Physical Education Class

I had to admit, Pingjiang's food suited my taste better.

Jiang Ran had been trapped on Black Dragon Mountain for three days, then stayed in Xiang Family Village for over ten days. What he ate was either simply roasted food or a haphazard stew from a huge pot—none of it had anything to do with the word "delicious."

This chicken casserole had filled both the emptiness in his stomach and the emptiness in his heart.

Full and satisfied.

"School's monthly exam is in a few days. We'll probably get chewed out again, sigh..."

In the end, Tao Dapeng still did not let Jiang Ran pay. Young Master Tao had too much pride to let his poor buddy treat him to a meal.

"By the way, Jiang Ran."

"What are you planning to do about Zhang Jingjing?"

"Zhang Jingjing?" Jiang Ran froze for a moment.

A flood of unpleasant memories suddenly surged through his mind.

School beauty Zhang Jingjing, failing student Jiang Ran, one hundred confessions, ninety-nine failures...

It was over...

Something this absurdly melodramatic had really happened!

The previous owner of this body had ranked near the bottom for a long time, and his cultivation had barely improved. He had long since stopped caring.

Urged on by several male classmates, he had somehow found the nerve to publicly confess to Zhang Jingjing, the school beauty of Pingjiang No. 1 High School.

Who was Zhang Jingjing? Fair-skinned, beautiful, from a wealthy family, and perennially ranked among the top ten students in her grade.

Naturally, there had been no surprise in the outcome. He had been rejected—mercilessly rejected.

Being rejected once would have been one thing. Embarrass yourself once, and no one would remember it.

But the previous owner had been an idiot. He believed he could move the goddess with his sincere heart, so he swore that he would confess one hundred times and reveal his utmost sincerity.

Thinking it over carefully... over the past two years, he had confessed exactly ninety-nine times, and every single one had ended in failure.

Tao Dapeng looked at him with concern. "Jiang Ran, your hundredth confession is coming up."

"I used to think you were a complete moron, but now I believe you're sincere."

"With determination like yours, you'll succeed at anything."

"This time, Zhang Jingjing might really be moved by you!"

"Uh..." Jiang Ran felt a headache coming on.

The oath Jiang Ran had made and the mess he had created had nothing to do with him, Jiang Ran. Publicly confessing a hundred times and being rejected ninety-nine times—was that really something a person could do?

"No. I'm not planning to keep pursuing her."

What a joke. The college entrance exam was approaching, and cultivating immortality was the most important thing. How could a high school student date?

"Huh?" Tao Dapeng stopped chewing and stared blankly.

"You're not pursuing her anymore?"

"Why? I think Zhang Jingjing is almost ready to accept you..."

"There's no reason. Do not disturb my Dao heart." Jiang Ran spoke with righteous dignity.

The next day, Pingjiang No. 1 High School.

Jiang Ran's return did not draw much attention.

The police and the school had worked together to suppress the incident involving the demonic cultivator half a month ago. It had not spread, and in the end, it was simply classified as a missing-person case.

Besides, they were already in their final year of high school. Every student was focused on studying and had no time to care about anything else.

As usual, Jiang Ran entered Class Three's classroom, found his seat, and sat down.

"Jiang Ran, where have you been these past few days?"

"Jiang Ran, you seem a little different..."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Did you get taller?"

A few students at the neighboring desks still chatted about him. After all, they were fairly familiar with one another.

"I don't think so." Jiang Ran looked up and smiled.

"Focus on class. The teacher's here."

The speaker was Cheng Qian, Class Three's class monitor. She ranked in the top three hundred of the grade and was at Qi Refinement Level Two.

There was a gap between people. They had all started cultivating in their second year of high school, yet a poor student like Jiang Ran had struggled just to reach Qi Refinement Level One. In just over a year, Class Monitor Cheng Qian had already broken through to Qi Refinement Level Two.

Based on college admissions in previous years, anyone who could break through to Qi Refinement Level Two during high school would be guaranteed admission to an undergraduate program—a first-tier immortal cultivation university.

