Chapter 127 - 126: Tied for First
On Sunday morning, Jinkang Pharmacy made a special delivery, dropping off four large boxes.
Jinkang wasn’t a modern pharmaceutical manufacturer. They mostly sold their products as brewed liquid tonics based on specific formulas.
So, what they delivered were all pre-brewed, brownish-black liquid tonics that needed to be refrigerated and had only a two-week shelf life.
They had no name, as they were specially formulated according to Yang Shen’s request.
Being a "cost-effective" Source Replenishing Potion, it came with its share of side effects. Given Yang Shen’s all-in, bottoms-up attitude in demanding the entire batch at once, the Jinkang employee couldn’t help but offer a word of caution.
"Look, kid, I know you’re all cramming for the college entrance exams, but you should know your limits. This stuff is hard on the liver."
Yang Shen replied, "I’m already at the mid-stage of Marrow Refining. An impact of this level isn’t a big deal."
Besides, as a third-layer Qi Cultivator, his practice constantly nurtured his internal organs.
The employee said in surprise, "Mid-stage Marrow Refining? A high school student? I didn’t even reach mid-stage Marrow Refining after graduating from Martial Arts College... In that case, forget I said anything. Good luck."
"Thanks for the concern. By the way, is there anything else I should know?"
The man thought for a moment, then blurted out, "Does ’it tastes awful’ count?"
After seeing the Jinkang employee off, Yang Shen emptied out most of his fridge. It took a serious application of geometry to barely fit everything inside.
The potions came in dark brown bottles with no labels, just a paper sticker that read, "Specially prepared for Yang Shen."
Opening the fridge door was like looking at a solid black wall.
Yang Shen opened a bottle, and a foul smell immediately assaulted his nostrils.
But without the slightest hesitation, he poured it straight into his mouth.
’After all these years of school, what hardship haven’t I tasted...’
’I can even stomach Essence Liquid mixed with rice.’
"COUGH, COUGH... BLEGH! PTUI!"
Stunned, Yang Shen held the bottle at arm’s length, checking to see if the stuff had gone bad...
But the dark brown liquid was clear, without the slightest impurity or cloudiness...
’Seriously... Dude, I said cost-effective... but there’s a limit, right?’
’Couldn’t you at least have added some sugar...?’
’Is this even fit for human consumption?’
Just then, Tao Ying happened to pass by the kitchen doorway. She sniffed the air and asked:
"Did a rat die in the house?"
Yang Shen gave a dry laugh. "How’s that possible... We haven’t had a rat problem in years."
Tao Ying nodded, then turned to Lei Yi. "Then you must have pooped your pants. Come here and let me check, Xiaolei Yi."
Lei Yi, who had been in the middle of his "Cultivation," opened his eyes and looked over, bewildered. ’I did?’
Then he sniffed the air...
’Whoa! I think I really did!’
Yang Shen: ...
Upon learning that the smell came from Yang Shen’s supplements, that he had an entire fridge full of them, and that he intended to drink them every day like water, Tao Ying was moved to comment.
"They always say that if you can’t endure the bitterness of studying, you’ll have to endure the bitterness of the real world..."
"But from my experience, after all these years... I’m not sure life out in the real world is *this* bitter..."
Even two months ago, during the family’s most difficult time, if someone had told her that drinking this stuff could relieve their financial pressure...
...she would have just chosen to work even harder.
A moment later, while Yang Shen was still wrestling with himself, he discovered a small packet and a note at the bottom of the box he’d just emptied.
Inside were many small sachets of powder. The note read: "If difficult to swallow, hold the anesthetic in your mouth for one minute before consuming the potion."
The small sachets were topical anesthetic.
’This world, Cyan Blue, is just too insane...’ Yang Shen thought. ’Even as a native, I often feel like I don’t belong.’
In the end, he didn’t use the anesthetic... With immense willpower, he chugged the entire bottle.
According to the potion’s effects and his plan, he had to drink six bottles a day for ten days straight....
He basically wouldn’t have to drink water anymore...
---
Early the next morning, on Monday, the entrance to Nanliang High School once again featured four massive ranking lists.
This was the final monthly exam, so for most students, these scores were practically their final grades. As for improving now...
Should’ve started earlier, shouldn’t you?
The level of attention today was even higher than usual.
Early in the morning, the school entrance was already packed. The countless high schoolers swarmed about like a school of frantic fish, creating a chaotic din.
Huang Gang watched from a distance for a moment before taking a deep breath and forcing his way into the crowd.
