Shanhai High School.
In a classroom somewhere in the seventh grade.
Lin Zichen was in class, but he couldn't focus on the lesson or even look at his book. His mind was filled with thoughts of what had happened yesterday.
He thought about the Rat God Cult and decided they were a security risk. He'd have to be careful from now on.
He thought about the female Mechanical Cyborg's Laser Cannon and realized he was still very weak. But at least he was young, and with the bonuses of Use-Disuse Evolution, Heavenly Human Wisdom Root, and Survival of the Fittest, his potential for growth surpassed anyone's.
He thought about the Ghost Shadow Squid's illustrated book and wondered how he could earn enough money to fill the progress bar, then unlock the book and gain some of the Ghost Shadow Squid's abilities.
The school's scholarships?
Prize money from all kinds of student competitions?
What else?
Were there any other sources of income?
Ghost Shadow Squid meat was far too expensive. If he only earned this much in a year, how long would it take him to fill the progress bar?
He had to find a way to increase his income.
Become a top-student influencer?
No, that would draw too much attention.
Start a technical side business?
That didn't seem feasible either. He was already busy enough with studying and training. He couldn't spare the time.
Was there a side hustle that could earn money without interfering with his studies and training?
Forget it. He'd ask the all-knowing netizens. Three cobblers could outwit Zhuge Liang.
With that thought, Lin Zichen took out his phone, opened Tieba, and made a post.
[Question: How can a middle schooler quickly earn 100,000 yuan without affecting their studies?]
Perhaps the title was outrageous enough to catch people's attention. Before long, a crowd of netizens eagerly chimed in.
First floor: You can find anything in your dreams.
Second floor: I suggest studying the criminal code.
Third floor: You could join your school's martial arts team and compete. I have a friend who won nearly 300,000 yuan in prize money over six years of middle and high school. I was so jealous.
300,000 yuan in prize money?
That much?
Lin Zichen was surprised. He immediately exited Tieba, opened his browser, and searched for information on martial arts competitions.
He looked up local events in Shanhai City.
After browsing for a while, he learned that the city held all kinds of martial arts exchange competitions during the students' winter and summer vacations.
They were mainly aimed at middle and high school students.
He searched for details about the competitions and found that the netizen on Tieba hadn't been exaggerating. The prize money really was generous.
There was a citywide Junior High Nine-School League, and the school that came in first could win as much as 50,000 yuan.
Even after dividing it among everyone, the core competitors could still take home at least several thousand yuan.
For a middle schooler, that was already a lot of money.
The best part was that the competitions didn't take long, at most three days to a week.
Earning several thousand yuan in just a few days was practically like stuffing money into a sack.
Most importantly, martial arts training kept him fit, letting him earn money and evolve at the same time.
"The school already has a martial arts team. I'll go take a look after class this afternoon," Lin Zichen thought.
Before long.
The bell rang, and the morning classes finally came to an end.
As soon as class was dismissed, the students poured out of the classroom and headed to the cafeteria for lunch.
Some lived close by and went home to eat.
Others attended nearby midday care programs and ate there.
Lin Zichen and Shen Qinghan were a little different. They both brought lunch from home, so all they had to do was take their lunch boxes to the teachers' office and heat them up in the microwave.
It was one of the privileges Lin Zichen had earned by bringing the school so many honors.
Shen Qinghan, his closest childhood friend, was lucky enough to enjoy that privilege with him.
"Xiao Chen, try this. It's delicious."
Shen Qinghan put a slice of egg roll in Lin Zichen's lunch box. Her expression was perfectly natural, clearly showing that she had already put yesterday's embarrassing incident in the car behind her.
Lin Zichen tried the egg roll and nodded. "It really is good."
"Then guess who made it."
"Guess whether I'll guess."
"Stop playing word games. Come on, take a guess!"
"You made it."
"Correct!" Shen Qinghan smiled like a blooming flower.
Then she rested her chin in one hand and looked at Lin Zichen with her bright, watery eyes.
"Xiao Chen, I've started learning to cook from Mom. How about I make you meals every day from now on?"
"Sure," Lin Zichen said with a smile.
