Luck taken away? It doesn't matter, I quietly become a god

The final assessment for the Cuckoo Garden course ended on the same day.

Nearly half of the students failed the exam before the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, and had to take a miserable "make-up exam" afterward.

The punishments for failing the assessment included, but were not limited to: drawing a small turtle on one's face, cleaning the school, and running errands for the teachers...

Especially when painting little turtles, this special ink will stay vibrant for up to six months.

Students who fail the exam can't hide; they have to run errands and do odd jobs in public, visible to everyone...

"Xing Xue, you have passed the test."

"Lu Zhuo, you have passed the test."

"Ye Buci has passed the assessment."

"Li Ye, you have failed the assessment."

"..."

After a day of hustle and bustle, everyone at Ziguiyuan, even the twenty or so people who passed the assessment, were exhausted, both physically and mentally.

"Congratulations on navigating your wonderful freshman year! Now, on your even more inhumane and grueling new life at the academy!" Tianzhu sat on the puppet, her eyebrows curving as if she were announcing some great news.

Xuan Heng added with a faint smile, "You all need to be careful from now on. If you see any senior students, it's best to take a detour."

"In other people's eyes, you are..." His finger paused as it traced Rong Shu's name, then casually skipped over Rong Shu, Xing Xue, Lu Zhuo, and pointed to the others.

"You are highly sought-after, like a three-year-old child holding a gold brick."

With the freshman period over and the status of freshman gone, others can now freely take care of everyone in Guiyuan.

Of course, it's not unreasonable to take a little "favor fee" or "protection fee" from it, is it?

"Ah!" Instantly, cries of agony rang out.

After enjoying the wailing and howling of their junior brothers and sisters, the members of the Dragon and Tiger Ranking left satisfied.

Fu Wei, from the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion, sat cross-legged on the ground, holding a tortoise shell, muttering divination. When he saw the hexagram, his expression turned serious: "...Danger! Great danger!"

“Amitabha Buddha, the Master did not speak of strange phenomena, physical prowess, disorder, or spirits,” the monk Mingxin added.

"Little monk, what's your solution?" Li Ye patted Mingxin's smooth forehead.

Mingxin extended his hand towards Li Ye: "First, return this humble monk's Buddhist prayer beads..."

"Hehehe, you found out? Sorry, my hands were itching~" Li Ye had just searched all of Ming Xin's pockets, but there was nothing of value left, except for the Buddhist prayer beads on her wrist.

Since they were all worn on the wrist, Mingxin was naturally able to sense something was amiss immediately.

"...Secondly, you should think about how to complete the assessment and what the punishment will be."

"Ugh... couldn't you give me a different punishment? With this turtle-like face, I'm so conspicuous, it's hard to even steal things." Li sighed.

Not only her, but also the others who failed the assessment.

Fu Wei picked up the tortoise shell, turned around to look for someone, but didn't see them. "Where's Rong Shuren?"

"...You mean the boss? Isn't she over there..." Li also remembered Rong Shu's identity as an alchemist and immediately wanted to ask Rong Shu if he had any pills that could cover the little turtle. He turned around, but he didn't see anyone.

Not only Rong Shu, but also Xing Xue, Lu Zhuo, Feng Qianli, and Si Chenbi were all missing.

……

"What should we do now?"

"How about... like that?"

"Isn't this bad?"

"Then I won't play with you..."

"...No!"

Rong Shu and the others, who had secretly slipped away from Zigui Garden, returned to their cave dwelling in the inner mountain.

The six people sat in a circle, their expressions serious, as if they were discussing something important.

Finally, Rong Shu made the final decision: "This time, we must be extremely cautious and find a way to bypass the Taotie Heavenly Dog's patrol and leave the palace and descend the mountain!"

That's right.

The "big deal" the six discussed was how to escape from the palace.

Of the six, only Rong Shu, Xing Xue, and Lu Zhuo currently meet the conditions for two people to freely enter and leave the academy.

