Ring ring ring!
As the class bell rang, a young woman walked into the classroom with cheerful steps.
The woman looked to be around twenty-one or twenty-two years old, not very tall, maybe about one-fifty-six, but she was delicate and pretty.
She was at the age of youth—perhaps in order to seem more authoritative as a teacher, she deliberately wore a dated black business suit and black-rimmed glasses, but even so, it was hard to conceal the youthful innocence on her face.
At a glance, it was obvious this class adviser was an intern, fresh out of college.
There were quite a few girls in the class, some of whom, just judging by their looks, seemed even more mature than her.
Of course, the woman was only the life adviser for the class—mainly responsible for the students' daily lives and arrangements, without any real power.
"Alright, let's settle down, everyone."
Standing at the podium, Xu Wei smiled gently, her two deep dimples seeming as if they were smiling too.
Upon hearing her voice, the sleepy Lin Feng looked up, and the first thing that entered his eyes was that gentle smile. Unconsciously, his previously restless mood instantly calmed down.
"It's so good to still be able to see you!"
If in the last year of high school, because of Ya Ge, he'd come to hate the school, hated his classmates, even hated everything around him—there was only this class adviser who became the single source of warmth in his days of darkness.
"Lin Feng, you have to keep at it. Even though you failed on Awakening Day, I still believe you'll get into a good university."
"How are you feeling today? If anything is bothering you, you can talk to me."
"Why aren't you as talkative as before? You need to talk with your classmates more."
Those caring words seemed to still linger in his ears.
From elementary school all the way to high school and even university, Lin Feng never really liked any of the teachers who had taught him.
In the Great Cultivation Era, calling teachers candles or gardeners seemed laughable.
In a society where Might Makes Right, teachers and school officials only ever paid attention to two kinds of students.
The first: cultivation geniuses, whose performance affected the school's results.
The second: students with family background, who could bring them benefits.
For someone like Lin Feng, from the Shore District, hardworking and getting good grades but not a genius, genuine care was a rare feeling and sometimes even he'd be discriminated against.
This wasn't just Lin Feng—all the kids in the Shore District felt the same way.
If you didn't have cultivation talent, many kids from Shore District didn't even want to come to school.
Only Xu Wei was an exception.
Her pure smile was untouched by the stink of money.
She was always so caring and attentive with every student.
From what Lin Feng knew, her own family wasn't well off at all. Her mother died young; her father was physically disabled and unable to work. She had a younger brother still in high school—the only hope for the family was her. Yet even so, she still took out what little salary she had to help students in hardship.
That old-fashioned business suit others thought tacky was probably the nicest, most expensive clothing she owned.
Yet sadly, her fate wasn't good. Not long after this, she'd meet a worthless guy who'd change her whole life.
"Alright, before we start class, I have an announcement."
Xu Wei adjusted her glasses and said, "Awakening Day is over. Starting from next Wednesday, evaluations will begin. The top hundred in the entire school can enter the key class. Everyone needs to give it their all and strive to make it into the key class."
As soon as she said that, the class started murmuring in discussion, but obviously they'd expected this and weren't surprised.
Only three months remain till the college entrance exams—the school will give those in the key class special care and extra training, hoping for a few more to get into the Nine Elite Joint Schools.
For a top middle school, there are performance standards, and those will directly determine the funding the school receives from the government the following year, as well as the staff arrangements for higher ups—so the school takes it very seriously.
"Brother Feng, looks like we've got no hope," Gao Hai said, feeling dejected.
Even having refined a Second Grade Strong Demon Bull, which gave him a ten-point bonus, his strength at Body Cultivator Sixth Rank and his academic grades combined barely placed him within the top thousand—not to mention the key class.
"Relax, Brother Feng's got your back."
Lin Feng patted him on the shoulder, trying to comfort him.
For him, the resources offered by the key class were just a drop in the bucket. As for the guidance sessions before exams—did he even need those?
Those so-called special trainings meant nothing to him.
He was more qualified to tutor those teachers than the other way around.
"Alright, that's enough discussion—it's time for class."
Xu Wei clapped her hands and tapped lightly on the smart board.
