Pursued...?
A girl dropping from the sky, a sudden cry for help—it felt like the bizarre prelude to shattering an otherwise peaceful, ordinary life.
A mysterious girl stuck on a balcony railing like laundry on a drying rack claims she is being hunted down by an ultimate weapon from an alien planet, then asks if you're willing to walk to hell with her.
Usually, what followed would be some unlucky guy getting swept up into the anomaly and embarking on a magnificent adventure where magic and daily life intersected, drifting further and further from a mundane existence.
Then again, another branching path would be sending the lunatic to a psychiatric hospital for counseling, thereby narrowly preserving one's life as bland and peaceful as plain boiled water.
—Now, wasn't this a stroke of luck?
When it came to psychological counseling, he truly was hopeless.
But when it came to subjugating demons and catching ghosts, he happened to have strength and methods in spades!
No one understood anomalies better than Bai Zhou!
—In fact, one could even say it had fallen right into his lap.
After all, the entire purpose of coming to this school was for an "anomaly"!
"What happened?"
Bai Zhou instantly sprang up from his office chair and strode eagerly to the door, peering through the window into the corridor outside.
Yet the hallway was utterly empty.
"Who's hunting you down?"
Bai Zhou asked, "Don't be afraid. The... the teacher is here!"
As he spoke, he clenched his fists.
Looking as though her soul had barely returned to her body, Class Monitor Fang leaned against the doorframe, panting heavily. "It's... the Exam King!"
With utter seriousness, she offered a completely baffling answer.
"?"
"What kind of thing is that?" Bai Zhou froze.
He had imagined all sorts of replies—demons, bizarrely dressed sorcerers, mysterious secret societies, or even aliens would have made sense.
—But what on earth was an Exam King?
A cheating king of the examination hall who murdered people with pencils, folded scratch paper into origami cranes to ride through the air, and wielded rulers and erasers as magical artifacts?
Had this kid studied herself silly?
"This Exam King of yours... can he bless you so you don't fail exams?"
Sizing her up with a skeptical gaze, Bai Zhou tested the waters.
"Probably not."
Class Monitor Fang shook her head. Seeing that Bai Zhou didn't seem to believe her, an urgent look surfaced on her face. "But he's really hunting me down! You have to believe me, Teacher!"
"..."
Seeing this, Bai Zhou slowly dropped his playful expression and grew serious.
As an Extraordinary in this bizarre and mystical world, he could not turn a blind eye to a student's plea for help concerning an "anomaly."
Better to believe it existed than assume it didn't.
Bai Zhou carefully scrutinized the area outside the window, nudging his spirituality to sense any nearby spiritual traces.
He came up empty.
The corridor beyond the door was dead silent. There was neither a human shadow nor a ghostly specter.
Unlike usual, this time his spirituality gave him not the slightest premonition of danger.
"So..."
"Where is this Exam King? I don't seem to see anyone."
Bai Zhou turned to look at the girl, inquiring in a quiet voice while appraising her closely.
Hearing him, the girl secretly peeked out the window. Only after a moment did she nod with a convincing air. "He left! It looks like he was scared away by you, Teacher!"
"Thank you, Teacher, I'm saved! Goodbye, Teacher—"
With that, the child opened the office door and turned on her heel to slip away.
—And then, she was called right back by Bai Zhou, whose face was covered in question marks.
"Hold on a second. Just hold on!"
Bai Zhou halted Class Monitor Fang, eyeing her fidgety, nervous demeanor with a thoughtful squint.
As expected—he had been duped, hadn't he?
What a devious middle schooler! So young, yet full of lies!
"What's the rush to leave?"
"Did you make up this whole excuse just to skip military training?"
Straightening his face, "Zhou Ya's" plain, youthful features took on the stern dignity of a teacher. "Is this so-called Exam King something you made up too?"
"No! I'm just rushing back to join military training!"
