23: Chapter 23: Raising the Score Line Single-handedly

Gu Han pushed open the front door. Before he could even change his shoes, he sensed that the atmosphere in the living room was off.

The TV wasn't on, and no one was speaking.

Gu Yanxiao, Tang Yanran, and his younger sister, Gu Xin—the family of three sat neatly around the dining table. Their gazes swept past the entryway in unison, locking onto him.

This setup felt a bit like a trial.

Gu Han's heart skipped a beat.

Could it be that the incident with the Tang Family at the Police Security Bureau had reached his mother's ears so quickly? Surely Tang Wuying wouldn't have snitched?

"Stand right there." Gu Yanxiao, holding an unlit cigarette, pointed at the floor of the entryway.

Gu Han obediently put down his backpack and coughed twice. "Dad, Mom, what's going on? Doesn't Gu Xin need to study?"

"Gu Han, give us an honest account." Tang Yanran crossed her arms on the table, her tone unprecedentedly serious. "Is there something you've been hiding from the family?"

Gu Han's brain raced.

He scratched the back of his head and spoke tentatively. "I was just about to tell you. Actually... I didn't plan on taking the Life Class; I chose the War God Path."

"Anything else?" Gu Yanxiao slapped his cigarette onto the table. "We already know about that. Keep making it up."

Huh? They already knew?

Gu Han froze in place.

"That's really it then." Gu Han spread his hands. "There's nothing else."

"Brother, you're really good at keeping secrets." Gu Xin picked up the remote and turned on the TV.

She expertly switched to the replay channel and pointed at the screen. "The whole world knows, but you kept it from us, right?"

The TV screen lit up, showing a special report from the Jiangcheng City evening news.

The background was right in front of the administration building of Dongjiang University.

Principal Zhang Anhai was wearing a crisp suit, his hair slicked back, beaming as he faced seven or eight microphones, his face crinkling with a smile.

A reporter held up a microphone and asked excitedly, "Principal Zhang, is it true that the first place in this Dongjiang University scholarship assessment was not a genius with a C-Rank Divine Kingdom, but a student with a C-Rank Divine Kingdom? Please tell us, is this true?"

"Of course it's true!" Principal Zhang Anhai said with great vigor, waving a hand at the camera. "This student is named Gu Han, and he is an excellent talent our school is focusing on! Why was he able to suppress the competition with a C-Rank Divine Kingdom? It's because of his solid cultural foundation!"

Principal Zhang Anhai in the TV got more and more enthusiastic, spitting as he spoke. "Our school has always attached great importance to cultural grades. If a student awakens a Divine Kingdom but lacks deep cultural knowledge, doesn't understand ecological cycles, or doesn't understand species evolution, then they are absolutely incapable of operating a Divine Kingdom well!"

"Student Gu Han's ability to take first place today perfectly proves the importance of cultural grades! The Ministry of Education also attaches great importance to this, so I hereby announce that in response to the call of the Ministry of Education, Dongjiang University's admission score threshold for next year will also be raised! Not only that, but future graduation assessments will also include cultural grades as a core indicator!"

"We must put an end to illiterate Divine Lords! We must let every student understand that knowledge is the primary productive force for developing a Divine Kingdom!"

The image froze on Principal Zhang Anhai's righteous face.

Gu Han stood in the living room, mouth slightly agape, feeling completely numb.

How did this old fox even contact the media?

When he was in the principal's office, Principal Zhang Anhai hadn't mentioned a word about going on TV.

The key was that the Ministry of Education really did reform; the next news segment was a statement from a Ministry of Education leader.

Now that the Jiangcheng City news had aired, he figured that by tomorrow morning, every high school and college student in the city would be sticking pins in a voodoo doll of him.

Raising the score threshold? Including it in graduation assessments?

This was effectively forcing every student in the city back into the nightmare of cultural classes single-handedly.

His reputation in the student circle was definitely ruined.

If he had known this old fox was going to make such a big deal out of him, that self-service hybrid machine wouldn't have been enough—he should have made him bleed more!

"Brother, you're really something." Gu Xin hugged her chest, glaring at him angrily. "I really have to thank you. The head teacher sent a notice in the parent group tonight. Because of your glorious deeds, the college entrance exam admission score threshold for our entire city next year has been raised by ten points!"

Gu Xin got angrier as she spoke. "Ten points! Do you know how many people this ten points can weed out? I don't even dare to say I'm your sister for fear of getting beaten up."

Gu Han rubbed his nose awkwardly and quickly pulled up a small stool to sit at the dining table.

