Second-Class Scholarship

Until today, he hadn't even dared to imagine he could win a scholarship.

Now, thanks to his stunning performance in the Martial Arts Assessment—charging into the top thirty in a single bout—he had not only proven himself but also secured this lifesaving money.

Second-class scholarship! Ten thousand Huaxia Coins!

"Teacher Wang! Thank you so much!" Li Wen bowed deeply in a martial artist's salute. "I'm truly grateful to you and Principal Huang!"

"I can't take credit for this." Wang Hu smiled, helping him up with a wave of his hand, speaking earnestly.

"You earned this with your sweat and strength! Principal Huang approved it specially because he values talent. He even wanted to apply for the first-class for you,"

Wang Hu explained, "but there wasn't enough time. First-class requires submitting to the Education Bureau, and the review process is troublesome. Today's the last day of the semester, so it couldn't make it. Otherwise, you'd deserve more."

"It's enough! Teacher Wang! The second-class scholarship is already great!" Li Wen said quickly, his voice full of gratitude and satisfaction.

He truly believed he wouldn't lack money in the future—whether from the Flying Star Class's generous subsidies or the resources available on the path of the strong, a hundred thousand or a million might one day be ordinary.

But that was the future, not the present.

Right now, he was just a teenager crushed by reality.

The ten-thousand-yuan scholarship Wang Hu brought was a true lifeline in a snowstorm, a timely rain that would greatly ease his urgent troubles.

With this money, his plan to buy Qi-Blood Potions to boost his physical level could advance significantly, his chances of hitting the Flying Star Class's 7.0 physical threshold would soar, and the pressure on his father could ease a little.

"Come on, let's handle the paperwork first." Wang Hu led Li Wen away from the still-noisy square toward the administrative office building.

At the finance window next to the principal's office, a relatively friendly staff member handed Li Wen a "Qingshi No.3 High School Scholarship Application Form."

Under Wang Hu's guidance, Li Wen quickly filled in his name, class, and student number neatly on the form. In the column for the scholarship level, he carefully wrote "Second-Class."

He also noted, "Approved based on this semester's final Martial Arts Assessment ranking (pending official announcement)." Then, Wang Hu took him to knock on the principal's door next door.

"Principal, Student Li Wen is here to sign the form." Huang Yuanting, the principal who had steered No.3 High School for over a decade, sat behind his wide desk and looked up at Li Wen as he entered.

A rare hint of approving smile crossed his stern face as he nodded at Li Wen:

"The younger generation is formidable. I saw your performance in the assessment just now. To hold out so long against an opponent simulating the Minor Achievement realm while still at the top of the Entry level—that's commendable! That resilience and combat awareness are excellent!"

The principal's words carried encouragement and affirmation, lifting Li Wen's spirits: "Thank you for your kind words, Principal Huang!"

Huang Yuanting picked up the application form Li Wen had just filled out, scanned it to confirm it was correct, then took the exquisite principal's seal from the desk.

Dipping it in ink, he stamped it firmly on the approval column with a "thud," leaving a clear red mark reading "Approved for Disbursement" and "Seal of Huang Yuanting." The sound of the seal falling was music to Li Wen's ears.

"Take this form and wait for the school finance office to notify you of the specific disbursement time." Huang Yuanting handed the stamped form back to Li Wen, instructing him earnestly, "Li Wen, on the martial path, realm advancement is the foundation. You've already shown outstanding skill in techniques—good! But don't forget, the physical body is the base that carries everything. Use this scholarship well to raise your physical level as soon as possible. Strive to..."

He paused, "let your technique realm catch up soon and reach the Unity Realm. That's true mastery."

"Thank you for your guidance, Principal Huang! I'll remember it!" Li Wen took the weighty form with both hands, as if grasping a cornerstone to change his fate.

He solemnly performed a standard martial artist's fist-and-palm salute to Principal Huang Yuanting. "I'll keep working hard!"

When he walked out of the office building and returned to the square, the third batch of students' virtual assessments was in full swing, with the big screen constantly refreshing combat scenes.

The assessments continued, and students still gasped or sighed over their performances.

But Li Wen's mind had already flown far away.

He clutched the form stamped with the principal's red seal tightly in his hand, his eyes no longer curious or focused on the assessment.

When would the scholarship be disbursed? "Three to five days"? "Before the year-end financial settlement at the latest"?

He mulled over the key information he'd gotten at the principal's office window, his mind racing with plans for the money:

Qi-Blood Potions—buy at least two bottles? Or three? He'd have to budget carefully...

Training time—winter break was a crucial period for improvement.

7.0! The Flying Star Class! That was the key ticket to changing everything.

The noise of the square seemed distant. Classmates kept approaching to chat about the scholarship or the details of his fight, but Li Wen only replied politely and briefly.

After sitting for a while, he found the noisy environment a waste of time.

He turned to the class monitor: "Monitor, I'm going to the restroom."

With that, he stood up and left the post-assessment celebration gathering without a second glance.

Rather than wasting precious time on useless praise here, he'd rather grind experience points.

The goal-oriented young man walked briskly and steadily back to the quiet culture classroom of Class 21, Grade 12.

The classroom was empty, with only warm sunlight spilling through the windows onto the desks.

Li Wen sat down at his seat, pulled out his math textbook and notebook without hesitation, and quickly immersed himself in reviewing and learning.

Time slipped away in focused reading, organizing, and calculating, until the system's pleasant chime rang in the depths of his mind:

[Ding! You studied earnestly for one hour. Scholar experience +6]

[Occupation: Scholar Lv3 (256/400 → 262/400)]

Li Wen put down his pen and let out a long breath.

The past two days had been packed with end-of-term cultural exams, and at night he still had to push his limits cultivating the Fracture Edge Gold Sha Method, so he really couldn't spare much time to quietly accumulate Scholar experience.

Over these two days, the experience bar had only gone up by a little over twenty points, still far from the target of 400.

Still, he wasn't too anxious.

Soon—once all the end-of-term cultural exam results were released, especially for the subjects he'd completed under [Absolute Focus], the experience points would surely surge in a massive harvest.

For now, he just needed to wait patiently—wait for the scholarship to be disbursed, wait for the results to be announced.

Everything was moving toward a bright future.

He packed up his books and left the classroom, his heart full of anticipation.

The future, built on this steady effort, was within reach.

(PS: Thanks to the big shots for the monthly tickets and ongoing reads.)