After making her decision, Lin Yiyi set aside the worries in her heart for the time being.
She planned to follow Lu Ren’s method and wait patiently for a while longer to see if there would be a turn for the better.
She shared a good meal with the others to improve their diet, and then, with a blink of an eye, the sun rose and set as she played on her mobile phone.
Soon, it was Sunday afternoon.
After saying goodbye to the others, Lin Yiyi returned to school. She sat in her seat, yawning as she observed the situation in the classroom.
Generally speaking, the classroom was always noisy during the period after returning to school on Sundays, only quieting down once the class teacher announced the start of evening self-study.
But today, things seemed a little different.
The sound of pages turning and the whir of the fans drowned out the students’ conversations.
Even the students who usually didn’t listen in class and had given up on the Summer University Entrance Exam to prepare for the Spring University Entrance Exam were now actively lowering their voices as they spoke.
Looking at her classmates focusing so intently on their studies, Lin Yiyi felt a sense of trance, as if an indescribable eeriness had settled over the classroom.
She raised an eyebrow slightly and watched her classmates for a while longer before setting aside her concerns and throwing herself into her own studies.
A moment later, the class teacher entered the classroom. Seeing the students so focused on their studies, the teacher nodded with satisfaction and spoke.
“Very good. Everyone is being very self-disciplined today.”
“Keep up this momentum, and I believe everyone will be able to go to their ideal schools when the time comes.”
“Next, I will distribute the papers for the Weekly Exam. I will post the grade sheet at the back. Remember to check it yourselves.”
After saying that, the class teacher picked a few nearby students to hand out the papers and post the results before sitting at the podium to prepare the material for tomorrow’s lessons.
Taking her paper from a classmate, Lin Yiyi saw that her score hadn’t changed much.
She shook her head helplessly, stuffed the paper into her drawer, and continued to focus on her work.
It wasn’t until the bell rang for the break during evening self-study that Lin Yiyi stood up and went to the back of the classroom to see if she was still ranked first in the class.
Seeing her name still at the very top, she nodded with satisfaction. Then, she glanced down casually and saw a scene that left her in disbelief.
Wang Zixian, who used to hover between fifteen and twenty, had miraculously risen to fifth place in the class this time, and he was only three points away from fourth place.
‘This…’
Lin Yiyi looked at the grade sheet and then at Wang Zixian, who was still focused on his studies, completely indifferent to his results.
An unprecedented fear inexplicably surged through her body.
She wasn’t afraid because his grades had improved by leaps and bounds; she was afraid because of Wang Zixian’s nearly fanatical attitude toward learning.
It seemed that for the current him, nothing was more important than learning new knowledge and applying it.
Her throat felt dry. She swallowed hard, forcing herself to stay calm.
Lin Yiyi pretended to pass by Wang Zixian’s side, carefully observing his desk and body, hoping to find a hint of something wrong.
But she still found nothing.
He just sat quietly in his seat, concentrating on his studies, completely undisturbed by the outside world.
It wasn’t until she caught a glimpse of the books on his desk that she keenly sensed something was wrong.
The Calculus Lifesaver, Thomas’ Calculus, and University Edition Advanced Mathematics.
Three books completely unrelated to the math for the College Entrance Examination were sitting right there on his desk.
Looking at the open book on his desk again, Lin Yiyi felt a headache just from seeing the mathematical formulas.
She could not imagine how a classmate who was asking her for solutions to math problems just a few days ago was already teaching himself calculus in such a short amount of time.
It was completely illogical.
If she had to explain it, only a Longchang Enlightenment or a sudden moment of epiphany could account for the abnormal change in him.
Lin Yiyi looked at his completely focused state and felt a sense of trepidation.
She returned to her seat, took the Black Star Badge out of her drawer, and examined it.
The badge still looked ordinary, but as the girl stared at it, she felt a strange allure emanating from it.
It felt as if she only needed to hold this badge in her palm and softly chant the melody that naturally surfaced in her mind, and she would immediately obtain the learning talent she so desperately craved.
She pursed her lips and took a deep breath. In the end, the girl did not engage in such superstitious behavior.
She shook her head and stuffed the badge into the furthest corner of her drawer, trying her best not to think about it.
But what Lin Yiyi didn’t notice was that when she tossed the badge inside, Wang Zixian, who had been studying the whole time, suddenly snapped his head up and glared at her with eyes full of rage.
Then, he quietly lowered his head again and continued to research introductory mathematics, as if nothing had happened.
The classroom atmosphere was terrifyingly silent—so quiet that even the rustling sound of pens on scratch paper was clearly audible.
Sitting at the podium, the class teacher nodded with satisfaction, completely unaware of how abnormal the change in the students was.
Time passed by, minute by minute.
The sharp ringing of the bell sounded, and evening self-study ended.
When Lin Yiyi packed her things and returned to her dormitory, she saw her roommates, who usually washed up and went to bed early, were now uncharacteristically studying hard on their beds, memorizing foreign language vocabulary and sentence patterns.
Even though she walked into the dormitory and closed the door, her roommates made no reaction.
They merely glanced at Lin Yiyi casually before continuing to study diligently, completely indifferent to what she was doing in the room.
Feeling the illogical behavior of her roommates, Lin Yiyi felt her scalp tingle.
She wished she could undergo a Transformation right then and there and hit them over the head with her Magic Staff.
But because her roommates were just studying and hadn’t done anything out of line, let alone turned into a Shadow Beast…
This was something she could only think about.
Soon, it was 11:00 PM.
After turning off the lights and covering herself with the quilt, Lin Yiyi closed her eyes, trying to fall asleep early.
The teacher in charge of checking the dormitories did a quick round and then stopped worrying about them, turning to head downstairs.
As soon as the teacher left, a synchronized sound of quilts being pulled back suddenly reached Lin Yiyi’s ears.
Her three roommates got out of bed, went to the side of the restroom, and turned on their nightlights at almost the exact same time, continuing to concentrate on their studies.
Feeling this incredible thing happening right beside her, Lin Yiyi sat up and looked at her three roommates.
For some reason, Lin Yiyi couldn’t see any fatigue in their eyes, only a fanaticism for knowledge.
The girl suddenly felt a chill in her body.
But soon, she suppressed the fear in her heart, pulled the quilt over her head, and went to sleep.
Soon, the sun rose, and the strange events of yesterday were actively forgotten by Lin Yiyi.
She went to the classroom and continued to listen intently, planning to live out her peaceful high school life and enjoy herself.
But after a few days, she realized she couldn’t enjoy this peaceful daily routine anymore.
Because things had developed to a point that could only be described as eerie.
Every question from the teacher was answered; the vast majority of students listened attentively and understood as soon as things were explained; and 80% of the students in the dining hall were studying while they ate.
In other words, from the moment they returned to school until now, the vast majority of students she had seen showed an unprecedented desire for learning.
The teachers and leaders couldn’t sense the eeriness of this change; they only felt that this transformation was a good thing, proving that the school had a strong academic atmosphere.
But Lin Yiyi understood clearly that this was not how high school students behaved under normal circumstances. There was absolutely no logic to it.
How could there be students who never tired, had no psychological pressure, could maintain a high level of focus at all times, and were completely immersed in an endless desire for knowledge?
They were even self-studying and mastering knowledge that wasn’t covered on the College Entrance Examination.
Every second of every minute was spent absorbing more knowledge and deeper theories. Their speed of progress could only be described as ghostly.
It was simply…
A group of Knowledge Fanatics wearing human skin.