Among the sixty-six question boards, half of them weren’t even science subjects to begin with. And since Jing Pei only solved science problems, it meant she had already repeatedly farmed the same few boards over and over again.

The moment the teachers replaced a question with a new one, she would immediately come over and solve it.

As soon as they replaced it again, she would solve it again.

Not a single science problem could survive on the boards for more than an hour.

The science teachers she had targeted were being forced to rack their brains nonstop to create new problems. And now, after the teacher behind this particular board had genuinely run out of difficult questions to give, she actually had the audacity to provoke them with a “That’s it?”

This was provocation, right?

It was definitely provocation!!!

The surrounding students made all kinds of noises that sounded like their worldviews had been violently shattered and their knees were about to hit the ground.

“S-so cool…”

“A terrifying powerhouse indeed!”

“She actually still hasn’t had enough!”

“My stomach’s starving, but this is too exciting. I don’t want to leave for lunch…”

Every teacher employed by Twelve Zodiac Academy had once been an academic ace praised by classmates in their student days. Every single one of them had been an outstanding science prodigy.

How could they possibly tolerate this?!

Immediately, they gathered together in the office to jointly create problems.

Damn it.

They refused to believe they couldn’t stump her.

This worked out perfectly. Because of the teachers joining forces, Jing Pei no longer needed to ride the school’s little electric scooter all over campus from board to board.

Now she could simply stand in front of this one and wait for new questions.

Soon, another mathematics problem gradually appeared on the whiteboard.

Jing Pei stared at it for a while and sighed.

How about that?!

Stumped now, aren’t you?!

Inside the office, the teachers all revealed villainous, ferocious grins.

“I hope you can come up with more original and more difficult problems,” Jing Pei complained. “I know I’m trying to grind points, but solving questions with no challenge at all is really boring.”

She genuinely loved solving science problems. But if they were too easy, she immediately lost all interest.

Back when she was a student, she would frequently hand in blank exam papers, constantly bouncing between ranking first in the entire grade and ranking dead last.

But now that she needed points, she could only endure the boredom and keep solving the easy ones.

Jing Pei picked up the pen again with an expression that looked deeply unwilling.

“Ahhh!” The teachers collectively collapsed backward with anguished cries, as though they were about to pass out on the spot.

Just as Jing Pei finished solving the problem and was about to begin squeezing the nearly dried-up brains of the teachers once more, a man stepped out from the crowd.

“Student Long Jin, why don’t you take a break first?” he said helplessly.

Teacher Wen, good job!

Inside the office, the teachers roared internally. They desperately needed time for their brains to cool down.

Jing Pei turned around.

The man carried an elegant, scholarly aura. He looked around thirty years old. His warm, fluffy brown hair, paired with an ordinary blue shirt and black trousers, somehow didn’t look plain on him at all. Instead, he gave off the impression of a clean scent of soapberries lingering in the air.

“My name is Wen Yuxian. I teach history to the seventh years.” He continued, “How about I take you to the cafeteria for lunch? Rest a little, then come back to continue solving questions. Even as an atavist, skipping meals regularly is still bad for your stomach.”

Wen Yuxian?

Jing Pei’s attention finally detached itself from the excitement of solving problems. She stared at him for several seconds with an unreadable expression before narrowing her eyes slightly in a smile.

“Then I’ll trouble you, Teacher Wen.”

Interesting.

As expected, Twelve Zodiac Academy was full of surprises everywhere.

In any case, waiting around was still waiting around. She might as well eat first and let the teachers take their time coming up with more interesting questions.

Only then did the surrounding crowd finally begin dispersing.

Wen Yuxian led Jing Pei toward the nearest cafeteria while asking in a serious yet worried tone, “Ah Jin… do you seriously only excel at certain subjects?”

He was an extremely approachable person. Even though they had only just met, hearing him use such a familiar form of address didn’t feel offensive or uncomfortable at all. Instead, it naturally made people feel closer to him.

Jing Pei replied, “I think I’m okay?”

Wen Yuxian asked, “Then how about trying the questions on my board this afternoon?”

Jing Pei smiled. “I refuse.”

…

The nearest cafeteria belonged to the Atavist Division.

Although Twelve Zodiac Academy had two divisions, the boundary between them wasn’t actually very strict. Some classes were shared by students from both divisions, so people generally just ate at whichever cafeteria was closest. There were no rules forbidding students from wandering around.

It was currently the busiest lunch hour.

The cafeteria buzzed noisily with activity. Long lines formed in front of every food stall, filled with both atavists and ordinary humans.

The second floor served more expensive buffet-style food and therefore had far fewer people than the first floor.

The third floor was even quieter, almost as though it were some kind of forbidden zone ordinary people couldn’t casually enter.

The moment Wen Yuxian brought Jing Pei inside, they immediately attracted attention.

Heads turned one after another. Even students on the second floor ran out and leaned over the railings to look downstairs.

“I’ll treat you to the buffet,” Wen Yuxian said.

He hoped Jing Pei wouldn’t be disturbed and could properly relax for a bit. The second floor was much quieter.

“Thank you, Teacher Wen.”

