Era of Mist

He reached the third floor and walked up to his dorm room. A glance revealed a white, sheet-metal door. Shi Tiexin pulled out his keys and stared blankly at the bunch for a long moment. To him, these metal keys were practically antiques; he had no idea how to even use such a thing. His body, however, seemed to know exactly what to do, inserting a key into the lock on its own.

With a twist of his wrist, the lock clicked open. He pushed the door open, revealing a modestly sized student dorm room. It contained four steel loft beds, with bunks on top and desks underneath. All four desks were piled high with books. Aside from a few stray snack wrappers, there wasn’t much clutter.

Although to Shi Tiexin, these things were as dated as the archival footage displayed in a museum, he subconsciously felt that the conditions here were actually pretty good.

’Looks like I’m not at the very bottom of the food chain in this place.’

The jumble of thoughts in his head made him drowsy. Shi Tiexin closed the door, climbed onto the bunk that felt familiar, and, unable to hold on any longer, collapsed onto the bed. As he smelled the scent of laundry soap wafting from the towel on his pillow, a few last thoughts flickered through his mind before he sank into a deep sleep.

’Yeah, this is good enough...’

In the depths of sleep, Shi Tiexin felt the conflicting thoughts in his mind begin to quiet down. The war inside his head ceased, the opposing sides no longer at each other’s throats. For a moment, his mind felt a growing sense of ease, and the constantly tense muscles in his face finally relaxed.

But this blissful slumber did not last long.

Barely an hour had passed when a series of urgent knocks suddenly shattered the silence. BANG BANG BANG! The door was being pounded on with a force that brooked no argument or refusal.

"Shi Tiexin, open up!"

Still groggy, Shi Tiexin jolted awake, a bone-deep fear seizing him at the sound of that voice. He scrambled down from his bunk, ran to the door, and unlocked it with a click. A massive, square head immediately thrust itself into the room.

It was the grim-faced, square-headed menace himself: Zheng Kaoming.

Following Zheng Kaoming were three other students. Each wore an armband on his left arm bearing two blood-red words: "Wind Discipline." This marked them as members of the student council’s Wind Disciplinary Committee.

The square-headed menace and the Wind Disciplinary Committee—the sight made Shi Tiexin’s legs start to tremble instinctively.

Yet his expression remained perfectly calm. His mind and body were still under the control of two different consciousnesses.

Zheng Kaoming entered without a word and simply stood there, staring at Shi Tiexin. The three students from the Wind Disciplinary Committee, meanwhile, descended on Shi Tiexin’s bunk like wolves on the hunt. They rummaged through everything, their sharp eyes missing no suspicious detail.

Although he already had a plan, what kind of person was the square-headed menace? He would never let someone who fell into his clutches off so easily. If they could find any contraband Shi Tiexin had stashed away—even a single cigarette—they would make the kid suffer for it.

But after a moment, the three members of the Wind Disciplinary Committee shook their heads without a word.

Seeing that Shi Tiexin’s expression hadn’t changed in the slightest, Zheng Kaoming finally spoke. "Oh? So calm. It seems you’re mentally prepared for this. Shouting in class, assaulting a teacher... Shi Tiexin, you’ve got some nerve. I could have you expelled on the spot for this!"

’Expelled?!’

A loud buzz rang in Shi Tiexin’s head. In one of his consciousnesses, a sense of doom washed over him, as if the sky itself were falling. The other consciousness, while not as despairing, was still shocked. ’What the hell? I just got to this Cultivation Sacred Land, and I’m going to get kicked out just for yelling once?!’

But since neither consciousness could gain full control, Shi Tiexin’s face remained completely devoid of expression. Even his gaze didn’t waver as he stared fixedly at Zheng Kaoming.

Strangely, he projected the unflappable aura of a great general.

’This kid... why isn’t he scared at all? He must be faking it. Definitely. Or maybe he’s just scared stiff,’ Zheng Kaoming grumbled to himself. Outwardly, however, he continued, "But in light of your normally decent record, the school has decided to give you a chance to turn over a new leaf. You will not be expelled."

Both of his consciousnesses sighed in relief at once. ’Good, good, good. At least I’m not being expelled. As long as I’m not expelled, anything is fine!’

But Shi Tiexin’s face remained just as calm.

’This guy... he’s not faking it? Is he?’ Zheng Kaoming stared into Shi Tiexin’s eyes but found no trace of panic or wild relief. ’Could he be an idiot?’ ’Whatever.’ Zheng Kaoming decided not to dwell on it and stated bluntly, "Regardless, a violation of school rules must be punished. Shi, your punishment is as follows: Effective immediately, you are transferred from first-year Class 7 to first-year Class 28. Your dormitory and cafeteria assignments will be adjusted accordingly. This takes effect now."

’Huh?’

’What does that mean?’

’From first-year Class 7 to first-year Class 28? That’s the punishment? I thought it was going to be something serious.’

However, his other consciousness clearly didn’t see it that way. Upon hearing the news, that part of his mind went completely blank, as if it had just received some unacceptable, world-ending news. The despair it felt was hardly any less than when he’d heard he might be expelled.

The three students from the Wind Disciplinary Committee couldn’t help but glance at Shi Tiexin, their eyes filled with pity. ’To be thrown from an honors class straight into a trash class... he’s been knocked down to the very bottom.’

"Pack your things. Time to go." Not waiting for a reaction from Shi Tiexin, Zheng Kaoming waved a hand. "You three, help Shi pack his things."

The three students pounced like hungry wolves, pulling out bags they had prepared in advance and unceremoniously stuffing Shi Tiexin’s belongings inside. In the blink of an eye, the area was a mess. He had barely warmed up his bed before he was being forced to pack his bags and leave.

As they packed, the trio also conducted another thorough search, even holding his books upside down and shaking them vigorously, likely hoping a pinup photo or two might fall out.

Zheng Kaoming watched Shi Tiexin out of the corner of his eye, observing his reaction.

But Shi Tiexin still showed no reaction. He seemed unfazed by them searching his books and unconcerned about being forced to pack up and leave. ’As long as I can stay in this Cultivation Sacred Land,’ he thought, ’nothing else matters.’

But he would soon find out what being transferred from first-year Class 7 to first-year Class 28 truly meant.

With his bundle on his back and bags in hand, Shi Tiexin handed over his dorm key. Zheng Kaoming and his entourage subtly surrounded him, escorting him like a prisoner out of the building and deeper into the dormitory area.

’This must be part of the "adjusted dormitory and cafeteria assignments,"’ he figured. ’They’re moving me to the dorms for first-year Class 28.’

But after just a few steps, Shi Tiexin realized something was wrong.