Now, in the Great Cultivation Era, every course at Jiangxin Middle School revolved around one thing: becoming a Martial Artist, learning how to hunt Demon Beasts.
And the college entrance exam scores were divided into three sections, for a total of 750 points.
First section: academic scores, worth 200 points.
But this didn't refer to traditional subjects like Chinese, math, or physics.
Those basics were covered in junior high. What mattered now were facts about the Martial Artist world—like common Spirit Medicines, types and weaknesses of Demon Beasts, and so on.
Second section: physique scores, 350 points.
This meant your Qi and Blood, which nearly made up half the score.
Third section: combat scores, 200 points.
A Martial Artist's strength is useless without combat ability—the practical test mainly assessed Fighting Technique proficiency.
According to past standards, out of 750 points, getting 580 means you can make it into the Nine Elite Joint Schools.
Score 660 and you could enter one of the Three Heroic Academies.
Half a month ago, Lin Feng's scores: academics—189, physique—212, combat—150; total 551, not enough to qualify for the Nine Elite Joint Schools.
Lin Feng's academic record was already maxed out. At 189, he was top ten in the class.
Combat 150 was also high—what dragged him down was his physique score.
For students like Lin Feng, with no family resources, physique score was the hardest to improve.
Even with three months left, it would barely improve, maybe not at all.
Gao Hai's results were even worse, barely above 500.
So for most students, they more or less already knew what university they could get into.
Besides the three sections, if you had special talents—like proficiency in a martial art, archery, swordsmanship…
Or other special skills.
Lin Feng knew of classmates who had obtained Basic-Level Junior Alchemy Apprentice certificates, Basic-Level Refining Apprentice certificates… These could earn bonuses for certain university majors, the amount depending on the school.
And becoming a Demon Spirit Master also earned bonus points.
A Demon Refining First Grade Demon Spirit was worth 5 points; Second Grade was worth 10. And so on, up to Earth Chart demon spirits, for a maximum 50 points.
Senior class timetables: mornings for academic study, afternoons for physical training.
Xu Wei's class was Plant Spirit Object Recognition.
This course introduced wild plants useful to Martial Artists, plus various Treasures of Heaven and Earth.
No matter how sleepy he was, Lin Feng tried hard to stay awake for this class—but his mind was elsewhere.
Second period: Demon Beast Recognition.
This course went over Demon Beast types and weaknesses, with videos demonstrating hunting tactics.
The students were visibly interested, knowing its importance—after all, hunting Demon Beasts was a basic skill for any Martial Artist. If they didn't take it seriously now, later failure could mean death.
The bloody scenes would sometimes make girls scream. The sleepy Lin Feng was jolted awake, glanced up, and went back to his nap.
If it was about hunting Demon Beasts, he was already a master—Demon Beasts slain by him numbered in the hundreds, if not thousands. In this city, few could match his skill.
Throughout the morning's lessons, Lin Feng didn't listen at all—he just slept, and the classmates all noticed. To them, Lin Feng was suffering from the failure and had started giving up.
To them, Lin Feng's future had already lost all hope.
Ring ring ring!
Only when the bell sounded for end of class did Lin Feng slowly open his eyes.
He wasn't woken by the noise—he'd woken because of hunger.
He hadn't eaten enough that morning, and now the aftereffects of the Sealing Evil Seal were kicking in. Blood loss, Qi and Blood deficit—it left his body in a state of ferocious hunger.
"Come on, let's go eat."
Lin Feng patted Gao Hai's shoulder and said.
Just as the two reached the door, a figure blocked their way.
"Lin Feng, I have something I want to talk to you about."
Ya Ge stood in front of Lin Feng, visibly serious. Lin Feng realized she seemed different today—at least different from yesterday.
Her clothes hadn't changed—still the blue and white school uniform—but her vibe was different.
Ya Ge was always beautiful, but her natural gifts for cultivation were just above average—and coming from the Shore District, she'd always had a hint of insecurity compared to the true Celestial Emperor's children. But now, with the Eighth Grade Enchanting Butterfly refined, and a contract with the Ju Xing Club, that insecurity was totally gone.
Overnight, the girl had transformed—confident and determined, radiant as ever.