Silence. The entire classroom was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
Over a dozen pairs of eyes widened, staring unblinkingly at the white glow between Zeng Anmin's fingers!
The students had just seen the exact same white glow, but that had been on the teacher's fingertips! Yet this...
The strongest reaction came from Teacher Mr. Han. His pupils contracted sharply, his face full of disbelief. He stared intently at the middle finger right in front of his nose, his lips slightly chapped.
"This is..."
Mr. Han reached out a trembling hand, wanting to touch that wisp of white glow, but withdrew it halfway.
"Literary Qi!"
It was the undeniable Self-Cultivation Realm!
Having dealt with Literary Qi for his entire life, Mr. Han was all too familiar with it! He looked at the calm-faced Zeng Anmin and said in a deep voice, "Hold your breath and concentrate. Retract your Literary Qi and don't move."
With that, he reached out and began to feel Zeng Anmin's body. Hearing this, Zeng Anmin retracted his Literary Qi and watched as Mr. Han's large hands groped him all over.
"Hey, old man, stop it! Stop touching me! If you touch me any more, I'll charge extra!" he thought. Being felt up by an old man made Zeng Anmin feel a bit awkward.
"Bone age of sixteen, no mistake!"
After confirming Zeng Anmin's bone age, Mr. Han could no longer maintain his composure. He stood up abruptly, staring fixedly at Zeng Anmin. "Did you feel anything unusual when you were flipping through the book just now?"
Zeng Anmin frowned in thought before saying casually, "I just felt warm, and I couldn't control my urge to read."
It matched perfectly!
Hearing Zeng Anmin's words, Mr. Han tensed up completely. His breathing grew heavy as he asked cautiously, "In other words, from the moment you started reading until I interrupted you, it took less than a quarter of an hour?"
"I suppose so." Zeng Anmin pondered for a moment. He was actually a bit uncertain, but it was absolutely less than a quarter of an hour!
"HISS."
Mr. Han gasped sharply. To attain Qi Enlightenment and grasp the first wisp of Literary Qi in less than a quarter of an hour was completely unheard of! This...
"CLANG."
At the same time, the bell signaling the end of class rang. However, the teacher was still lost in deep thought, motionless as a statue.
Within the classroom, Zeng Anmin had already become the center of attention. Everyone's gaze was focused on him. Some were envious, some were full of admiration, and others were jealous.
"Teacher... class is over," Zeng Anmin kindly reminded the statue-like teacher.
The teacher immediately snapped back to reality and looked sharply at Zeng Anmin. Zeng Anmin met his gaze calmly.
After a long time, the teacher slowly reached out his hands. Under everyone's watchful eyes, he bowed deeply to Zeng Anmin. "Just now, I harbored prejudices. I was in the wrong."
GASP!
The students' jaws dropped wide open. What were they witnessing? A teacher apologizing to a student? This kind of glorious moment that usually only appeared in historical texts was actually happening in reality right now!
Even Zeng Anmin had not expected the teacher to have such a noble character! At this moment, he was the one caught off guard.
"Teacher, you absolutely do not need to do this."
"Mhm." The teacher allowed Zeng Anmin to help him up, his expression extremely solemn. "Since you have grasped Literary Qi and advanced to the Self-Cultivation Realm, it is no longer suitable for you to remain in this class. I will go and arrange your promotion right now."
With that, he turned to leave. On his way out, he looked at the remaining students and ordered sternly, "Class dismissed. None of you are allowed to be absent tomorrow."
Then, he walked straight away, leaving the crowd of students staring at each other in dismay.
Zeng Anmin watched the teacher's retreating back with a helpless look in his eyes.
"Great, I have to skip a grade as soon as I start school," he thought. "Now I've become the legendary 'neighbor's kid'."
Just as he was about to stretch and pack up to leave, he suddenly froze. Zeng Anmin stared in astonishment at the three options hovering in front of him.
