Chapter 49: A Gathering of Hidden Dragons and Talented Phoenixes in One Examination Room (First Update)

September 21, 2010. The final day before the sports meet.

Under the vast blue sky, Lucheng Seventh Middle School was gentle as a mother, quietly and kindly watching its students frolic on the playground.

“On the field, you are warriors chasing your dreams, watering hope with sweat, writing glory with perseverance...”

“Class 15 of Year Two, go for it! We’re waiting for you at the finish line!”

“Let our youth soar on the track! Let our passion boil on the field—Class 14 of Year One…”

On the podium, a girl with glasses was reading aloud each class’s written cheers, her voice rich and full of emotion as she held the microphone.

She hoped that today the buzz-cut boy wouldn’t snatch her microphone away.

Meanwhile—

Bai Qingxia stood at the entrance to the school’s snack shop, nervously clutching her small hands, casting a glance inside at the young shopkeeper.

He kept grinning foolishly at her, oddly enough.

“Hey, little sister, what are you buying today? Mineral water? We have it! We have it!” he said, giggling.

Bai Qingxia looked at the mineral water in the fridge, but didn’t speak immediately. Her gaze shifted to the Scream brand drinks on the other side.

She was about to speak when someone suddenly appeared beside her. Turning her head, Bai Qingxia saw it was her classmate, Chen Fei.

Chen Fei stood next to her with arms crossed, glaring resentfully at the shopkeeper, then turned her head away and said to Bai Qingxia, “Don’t mind me. You go first.”

The young shopkeeper glanced at Chen Fei with a blank expression, then resumed his silly grin at Bai Qingxia. “So, have you made up your mind, little sister? What do you want? Hehe.”

She wanted to buy a drink for Lu Yuanqiu.

Although Lu Yuanqiu claimed mineral water tasted good, Bai Qingxia was certain drinks would taste better.

“How much is this?” Bai Qingxia cautiously pointed at the Scream drink, asking quietly. After she spoke, she pulled a five-yuan note from her pocket, glanced at it, and gripped it tightly in her palm.

The shopkeeper grinned, “Three yuan a bottle, hehe.”

Chen Fei’s eyes widened in surprise.

Three yuan for a bottle of Scream? So cheap? The same price as the marked-up mineral water during the sports meet?

Bai Qingxia pursed her lips, cast a sidelong glance at Chen Fei, and then timidly asked, “Can I… buy two bottles for five yuan?”

Seriously? Chen Fei turned to glare at Bai Qingxia.

Sensing Chen Fei’s gaze, Bai Qingxia’s ears reddened slightly as she looked up at the shopkeeper’s expression.

The young shopkeeper was momentarily stunned, then quickly nodded, “Sure, sure! No problem at all!”

He promptly opened the fridge and placed two bottles of Scream on the counter.

Bai Qingxia happily set the five-yuan note down, took the two bottles of Scream, and said, “Thank you.”

She turned and left without hesitation, as if afraid he might change his mind.

The young shopkeeper called out, “Come again, little sister!”

Bai Qingxia turned slightly at his words and gave a shy nod.

Sorry, it’s too expensive. I won’t be coming again.

She repeated the thought in her heart.

After Bai Qingxia left, Chen Fei quickly said to the shopkeeper, “Give me two bottles of Scream, too.”

With a blank face, the young shopkeeper placed two bottles on the counter. “Twelve yuan.”

Chen Fei’s hand froze as she reached for her money, her expression stiff as she looked up at him.

“What did you say?”

...

Clasping her two bottles of Scream, Bai Qingxia walked to the side of the track and saw Lu Yuanqiu sitting in the class’s rest area.

There were quite a few people there, so she didn’t hurry over.

Bai Qingxia was in high spirits. She looked down and smiled, admiring the two bottles of drink in her arms.

She rotated the bottles, curiously examining the packaging and ingredients.

Suddenly she wondered what this drink tasted like.

After a while, she withdrew her gaze and looked expectantly at the boy in the distance.

She’d have a chance to taste it another time—these two were for Lu Yuanqiu.

Class 28’s rest area.

Lu Yuanqiu sat in a chair, head turned, his expression serious as he looked at a boy from Class 29 next door.

Liu Wei’s gaze followed his, equally focused.

The boy wore shorts, his calves thick and strong, the muscles of his thighs even more developed, like two hard knots.

He was casually doing stretches in front of his class’s rest area, his face blank, eyes dead and unblinking, resembling Saitama. His expression alone made him seem formidable.

Liu Wei said quietly, “He was the champion of the last sports meet’s 800 meters. He’s good at middle-distance running.”

She glanced at Lu Yuanqiu, “Lu Yuanqiu, beat him for me. He’s from Class 29.”

“We can’t lose!”

Lu Yuanqiu replied, “Teacher, I’m not some all-powerful deity.”

Lu Yuanqiu knew this “Saitama”—his name was Mao Sheng, also the last person in the exam room.

Oddly, the weaker students always excelled at sports—it seemed an unchanging rule.

It was said that Mao Sheng was born without a love for laughter. No matter how funny the joke, he never smiled; his dead, emotionless eyes matched his personality—steadfast and unwavering.

He was the last deity of the last exam room—the “God of Seriousness.”

All the gods were in place. Everyone was here.

The God of Sleep, the God of Love-struck Minds, the God of Strength, the Dual Gods of Science, the God of Flatulence, the God of Seriousness.

A simple exam room, yet like a multiverse… gathering a band of hidden talents.

Lu Yuanqiu sighed. Tomorrow, he’d have to spend two more days with this motley crew of oddballs.

But thankfully, Bai Qingxia would be there with him this time.

That was his only comfort.

“Eight hundred meters, gather!”

The whistle blew.

Mao Sheng turned, looking seriously at Lu Yuanqiu. He knew Lu Yuanqiu was strong.

Lu Yuanqiu looked away. That serious face made him want to laugh—he could barely keep it together.

If they made eye contact while running, it would be a disaster…

Seeing that the race was about to start, Bai Qingxia walked over with her two bottles of drink. The 800 meters was a popular event; the crowd was thick, so she didn’t try to squeeze in now, instead stood alone at a distance, waiting for the crowd to clear before moving closer to the track.

At the starting line.

“Don’t look at me, don’t look at me, don’t look at me…” Lu Yuanqiu repeated in his mind.

But Mao Sheng still turned to look at him. The two were on adjacent tracks, and Mao Sheng spoke in a serious tone:

“Lu Yuanqiu, I hear you’re strong. Why won’t you look me in the eye?”

Lu Yuanqiu: ^_^

Do you really not know why?

The whistle sounded!

A group of ten shot forward like cannonballs.

Lu Yuanqiu suddenly saw Bai Qingxia in the crowd. The girl’s eyes widened, she quickly raised her arm, clenched her fair little fist, and silently cheered him on.

In that instant, Lu Yuanqiu felt power surge into his legs, and he quickly raced forward, running side by side with Mao Sheng.

This guy had explosive speed, but his endurance was weak.

He couldn’t beat him in the first lap, but the second lap would be different—as long as he didn’t fall too far behind in the first.

Mao Sheng could still accelerate, maintaining a four or five meter lead ahead of Lu Yuanqiu.

On the track, it seemed the championship was a duel between the two men.

Wang Ping and Liu Wei watched in astonishment.

Liu Wei was just giving her usual pressure to Lu Yuanqiu, but she hadn’t expected him to keep pace with Mao Sheng.

It should be noted that Mao Sheng had been the 800-meter champion in both Year One and Year Two, and his results had crushed the runner-up.

(End of this chapter)