Chapter 13

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

There were a total of 46 students in Chen’an’s class, 24 of whom were boys. Since Chen’an was the first to pass the finish line, under the system, the 23 boys behind him had been utterly annihilated.

His notifications were buzzing like a hive of inflamed bees, bringing news of defeats and rewards in rapid succession. Similarly, his stats window had been updated:

[Name: Chen’an]

[Level: 4]

[Title: None]

[Experience: 4 / 200]

[Lifeblood: 60]

[Vitality: 6]

[Power: 6]

[Agility: 6]

[Spirit: 8+1]

[Charm: 5]

[Luck: 1]

[Potential points: 3]

[Achievement points: 3]

[Gold coins: 336]

[Skills: High school physics, high school chemistry, high school mathematics, high school biology, high school history, junior high school Chinese, junior high school English]

[Items: Mr Cao’s lesson notes (Equipment)]

That test had been grueling, and its risks considerable, but it had been exceedingly worth it–if for nothing but the two extra potential points he had earned. He currently had three potential points. If he added them all to his Spirit, his mental prowess would skyrocket above that of a regular adult. He just didn’t know what would happen after tearing through the glass ceiling of his human limitations.

Still, Chen’an decided to refrain from squandering all his potential points on his Spirit, since it would be of limited use in his gym class. He still had a side task to complete, and he had no chance of going head-to-head with the athletes in his class–not without a boost to his own abilities.

“You were so fast today, Chen’an,” Lu Chaoqun gasped, catching up to him. “You were half a lap ahead of me!”

Chen’an gave him a consoling pat on the shoulder. “Not my best work, I know. I’ll make it a whole lap next time.”

He left Li Chaoqun looking stunned and went to cheer for Lu Gang, who had been left in the dust of his faster classmates long ago. With Lu Gang’s considerable weight, a 1km run was as good as a death sentence. His build alone made it difficult for him to pass–and impossible to score full marks–even with training. Not that Lu Gang had ever held any particular love for exercise.

“Come on, Lu Gang! You can do it!”

Lu Gang was rounding the curve on the other end of the track with visible strain. At this rate, it would probably take him another half a minute to reach the finish line.

A figure raced up from behind Lu Gang.

If Lu Gang was a crawling snail, they were a cheetah barreling forward at full speed. As they swept past Lu Gang, their shoulder bumped into him. Lu Gang, who was already fighting to remain on both feet, crashed to the ground.

With a shout, Chen’an dashed towards his friend. Meanwhile, the culprit continued to run forward as if nothing had happened. It incensed Chen’an, but he had to help Lu Gang first.

He was panting from his mad sprint, as well as not having properly caught his breath after the run, but he extended a hand to his friend. “You alright?” he asked.

Lu Gang’s chest was heaving, his face glistening with sweat. “Yeah. I’m… good.”

Chen’an’s glare burned into the culprit across the whole length of the field. From his attire and build, he was probably a sports student in the midst of his training.

But that didn’t give him the right to throw his weight around. The track was so wide; would it have hurt him to run just a little to the right?

“Lu Gang, are you hurt?” A group of their classmates surrounded them, including Li Chaoqun, Jiang Min, and Gao Tianjie. When he assured them that he was, they were temporarily relieved, before launching into a tirade.

“Was that guy blind? The track has more than one lane, why’d he have to run into Lu Gang?”

“He must have done it on purpose–I saw him smiling earlier, I swear!”

“Seriously? How cocky can this bastard get?”

“Let’s go confront him. He can’t get away with being such a bully!”

These people didn’t interact often, but they were all classmates–and there was something to be said about the unity they were capable of when one of their own was mistreated by an outsider.

“Go wait at the finish line, Lu Gang,” Chen’an told him. “I’ll handle this.”

***

After completing his run, Pan Yugan was running a satisfied, approving gaze over the girls of Class 37.

As a sports student, he had long grown bored of his tedious, repetitive training. As such, he always took the opportunity to display his skills in front of everyone during gym class, if for no reason other than to make an arbitrary list of which classes had the prettiest girls. And if he earned himself a few admirers along the way, he certainly wouldn’t complain.

Today was no exception; most of the students of Class 37 had gathered at the finish line after their run. Pan Yuguan had leapt at the chance to show off his abilities, under the guise of a warm-up jog. Only, that idiot had been blocking his path along the way. He allowed himself a stab of satisfaction at the memory of the fat pig falling to the ground.

In his humble opinion, the girls of Class 37 must have been amazed by him. If he was lucky, they would be cheering for him the next time they saw him on the field.

Pretending to cool off, he used his top to wipe the sweat off his face, giving the girls a not-so-subtle glimpse of his eight-pack abs. A few eyes flickered his way, and he felt a secret rush of gratification. Looks like his efforts hadn’t been in vain.

He was basking in his smugness when an unfriendly voice sounded.

“Hey, you. Shouldn’t you apologize for knocking down my friend?”

Pan Yuguan turned to see Chen’an, flanked by a few other boys. If they thought this would intimidate him, however, they were sorely mistaken. It wasn’t as if they would dare to hit him with their teacher right there, and even if things came to blows, he felt certain he would come out on top.

Naturally, with nothing to fear, he didn’t take Chen’an seriously.

“Apologize? What did I do?” he asked coolly.

Chen’an’s face darkened. “Say that again.” He closed in on Pan Yuguan. “I dare you.”

Pan Yuguan had assumed he had nothing to fear from Chen’an and his group of nerds. A thread of fear unraveled in his heart before he cut it off swiftly.

“I told you, I didn’t do anything, so why should I apologize?” His voice rose with his temper. “Come on. Fight me. Or are you scared?”

A crowd was beginning to gather, including Class 37’s gym teacher.

“What’s all this about? No fighting in school. Get lost, all of you!” Shockingly, their teacher was siding with Pan Yuguan. They must have known each other somehow.

[Alpha Athlete has activated his skill: the command to disperse. He has honed this ability by controlling and ordering about the pack of students under him.]

In that moment, though, Chen’an felt only rage.