Evolving infinitely from ground zero

Chapter 17

The older you get, the faster time seems to pass.

Before you know it,

half a year has gone by.

Lin Zichen still feels like it was only yesterday that he arrived at Shanhai High School to go through the enrollment process, and before he realized it, he was already in the second semester of seventh grade.

For him, life in middle school wasn’t much different from that in elementary or kindergarten.

His deskmate was still Shen Qinghan.

In class, he would read his own books, fair and square.

And after school, he would still secretly train intensively without his parents’ knowledge.

The only difference now was that with a cell phone, he would often browse various instructional videos online and learn all sorts of new skills to better himself when he felt bored at night.

Cooking, photography, driving, swimming, wilderness survival, and various sports—if it could be found online and seemed somewhat useful, he would learn it.

After all, with the blessing of “Biometric Attributes,” he learned quickly, and he had to make good use of his time without wasting it.

In the meantime, eager to earn the title “Junior High Tyrant” in his first year, Lin Zichen took every opportunity to showcase himself at school.

Throughout that past semester, he was the top student in the entire school in every exam, without exception.

Besides, he took the time to participate in various national middle school competitions.

These included contests in mathematics, physics, chemistry, computer programming, and more.

He won awards in every competition he entered.

Gold medals, silver medals, bronze medals, first place, second place, third place, or even precise rankings like the very first, second, or third position—he had won them all.

In truth, if he had wanted, he could have secured all gold medals, first places, and top rankings.

But if he had done that, he wouldn’t just be the local genius; he would have been a super genius causing a national sensation.

At that point, swarms of attention would come flooding in, his peaceful life inevitably shattered, making it impossible to continue evolving quietly.

That wasn’t the life he wanted.

The reason he was so enthusiastic about making himself known was simply to light up the “Junior High Tyrant” title as soon as possible.

Therefore, it was enough for him to maintain his position as the number one student in the school.

There was no need to go any further.

…

Today,

Lin Zichen left his house for school and just as he entered the classroom, the homeroom teacher came to find him, saying that the school wanted him to hold a study sharing session in the afternoon.

His performance had been too astonishing in that past semester, with both teachers and students curious about his study methods.

The school leaders had been wanting him to host this study session for a while.

“Okay, I got it,”

Lin Zichen nodded, then lowered his head to continue reading his book.

Seeing this, the homeroom teacher did not disturb him any further.

However, his deskmate Shen Qinghan, smiling, poked him and said, “Xiao Chen, you’re going to be in the spotlight again this afternoon, excited?”

“It’s okay,” Lin Zichen smiled and replied.

At the beginning, he actually quite enjoyed being the center of attention, feeling like he was the chosen one.

But as it happened more and more, it gradually lost its appeal.

“You might think it’s just okay, but your little fangirls won’t feel the same. Come this afternoon, the school auditorium will be packed with them, and I won’t even have a place to sit,”

Shen Qinghan just thinking about it felt overwhelming.

Because of his handsome looks and exceptional academic performance, in just half a year at Shanhai High School, Lin Zichen had already captured the hearts of a multitude of young admirers.

From the seventh graders to the ninth graders, many girls adored him.

In just a short span of six months, he had received hundreds of love letters.

“Don’t worry, I’ll ask the principal to reserve a seat in the front row for you,”

Lin Zichen casually reassured Shen Qinghan while continuing to read his book.

Upon hearing this, Shen Qinghan’s mood instantly lifted.

The two didn’t chat for long and soon got busy with their own things again.

Lin Zichen quietly immersed himself in his book.

Shen Qinghan diligently worked through test papers, striving to improve her grades.

The top-tier class curriculum was just too advanced for her.

Not only were there more subjects, but the questions were also difficult, making it a struggle for her to keep up.

To keep up with the teaching progress in class, she had to spend more time studying, even using the breaks between classes to stay seated and work through practice problems.

“Xiao Chen, I don’t know how to do this problem, and I can’t even understand the answer. Could you teach me?”

