Chapter 89
Zhang Yun felt that today must be his lucky day.
“January 21, 2025.”
He solemnly circled this date in his diary, deciding to treat this day as his lucky day every year from now on.
The extraordinary powers that only existed in novels had miraculously appeared in reality, and he was fortunate enough to be one of the first pioneers to have the opportunity to cultivate martial arts. Not only that, but he had finally made his first friend after nearly three years of high school…
From elementary school to middle school to high school, he had always been the only son of a nouveau riche who entered through the back door in a ss full of top students, always rankingst; overly obsessed with novels andics, often causing trouble for others by saying inappropriate things he had imagined in reality, being treated as the weirdo among weirdos; terrible social skills, barely able tomunicate smoothly in real life, always dragging the team down during group work… A person who didn’t mind all these things and was willing to be his friend.
The beginning of the new year started with such luck, as if blessed by the gods. Even if he had bad luck every day for the rest of the year, it would bepletely eptable.
After all, this was a super, super, super lucky day that he had used up his luck from the past decade or more, and possibly even his future luck!
“That won’t do, you know.” The youth’s voice, tinged with amusement, sounded in Zhang Yun’s ear, interrupting his unintentional spoken thoughts. “It’s just an ordinary day, yet for you it’s considered lucky? You’re even willing to use up all your past and future luck… I’m telling you, this absolutely won’t do!”
… Suddenly emitting such heavy negative emotions to pollute the atmosphere, this was hisst safe zone in this ssroom, and even it was going to be contaminated – this absolutely won’t do!“?” Zhang Yun turned his head in confusion, discovering that Bai Yi, who had been half-lying on the desk, had raised his headpletely at some point and was staring directly at him. As he said thest sentence, his smiling tone suddenly turned serious, and in that instant, all the amusement in his eyes disappeared, leaving only pure coldness in his pitch-ck pupils.
He just stared straight at Zhang Yun like this.
“—After all, I never acknowledged that we’re friends.”
Zhang Yun froze like a suddenly powered-off robot.
After several seconds, he slowly opened his mouth. “I-I see, I got carried away with my imagination again, haha…” The corners of his mouth gradually curved upwards, eventually turning into an awkward smile. “Indeed, I can never seem to break the habit of talking to myself. Many people have pointed this out before. Did I cause trouble for you this time, Bai Yi?”
“Yes, you did.” Bai Yi nodded without hesitation, stretching out his hands to make a big circle. “A very, very big trouble.”
Seeing the other’s frozen smile, he pouted. “Being considered a friend by someone, and having that person arbitrarily push all their past and future misfortunes onto me as the price of making friends… Such a heavy burden, I can’t bear it, you know. Isn’t this an extremely, extremely, extremely big trouble?”
Hearing this, Zhang Yun hurriedly shook his head and exined. “No, that’s not what I meant. I just, I just felt I was too lucky today. In the past, no one was willing to listen to me talk so much, and I actually managed tomunicate smoothly with you for so long.”
“Every time I want to talk to others, I always lose control of myself. Because I’m too nervous, I say inappropriate things, making others dislike me. Only on the inte can I be a bit more rxed and natural…”
“… Although I don’t have many friends at school, I’m rejected by everyone because I’m not likable, while you, Bai Yi, actively reject others. Actually, many ssmates are curious and want to get to know you – you’re just like a manga protagonist!”
After saying a long string of words, when he got to the part about manga protagonists, Zhang Yun’s stuttering tone became smooth and natural. His dull eyes began to shine again, and he spoke with an excited and unquestionable tone. “For a background extra like me to have a day where I canmunicate and be friends with the protagonist at the center of the world, isn’t that super lucky! Although, although it’s just me assuming we’re friends…”
“That’s why I said, I haven’t acknowledged it. Being your friend carries too heavy a burden. I’m the super-powered young protagonist who has to save the world in a manga, I already have enough burdens.” Bai Yi’s attitude seemed to return to its previous calm and gentleness, and he even joked along with Zhang Yun’s imagined script.
“—It’s just an ordinary day of chatting and sharing gossip with a deskmate, nothing special about this everyday urrence. There’s no need to consider it a lucky day.”
He flopped back down on the desk and turned his head to look at Zhang Yun. “If you have to use up your luck for such ordinary daily urrences, your luck will be negative in the future, and you might drop dead on the spot.”
Zhang Yun’s eyes gradually regained their brightness, and he nodded heavily. “That’s right, there will often be such ordinary daily urrences. If I really had to use up my luck, I wouldn’t have enough to deduct.”
His bright eyes reflected the youth beside him.
Feeling the passionate shonen manga BGM emanating from his deskmate once again, Bai Yi nodded silently.
Hmm, his safe zone wasn’t destroyed… He stillzilyy on the desk, just turning his head to look at the person next to him. “Well then, let’s get reacquainted, deskmate.”
“… We might have to get along well for the next few months.”
As he spoke, Bai Yi’s gaze turned towards the ssroom door, observing the strangers entering behind the homeroom teacher.
“After all, given the current situation, I probably won’t be allowed to continue homeschooling.”
****
“… Students, from today on, the school is adding a special course, which is the martial arts ss. Those who perform excellently in this subject will receive bonus points when applying for universities in the future.”
As expected, the homeroom teacher dropped a bombshell as soon as she appeared.
“I’ll first distribute the textbooks that will be usedter.”
In an instant, the entire ssroom was submerged in cheers. Not just this ssroom, but also the ones to the left and right, above and below. The tsunami-like cheers almost made the teaching building shake.
—Even though they had been notified in advance, when the reality truly materialized before their eyes, it was still hard not to be excited.
