The morning sun streamed through the classroom windows at Beijing No. 3 High School, casting long rectangles of light across the polished desks. Students shuffled in, murmuring about exams, sports, and who had broken the record for the morning run. To anyone else, it was ordinary chaos.
Fang Ze, however, scanned the room with a detached calm. His backpack rested lightly on one shoulder; his posture was relaxed, almost lazy—but his eyes were sharp, tracking the faintest irregularities. A flicker of tension in a student's aura, a subtle surge of Qi from someone fidgeting in the back row, the quiet but deliberate alignment of a desk near the window… all registered.
He smiled faintly. "Still the same," he muttered to himself. Even after being reborn, some things didn't change. Ordinary life, people hustling to survive, the currents beneath the surface. Only now, he could see them.
A familiar voice cut through the noise.
"Fang Ze, are you daydreaming again?"
He turned, and there she was—Su Qingxue. Her black hair tied neatly, her posture perfect, calm eyes observing him like she already knew he was hiding something. Childhood friend, neighbor, classmate… and the one person who always seemed unshakable.
"I'm… thinking," he replied lightly, a small smirk tugging at his lips. "You know, about calculus."
Su Qingxue rolled her eyes, a faint blush creeping across her cheeks. "Calculus, huh? I should have known you'd pick something boring to hide behind."
Despite her teasing, her aura betrayed her potential. Immortal physique, unawakened yet dense with latent power. Even sitting quietly, she radiated a subtle resonance that was difficult to ignore. Fang Ze's memory of her past life nudged at him—she's stronger than she realizes, but she needs guidance.
"By the way," Fang Ze said, lowering his voice so only she could hear, "you should start cultivating earlier. Just a little. Nothing big. I can help."
Her eyes widened slightly, but only for a moment. "You… you really mean that?" she asked.
"I do," he said smoothly. "But don't tell anyone. The fewer people know, the safer it is."
Su Qingxue hesitated, then nodded, a small grin appearing. "You're really impossible."
The bell rang, jolting the room into motion.
Teachers entered, students straightened, and Fang Ze leaned back, letting the commotion flow around him. Still, his attention didn't waver.
Across the room, he noted a few budding prodigies—the boy in the third row who always kept his hands in exact alignment, the girl with a subtle but unrefined Qi pulse, the student whose aura flickered unpredictably when nervous. Not threats, not yet, but indicators. He cataloged them silently, mentally ranking their potential.
P
His eyes flicked briefly to the door where the principal, Chen Linyun, passed by. The woman carried an effortless composure; her gaze swept the students like she could measure their very soul. Fang Ze's lips curved faintly. If only she knew what the Golden Era might bring.
A sudden vibration from his pocket reminded him: his mother's bookstore had received a new shipment. Ancient sutras, rare herbs, texts on Qi harmonization—resources few others could access. Perhaps today would be the day for an opportunity to present itself, a small stepping stone toward something larger.
The class proceeded normally. Teachers explained equations, students argued over answers—but Fang Ze's mind wandered only slightly. Beneath the laughter, whispers, and arguments, currents moved. Threads, nodes, subtle changes in the air, small bursts of latent power that the untrained eye would never notice.
And Su Qingxue, sitting beside him, mirrored his breathing ever so slightly, responding to his subtle aura without realizing it.
By the end of the day, he had cataloged dozens of prodigies in his mind, noted their hidden tendencies, and quietly assessed who might pose a problem—or become an ally—later.
Stepping out of the classroom, he stretched, the sun catching his hair. "Ordinary life," he murmured, "but the extraordinary is always nearby."
Beside him, Su Qingxue smiled faintly, shaking her head. "You really are impossible, Fang Ze."
He laughed lightly. "And yet, somehow, the world hasn't caught up to me yet."