Era of Mist

The Six Basic Heart Techniques were all divided into tiers—four tiers each. However, the Basic Essence Nourishment Technique and Basic Fist Technique had no such divisions, meaning they only had one tier. The tiering of a secret manual wasn’t arbitrary; specific rules governed its evaluation. From this alone, it was clear that the Basic Essence Nourishment Technique and Basic Fist Technique were of a lower grade than the Six Basic Heart Techniques.

Still, Shi Tiexin felt a small measure of comfort knowing he had cultivated the Basic Essence Nourishment Technique and Basic Fist Technique to the Excellent rank. ’It seems my diligent training has paid off after all.’ But since he couldn’t afford nourishing essence food, even an Excellent-rank Basic Essence Nourishment Technique couldn’t be fully utilized.

Nourishing one’s essence was the first stage of physical cultivation, and one’s essence level was the fundamental reflection of their training progress. With insufficient essence, even the Basic Fist Technique was difficult to use effectively. In short, it wasn’t that the troops lacked talent; it was that they lacked rations. It all came down to a lack of money.

’Then what about my Heart Techniques? Aside from Basic Mathematics, what rank are the others?’

The characters shifted and reappeared.

*Basic Physics Tier One, Pass*

’Oh, Basic Physics is also at the Pass rank.’

*Basic Natural History Tier One, Good*

’Hmm, Basic Natural History Tier One is actually at the Good rank. I guess hard work really does pay off.’

’Hmm...’

’Huh? ...’

’Wait a minute...’

’Where’s the rest of the text?!’

’Why did it stop?!’

’The damn Six Basic Heart Techniques! *Six* of them!’

’How many is that?’

’Mathematics, Physics, Natural History... that’s only three! Where are Biology, Chemistry, and Rhetoric?’

’Did I freaking fail all of them?!’

’After all this work, my Biology, Chemistry, and Rhetoric didn’t even pass Tier One?! In this world, I think they call that being an "illiterate"!’

’This... you son of a... FUCK!!’

THUD. Shi Tiexin fell back onto his bed, his body making the frame groan pitifully. The guy on the bottom bunk was startled, rolled over, muttered a few curses, and went back to sleep. Shi Tiexin paid him no mind, utterly dejected.

’After all my hard work, only three of the Fundamental Heart Skills even passed.’

’Only three!’

The basic qualification to take the Small Township Exam required "Mathematics" and "Rhetoric" to be at Tier Two, Pass rank, while the other four had to be at Tier One, Good rank. If he didn’t meet that standard, he wouldn’t even be eligible to participate.

Cultivating Heart Techniques didn’t require one to eat nourishing essence food or temper their muscles and bones to forge their strength. On the surface, it seemed less demanding than cultivating physical techniques. ’But how could anything in this world be so simple? Did I really think that after all the trouble of obtaining a Heart Skill Secret Manual, I could just relax and have a smooth path to greatness?’

’Others have skilled teachers to guide them. Do I?’

’Others have the money to hire high-level private tutors. Do I?’

’Others have high-quality Heart Skill Secret Manuals that are both profound and easy to understand. Do I?’

’Others can afford supplementary manuals that greatly accelerate their cultivation speed, letting them advance by leaps and bounds. Do I?’

’Those young masters, like that "Young Master Shen" guy, probably have all of those things and more. But I don’t have a single damn thing!’

’It’s not just that I lack those things; I don’t even have a stable environment where I can focus on my cultivation without distraction. I have to scramble just to survive, I have to work just to eat. I don’t even have enough time to practice my Heart Techniques! How am I supposed to compete with those favored prodigies?’

’The Small Township Exam is just around the corner, and I’m not even qualified to take it.’

’What that guy said... he really had a point...’

Seething with frustration, Shi Tiexin lay on his bed for a long time, his breathing ragged. It wasn’t until after 6:30, when others began to get up, that Shi Tiexin finally slapped his cheeks and climbed out of bed. He had fallen asleep in his clothes, so he didn’t need to get dressed. Ignoring his roommates, he slipped on his shoes and headed straight out the door.

He left the foul-smelling Ancient Tower and wandered aimlessly across campus in the faint light of dawn. He was surprised to see that despite the early hour, many students were already up and about in the vast school grounds.

The dorms for the "trash class" were full of students who loved to eat, play, and sleep in, but other areas were not the same. As he looked around, he saw students here and there, washing up in the morning breeze. By the time he reached the Middle Ages Building area, he could already see students who were up early, studying. Some were reading from books that his memory identified as "language arts textbooks," while others recited foreign languages he couldn’t understand. But whether he understood the words or not, the palpable atmosphere of youthful vigor and diligent striving washed over him.

Seeing these diligent students, Shi Tiexin’s mood lifted a little, and the bleak expression on his face softened.

The atmosphere of this Heart Technique Sacred Land was worlds apart from that of the Star Worker School. Even though the facilities here were ancient and the conditions primitive, the learning environment—where everyone was focused and vying to get ahead—was something the scions of the Star Worker Union could never hope to match.

’These people before me are the true cream of the crop. It’s both admirable and inspiring to see.’

’Right, what’s the point of worrying about all that?’

’I don’t know how or why it happened, but my consciousness has arrived here and merged with this young man, who is also named "Shi Tiexin." Will I ever go back? Can I go back? Who knows?’

’Since I’ve come to a new world and started a new life, I might as well start over from scratch. Back in Tumu Castle, I didn’t have the resources to cultivate properly. I had to fight with everything I had just for a single Tier One Heart Skill secret manual. But here, I have all the manuals I need and no other worries.’

’This in itself is a tremendous stroke of luck.’

’If I don’t push myself now, if I let myself be defeated and left in the dust again, then I’ll have no one to blame but myself.’

Besides... Shi Tiexin suddenly realized something important. ’Even without seeing what the students in the private courtyard dorms are like, just looking at the ones here in the Middle Ages Building area... not only are they incredibly hardworking, but their skill level is far higher than mine!’

’Never mind anyone else, just listening to these students doing their morning reading... their Rhetoric must be at Basic Tier Three already! And every single one of them is at least Good rank. It seems there’s no shortage of students at the Excellent rank either.’

’Basic Rhetoric Tier Three, and every one of them is at Good rank or higher!’

’Their standards are freaking insane!’

’And these students probably don’t even specialize in Rhetoric,’ he mused. According to the memories he’d absorbed from the other consciousness, Fengming First Middle School heavily favored the sciences over the humanities. The vast majority of students chose the science track during course selection, with very few opting for the arts. Shi Tiexin had already grasped the concepts of "arts" and "sciences" from the other consciousness, so he knew that the main specializations of the students here weren’t in Rhetoric, but in subjects like Mathematics and Physics.

’Every single one of them is an expert!’

’I can’t. I can’t waste any more time.’ Shi Tiexin composed himself, ready to start fresh, and strode quickly toward the cafeteria.

Fengming First Middle School operated on the principle of survival of the fittest. The student body was divided, from top to bottom, into elite classes, priority classes, ordinary classes, and one class that theoretically didn’t exist but was always present: the trash class. These were not just empty titles; they corresponded to very real differences in treatment and benefits.

Shi Tiexin had already experienced firsthand the vast difference in living conditions between the priority classes and the trash class. The disparities in other benefits between the tiers were just as great.

As he strode into the cafeteria, Shi Tiexin was once again confronted by the ubiquitous stratification.