Chapter 22: He's Only Worth the Third Tier
His mom, Fang Huiyi, sat on the sofa, enjoying the cool breeze, which gently blew her hair.
His dad, Lin Zhen, was not like usual, drenched in sweat and sticking close to the electric fan.
The air was filled with a tranquil and peaceful atmosphere.
Lin Qi felt happy watching this scene.
During his lunch break, he had bought two air conditioners online, spending 3800 yuan.
He only had a thousand left for food, but he didn't regret it.
"Little Qi, even if you got your scholarship, you can't use it all to buy air conditioners. You still have to spend money on resources for yourself!" his mom, Fang Huiyi, said, shaking her head, blaming Lin Qi for spending money recklessly.
Lin Qi sat down and explained:
"Mom, Dad, you don't need to worry about this."
"I've already bought a lot of resources, and I've already applied for a third-tier Genius Loan."
"In a few days, the money will be sent over."
"As for the air conditioners, if I buy them a day earlier, you can enjoy them a day earlier."
"Don't feel burdened. This is just the beginning. Our family's life will get better and better."
"..."
...
A few minutes later.
After convincing his parents, Lin Qi returned to his own bedroom. Due to the cold air from the living room air conditioner blowing over, the room was also filled with cool air.
"Having an air conditioner is indeed comfortable!"
After sighing, Lin Qi put down his backpack, took a Qi and Blood capsule, and continued to practice his stance.
He had come back an hour earlier today, so he still had to do extra training.
"I've finally done something for the family."
Having solved one of the family's difficulties, Lin Qi felt full of motivation.
"From childhood to now, in this family, it's always been Mom and Dad who have been giving. I have never done anything for this family."
"They've worked too hard, and they've given too much for me."
"Now I can finally help."
As a transmigrator, although his parents hadn't told him about the family's situation for fear of affecting his studies, he had already guessed it from various pieces of information.
Not only did his family owe his uncle a large sum of money, but they had also taken out a large loan. His dad hadn't told him, but it was definitely not a small amount.
And his mom Fang Huiyi's illness was getting more and more serious, requiring more money.
The family's income was already not enough to cover their expenses.
Thankfully, his Genius Loan application was about to be approved.
This was just the beginning. In the future, he would earn more money.
He had worked hard for so many years; it was time for him to carry this family.
Although there was immense external pressure, Lin Qi had strong motivation.
"Next, my short-term goals are also very clear. When the Genius Loan comes through, I will focus all my efforts on increasing my Qi and Blood value and spearmanship."
"In the Tianhai City joint monthly exam, I will enter the top thirty of the grade at No. 2 High and obtain an independent martial arts room."
"The long-term goal is to work hard to improve my ranking, display my talent, apply for more Genius Loans, pay off the family's loans, and cure my mom, Fang Huiyi."
After clarifying his goals, Lin Qi devoted himself completely to his stance practice.
...
Martial Arts Education Bureau.
It was a huge, square building, blue and white all over, with a multi-story structure. Each floor had streamlined curves connecting them, creating a sense of dynamic beauty.
In a modern office within the building, the walls were covered with images of martial arts weapons like sabers, swords, and spears. Holographic projections appeared one by one in the air.
Among them were two figures, separated in different areas, sliding their fingers. The projected forms in the air were constantly switching.
"It's the third year of high school again. We're going to be busy. As expected, we'll have to work overtime."
"The number of Genius Loan applications is not small. This concerns the future of all the martial arts students, so we have no choice but to work overtime to review them."
"Tianhai No. 2 High, Chen Zichuan and Lin Qi applying for a second-tier Genius Loan is simply wishful thinking."
A woman in her twenties, with exquisite makeup, constantly complained while working.
She suddenly saw two application forms and couldn't help but speak up.
"Tianhai No. 2 High, ranked in the 40s in the grade, and they still want to get a second-tier loan. They're thinking too much. That Jiang Zhiguang, really, he always reports a higher tier every time. At most, this is only worth a third-tier," the woman said with a sneer.
Not far away, another male colleague pulled up the documents to check.
According to the regulations of the Martial Arts Education Bureau, for Genius Loan applications, the third to second tiers were decided by ordinary employees like them, in groups of two, mutually supervising each other.
The final result would then be reviewed a second time by the leadership. Generally, it was just a formality.
As for the first and special tiers, they required personal review by the leadership.
The man had also seen the two application forms at this time. He carefully read through the information.
"There's no problem with Chen Zichuan's third-tier application, but this student, Lin Qi, he has good potential."
"To improve from his grade ranking to the top 50 is very rare."
The female colleague shook her head, firm in her decision:
"I don't think so. Even with such fast improvement, he's still only in the top fifty of the grade."
"And he didn't improve early, he didn't improve late, but he just had to improve when applying. He probably hid his strength."
