..."

"Settle your bills now."

The scene fell deathly silent.

Someone muttered discontentedly under their breath: "The competition was halted. The final results aren't even decided yet. Why should we pay now..."

"Hmm?"

The nail clipper in Lin Fan's hand paused.

He looked up, his golden pupils narrowing slightly as he fixed his gaze on the student who had spoken.

It was a tall male student from the Southern War Zone, currently hiding behind the crowd, his eyes shifting nervously.

"This student, are you implying you want to renege on your debt?"

Lin Fan's voice was very soft, even carrying a hint of amusement.

But to everyone listening, it felt more chilling than the roars of the abyssal monster from earlier.

The image from the virtual space—of him tearing apart a Half-step Grandmaster with his bare hands and swinging Li Hanyi around like a ragged doll—was deeply etched in everyone's minds.

That was genuine Grandmaster-level combat power.

And a Grandmaster with a black heart and ruthless methods at that.

"N-no! Not at all!"

Sweat instantly broke out on the boy's forehead under Lin Fan's gaze. He stammered an explanation: "I... I was just asking... asking about the exchange rate..."

"Exchange rate follows the market price. Fair for all, young and old."

Lin Fan blew away the nail dust, his tone indifferent.

"I'm a very reasonable person."

"In the situation earlier, without my blind boxes, you'd all be lying in medical pods by now. Your points would be cleared, and you'd be sent back to your places of origin with the label of 'failed assessment.'"

"I saved your lives. I preserved your futures."

"Is charging a modest service fee really too much?"

"Not too much at all! Not one bit!"

Qin Feng played the role of the straight man, shouting loudly: "Brother Fan has the heart of a Bodhisattva! If it were anyone else, they'd have tossed you to the rhino herd long ago."

Though harsh, these words were the truth.

Everyone present was intelligent. A quick calculation made it clear: although they had to give up half their points, they at least kept the remaining points and their ranking.

More importantly, they kept their lives.

"I'll pay!"

The assassin student who had previously bought the "rock-climbing gloves" was the first to step forward, swiping his wristband without hesitation.

"Boss Lin, you might be pretty ruthless, but your goods are genuinely effective."

"If you have more quality items like this in the future, remember to save one for me."

With someone taking the lead, the rest proceeded smoothly.

"Beep."

"Beep."

The sound of transfer notifications rose and fell one after another. To Lin Fan's ears, it was the most beautiful symphony in the world.

In less than ten minutes...

Lin Fan's account balance skyrocketed once again. Although the system points were temporarily frozen and couldn't be exchanged for physical items due to the competition's suspension, this enormous sum was already enough for him to sweep through a large section of the Tianjiao Camp's exchange list.

Just as Lin Fan was gleefully admiring that string of zeros...

A series of hurried footsteps approached.

"Lin Fan, come with us."

Several officers in black uniforms, with "MP" badges on their chests, strode over, their expressions stern.

The surrounding students hurriedly cleared a path, intimidated.

This was the Tianjiao Camp's disciplinary squad.

"Another invitation for tea?"

Lin Fan put away the nail clipper, showing no sign of panic. Instead, he adjusted his collar.

"Qin Feng, secure the ledger."

"If a single cent is missing, you'll answer for it."

With that, he nodded towards the disciplinary officers.

"Lead the way."

...

Tianjiao Camp, Supreme Operations Conference Room.

The atmosphere was so heavy it felt like water could drip from it.

On either side of the long conference table sat two distinct groups.

On the left were Lei Zhan and several Tianjiao Camp instructors, their expressions grave, clearly still shaken by the recent abyssal invasion incident.

On the right were several elderly men dressed in Taoist robes or Tang suits—the leading elders of the exchange delegation.

Among them, an old Taoist with a goatee had the most unpleasant expression.

He was Elder Wu Qin Feng from the Kunlun Dao Academy.

Also Li Hanyi's martial uncle.

"Outrageous! Utterly outrageous!"

Wu Qin Feng slammed the table, rattling the teacups.

"A proper graduation competition turned into a marketplace!"

"That student named Lin Fan openly peddled supplies on the battlefield, disrupted order, and even exploited loopholes in the rules to extort his classmates!"

"How can such a speculative profiteer be worthy of first place?"

"I propose canceling all of Lin Fan's achievements and expelling him from the camp to uphold justice!"

Across from him, Lei Zhan didn't even lift his eyelids, fiddling with a lighter in his hand.

"Elder Wu, no need for such fiery temper."

"On the battlefield, only results matter."

"Lin Fan not only survived until the end, but he also saved the majority of the students."

"That's capability."

"Capability?" Wu Qin Feng sneered. "Relying on those unorthodox gadgets? Relying on deception and fraud?"

"If this were the real Ten Thousand Races Battlefield, does he plan to do business with the alien races too?"

"This is utterly preposterous."

At that moment, the conference room door was pushed open.

Lin Fan strode in.