"I... I really just accidentally got first place." Gu Han offered a wry smile. He also hadn't expected this old geezer Principal Zhang Anhai to be such a blowhard, actually setting up a city-wide broadcast.

Gu Yanxiao couldn't hold it in; the corners of his mouth twitched violently, and finally, unable to pretend any longer, he slapped the table and burst into laughter.

"You brat! You really have brought honor to your old man!"

Gu Yanxiao laughed until tears almost came out, reaching out to pat Gu Han's shoulder heavily. "First place in the assessment! Suppressing an S-Rank Divine Kingdom! Good lad, you really did it! I've never felt this proud in my entire life!"

Tang Yanran couldn't hold back either; her eyes turned red, but her lips curled into a smile. She reached out to wipe the corner of her eyes, glaring at Gu Yanxiao reproachfully. "Alright, that's enough, don't break the child."

After saying that, she turned to look at Gu Han, her eyes full of pride, but she still couldn't help asking the most critical question. "Xiao Han, the TV said you took first place, so the scholarship from the school... has it been issued? How much is it?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Gu Yanxiao and Gu Xin also quieted down, three pairs of eyes once again locking onto Gu Han.

The family was most short on money, and the War God Path was even more of a money pit.

Gu Han looked at his parents' expectant and anxious eyes, and felt a pang of sorrow in his heart.

He took a deep breath and held up two fingers.

"Two million."

Gu Han's voice wasn't loud, but it exploded in the living room like a thunderclap.

"In addition, the principal promised in person that my tuition for all four years of college would be waived."

The unlit cigarette in Gu Yanxiao's hand dropped onto the table with a "clatter."

Tang Yanran covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes wide, and even her breathing stalled.

Gu Xin's mouth hung open, her chin nearly dropping to her chest; it took a long time for her to come back to her senses.

"Two... two million?!" Gu Xin's voice cracked, and she lunged over, grabbing Gu Han's arm, rubbing her head against his shoulder like a puppy. "Brother! My dear brother! I don't want to work hard anymore! Lend me one hundred thousand so I can awaken my Divine Kingdom!"

Gu Han felt dizzy from her shaking and pushed her head away in annoyance. "Cut it out. This is directional credit points, only usable for my Divine Kingdom. Cultural grades are indeed important; if you work hard and get into college, I'll cover your tuition in the future."

"Woohoo! Brother, you're the best!" Gu Xin's eyes lit up, and she raised her hands in cheer.

Gu Yanxiao finally came to his senses, slapped his thigh hard, his face flushed with excitement. "Even more awesome than I was back in the day! I really admire you! You did something huge without making a sound! Two million... my son is amazing!"

Tang Yanran's tears couldn't stop falling; they were tears of joy. She wiped her tears while nodding, her face full of relief and happiness. "Good, good, good, Xiao Han is really capable now..."

The atmosphere in the living room reached its peak, and the previous suppression and gloom were swept away.

Gu Han looked at his parents, who were somewhat incoherent with joy, and felt incredibly relieved in his heart.

He rubbed his thighs; he hadn't expected things to go so smoothly. Now that the atmosphere was primed, it was time to get down to business.

"Dad, Mom, actually there's one more thing." Gu Han lowered his voice a little.

"You say it! Keep that two million for yourself to develop your Divine Kingdom, the family doesn't need a cent of it!"

"It's not about money." Gu Han took the application form he had printed at the Police Security Bureau out of his backpack and laid it flat on the table.

"I promised the principal that I would represent the school in the professional league in three months." Gu Han looked into his parents' eyes and said word for word, "If I get a good ranking, Gu Xin's tuition can also be waived."

Gu Han handed a pen to Gu Yanxiao.

"I want to awaken the Divine Kingdom Core, and I need a guardian's signature."

"Dad, will you sign it for me?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the living room, which had been warm and festive, instantly felt like it had been doused with a basin of ice water.

The air solidified completely at this moment.

The smile on Gu Yanxiao's face froze instantly, his hand reaching for the pen hung in mid-air, then retracted as if electrocuted.

Tang Yanran was even paler, staring fixedly at the thin application form on the table as if it were some terrifying object.

"Divine Kingdom Core..." Gu Yanxiao's voice began to tremble. The excitement from just a moment ago vanished, replaced by a deep fear and resistance.

He looked sharply at Gu Xin. "Gu Xin, go back to your room and study."

"Dad, I..." Gu Xin also sensed that the atmosphere was wrong and wanted to say something.

"Go back to your room!" Gu Yanxiao suddenly raised his voice.

Gu Xin was startled, quickly let go of Gu Han's arm, ran back to her bedroom in a flash, and slammed the door shut with a "bang."

Only Gu Han and his parents remained in the living room.