His cultivation was weak and he wasn’t strong, but he was shameless!
Amid a chorus of curses, he successfully squeezed his way to the front.
He habitually headed for the last-place list, but then Huang Gang suddenly thought, since graduation was so close, why not go wild for once!
’As a great expert of Bone Training, why shouldn’t I, Huang Gang, look on the third list?’
He scanned the list from bottom to top, growing more and more bewildered... until he actually spotted his name in the upper half!
And he really found it!
Liberal Arts: 90, Martial Arts: 308, Total Score: 398.
Class Rank: 380. Rank Change: "-".
Huang Gang leaped into the air. "Holy shit! I’m so fucking awesome!"
398! That was enough to qualify for a public Martial Arts College.
And among the worst of them, he could now pick a school that wasn’t quite as bad!
He had basically given up on his Liberal Arts score. For his Martial Arts score, besides the baseline physical power from reaching the initial stage of Bone Training, the most significant improvements were in Subject Five’s combat practice and Subject Four’s drill of the "Sixth Set."
Both of these improvements were spoon-fed to him in the "four-person study group."
His combat score reached a terrifying 88 points! That accounted for over a fifth of his total score!
Unfortunately, he had completely bailed on the last monthly exam.
The teacher compiling the list probably couldn’t be bothered to look up the old records for an ordinary student like him, so his rank change was just marked with a "-" to indicate no data.
But no matter what, Huang Gang felt a sense of vindication.
He couldn’t help but laugh triumphantly. "No one supported my lofty ambitions, so I ran to the Western Heaven all by myself! Haha! I’ve made it!"
Just as he was basking in his success, a scornful voice came from nearby. "Are you sure no one helped you? What do you think Yang Shen has been doing all this time, beating up a dog?"
He turned to see Zhao Mengmeng standing before the second list, also looking delighted.
"Besides, the saying is ’ascend to the blue heavens,’ not ’go to the Western Heaven’..."
Huang Gang chuckled. "What about you? How much did you improve?"
Zhao Mengmeng pointed to a spot in the upper section of the second list:
Liberal Arts: 140, Martial Arts: 342, Total Score: 482, Monthly Exam Rank: 277, Rank Change: +55.
Clearly, Zhao Mengmeng had also made huge progress—in fact, she hadn’t improved this much since her third year of high school began.
The subjects that pulled up her score were also "Subject Four" and "Subject Five."
Zhao Mengmeng felt she had just made the best decision of her seventeen years.
To cling tightly to Yang Shen’s thigh.
’A fifty-point increase!’
’In the score-obsessed atmosphere of Nanliang High School, even if she slaved away for Yang Shen for half a lifetime, it wouldn’t be enough to repay him!’
Just as her mind was wandering, cries of surprise came from the first list to her left.
"Huh? What’s this supposed to mean? Is it a typo again?"
"Who’s actually number one?!"
Zhao Mengmeng looked over and saw that the layout at the top of the list was indeed different from usual.
First in Grade: Xu Bamboo
Liberal Arts: 198
Martial Arts: 515
Subject One (97), Subject Two (95), Subject Three (88), Subject Four (95), Subject Five (140)
Total Score: 713, Monthly Exam Rank: 1, Rank Change: +10.
First in Grade: Yang Shen
Liberal Arts: 205
Martial Arts: 508
Subject One (90), Subject Two (81), Subject Three (82), Subject Four (100), Subject Five (140), Special Bonus (Fist Intent) (10), Initial Stage Body Refining Technique Rating 9 Bonus (5).
Total Score: 713, Monthly Exam Rank: 1, Rank Change: +22.
(Note: Tie for first place, order not indicative of rank. Listed according to student ID number.)
Zhao Mengmeng: "Ehh?!!!"
A tie for first place! Zhao Mengmeng was floored.
’713? Is that a score Nanliang High School is even capable of producing?’
’That score is out of this world!’
A tie for first place was already a first in the history of Nanliang High School, let alone one with a high score of over 700.
Based on the trends of previous years, that score was already enough to apply to "Jiangti"! Was Nanliang High School really going to produce a "Jiangti student"? And two at once!
Although in theory, the scores on the final monthly exam were slightly inflated, this was mainly done for the mid-tier students.
For example, Zhao Mengmeng knew full well that her own score had a lot of "water" in it.
But it didn’t really affect the top students much.
’Without me even realizing it... has Yang Shen already reached the level of number one in the grade?’
’Xu Bamboo is amazing too... After a brief setback, he’s immediately back at the top, and even set a new personal best.’