Chapter 1

A wave of heat surged and receded like a fire, but at some silent moment, the world seemed to pause for an instant.

Lin Shuguang, who was leaning on his desk, slowly opened his eyes. The scorching sunlight pierced through the old locust tree as tall as a three-story building and the half-drawn curtains, finally landing on his face. His face was fair and rosy, but his eyes, which gazed at everything in front of him, were still drowsy from just waking up. However, they soon turned to confusion and suspicion.

A familiar face from long ago suddenly blocked his view: "Old Lin, wake up! It's almost time for our awakening. I wonder if we'll succeed..."

"Xu... Jie?" Lin Shuguang was dazed and didn't immediately realize what Xu Jie meant by "awakening."

The person in front of him was clearly his old desk partner, whom he hadn't seen for nearly ten years since they graduated from high school!

But this person was now wearing the same watermelon-head hairstyle from high school and had reappeared in front of him... Could it be a mistake? Impossible!

"Still groggy? I really can't believe you. We're about to awaken, and I'm so nervous that my hands are sweating, but you can still sleep? Do you even want to go to the martial school... Alright, no more talking, Old Fu is coming!" Xu Jie felt a bit uneasy under Lin Shuguang's gaze, and his rambling immediately stopped as the homeroom teacher, Old Fu, was about to enter the classroom.

"Am I dreaming?"

Lin Shuguang frowned slightly, his calm gaze sweeping around the room. Familiar faces overlapped with those that had long since faded in his memory.

A mix of emotions welled up inside him, and he finally let out a long sigh.

Looking around at everyone for a moment, Lin Shuguang felt a deep sense of satisfaction and tapped the desk, which had been etched by time. "Alright, wake up."

A gentle breeze blew, and the sunlight remained, the surging heat felt so real.

This "dream" didn't wake up!

After a long silence, Lin Shuguang suddenly woke up, realizing a bizarre and terrifying fact—

This wasn't a dream!

He had been reborn!

He pinched his thigh... Ow, it was real!

But the first reaction of Lin Shuguang, who had been reborn in his high school days, wasn't excitement, but a cold expression: "I worked hard for seven or eight years as a programmer to finally get a mortgage on a house, and now I'm reborn without even getting to enjoy it for a day?!"

He exhaled deeply, calming down and falling into deep thought.

Suddenly, his gaze paused.

Old Fu, whom Xu Jie mentioned, had arrived. Wearing a striped shirt and black trousers, he still had the same style as before, but why was his left eye covered?

Cosplay?

Lin Shuguang's lips twitched. He couldn't recall any time in his memory when Old Fu had dressed like this, and even before he was reborn, he had met Old Fu a few times and never seen him with this hobby.

A strange thought crossed his mind, and he turned his head, nudging Xu Jie with his elbow.

"???" Xu Jie looked confused, blinking his eyes, not understanding what he meant.

Lin Shuguang: "What's with Old Fu's eye...?"

Xu Jie sucked in a sharp breath, glanced cautiously at Old Fu at the door, and whispered, looking at him as if he were an alien: "Are you kidding me? This happened a long time ago, and you're asking me now?"

Lin Shuguang: "..." His heart skipped a beat, sensing a discrepancy in his memory. "Cut the crap, what happened?"

"It was last year. A demon cultivator attacked someone, and Old Fu stepped in. Who would have thought that one of our teachers at No. 2 High School was a martial artist... But in my opinion, Old Fu is a bit foolish. After his identity was exposed, many organizations tried to recruit him, but he refused and insisted on staying as a teacher. Now I can't even sleep in his class..."

Lin Shuguang didn't hear a word of what Xu Jie said after that. He stared blankly at Old Fu, who had a black eye patch over his left eye, his mind like a jumbled mess, frozen in place.

"Demon cultivator???"

After a moment of silence, Lin Shuguang's gaze fell on the textbook on the desk. He flipped it open—among the Chinese and math books, he found various titles like "A History of Martial Arts," "Basic Theory and Practice of Martial Arts," "Selection of Soul Rings," and more, all indicating the extraordinary nature of this world.

With irrefutable evidence, Lin Shuguang was speechless, his expression changing several times.

After a long while, he rubbed his temples and fell into deep thought.

"Xu Jie, what did you mean by 'awakening' earlier?" Lin Shuguang asked nervously, as this world was beyond his understanding, and he had to be cautious.

Xu Jie replied casually, "It's about our life-bound souls. I wonder if I can awaken... Wearing a soul ring and manifesting abilities is just awesome."

Lin Shuguang's head ached. "Explain it clearly. What exactly is this 'awakening'?"

At that moment, Old Fu's voice, though not loud, echoed throughout the classroom: "Quiet!"

Instantly, Lin Shuguang felt as if he were being watched by a fierce beast, his hair standing on end, and he couldn't utter a word.

Looking up, he met Old Fu's eyes, which were completely expressionless.

Lin Shuguang let out a muffled groan, his eyes feeling as if they were pierced by a needle, his head spinning. The next moment, he slumped onto the desk, drawing surprised glances from his classmates.

Old Fu withdrew his gaze, scanning the room. His weathered face showed no emotion as he said coldly, "The precautions for awakening have been explained many times by both me and your parents. I won't repeat them here—"

Lin Shuguang was about to explode.

He was probably the only one in the class who was in the dark.

"I'll call names one by one. Those who awaken successfully will come to my left to receive their basic soul rings... The rest will wait here!" Old Fu, unaware of Lin Shuguang's thoughts, said a few more unimportant words and then nodded to a young man waiting outside the door.

The young man understood and walked in, carrying a metal-patterned box, which he placed on the podium. Under Old Fu's watchful eye, he began to unlock it, about to reveal its contents.

"What's that?" Lin Shuguang turned to Xu Jie again.

"An awakening stone..."

"How does it work?"

"Place your hand on it to sense it."

"Is that it?"

"Damn, Old Lin, are you messing with me? It's all in the books!"

"Books?"

Lin Shuguang's gaze fixed on the stack of books in front of him.

...

"Cao Xin!"

Old Fu called the first name.

A tall boy walked up nervously. Unlike Old Fu's expressionless face, the young man was much more gentle: "Don't be nervous. Place your hand on it and do as you've practiced."

The young man's voice seemed to have a calming effect, and Cao Xin's nervousness eased. He slowly placed his hand on the stone.

"Whoosh—"

Suddenly, a blinding white light burst from the podium, instantly spreading a chill throughout the classroom, but it quickly disappeared.

Before Lin Shuguang could react, Old Fu's calm voice rang out: "Cao Xin, awakened as an Ice Elementalist, with a blood qi value of 63. Go get a soul ring. Next, Guo Ranran!"