Who Am I? Where Am I? (Part 2)

The people gathered around him nodded one after another, each chiming in.

"Yeah, yeah. Roaring in class—the Academic Affairs Office will definitely punish him."

"Will they give him a demerit?"

"What's a demerit? They might even expel him."

"No way. He only shouted once; it's not like he actually did anything. They're expelling him over that?"

"Who knows? Principal Liu just took office. They say a new official always lights three fires—maybe one of them will burn right here."

"Sigh, another pitiful soul driven mad by pressure."

"What's so strange about that? A thousand armies and ten thousand horses charge toward the college entrance exams. There are plenty of middle-school prodigies who become nobodies once they enter high school. If he can't even bear this little bit of academic pressure, just how fragile is his mind?"

The chattering clamor swirled around his ears, yet Shi Tiexin's face remained utterly blank. His thoughts were in chaos, as though two tidal waves were crashing and grinding against each other.

Looking at his surroundings and listening to the words entering his ears, he felt everything was incomparably unfamiliar one moment, then incomparably familiar the next. One moment, he was steeped in regret and confusion, wondering why he had suddenly flipped the table and shouted like a madman. The next, he shuddered in alarm at his own circumstances, at how he had suddenly arrived in this place that seemed similar to, yet different from, a historical drama.

His thoughts were like waves—one moment bubbling up here, the next surging there. They churned and crashed, tangled beyond understanding.

In a daze, the class bell rang. All the students rushed back into the classroom with a rumble. The teacher for the next period came over and gave him two puzzled looks. Seeing that he stood there without moving, apparently with no intention of explaining himself, the teacher simply shook his head, ignored him, and entered the classroom to begin the lesson.

"Class begins."

"Stand up!"

Rustle—everyone rose to their feet in unison.

"Good day, students."

"Good day, tea-cher!"

"Sit down!"

Rustle—they all sat down together.

"Today, we'll be covering high school Physics: electricity and magnetism. Turn to page seventy-six..."

The teacher's voice entered his ears, but it was as though it suddenly lit a small patch of brightness, clearing his muddled mind a little.

Physics?

Physics, one of the Six Fundamental Mind Arts. Basic Physics contained one level of Basic Mechanics, one level of Basic Electromagnetism, one level of Basic Optics, and one level of Basic Energy Studies, for a total of four levels. Mastering it could strengthen one's control of force.

To qualify for the Minor Provincial Examination, one needed to reach the second level, passing grade, in two of the Six Fundamental Mind Arts: "Mathematics" and "Rhetoric." The remaining four—"Chemistry," "Physics," "Biology," and "Natural History"—also had to reach the first level, good grade. The teaching of Mind Arts was a rare sight indeed. Who would have thought there was actually an instructor publicly teaching the second level of Physics in the classroom?

If only his Physics had not even reached the first level, simply auditing this class once would have brought immense benefit. But now? He could not even understand it. What a waste of such an opportunity.

Uh, what was I just thinking?

What are the Six Fundamental Mind Arts?

And what are Natural History and Rhetoric supposed to be?

Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology—aren't those all science subjects tested in high school?

Besides, I had studied ahead for high school Physics, even electricity and magnetism. How could I possibly fail to understand knowledge at this level?

Can I understand it?

Can I understand even the second-level Mind Art?

I'll listen and see. Uh... it seemed I really could understand a little.

Then what about the first level? Did I understand the first level?

The first level?

Did that mean Basic Mechanics?

Let me think. Right, it included basic forces and basic motion.

Wasn't that simple? I had already completely mastered it in middle school. What was there not to understand?

Ho—holy crap!

No way!

Was I really that fucking amazing?!

This... was me?

But...

Who...

Was I...

Mist roiled through his mind. Something seemed ready to burst forth, yet it still appeared to be missing just a tiny piece. In his befuddlement, class ended, then began again; class began, then ended again. Before he knew it, it was time for dinner, yet Shi Tiexin still stood there without moving, utterly unaware of east, west, north, or south.

Until someone appeared before him.

His homeroom teacher, Old Jia.

Old Jia walked up to Shi Tiexin with his hands clasped behind his back and looked at the student. From the time Old Jia had left until now, the boy seemed not to have moved even once all afternoon. The anger in Old Jia's heart had eased somewhat, and his expression was no longer so ugly. He felt this fellow probably had not been deliberately trying to defy him.

But when he saw those hazy, sleepwalking eyes and that dull, wooden expression without a trace of spark, Old Jia's rage flared up again. He barked sharply.

"Shi Tiexin! Look at yourself! You're such a big guy, and you were once the First Guard Champion—yet look what you've become! I know you're under pressure, but can't a man bear even this much pressure? So what if you fell out of the Elite Class? Every year, there are students who fall out of the Elite Class!"

"Grit your teeth, gather your strength, and fight your way back in!"

"You wander around all day like you're drunk. Have you given up on yourself? Are you worthy of the people who nurtured you? Are you worthy of all the effort you put in before? You're nothing but a goddamn bastard!"

"You—"

Old Jia roared furiously, growing angrier with every word as he cursed Shi Tiexin until he was drenched from head to toe in abuse. But when he raised his hand, intending to slap him, he ultimately held back. After taking one deep look into Shi Tiexin's clouded eyes, Old Jia shook his head and sighed. Suddenly, all interest drained from him. "Don't attend evening study. Go back to the dorm. Sleep if you want to sleep, study if you want to study, do whatever the hell you want. I'm done caring about you."

Shi Tiexin's eyes shifted, and some awareness returned.

Sleep?

Mm, I should sleep. My mind was a mess. Maybe a good sleep would let me sort myself out.

So Shi Tiexin moved his leg, preparing to leave. But he had stood stiffly without moving for too long. The moment he lifted his foot, he staggered and involuntarily toppled toward Old Jia. Shi Tiexin was tall and broad, while Old Jia before him was nearly a head shorter. When he fell, it was like a collapsing building smashing down on him.

Bang! Caught off guard, Old Jia was hit full-on. His legs trembled, his face flushed red, and he barely managed to hold Shi Tiexin up.

"You spineless shrimp, you bastard!" Old Jia exploded with rage and finally could not help raising his Iron Palm, thumping Shi Tiexin's back again and again. Shi Tiexin was still muddled, not even noticing any of it. He struggled to stand straight and staggered toward the direction his instincts guided him, completely ignoring Old Jia, whom he had just flattened.

Behind him, Old Jia ground his teeth until they creaked. In the end, he still bellowed at Shi Tiexin like a lion's roar, "You little bastard, get your ass to the cafeteria and eat something—!"

Leaving Old Jia's lion's roar behind him, Shi Tiexin swayed out of the teaching building and walked alone toward the sports field. The dormitory area lay beyond it. Just as one foot stepped onto the rubber track, the class bell suddenly rang.

A feeling stirred in his heart, and Shi Tiexin turned to look back at the teaching building. It was evening self-study. The sky was dark, but the classrooms were bright and clear, students bent over their desks studying hard. At a glance, one teaching building stood after another, and the students were too numerous to count. In such a vast school, it was so quiet that one could hear a needle drop.

In his confusion, Shi Tiexin vaguely realized something.

Was I in... a Sacred Land for cultivating Mind Arts?

He raised his head again and looked toward the roof of the central teaching building. Several large crimson characters stood there, their lights already switched on in the night, shining with dazzling brilliance.

"Knowledge changes fate; learning creates the future."

Those crimson words seemed to crash straight into Shi Tiexin's heart. His expression turned solemn, and understanding dawned within him.

That was right. I truly was in a Sacred Land for cultivating Mind Arts.

Fengming First High School.