Chapter 7: The Difference Between People

On the bus.

After obtaining the Feather Book, Zhang Yu had initially envisioned a future filled with exclamations: "Feather Book! Let me see your limits!"

Who knew that in the blink of an eye, it would transform into... a ritual: "Zhang Yu! Let me see *your* limits!"

But as fate would have it, the only path Zhang Yu could see to break free from the ritual's grasp was to become stronger.

Thus, he could only dedicate himself to diligent cultivation.

With each breath, strands of spiritual energy from the world around him flowed into his body, gathering in his dantian, where they were meticulously refined into pure mana, strengthening the very foundation of his Immortal path.

However, recalling his experiences from the previous night's practice of the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Tempering, Zhang Yu was inspired to emulate that success, hoping to swiftly elevate the Basic Breathing Technique to a higher level.

As he willed it, the Feather Book opened before him. He focused his attention on the words 'Basic Breathing Technique Level 1' on the page, and promptly began to drag it.

But just as he was about to drag 'Basic Breathing Technique Level 1' towards his character portrait, a wisp of enlightenment emerged from the Feather Book.

"Only one skill can be focused on for enhancement at a time."

"Switching requires a one-day cooldown."

In his mind, Zhang Yu dubbed this function of the Feather Book "Specialization."

At that moment, he understood that a skill designated for Specialization could be rapidly improved, but only one skill could be targeted at a time. Furthermore, switching skills would necessitate a one-day waiting period.

"In other words, if I switch Specialization from the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Tempering to the Basic Breathing Technique now, then the Basic Breathing Technique can be improved rapidly through practice, but the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Tempering will return to its normal practice efficiency."

"Unless I switch the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Tempering back after a day..."

Recalling the situation during physical education class, Zhang Yu decided to postpone the switch for now, continuing to focus on enhancing the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Tempering.

Time flew by, and Zhang Yu maintained the Basic Breathing Technique until the moment he alighted from the bus.

...

Inside the school cafeteria.

Bai Zhenzhen, carrying a meal tray, sat down in front of Zhang Yu, who appeared like a living corpse. She gave him a curious glance and said blandly, "Did you 'cultivate' all night?"

Zhang Yu swallowed a large meat bun and grumbled, "I was diligently training until late at night."

Bai Zhenzhen's face remained expressionless, but her words were unrestrained: "Sigh, you're the only one in the entire school who hasn't had castration surgery. I've long advised you not to save that twenty thousand yuan. Look at how much time, energy, and protein you're wasting."

Zhang Yu swallowed an egg in one gulp and said with a confident smile: "Bai Zhenzhen, I'll tell you something. My self-discipline and potential now startle even myself. It won't be long before I snatch your top spot in the grade."

Hearing this, Bai Zhenzhen quickly rolled her eyes. Her delicate mouth uttered ruthless words: "Yu Zi, it's fine to say these kinds of self-aggrandizing things to me. If outsiders heard it, I'm afraid they'd laugh so hard they'd pee themselves."

"You're aiming for the top grade score, not the top 'cultivation' score. Your non-castrated advantage is useless."

Zhang Yu shook his head speechlessly, thinking: "This fellow, Ah Zhen, usually pretends to be cold and aloof, but secretly dares to say anything."

The fact that he was the only student in the school who hadn't undergone castration surgery no longer surprised Zhang Yu. He had gradually grown accustomed to the madness of this broken world and broken school.

However, the matter of not being castrated was still his little secret. Among his classmates, Zhang Yu had only told Bai Zhenzhen about it.

But now, thinking of this, a doubt suddenly arose in Zhang Yu's mind: "Why was I allowed to enroll without undergoing castration surgery?"

At that moment, Zhou Tianyi also sat down with a meal tray, equally curious about Zhang Yu: "You look exhausted. Did you study all night?"

Zhang Yu shook his head and said, "I practiced the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Tempering for a while and gained some insights."

While eating and chatting, Zhang Yu suddenly noticed that Bai Zhenzhen became much quieter after Zhou Tianyi arrived, as if she had reverted to her cold, taciturn, scholarly self.

