Era of Mist

"Just say the word! Anything you need! Cigarettes? Booze? Posters of naked beauties? Leave it all to me!" Zhou Nan thumped his chest. As the contraband supplier for the class of misfits, what hadn’t he bought before? This was just spending money to save his life—a total bargain.

Shi Tiexin nodded, then cut to the chase and stated his objective.

Zhou Nan’s mind went completely blank.

Ten minutes later, a nimble figure vaulted the wall of Fengming First Middle School from a very secretive spot. He looked left and right like a thief, and after confirming no one was around, he bolted.

His body ached from the beating. Zhou Nan grimaced in pain, but to avoid another "three-point nod" or its "improved version," he decided he had to get the items on time no matter how much it hurt. The big bro had said he wanted to see the goods before the second evening study session. He’d have to risk his life to deliver them on schedule. Otherwise... ’The buckets in that dark bathroom have probably collected quite a bit by now.’

But even for a professional purveyor of contraband, Zhou Nan had no idea where to buy what the big bro wanted.

’I’ll try that shady little shop I usually go to first.’

Zhou Nan ran fast, quickly darting into a small roadside shop. There were plenty of stores that sold cigarettes and alcohol, but not many would sell them to a high school student without causing other trouble later. The owner of this particular shop—a man with a comb-over that bridged the bald expanse of his scalp—was Zhou Nan’s long-term business partner.

"Hey, you’re back?" The owner was quite enthusiastic toward Zhou Nan, as the boy was his main distributor at Fengming First Middle School. "What’ll it be this time?"

"I need..." Zhou Nan opened his mouth, feeling ashamed of what he was about to ask for. But he had no choice, so he brazened it out and said, "I need elementary school textbooks, flashcards for the four basic arithmetic operations, and all kinds of penmanship workbooks..."

"Huh?" The owner stared, dumbfounded. After a moment, he burst out cursing, "Don’t have ’em, don’t have ’em! If you’re not buying anything else, then get the hell out! Are you here to mess with me? You’re a psycho..."

Zhou Nan didn’t dare talk back as he was being cursed out, and he left the shady shop dejectedly. ’It makes sense, though. A delinquent going out to buy elementary school textbooks... Isn’t that humiliating?’

But he couldn’t fail the big boss’s mission. ’Where can I even buy that stuff? Maybe... I could go find some elementary schoolers near their school and mug them for a few sets? No, it’s already dark. The elementary school let out ages ago, so I won’t find anyone.’

’So... the only option is to look for a suitable store near an elementary school.’

Twenty minutes later, Zhou Nan finally found a bookstore that was still open near an elementary school. He walked in with his bruised and swollen face, feeling like he’d reached a new level of shame. He didn’t bother being picky, indiscriminately grabbing one of everything and SLAMMING a huge stack down in front of the owner.

"Ring me up!"

The owner sized up Zhou Nan as he calculated the price. After a moment, he asked hesitantly, "Young man, did you... take a fall at a construction site? Do you need to go to the hospital?"

"Who has time for the hospital? Just ring me up, quick! I need these books right away!"

The bookstore owner didn’t get angry. He just shook his head and sighed with admiration. "Such a thirst for knowledge... It’s a good thing, young man. It doesn’t matter if you’re hauling bricks at a construction site. Don’t lower your standards for yourself, and one day you’ll achieve great things. Keep it up, kid. I’ll give you a discount!"

Despite getting a discount, Zhou Nan felt he had hit peak humiliation for the day. A bona fide high school delinquent, running to an elementary school to buy elementary school books—could anything in the world be more embarrassing than this?

Yes.

SWISH. Zhou Nan vaulted over the wall, landing lightly on the ground. He checked the time. ’Still five minutes before the first session ends. Perfect.’ Just then, the beam of a powerful flashlight washed over him, and a bellowing voice made him jump. "Stop! Don’t move! You lot, go surround him!"

Several figures, fierce as a pack of wolves, sprang from the darkness, surrounding Zhou Nan in an instant.

"Heh, caught another one!"

"Director Zheng was right, this crackdown is really necessary. Look at these students—smoking, fighting... Discipline has completely broken down. It’s truly heartbreaking."

"What’s the deal with this one? Probably went out to buy cigarettes."

Zhou Nan panicked. He looked around and saw teachers from the dean’s office, plus more than ten students from the Wind Disciplinary Committee. It was practically a full deployment of the disciplinary department. Although Zheng Datou wasn’t there, he wasn’t the only terror in the dean’s office. A few other formidable teachers were currently interrogating some delinquents with dyed hair who’d been caught smoking. Seeing another one had been nabbed, the group closed in with ferocious expressions.

"Talk. What were you doing over the wall? Went to buy cigarettes, didn’t you?" a teacher smirked from the side. "I suggest you be honest and just confess. Director Zheng is on the warpath right now. You’d better not be stubborn when you don’t know what’s good for you."

"N-No, Teacher! I really didn’t go buy cigarettes!"

"Still talking back? Looks like you won’t talk until you’re forced to."

SNAP. Four powerful flashlights trained on Zhou Nan, pinning him in their beams like an escaped convict in a searchlight. They illuminated his pitiful, bruised, and swollen face—a sight that was both comical and tragic. The teacher who had caught him immediately shouted, "What happened to your face? And what’s in that bag? Tell us, what were you really doing out of school!"

Zhou Nan immediately threw his hands up as if surrendering. "Teacher, if I told you I snuck out to buy study guides, would you believe me?"

The teachers all looked at Zhou Nan as if he were an idiot, then together, they pulled open his bag...

A minute later, everyone’s expression was just as idiotic.

Three minutes later, Zhou Nan made a lucky yet pathetic escape from the surprise inspection. From that day forward, however, a strange legend about a delinquent who snuck out to buy elementary school textbooks began to circulate through Fengming First Middle School.

During the second evening study session, Zhou Nan rushed frantically into the Class 28 classroom, making his first appearance of the day. The delinquents of Class 28 couldn’t help but look at their nominal class boss, and their expressions immediately became priceless. They watched as Zhou Nan, like a Corgi, scurried over to Shi Tiexin’s side and presented the bag in his hands.

His posture was so respectful, his expression so fawning, that he showed no concern for his image as the "Boss of Class 28." The other delinquents exchanged glances, a silent, knowing look passing between them. They all understood that the boss of Class 28 had, as a matter of course, been replaced.

The new boss, Shi Tiexin, was completely oblivious to this. He only had one thing on his mind. He quickly opened the bag, and the first thing he saw was a book titled *Elementary School Mathematics, Grade 1, Volume 1*. He rubbed his hands together for a moment, his gaze fixed on the cover. After a short wait, strange characters appeared before his eyes.

[Secret Manual: Basic Mathematics, First Layer (Fragment, 1/6)]

’This is it!’

Shi Tiexin quickly rummaged through the bag, laying out all six elementary school math textbooks—from Grade 1, Volume 1 to Grade 3, Volume 2—on the desk in front of him.