“Oh? You’re calling me a show-off? Fine, want to make a bet?” Michael Bolton wasn’t angry at all, just smiled calmly.

“A bet? Fine, since you want to lose, I’ll grant your wish. I’m just afraid you, a pauper, have nothing to put up!” Steven Wright hadn’t expected this guy he always looked down on to challenge his authority head-on and want to bet with him. He sneered coldly.

“Whether I’m poor or not is none of your business. Since I’m betting with you, of course I’ll wager something I can actually put up!” Michael Bolton lifted his eyelids.

“Oh? Something you can put up? With your net worth, whatever you can offer is just worthless junk, garbage. You think I’d bet with you? I can’t afford to lose face like that!” Steven Wright was full of contempt.

Michael Bolton was the lowest-ranked teacher at the academy, dead last, unable to recruit students, and had no bonuses or anything. If you had to name the poorest teacher at the academy, it would definitely be him.

He struggled just to get by, let alone afford any cultivation resources!

“Heh!” Michael Bolton didn’t care about the insults, just chuckled and continued, “I’m not betting treasures or items, but… face! If you lose, you let me slap you three times in the face! If I lose, you get to slap me three times! Do you dare?”

“Slap in the face?”

He hadn’t expected the bet to be this, and Steven Wright couldn’t help but freeze, hesitating a little.

To be slapped in the face in public, and by the academy’s dead-last teacher at that—if he really lost, he’d be too embarrassed to live.

“What, don’t dare?” Michael Bolton looked over with a smile.

“Steven Wright, what are you afraid of? You know this guy’s level!”

“He got a zero in the teacher assessment and still thinks he can recruit students? Isn’t that just dreaming?”

“He’s just trying to scare you. If he can recruit any, I could get hundreds! Even if this year’s students were blind, they couldn’t be that blind!”

…

The other teachers from the logistics department all sneered.

None of them believed Michael Bolton could recruit any students.

It was as hard as a pig climbing a tree.

“Fine, I accept!” Hearing the others, Steven Wright felt it made sense and couldn’t help but nod.

“You all seem so eager—do you want to bet with me too? Same wager as him?”

Seeing that guy agree, Michael Bolton looked at the other three teachers from the logistics department.

These three had also mocked him plenty just now. Since he was betting with one, he didn’t mind betting with a few more.

“What? Your face itching, want us to slap you a few more times? Fine, I’m in!” one teacher said boldly.

“I’m in too!”

“Who’s afraid of who? Got a zero and still wants to show off in front of us? Looking for trouble!”

The three of them all nodded and agreed with a laugh.

In their eyes, betting with Michael Bolton was a sure win. Today, they just had to wait to slap him!

Chapter 10: Reneging

“All right, you said you recruited four students. Are you going to bring them here for us to confirm, or just stick your face out for us to slap?”

Seeing the dead-last teacher arrogantly betting with all four of them at once, Steven Wright sneered.

“Bring the students here?” Michael Bolton shook his head. “You’re all logistics teachers—don’t tell me you don’t even know the simplest thing! It’s easy to verify if I recruited four students. As long as a student drips blood on my token to acknowledge me as their teacher, the education office will automatically generate their identity information. Just check at the education office and it’ll be clear. The education office wouldn’t help me trick you, would they?”

Once a student’s identity is verified, the information is automatically sent to the education office, where it’s recorded in detail. No one can fake it!

“William Thompson, go check! I want to see how this guy keeps showing off in a minute!”

Hearing this and seeing his confident face, Steven Wright was stunned for a moment, then turned and gave an order.

William Thompson, one of the teachers who had mocked Michael Bolton earlier, turned and walked out.

The education office and logistics department were both administrative offices, not far apart. William Thompson left and soon returned, looking grim.

“Well?”

Seeing his expression, Steven Wright felt a jolt of dread.

“There are… four students who acknowledged him as their teacher! Here’s their list and detailed information…”

William Thompson’s face was ashen.

He still couldn’t believe it was real.

Were those four students blind? With so many teachers at Hongtian Academy, why pick the guy who got a zero in the teacher assessment and can’t do anything?

“Let me see. Maybe he just found some blind, lame students who could be expelled at any time and made them his students!”

Steven Wright snatched the list.

The other two teachers hurried over as well.

Many teachers, to boost their student numbers, would take on some failing students as fillers. These people could be expelled at any time, and even if they stayed, they wouldn’t last more than a few months!

In Steven Wright’s view, even if Michael Bolton, the dead-last, could recruit students, they’d definitely be the worst, the rejects, the ones nobody wanted.

Taking in such people was just for the numbers—not only was there no pride in it, it was even more embarrassing!