Shen Qinghan picked up a physics exam paper and placed it in front of Lin Zichen, pointing with her pen to the last multiple-choice question that involved analysis of the forces acting on an object.

Lin Zichen scanned the question quickly, then picked up his pen and paper and moved over to Shen Qinghan, sitting shoulder to shoulder with her as he showed her how to solve the problem.

Seeing the two of them sitting so close together, the girls in the class almost all wore expressions of envy, wishing they could be as close to Lin Zichen as Shen Qinghan was.

…

Time flew by.

In the blink of an eye, it was time for the afternoon study share meeting.

Lin Zichen arrived at the lecture hall and saw that it was indeed as Shen Qinghan had said, filled with his little fan girls.

But at that moment, he wasn’t concerned about these fan girls, but rather the ten students sitting in the front row.

He recognized the faces of these ten students, often seeing them on the school’s honor roll; they were the top academic achievers of the ninth grade.

He was genuinely surprised; he hadn’t expected even the ninth grade’s top students to attend his study share meeting.

The idea of ninth grade top students listening to a learning method shared by a seventh-grade newcomer was something that people might not believe if they heard it.

“It seems I’ve already become a king in the field of studies in this school. If I can also dominate in sports, I should be able to unlock the title ‘Junior High Tyrant’ soon,” he thought to himself.

With this thought, Lin Zichen could hardly wait to show off his skills at the school sports meet next month.

The study share meeting soon began.

The ten top students sitting in the first row all pricked up their ears, listening intently, afraid of missing any detail.

Shen Qinghan, who was also sitting in the front row, was taking notes with a focused expression.

Many girls seated further back, seeing the mediocre student Shen Qinghan sitting in such a prime spot, envied her for being Lin Zichen’s childhood friend and receiving special treatment from him.

…

A month later.

Shanhai High School welcomed its 70th Sports Meet.

The timing was strange.

It was scheduled for April of the next semester, not December of the previous one.

Moreover, the event was not grandly celebrated; it lasted only one day.

It was apparent that Shanhai High School didn’t place much emphasis on the Sports Meet.

But even so, Lin Zichen was very excited.

Because, if he could dominate today at the Sports Meet, it was highly probable that he could unlock the title ‘Junior High Tyrant’, achieve the goal of ‘Dominating Nine Years of Compulsory Education,’ and thereby gain the Biometric Attribute ‘Survival of the Fittest’.

“Students who have signed up for the competition, please go to your respective event areas to check in. Failure to do so on time will be considered a forfeiture by default!”

A PE teacher, acting as the head referee, stood in the middle of the field and shouted through a megaphone.

Upon hearing this, Lin Zichen immediately went to check in.

He had signed up for individual events only, including the 100-meter sprint that tested speed, the running high jump that tested bounce, and the shot put that tested strength.

“Zi Chen junior, you must win the gold medal!”

“Zi Chen junior, I will be waiting for you at the finish line when you run the 100 meters!”

“Zi Chen junior, go for it!”

“…”

As Lin Zichen was in line waiting to sign up, several senior girls from the ninth grade were cheering him on, smiling brightly at him.

Hearing their voices, he responded with a polite smile.

The senior girls burst into a fit of swooning giggles when he smiled at them.

One boy waiting in line behind Lin Zichen felt a sour twinge of jealousy.

He was a ninth grader, a member of the Martial Arts Team with exceptional athletic talent, often representing the school in competitions.

Normally, he looked down on something as trivial as the school Sports Meet.

But after learning that Lin Zichen was participating, he specifically came to sign up, aiming to take Lin Zichen down a notch.

He couldn’t accept that a girl he had a crush on had become one of Lin Zichen’s fan girls.

“Hmph, you’re not as handsome as me, and your grades aren’t as good as mine. Could it be that even my athletic talent is inferior to yours? Just wait and see how I will dominate over you and emerge as the champion!”

The boy looked at Lin Zichen, who was ahead of him in line, his mind filled with these thoughts, impatient to thrash him on the track.

…

PS: Bowl out, I’m begging for monthly tickets and recommendation tickets!