Class Monitor Fang panicked instantly, hurriedly defending herself, "I really ran into him today! The Exam King! It's a campus urban legend lots of people have heard of!"
"A campus urban legend..." Bai Zhou's brows furrowed abruptly, his expression turning solemn. "Tell me in detail?"
Hearing this, Class Monitor Fang shrank her neck back slightly and began to recount with a hint of fear.
It turned out that at Yuanmeng Middle School, there had always been an urban legend.
His name was the Exam King, and whenever exam season approached, he would appear.
"The ultimate overachiever among grinders, literally an embodiment of anxiety made flesh,"
Class Monitor Fang evaluated.
At first, someone saw him at three in the morning in a corner of the cafeteria, studying while cramming ink-soaked steamed buns into his mouth until his entire face was smeared black.
Later, another student saw him by the library window at four in the morning, tying one end of a rope to his hair and the other to the ceiling beam to keep from dozing off while studying.
Even later, during evening self-study, a student discovered a hole had somehow appeared in the adjacent wall. Peeking out through the opening, they saw a figure in the dark reciting and studying by the light stolen through the chiseled hole.
As for his existence, no one remembered what he actually looked like. Even his gender was unknown, to say nothing of his grade or name.
Yet the students swore up and down that he truly existed, and these stories were passed down by word of mouth through each class of students.
People referred to him with deep awe as the "Grind King Who Does Not Exist" and the "Exam King."
Because he was like a phantom spawned by exam season, spreading the dreadful anxiety of *it's over, it's over, you're out of time.*
Legend had it that anyone who laid eyes on him would be filled with profound guilt and remorse over their own lack of effort and slacking off, plunging into panic over the upcoming exams while studying like their life depended on it.
Class Monitor Fang had seen this legend on the school forum long ago, but she had always taken it with a grain of salt.
Until today.
On her way to the restroom, she had somehow lost her way in a small grove of trees.
Ahead stood a student in a school uniform, standing beneath the shade of the trees with their head lowered, motionless, reading a book.
As she walked past him, a sheet of study materials dropped right at Class Monitor Fang's feet.
"Excuse me, your study materials..."
The moment Class Monitor Fang picked it up to help, she noticed something abnormal about it.
Because on that paper was clearly nothing more than a childish drawing.
Written on it was Class Monitor Fang's own name.
—It looked like a self-portrait of her future self that Class Monitor Fang had drawn back in kindergarten.
On the back were crooked, large characters written in her mother's handwriting on her behalf:
—"Always Number One!"
In that single instant.
A colossal wave of anxiety and guilt crashed over her without warning, flooding Class Monitor Fang's heart.
And then she clearly saw the other person's face—
A face without any features at all!
"A ghost!"
With a shriek, Class Monitor Fang fled that grove, bolting toward the nearest teaching building and instinctively dashing into the very first office she saw.
—A teacher was usually the figure a student subconsciously felt they could rely on.
Yet one had to admit, this Class Monitor Fang had indeed found the right person.
"A student wearing the Yuanmeng uniform with no face?"
Bai Zhou frowned, suddenly believing Class Monitor Fang's words.
Because he had indeed seen beings like that before.
At the Yuanmeng Middle School in the Reflected Ruin Realm, there wasn't just one or two such students—there were hundreds lined up in massive queues.
Thinking carefully about it, those people really had been quite "fond of studying."
Still, it couldn't be that this "Exam King" had actually run out of the Reflected Ruin Realm, could it?
"So, put that way, he wasn't actually chasing you?"
"You ran here all on your own."
Bai Zhou summarized the information Class Monitor Fang had provided.
"And any student at Yuanmeng Middle School might run into him when exams draw near, right?"
"...More or less?"
Watching Bai Zhou analyze the situation with utter seriousness, Student Fang seemed greatly surprised. "Teacher, do you really believe what I said?"
Normally, teachers wouldn't believe such nonsense from students.
