Time flew by, and the first monthly exam of the semester began.
Yu Fei's academic foundation was actually pretty good. He was a diligent student, but limited by his natural aptitude, his science scores were only average. His overall class rank hovered between 20th and 25th.
After gaining the "Superb Comprehension" talent, it was as if he'd had a major breakthrough in his studies. The vast amounts of knowledge he had memorized in the past all interconnected, forming a cohesive system.
He breezed through his daily assignments and even started to think there wasn't enough of it.
'No wonder that kid Jiang Yifan is always so carefree,' he thought. 'He never seems to study much, yet he's always first in the class and consistently in the top three of the entire grade.'
For the exam, the entire grade of over eight hundred students was assigned to exam halls based on their rankings. Yu Fei's rank was outside the top three hundred, which placed him in Exam Hall 10.
With two great blue-tier talents to his name, Yu Fei's test-taking efficiency was off the charts. Aside from the occasional fact he truly hadn't memorized, he could write down the answers as soon as he picked up his pen. Thanks to his Super Speed Reaction, his thought process was seven times faster than anyone else's.
This was especially true for math. He finished the entire paper in just over half an hour, spending only five minutes mulling over the final major problem before completing it.
After a quick check for any issues, he handed in his paper and left, causing an uproar in the exam hall. The proctor watched him go, their expression a perfect picture of exasperated disappointment.
Normally, a student ranked around three hundredth still had a decent shot at getting into an average university. In the proctor's eyes, Yu Fei's actions were a clear sign of him giving up on himself.
After the exams, dramatic wails and cries could be heard from time to time in the classroom. Some students, after comparing answers with their peers, discovered they'd made mistakes on questions they should have gotten right and were filled with bitter regret.
The classroom was a microcosm of life. The circles of top students and slackers were clearly divided, with a few "grade sharks" weaving between them, fanning the flames of discord.
The results weren't expected until the following week. Because of the monthly exam on Wednesday, the martial arts class was postponed to Thursday.
In the next martial arts class, the lesson was still focused on fist techniques, but this time a sparring session was added.
Yan Sea had an interesting way of making groups. He paired up students who were at a similar stage of progress, ensuring everyone was on a relatively even footing.
Yu Fei was paired with Du Mingxuan.
The first form of the Six Harmonies Killing Fist was the One-Line Pierce, and it was exactly what its name suggested.
This form was direct and straightforward, its power fierce and unmatched.
It required the practitioner to channel all their body's Qi Blood and strength into a single current. Every punch and kick had to be augmented by Qi Blood, resulting in astonishing destructive power.
If learning the Six Harmonies Killing Fist was like learning to drive, then the One-Line Pierce was the part that taught you to floor it in a straight line. Forget everything else; just get the car moving.
Du Mingxuan's skin-refining progress was much further along than Yu Fei's. If there were a progress bar, Jiang Yifan would be at nearly 50%, Du Mingxuan at 40%, and Yu Fei at only 10%.
During the drill, one person defended while the other threw punches.
Du Mingxuan hadn't even gotten the hang of it, but Yu Fei had already grasped the knack. His fists, augmented with Qi Blood, packed a serious punch, and every blow made Du Mingxuan grimace in pain.
However, at his current stage, his Qi Blood was still weak, and he would run out of steam after just a few punches.
Yu Fei shared all his insights on the One-Line Pierce with Du Mingxuan. By the time class was about to end, Du Mingxuan was finally able to channel his Qi Blood into a single punch, and he was so excited he couldn't stop grinning like an idiot.
After that class, Du Mingxuan's attitude toward Yu Fei warmed up considerably.
Learning the One-Line Pierce was expected to take about a month.
In Friday's class, Yan Sea made an announcement.
At the end of the semester, the martial arts classes would be re-streamed—a school-wide reshuffling.
Students who weren't interested in pursuing martial arts would be allowed to drop the class. While this meant they couldn't apply to a Martial Arts University, it wouldn't affect their applications to regular comprehensive universities.
The remaining students would be divided into three tiers for instruction.
One Accelerated Class of 30 students.
Two Intermediate Classes, totaling 60 students.
All remaining students would be placed in the Standard Class.
