Chapter 16: Even a Sheet of Toilet Paper and a Pair of Underwear Have Their Uses

“Wanxing, it’s finally our turn. Come on, come on.”

“I can’t wait anymore.”

After watching one person after another awaken their talents, Gu Tingting had long since grown unbearably impatient.

The moment she heard her number called, she immediately grabbed Lin Wanxing’s hand and hurried toward the Awakening Platform.

As she passed by Fang Qingchen, Lin Wanxing gave him a deep look.

Yet she discovered that he was still staring intently at his phone.

He showed absolutely no concern for the fact that she was about to step onto the platform and awaken her talent.

She bit her lip lightly.

[Fang Qingchen, I hope you’ll still be this calm after I awaken my talent.]

Below the stage—

“Qingchen, the school belle Lin is about to awaken. Aren’t you even going to look?”

“Aren’t you curious what kind of talent she’ll get?”

“You’re way too calm.”

“You’ve simped for her for so long the progress bar was practically full, and now you’ve really stopped? I don’t believe it!”

Beside Fang Qingchen, Li Jian—nicknamed “Skinny Monkey,” who sat behind him—spoke with a nervous expression.

Li Jian’s physical fitness was only average, enough to rank around twentieth in the class.

But just now, he had awakened a support-type D-rank talent: Perception.

It allowed him to sense the traces of mutated beasts. It was relatively rare, making him a special type of talent.

He was basically guaranteed a spot in the martial arts elite class.

As one of Fang Qingchen’s few friends, he posed a soul-searching question.

Hearing him speak, Fang Qingchen lifted his head from his phone and looked at Li Jian seriously.

Of course he wasn’t curious.

He had already experienced this scene once in his previous life.

Who awakened what kind of talent—it was practically an open-book exam to him. He knew it all clearly.

Still, the label of hopeless simp was stuck to him far too firmly.

There was no way the people around him would change their opinion of him so quickly.

Nor did Fang Qingchen want to explain too much.

So he could only give an ambiguous answer.

“Mm... I guess I’m not simping anymore.”

“Hey! That’s more like it!”

“Brother, you scared me. I thought you’d switched accounts or something.”

Li Jian revealed an expression of just as I thought and gave Fang Qingchen’s shoulder a hard slap.

Fang Qingchen did not hold back either. He chopped a hand into Li Jian’s side.

“Jianzi, your martial talent is actually pretty good. You should make the most of it.”

The moment he heard that, Li Jian’s face fell at once.

“A D-rank counts as good?”

“My Perception talent can supposedly detect mutated beasts within a ten-kilometer radius, but what’s the point?”

“How could that possibly compare to the military’s latest super radar?”

“Besides, mutated beasts are huge. At a distance of ten kilometers, even a blind man could see them. I’m only getting any attention because the talent itself is rare.”

He sounded a little dejected.

Fang Qingchen patted him on the shoulder and comforted him.

“Don’t worry. Even a sheet of toilet paper or a pair of underwear has its use.”

“Your talent won’t be buried.”

“You really know how to comfort people. Thanks a lot!”

But Fang Qingchen was not merely comforting him.

Because just a few years later, as mutated beast assaults became more and more frequent, many variant mutated beasts began to appear, among them a stealth type that could turn invisible and avoid detection by any surveillance equipment.

Because they were completely impossible to warn against, these beasts once caused enormous destruction to human cities.

And it was precisely at that time that martial artists with perception-type talents officially stepped out from the margins and onto the world stage, showing their true value.

While Fang Qingchen was speaking, the awakening of the ten students from Class Seven on the Awakening Platform had already reached its end.

Aside from the six students whose light faded away after failing to awaken any martial talent, the remaining four were successively illuminated by lights of different colors, representing the ranks of their talents.

Aside from the two green lights that represented D-rank and E-rank, a deep blue light actually shone from Gu Tingting’s body!

A C-rank martial talent!

Gu Tingting was so overwhelmed with joy that her face nearly twisted out of control.

Tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Waaaah!”

“I finally made it through!”

“I am me. My name is Gu Tingting—not somebody’s little follower!”

At that moment, her back straightened.

She turned her face, ready to say the things she had always wanted to say, but never dared to say, to Lin Wanxing beside her on the Awakening Platform.

But the instant she turned her head, a dazzling purple light burst before her eyes.

It was so bright that she could barely keep them open!

[Wha... how is this possible!]

She instinctively raised a hand to shield her eyes.

Yet through the gaps between her fingers, she could still see clearly—

Lin Wanxing was bathed in purple light, her hair flying around her like a goddess herself.

So dazzling. So blinding!

An A-rank martial talent!

At the same time, on the leadership platform, Chen Guorong, Elder Lin, and the others had all their attention drawn to this purple radiance as well.

“A second A-rank talent!”

“Hahaha! It looks like the title of Linjiang City’s number one martial high school should finally go to our No. 7 High this year!”

“The No. 1 High will definitely be surpassed by the No. 7 High under my leadership!”

Chen Guorong was so pleased with himself he looked like some smug dragon king.

Even Elder Lin showed astonishment.

He had attended so many talent awakening ceremonies, yet this was the first time he had ever seen two A-rank martial talents appear in the same event.

Today had truly broadened his horizons.

He was inwardly glad that he had come.

Even someone in his position still needed achievements to support his standing.

And now, wasn’t this achievement arriving right before him?

“Very good. No. 7 High truly is a place of outstanding talents. These young ones have done well.”

“Old Chen, once I get back, I’ll handle the matter of increasing your school’s teaching funds.”

“I believe that after seeing today’s awakening ceremony, the province won’t have any objections either.”

He pointed toward the sky as he spoke with a smile.

Above them, the air was already filled with flying machines from major television stations and media outlets.

The reporters standing atop them were giving passionate live commentary and real-time broadcasts.

It could be said that as long as someone awakened an outstanding enough talent, they would immediately become a public sensation.

“Holy shit!”

“Lin Wanxing actually awakened an A-rank talent!”

“This means our school only has one school belle left now—that’s School Belle Lin!”

“Fang Qingchen was right!”

“That bastard really does have a sharp eye for people!”

Once again witnessing the birth of an A-rank talent holder, the students were in an uproar.

So many remarkable figures had emerged from their school.

Naturally, they felt honored as well.

Of course, the happiest person of all was their homeroom teacher, Old Huang.

Her face was trembling with excitement.

One could vaguely make out the shape of her lips as she repeated the same few words over and over.

“It’s settled! The grade director position is settled!”

Even Lu Qingqian, who was always cold and aloof, lifted her head and cast a trace of envious gaze in Lin Wanxing’s direction.

Only Fang Qingchen remained as calm as ever.

“A combat-type A-rank talent: Clone.”

“It’s only so-so. Pretty mediocre. Inferior to ordinary combat-type A-rank talents.”

“It won’t undergo a qualitative transformation unless it evolves into the S-rank talent: Twinsoul.”

His eyes were filled with penetrating insight.

In his previous life, with his help, Lin Wanxing had used a Heavenly Human Crystal to raise her somewhat mediocre A-rank talent straight into an S-rank talent!

She had ascended to the heavens in a single step!

But in this life?

She could keep dreaming.