Considering this was a psychological counseling room, she had already braced herself for him treating her like she had a mental illness.
Yet, Bai Zhou's earnestness and gravity did not appear feigned in the slightest.
"I believe you. I don't see any reason for you to make up a story like this just to trick a stranger like me,"
Bai Zhou nodded.
"What puzzles me, though, is..."
"If this 'Exam King' only makes the people who meet him study hard, isn't he pretty harmless? In fact, he might even be a pretty good urban legend."
Student Fang gave a sheepish smile. "...I hear that's what all the teachers who know about the 'Exam King' say."
Bai Zhou took a deep, lingering look at the shifty-eyed Class Monitor Fang.
Whether the "Exam King" actually existed remained questionable.
If such an urban legend had truly persisted in a top key school for so long, it would have alerted the authorities ages ago.
Unless it didn't exist, or had always been harmless.
Even so, having come specifically to investigate the school, Bai Zhou wasn't about to abandon this lead easily.
"I'm willing to believe you, kid."
In the end, looking at Class Monitor Fang, Bai Zhou said, "Which class are you in? If you run into similar trouble later, you can come find me anytime."
"To tell you the truth, when it comes to urban legends, I'm actually pretty interested myself."
"If you feel any discomfort going forward, feel free to drop by here anytime!"
At this moment,
this utterly ordinary new teacher
cast an exceptionally towering figure in the eyes of the still tender Class Monitor Fang.
...Because Class Monitor Fang still had to rush back to her military training, the matter came to a temporary close.
Bai Zhou resolved to keep a close eye on this Class Monitor Fang.
Naturally, Bai Zhou had also learned her name and background.
Seventh Grade, Class 3, Class Monitor Fang Xiaoyan.
—As expected, she definitely knew Fang Xiaoxia!
Even their names were so alike, and their facial features shared such a resemblance...
Could they be sisters?
Only, one was precocious, smart, and a class monitor.
The other was a shut-in slacker who loved playing video games.
The disparity was so vast that one couldn't help wondering what kind of sisters they could possibly be...
Afterward,
Bai Zhou went to the small grove Fang Xiaoyan had mentioned.
Forget the "Exam King"—he didn't even see a scrap of scratch paper.
Instead, he stumbled across a young middle-school couple on a secret date. They hadn't even dared to hold hands, merely chatting there.
When they ran into Bai Zhou walking past with a stern face while clutching his thermos, the kids were frightened into trembling like quails, only to be scolded by Bai Zhou into scurrying away.
—Puppy love was an absolute forbidden zone!
Dating at such a young age, only to have to wait until they died to marry—what an excruciatingly long wait that must be.
Bai Zhou simply couldn't understand it.
Besides...
Your teacher is still single, so how dare you two be so sweet together?
This would not stand!
Later, Bai Zhou asked around among the staff.
He discovered that the legend of the "Exam King" was not made up.
Only, unlike the exaggerating students, the teachers held a rather optimistic view of the "Exam King's" existence.
"If an Exam King truly exists in this world, he could only exist at our Yuanmeng Middle School, where our rate of admission to key high schools is one hundred percent."
"If he can make the students study diligently so they have a bright future ahead of them, forget the 'Exam King' being fake—I'd be thrilled if a dozen more Exam Kings showed up!"
Those were the Dean of Academic Affairs' exact words.
In his view, the legend of the "Exam King" was merely a reflection of the students' fear of exams and excessive academic stress.
"That's where your duty as a counselor lies, Teacher Zhou. Your task is actually quite demanding."
When saying this, the dean's expression was grave.
"Adolescents are sensitive and prone to wild fancies. You must guide and enlighten them well."
"If you run into any problems at work, you can come to me anytime."
"...I understand."
After that, Bai Zhou strolled around the school once more.
However, he found nothing out of the ordinary.
"The Exam King..."
Muttering the title under his breath, Bai Zhou returned to his office.
