Chapter 144: Return to School
[Name: Lin Yi]
[Occupation: Student]
[Martial Arts Realm: Tier Four, Star Two]
[Qi and Blood Value: 66.87%]
[Martial Skills: Basic Fist Technique (Mastery), Basic Leg Technique (Mastery), Golden Light Fist (Mastery), Candle Dragon Ancient Saber Technique (Major Success), Brahma Heaven Luo Jin Spear Technique (Minor Success), Star Shattering Tai Chi Technique (Minor Success)]
[Talent Entries: Absolute Focus (Purple), Heaven-Defying Comprehension (Purple), Destiny (Gold), Fist Technique Integration (Blue), Divine Speed (Blue), Divine Concealment (Gold), Vajra Fist (2/3 Purple), Body Tempering (Purple), Steel Body (Purple), Snake-shaped Stepping Technique (Blue), True Blood Moon (Red), Earth Evasion (Purple), Alertness (Blue), Spirit Blade (Purple), Agility (Blue), Strong Soul (Purple), Minor Success in Cooking (Green), Fortune (Blue), Epiphany x2 (Green), Carpentry x2 (White), Occult Arts (Blue), Earth Spirit Binding (Purple), Uplifting Incense (Gold), Food Digestion (Blue), Cold Resistance (Purple), Fire Resistance (Purple)...]
[Cultivation Technique: Star River Qi Transformation Technique]
Early morning.
Lin Yi awoke from the meditative state of his Qi Transformation Technique.
He immediately checked his personal interface.
He was astonished to find that his Cultivation Realm had changed so dramatically in just one night.
He had jumped directly from Tier Three, Star Two to Tier Four.
Furthermore, his Qi and Blood had already surpassed the halfway mark.
’Isn’t my realm progressing a little too quickly?’
A flicker of delighted surprise flashed in Lin Yi’s eyes.
He thought back to the tiger cub in the Xinghai the previous night.
The moment he had drawn near the cub,
the Qi and Blood in his body had begun to surge and boil.
A massive amount of Source Qi had poured violently into his apertures.
He had never experienced anything like it before.
Not even when he had listened to the voice of that Daoist preaching, with Talismans swirling all around him.
Even when they had entered his body one by one, transforming into Source Qi and flowing into his apertures,
it had felt like a gentle spring slowly trickling in.
It had never been a mad torrent ’gushing’ in like last night.
’If I’d had more apertures in my body and could have absorbed all the Qi, I bet even more Source Qi would have poured in,’ Lin Yi mused silently.
His realm had improved significantly.
Although there was only one day left until the Martial Arts exam,
at this rate, if he entered the state of the [Star River Qi Transformation Technique] again tonight
and interacted with that tiger cub once more,
then breaking through to Star Three during the Martial Arts exam tomorrow would be no problem at all.
Lin Yi was in a good mood; his small goal was now within reach.
This boosted his confidence even more.
After a simple, hastily eaten breakfast, Lin Yi pulled out his long-neglected school uniform and put it on.
He didn’t bring a backpack.
Today was just a day to report back to school.
He wasn’t going back for classes, but mainly to go over some details about tomorrow’s Martial Arts exam.
So, the backpack would have to remain gathering dust...
After finishing breakfast, Lin Yi left home.
His residential complex wasn’t far from the school, so there was no need to take the bus.
Lin Yi decided to jog all the way there.
「...」
Outside the gates of Third Middle School.
When Lin Yi arrived,
he could see a large crowd gathered from a distance.
Even the school’s principal, dean of affairs, and dean of Martial Arts were all standing outside the gate.
They were all decked out in suits, looking just like businessmen.
There were also some female students from the school, each holding pompoms, their outfits quite revealing.
They were arranged in two rows on the left and right.
"Such a huge welcome? Are they welcoming the Martial Arts exam students back to school? That’s not very likely, is it?" Lin Yi muttered to himself.
The words had barely left his lips when his expression changed slightly.
He quickly dodged to the side.
A figure lunged past where he had just been standing, grasping at empty air.
"Holy shit, did you have to react that dramatically?"
Wei Nan said, turning back with a hint of complaint.
Lin Yi laughed. "Don’t try to sneak up on me from behind. I’m sensitive!"
Wei Nan: "..."
He quickly reverted to his usual cheeky grin.
Draping an arm over Lin Yi’s shoulder, he pointed towards the school gate and said, "See that? Even the principal came out to welcome us!"