[Congratulations on breaking through your Grade.]
[Martial Arts traits loaded successfully.]
[Please select one of the following three Martial Arts traits.]
[(Silver) Martial Arts Foundation: Upon breaking through to the Martial God Realm in your Martial Arts Realm, you will be rewarded with 999,999,999 taels of gold.]
[(Silver) Unyielding Martial Artist: Immune to the first Divine Soul Attack from all enemies.]
[(Silver) Martial Arts Spiritual Artifact: Instantly obtain a Martial Arts Spiritual Artifact (will be directly delivered to a safe location).]
[Note: Unselected traits will permanently disappear. Countdown: 30, 29, 28...]
Seeing these three options, Zeng Anmin began complaining frantically in his heart.
"All pursuits are lowly; only studying is noble! Why do you keep giving me traits for vulgar Martial Artists?" he thought. Because his predecessor had been deeply influenced by his father, the current Zeng Anmin also wore tinted glasses when it came to Body Cultivators.
The first option was [Martial Arts Foundation].
"If I'm already in the Martial God Realm, wouldn't all the gold in the world be mine anyway? What do I need that for?" he thought.
The second was [Unyielding Martial Artist].
"Let me reiterate, I practice the Confucian Dao," he thought. "By nature, I attain Enlightenment of heaven and earth and use my spirit to fend off enemies. Only those vulgar Martial Artists are afraid of Spiritual Attacks."
As for the third option, [Martial Arts Spiritual Artifact].
"A Spiritual Artifact?" Zeng Anmin was deep in thought.
According to his memories, Spiritual Artifacts were extremely rare. One had to achieve great merit for the country before the Holy Dynasty would reward them with a Spiritual Artifact crafted by the Profound Array Department in the Capital City. Not to mention anything else, even the Iron Whip wielded by Mr. Qi at home was merely a mundane item made by a blacksmith.
After some contemplation, he finally made his decision just before the countdown expired.
At the back mountain of Shuidu Academy.
Dean Qin Shoucheng stood up with a gloomy expression. He looked left and right, and only when he saw that there was no one around did his dark expression fade.
He casually straightened up and glanced at his fish basket, which was still empty. He frowned in thought. "Mhm... it must be because the bait is poor!"
Only then did he pack up his fishing rod, preparing to head back to his sleeping quarters.
"Dean."
A voice suddenly sounded in his ear. Qin Shoucheng hastily turned around, using his body to block the empty fish basket behind him, and looked at the newcomer. It was the butler who had just left.
"Why are you back again?" Qin Shoucheng asked casually.
The butler's expression was somewhat complicated. After bowing to the dean, he said, "Dean, Han Lide, the academy's enlightenment instructor, has an urgent matter to report."
"What is it?" Qin Shoucheng asked with a frown.
"Among the new students today, someone grasped a wisp of Literary Qi in less than a quarter of an hour after starting to read the *Imperial College*!"
At those words, Qin Shoucheng's hand gripping the fishing rod suddenly froze. He then snapped his head up, joy filling his brows as he asked, "Is that true?"
For a Confucian Cultivator, the most difficult part was the initial Qi Enlightenment. Throughout history, the number of people who could grasp their first wisp of Literary Qi in such a short time could be counted on two hands! And without exception, every single one of them had become a great talent who left their mark in history!
Barring any accidents, Shuidu Academy was about to produce another great talent!
"It has been confirmed. Mr. Han personally measured his bone age," the butler replied, his expression growing even more complicated, tinged with hesitation.
"Excellent!!!"
This good news made Qin Shoucheng instantly forget his frustration over the empty fish basket. A broad smile appeared on his lips. "Which family does this student belong to?"
In his mind, such a chosen child of heaven definitely had to be the scion of a prominent family.
"Zeng Anmin." The butler sensibly lowered his head.
"Who?!" Qin Shoucheng's voice shot up, nearly cracking.