After breakfast, the three walked along the playground towards the classroom.

Zhang Yu would occasionally open his palm, watching the Feather Book appear and disappear from his palm.

"As expected, no one can see the Feather Book except me?"

Just then, a loud bang came from the direction of the teaching building, followed by a series of loud exclamations.

A crowd had already gathered in front of the main entrance of the teaching building. A body with a shattered head lay silently on the ground.

The surrounding people were discussing the matter, and some had already identified the corpse.

Those familiar with the deceased spoke of his gossip.

"That's Lu Chao from Senior Year 3, Class 3. He used to be in the demonstration class. It seems his grades have been declining, and he's about to be demoted, right?"

"Lu Chao? He was in the top ten of the grade in his junior year."

Poverty discriminators began to attack indiscriminately.

"So what if his grades were good in his junior year? A poor person is still a poor person. Have you seen how many poor people can stay in the demonstration class in senior year? Poor people aren't suited for cultivating Immortality."

Those with severe score discrimination began their commentary.

"Hmph, he died after jumping from the sixth floor. He must have been a bad student. If a top student from the senior year demonstration class jumped, I bet they'd have to jump from at least the tenth floor to die."

Bai Zhenzhen, passing by, sighed as she watched the scene: "Another senior year student jumped?"

Zhou Tianyi said, "This is the third one this year, right? It seems the pressure on this senior year class is immense."

Zhang Yu suddenly asked, "Is he very poor?"

Bai Zhenzhen glanced at him, not knowing whether it was a piece of advice or a lament, and said lightly, "He must have borrowed a lot. Anyway, if you have to borrow money to study, you definitely aren't rich."

"Students like this often start off with good grades after entering Songyang High School."

"But generally, after reaching senior year, they gradually fall behind the wealthy kids in their class, and in the end, they can only get into second or third-rate universities."

"As for the Ten Greats, it seems that no commoner has been able to get into them in Songyang High School for more than a decade, right?"

Hearing this, Zhang Yu was slightly stunned. He knew that the so-called Ten Greats referred to the universities directly under the Ten Great Sects, which were also the top ten universities, the dream schools of countless students.

But what he didn't know was that no commoner children had been admitted to the Ten Greats from Songyang High School for more than a decade.He pondered inwardly, "Is it due to insufficient resources, a lack of funds?"

Zhang Yu recalled rumors about wealthier students. Reputedly, elite tutors, cultivation manuals filled with secrets, advanced cultivation techniques, and laboratory-developed medicines... all circulated exclusively within their privileged circles, never divulged to the impoverished.

Gazing at the splattered blood on the ground, Zhang Yu mused, "If my latent potential hadn't been awakened, I might have been destined for a similar fate."

Although the suicide incident sparked a wave of discussion, it was merely a fleeting topic of conversation for students immersed in their daily studies and cultivation.

Soon, the matter faded from memory as students resumed their relentless pursuit of immortal cultivation, striving for their future paths.

Despite being only teenagers, they were acutely aware of a harsh reality.

Their scores determined their university placement.

Their university dictated their future sect affiliation.

Their sect shaped the course of their entire lives.

Regardless of the bonds they shared, students of varying academic merit would inevitably diverge.

...

Time swiftly passed, and the thrice-weekly physical education classes arrived once more.

After yet another refusal of Coach Wang Hai's pharmaceutical solicitations, Zhang Yu couldn't shake the feeling that the man's gaze held a newfound intensity.

But he was left without recourse. Financial constraints and health concerns rendered further injections impossible.

Thus, Zhang Yu feigned ignorance, continuing his exercises.

Body Tempering Thirty-Six Forms Level 2 (1/20)

Considering the prior session at the station, Zhang Yu needed only to execute the Body Tempering Thirty-Six Forms nineteen more times to advance to the next level.

This realization invigorated his practice. He relentlessly pushed his muscles, wringing out every last drop of mana.

Whenever the urge to slow down arose, the Ritualistic Power swiftly jolted him back into action, urging him to persist.

Amidst the agonizing tears in his flesh, he repeatedly shattered his limits, flirting with death at every turn—a painful yet exhilarating experience.