The other three were below the Nascent Soul stage and had not comprehended any supernatural abilities, thus failing to meet the requirements for leaving the palace.

If it can't be done openly, then we have to do it covertly.

Although the days spent cultivating in the academy were smooth and happy, as the ancients said: a student who has never skipped school is not a good student, and a school life without skipping school is incomplete.

"The formation can't be used. Last time, Shen Bi tried to trap the Taotie Heavenly Dog with a formation, but it shattered upon impact..."

"Could we try the medicine? Rong Shu, do you have any poison or anesthetic that can subdue a great demon like the Taotie Heavenly Dog?"

"I do have a few poisons that should be able to poison a Nascent Soul stage cultivator, but I don't know if they'll work on a great demon..."

After these words were spoken, the surroundings fell into a deathly silence.

Rong Shu looked left and right, blinking innocently: "What's wrong? You don't believe me? The poison was given to me by my fourth senior brother. He said it could poison someone in the Integration Stage, but I haven't tested it..."

Lu Zhuo silently covered his face with his sleeve.

Feng Qianli blinked frantically.

Duan Yuyan swallowed hard, his hand trembling as he pointed behind Rong Shu.

Upon seeing this, Rong Shu's heart skipped a beat. She turned her head and met Yun Shu's ambiguous smile.

"Yun... Senior Sister Yun Shu?!"

Yun Shu put her hands on her hips and asked with a smile, "Do you want to go out?"

Rong Shu and the other six looked at each other, then answered in unison, "Yes!"

Upon hearing this, Yun Shu's lips curled into a smile.

For some reason, Rong Shu and the others recalled the freshman ceremony and the final exam, when Senior Sister Yun Shu's smile was just as playful!

...Hiss! Hopefully there's a trap!

Yun Shu: "There is a task that suits you, and you need to go out for a while."

"The new Heroes Tournament recently concluded, and the top eight have been selected. According to the tournament rules, the top eight will each have the opportunity to enter the back mountain of Junque Mountain to collect spiritual herbs as a reward. After that, they will be able to choose whether to study at Jixia Academy based on their own wishes."

"Your task is to 'take care' of the newly selected top eight talents. If you can persuade one or two more people to study at Jixia Academy, that would be even better."

Upon hearing this, Rong Shu and the others exchanged glances.

care?

Could it be what they're thinking?

Suddenly——

Rong Shu remained calm.

Lu Zhuo was elegant.

Xing Xue clenched her fist.

Si Chenbi blinked.

Feng Qianli rubbed his hands together.

Duan Yuyan was the first to confidently assure everyone: "No problem, Senior Sister Yun Shu! Leave it to us!"

Yun Shu glanced at him lightly: "...What's it to you? Were you one of the top eight last year? Or have you reached the Nascent Soul stage?"

Duan Yuyan, who wanted to go out and have fun, was speechless.

Feng Qianli: "Pfft!"

"Hahaha..." Lu Zhuo looked at Duan Yuyan with pity: "Little Duan, it seems we have no choice but to leave you behind~"

Duan Yuyan slapped away the fan that Lu Zhuo had poked in front of her eyes, then turned to look at Yun Shu pitifully: "Senior Sister Yun Shu, how long have Rong Shu and the others been at the academy? They're in seclusion every day, and none of them know the Jixia Academy better than me! With them like this, how can they attract the new top eight to the academy? They'll probably just embarrass the academy!"

"Your considerations seem to make sense."

"Yes, yes!"

Yun Shu chuckled: "Alright, then count it as you. If you can't bring back at least six of the top eight freshmen, I'll hold you responsible."

“No problem! Senior sister! We…” Duan Yuyan subconsciously turned his head, only to find that Rong Shu and the others had taken two steps back in unison, looking at the sky, the ground, the mountains and the water, but not at him, their faces seemingly displaying an innocent expression that said, ‘You agreed, it’s none of my business.’

Duan Yuyan: ...Ahhh, you're so disloyal!!