Perhaps It Is Still Not Enough

"Lost!"

Seeing the two large red characters for "End" before his eyes, Lin Ye suddenly felt a sense of exhaustion mixed with relief. It wasn't just that he had poured all his focus and stamina into the battle against Zhou Lang; it was also the culmination of three months of non-stop effort since he had obtained his golden finger.

Rising from the virtual pod, Lin Ye followed the staff's directions out of the examination hall and walked out of Linjiang No. 1 High School with the flow of the crowd.

The scorching sun near noon shone down on the campus, bathing it in a sea of red, yet the air was still thick with the atmosphere of the exams having concluded. There were laughs of relief, silence from those who hadn't performed well, and the clamor of people discussing the details of their battles in pairs.

Lin Ye felt alright; his mindset was quite stable. Although it was a pity to stop at the sixth round of the Ranking Tournament, when he thought back on his efforts over these three months, it was a height that the boy from three months ago—with a Blood Qi Value of 138 and Rolling Stone Fist still at the proficiency level—would never have dared to imagine.

Thinking of this, the regret in his heart dissipated a little.

Just then, as he prepared to walk out of the school gate, Lin Ye's smart watch vibrated gently, and a pale blue incoming call projection appeared on its surface.

Caller: Zheng Huai.

Seeing this, he walked to a relatively quiet patch of shade and answered the call.

"Teacher."

Lin Ye's voice was as calm as usual.

On the other end of the line, Zheng Huai's voice carried a hint of fatigue and excitement, yet remained steady: "The Ranking Tournament is over? How did you do?"

"Hmm."

Lin Ye nodded, organizing his thoughts for a moment.

"It felt okay, though I still feel a bit regretful."

"How exactly?"

Zheng Huai pressed, "Don't tell me about the Challenge Tournament on the third day; just tell me how your Ranking Tournament went today?"

Hearing this, Lin Ye knew his teacher already knew his results from the third day.

That guy Zhang Zhen was just as Zhou Qian said—unreliable.

"Uh, I stopped at the sixth round."

After a slight pause, Lin Ye said truthfully.

Hearing this, there was a clear two-second pause on Zheng Huai's end, as if he were rapidly replaying the data in his brain. "Wait... if it's the sixth round, you should have gained about 150 points, plus at least 10 or so points for performance."

"The third day was the sixth stage, so that should be another 260 to 270..."

He muttered to himself, clearly calculating the score.

After finishing the calculation, he asked again: "How do you feel about your academic subject scores?"

"They feel okay. I did everything I was supposed to, and I tried my best to write out the steps for some of the difficult problems. If we calculate based on the usual mock exams... probably around 350 points."

Seeing Zheng Huai ask about his academic subjects, Lin Ye recalled the exams from the past two days.

During this period, he hadn't really reviewed his academic subjects much, relying mostly on his previous foundation. Being able to get this score was thanks to the fact that the questions this time weren't too difficult.

Of course, excluding those high-difficulty long-form questions.

On the other end of the line, Zheng Huai's brows immediately furrowed.

He quickly calculated in his mind: Blood Qi Value 335, which converts to 201 points; academic subjects 350, which converts to 87.5; reaching the sixth stage is about 260; the sixth round of the Ranking Tournament is 150 + 10-30 performance points... that would put the total score at about... 710 to 730?

After calculating this, Zheng Huai was silent for two or three seconds.

This score seemed to be a bit above the standard, though it was still about 10 points shy of the cutoff for the top three regional martial universities, which was a pity.

"Teacher, what's wrong?"

Seeing Zheng Huai fall into silence, Lin Ye was a bit puzzled.

"Nothing."

Zheng Huai then sighed with emotion, laughing and scolding, "You brat, this rate of progress is truly far beyond my imagination."

"Have you estimated your total score?"

"Not yet."

Lin Ye gave a wry smile; he had just finished the Ranking Tournament, so how could he have had time to estimate that? However, he did have a rough idea in his heart; Qingjiang Martial University should be no problem.

"I just helped you estimate it. Your total score should be between 710 and 730. Most regional martial universities are a safe bet. Have you considered which institution you want?"

"Ah, uh, I haven't thought about it."

"Maybe East Sea Martial University."

Hearing this score, Lin Ye was stunned. He hadn't expected his converted total score to be between 710 and 730, and for a moment, he felt a bit dazed.

Only three months ago, he was still wavering between choosing the liberal arts or the martial arts path, and in the blink of an eye, he was already able to pick from ordinary regional martial universities.

Truly, the affairs of the world are like a game of chess.

"It's just a pity; if your score were a bit higher, over 740, you would have had a chance to choose from the top three regional martial universities."

"It's still just that the time was too short..."

Seeing Lin Ye's stunned expression, Zheng Huai couldn't help but sigh.

He felt that the time Lin Ye had spent working hard was still too short. If he could have had a few more months, even if it didn't exceed half a year, given the potential Lin Ye had displayed, his Blood Qi Value could have surged even higher, reaching 380 or even 400. As for his academic subjects, cough, cough... never mind, if his practical combat level could be raised a bit more, aiming for a top-three regional martial arts university would be no problem at all... there might even be a chance for a national martial arts university.

It was clear that the potential this kid had unleashed was truly worthy of a better platform.

It was a real pity.

"Lin Ye, how do you feel about this result yourself?"

Suppressing the regret in his heart, Zheng Huai asked.

"I think... it's already very good."

"Teacher, do you know? Three months ago, I was still worrying about whether to choose the liberal arts or the martial arts track."

Under the shade of the trees, Lin Ye looked up at the increasingly scorching sun in the sky, his tone calm and composed.

These words were indeed his true feelings. In three months, going from 138 to 335, from the lower-middle of the class to the top one thousand in the province, from proficiency in Rolling Stone Fist to perfection in Mountain-Suppressing Fist, and mastery of Lost Track Steps... these earth-shaking changes over the past three months were things he wouldn't have dared to dream of before.

For him, he was satisfied with the current result.

"You kid."

Hearing Lin Ye's satisfied words, Zheng Huai didn't know what to say. Should he call Lin Ye naive, or should he call him a person who knows how to be content? After all, there was a huge difference between the top three and the bottom four among regional martial arts universities; perhaps he should fight for something better for him.

A thought flashed through Zheng Huai's mind.

"Alright, let's leave it at that for now."

Immediately, Zheng Huai's voice returned to its usual steady tone, "Rest well these next few days and spend time with your parents. The final results and the application for university preferences will take some time. If you have any other thoughts during this period, feel free to call and discuss them with me at any time."

"Thank you, Teacher Zheng."

Lin Ye expressed his gratitude.

"Mm."

Following that, he hung up the call with Lin Ye. Zheng Huai stood by the office window, watching the gradually emptying campus below, his fingers tapping unconsciously against the windowsill.

Lin Ye's words, "it's already very good," were still echoing in his ears, striking a chord deep within him. He understood the kid's perspective, but a sense of unwillingness still lingered in his heart.

"For that child, it is indeed already very good... yes, being able to step from the fringes of the Martial Dao to a regional martial arts university in three months is truly a great miracle."

Zheng Huai whispered to himself, "But for his potential... perhaps it is still not enough."