"Welcome us?"
Lin Yi gave him a strange look.
"If they’re not here for us, who else could they be for? Don’t tell me they’re here for you?"
"We’re all Martial Arts exam candidates, and the test is tomorrow. If our school produces a few students who get accepted into a Martial Arts University, it’s a huge honor for the school!"
"The school definitely wants as many of us to pass as possible, which is why they’ve put on such a big show!"
"Come on, let your bro show you what it feels like to be at the peak of your life!"
After saying his piece, Wei Nan pulled Lin Yi toward the school gate.
But as the two of them arrived,
just as they were about to walk past the two rows of cheerleaders, a teacher wearing glasses stopped them.
"Don’t come through here. Go around the back to enter the school!"
Wei Nan: "????"
Lin Yi: "????"
"Wait, Teacher, we’re the Martial Arts exam students reporting back!" Wei Nan quickly explained.
The female teacher shot him a glance. "So what if you’re exam candidates? This path isn’t for you. Go around the back!"
Instantly, Wei Nan was furious.
Lin Yi’s brow furrowed slightly as well.
Even if the path wasn’t for them, there was no need for such a nasty attitude, was there?
They weren’t even allowed to use the main entrance and had to use a side gate?
What kind of logic was that?
Wei Nan’s expression darkened, and he completely ignored the female teacher.
"I’m walking through here today. Let’s go, Lin Yi!"
Hearing this, Lin Yi smiled.
That was just Wei Nan’s personality; the more you told him not to do something, the more he wanted to do it.
Besides, their Martial Arts exam was tomorrow.
After the exam, regardless of whether they passed or not, they would have nothing more to do with this school.
There was no way Wei Nan was going to humor them.
He shoved aside the female teacher’s arm that was blocking their way.
"Hey, hey, hey! You two students, is that path for you to walk on?" The female teacher tried to block them again.
But Wei Nan and Lin Yi were already walking down the center aisle toward the gate.
It was precisely because of their actions
that the faces of the principal and deans waiting at the gate changed slightly.
A trace of displeasure flickered in their eyes.
However, Wei Nan didn’t even spare them a glance.
At over 1.8 meters tall, he walked past them with his head held high and chest puffed out.
When two other teachers tried to block their path,
Wei Nan simply walked forward, ready to bulldoze a path right through them.
Just as a collision seemed imminent,
the two teachers quickly stepped aside.
"What grade are they in? Find out which teacher’s students they are! This is outrageous!"
After Wei Nan and Lin Yi had walked into the school,
the principal said with a grim face.
The words had just been spoken when a dean leaned in close.
"Principal Liang, they’re both Martial Arts exam candidates, students of Teacher Liu Song!"
"Exam candidates?"
Principal Liang’s expression grew even darker.
However, he didn’t say anything more.
The Martial Arts exam was tomorrow, and after they took it, they would have no more connection to the school.
It wasn’t worth getting into a fight with them and just making himself angry.
There was no need for it at all.
So, he decided to just put it out of his mind.
"I’d really like to see who’s such a big shot that the principal and the others would personally come out to greet them."
"So much so that they won’t even let us use the main path?"
After entering the school grounds, neither Wei Nan nor Lin Yi went into the academic building.
They just stood there, wanting to see who the principal and the others were waiting to receive.
Lin Yi was also quite curious about this.
’This welcoming party really is huge. Could a leader from some department be coming?’
Just as they were wondering, two more people walked toward them.
"Wei Nan? Lin Yi? It really is you guys!"
Turning toward the voice, two familiar faces came into view.
They were both classmates of Lin Yi and Wei Nan.
One was named Zhou Tao, whom Wei Nan had mentioned before.
He was very thin and over 1.8 meters tall.
When he stood there, he looked just like a telephone pole.
Wei Nan had nicknamed him "Pole."
The other person was fat, about 1.75 meters tall, and named Wang Sheng.
Standing next to Zhou Tao, the two formed a stark contrast.
One tall, one short.
One fat, one thin.
They were a classic "fat and thin" duo in the flesh.
After nearly three months apart, the feeling of camaraderie between classmates upon meeting again
warmed up quickly.
"Lin Yi, what kind of super-growth formula have you been on? Holy cow, I haven’t seen you in three months, and you’ve shot up like a weed! You must be over 1.8 meters now, right?"
Wang Sheng looked at Lin Yi, who was now almost a full head taller than him,
his face filled with envy.