"Quiet, everyone. Teacher Wang will be teaching us today."

There was only one class that morning: Ancient Language.

The three major core subjects were physical education, spellcraft, and ancient language.

Of those, physical education carried the most weight, followed by spellcraft, with ancient language coming last.

It could not be helped. For high school students who had only just begun cultivating, the martial arts and body-tempering methods taught in physical education were the best way to improve their grades.

After several rounds of reform, education in the Heavenly Lu Kingdom had evolved into the current ten-year compulsory education system: seven years of primary school and three years of secondary school.

The officially recognized ideal age to begin cultivating was around fourteen. Therefore, primary school education focused entirely on teaching the basic theories of immortal cultivation and developing proper habits.

After entering secondary school, students began learning cultivation techniques in their first year, along with the foundations of various spells and spirit patterns.

In their second year, schools organized aptitude assessments and placement exams. Only then did all students officially step through the gates of cultivation.

In other words, students only truly cultivated for two years.

The college entrance exam tested the results of those two years of cultivation, as well as their overall academic achievements over the past decade.

"Hello, students!"

Before the man arrived, his voice did.

Physical education teacher Wang Changming's voice rolled into the classroom like distant thunder.

"Your ancient language teacher isn't feeling well today, so I'll be substituting for this period with physical education."

"Are you happy, students?"

"Happy..."

The students responded listlessly, and quite a few wore miserable expressions.

For most people, physical education was a nightmare.

Endurance training, martial arts form drills, and the most terrifying part of all—body-tempering sessions...

After a full morning of physical education, many students would be exhausted enough to collapse onto the ground.

Compared to that, ancient language class in the classroom was far more comfortable. They only needed to sit and listen to the teacher, and ancient-language films or documentaries were often shown in class. It was practically blissful.

Jiang Ran had always enjoyed exercise. He had even run a boxing gym in his previous life.

Now that physical education taught immortal cultivation martial arts, it naturally interested him even more.

Unfortunately, Teacher Wang did not move straight into martial arts. Instead, he began with physical training.

On the four-thousand-meter track, they had to sprint ten laps.

They also had to do one thousand weighted squats while carrying iron plates weighing dozens, or even over a hundred, pounds...

"Faster! Faster! Don't fall behind!"

"The more effort you put in now, the more points you'll get on the college entrance exam!"

"Think about it. How many competitors can one extra point help you surpass?"

"Run! Run faster!"

After the entire training routine, barely anyone in Class Three could still stand and talk.

Only because they all had some cultivation could they adapt to such brutal training methods.

"Alright, sit down and rest." Wang Changming held a small leather case and revealed a satisfied expression.

Drilling students was his greatest hobby. The harder they panted, the more satisfied he felt.

"Today, we'll continue learning the Third Set of Long Fist. Watch carefully."

The Ministry of Education and the ten great immortal sect universities had jointly developed thousands of basic martial arts techniques. There were over a hundred fist styles alone. Long Fist had more than one set, and the one they were learning now was the third.

Jiang Ran watched very attentively.

To him, everything was new.

This fist style was not merely simple hand-to-hand combat. It was a genuine immortal cultivation martial art that had to be performed alongside the circulation of spiritual energy.

Teacher Wang was at the Foundation Establishment stage. When he performed the full set of Long Fist, every movement naturally carried profound meaning.

As his fists and palms shifted, the faint howl of wind seemed to accompany them.

Interestingly, fewer than half the students were seriously watching their teacher demonstrate the punches.

Many students had drifted off, and some had even closed their eyes to rest. Yet Wang Changming seemed unconcerned and did not say anything to remind them.

It could not be helped. To many students, the martial arts taught at school were too low-level.

Anyone with even somewhat decent family circumstances generally took extra classes outside school and mastered more advanced martial arts ahead of time.

The Third Set of Long Fist was only a basic martial art, after all. It offered no advantage whatsoever in the college entrance exam.

"How could this be..."

After watching intently for a long while, Jiang Ran gradually frowned.

"How could this be? Teacher Wang's strength..."