Have you ever woken up from a nightmare only to find yourself in yet another nightmare?
Lu Sheng currently did.
“Lu Sheng!”
A stern voice rang in his ears like a thunderclap.
Lu Sheng looked up in a daze, his face still lingering with the bewilderment and confusion of having just woken up from sleep.
A middle-aged man on a podium nudged his glasses on the bridge of his nose and glared at him fiercely with a hateful look.
“There are less than 200 days left before the college entrance exams, and instead of focusing on your studies, you have the audacity to sleep in class?”
“With your grades, after graduation, you may not even be offered to work on a construction site!”
“Do you have any idea what the minimum Blood Qi Value requirement for cement workers in construction sites is now?”
“0.8! Has your Blood Qi Value reached 0.8?!”
Lu Sheng lowered his head, rubbing his puffy temples while obediently listening to the class teacher's scolding.
A little fatty sitting on his left-hand side secretly turned his head and looked at him.
“Did you have another nightmare?”
Lu Sheng nodded, without speaking, but his eyes were filled with a strong sense of helplessness.
He had been dreaming the same dream for the last three days consecutively and very often.
Lu Sheng wasn't able to describe the dream, but he could only remember that the scenery in the dream was extremely dilapidated, desolate and depressing.
He stood bewildered on top of a wasteland with monsters roaming everywhere…
It was a nightmare.
Lu Sheng was absolutely certain of it.
Because after experiencing this dream, he becomes very drowsy, and his sleep quality too was abysmal.
Despite sleeping for more than a dozen hours a day, his body's state was the same as if he had suffered from insomnia continuously.
So much so that during the past three days, Lu Sheng's Blood Qi Value had decreased by 0.02!
0.02…
How many pills will be needed to be consumed, and how many days of hard work will it take to make up for it?
Lu Sheng was in a terrible mood.
— — —
After school, Lu Sheng lethargically walked out of school carrying his bag.
At that moment, someone came from behind, calling his name and blocked his path.
“Lu Sheng, how about going to a net cafe?”
It was the little fatty in the classroom earlier.
His name was Liu Qiming, and he could be considered as one of Lu Sheng's very few friends.
Faced with Liu Qiming's invitation, Lu Sheng shook his head.
“No, I won't come, I am going home.”
“Going home so early? It's not like your style. Let's go to the net cafe, I'll pay for all the drinks and internet fees today.”
Liu Qiming patted his chest and invited earnestly.
But Lu Sheng still shook his head and explained, “I really don't feel like going, I want to go home early and make up for my lack of sleep.”
“You slept all day in class today, but you're still sleepy?”
Liu Qiming had an exaggerated expression on his face.
Lu Sheng didn't bother to explain, he waved his hand and started walking forward.
Liu Qiming intended on persuading him again, however, several boys dashed over right then.
“Liu Qiming, are you coming to the net cafe or not?”
“Coming, coming, right away!”
Liu Qiming looked at Lu Sheng one last time and didn't say anything else, leaving Lu Sheng behind to run towards the other boys.
Lu Sheng watched Liu Qiming leaving from behind, as students in black and blue school uniforms passed by him on both sides.
They were rushing towards the school's entrance, dispersing rapidly as they neared, like a muddy river flowing past the hustle and bustle.
Whew-
Lu Sheng let out a soft sigh as thoughts began to churn in his mind.
He practically forgot that he had been living in this world for almost eighteen years.
Lu Sheng's memories of his previous life were now very vague, and sometimes he even wondered if it was all just a dream.
A dream that he has been having over and over again ever since he was a child.
Similar to the one he keeps on dreaming about recently.
“No home… no car… alone… a white coat… hiking… falling off a cliff… waking up…”
Lu Sheng murmured under his breath one keyword after another, as his eyes gradually grew empty and distant until he recited the last word.
“Crossing…”
That's right, Lu Sheng had crossed over.
In that world of his previous life, there were no martial arts, and there were no monsters that came out of cracks in the earth.
The TV newscasts also didn't broadcast monster attacks or martial arts duels.
What gave the students in school a headache was not the Blood Qi Value, Combat Power Index, or even the Practical Combat Class results, instead it was the endless math, science and foreign language tests.
Sometimes Lu Sheng missed that world because at least it was…
Quiet and peaceful.
Lu Sheng pushed open the door to his home.
He saw his dad, Lu Dahai, laying topless on the armrest of the sofa, while his mother, Zheng Yufen, was applying a plaster, trying to find a suitable spot on Lu Dahai's back.
Lu Sheng noticed his dad's “patched up” back, his eyes ached for a moment, and then he shouted, “I'm home.”
“Are you hungry? Have an apple first, I'll make dinner soon.”
Zheng Yufen said while she was putting the plaster on Lu Dahai's body, as she pressed it into place.
Lu Sheng shook his head and dragged his bag towards his room.
Stopping midway, he turned his head towards the sofa and murmured, “Why don't we go and buy a Qi massage device, that can stimulate the Qi flow, relax and activate the muscles, the massage is also very useful for healing injuries. My classmate's family has one…”
“Hey, where am I injured? I'll be better in a few days. It’ll be better to save the money to buy pills for you…”
Lu Dahai quickly dismissed Lu Sheng's proposal, struggling to turn his head to look at him.
“How is your Blood Qi Value lately? Have you exceeded 0.85 yet? I saw on the news today that the Blood Qi Value for this year's college entrance test undergraduate score line has been increased by 0.01…”
“I know, I'll go back to my room to practice now…”
Hearing this, Lu Sheng's heart clenched, and he fled into his room in a rush.
His heart was too weak.
If Lu Dahai knew that his recent Blood Qi Value had not only not improved, but even decreased, he would immediately leap up from the sofa with his shoe and smack him hard.
— — —