Universe Infinite Canteen

The number made Director Hou pause; he had been standing aside, watching for a while, and felt he had already guessed what the new Principal was thinking.

Clearly, Hou De School wanted to rely on the power of their old alumni to overcome this crisis, a realization evident from Cao Youyi's visits last night, asking those people to help them find recruits.

Because of this matter, Director Hou even got out of bed from his deep sleep, later arranging for someone from the list to be secretly tested, which revealed that the young man from a farming background did not possess the aptitude to become a Talisman Master.

Director Hou breathed a sigh of relief but also couldn't help but feel curious about what Ma Lu was really up to.

The time left for Hou De was clearly not enough for them to recruit new students, so Director Hou placed himself in Ma Lu's shoes and, after much deliberation, could only think of one possibility: first, report the numbers to get through the Education Bureau's inspection.

Then, when time permitted, find students who truly met the requirements, change their names and surnames, and turn the false into the true.

However, achieving this was not easy; first, it would require the assistance of local forces.

Although Hou De was now in decline, it still had many old alumni, especially in the last decade, as it was dedicated to supplying talents to various industries, even having Hou De graduates within his own Education Bureau.

If these people were determined to help Hou De and came together, they could still pull this off.

As for the list of names, most were probably a smokescreen, a play by Hou De to distract and mislead others into thinking that they indeed had some leads and were actively recruiting.

This was also why Director Hou had come personally today to conduct the checks; he did not trust Feng Ziwen.

But now, hearing that Ma Lu planned to report ten people at once, he was again uncertain about what Ma Lu was really planning.

He had already figured out the inside story of Hou De, knowing that including the newly arrived girl named Qiutong, they only had three prospects.

Reporting one or two extra to pass the inspection could be understood, but reporting seven extra at once, were they planning to fill all those spots later? Could they really manage that many?

Director Hou was lost in thought when Cao Youyi already handed over a newly written list to him.

"This is the list of new students for Hou De this year, please review it, Director Hou."

Director Hou snapped back to attention, took the list, and gave it a quick scan of names, ages, and genders, which all seemed normal.

As for their place of origin, out of the ten on the list, nine were from Ping City itself. Although the Talisman Master school, being familiar with its surroundings, would often recruit more locals, it was still rare for 90% to be local students.

However, this wasn't against the rules. What truly surprised Director Hou was what followed in the column for Talisman Master aptitude—all of it was already filled out.

Five Grade E, three Grade D, one Grade C, and even one Grade B.

"Grade B? You've recruited a Grade B student?"

"Yes," Cao Youyi called over to a small, frail-looking child who appeared to be only about eleven or twelve years old, "Cao Jiajia, come here."

If it weren't for the gender column indicating female, Director Hou would have thought this individual was a boy, and there was also a rancid smell about her.

Director Hou took two steps back and covered his nose and mouth with his sleeve, "Cao Jiajia, are you related to the Cao Family? But I remember it was just you and your brother in your family, right?"

"Cao Jiajia is my sworn sister," spoke Cao Youyi indifferently, "just taken in this morning."

"Sworn sister? By the looks of her, she must have been a beggar before this?" muttered an official from the Education Bureau.

Cao Jiajia, accustomed to begging on the streets, was very perceptive and seeing the hostility in the faces before her, instinctively shrunk back, ready to kneel and admit fault.

But the next moment, Cao Youyi's voice rang in her ear again, "Stand straight. You're a Talisman Master now and also a student of Hou De School. You're never to kneel again, not even if the President himself stands before you."

Cao Jiajia straightened up in a hurry upon hearing the words.

"This is preposterous!"

An official from the Education Bureau showed a face full of disbelief, "You dare to bring in some beggar from the streets and claim them as a student, even daring to list the qualification as Grade B? Do you think the Education Bureau doesn't exist?!"

Director Hou, however, was not angry but amused. He stared into Ma Lu's eyes, "Principal Ma, is this Cao Jiajia truly Grade B?"

"Yes, she really can't be any more authentic. If Director Hou doesn't believe it, you can go to the testing station and check again," Ma Lu said.

"Good," Director Hou had been waiting for just this response. "But there's no need to go to the testing station, we can test right here."

With that said, he reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope.

This was the ace up his sleeve prepared for Hou De, it didn't matter what kind of schemes the other party had up their sleeves, it all came down to buying time, and going to the testing station would also take time.

And Director Hou was not planing to give Ma Lu any more time.

He opened the envelope made of cowhide, and inside were three pieces of yellow paper with intricate and mysterious symbols drawn in cinnabar ink.

"This is a qualification charm, able to reveal whether a person has the qualifications to become a Talisman Master."

Director Hou observed the expression on Ma Lu's face as he spoke, but to his disappointment, Ma Lu did not show any signs of panic. Instead, he said interestedly, "Oh, how does this thing work?"

"The user only needs to hold this charm in their hand and meditate on it."

"That simple? Then Jiajia, you go and hold it."

Cao Jiajia approached upon hearing this instruction and took a qualification charm from Director Hou, then asked timidly, "What does meditate mean?"

"As for meditating, it refers to focusing one's mind and contemplating the inner scenery of the body," Cao Youyi instructed.

"What is 'the inner scenery of the body'?" asked Cao Jiajia again.

"Talisman Masters all house divine spirits within their bodies, within the five viscera and six bowels, the three parts and eight views; you can contemplate whatever you wish."

"Then, can I think about the cake I just ate?"

"That's also fine," replied Cao Youyi with brevity.

So, Cao Jiajia took the qualification charm in hand and sat cross-legged on the ground.

As she began to meditate, those present could not help but hold their breath involuntarily, even Cao Youyi, usually as impassive as an ice mountain, showed a hint of tension on his face.

Only Ma Lu was relaxed from beginning to end because the result had already been predetermined.

After a little while, the talisman in Cao Jiajia's hand suddenly ignited without wind, which startled her and made her open her eyes. She hurriedly threw away the half-burned qualification charm from her hand.

Feng Ziwen's eyes widened, "Divine Talisman manifests naturally, there indeed resides a divine spirit within you! You, you truly have the qualifications to become a Talisman Master!"

The light in Director Hou's eyes shone intensely, and he turned to another subordinate nearby, "How long?"

The subordinate was also stunned and quickly checked his watch again upon being asked.

Your next chapter awaits on My Virtual Library Empire

"One, one minute and forty-seven seconds—um, I looked a bit late, the time could be even shorter, but definitely within two minutes for sure; she indeed has Grade B Talent!"

Director Hou, unwilling to be superstitious, pointed to two other individuals—they were newly selected students from Hou De, listed as Grade D and Grade E on the roster. After testing them with the remaining talisman paper, the results also matched the qualifications listed on the roster.