Before long, they had finished eating.
As they went out to wash their lunch boxes, Lin Zichen ran into the martial arts team's coach in the hallway outside the classroom.
"Zichen, what a coincidence!"
The moment Guo Xiangyuan saw Lin Zichen, he strode over with a beaming smile.
He had deliberately waited in the hallway for a long time, finally catching Lin Zichen as he came out after lunch.
He had gone to the trouble of pretending to run into him by chance so he wouldn't seem as abrupt as he had yesterday and leave Lin Zichen with a bad impression.
When it came to an athletic prodigy like Lin Zichen, he believed he had to take the initiative and recruit him for the martial arts team as soon as possible. Not a single day of training could be wasted.
Every extra day wasted was a crime against nature, worthy of being struck by lightning.
"Coach Guo, I was just about to look for you."
Lin Zichen had planned to check out the gym after school, but since he'd run into Guo Xiangyuan now, he might as well find out about the martial arts team right away.
Guo Xiangyuan was taken aback at first, then his face lit up with excitement.
"Do you want to learn more about the martial arts team?"
"Yes."
Lin Zichen nodded.
At once, Guo Xiangyuan stepped forward warmly with a cheerful smile.
"Ask me anything. If I know the answer, I'll explain it all to you."
Over the next while, Lin Zichen asked him quite a few questions.
About the city's martial arts competitions.
About the prize money.
About the strength of the various schools' martial arts teams, and so on.
Guo Xiangyuan patiently answered every one of them.
Seeing that the two seemed to have a lot to discuss, Shen Qinghan quietly took Lin Zichen's lunch box and washed it along with her own, leaving them to talk.
About half an hour later.
The two finally ended their conversation in the hallway.
Lin Zichen verbally agreed to join the martial arts team and said he'd check out Gymnasium Room C after school.
Then he turned and went back into the classroom.
It was lunchtime, and the classroom was nearly empty.
At a glance, only a dozen or so students who weren't taking a break were left, studying diligently.
The hardworking Shen Qinghan was one of them.
Lin Zichen returned to his seat, took out his earphones, and put them on. Then he searched for a bunch of videos about martial arts competitions on his phone to learn how they worked.
Beside him, Shen Qinghan worked through a test paper, her brows furrowing from time to time, then relaxing.
About half an hour later.
Shen Qinghan finally finished the test.
She put her paper away, brimming with a sense of accomplishment, then turned and tapped Lin Zichen on the shoulder, wanting to talk to him.
Lin Zichen took off his earphones and looked at her. "Did you finish the test?"
"I did."
"Nice. You finished it in less than an hour this time. You're improving."
"Of course. I may not be as smart as you, Xiao Chen, but I'm still pretty smart."
Shen Qinghan looked a little pleased with herself.
Then she asked Lin Zichen curiously:
"By the way, Xiao Chen, are you joining the school's martial arts team?"
"Yeah, I've already agreed to join."
"Does that mean I'll get to watch you compete from now on?"
"Probably."
Shen Qinghan smiled, her eyes curving into crescents. "Then I'll be your number-one fan from now on. How about I cheer and shout for you from the stands every day?"
"Sure," Lin Zichen said with a smile.
As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Qinghan let out a huge yawn and looked ready to nod off.
Seeing this, Lin Zichen went up to the lectern, brought down a chair, and pushed it against the one Shen Qinghan was sitting on. Then he said, "There's a little over half an hour left of lunch break. If you're sleepy, take a nap."
"Okay, I'll sleep for a bit. Remember to wake me when it's almost time."
After saying that, Shen Qinghan curled up like a little cat, lay sideways across the two chairs, rested her head on Lin Zichen's lap, and closed her eyes. She was soon fast asleep.
Lin Zichen found a small blanket and covered her with it.
Then he put his earphones back on and continued watching martial arts competition videos on his phone.
Whether she was dreaming or something else, not long after falling asleep, Shen Qinghan's rosy lips moved as she murmured softly:
"Xiao Chen..."
"I got into Shanhai High School's senior high department through my own hard work..."
"We're still desk mates..."
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