Based on results from previous years, the students who passed the martial arts college entrance exam were almost all from the Accelerated Class, with a small number from the Intermediate Classes.
The Standard Class had virtually no chance.
The school planned to gather the most talented students and concentrate their training, focusing limited resources on this select few.
However, they weren't completely abandoning the average students. They could still build a relatively solid martial arts foundation through the school's curriculum.
Additionally, placement in these three tiers was not permanent; it followed a system of eliminating those at the bottom rank.
Yu Fei was quite looking forward to this.
Yan Sea explained that the initial rankings would be based on martial arts progress, but challenges were allowed. The winner moves up, the loser steps down!
After this news was announced, some were happy, some were worried, and some were relieved.
For students with little natural talent and ordinary family backgrounds, the martial arts class was a form of self-torture. It was better to just give up, focus all their energy on academics, and maybe achieve better grades that way.
On this month's exam, Yu Fei ranked fifth in his class and fiftieth in the grade.
This rate of improvement was insane. A leap in rankings as massive as Yu Fei's was extremely rare.
On this exam, Jiang Yifan got a 146 in math; Yu Fei got a 150.
That's right, Yu Fei got a perfect score in math. Not only had Jiang Yifan lost to him in martial arts class, but now Yu Fei had even snatched the math crown right off his head.
Yu Fei's results caused a huge uproar in Class 2-6. Everyone thought he must have stolen the exam paper in advance; otherwise, he had to be using some kind of cheat.
Yu Fei told everyone that he *had* used a cheat: he'd recently grown a brain and upgraded his processor. Unfortunately, no one believed him, so the prevailing theory was that he'd stolen the exam.
Even his classmate, Xiaoqiang, came over, acting all slick and sarcastic.
"Oh, my life is so hard! I must've picked the wrong boss. We go through thick and thin, but you won't even share the good fortune!
Fei, tell me, what right does a guy like that have to be my boss? He's heartless, he's treacherous, he's shameless, he's—
Ah! Fei, I was wrong, let go!"
A swift Dragon Claw Hand from Yu Fei made Lei Xiaoqiang clutch his chest and stop running his mouth.
Their homeroom teacher, Zhang Kun, was also highly suspicious. He secretly reviewed the surveillance footage from the exam, paying special attention to the math section.
In the footage, Yu Fei's speed as he filled out the math paper—with practically no hesitation—made him even more suspicious.
'With math, you either know it or you don't. There's no faking it.'
'How could Yu Fei, who used to barely pass math, suddenly get a perfect score? Was he sandbagging before? But that doesn't seem right!'
Zhang Kun didn't exactly suspect Yu Fei of stealing the test, but it wasn't out of the question that he'd obtained the questions beforehand through some other means.
Because of his deep suspicions, the homeroom teacher Zhang Kun didn't praise Yu Fei much, and just said to him,
"Yu Fei, your results this time are good, but one monthly exam doesn't prove anything. You still have to work hard, study well, and improve yourself. I'll be looking forward to seeing you get even better results next time!"
Yu Fei was so mad he was shaking!
This was the complete opposite of what he'd imagined. Instead of being showered with looks of admiration, everyone suspected him of cheating.
But there was nothing he could do. 'Ah, whatever,' he thought. 'There's still plenty of time. Sooner or later, I'll make these scrubs swallow their jealousy.'
Among all the students, only Li Mengyao believed in him, just as she always had. She even handed him a bottle of yogurt drink.
"Yu Fei, I believe in you," she said. "You have the ability to be first in our class!"
The girl's gaze was as firm and determined as if she were taking a solemn oath. Yu Fei was deeply moved.
A warmth spread through Yu Fei's heart. 'This deskmate of mine is too adorable.'
"What flavor is this yogurt drink today? It's pretty good!"
"It's blueberry. Do you like it? I have a lot more at home, I'll bring some for you tomorrow!"
"Isn't tomorrow Saturday? What's this? Mengyao, you're going to meet Yu Fei's parents already? That was fast!" Lei Xiaoqiang chimed in, propped up on his desk.
He had heard the entire conversation between Li Mengyao and Yu Fei.
"Get lost!" Li Mengyao, blushing furiously, snatched up her Martial Sutra Dictionary and smacked Lei Xiaoqiang soundly on the head.