After investing over two class periods, Zhang Yu finally collapsed onto the ground, utterly spent.

Body Tempering Thirty-Six Forms Level 2 (17/20)

"At my limit," he groaned.

The Ritualistic Power ceased its prodding, evidently acknowledging his saturation point.

Yet, Zhang Yu felt no discouragement. Elevating a fundamental martial art from Level 1 to nearly Level 3 in a mere two days was an accomplishment previously beyond his wildest dreams.

"Had I not trained last night, perhaps I could have sustained my efforts throughout the entire three periods?"

"But with this blasted Ritualistic Power driving me relentlessly, seizing every fleeting moment for training, perhaps evening sessions and exhaustion during P.E. classes will become the norm."

Zhang Yu recognized the parallel to his past life, where individuals crammed relentlessly at night, only to doze off during daytime lectures—a far cry from a healthy routine.

"Curse this imbecilic Ritual, blind to time and circumstance."

Suddenly, as Zhang Yu lay prostrate, a looming shadow engulfed him, as if a mountain had positioned itself above his head.

Wang Hai glared down at the prone Zhang Yu, his voice dripping with disdain. "What are you doing during P.E. class?"

Zhang Yu quickly responded, "Teacher, I trained intensely last night, so I'm somewhat spent."

Sensing Wang Hai's displeasure, Zhang Yu added, "My Body Tempering Thirty-Six Forms broke through last night, reaching Level 2."

He offered this explanation because he knew that in this achievement-obsessed academy, most teachers would hesitate to reprimand high-performing students. He hoped Wang Hai, aware of his substantial progress, would extend the same courtesy.

This was a consideration that had begun to take root in Zhang Yu's mind after he noticed the change in Wang Hai's attitude towards him.

But Zhang Yu's calculations were off.

The world was populated by teachers of varying stripes.

Most primary subject instructors at Songyang High favored students with high grades - the easy to teach, the sources of academic achievement. They would even tolerate mistakes from such students more readily.

Some teachers poured more energy into students with poor grades, focusing on improving their performance, as weaker students showed greater gains from marginal improvements.

Many assistant teachers did not really care how students were doing, as long as they started and ended classes on time.

But still other teachers, unlike the other types, seemed to be more concerned with whether students were obedient, whether they were challenging the teacher's authority.

In the classrooms of such instructors, the teacher's word was law, and deviations were not tolerated. Such teachers might mock students who tried to learn in a way that the teacher did not approve of, singling them out as examples to be demeaned.

And clearly, Wang Hai, the peddler of performance-enhancing drugs and dispenser of corporal punishment, fell into this final category.

The P.E. class in Songyang High was Wang Hai's small kingdom, with the students serving as the primary channel for selling his drugs.

Zhang Yu's long refusal to buy his drugs had already sparked discontent.

Seeing Zhang Yu ‘slacking’ on the floor only made him even more unhappy, and he wanted to use this opportunity to educate others and make an example of Zhang Yu, so that the other students in class would think it shameful to cultivate their bodies naturally without drugs.

But Wang Hai's lecture was cut short by Zhang Yu’s sudden confession, ‘My Body Tempering Thirty-Six Forms broke through last night’.

From Wang Hai’s perspective, this was nothing less than a direct challenge to his authority.

"Thinking you're hot stuff just because your Body Tempering Thirty-Six Forms reached Level 2?"

Wang Hai pointed at Bai Zhenzhen and declared: "See her? Did she stop getting her shots after she reached level 2? Has she been slacking off in class?"

Helpless, Zhang Yu said: "Teacher, that's not what I meant..."

Wang Hai sneered, "Zhang Yu, I've seen students like you before. You rely on your natural gifts and ignore your teacher's guidance and the school's instructions."

"You need to understand that the only reason you achieved such a breakthrough is that you dutifully attended classes and received injections for the past three months. That foundation was laid by my guidance!"

"As for your self-study and extra classes, those can be considered as desserts, at most."

"The most important thing is the meals you get from the school."

"I will be reporting your behavior to your class head teacher. Take heed of my warning."