The second floor truly was much calmer.

Just after they selected a table and sat down, another group of boys and girls came upstairs.

Every single one of them possessed extraordinary looks and bearing, standing out sharply from ordinary people.

Especially the boy leading the group.

His appearance was strikingly sharp and beautiful. The black shirt hanging loosely and lazily on his body only made his skin appear even paler, almost glowing with cold light. As he walked, he casually snapped a Rubik’s Cube around in his hands, solving four sides in only a few swift motions.

The instant they came upstairs, every bit of attention that had originally been focused on Jing Pei shifted toward them instead.

Even the conversations around them paused.

But very quickly, people on the second floor began looking back toward Jing Pei again.

Because—

Long Ling was among that group.

That group seemed completely uninterested in either the people or the scenery on the second floor. They headed straight for the third floor without even glancing at Jing Pei.

Only Long Ling noticed her, slowing to a stop.

Her expression looked hesitant, as though she wanted to speak but didn’t know how. She lingered uncertainly in place. A boy who had already walked two steps ahead noticed she hadn’t followed and turned around—

Then spotted Jing Pei.

Zhou Qian frowned slightly. Without a word, he walked back down, grabbed Long Ling by the wrist, and pulled her away.

Long Ling seemed to make up her mind as well. Lowering her eyes, she withdrew her gaze and followed him upstairs to the third floor.

That posture of hers made people subconsciously feel that she was experiencing many complicated yet fundamentally kind emotions inside, automatically interpreting her intentions for her.

That’s right.

She probably felt that it would be best for both of them to simply live their own lives peacefully. There was no need to deliberately speak to each other or force some awkward “sisterly” interaction between them.

“Honestly, that’s pretty good. They’re both innocent victims anyway. Neither owes the other anything—it’s all that scumbag Long Ankang’s fault.”

“I just hope Long Jin can be as clear-headed as Long Ling. If she wants to blame someone, blame the scumbag father. Girls shouldn’t make things difficult for other girls.”

“Long Ling’s amazing. She actually got into that circle. Those people didn’t even spare Long Jin a glance.”

“She must’ve charmed them with her personal charisma during the Changhai Prefecture trip.”

Quite a few people immediately began whispering excitedly among themselves.

Naturally, they couldn’t see the trace of smug satisfaction flashing through Long Ling’s eyes.

Those people hadn’t even looked at Long Jin.

So what if Long Jin stole the spotlight academically?

Did she really think she could enter their circle just by doing that?

Impossible.

Long Ling had worked desperately hard and schemed endlessly before finally squeezing her way into that world. There was no way Long Jin could enter it so easily.

Jing Pei calmly withdrew her gaze as well.

This truly was Long Ling’s style.

She wasn’t some brainless vicious supporting villain who underestimated opponents and foolishly confronted them head-on. By proactively taking on this retreating posture, she ensured that if Jing Pei made the slightest move against her, everyone would automatically think Jing Pei was deliberately targeting Long Ling.

At that moment, Wen Yuxian had just finished paying at the counter and was about to call Jing Pei over to pick out food when a girl with twin ponytails came upstairs.

She had been about to head for the third floor when she suddenly sensed something and instantly turned her head.

The moment she saw Wen Yuxian, delight immediately bloomed across her spoiled-looking face, her arrogant eyes sparkling brightly.

“Teacher Wen~”

She abruptly changed direction and happily ran over.

Then, the instant she noticed Jing Pei standing beside him, her smile vanished. Crossing her arms, she glared at Jing Pei defensively.

“Long Jin! Why are you together with Teacher Wen?!”

Jing Pei glanced at her iconic twin ponytails and, judging from her attitude toward Wen Yuxian, already knew exactly who she was.

Still, she politely went through the motions.

“And who are you?”

The girl immediately flared up, brows shooting upward furiously.

“You don’t even know who I am? Are you looking down on me?!”

Jing Pei instantly corrected herself.

“Then you must be Tang Qiaoqiao—the cutest student in the whole school and Teacher Wen’s favorite.”

“W-What?! You actually know? That’s right, I am Teacher Wen’s favorite, Tang Qiaoqiao!”

The spoiled girl’s cheeks instantly turned red. Her brain short-circuited on the spot, making her completely forget that she had originally come over looking to pick a fight with Jing Pei.

“Would Qiaoqiao like to have lunch with us?” Jing Pei asked with a smile.

By the time Tang Qiaoqiao snapped back to her senses, she was already sitting beside Jing Pei, poking at a meatball with her fork.

…Huh?

Something feels wrong.

This scheming dragon!

…But Teacher Wen is sitting right across from me, so fine, I’ll let it go for now.

Pink little hearts practically floated off Tang Qiaoqiao’s body as she continuously tried to share dishes she liked with Wen Yuxian.

Wen Yuxian looked utterly helpless, firmly but gently pushing back every dish she attempted to place into his bowl.

Meanwhile, Jing Pei quietly ate while thoroughly enjoying the push-and-pull between them.

Tang Qiaoqiao really did love Wen Yuxian.

So when he killed her in the future…

She must have been absolutely devastated.