Perhaps the dean was right?
Maybe the so-called "Exam King" was truly just a reflection of the students' psychological state.
It did not truly exist, yet it genuinely harmed the students' mental health.
Thinking of it this way, Bai Zhou felt deeply ashamed.
As an Extraordinary, upon hearing of a campus urban legend, his first reaction was naturally to strike hard with extraordinary might.
Yet because of that, he had forgotten his duties as a psychological counselor.
Faced with Class Monitor Fang's mental pressure, not only had he failed to provide proper talk therapy...
He had instead issued a mysterious invitation straight out of an adventure novel: "Let's take on the adventure together, leave it to me."
—Utter dereliction of duty!
Next time they met, he would try some proper talk therapy.
...With that thought, Bai Zhou reopened *Eight Thousand Questions of Naughty Black Cat* before him.
Seizing every spare second to study—who wasn't an overachieving grinder?
Skipping over the boring general life knowledge for now, Bai Zhou followed the table of contents and read through the history and mythology section with keen interest.
When he came across familiar content, Bai Zhou's interest flared, his spirits lifting.
Byzantine?
Irene's Byzantine?
Rome? Byzantine was Rome?
Blinking his clear eyes, Bai Zhou fell into thought.
Zhuluoji...
*Zhu Luo*, *Zhu Luo*...
Could that mean... the era of slaying Rome?
...Was that it?
Before he knew it, the lunch break had passed.
As the class bell rang across the campus, Bai Zhou closed the book.
Picking up the thermal mug on his desk, having completely integrated into his persona, Bai Zhou began another carpet-search patrol across campus, attempting to spot any subtle traces of an anomaly.
Be it an Exam King, a Problem-Solving Marquis, or a Recitation General... as long as it dared show its head, he would bring it to justice immediately!
Without realizing it, Bai Zhou walked over near the sports field and saw a crowd of students undergoing military training.
Though it was early autumn, the blazing sun still made the students suffer, their faces dripping with sweat.
Passing by row after row of formations, Bai Zhou followed the signs to find the Seventh Grade, Class 3 training block.
Yet he did not see Fang Xiaoyan anywhere in the ranks.
This little student... couldn't have skipped class again, could she?
—You're the class monitor!
Just then, the drill instructor barked the command for a temporary break.
"Ten-minute break! Don't forget to drink water!"
Standing in the distance, Bai Zhou waved to a student from afar.
The student blinked, then came jogging over in a flash.
—Inside a school, the identity of a teacher was overwhelmingly effective.
And if he happened to be holding a thermal mug?
That made Bai Zhou look not just like an ordinary teacher, but like a dean or an even higher-ranking school leader!
"Teacher, who are you looking for?"
A burly student with a crew cut jogged up, asking smartly.
Mulling over his wording, Bai Zhou spoke:
"Hello, student."
"This is Class 3, right? Is Fang Xiaoyan from your class not here?"
"Fang Xiao... yan?"
The crew-cut boy looked thickheaded, as if his brain hadn't processed it.
The semester had just begun, so it was normal not to remember a classmate's name clearly. Bai Zhou prompted him:
"—Your class monitor."
Yet the crew-cut boy's expression grew even more bewildered.
"...Teacher, do you think there's a chance..."
Studying Teacher Bai Zhou's face, he ventured cautiously:
"...that our class doesn't have a student named Fang Xiaoyan at all?"
"And besides..."
He pointed to himself, speaking with a touch of uncertainty:
"—I'm the class monitor of Class 3!"
"?"
Bai Zhou blinked.
You're the class monitor of Class 3?
Then who was Fang Xiaoyan?
...What did he mean by there being no such student as Fang Xiaoyan?
As if catching up with the reality only after the fact—
Bai Zhou froze where he stood.
Even though he stood under the scorching, blazing sun,
an icy chill shot straight up his spine into his brain.
Chapter 83