Chapter 7

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

Even with the pain gnawing at his temples, he had to shoulder on.

What an idiot he was back then, only paying attention to his English teacher instead of… well, her lessons. Not that either of those prospects interested him now.

However, as the teacher started going through their scripts, Chen’an realized that her lectures had somehow gotten easier to understand, going from gibberish to something almost coherent and comprehensible.

He took a second to revel in this epiphany. And he’d thought he had all but discarded his knowledge of English after graduating. That didn’t mean it was by any means stellar, though. Even with muscle memory to aid him, he still had trouble deciphering the alphabet when it wasn’t arranged into proper words.

Which made it a miracle he was able to keep up with the lecture at all.

Not only that, Chen’an found himself understanding his own mistakes as the teacher walked them through their scripts–for the first question, then the second, and third. All it took was aligning his thought process with that of the teacher’s, a feat his past self would have deemed impossible.

It all seemed a little too convenient–unnatural, even. Bewilderment dawned on him, followed by realization.

His eyes darted to his stats window. When he had first unlocked Level 1, he had used his potential point to boost his Spirit to 8 points.

The effect of that extra point on his mental sharpness couldn’t be understated.

An impulse seized him. He still had one remaining potential point. How much simpler would this class become if he used it to increase his Spirit again?

Chen’an sent the urge dispersing. English no longer posed the burden it had to him now; even if there were gaps in his foundation, he understood enough to follow what was being taught and improve his grades himself. All it would take was some revision.

As for his other potential point… he would save it for more optimal use in the future.

Time ticked by as Chen’an let himself be swept into the lesson content.

“What’s up with you today?” Lu Gang whispered, unnerved. “You’re actually listening. That’s not like you!” Chen’an’s diligence was wholly foreign to him; part of the reason they were both flunking English was because they spent most of their time in class passing comments back and forth on their teacher’s fashion sense.

Now, his deskmate was actually paying attention. It felt like a betrayal.

“Ah, what do you know?” Chen’an’s mouth was pulled back in a thin line. “I took for granted the joy of learning when I was young.”

And it didn’t hurt that it felt incredibly satisfying getting questions right for once. Never before had he felt so at ease in English class; gazing at his teacher couldn’t compare.

Lu Gang couldn’t believe his ears. He reached out to feel Chen’an’s forehead and was rewarded with a smack on his wrist.

“Chen’an, come explain what I said we should look out for in this question.”

Great. He and Lu Gang’s exchange clearly hadn’t escaped the teacher’s notice. Chen’an remained calm, however. He had been listening attentively to the lecture for the most part, and he stood up and answered her question without hesitation.

“Sit down. Everyone, take note of what he said. The focus of this question is…” The teacher dismissed Chen’an with a wave of her hand.

He had answered so effortlessly. Lu Gang’s heart sank. At this rate, he would be at the bottom of the class for their next test.

Chen’an was engrossed enough that the rest of the lesson passed in a flash. That had certainly been the most relaxed–and dare he say it, enjoyable–English class he’d ever attended. Such an improvement, from just one potential point! If he had a few more, wouldn’t his abilities be far above that of any ordinary human?

In hindsight, that was probably why the system had imposed a maximum value of 10 on his basic attributes. Right now, his Spirit was two points away from reaching its limit. One, if he took the liberty of making use of his other potential point. The only thing stopping him was that he didn’t know what would happen when his Spirit exceeded ordinary human capacity.

As the saying went, geniuses weren’t too far off from lunatics. Did that mean he would lose his mind after breaking past his normal limits?

***

It turned out that the impact of his increased Spirit extended to his other classes as well.

He felt a little overpowered. Subjects that he had formerly been adequate in had suddenly become second-nature. And an entire morning’s worth of lessons had failed to exert any discernible mental toll on him. If things went on like this, his grades were sure to shoot up, especially in his weaker subjects like his languages.

Before Chen’an knew it, it was recess time. In order to accommodate the third-year students’ needs, they usually ended class before their juniors. Lu Gang dragged Chen’an to the cafeteria without wasting a breath, determined to cut down on queue time and snag the freshest, most popular dishes.

When they were done with lunch, Chen’an found an excuse to return to the dormitory. Living on campus was recommended for third-years, but Chen’an lived rather far from school, so he had chosen to stay in the dormitory since his first year. After greeting the dormitory manager, he walked briskly to his room. He switched on the lights, closed his door and windows, and drew the curtains for extra measure.

Finally, he could open his treasure chest.

He took it out from his inventory with bated breath. It disappeared from his inventory and materialized in front of him: a simple wooden chest, dark brown, with faint yellow lines etched into its frame. It looked heavy, not to mention exquisite.

Time to see if its contents were as bountiful as its exterior was beautiful. Chen’an felt certain that they would be; even a Level 1 treasure chest should contain at least a few potions. His hand extended–and halted in midair.

There was a superstitious belief that a dark face was akin to a shadow looming over your luck. Nonsensical, as everyone knew, but still…

Chen’an let the thought linger. He squeezed some of Lu Gang’s facial cleanser into his palm and bolted to the toilet. He emerged a moment later, refreshed and brimming with confidence. I’ve been so devoted to the game, he thought, please give me something I can use. Even if it’s just one Luck point.

At long last, he opened the treasure chest.

A pillar of light streamed out from the chest, illuminating the room. Not as earth-shaking as he had expected.

Chen’an peered expectantly into the treasure chest.

“A… book?”