Especially in a school full of teenagers still in puberty, filled with all kinds of unrealistic fantasies and dreams.
After distributing the “Martial Arts ssic,” the homeroom teacher didn’t forget to remind everyone. “Remember, although what you have in your hands is just the basic introductory chapter, it’s still precious supernatural cultivation methods from the Twelve Cities of the Heavenly Capital. Without proper guidance and instruction, don’t rashly try the movements inside, and don’t casually show the textbook to others — ordinary people without a solid foundation in martial arts knowledge can easily get injured if they practice on their own without guidance.”
“The new course schedule has been released. In the future, when it’s time for the martial arts ss, everyone should go to the designated time and ce ording to the schedule. This is our ss’s new martial arts teacher…”
She introduced the young man standing beside her to the whole ss. “This is Teacher Tu Hao. He will be responsible for teaching everyone martial arts from now on.”
The young man called Teacher Tu looked to be about 28 or 29 years old, with a tall and sturdy build and a neat crew cut. Though not particrly handsome, he had a masculine and robust aura.
He faced everyone with a serious expression. “Hello students, I will be your martial arts teacher from now on…”
During his self-introduction, Bai Yi’s gaze discreetly swept over him, from his serious facial expression to his naturally hanging hands, from his hair to the creaseless corners of his clothes… The traces of military training were too obvious. As expected, was he a soldier?
… He had already learned some information from the Special Investigation Division through Adams. Now it was justpletely confirmed.
“… Many students may not be clear about themon knowledge of martial arts. I’ll first give everyone a brief introduction today.”
The homeroom teacher had left the ssroom at some point. Tu Hao on the podium seemed a bit nervous as a first-time teacher. He coughed lightly and gestured for the students to open the newly distributed textbooks on their desks.
“First, regarding the origin of this extraordinary system of martial arts, we must mention the Lord of the Sword Realm and the Heavenly Capital…”
Tu Hao briefly exined the background of the Lord of the Heavenly Capital and his followers leaving Blue Star during the end times hundreds of years ago and returning hundreds of yearster. This included stories of how the Lord of the Heavenly Capital conquered his followers with his sword before leaving Blue Star – such stories all came from various legends of the Twelve Cities.
He omitted many details that ordinary students shouldn’t know, such as the catastrophe of the Returning to the Void that the Sword Realm encountered, and the people in dreams who turned into ghosts.
—Of course, Bai Yi reasonably spected that it wasn’t Tu Hao intentionally omitting these details, but rather that he himself didn’t know. The higher-ups probably wouldn’t casually spread information of this level.
“… ording to the information obtained by the first batch of idental travelers who entered the Sword Realm, the origin of this martial arts system is the Lord of the Heavenly Capital, also known as the Lord of the Hanguang Sword. He created the extraordinary martial arts based on traditional martial arts and spread his self-created ‘Martial Arts ssic’, giving others the opportunity to embark on the path of martial arts. All martial arts secrets in the Sword Realm are derived from the ‘Martial Arts ssic’.”
As he spoke, Tu Hao held up the small ck booklet in his hand.
“—This is the textbook you now have in your hands.”
“Of course, what you have is an abridged introductory version.”
The ssroom immediately burst into a hubbub, with incessant whispers.
It was hard to imagine that the book used as a textbook for students was actually the masterpiece of the founder of martial arts, even if it was an introductory version.
—Should they praise the courage of the Yao Country’s high-level officials, or admire the magnanimity of the Lord of the Heavenly Capital who widely spread his cultivation methods?
“Quiet.”
Once Tu Hao, who came from the military, put on a stern face, he naturally exuded an aura that ordinary teachers didn’t have, immediately making the ssroom quiet again.
“The reason for saying all this is to let everyone know that this promotion of martial arts is a major policy of the entire country, not just a small, casual matter. Those who have talent and strength in this area will have unimaginable treatment in the future. So students should take this seriously and not miss this opportunity.”
He wasn’t just speaking to the students in the ssroom, but more like expressing the attitude of Yao Country’s high-level officials. To every citizen of this country, to that mysterious Lord of the Heavenly Capital.
Bai Yi believed that at this moment, in countless schools across the country, there were probably many “teachers” saying the same thing.
“—And for this opportunity, we should thank the Lord of the Heavenly Capital who widely spread martial arts. Although this ancestor has returned to his homnd after many years of absence, he may not know how to adapt to this world hundreds of yearster and hasn’t appeared publicly yet. But our Yao Country absolutely wees the return of this ancestor. For everything he has done to spread martial arts, we, every descendant, have only gratitude and reverence in our hearts.”
As Tu Hao spoke passionately, along with the background story about the Sword Realm and the Lord of the Heavenly Capital, the group of teenage boys and girls below the stage who hadn’t outgrown their chuunibyou phase became more and more excited. In the end, they couldn’t help but hold their textbooks on the desk like treasures.
Gently flipping through the pages, fingers tracing the ck printed text, it was as if they could see the past when the Lord of the Heavenly Capital wrote this cultivation method stroke by stroke. Many people’s eyes showed a longing look, as if they wished they could go back hundreds of years to personally witness the legendary period when the Lord of the Heavenly Capital conquered the world with his sword.
Next to him, Zhang Yun had already started to imagine a new fantasy script on his own, and was enthusiastically sharing it with Bai Yi.
He began with a deep voice, as if narrating the opening of a TV series or novel. “This story begins with a boy obsessed with swordsmanship but too poor to join a martial arts school…”
Bai Yi/Pei Hefeng: “???”
… The non-existent story has increased.
As he flipped through the martial arts manual he had personally written on the desk, listening to his deskmate invent non-existent stories about him, he began to anticipate that his life from now on would be very interesting.<hr>
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