"According to the regulations on my side, I won't pass him. It's just a third-tier."
Although what the female colleague said had some truth to it, the male colleague subconsciously felt that this Lin Qi truly had talent.
But according to the regulations, a normal pass for the third tier was also not a problem. Doing more could lead to more mistakes; not doing anything wouldn't lead to any mistakes.
Thinking of this, he didn't say anything more and marked the result on the application.
A moment later, in another private office, the leader was a sturdy, somewhat overweight middle-aged man.
At this time, he was in the middle of being busy. After a simple glance at the application result, he stamped it with his approval seal.
...
The time in the third year of high school passed quickly. A week passed in the blink of an eye.
After entering the elite class, many people felt a strong sense of pressure.
Especially in martial arts, each of them was a top student in their class. The intense competitive atmosphere made many become even more diligent.
This day at noon, after lunch.
Lin Qi was in Jiang Tao's martial arts room. It was a spacious room of two hundred square meters.
The floor was covered with soft mats, and the walls were fitted with lockers, weapon cases, a folding bed, a water dispenser...
There was also an independent bathroom and a washing machine. It was completely fine to live in it.
After lunch should have been a time for rest and a nap.
But now, there was a group of people who even used their nap time to practice martial arts.
Lin Qi and Jiang Tao had originally thought the same, until they saw Chen Zichuan still training in the martial arts classroom at noon, and so they also became one of them.
From three training sessions a day, it became four.
Hooo~
After practicing his stance for about ten minutes, Lin Qi stood up, took a Qi and Blood capsule, and then began to brandish his long spear.
"The chant: Mountain-Shattering has its method, the spear's momentum is like thunder, its power shatters a thousand jun, fierce and fearless."
"'Mountain-Shattering Spear Technique' has a thunderous momentum and possesses powerful strength. When executing it, one must have a fierce and fearless aura."
Lin Qi stood firmly in his horse stance, his eyes focused and resolute. He brandished the long spear, kicking up a whistling wind. The tip of the spear glinted with a cold light.
With a forceful shake of the long spear, the shaft of the spear shot out like lightning.
Lin Qi continuously repeated the moves of the "Mountain-Shattering Spear Technique," the key points of the spear technique appearing in his mind.
"Spiraling Break, Soaring Leap, Horizontal Block, Swift Advance..."
He didn't know how many times he had practiced. His arms began to ache and tremble, but his spear technique became more proficient.
At the same time, his whole body was fiery hot, his Qi and Blood surged, clearing the joints in his body.
[Through arduous training, your Qi and Blood value has been enhanced. Qi and Blood +0.1]
[Through continuous training, your proficiency with "Mountain-Shattering Spear Technique" has improved. Spear Technique +2%]
[Through continuous training, your movement technique has improved. Movement Technique +2%]
[Qi and Blood Value: 6.4 → 6.5]
[Spear Technique: First-Order 71% → 77%]
[Movement Technique: First-Order 60% → 68%]
...
Hooo~
Lin Qi brought his form to a close and looked at the data on his panel with much emotion.
In one week, he had improved by leaps and bounds.
His Qi and Blood value had increased by a full 0.3.
His spearmanship had improved from 60% to the current 77% in one go.
His movement technique had also improved by about 10%.
The speed of his progress was terrifyingly fast.
"Teacher Zhang said that for a period of time after just learning a Black Iron-level manual, the improvement in one's realm is the fastest. The better the foundation, the faster the improvement."
"After this period passes, the speed will slow down. Now I'm already experiencing the feeling of rapid improvement."
Lin Qi put down the long spear. A sharp pain came from his hand. He saw that his calloused palm was now covered in bloody marks.
The improvement in his spearmanship was not without a price. The long hours of training had caused the skin on his palms to be worn away again.
Lin Qi washed his hands with practiced ease, then took out some ointment and applied it to his palms.
Hiss~
The burning pain made his face twitch slightly. Finally, he wrapped it with a bandage and waited for it to heal on its own.
"Qi-ge, this week has been really tiring, but I feel the improvement has been huge too."
Jiang Tao had also finished his training at this time. He sat next to him, wiping his sweat and drinking a sports drink. The strong smell of sweat evaporated in the space.
"Teacher Zhang is indeed stronger than 'Wu De'. Not only is his teaching ability strong, but he's also willing to guide us."
Lin Qi nodded. In one week, they had gotten to know Zhang Cheng a little.
As expected of a martial arts teacher who could be in charge of the elite class, his teaching ability was indeed very strong.
"Alright, it's time to go to class. Remember to drink some coffee, otherwise it's easy to get drowsy."
Lin Qi instructed, while also dragging his tired body to prepare to wash up and then go to class.
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(End of this chapter)